On the eve of a full moon, WholeHeart launched its newest program series, Poetry As Portal, featuring Julie Cadwallader Staub, a poet from South Burlington, Vt. More than 40 participants gathered on Zoom, March 25th, to participate in the event, part-poetry reading, part-conversation with the poet, and part-listening exercise for attendees to reflect upon their own lives.
What does it mean to live one’s life like a prayer? Heather Omand, of Huntington, Vt., is pioneering a different human way of being in the world as a Queer person, mother, partner, and caretaker of agricultural lands. Read about their insightful journey. Listen to their prose, “What Queerness Means to Me.”
What does it mean to be in deeper relationship with the land where one lives? Three friends spent last summer wandering in the mountains of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, coming to know the plants/medicines growing on the land, preparing meals with the foods harvested, and learning to navigate the wind and waves off the coast of Maine. This story encapsulates some of their heartfelt insights gained.
Marianne Mullen, of Middlesex, is a Vermont artist who draws inspiration from the complexities of being human. One of her paintings is the featured artwork for this year’s Valentines of Gratitude, WholeHeart’s January-February scholarship fundraiser. Learn more about how this WholeHeart community member uses her art creation as a spiritual practice.
We were warmed by the community of 50 friends who gathered online, December 11th, to celebrate WholeHeart's actual 10th birthday! Like radiant candlelights each of us, we relaxed into the gorgeous poetry of Vermont poet James Crews for just over an hour. We’ve included a brief recap here, as well as sharing some of the poetry that James featured during the celebration.
WholeHeart, Inc. convened a Leadership Exchange (a workshop model devised by Oakland, California based Berrett-Koehler Foundation) to bring together experienced and emerging leaders to explore a new paradigm of Intergenerational wisdom. The 26 participants were diverse in age and background--their ages spanned over 50 years, came from four countries, and five Vermont counties, and seven unique professional sectors. The exchange of perspectives, experience, and hopes for the world was rich.
There were 21 children in the room ranging in age from 1 ½ to 64 ½. The youngest left early to take a nap. The oldest took a nap afterwards, her dreams filled with heroes held in many hearts.
Some in the group did not know each other, so we began by standing in a circle and holding hands. The leader, Trish Alley, showed everyone how we would put our names inside the circle. After saying “Trish,” she squeezed the left hand of the person to her right, and then that person said her name. All our names were placed in the circle by passing the squeeze around its perimeter. This was the first step in creating a safe space to explore the heroes we hold in our hearts and to maybe share them in pictures and in words.
