cheryl strayed

I spent the last three days on a writing retreat in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina with Cheryl Strayed, 300 women writers & about 6 men.

I thought I would be cool, but I was overcome and a bit giddy with how warm, real, generous, funny and witty Cheryl is. Her writing has stuck with me over many years, her words on the Dear Sugar podcast warmed my heart, but I now have experienced her as the wise, engaging speaker and teacher that she is.

Some of what she taught, I already held as some of the core values of my writing. It affirmed what I’ve already experienced to be powerful. Her teachings showed me where I can double down and lean in. Much of what she shared helped me begin to imagine pushing myself to commit even more fully to my writing, to consider taking bigger risks and delving deeper into my truth.

I have no idea if anything that I scrawled down in the many 10 minute writing periods is going to be worth sharing, but the words that flowed out of my pen kept coming. I experienced an altered state, I felt myself channeling my higher guidance and accessing my deep well within. The flow state happened and I moved out of the way.

Being surrounded by so many other humans over the last few days felt safe, warm, nurturing, and joyful at times. It’s not always easy to make friends as an adult, but so many women I spoke with felt like instant friends. My faith in humanity is bolstered (even though I know I was in a Cheryl Strayed fan bubble.) I saw no one as a stranger. I was not a stranger. I felt part of an endlessly riveting narrative of women writing, speaking, and sharing our unique, heartbreaking, wise, funny, awe inspiring stories. We listened deeply, we saw and heard each other, we felt the resonance and shared humanity. We risked being too much and it was worth it. I cannot count the tears that I wiped from my eyes.

The energy was… We are courageous, strong, generous, kind, fierce, badass warriors with pens, notebooks, and computers. Do not fuck with us. You cannot silence our truth. We will all be continuing to tell all of our stories.

At the end, Cheryl invited all of us who wanted to take a photo with her.