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current offerings
sanctuary: A personal monthly writing salon
with Dawn Thompson via Zoom
Dates: The First Wednesday of the Month
October 2024-June 2025
(If you are interested in joining this circle at any point before June 2025 at a pro-rated cost, please contact Dawn)Time: 12:30-2:00pmCost: $180
"I have a sense of these buried lives striving to come out through me to express themselves."
~Marge Piercy
Reserve a writing date
with yourself
each month...
There is always a reason not to write. Always 101 other things that need to be done. We think about that story we have wanted to complete for years, the novel we wish we could start, the poems we want to re-vision, the memoir we hope someday to pass on. And somehow everything else seems to come first. The truth is creatives need time, space and, yes, silence, which for many of us are in short supply.
Sanctuary is meant as a monthly writing date with the Self where you are given a window to focus on the writing that is calling you. After a brief welcome and centering poem we will have 50 minutes to write at our own pace on our own work. (Prompts will be provided in the chat should we arrive feeling blocked or in need of fresh ideas).
While this space is meant as a room of our own, it is also an alchemical vessel of collective creativity. You will look up and see fellow women writers involved with their own craft, in their own spaces, and feel the solidarity and inspiration of a writing community. We will re-gather the last 20 minutes to have the opportunity to share anything from our writing that we would like to hear out loud or have held by the group. While we will not offer reflection in the circle, group members will have an opportunity to exchange emails should they wish to connect in between time for writing support.
Space is limited to 14 participants.
This circle offers space for creative expression for women of all ages and backgrounds. For more information or to sign up please contact Dawn at: dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145.
Images:
Feather - Melody Noraas
Candle - Hans Vivek/Unsplash
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Writing from Center: A thursday morning writing devotion
with Dawn Thompson via Zoom
Dates: April 3rd - June 5th 2025, skipping April 17thTime: 10:00am-12:15pmCost: $300
"Thank you for creating this sacred pathway for our sharing, as women, as glowing stars, as wild writers in the wilderness of hope."
~Lynn Sherman, Writing from Center Participant
“The magic of writing practice is you start where you are – observing, remembering, listening – and this simple act of being where you are leads, inevitably, to a place you didn’t know you needed to go to, but in following the thread you go a little deeper into understanding.”
~Erin Lee Gafill, “Drinking from a Cold Spring: A Little Book of Hope”
~Erin Lee Gafill, “Drinking from a Cold Spring: A Little Book of Hope”
These days, we all long for connection. Connection with our deeper self and connection with one another. Devoting yourself to a writing practice is a powerful way to foster connection with the larger human story, with your personal stories and with your capacity for creation, vision and inner peace.
The page is a room of your own where you can listen for parts of yourself that are calling, where you have space to contemplate your lived experience and where you can access the compass of your poetic heart.
In this weekly on-line workshop, inspiring prompts are provided as doorways into the writing. These prompts invite your critical mind to step aside in order to allow the great wisdom of your authentic voice and your imagination to rise to the surface.
When you write in community and have the opportunity to listen to other women's stories, you enter the encouraging realm of our shared humanity. You gather essential tools as a writer and receive the medicine of being deeply heard. In community, your writing becomes stronger, more honest, full of vision and heart.
No previous writing experience is necessary. This circle offers space for creative expression for women of all ages and backgrounds. All women are welcome, including cisgender, transgender, and those whose gender identity aligns with womanhood. For more information or to sign up please contact Dawn at: dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145. Image: mymind/Unsplash
The page is a room of your own where you can listen for parts of yourself that are calling, where you have space to contemplate your lived experience and where you can access the compass of your poetic heart.
In this weekly on-line workshop, inspiring prompts are provided as doorways into the writing. These prompts invite your critical mind to step aside in order to allow the great wisdom of your authentic voice and your imagination to rise to the surface.
When you write in community and have the opportunity to listen to other women's stories, you enter the encouraging realm of our shared humanity. You gather essential tools as a writer and receive the medicine of being deeply heard. In community, your writing becomes stronger, more honest, full of vision and heart.
No previous writing experience is necessary. This circle offers space for creative expression for women of all ages and backgrounds. All women are welcome, including cisgender, transgender, and those whose gender identity aligns with womanhood. For more information or to sign up please contact Dawn at: dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145. Image: mymind/Unsplash
Nourish Inspiring creativity and connection Spring 2025
A weekly writing and art mini retreat series
with Lisa Kagan
Dates: Tuesdays, May 6, 13, 20, 27 and June 3 Time: 10:00am-12:30pm Program Fee: $270 Art Matrial Fee: $25 Total Fee: $295 Location: Family Heirloom Arts Studio in SE Portland, the Woodstock Neighborhood This program offers space for creative expression for women of all ages and backgrounds. All women are welcome, including cisgender, transgender, and those whose gender identity aligns with womanhood. No writing or art experience is necessary. All art materials, as well as snacks and tea, will be provided.
