Tag: creative life

Season 4

Summer with Rilke

Jessica

Season 4, Episode 21

We discuss Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke, a book we read in a workshop together twenty years ago when our friendship began. We read an excerpt from the first letter that explores life lessons and the interaction between the inner and outer self. This leads us to chat about what it means to be a writer vs author, the role of attention, and connecting to the core of the inner self. Plus the importance of the everyday as a source for writing and the letting go of outcome.

Click Here to Listen Now
Season 4

The Writing Spiral

Jessica

Season 4, Episode 20

Our conversation circles and spirals as we revisit Jessica’s book The Writing Spiral: Learning as a Writer. Rumi, T. S. Eliot, solitude and self-awareness all feed our talk about the labyrinth as a metaphor for our life path and how to arrive at the centre of the self. Plus Emily Carr and the “unity of movement.”

Click Here to Listen Now
Season 4

Creative Life, Creative Journey, Creative Conversation

Jessica

Season 4, Episode 19

We explore looking back to look ahead. Catherine talks about her just published book, Put Flowers Around Us and Pretend We’re Dead: New and Selected Poems, the micro journey and the macro, the role of attentiveness and what it’s like putting a New and Selected book together. We also share quotes by Mary Oliver, Albert Einstein and a mourning dove visits us too.

Click Here to Listen Now
Season 4

Heartbeat of the Ground

Jessica

Season 4, Episode 18

We talk about the heartbeat of the ground (a line from Catherine’s poem “A Leash of Deer”), the pulse of everything, plus the current that connects us. Jessica shares her poem “A River Flows” and its origin story. We discover how a poem can hold a poem beneath it. Catherine reads her poem “Chthonic” and takes us to the underground. We see how imagery can lure us to slip beneath.

Click Here to Listen Now
Season 3

Season 3 is Coming Soon

Jessica

Welcome to 2022! There are some changes to The Hummingbird Podcast that we wanted to share. We have a new look, a new format, and a new co-host!

First, Aprille Janes has decided to shift her focus to other projects so she is leaving the show as co-host. She will be missed but she will always be part of our Hummingbird community.

We welcome Catherine Graham as the new co-host. She is an award-winning poet, novelist and creative writing instructor. We have been friends since we first met at a writing course about 20 years ago.

The new season launches the first week of February. We will meet each week to chat about creativity, arts, literature, and life. We want to dive into big questions about making a difference for ourselves and others through creative practice, projects, and passion. (And there will definitely be some poetry along the way!)

Thanks for being part of our journey!

Cheers,

Jessica

Season 2

S2 Ep 3: Creativity and Resilience

Jessica

What is the relationship between our creativity and our resilience?

How can a sense of meaning help in difficult times to nurture our creativity and how can our creativity help us get through difficult times? In our last episode we talked about creativity and wellness. Here we go deeper into some questions we have about resilience and how creativity can help to add meaning into our lives.

Click Here To Listen Now
Continue reading “S2 Ep 3: Creativity and Resilience” →
Season 2

S2 Ep 2: How does creativity impact our health?

Jessica

There are so many health benefits to being consciously creative, not the least of which is healing – both mentally and physically. For some, COVID shone a spotlight on the healing benefits of creativity. Many creatives have turned to creating in times of stress and know the true impact of creativity from personal or community experiences. In this episode, we discuss some of the research behind leading a more creative life and its impact on our well-being.

Click Here To Listen Now
Continue reading “S2 Ep 2: How does creativity impact our health?” →
Season 2

S2 Ep 1: What We Did On Our (Creative) Summer Vacation

Jessica

What did you create this summer?

We’ve missed you! We’ve missed each other. We begin Season 2 by catching up just like we did as kids in September by asking “What did you do on your summer vacation?”  What was easy? What was harder? Were you able to connect with other creatives? Join us we launch Season 2!

Click Here To Listen Now
Continue reading “S2 Ep 1: What We Did On Our (Creative) Summer Vacation” →
Season 1

Episode 017: Julia Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way”

Jessica

How can this program open up creativity and process?

This book has been a major influence in our creative journeys and we wanted to share it with you, both the book and the journey. We talk about how this book changed us creatively and some of the concepts and core truths that stand out for us. 

We’d love to hear from you, too. Leave us a message and share your experience with The Artist’s Way or tell us about another book that had a major impact on you.

Click Here To Listen Now
Continue reading “Episode 017: Julia Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way”” →
Season 1

Episode 016: How can we use metaphor to better understand our creative practice?

Jessica

First, what is metaphor?

In this episode we look at creativity and process through the lens of metaphor. Using quotations, we explore how metaphor can enrich our creative process and projects looking at some big questions. How can metaphors inspire how we create? How can artists and writers use metaphor to make something new? Metaphor can help us to go deeper and understand our own creative process in simple but powerful ways. You’ll even hear a few “aha’s” that Aprille and Jessica experience as they discuss this topic. 

Click Here To Listen Now
Continue reading “Episode 016: How can we use metaphor to better understand our creative practice?” →