Tag — Guest Posts
*8Ways to Turn a Financial Crisis into Opportunity
Here at Magpie Girl we like things that nurture the soul. There are not many things that can rock you to your soul’s core like the idea (or the reality) of losing your home. But for many it’s a reality that’s either knocking at your door, or one that’s already made itself at home. So this Monday at Magpie Girl I’m pleased to welcome Stephanie Walker, who’s unexpectedly become an expert in offering soulcare to those who are facing economic crisis. Stephanie blogs at Love in the Time of Foreclosure, and offers soulful advice for those who are facing financial crisis. Today she offers us *8Things that will help you turn crisis into opportunity. This value-added post is practical, inspiring, and just down right helpful. May you find companionship for the journey in Stephanie’s words today.
*8 Things that Helped Us
Turn Our Personal Housing Crisis into an Opportunity
By Stephanie Walker
Last year at this time, our house was on the market, our bank account was negative and my husband Bob and I were both unemployed. Things were not quite going according to plan. The plan, when Bob’s high-paying contract got cut short, was to sell the house, pay off our debts, rent and start over again. We didn’t want to sell our house, but it was the only way out. We were sinking way too fast. We needed a new plan. The new plan, we agreed, was to turn our financial disaster into an opportunity. Somehow. You know, the whole idea of never letting a good crisis go to waste. Our crisis, we firmly believed, could be an opportunity to reinvent ourselves, to learn, to re-prioritize. A challenge, indeed. But a worthy challenge. We may lose it all, but what we would gain in the process could be something more valuable than any house.
With that new thinking, we moved through our foreclosure story. Yes, it became a foreclosure story. We defaulted on our loan and received the “Notice of Intent to Accelerate” from the bank the week before Christmas 2008. In the end, to make a very long and exciting story short, we ended up selling the house in a short sale, narrowly avoiding foreclosure. We sold 90% of our possessions and moved to the suburbs of Chicago to live with my family. We’ve been here for three months. And in less than a week we will be moving to the San Juan Islands where we will be house-sitting for two years and living rent-free. Yes. From a $5,000 mortgage to rent-free. From Los Angeles, California to an island in the Pacific Northwest.
Here are 8 Things that helped us turn our personal housing crisis into an opportunity
1. Talking: I know, this is easier said than done. But now is not the time to keep your concerns, fears, resentments or pain to yourself. Talk about how you’re feeling. Share. Be vulnerable. Does this sound trite? Well, it’s not. Bob is not one to automatically share openly his darkest thoughts. But when he did, it helped not only him but me. It was helpful to know what he was struggling with internally so that I could be more patient or give him the space he needed. And he found that saying it out loud lessened the hold these fears had when internalized. Express it and let it go.
2. The pact: Bob and I made a pact with each other to turn our crisis into an opportunity. We promised each other that we would view every hurdle as an opportunity for growth. That this could be the perfect chance for us to learn how to be happy in the face of any circumstance. We promised to be at our best. And to be there for each other. This pact worked because we were both so profoundly committed to it. We understood that without this pact, our chances for happiness were slim. So we respected the pact and held to it. You can make a pact like this with yourself, but I recommend sharing it with another person so that they can help you keep it in existence.
3. Allowing Others In: Of course we were embarrassed about our situation. We felt like dummies. Idiots. Failures. But we trusted that our friends and family would not judge us as harshly as we were judging ourselves. And we let them in. I’m not saying we showed them our budgets or our credit report. But we did tell them what was happening along the way. We told our friends and family and eventually our neighbors. And then I started writing about everything on “Love in the time of Foreclosure.” We held nothing back.
When our bank account was overdrawn, they brought us homemade lasagna. When I was stressed, they took me out for happy hour. When we just needed to talk, they listened. When we had our estate sale, they were there first thing in the morning running the show. Our friends were amazing. Amazing. The best part about allowing them in on our financial problems, we didn’t have to pretend anything. I don’t know how we would have been able to actually hide our financial disaster, but I can imagine how stressful that would have been. This one requires letting go of your pride. To let others in means to truly be vulnerable. To say, like we did, We screwed up and are in big financial trouble. This is what’s going on. We’re committed to turning this into a good thing some how. We let them into our lives and into our “plan.”
A huge benefit to allowing others in? They have really good advice. Things you wouldn’t think of on your own, necessarily. They send you links to articles that have a wealth of information you need. They put you in touch with people who can help. They share their own stories about their tough times that not only allows you to feel better, but give you hope that if they made it through, you will too.
