Hello, New Year.
My winter break began with a solstice gathering for which I was wholly unprepared. We were given a prompt about Light, and somehow other people in this gathering were hopeful, optimistic, generous and whimsical about the light they were turning to in their lives.
All I could think was, “what light?”
On all fronts, I thought, it is dark. Whereas we used to experience alternating shifts, success and failure, harvest and dormancy… There are no longer seasons of peace and turmoil, no longer seasons of calm and chaos.
The dark never recedes.
If there is light, it is not gentle.
We are burning.
And yet, to ring in the New Year, I put on my dancing shoes. A friend hosts an annual New Year’s Day party that starts during the day, after all the fancy NY Eve revelries are over. It’s an incredible tradition. The friends and strangers who gather annually come from all walks of life. They range from people who run institutions to people who serve you breakfast. Social workers, lawyers, cybersecurity specialists, software developers, artists, teachers, trades people, and business executives. Everyone dancing.
These friends are not my closest confidants. We don’t call each other. They don’t bring me soup when I am sick. I don’t know their birthdays. But I would bare my soul to any one of them if the moment came up. I trust them to treat me with respect, affection, and solidarity for how hard it is to be a human.
When I see these friends, whether it’s at New Year’s or in everyday life, when we hug and ask each other how things have been going, I am left feeling warmer. I leave feeling connected, feeling enmeshed.
This year, I am conscious of a heightened sense of meaning. That warmth I felt kindles hope. It can’t restore everything. But the ritual of you, me, and them all showing up in music and movement kindles a persistent sense of hope…
Call for Proposals
We are accepting proposals for PlaySpace. We are particularly interested in proposals for spring/summer.
Playspace is an urban shipping container space in downtown Toronto that features a floor-to-ceiling glass storefront. Use of the space can include the outdoor courtyard which holds 100 people. Sound system, projectors, outdoor tables, chairs and tents also available; please make a wishlist in your proposal.
PlaySpace is for following the creative impulse. Artists and researchers use PlaySpace to make, experiment, explore and try things out in community. It’s high-visibility and low-stakes.
Proposals accepted here.