Friendship & birthday play dates

I had the good fortune to spend the last few days with a dear friend in a very challenging workshop environment. Cindy and I met at a writing retreat held in the New Mexico desert which gave us physical as well as intellectual challenges. Our classes were held in a Yurt, our cabin had electricity but no running water, and the dining hall was only open during posted meal times. Our location didn’t allow us to run out for a quick bite, or call for a pizza delivery – so we craved things we all took for granted:   unlimited pots of tea, ice cold cokes, chocolate chip cookies, or corn flakes with sliced bananas and milk. We thought if we could laugh about that experience this was not just a friendship, but kindred spirits finding each other. And since our birthdays are within days of each other, we decided to meet once a year to share new adventures. Our latest comprised of long days overflowing with valuable information, but not giving us the PLAY time we so look forward to when we get together. You see, we live on opposite coasts and don’t have the opportunity to have real face time with each other. Cindy and I tacked an overnight stay in San Francisco to the end of the workshop which gave us wonderful breathing space after all our sessions giving us step-by-step instructions from the Masters about how to be an inspirational speaker. It’s all about being authentic, knowing your message, knowing your audience and remembering to breathe. Writing, presenting talks, facilitating collage and writing workshops – I wonder what will be the next Creative opportunity for me –