Going global while staying home
In the midst of a pandemic, I can’t travel the world to promote my book, The Art of Holding Space, the way I’d like to. I’d love to sit in circles with people and have deep conversations, the way I’ve done for the past five years. In the meantime, I’m living vicariously through my book, watching it land all over the world (through the wonders of social media) and feeling like a piece of me is traveling with it.
When someone (thanks Alison!) sent photos of the book in Japan, I had this fun idea… What if I sent a photo of myself along with the book, and people could take a picture of me and the book in whatever part of the world they live in?
Remember the children’s book Flat Stanley? In the book, Stanley gets accidentally flattened by a bulletin board, and the silver lining is that he can send himself through the mail to wherever he wants to travel. (My daughter Maddy once made a Flat Madeline for a school project and she still has photos from the many places she mailed it or my friends took it on their travels.)
So I decided to create Flat Heather!
It’s a bookmark that will be tucked into all of the books that we distribute via the Centre for Holding Space. Whoever gets one will be invited to post a photo online of me with my book in whatever part of the world they live in. (Be sure to tag me and use the hashtags: #theartofholdingspace and #flatheather.)
Anyone who’s already received the book (or ordered it from a different source, even if it’s an e-book) and wants to play along can download a copy of the bookmark here, print it and join the fun. Or fill out this form and we’ll send a free bookmark.
There’s more! I don’t want the virtual travel to be only one-sided!
I’d like to invite readers of my book to visit me here in my home in Winnipeg, too. So here’s what you’re invited to do… Take a photo of yourself with the book, post it online and tag me, or email it to me, I’ll print it and add it to the map on my studio wall.
I’m creating a Global Holding Space Circle – a virtual community of people who’ll hang out in my studio with me while I teach classes, do interviews, host conversations etc. – whatever it takes to support this book virtually while not being able to leave home.
I’ve already started pinning people to the wall – a few friends who’ve shared photos of themselves with the book – and I want to fill the entire perimeter of this map with photos.
I hope you’ll join in the fun! I’ll share updates of the map periodically as the spaces fill and the circle becomes increasingly global.
We’ll make the most of this pandemic, and some day, when the world changes, we’ll be able to meet in-person again.
Shawnigan Lake, B.C.
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