dear wild self community…

since the beginning of western civilization… all men and women have quested… we not only read about quests in the folklore of cultural tradition but the ‘hero’s journey’ girds our everyday reality as well…

we quest… therefore we are…

we quest to discover new frontiers… we quest to recover lost things… we quest to figure out who we are and what we want to become… we quest to re-capture what joseph campbell calls  ‘estatic joy’…the self that longs to feel alive, everyday…

severance from the known world and faith in the mystery… set in motion our journey into the wilderness of being… where we re-discover our wild self… re-claim our intuition… un-socialize our psyche and un-discipline our body…

human quests are where we radically express the self…

the questing path is mysterious and wild… we are tested in unimaginable ways… often forced to draw upon powers we didn’t know we had… these soul-seeking challenges  help us shed the social skin of yesterday for a renewed vision of our self…

we quest to synch our interior and outer states of being…

(image from a ‘wild self’ desert quest @ black rock desert)

on quests, we receive fated gifts…objects…wisdom… sometimes both… whatever we receive is what we and our community may not want but need… when we align our lives with our endowed gifts, good things happen… not only for us, but for the collective as well…

we need not to quest alone though… it is easier to receive the much-needed ‘nudge’ to take the next step in our journey when we have a supportive community… at the wild self, we are this creative community…

the ‘wild self’ community is a space that gives people permission to be… to express without judgment… to embrace the wildness within… to live as if life is an ongoing experiment…

too much of life is devoted to legislating the human experience so we will leave the judging… categorizing… institutionalizing… to the world of bureaucrats…

we… however… are driven by the provocation of possibility… we… the ‘wild self’ community… quest not because of what we already know but for newfound possibilities…

the ‘wild self’ community shares some core beliefs… we…

• commit ourselves to our own personal growth and the knowledge that creative development requires time… effort… courage…

• demonstrate a willingness to learn how to use nature and our body as a source of creative insight and development…

• love to play and cultivate child-like curiosity…

• open ourselves to an ecological approach to creativity where work… nature… relationships… and inspiration are intimately connected…

• engage in guided dialogues designed to create long-lasting methods of creativity…

when we… the venturesome minority… have a ‘creative’ and ‘wild’ space to support these personal beliefs, we not only survive but thrive…

guiding and mentoring you through this magical, organic, expressive, and ‘wild’ space is at the heart of ‘wild self’ quests…

you participate in ‘wild self’ quests for different reasons… you want to live more fulfilling lives… you want to be more effective in your interaction with others… you want to enact change… you want to embark on a journey… you want to cultivate your creativity… you are creative but feel ‘stuck’… you want to re-engage with the wild…

( sara mossman reflects during a ‘wild self’ quest walk)

at the wild self, we appreciate being able to mentor… assist… and guide you on your quests and like that you actively share the word of the ‘wild self’…

we continue to offer ‘wild self’ quest walks by appointment (in the bay area) and have a ‘wild self’ desert quest at black rock desert scheduled for late spring 2011…

we also have two evocative… educational… and exciting day-long retreats this fall…

• in collaboration with allison hodge, a yoga instructor in san francisco, we will offer a ‘wild self’ yoga retreat on october 23rd in marin county…

• in collaboration with josie bohling, a family and marriage counselor in sebastopol, we will offer a ‘wild self’ wilderness solo on november 3rd in marin county…

as many of you know, we have developed an online, social-media presence for the wild self as well… you can visit the wild self web page or the wild self on facebook (over 1200 active followers) to experience visual and written essays (over 50 essays) about the ‘wild self’ lifestyle…

we’d like to acknowledge the diligent help of jennifer knowles (web design),james schaffer (brand management), and zachary mason white, ph.d (chief sounding board/editor) whose thoughtful service and periodic kicks-from-behind, helped us develop an online, social-media presence that effectively spreads the wild self message…

to inquire further about ‘wild self’ activities, feel free to contact us toll-free at (888) 466-4820 or email us at lightandright@thewildself.com

we also welcome provocative possiblities, so if you have thoughts about how the ‘wild self’ fits (or could fit) into your personal or business life, feel free to propose how that might be…

in closing… not all that is harvested is worth keeping… some things… some experiences… some personas… must be left behind to move forward…so as we move from summer’s abundance to fall harvest, may we carry forward those summer expansions that most closely speak to our ‘natural grace’…

as you and others engage in this transition, the wild self will be here to support you…

for the wild,

gino dante borges, ph.d.