what would you do if only you could

This week I was thrilled to learn that the Narrative Healing Workshop will be back this summer, following a two year pandemic-induced hiatus. This year, we'll be gathering in July at Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, NY. There, I will join a dedicated group of writers, seekers, and healers to explore storytelling as a healing practice. To integrate movement with reflection. To connect silence with solace. 

"Dancing, singing, storytelling, and silence

are the four healing salves."

~Gabrielle Roth~

I have to admit...there's a part of me that wishes I were a presenter at this conference. That I had the wisdom, expertise, and gumption to get up there and lead a meditation, present a topic, or tell a story. If I could, I would give a brief introduction to the practice of meditation, and ask the group to give it a try for a few minutes. With beautiful music playing. I would talk about transformative learning and the role of the "disorienting dilemma" in our lives (see my post from Feb. 6). 

"You are not going to heal

if you keep pretending

you are not hurt."

~unknown~

Then I would tell my story. Why I abandoned the practice of medicine out of fear. Why I bowed out of my marriage after forty-two years. How I lost my faith. What it was that made me question my deeply held beliefs, and the values I had always lived by. How that led me to discover my sacred calling. 

And to act on it.

"It may be that

when we no longer know what to do,

we come to our real work,

and when we no longer know which way to go,

we have begun our real journey."

~Wendell Berry~

Sooner or later, most of us will come up against a dilemma that requires us to re-evaluate our deeply held beliefs in life, to question our assumptions and opinions, and perhaps, to change our minds. Then we will be confronted with the imperative to act on what we have learned in the process, or to betray ourselves if we don't. To neglect our duty to ourselves and others.To trivialize our sacred calling. 

As Stephen Cope puts it:

"Sacred duty is the thing that

if you do not do it, you will feel

a profound sense of self-betrayal."

~Stephen Cope~

~from "The Dharma in Difficult Times"~

This, I believe, is a core concept that healers should understand, and storytellers/writers should embrace. It speaks to our search for truth, and our duty to share it. Which is why conferences like the one I'll be attending in July are so important. Among the people who will be presenting are founder Lisa Weinert, Jamia Wilson, Kim Thai, and Justin Michael Williams, whose bios can be found here .

You don't have to be a health care provider, writer, or storyteller to attend this conference. You don't have to practice yoga or meditate to participate. Think about it. It would be great to see you there!

"If we are artists--

hell, whether or not we're artists--

it is our job, our responsibility,

perhaps even our sacred calling to take

whatever life has given us and make something new, 

something that wouldn't have existed if not for the

fire, the genetic mutation, the sick baby, the accident."

~Dani Shapiro~

And there you have it.

jan