Our Relationships with Books and Authors

I love to read because I learn and get transported to environments I could have only dreamed. I’m definitely one of those folks who finds and author and reads many of that author’s works, like many of you, why mess with success. We read multiple books by the same author, barring a series, because we develop a connection to the author and the author’s style of writing.

This week on my quest to find silk fabric, I was in the car listening to Sirius XM Radio. I like to listen to John Nash and Tim Bennett’s show, “The Focus Group.” This week they were interviewing Erin McHugh, author of, “Like My Mother Always Said.” The three were discussing McHugh’s new book, but that evolved into a discussion of favorite books and why they leave such an impression on our minds and our souls.

John Nash discussed one of his favorite authors who died just after his last work was published. Nash talked about his reluctance to read this book because once it was finished he knew there wouldn’t be any additional books coming down the pike. His statement punctuates the dynamic impression this author made on Nash. It’s a powerful statement about the impact that reading can have on our lives. It also discusses how the stories of others are things we rely on for comfort and enjoyment.

We develop these relationships with authors without them knowing. We have these secret relationships and feel a connection without ever meeting (in most cases) these people in person. We impact others lives without our knowledge. How do you think you impact others with your creative endeavors? What do you like to create that you send into the world to find its own unique place to land?

I’d love to hear about your connection to authors that have impacted your life. Share you experiences in the comments section below and let’s celebrate the creative endeavors of those authors we love to read. For more information about living life following the diagnosis of a chronic or life-threatening illness go to http://www.survivingstrong.com

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Unlimited Potential….Where Does It Lie Within You?

Creativity is like having a well that goes deeper than you could ever imagine. It’s as if every time you think you reach the bottom, a new bottom is developed. We’re creative beings because we’re connected to all the energy in the Universe. It’s that energy that feeds our soul and allows us to developing new stories and art in this world.

When I was in graduate school I had the opportunity to study with amazing people, and to study about amazing people. David Bohm’s experience of silence in groups is quite amazing. In addition Bohm stated, “You have capacities within you that are phenomenal, if you only knew how to release them.” Can you think of a more powerful or challenging statement?

How do you release your potential? We start by telling our stories. We have many places to tell our stories depending on how or why you’re telling your story. Support groups are one place for you to release your story, allowing the release of possibility. When you release your story you can begin to transform your story into other mediums.

If you keep a journal you can refer back to your stories. I have a plethora of journals, notebooks, sticky notes that have ideas and tidbits of my stories. I use these as inspiration for works of art. There is an excitement when I begin to develop a storyline, my storyline. It’s not about the literal story, but the essence of the story that begins to take on a life of its own. There is an experience of cultivation, nurturing and birthing of a piece of art.

Releasing my personal capacity is empowering and gives me the strength to continue on my personal journey to health and healing. It also gives me another way of viewing my past, present, and future. I can unleash different pathways of my own story when I work on themes of what’s to come.

What part of your story and capacities are you looking to release? How do you experience being phenomenal? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below. For more information on health and healing visit, http://www.survivingstrong.com.

Let’s Reframe Old and Warn

I just finished reading “Hidden In Plain View: A secret story of quilts and the Underground Railroad.” Tobin and Dobard examined the history and role that quilts played in helping slaves on their treacherous, dangerous, and life-saving journey to freedom.

I started quilting over twenty years ago and I started as a “traditional” quilter. I bought books and patterns and created quilts that were designed by other quilters. I utilized “contemporary” fabrics, but the patterns were tried and true, and I knew that decades if not centuries of quilters had created these same patterns before me.

Because of the limited resources available to slaves, and freed slaves, it was common for old quilts to be used as batting (the middle layer between the quilt top and backing) for a new quilt. However, what if we took a different view of old quilts? Tobin helps us “reframe” the experience of keeping old quilts.

In the epilogue of the book, Tobin states, “What is old and warn is spiritually textured.” That statement is not only applicable to quilts from the Underground Railroad, but anything that has a history. One example is the cost and value of antique furniture. Individuals have found value in what’s old; it has value.

We find that old things that are “spiritually textured” have a history and a story. Telling stories is the center of our existence. It allows us to convey our experiences and our connection to what transpired in the past. It allows us to feel a part of something greater than ourselves. It gives us a connection to a past we couldn’t know about any other way.

How do we unlock the spiritual mysteries of those quilts (possessions) that are old and worn? What draws us to these items; obviously we are drawn to them for a reason. What is it about the unspoken story that attracts our own stories to meet on the spiritual plane? What do you think about old and warn being spiritually textured?

I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below…thanks for joining me on the journey.