4. Have Fun: Just because you are facing losing everything, doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. This is so important. Yes, we were working our butts off. I had two jobs at one point. We were doing everything we could think of to market the house which included constant cleaning. We didn’t have discretionary funds. But we still had fun. We went for walks. Discovered new parks. Bob competed in the Grilled Cheese Invitational . We watched shows on Hulu. We went to the beach. Hiked in the mountains. Sat by the fire. Had friends over. We had fun. We were committed to being happy even in foreclosure. In this kind of a pact, fun is a key ingredient.
5. Exercise: I am prone to anxiety. When I was a kid I used to think I had a breathing problem. At least that’s what I would tell my parents when it felt like my lungs were incapable of fully expanding: “I think I have a breathing problem.” Well, I discovered that ‘breathing problem’ was actually anxiety. The best cure for anxiety – in my experience- is exercise. It’s hard because the more stressed I get, the less time I have for exercise. But if I don’t, I am only setting myself up for anxiety. Exercise helped me so much through one of the most stressful times of my life.
6. Daily Checkpoints: Every morning when we walked the Pug we would talk about what we would do that day. What we were committed to accomplishing and what we were going to work on personally. Some days I’d wake up so overwhelmed I didn’t want to have this conversation. Luckily on those days, Bob was on the other side (and vice versa.) He would talk me through it. We’d start with ‘clearing out the cobwebs’ before we would talk about our goals for the day. Then, at the end of the day we would recap. How did it go? Did we do what we said we would do? If not, what was in the way? What did we learn and what can we be grateful for? This might sound like it would require a very long conversation, but we were actually able to go through this in about ten minutes. The days we did this always went better than the ones we didn’t. You can create a pact, a vision statement so to speak, but it doesn’t live on its own. It requires constant re-presencing or it will die. Our pact to be our best, turn this crisis into the opportunity of our lives and be happy in the process needed daily care to thrive.
7. Make a Difference for Others: Have you ever noticed that when you have your attention on the well-being of others, you’re less worried about yourself? Well, I have. Bob and I met doing a 500-mile bike ride for charity. On that ride we both talked about how much easier the ride was when we were cheering others on. We’d be at the top of a hill before we realized how difficult the climb was when we were cheering other riders up the hill. The same is true in life. We’re all in this together. And there are so many with great need. In the midst of our foreclosure battle, we collected donations and went on a bus trip down to Mexico to visit an orphanage with a non-profit organization Corazon de Vida. Getting outside of ourselves and focusing on others made such a huge difference. It really puts things in perspective!
8. Believe: (insert cliche here.) I don’t know how to bring this point home without sounding completely cliche. But in the midst of a crisis, you must believe. Believe in your own strength to pull through. Believe that things will improve. Believe that you’ll be stronger for surviving. Believe that you are not alone. I voted for Barack Obama. I was inspired – and still am- by his stand for humanity. By his willingness to stand for and speak about belief and the power it holds. As he said during his campaign: “I’m asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about change in Washington… I’m asking you to believe in yours.”
Read more of Stephanie and Bob’s inspiring story at Love in the Time of Foreclosure. And if you’re selling a house, watch for Pam Weinert (Stephanie’s mom) as she offers real estate advice on Wednesdays at LITTOF. (So helpful! )
Poetry as Soulcare with Jessica Schafer
In this Monday’s guest post I’m happy to introduce to you poet Jessica Schafer of In Between Words.Jessica was the brave soul who joined us on the Soulsisters 09 retreat even though she did not know a single other person! (Hurrah for bravado!) While there she gifted us everyday with poetic blessings at our mealtimes, and with beautiful words for our evening readings. Now she’s here to share some of the poems that have best supported her spiritual journey. May you find a new withmate in the words offered here.
Poetry for Spiritual Sustenance
with Jessica Schafer
Poetry is often considered difficult, vague, pretentious or a nuisance we have to study for school. In a scientific, modern culture we’ve lost the feel of words, the magic of listening to carefully crafted phrases and rhythms. The truth is poetry is part of the human soul, the part that responds best to metaphors and mysteries. The part that seeks desperately to voice a beauty or an emotion almost too much for us. It’s the part of ourselves that knows just getting from point A to B isn’t the goal, that we have to stop and linger in the unknowns. I need poetry to keep my soul alive.
