Creative Workshops
April/May 2010
Writing Newsletter
Re-story and re-imagine your Life and Work
Dear writer, storyteller, reader, lover of words, images, silences…
The
fruitfulness of the gift is the only gratitude for the gift (Meister Eckhard)
Gifts. I have been reading The Gift (Lewis Hyde). He distinguishes
between what he calls gift increase and a market economy. The former is moved
though eros - an unaccount-able
noun which eliminates borders and creates bonds. It arises from plenitude. The
latter is logos driven – countable, linked to scarcity (supply and demand) and
often creates borders. Each has its sphere and time of ascending though
"the plenitude of the imagination can be lost to the scarcity of
logic."
The book abounds quotations such as the one above (Eckhart) and in
stories. In one tale two Bengali women who, in an attempt to escape the
obligatory giving of alms, resort to giving to each other only. They are
reincarnated as two poisoned wells. Another story illustrates an open system
where the gift disappears around a corner and is no longer in the control of
the giver. In such a story a hunter takes birds from the forest, gives some to
be priests who return a few to the forest. Here is the circle of increase.
What of the gift of our writing - received through inspiration and given
to a reader? Hyde considers how gifts arrive when we are open to creativity.
Walt Whitman breathes in the world of the senses and breathes out the ‘Leaves
of Grass’ poem. Hyde quotes DH Lawrence, “not I, not I but the wind that blows
through me."
In the Moroccan marketplace people cup their hands before the
storyteller. A book might cost R200 (market exchange) but the gift can soar above
that on eagle wings. The book such as The Gift (R30 at a remainder store) moves
in me beyond measure. As poet David Whyte says
"one good word is bread for a thousand." Hyde also quotes Jean-Paul
Sartre: "I discovered in belles –lettres that the giver can be transformed
into his own gift…chance has made me a man. Generosity would make me a
book."
What of the gift exchange and increase between you and I through the
workshops, mentoring and encounters round reading and writing. I am grateful
for this exchange and the richness of lives I encounter daily - the
cliff-climbing courage, synchronicity singing in the veins. The Gift came via a
client Janette. So Seamus Heaney gifts us with his words - "
You are like a rich man entering heaven on the ear of a rain drop."
May April be a season of word gifts and
gift giving.
Dorian’s
April / May Storyshops/ Writeshops/Conversations
If you want any of these workshops
in your area speak
speak.
To respond to two oft asked questions…
No workshop is ever the same. No one jumps into the same river twice.
"No two trees are the same to Raven. No two branches are the same to
Wren." (David Wagoner) And for those who feel they might be ‘put on the spot’,
I invite people to read their writing only if they wish to.
1. Rondebosch
Cape
Read… Write… Read…Write
An interactive evening for book lovers, book clubbers, writers and closet
writers
R85 - (includes glass of wine and snacks) -
space limited
Thurs 25 March 18.30 –
21.00
Discover how to enhance your reading
pleasure and enrich your book-club evenings, look at how readers read, and how
writers read other writers. Dorian will provide each participant with a mini
text from an established writer and use this to explore the topic. He will be
drawing from Francine Prose’s book, ‘Reading
like a writer’, a guide for people who love books and for those who want to
write them’, and his own text, ‘The
Writer’s Voice’.
Come early, browse and buy in this wondrous bookshop (pre-owned books too)
Venue: Folio Books
2.
Journal Workshop
13-15
April
Once more the generous sponsorship of the Carl Schlettwein Foundation in
3.
The Rabbi, Oom Scalk and Nasrudin: The Lost Art of Story-Telling
Tues 13 April
It’s
not the story that counts. It is the way you tell it (Schalk Lourens)
Our ancestors told stories around night fires. Today
all over the globe many are rediscovering the joy and power of stories in their
personal and professional lives.
Join in an evening of fun as you listen and
respond to stories from different traditions. A world of stories has the
potential to delight, entertain and instruct us in a subtle manner. Stories
also allow choices, offer growth and facilitate transformation. It’s stories all the way down.
Venue: Studio 77 Bank
4.
The Art of Story: Living a Larger Life
N$ 85
Thurs 15 April 19.30
Carl Jung said we walk in shoes too small. He also spoke of dreams as the
royal road to the unconscious. This interactive evening explores how we can
enlarge our lives through writing/story telling and the relationships this
evokes. We consider the power of ritual and how the fictions we live by (life
stories) can lead to greater abundance and nobility of spirit.
Venue:
Contact: Petro Kimberg 081
129 2170 kimberg@mweb.com.na
5. Soutpansberg Lesheba
Writing in the Wilderness: Natural Heritage and Game Reserve Retreat
Fri 30 April (early eve) to Mon 3 May (around noon)
On this retreat atop the Soutspansberg, we explore our life stories
through our connection to nature. We draw images and symbols from natural life,
the landscape and
Lesheba… a holistic space with
ancient rock art sites, wild fig shade for indaba, Venda architecture,
white rhino , mist, eco-consciousness everywhere. We stay in Venda Village
Lodge 480km from J’burg
www.lesheba.co.za Do yourself a favour and look up this site – it carries the Fair
Trade label.
