The End of the tour

I just returned to Tucson from a 32-day West Coast book tour. The reception for the ideas in Deep Creativity was overwhelmingly positive! Many thanks to those who came to these events. I met some extraordinary folks with inquisitive minds, open hearts, and creative spirits.  Here are a few of the highlights of my journey.

Fort Bragg, CA. Here, I had the pleasure to meet Rev. Tanya Wyldflower and her open, adventurous congregation at the Mendocino Center for Spiritual Living. What a wonderful spiritual community this is! I want to single out my hosts, Jim and Shelley, who were so kind and welcoming; musician extraordinaire Marcus McCallen; Lorenzo and Harmony Wells for all they are doing to help build this community; and artist Sue Ellen Parkinson, featured in last week's blog, whose inspired art I discovered at her opening in The Northcoast Artist's Gallery.

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Seattle, WA. In my old hometown, I had the pleasure of speaking to the International Association of Near-Death Studies group at its 36th Anniversary meeting. Then, I had an author event at Third Place Books, which is located less than a mile from the house where I grew up. In attendance that night were my parents, my beloved Maria, and several other friends and family members, as well as a number of new friends who were drawn by the topic of Deep Creativity. Among them was photographer, author, musician, and creativity teacher Jeff Leisawitz, who took a number of great shots of my talk, including the one you see here.

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Port Townsend, WA. Two weeks ago on this blog, I wrote about the extraordinary Unity congregation in this charming port town. Under the wise and loving leadership of Rev. Pam Douglas-Smith, this congregation is an exciting and super active hub for the local spiritual community. On this visit, I had a wonderful connection with the musical minister, Simon Ruth de Voil, who introduced me to one of the most beautiful chants I have heard in years. Based on the Bible verse, "Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalms 46:10), this chant turns the verse into a profound meditation. I look forward to sharing my rendition of it with you in the days to come. Besides giving the message at the morning service, I led an afternoon play circle that was lively and fun. Afterwards, two congregation members, Don and Diane DiPrete, invited me to stay in their hideaway in the woods on the edge of town. I had the pleasure of sleeping in the tiny Boler trailer pictured here. It was a memorably enjoyable stay. That evening, I met Diane's daughter, Drea DiPrete--an extremely talented local artist whose work I hope to feature here very soon.

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Boise, ID. Here, I spoke to the local Institute of Noetic Sciences group, led my Michelle Woods and Judith Allen (aka Lady J). Plus, I had a chance to explore this quaint city and discover its charms. Among the local attractions is Merritt's Family Restaurant, an old-time diner where I had a four-hour lunch conversation with Mike Dunlap (pictured here). Mike is a true renaissance man who holds two Ph.D. degrees (in physics and education), has written a number of fantasy books, and has had one of the most impressively eclectic careers of anyone I have yet to meet. Having the chance to talk with this remarkable man was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the trip for me.

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I am delighted and grateful to have had this terrific adventure. Now that I am back home, it's time to start on the next book. More about that later!