Here are bits and pieces of poems that have nurtured my spirituality. Before you read, take a moment to close your eyes and breathe deeply. When you open them again, read slowly, even out loud. Try not to think in literal images, but to feel what is being said:
. . .
But when I lean over the chasm of myself—
it seems
my God is dark
and like a web: a hundred roots
silently drinking.
This is the ferment I grow out of.
More I don’t know, because my branches
rest in deep silence, stirred only by the wind.
~Rainer Maria Rilke, The Book of Hours, I, 3
Living by Your Own Rules: Sexual Integrity
From friends who have re-entered the dating pool at mid-life, to teenage mentorees, to children approaching puberty—sex and sexuality are a regular topic of conversations ’round these parts. One of my girlfriends once said to me that as a teenager she decided “I just wanted to have a sexual history I could look back on without regret.” But how do you defined what that is for yourself in complex and changing world?
It’s always a good idea to ask an expert. So let me introduce to you Becky Knight, Clinical Sexologist. Today Becky is helping us make the connection between our guiding values and our sexual choices. Making that connection will help us feel more confident about our sexual choices, calm the voices in our heads that lead to self doubt, and quite the old tapes we don’t need to listen to any longer. Becky, take it away…
Honor Your Work with Values-Based Pricing
Meet Lisa Alexander, soulsister and collborative divorce and conflict resolution specialist. Lisa is full of practical, straight-forward advice that is rooted in true soulfulness, which a rock solid combination. At our Soulsisters retreat she set me straight on pricing, and I’ve been carrying her in back pocket for reinforcement ever since. Now you get to tap into her financial smarts in this guest post on honouring your work through values-based pricing.
Value Based Pricing with Lisa Alexander
Being your own boss is one of the best things in the world, in my humble opinion. You’ve got the freedom to choose when you’ll work and what sort of work you’ll do. Yeah, it’s no fun to pilfer from the stationary supply cupboard when you’re the one who has to stock and pay for the supplies, but that’s a small price to pay for the joy that comes with being your own boss.
If you’re selling widgets, it’s relatively easy to figure out what to charge. You look at what other widget sellers are charging, you sharpen your pencil and figure out what the cost of widget production is and you can relatively easily come to a bottom line.
But what do you do when your commodity is your time? Some of us sell the work of our hands — paintings, material crafts, our words — and we carefully note the cost of our materials, but then have to figure out what value we’ve added by transforming those basic materials. Others of us sell our ideas, skills and wisdom. It’s even harder to figure out what to charge when your product is intangible — it’s your words, your way of listening, the specialized knowledge you have carefully learned, your way of leading someone into an encounter with themselves in this new reality you’ve helped them create. How on earth do you put a value on that?
I’ve done a lot of thinking about how to charge for my time, as I’ve been a lawyer for ten years now, and self-employed for almost seven of those years. When I started off, the firm I worked with set my hourly rate, so I didn’t have to grapple with setting an initial threshold charge. Thank goodness for that, as up until that time, I’d never earned more than about $15 per hour, and that was for an incredibly fancy dishwashing job at a unionized hospital. The idea of asking someone to pay me in the triple digit numbers was incredibly scary; I figured that if I was going to ask for money, I’d better damn well be able to deliver, plus do cartwheels, wash their car and prove that I could walk on the moon.
It is the rare person amongst us that is confident that she or he is worth every penny of what they are charging. The rest of us usually grapple with impostor syndrome at some point in our money earning lives. Almost every woman I’ve ever talked to has experienced this phenomenon. Impostor syndrome can be paralyzing to those of us charging for an intangible service.
As much as I’d love to wave my magic wand and give clarity to each of you who is struggling to figure out how to charge what you’re worth for the service or goods that you’re providing, that’s not reality. But perhaps you might find some clarity (and a big can of impostor-syndrome-be-gone) in the following hard learned lessons: [Read more →]
Jolie Guillebeau: A Guided Visualization for Your Ideal Day
Meet Jolie Guillebeau, artist, blogger, and soulsister. Jolie has built a life based on intentional living and non-conformity — and I got to tell you, it ROCKS. Jolie and I finally met face-to-face at the Soulsister’s Retreat this July. Whilst we were together she lead us through a guided visualization at one our teach-ins. In just 15 minutes she’d helped me access several important realizations that are guiding my life, right now as we speak. Ready for your ah-ha moment? I give you Jolie Guillebeau…
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What’s Your Ideal Day?*
*Undying gratitude to Pam Slim for reminding me how important this really is.
A few years ago, my husband and I were at a crossroads. We’d been working overseas for 4 years and knew it was time for a change. We felt like we could go anywhere and do anything. Really. It was exhilarating to think of the possibilities, but honestly, it was mostly overwhelming.
We thought about spinning the globe and putting our finger down somewhere, but we were afraid we’d just end up in the middle of the Pacific, thousands of miles from land. So we asked a few questions. What do we really want? What are we ready to try? Where do we see ourselves a year from now?
Then we found a variation of the Ideal Day exercise. There are many versions out there, but the basic premise is that you imagine your perfect day, in minute detail. Once you have that, you know where to begin. You have something to work towards. A North Star, if you will.
When we first did this exercise, I pictured myself living in a large city, walking or biking everywhere, including to my own painting studio. At the time, we were living in Africa, I was teaching high school English and riding around in Land Rovers. All of these things seems so far out there, that I thought of them as nearly impossible.
Last year, I realized as I was walking to my studio in Seattle, that I was living a version of my earlier ideal day. Of course, since then my ideas have expanded and grown a bit.
I’ve recorded a version of this exercise to help you visualize this. Take a few minutes some time over the next couple of days and listen. Be surprised by what you see.
Important: Be sure to write down the details from your visualization, so that when they’re realized you can go back and celebrate! I’d love to read about your ideal day in the comments, too.
Listen to the podcast here:
Subscribe to Magpie Girl podcasts on Zune, or on iTunes, or via RSS.
Find Jolie’s musings about life at her blog, or purchase her beadwork, paintings, and limited edition prints at her on-line shop. Thanks for being here!
Jen Payne: Five Signs That it’s Time to Call a Therapist
“Therapy offers the gift of a safe place to wonder about yourself, in ways we don’t usually get the chance to, with someone who has put a lot of thought into the ways we struggle and try to find freedom, and who will hope on your behalf.”
- Jen Payne, Mental Health Counselor
I believe one of the best things you can do for yourself, your partner, your kids, and your art is to build a support team that can get you through. Sure, it would be nice to be self-sufficient superwoman. But most of us have deeply spazzy moments in which we need some help. I am the queen of distractions, gremlins, and other spazzy things. So I’m more than grateful to have this amazing woman on Team Moi. Meet Jen Payne, M.A., mental health counselor, and (thankfully) faithful soulsister to moi, Magpie Girl.
Jen has talked me down from many a proverbial cliff, held my hand through the rough spots, and made me laughed so hard I nearly fell off her couch. She’s here today to help you figure out if a therapist is the right kind of personnel to add to Team Toi. Jen, take it away….
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5 Signs That It’s Time to Call a Therapist
Those who know Rachelle know her love for and pursuit of wholeness. It’s a love of mine too, and one I am stumbling after through many different routes. Sometimes it can be a little tricky to know who to turn to and when. How do you know when it might be time for therapy?
Now, depending on where you grew up, where you live now, who your friends are and a host of other factors, you may or may not be carrying a bit of a stigma about seeing a therapist. If you are, you’re in good company. Or at least you’re in my company. I was still resisting seeing a therapist while deciding I wanted to be one. But I will never forget my first experience of having a therapist hold out hope for me in areas of my life where I felt very little of it. My hope for you is that those hurdles don’t keep you from doing what you need to do to take care of yourself, therapy or otherwise.
How do you know you’ve hit a season of life when a therapist might be helpful? Here are five possibilities.
1. You’re struggling with your relationships. Maybe you just broke up with the same kind of guy or gal you always date. Maybe your spouse or partner is driving you crazy but he or she isn’t quite ready to go to counseling with you. Perhaps your mother came to visit and you became the worst version of yourself. Again. Maybe you want to feel closer to those you love but you can tell that abusive relationship from the past is getting in your way. We came into the world in relationship with others, and they bring us our deepest joys and greatest sorrows.
2. Your coping skills lack a certain finesse. Maybe you find yourself finishing the bottle of wine at night instead of having just a glass. Maybe you’re starting to eat too much or too little. Or maybe the ways you cope used to work pretty well, but your life just got a lot more stressful and you’re feeling anxious more days than not, or wish you could stay in bed all day. [Read more →]
Rhiannon Connelly: Through Watercolored Glasses
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Meet Rhiannon Connelly of Starry Blue Sky Photography, maker of surreal images and dream like landscape.
