This fall I ran the primary ever “Fats Pleasure” writing workshop.
As I clicked the blue zoom button that allowed the members to affix, I felt my nerves spike and my breath catch.
Who was I to convey this group collectively? What made me suppose I may maintain the duty of caring for these souls? Did I make the precise choice by solely permitting fats individuals to take this workshop?
Instantly, there they had been, gathered in gallery-view — seven, self-identifying fats individuals trying again at me. The tears in my eyes mirrored by the tears in theirs.
It was a primary for all of us. We had been gathering as a result of of our shared fats identities. We had been reaching for the sort of neighborhood that solely shared lived expertise creates. We had been discovering the second language of embodied empathy, understanding smiles, and relatable tears.
Our objective was clear: how do we discover pleasure in an anti-fat world?
I’ve run a lot of magical and transcendent workshops at Firefly that I’m deeply grateful for… however this was extraordinary in an entire new means.
These courageous writers and I spent 5 weeks pushing away weight loss program tradition’s grip on our hearts and our bodies. We obtained impressed by photos of historic fats statues. We cheered for rebellious poems and wrote our personal manifestos that proudly proclaimed our rage and rejection of systemic discrimination.
In her e book Emergent Technique, adrienne maree brown writes:
“We’re in an creativeness battle. I typically really feel I’m trapped inside another person’s creativeness, and I have to have interaction my very own creativeness in an effort to break away.”
I can’t assist feeling that creativity, neighborhood — all of the work we do at Firefly — are the “how.” That is how we create new imaginary paths to stroll, new worlds to dwell in, and new methods to carry the elements of us which have been pushed out, silenced, and marginalized.
That is true no matter sort of world you’re dreaming of.
As we begin this new 12 months, what’s your creativeness attempting to develop? What’s the extra lovely model of this planet you can see? What’s ready to maneuver out of your coronary heart to the world?
Collect with individuals who see you.
Make the tales you need to dwell within.
Cease asking, “Who am I to do that?”
There’s a lot house in your voice, particularly whenever you discover the precise individuals that can assist you maintain it.
If you happen to’re a fats particular person trying to create neighborhood and writing about discovering pleasure and writing your self into fats futures — excellent news! I’m operating this workshop once more, beginning in January, and all the small print are right here. Please share!
And in the event you’re in search of one other type of creativeness and neighborhood, now we have a lot.
Naturally, I can’t end a Firefly e-newsletter with out some word-nerdery.
So… do you know that the collective noun for pleasure is “glimmers”?
One pleasure is pleasure. Many joys are glimmers. I can’t get sufficient.
I felt so many glimmers in my Fats Pleasure class this fall, and I’m wishing you a lot extra as you discover methods to write down your finest world onto the web page, collect with individuals who see you, and create the stuff you care about most.
Glimmering at you from right here,
