Cottonwoods along Ojo Caliente Wash, New Mexico.
It’s been a traveling week: I’ve been to New Mexico, and then driven the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma to northwest Arkansas. Tomorrow I hit the road for home, a two-day, 800-mile drive across the Southern Plains.
Last Thursday, I drove to Albuquerque with a stop Santa Fe, where I visited a writing class taught by writer and teacher Dawn Wink at Santa Fe Community College. I was on time until the gorgeous ribbon of golden cottonwoods in Ojo Caliente enticed me to stop and shoot “just a few” photos…. (Oops!) If it hadn’t been for the patience of Dawn’s husband, Noé Villareal, who waited for me at the main entrance quad of the college, I might never have found Dawn and her class.
With writer and teacher Dawn Wink at the Women Writing the West Conference in Albuquerque. (Photo: Noé Villareal)
Which would have been a shame. The week before, the students had used my word-ring creativity exercise, which helped these aspiring writers representing three languages and cultures and a couple of decades span in ages, find their writing voices and confidence. Seeing their eyes light up as I talked about how and why I write reminded me. I wrestle with the terror of the blank page, I write with my heart outstretched as it were my hand because I want to open minds. I want to change the world, one heart at a time.
And meeting Dawn and Noé… You know when you meet people who feel as if you’ve known them always? It was like that.
From Santa Fe, I cruised south to Albuquerque for the Women Writing the West Conference. This group is a warm and supportive community of women who write about the West, whether the historical West or the present-day one, whether in fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry, screenplays or memoir. The conference was a weekend of connecting and re-connecting, and much inspiration.
The opening slide for my keynote at the WWW conference
I was honored to give the opening night talk, “Writing With Heart,” and I’ll have a video of it to share with you before too long. (One without annoying noises!) I don’t brag well at all, so I’ll just say the reception to my talk was gratifying. In fact, I think I knocked that particular ball out of the park.
Other highlights included talks with two agents–I may be working with an agent again after many years on my own, and that’s exciting. And breakfast with Saturday night’s keynote speaker, Professor Virginia Scharff, Historian and Director of the Center for Southwest Studies, and her husband, Chris Wilson, J.B. Jackson professor in the School of Architecture and Planning. I’ve known Virginia since grad school at University of Wyoming in Laramie, where I slept on her porch one summer between jobs….
From Albuquerque, I blew east across the mesa country and the Texas Panhandle to Amarillo, where I spent the night. The next day I tacked into a fierce cross-wind across Oklahoma, and after almost nine hours on the road, made it my sister-in-law’s house in Springdale, Arkansas, sore and tired.
Crystal Springs Museum of American Art, Bentonville
Yesterday Letitia and I wandered part of the extensive woods at the new Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville (otherwise known as the home of Walmart; the museum is Alice Walton’s creation). The buildings were closed, but I can attest that they and the grounds are gorgeous, designed in an organic way that compliments the dramatic site, a deep ravine in oak-hickory woods.
Today we picked up my 95-year-old mother-in-law, Miss Alice, and drove east on winding roads over ridges and down valleys colored in the crimson, gold, toffee, orange, and lemon yellow of autumn in the Ozarks to explore the west end of the Buffalo National River. Just seeing the very west end of this clear, un-dammed river winding its way through the steep ridges under thick limestone bluffs makes me want to explore more.
Letitia Hitz, Miss Alice Cabe, and me, Buffalo National River
Tomorrow I’m headed home, on that two-day drive across the Southern Plains with a winter storm threatening. By the time I get there, I’ll have driven almost two thousand miles in eight days. (No wonder I’m tired.)
But look at those smiles–worth the trip, wouldn’t you say?
Ridges above the Buffalo River, Arkansas Ozarks
what a wonderful exhausting trip! the portrait of you three beautiful women speaks volumes. take care of yourself, susan.
Isn’t that a great photo? A passer-by stopped and shot the photo for us, and it turned out just beautifully. A lovely memory. And now to head home into a winter storm….
Susan, a memorable and very worthwhile trip to be sure. A lovely post – I love the picture of Ojo Caliente – brings back memories of our trip to this special place a few years ago. Your “word-ring creativity” is a terrific idea. Although I no longer have my own classroom I am going to adopt this technique for my own writing. Thank you
Lindy, The idea of the word-ring came from artist Sherrie York. She graciously let me adapt it to writing. Her artists decorate their word-cards in the most wonderful ways, but I think we writers excel at coming up with great words to inspire our writing practices. Heading on the road for home now–think of me driving into the wind and snow. (Yikes.)
Glad you found time to enjoy the cottonwoods. And I love the smiling-face photo of you an your friend, and the Arkansas Ozarks are beautiful.
Pat, If you’ve never wandered through the Buffalo National River country in fall, you’d love it! I imagine it’s gorgeous in spring with the wildflowers blooming before the trees are fully leafed out, and that’s when the river is runnable. Such a beautiful place!
Hopefully, you’ll have just the benefits, none of the “payment,” of our recent cold front—the beauty of the fresh snowfall, with no driving thru while it’s happening, or impeding driving.
Such smiles on such women!
Eagerly awaiting to see your opening presentation. Love the St Exupery quote. (And belated thanks for posting the link to Mary Chapin Carpenter’s, Goodnight America—I’ve wondered from which song that oft-repeated line come. Now I know.)
Continued blessings.
Eduardo, So far I’m just getting the wind and the cold. When it’s windy AND cold on the Oklahoma Panhandle, it’s really bitter. Brrr! The presentation was professionally videotaped, and now I need to get the slides added, which is an additional editing job (and an additional bill to pay). I don’t think it’ll take the videographer long to add the slides though; she was very efficient. I’ll put it up when it’s ready, and then I’ll inaugurate my in-process YouTube channel.
Safe home … Have been reading about Perthshire Amber, those autumn now colours echoed in Scotland.
Diana, Thank you! I’m halfway there tonight, way out on the Great Plains with nary a tree or hill in sight, except for those clustered (huddled might be a better word) around the wind-breaks of the houses in town here. Is it funny to read about autumn when you’re in spring?
To me the trip is made more wonderful with nature and the loving people who are along the way. Be safe…it doesn’t look like the storm will travel too far south or west. Primarily Rampart Range north and Palmer Divide north.
Doris, It’s a very expensive trip for me in terms of energy, but as you say, the family time is precious as is seeing the beauty of the Ozark country in fall. My sister-in-law had never been over to the Buffalo River area, and she’s already looking at it as a nearby get-away place to go when she needs solitude and views of the stars, which she doesn’t get in the congested Fayetteville/Springdale area. So that’s another benefit. I looked at the cotrip cameras tonight for the highways, and you’re right–it looks like Raton Pass and the Wet Mountain Valley are snow free. (If not smoke free for the latter, given the Wetmore fire on the other side of the range. Yikes.) If the wind will stop and it’s not too cold tonight, the driving should be easier tomorrow. Today I had pouring rain, huge winds, and some tornado warnings….