Since Navé just landed in Albuquerque this afternoon and will be spending some time with Julia Cameron, this seems like a good chance to share how he met her. It’s a great story of synchronicity don’t you think?
The first time I heard about Julia Cameron’s book, The Artist’s Way, I was in a café on the corner of McDougal and Bleeker, New York City. It was 3:45 p.m., October, 1993.
When my waitress, Denise, served my latté, I pointed to the book with the red cover opened on the bar and asked her what she was reading. “I’m an actress. I’m determined to make it in New York. Everyone I know is reading this book, The Artist’s Way. It really works. You should read it.”
With that, she picked it up and handed it to me. At the time I was touring the country as a poet and spoken word artist. I read the introduction and smugly decided I was already a “real artist.” I certainty didn’t need more creativity, especially from a “self-help” book.
I thanked Denise; paid my bill and walked down to Washington Square Park where the old timers play chess and the poets hang out. I crossed the park headed to Broadway.
A year later, in Asheville, North Carolina, I met a woman names Alexandra Webber, who, unlike Denise, told me point blank, “You’re a fence walker. I can tell by the way you talk you need to read The Artist’s Way; it’s time you got unblocked.”
I told her I’d already read the introduction. She just smiled and said, “Do yourself a favor. Promise me you’ll buy the book tomorrow and read all twelve chapters.” The next day, I bought The Artist’s Way and started reading Chapter One, Recovering a Sense of Safety.
By the end of the week, I was wondering, “who is Julia Cameron?” By the sixth week, my blocks (the ones I thought I didn’t have) were breaking apart. By the tenth week, I decided it was time for pilgrimage.
A week later, I was in Boulder Colorado. The evening I met Julia Cameron, it was snowing hard outside Border’s Bookstore, Little did I know, she would change my life forever.
Talk soon,
Susan and Navé
Wow, synchronisity…Just bought the complete works and am ready to make a difference, as a multi talented person I have never been able to focus on one thing at a time for too long. I hope and pray this makes a difference. Would love to do the workshop but…. Doing it all on my own, makes funds tight. Wanted to go to Art school but was always told it was a craft. Now that I am 52, I want to be able to leave my mark. I believe in what I do, but it’s believing that I am worthy of it, I believe has been my problem. The words of wisdom and the morning pages I believe will help me make my mark before I leave this earth. Thank you
Good luck with it. Let us know how it goes.
Susan