Dear friends, I had planned to post this schedule earlier in the month, but my heart wasn’t quite ready yet. For after a long and intimate communion with hereditary lung cancer, beloved friend and Rising in Love community member Efan Chen departed our world the last Sunday of June.
Efan was a member of many overlapping communities in our little town of Port Townsend, WA: the Farmer’s Market, the Food Co-op, multiple song circles, our Women’s Writing Circle, among others. Well-loved by all who knew her, she was an incredible human — kind, compassionate, curious about the world and the people in it, with a smile like a sunbeam and a wonderfully mischievous sense of humor.
Throughout her long and often painful experience of cancer, Efan always found the higher meaning and inspired all around her with her quiet strength and wisdom. Luminous until the end, even her death was an act of great beauty: an avid student of Vedic Astrology, she seemed to choose a most auspicious celestial moment for her passing1 while surrounded by her partner and dear friends. Her funeral ceremony at a natural cemetery was the most moving I have ever experienced — it felt like a divine act of grace, Efan’s parting gift.
It seems only right that July’s offerings begin at the special spot on the Dosewallips where Efan joined our group exactly one year ago. Because this first retreat is in honor of her, I am adding it as a bonus — which means this month, there will be four events that Writing in Nature members can attend.
Early summer a year ago, I found a breathtakingly beautiful and secluded riverside spot on a wander. At an emerald pool where the Dosewallips River converged with a burbling stream, water wound through a copse of trees, flowing over connected roots to form a tiny island and deep swimming hole. I spent the day there in bliss, sunbathing, meditating and skinny-dipping It was absolute heaven.
As I was getting ready to leave, I found a heart rock on the shore. For me, it was a sign that I was to bring folks here to write and commune with this very special place.
Thus I led two writing groups to this magical place last summer. We waded through the shallows to write in sun and shade, reveling in the way the light reflected on rocks and roots. We took refreshingly cold dips in the deep pool where tiny minnows kissed our knees and toes — we emerged feeling reborn!
On the first of those two trips, Efan found another heart rock, radiantly clear under the water. It was so stunning, we took a video of the light and water interplay across its surface.
This place is filled with the most radiant love, and Efan would say that I should bring you here too.
WHEN: Saturday, July 19th from 10:30am-3pm
WHERE: Dosewallips River, Brinnon (details sent to registrants)
WALKING DISTANCE: 0.3 miles roundtrip, with a short, moderately steep descent on a narrow path and a log or two to climb over. Wading in a shallow river across slippery rocks.
NON-MEMBER COST: $55 — REGISTER
MEMBER COST: Included in the Writing in Nature Monthly Membership
Looking for a low-cost option AND new nature-loving writing friends? Sign up for the Writing in Nature Membership and you get both!
For only $44/month, you can:
Attend up to 3 Writing in Nature sessions each month. That’s up to three sessions a month for less than the price of one!
Vote on dates, times and locations for each month’s session
Bring a new friend to one session per month for no additional charge.
Charges renew every month on the day your first payment is processed, and you can cancel your subscription at any time — but of course, we hope you want to stick around for the whole summer so that you can enjoy the benefits of being a member of this wonderful community!
More July retreats:
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