Workshop limited to 10/12 folk only... be
nimble be quick (cut-off date 31 March)
Cost: R2980 pp sharing … This generous
special rate for our group includes: 3 nights luxury accommodation, brunch and
dinner, a game drive/walk or run, writing workshop, Sat eve entertainment.
book accommodation and writeshop separately: - 50%
for each secures your place
accomodation: 011 726 6347
leshiba@leshiba.co.za 072 286 7302 (R750dep: ref Dorian)
workshop: Dorian (*R390 dep)
Car pooling:
Sybbie Barnett
011 440 1021
sybbie@lantic.net
082 794 3363
6. East Cape –
Story Jamboree
Fri 7 to Sun 9 May
4 activities – book for one… book for all
Bedford…
surrounded by the Kaga Mountains, Bushmen Koekoe frontier country
150 km from Port Elizabeth
…is calling curious folk, lovers of life, healers, artists, seekers, coaches,
teachers, magicians, tricksters, ecologists, gardeners.
Come one… come all to play.
Story and raise your story and writing IQ.
a . Rekindling the Fire: An Evening to revive our
Creativity, Imagination and Love of Stories
Fri 7 May
18.30 – 21.00
R30
I
know that there is room in me for a second huge and timeless life (Rilke)
During this interactive evening we enter the world of story to recover
our creativity, zest, energy and passion. Snacks, wine, get to know each other
and introduction to the weekend.
Venue: Die Ou Waenhuis.
b. Writing Yourself Alive A Life Story
Workshop
Sat 8 May
09.45 – 15.30
R395 (Organic farm lunch included)
We
are all endowed as story-tellers. There is a mystic in every one of us.
Writing is about a conversation with yourself
and with others. An exchange of energies. It is a
skill drawn from attention and
openness – an organic process rather than a talent. In this workshop we explore
our innate creativity and imagination and find the words to tell our stories…
to make them more alive.
Venue: Albertvale
Farm. Exquisite edible garden.
One of our Garden Festival show-gardens.
c. Bosman
&Boerekos: Fundraising Eve for Child Welfare/Adelaide Hospital
Sat 8 May
19.00
R130
It is not the story that counts. It's the
way you tell it (Oom Schalk Lourens)
Join us for an evening of fun, laughter, food & wine, with Herman
Charles Bosman stories Listen to ‘Oom
Schalk’ narrate stories of love, leopards, peach brandy, concertinas and
psalm singing. An unforgettable evening. Kaleidoscope Kafe and friends provide Boerekos
Bedford style. Cash Bar.
Venue: The Old Gaol. A
stunning, stunning venue.
d. The Great Metaphor Hunt A
Picnic for all who love Nature
Sun 9 May
10.30 – 15.30
R375 (Picnic lunch provided)
If you go
down to the woods to today ….Picnic time… metaphors are everywhere, open to the
eyes that seek them. Especially in nature. This hunt
(rich in story, words, images and symbols) aims to enrich your experience.
Venue: Old Oak Tree. Where Bedfiddians traditionally picnic-ed in
the old days.
Details:
Kim van Niekerk
046 685 0680/ 082 775 5178.
kim@bedfordproperties
or Jan Lister (Wrankmore) (Jan runs Kaleidoscope Kafe and is involved in Kaggaberg
Kraft centre)
082 871 7715
jan@dragonflydell.com
Accommodation:
from self-catering at R100 ppn to 4-star at R495 ppn.
Visit the Bedford Websites www.bedford.co.za and www.bedford-gardens.co.za.
We may be able to arrange special rates with some of the B&B's.
We are compiling a list of people who will offer home-stays at around R175 pp.
7. Cape Town City Bowl
International Day of Sharing Life Stories - Writing Yourself Alive A Life Story Workshop
Sun 16 May
14.00 – 17.00
R150 (pensioner and student discounts)
"Telling
stories as a lure to the future is an ancient strategy of sages, philosophers
and great religious leaders." - Diarmuid O'Murchu
Contact:
Kirsten Pearson
082 936 1898
kirsten@lightyard.net
Venue: St
7.
Corporate workshops via
Quality Life
Storytelling in Organisations: Leading
Change through the Art of Narrative
Mon 24 May
"There can be few talents more important to
managerial success than knowing how to tell a good story."
Michael Hattersley, Harvard Management
Updates.
Creative Corporate Communication: A Writing
Skills and Ideas Workshop
Tues 25 May
I’m sorry this business letter is so long. I didn’t have time to write
you a short one.
Bookings: Lizzy Mafalo
(011) 880-9749
lizzy@qualityife.co.za
Ongoing activities
Speaking Engagements
Be still when you have nothing to say but when genuine passion moves you,
say what you've got to say, and say it hot."( D.
H. Lawrence) I’m building up this aspect of my work.
Development Work
During 2010 I will be again be working alongside Dr Laura Campbell of the
HSRC facilitating training of home-based caregivers and grannies - - through
stories and creative play - who care for children who are dying.
