Thompson Peak, Nancy Shiffrin

"My favorite activity is listening to Wind.  On the back porch of the guest house; wind singing in the trees, playing with the chimes.  On the Susan River , wind like a flute against weeping rocks.  Bird sounds, jay, mockingbird, woodpecker, bluebird, hawk, carried on the wind.  Wind howling in the black before dawn.

This is my first Writer's Retreat. I came here to write, to talk about my experience studying with Anais Nin, to read my own poems.  Yet the power of this place is silence. I discover the freedom not to write, to read without interruption; no radio, television, telephone, computer, no one with any demand on me.  I experience a kind of withdrawal, not so much from the external noise-makers, but from my own internalized obsessions. Deer walk serenely down the streets of Janesville ; they feed in the backyards.

Along with deep stillness, there is community.  Dianna Henning's prints contribute to the elegance of her guesthouse. They are inspired by pre-historic rock art and suggest a dimension to her creativity beyond even her poetry (which is wonderful).  I am delighted, when, after honoring my solitude for 3 days, she invites me to tour Lassen and Plumas counties.  We visit a bookstore, eat lunch at a charming restaurant, savor a mead tasting.  I buy two bottles of cranberry mead.

We attend an art opening.  I'm moved by the quality of the glasswork, paintings, photography.  We visit an artist couple.  The husband displays his sculptures in their backyard.  The wife has erected a geodesic dome in which to do her pottery.  I attend her workshop.  All of the people I meet seem smart, creative, intelligent, capable, and unpretentious. 

Dianna drives us to Thompson Peak Lookout, about 8,000 feet high.  There we enjoy views of golden quaking aspen, crimson maple and oak, deep green pine, Mount Shasta in the distance. Tiny silvery/gold chipmunks scamper along the ground. We bask on the rocks near a lake, eat picnic munchies, and talk about poetry and people.  

I return to Santa Monica to find 1500 emails. I chuckle with my partner as we finally figure out how to activate my spam blocker. I feel refreshed and energized, aware of many subtle changes which I can only begin to capture in my journal."

Nancy Shiffrin is the author of

THE HOLY LETTERS (poems) and MY JEWISH NAME (essays) http://home.earthlink.net/~nshiffrin Read review: