What a Beautiful Road
transforming our stories
30th Laura Simms Storytelling Residency
The River’s Bend Retreat Center
13 - 19 July 2018 Philo, California
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Some of the unique aspects of the Residency are the deep and humorous ways in which we uncover three levels of structure of the story within the story; the exploration of spontaneous visceral poetic language unique to oral narrative; the uncanny discovery of how a story has meaning in reciprocity; and the role of the mindful storyteller.
Each participant brings a story to the retreat. The last day is a storytelling festival that takes place on the beautiful grounds of River’s Bend, once ceremonial land for the Pono Indians beside the Navarro River and near a Redwood forest.
Master classes, individual coaching sessions, group activities indoors and outdoors make our time intense, joyful and redolent with sharing and insight. Every day starts with mindfulness practices and sense opening activities. There is time set aside for individuals to wander the land, research in our pop up library, or visit small towns nearby.
The Residency provides insights that last years. Each person’s relationship to story deepens and expands, friendships are made and the food is organic and delicious. We live in well cared for cottages with options for more rural housing. We eat in a spacious dining hall and help care for an award winning flower and vegetable garden.
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What a Day Looks LIke
here is a sample schedule
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8 - 8:30 am contemplative practice
8:30 - 9:15 am breakfast
9:30 - noon master class
noon - 1 pm lunch
1 - 2:45 pm free time (walks, swimming journaling, relax or study
3 - 5 pm master class
5 -30 pm tea
6- 6:30 pm voice and contemplative time
6:30 - 7:30 dinner on the verandah
evening activites, guest artist, class or free time
and always late night storytelling
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“In and amongst the learning that revealed itself for months later, the laughter and spontaneous love that springs from intense ‘communal’ times, there was indeed transformation”
—Helena Kaufman, Canada
“Thank you for showing me the value of this sacred work - restoring fairytales.”
—Karen Young
Please note our registration page, housing options, and special offers.
“I came away with a heightened reverence for the gifts that stories and their teller
have to offer the world, and how hungry the world is to receive them.”
—Milbre Burch, NC