Bosman and Nasrudin under starlight
This summer season I will be a story-ing …an
evening, wine, cheese, breads and tales for the telling. This kind of evening is a bit like the old days - singing around the
piano at home. -Except I use stories and creative activities to get folk
interacting and to prompt conversations. Themes… Chinese, South African,
Mentoring – one-on-one (repeat info)
"You make me sound like myself" (various clients.) Walk with me
in words. You put on one shoe, I wear the other. Memoirs, mindfulness adventures,
work in the word… genres tumbling out of folk on the one-on-one path. Such a richness of story here.
Email Courses: Writer’s/ Poet’s Voice
Course – one-on–one tuition
Some folks respond to structure, assignments… if so, ask and it shall be negotiated.
Here is one possibility: Do you love reading and writing? This one-on-one
apprenticeship aims to take you further up the writing mountain and offer you a
deeper engagement with your craft. This course is structured in the nature of
an ongoing conversation with a few chosen writers or poets, (ancestral or
alive) with me and with yourself. I encourage you to keep a journal to record
your observations and reflections.
Corporate Work
The Halo and the Noose, the Power of
story-telling and story listening in Business Life
R195
Want to source a 100 plus stories? co-written
with Graham Williams (Graysonian Press). We run
corporate story workshops based on our book. Roma Howard from Training &
Development Practitioners Leadership & Team Effectivenes
writes:
I was utterly captivated by The Halo and the Noose, and now regularly recommend it
when I am facilitating my Train the Trainer & Presentation Skills
courses. I am also experimenting with more use of stories in my training,
and loving the fresh slant it brings to my education role (a real "VitB-Injection" after 20 years of doing what I do!)
For orders: from the authors
or Graysonian Press www.graysonian.com 0836101113
Inspirational books that change the world
We've established a website in order to offer The Halo and the Noose as an eBook, and to create a member's facility for those who are serious about
their story-telling and listening prowess in business. Members can access
various resources, audio streams, article archives, their own newsletter,
questionnaires, communicate with the authors and will get ongoing offers.
The site is http://www.haloandnoose.co.za (The .com version will be
up soon).
In response to a growing demand we will very soon be offering an eWorkbook,
discounted to members (Story
Matters @ Work) that contains many new stories and exercises
covering elevator, personal, business issue, corporate, crucial conversation
and other stories.
CD out: More Stories: Stories from
Some fifty plus stories to entertain, tease ,
stimulate creativity, prompt discussion… … R100 plus postage
And out during April… The Stone on the
Stomach - a Poetry CD with 30 of my poems old and new
read by me and by my son Dominic… R120
X
Friends at Work and Play
Aneta Shaw: Creative relaxation in a small group context
Enhance personal growth and honour your soul through creative
techniques. Aneta is a clinical
psychologist and hypnotherapist, has integrated years
of experience and life in other countries with ancient ways of being in this
world.
Aneta 082 686 8118 or 021 8555415
aneta.shaw@vodamail.co.za
Peter Fox: Embracing the Grief
Response at the Time of Life’s Surrender
A Workshop for Clergy, Pastoral workers and Counsellors
An opportunity to understand the possibilities of a healing and
transformative dialogue happening at the time of death.
Presenters: Rev Peter Fox, Rev Nicky Ing and Mrs
Chris Barry
2 Dates: Tues 4 May / Fri 4 June
9h00 – 13h00
Venue: Education Room St Luke’s Hospice 92 Harfield
Rd Kenilworth
Cost: R280.00 p/p cash, EFT or cheque
(Refreshments, handouts included)
Peter Fox is an ordained Presbyterian Minister seconded to St Luke’s Hospice as
the Spiritual Care Co-ordinator. He is the co- author of “Dying-A Practical Guide for the Journey” 2005. He runs a private
practice working in loss, grief, marriage and spirituality.
RSVP – Olwyne by 10 April for the May course or 10 May for the June course
021- 797 5335 Ext 111
olwynek@stlukes.co.za
Richard Rohr
May 4th, 5th, 6th
Where you are is where I will meet you.
Fr. Richard Rohr, American theologian, will be
conducting a three day workshop: an overview of the spiritual journey, its
goals, its traps, its methods, and its reliance on divine grace.
Call Penny
Day
082 77 11 952
pjday@iafrica.com
Venue: Schoenstatt
Retreat, Constantia,
Here is my favourite extract from one of Richard Rohr’s books, “Hope Against Darkness”:
“Imaginal knowing, the only way that the unconscious can move
into consciousness, happens through fantasy through dreams, through symbols…
and through well-told stories. It happens through poetry… the words that create
the image that in turn creates a new awareness - that is in us already.”
Writer-sites and News (see site news on http://www.dorainhaarhoff.com
Writing For Magazines: “Absolutely Everything You Need To Know” by Catriona Ross, a freelancer based in the
Order from www.crink.co.za
So
today may gifts increase in you.
May the giver become the gift.
Dorian
PS Thank you to all those who circulate
this letter.
Dr Dorian Haarhoff
021 855 3937
082 873 6802
fax 086 511 4751
http://dorianhaarhoffwriter.homestead.com and
dorianhaarhoff.com