Area Women Invited To Draw From The ‘Creative Wellspring’

Beginning January 18 at the C.H. Booth Library, Ginger Humeston will lead a new series entitled “Creative Wellspring.” The idea for the series evolved from a program Ms Humeston originally presented for the Bridgeport Diocese.

Ms Humeston believes that as life continues to become more and more hectic, we continue to ask the same question that was asked in the past: “How do we keep centered? Women of all ages need to come together to learn from each other because they share this common thread. This will be a self-fulfilling spiritual journey because it seems that today the busier we are, the more we need to find time for ourselves.”

The inspiration for the series is expressed in Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s book, The Gift from the Sea, which is about “how to remain balanced no matter what centrifugal forces tend to pull one off center; how to remain strong no matter what shocks come at the periphery and tend to crack the hub of the wheel.”

 Ms Humeston has met many women in her varied professional life and recently as co-president of the Newtown BPW who have expressed an interest in such a program. She invites all those who are interested to join her in the pilgrimage to self-discovery. All participants are asked to bring along a journal to keep a record of their experience.

Liz Arneth will lead the first session, which will be a poetry-writing workshop. Since she retired as a high school English teacher, she has been enjoying being a discussion leader for adults as well as children at the library. Ms Arneth particularly relished teaching creative writing, especially poetry, during her career. The only thing a neophyte poet needs, according to Ms Arneth, is a sense of wonder, a willingness to explore all the facets of your imagination, and to feel comfortable about sharing your ideas with other people.

The workshop will be a joyful, interesting way to celebrate your creative spirit. The goal is for everyone to go home with a poem of their own as well as a sense of beginning to express their creativity in different ways.

Rose Bergen, who has been studying and teaching yoga for over 25 years, will be in charge of the program on January 25. Her program will show participants how to use the breath in order to find the vital rest we need to help us clarify, awaken, enlighten, expand, and sustain our lives. This will be an experiential journey. No one should be intimidated; there are no restrictions, and everyone can do it.  Ms Bergen suggests that everyone should wear casual and comfortable clothes. She quotes Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk, who wrote, “The bravest thing a person can do is rest.”

For “Creative Wellspring” on February 1, Judy Corrigan will guide participants in an exercise titled “Your Name is a Line Drawing,” in which each individual will find creative expression through simply having fun drawing, exploring, changing, and expanding their name. This is a unique and innovative way to discover self-expression because it will be a surprise to discover that your name can tell you so much.

There is no talent needed to share in this experience because Ms Corrigan feels that if you can write your name, then you can draw. She has been an artist for many years, and has been featured in many art exhibitions throughout the area, such as Silvermine, the Rockefeller Gallery in New York City, and recently at Gallery Eleven in Fairfield. She has studied in Europe and is a founding member of the Canal Street Artists Collective in Shelton.

Her artist statement is, “Human and animal figures, which I build intuitively out of the paint, are dominant images in my paintings. The mythical connection between animals and human kind fascinates me.”

On February 8, Anita Hall, a highly respected psychotherapist who specializes in dream therapy, will enlighten the group on the value of dreams. Everyone is encouraged to keep a pad and pencil by their beds for several days before the workshop, and to write down their dreams to bring to the session.

Ms Hall feels that dreams bring out your creativity, help solve problems, and enable people to make decisions. During the process participants will learn their own “dream language,” and dream themes, such as being chased or coming to an exam unprepared.

Ms Hall stated that since 1958 extensive research has been done validating dream therapy and the value of our dreams. She enjoys getting out of her office and doing programs such as this so she can present her ideas to a wider audience. This promises to be an entertaining time for all the dreamers who want to learn more about themselves.

Ms Humeston will lead the last session of “Creative Wellspring” on February 15, which will be based on a discussion of A Gift from the Sea by Ann Morrow Lindbergh, whose work is the inspiration for the series. Ms Humeston’s adult life has been marked by her extraordinary ability to gather women together to build a community of love, creativity, and support. This series represents the culmination of a lifelong quest to find ways for women to celebrate themselves despite the extraordinary demands of life in the millennium.