To find out more about Lisa & Margaret, click here For more information about this retreat series or if you would like to register for this program, please click here "Against the Odds" by Lisa Kagan
Heart of SUmmer, Poetry & art in the garden
A three-part monthly poetry & art mini retreat series
with Margaret Hartsook and Lisa Kagan
Dates: Mondays, June 16th, July 28th & August 11th Time: 6:30-9:00pm Program Fee for all 3 Programs: $220 Program Fee for Single Program: $80 (visit Lisa's website below for more detail) Location: This series will be offered at two locations throughout the summer. Each evening session will be held outside at Margaret or Lisa’s art studios and in their garden spaces located in the Creston and Woodstock neighborhoods in SE Portland. Upon sign-up, participants will receive more detailed location information. In the case of inclement weather, the program will be offered inside. This program offers space for creative expression for women of all ages and backgrounds. All women are welcome, including cisgender, transgender, and those whose gender identity aligns with womanhood. No writing or art experience is necessary. All art materials, as well as snacks and drinks, will be provided.
To find out more about Lisa & Margaret, click here For more information about this retreat series or if you would like to register for this program, please click here Regeneration, Mixed Media by Lisa Kagan
BETTER TOGETHER: A Celebration of creative community
A full day in-person retreat
with Lisa Kagan and Dawn Thompson
Dates: Saturday, August 9thTime: 10:30am-5:00pmRetreat Program Fee: $205Art Materials Fee: $20Total fee: $225Location: This retreat will be held at Lisa’s garden and studio at her home in the Woodstock neighborhood in Southeast Portland. Weather permitting, this retreat will be held entirely outside. In the event of inclement weather, we will hold the retreat inside.
Participants will be asked to bring a bag lunch. Drinks and light snacks will be provided throughout the day.
"Befriending Time" by Lisa Kagan
“Perhaps community is a constellation.
Each one of us is a light
in the emerging collective brightness.”
~ John O’Donohue
Join us for a full-day art and writing retreat to soak in the brilliance of summer while honoring the light within you. We will invigorate our curiosity, engage our imaginations, and offer ourselves the chance to be inspired by nature’s beauty and abundance. We gather in celebration of creative community, illuminating the way that our shared insights, inspiration, and care can support and empower us, both personally and collectively. Through writing and art making, we will explore our inner landscapes through creating mixed media hanging altars incorporating natural materials from the garden, poetry, painting, drawing, collage, and mini sculptures. We will have a chance to consider what balance and harmony mean to us in the ecosystem of our own hearts amidst the push and pull of this tenuous world. This soulful gathering offers you the chance to deeply nourish and refresh yourself in the supportive, uplifting company of other women.
This program offers space for creative expression for women of all ages and backgrounds. All women are welcome, including cisgender, transgender, and those whose gender identity aligns with womanhood. No writing or art experience is necessary. All art materials will be provided.
No previous writing experience is necessary. Registration: To make online payment & to register for this retreat, click here If you have any questions or would prefer to pay by check, please contact Dawn at: dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145. Due to the limited number of participants we can accommodate, early registration is recommended. Touchstone Retreats Health & Safety Policy We ask that all retreat participants do a self-evaluation before coming to the retreat and that they remain at home if they have any symptoms of illness.
Touchstone Retreats Cancellation Policy Payment is fully refundable with one month’s cancellation notice. Participants will be charged for 25% of the total program fee with less than a month’s notice up to 14 days prior to the start of the program. No refund is possible with less than a 14-day cancellation notice. Family emergency situations will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. If you have a COVID related situation arise and you need to cancel, please contact Dawn Thompson at dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145. "Luminous Nature" by Lisa Kagan
No previous writing experience is necessary. Registration: To make online payment & to register for this retreat, click here If you have any questions or would prefer to pay by check, please contact Dawn at: dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145. Due to the limited number of participants we can accommodate, early registration is recommended. Touchstone Retreats Health & Safety Policy We ask that all retreat participants do a self-evaluation before coming to the retreat and that they remain at home if they have any symptoms of illness.
Touchstone Retreats Cancellation Policy Payment is fully refundable with one month’s cancellation notice. Participants will be charged for 25% of the total program fee with less than a month’s notice up to 14 days prior to the start of the program. No refund is possible with less than a 14-day cancellation notice. Family emergency situations will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. If you have a COVID related situation arise and you need to cancel, please contact Dawn Thompson at dawnrenethompson@gmail.com or 503.568.6145. "Luminous Nature" by Lisa Kagan