Running Away–Part II

This post continues last week's article. You can read part one here.

As I prepare for my retreat in Ashe County, I'm thinking about what I want to achieve there. Fun is at the top of my list. We use the word fun to describe many things. Actual fun combines three feelings: playfulness, connection, and flow.

1. Playfulness is doing an activity just for the sake of doing it, where you feel lighthearted and free without any attachment to the outcome.

2. Connection is sharing the experience with people. Those you love or those who enjoy or are interested in learning the activity, which is why I love teaching.

3. Flow is when you're so engaged that you lose track of time; hence, the phrase "time flies when you're having fun."

Flow is something I experience regularly in my studio practice. I frequently look up to find that hours have passed, and if I haven't set the alarm, I'll miss afternoon appointments. The feeling is satisfying.

I'm excited to make new connections and new friends. The clay community is a sharing and open one, and I hope teaching at the Lost Province Center of Cultural Arts will expand into a continuing and lasting relationship.

Playfulness is where I want to expand. Clay is heavy, as is all the equipment associated with the medium. I am looking for some lightness. I plan to find it in both community and silence. I spend too much time listening to podcasts; I'm looking forward to having coffee with the river sound flowing by.

Many of us confuse fun with passive consumption, such as watching TV, having time to read, or scrolling on our phones. That's called relaxing, and it's part of the plan, but scrolling is not. There's a chair and table by the river, under a tree where I see myself. My book club is reading The Power of Fun by Catherine Price, one of six books I'm bringing. I'm also taking The Ride of Her Life, by Elizabeth Letts, the story of 63-year-old Annie (who's given two years to live), her horse Tarzan, and her dog, Depeche Toi. They travel from Maine to the Pacific Ocean through a world transformed by the rapid construction of modern highways between 1954 and 1956. Some others are Violetta by Isabel Allende and Strength to Strength by Author Brooks; all are books about transformation, the fiction ones with feisty female protagonists.

I can't wait to share where I'm staying and what the Lost Province Center of Cultural Arts offers next week.