Shirley Hershey Showalter » Fetzer Institute

The Joy of Creation: Our Writer Video of the Day

shirleyhs — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:06:35 +0000

Here’s your creativity vitamin for today from the Fetzer Institute Writer’s Retreat collection: Alison Leuterman, Jenifer Louden, Michael Jones, and Dianne Suess discuss making art. I agree with Alison that making things and joy are intimately connected. Take a few minutes to visit the links above if you enjoy hearing these great voices.

http://www.youtube.com/v/E2AGFrUz6AY?fs=1&hl=en_US%22%3E%3C%2Fparam%3E%3Cparam

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Writer’s Retreat Videos: One-a-Day Vitamins Starting with Naseem Rakha

shirleyhs — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 17:32:25 +0000

Last spring poet Mark Nepo and I gathered a group of artists together at Seasons, the retreat center of The Fetzer Institute. What happened next was magical–solitude and community intertwined for an entire, delicious, week. I described it after it ended in this post. Now the staff at the Institute has posted a series of short videos on the website above. For the next several days, I will embed a new video each day. I’d love to have your comments, and I’m sure the authors would also. Maybe we can induce some of them to come visit!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fv3P16-Kd3I&version=3]

I’ll start with a short clip from Naseem Rakha, author of the great novel The Crying Tree. Here Naseem talks about the human condition. Watch her face as she talks about listening and about honing her skills of observation. These skills apply to the memoir writer as well as the novelist. Leave a comment if you want to see more of these videos or to share a response to Naseem’s powerful presence.

100Memoirs.com Reaches 100 Posts: A Mini-Memoir

shirleyhs — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 15:59:59 +0000

Time for a little history report. My first blog post ever was written for the Fetzer Institute Campaign for Love and Forgiveness website. The subject was the week-long volunteer opportunity I was given to help with Katrina recovery in New Orleans. March 24-April, 3 blog posts appeared, and USA Today published my op-ed article about the experience on March 20, 2008. June 1, 2008, wrote my first blog post on the Santa Barbara Writer’s Conference website, where I learned to upload photos and place links into posts. I wrote 62 posts there and made some writer/blogger friends who are still reading and writing with me.

Blogging in the red chair.

July 30, 2008, was my 60th birthday, and my son Anthony gave me the wonderful gift of setting up this website. On August 9, 2008, I wrote my first post on 100Memoirs.com. Today, ten months later, I am posting #100. Beginning in January I began to be active on fb, which has broadened the readership of this blog. Maybe Twitter will do the same if I can get to the next step of where to do my updates, how to make tiny URLs, and all the other little tricks of the trade.

I have not reviewed 100 memoirs yet, partly because the readers seem to enjoy a different mix of reviews, commentary, and mini-memoir. Following the advice of readers from the last post, however, I will try to start a list on the home page, building to 100 memoirs eventually.

I would never have imagined how much fun blogging would be. Thank you, readers, for your comments, critiques, and words of encouragement. I thrive on them!

A Workshop on Reflective Writing

shirleyhs — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:24:05 +0000

Next Monday I will conduct the first of a series of four 1.5-hour-long workshops at the Fetzer Institute, the organization for which I work. Our founder, John E. Fetzer, believed that we need to be the work in order to do the work. He was a visionary leader who intuited the needs of the future and built many organizations that met those needs. The last and (I like to think) best of these was the Institute, the beneficiary of his estate.

I regret that I never met John Fetzer before he died. But I meet his ideas every day. He loved to learn and to help others learn. He read voraciously and talked with scientists, philosophers, theologians, and ordinary people who had extraordinary experiences. He was especially interested in metaphysics. “Love is the core energy that rules everything,” he wrote in the 1970′s. Our mission today, ” to foster awareness of the power of love and forgiveness in the emerging global community,” is based on his vision.

So how does the founder’s vision connect with the upcoming workshop? First of all, it is just one set of gatherings within the context of our organizational learning philosophy. In the last four years we have offered employees the opportunity to attend workshops on science, spiritual practices, and wellness. This short series will be just one more opportunity for those with an interest to meet with others equally curious.

Secondly, it allows me, a teacher at heart, to practice the art that first called me. One of my mentors and friends, Parker Palmer, has long been involved in the work of the Fetzer Institute. His definition of teaching will guide me: To teach is to create a space in which the community of truth is practiced. Here is his classic text.

I will describe the workshop as I continue to reflect on how to begin it.

Since it is time to go to work, I will conclude and pick up from this point tomorrow. I want to get to work early enough to spend at least a little time in the meditation room, practicing what I hope to live today.