Rhiannon and I met via Twitter (hers:mine). When I put out a call for photographers to guest post, she politely answered. When I saw her work, I eagerly said, “Yes, please!” I am mesmerized at the way Rhiannon draws these images out of Polaroid photos—and at how she took a sense of lack (no more Polaroid film) and turned it in to abundance (a 12 city project.) Anyone who has tried to shoot the major cities of Europe knows how hard it can be to capture the picturesque street scenes on digital, much less on old-school film cameras. And Rhiannon does it with true expertise. I hope you enjoy these images; the beautiful song Rhiannon chose by new-to-me artist Karine Polwart; and Rhiannon’s own intriguing story. Please let her know what you find intriguing about her work, and give her thanks for contributing a little bit of beauty in to our worlds today.
Artist Statement: Rhiannon Connelly:
My name is Rhiannon and I’m a portrait and fine art photographer from Scotland.I started out photographing a broader range of subjects, including weddings, but over the last couple of years have been narrowing my focus mostly to these two areas.
With the portrait side I hope to play my part in documenting stages in the life of a family or individual. I had a great aunt who was a keen photographer and she really captured my childhood on film, so I appreciate how valuable this can be later on. It is also a real thrill to have someone tell me that their portrait was the first time they ever had a photograph of themselves that they really liked. I am constantly trying to keep evolving as a photographer and working towards creating a more individual style
On the fine art side for the last five years or so I’ve worked with Polaroid film and an old SX70 camera in a technique that I call “Polaroid Painting”. [Read more →]
Jamie Ridler: On Creativity, Feedback and Our Tender Hearts
Meet Jamie Ridler, life coach to creative souls and friend to this tender, crazy heart. There are dozens of life coaches in my internet world, and many of them are very, very good. But Jamie is among the cream of the crop. Her generosity and playful wisdom has helped me immensely over the past year. I feel deeply grateful to be included in her virtual circle.
Today at Magpie Girl, Jamie speaks with us about the way creative souls recieve feedback, and how to honor our emotions while learning from the curve ball that criticism and critque can sometimes throw at us. Do you have a teen or tween? Pass this on to them as well. It’s a life skill I wish I had acquired at 13 instead of 30! Jamie, take it away….
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Recently I asked people why it’s so important to us that people like our artwork. In my own life, I’m noticing how that’s also true for me about anything that I’ve really put my heart into. When I offer a workshop, I’m hoping with all my heart that people are going to love it, that they’ll feel inspired and hopeful and glad they took part.
There’s something wonderful about this. It inspires me to offer my best work and to learn and grow all the time. It comes from a place of deep commitment to the participants and a sincere desire to make a difference in their lives. It reminds me that creating a workshop or a newsletter or a meal or an event is a creative act, one that you pour your soul into.
And what happens if despite all of that, people don’t like it?
Here’s how I’ve learned to handle negative feedback. I hope it bolsters your tender heart the way it has bolstered mine:
1. Let yourself feel what you feel. If I’m hurt, disappointed, angry, defiant or whatever else, I get to experience that like a storm until it settles. I don’t have to pretend it’s not there, judge it, rise above it. I just get to feel what I feel.
2. Look for learning. Once the storm starts to quiet, I see if there’s anything I’d like to respond to. I’m not adjusting the work for one particular person. If I move away from the core of my vision to accommodate someone else, it starts to feel wobbly and I start to feel insecure. That lets me know that I’m moving in the wrong direction. But if I use the information to see if I can bring my creation closer to what I dream of for it, then I can use it to improve the work. There’s joy and confidence in there. The difference is palpable.
3. Let go of what’s not useful. If someone just didn’t like what I’ve created or offered or shared, but it’s something that I believe in or love or is true to me, I remind myself that not everyone is going to love what I do, and that’s fine. What I’ve learned from the information is that my gift is not for this person. I can let the rest go.
4. Trust. I remind myself that my people are out there, people who will appreciate my unique gifts and offerings. One of the truly important things about blogging is it allows us to extend our reach in finding our people, so that when we share what is uniquely and authentically our gift, we have more of an around-the-world opportunity for someone to read it and get it.
Molly Gordon talks about how in business we have a niche and we have an offer. I think this is true in life generally. Our offer is what we sincerely, authentically bring to this world. It’s who we are and what we share. And our niche is that place, that ecosystem according to Molly, in which that offer is easily and recognizably of value. There’s nothing to be taken personally about being a rainforest plant who doesn’t fit into the desert. Just keep looking for home and reaching out to your people.
