12. The creative gift of darkness
’Tis the season of wintertide celebrations, including the ritual of gift exchange... no matter how commercialized and un-ritualized that exchange might have become. But I promise this month’s episode is not an anti-consumption screed, because that’s kind of exhausting to listen to and I’d guess you can fill one in for yourself.
This winter solstice, at the darkest point of the year, I’m reflecting on how to claim our writing as a gift to and from creative mystery - and as a sacred gift to ourselves.
Darkness may not seem to have a lot to do with creative gifts. But writing is in some ways always the act of chasing an edge – the edge where what you’ve written meets what hasn’t been written yet, the story that’s still unmanifest. The story that’s in darkness.
Tune in to explore how embracing the mystery of the gift can tap you into a creative flow that replenishes your energy, and helps you boldly and generously share your own gifts with the world.
Writing praxis tips
In the interest of encouraging some generative rest in this holiday season, I’m keeping this month’s writing praxis short and sweet (but hopefully still deep). So I’ve included it at the end of the pod episode.
Episode resources
The Gift, Lewis Hyde
Member discussion