TRIBES

Son-in-Law Nate, Upon the Arrival of his Minnesota Tribe

 At the end of that Wild Surrender book that I mentioned yesterday, Mindy has a list of a dozen or more artists/bloggers whom she refers to as "My Heart, My Tribe." She said "Over the years throughout this journey, these creative souls have touched my soul. They inspire me beyond words. Meeting and connecting with them has been the BEST part about this journey. To witness their growth and watch them fly has been a beautiful thing." That got me to thinkin', yet again, about my own tribes, and what a huge difference they made in my life.

Story Circle Network Pals

It took me more than 50 years to find my first creative "tribe" -- the one I stumbled upon when I first started blogging about our new life here in the Texas Hill Country. I found another blogger who was doing the same, and almost wet my pants when I finally realized that the blogger happened to be one of my favorite authors, Susan Wittig Albert. She invited me to join an organization called Story Circle Network -- a group she founded to encourage women to "tell their stories." When I attended their bi-annual conference over in Austin I realized I'd finally found my "tribe". Little did I know, that was just the first of many!

My Muses

 While at that very same conference, I put on my big girl panties and invited myself to join two other women at a table in the hotel restaurant -- one of whom just happened to be from Wimberley too! She later invited me to a gathering of a few creative friends -- some of which morphed into the group I refer to as The Muses.

H.S. Debbie Tries Her Hand at Archery at Lucky Star

Thanks to a high school yearbook tribe-mate, who reintroduced us when she found out we were both living in Wimberley, I became friends with High School Debbie. Through her I discovered on-line art classes and a new tribe of artsy bloggers, which then led me to Lucky Star Art Camp, and a real-life tribe of "creative souls."

Last Years Gathering on our Porch at Lucky Star

Somehow, all of this got me to thinking about my children and their tribes. Daughter Lex had a tight little tribe of ex-pat kiddos when we lived on a company compound in Indonesia, but felt totally adrift when we moved back to the states, and she no longer fit in with her old crowd. She eventually found her tribe in the theater and art departments in high school, then in a Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Gaming group in college. Her hunny Nate did a bit of floundering too, until he discovered computers and the hacker network.  When they were wed a couple of weeks ago, it was more than the marriage of two people. It was the perfect melding of tribes, as evidenced by what happened when Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody song began playing midway through the reception.

Up until that point, only a few people at a time had been on the dance floor. However, when the first notes of that song came through the speakers, their friends were suddenly drawn to the floor as if by magnet, reminding me of a scene from Close Encounters. Apparently, regardless of tribe affiliation, they ALL knew the words to this particular song, and had spontaneously gathered in a circle to act out the various parts.

Next thing I knew they were taking turns "doing it Gangnam Style", and before long a new, much larger, tribe had been established.

Families can be tribes as well, and I was ever so proud of the way the Thomas, Lane and Sanders tribes all came together for this wedding, and threw themselves wholeheartedly into the "costume" aspects of it -- even those who wouldn't normally be caught dead in one!

After all, what is the point of anything, if you don't have a tribe to share it with?