Cathy Warner's Birthday Beauty Bounty and Creative Cravings
SUMMER IS FOR CELEBRATION
The solstice, double-doses of daylight, picnics, parties, vacationing guests, my birthday, library fun... these are just a few of the reasons I love summer. Here are some of my creative activities so far (and it's only mid-July). May they inspire you!
Becoming an Ambassador of Beauty
"Write on. And keep posting the landscapes that testify to your outlook on the world. They are antidotes to the craziness of the world."
These words were part of a birthday wish from a member of my years-ago Santa Cruz writing group. Susan was referring to my Facebook posts, and I'm taking her exhortation to heart.
On the phone with my prayer partner a few days ago, I offered thanks to God for expanding my capacity to appreciate beauty as well as to hold suffering.
I don't have to look far to behold suffering—a constant in the news and as regular as the seasons in most of our lives.
But, thankfully, blessedly, I do not have to look far to behold incredible beauty.
Taking time to notice the natural world sustains me in the struggles, expands my perspective, helps me to dwell in the particular moment, and not in a future of anxiety.
And so, I've added a new page to my website: Hood Canal Beauty, Photos to Sustain the Spirit from the Place I Call Home (since February 2018).
It's my hope that these images will speak louder than a thousand words (or even a haiku), that they may bring each of you and others I don't know (yet?) a moment of respite, a glimpse of joy, and inspiration to appreciate beauty in the midst of all else.
The Summer I Wasn't Attacked By a Shark
Jaws is released the summer I turn fourteen, and my friends and I spend every afternoon bodysurfing and reenacting the young woman’s death scene at the beginning of the movie....
Read more of my most recent essay at Good Letters.
Won't You Be My Neighbor?
The first time I watched Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood was the first day after my last college class. I didn't tune in again until I was a lonely young mother with no adult friends in my town except Mr. Rogers who hung out with me at 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Seeing the documentary about him (excellent film) recently reminded me of one of my first published stories in which he had a supporting role.
You can read "The Art of the Jelly Belly" here.
The Wisdom
of Teen Writers
I spent my birthday leading Teen Writing Camp at a local library.
What I love about being with these teens is that no one has yet convinced them that their imaginations need to be reined in, that creating fantasy worlds and inventing characters is a waste of time, or that they lack the talent to be “real writers.”
Inspired by my relationship with my soul sisters and the book There Is No Good Card for This: What To Say and Do When Life Is Scary, Awful, and Unfair to People You Love posts, I wrote two blog posts on the risks and blessings of reaching out:
What To Say When Life Is Hard
The Gift of Encouragement