Jamie Ridler MA CPCC is a creative self-development coach and director of Jamie Ridler Studios. She helps creative, independent spirits align their lives with their hearts and pursue their dreams with joy, courage and authenticity. She leads Circe’s Circle, a coaching telecircle for Creative Bloggers designed to help you start building your creative dreams. A new session stars September 15th. For updates and inspiration, you’ll find her on Twitter.
Vivienne McMaster: the richness of this present moment.
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Meet Vivienne McMaster, blogger, photographer, passionate soul. I first stumbled upon Vivienne a few years ago when she was embarking upon the 365 Days project with Flickr, which is a year’s worth of self portraits. (How brave is that? Seriously.) After watching her year unfold, I was definitely in love — both with Vivienne’s vivacious spirit, and with her clear, colour-drenched photography.
Now playing with several projects including an on-going self portrait series, arty TTY shots, adorable Holga images, and quirky polariods, Viv is doing the world a service by giving us a a long cold swallow of beauty on a daily basis.
Vivienne had to skip Soulsisters in order to take her sweet ten-year-old traveling companion to Folkfest. While I missed having her at the cabin, I feel like we are all the better for having her take in that world through the viewfinder. How she gets such goregous, lively shots in such a crowded, crazy venue is beyond me — but I’m sure glad she does.
We here at Magpie Girl are lucky enough to preview a sample package of Vivienne’s most recent, color saturated shots. I feel like each one holds a myriad of stories. What captures your fancy in these long cool draughts of lovely? (Click on thumbnail to get their full-sized goodness.)
Vivienne was just robbed and lost her computer, among other treasures. So please support her work by commenting, raving, and purchasing prints. May your world be richer today because you saw it through Vivienne’s lens. Cheers, Viv!
Artist’s Statement:I’m Vivienne, a portrait and fine art photographer based in Vancouver, British Columbia. My photographic interests are very widespread and I let myself follow the muse to wherever and whatever I’m drawn to photograph. That sometimes makes it hard to pinpoint one specific style or content, but does allow me to be on an endlessly developing and interesting photographic journey. [Read more →]
Soultribe Practitioners Interview: Kelly Bean and Third Saturdays
“I think my most important job is to make space for people to be who they are and tell their own stories…My role is to cultivate relationship, cultivate curiosity, [and] create a sense of sacred space.” -Kelly Bean, Soultribe Cultivator
How do I love Kelly Bean? Let me count the ways! First, she’s a redhead (big points.) Second he has the totally adorable name. (more brownie points.) But most importantly, Kelly Bean is as gentle as she is wise, with more patience than anyone I know, and has a habit of waiting and listening until the solution arrives. (Unlike some redheads we know. Hi. Me.)
There’s nothing like learning from a pro, and at 20-plus years of nurturing the same Soultribe (it’s a record!) Kelly can really give us insight into how to keep something going through the ups, downs and seasons of life.
This is a long, but excellent interview and features a unique shared-leadership model called Leadership by Triad which I’ve never heard of anyone else using. Plus there’s loads of stuff in here for those of you who are in the process of a church break-up, or who are Leaving Church. And don’t miss the bit where she lays out some of the common pitfalls Soultribes trip into, and how to avoid them. I recommend you print this out and pop it in your bag. You’ll want to underline and highlight this winsome goodness, I promise.
Kelly generously gave us her time to write up this interview, so she could encourage and guide you. In the spirit of our on-going Sacred Commerce experiment, please let me know if you’d like to send Kelly a thank-you gift from your Etsy or other shop. (My email is moi at magpie-girl dot com.)
And now without further ado my Soulsister, Kelly Bean, and the Soultribe at Third Saturdays.
Background: Could you tell us what kind of Soultribe you belong to: What do you call it? How often do you meet? How long have you been together as a group?
My soultribe is called Third Saturday.We are a community of people following in the way of Jesus. Our gatherings vary in size from 15-30 -which includes 6 kids ranging in ages 1 to 13. We meet twice a month for sure and sometimes more frequently.
I began to host this group over 22 years ago. I remember my daughter (who is now 23 years old) was just beginning to crawl when we first started. I can still see her playing in the center of the circle of friends, although now she is a mother herself. Over time I have become the ‘official’ cultivator of this community (thanks Rachelle for the great title, “cultivator.”) I’d venture to say that most of the current participants have been attending for seven to ten years.
Group Content: What does your typical evening together look like? [Read more →]
