Silk Is Stronger Than Stone
The Web Of Community Inside This Creative Cave
The Essence
An invitation to join Heather Mackay Young in a monthly subscription or as a founding member to this creative cave where you can pick and mix from pleasures and perks including a monthly Poetry Party, themed workshops, and news from land, sea and sky. To listen. To write. To heal. To play. To make space for what is sacred and nourishes the soul.
Constellations of Becoming
For quite some time I’ve wondered how to weave writing, healing and creative facilitation together. Often it’s felt like fragmented aspects of my life’s work—bright, singular stars—suspended in the abyss. So as I would with a poem, I lay it down for a while, offered more space between. After looking up, over and around—slowly, stars started to constellate. In my lostness, I found the answer is simple:
begin (again).
Towards My True North
Each day I write morning pages, meditate, and mother. Somewhere in the day I have a non-negotiable time for writing. I thrive on the consistency of rhythm and routine, yet love opportunities for spontaneity and unstructured play. I read and write poems for pleasure, and practice. I use a gorgeous hourglass with a bronze base. When 15 minutes have disappeared, I turn it round and treat myself to more. When the house is quiet, I hear the softness of each grain of sand.
Enchantment
I am of this land—the Isle of Lewis is enriched with soil and stories of selkies and shapeshifters. It’s a land of rainbows, moor and machair. A place where wild flowers are protected. Where dragonflies trust you enough to land electric blue on bare skin. Where you come so close to stags that you dream of climbing antlers to the stars. Where white-tailed eagles with sunlit eyes soar. Where the Aurora Borealis dances neon pink and green into the black canvas of night.
People travel from all corners of the world to breathe in this place.
Last week (after running twenty miles in Spring sunshine) I sat on a cliff eating cake, drinking coffee and sipping the sound of the sea until it sloshed from inside. I want days to be this delicious, so I am inviting you to share a slice of life with me, again.
Poetry Party
For those who have been participating in the Poetry Party, thank you for your patience. We begin again on Saturday 20th of April and this will be part of the monthly subscription on Substack. The poems I share, prompts I offer, and writing co-created in community, will be shared in this space. It will now be 2 hours to allow for intentional beginnings, endings and all the middle magic. For those looking for more information, another post will follow. Recordings will be available.
Pick & Mix Of Pleasure
This space will include access to my voice, thoughts, tools, resources, experiences, wonderings, and musings as a: Writer. Healer. Coach. Mother. Witch. Woman. Waymaker. Poet. Pilgrim (and the rest). Using creative facilitation (and a Mary Poppins bag-of-tricks) to bring people into opportunities for spontaneity, synchronicity, consistency, creativity and of course, joy.
You can expect:
A monthly Poetry Party.
Themed pop-up workshops (e.g. turning trauma to art)
Poems and writing prompts.
Opportunities to connect with poet-friends.
Time to write. Time to edit. Time to share.
Opportunities for thoughtful feedback.
Tips and tricks on the creative process.
Discover and share submission opportunities.
News from the more-than-human world.
Weather reports and wildflowers.
Book recommendations.
Oracle readings, and kinds of magic.
Choose to interact with what interests and excites you most.
All of you is welcome here. Wave after wave. Word after word. Silence after silence.The shore and sky and space will be different each time.
Join me. To listen. To write. To heal. To play.
