I get deep intense whole body conversations, that I otherwise would not feel safe expressing or listening to.

At fest I am able to test my boundaries, in mind, body, and soul.

I get to really DANCE.

Did I mention those whole body conversations...missing them right now.

I get true community, kindness, and respect for just being alive and on land.

I get to laugh out loud, and snort, I love snorting.

I get to speak out loud.

I get to take up space, and for a girl who only stands 4feet 11inches, getting to take up the space I need without a dominant force pushing back, is very important.

Oh and feeling safe speaking and listening to those whole body conversations is like entering into the big O and just hanging on to ecstasy... are we there yet?

Ok one more month and we will be coming home...love you fest...love you Lisa and the Collective womyn who started this amazing festival.

Peace, Beth

Peace but no quiet.

unconditional love like I've never had anywhere else (except from my gal)

freedom to do anything, anywhere (well as long as I don't infringe on others freedom)

Music!

Walking bare-breasted through ferns in the cool morning air.

Womyn -only swing dancing, where I can lead for a couple of dances and then relax into following.

dancing 'til my body can't dance any more.

Watching all the extraordinary womyn (that's all of you) doing your Michfest thing

The best holistic healthcare money can't buy

Beka

I've never even BEEN to Fest and the most surprising thig I've gained from being on the Board and in contact with so many other like-minded womyn is that I no longer imagine the mirror cracking when I look at myself naked.

I even have worn shorts in public for the first time in years.

That's how much my body image has improved.

Without even being at Fest.

Love and blessings to all Fest womyn, you've given this fat babydyke a measure of comfort in her own body, and that's something priceless beyond compare.

Fabulous, Snow! I bet you'll experience even more amazing healing re: your body image at fest. I know that I have. . .I grew up with lots of teasing about being fat, and my mother started me and my twin on diets when we were nine years old and we dieted throughout the rest of growing up. . .and I learned to hate the way my body looks. . .my first year I started out thinking there was no way I'd take my shirt off. . .but a few days into fest I was rushing to a workshop and I was hot and I realized I'd be a lot cooler without a shirt on. . .and I took my shirt off, and I WAS cooler, and no one seemed to freak out. . .and after all there were womyn of all sizes and shapes walking around me with various amounts of clothes on or not. . .and by the end of fest I strolled away from the showers naked and air drying. . .

but the reallllllllly powerful experience was the next year when I spent 12 hours wearing nothing but bodypaint, sneakers and a big grin. . .wow oh wow. .. just the experience of Jayne painting me for over an hour, while other womyn watched and commented, was immensely validating. . .and then walking around the fest. . .I have never been told I am beautiful by so many people. . .it took a while for it all to sink in. . .but it did sink in. . .and as the hours went by, I really believed them, and believed that I am indeed beautiful. . . and, the paint didn't cover all of my skin, and even though I had put on a bunch of sunscreen and carried a big umbrella as a parasol, I got INCREDIBLE tan lines that lasted for MONTHS. . . a fabulous way to remind myself of that powerful day. . . and I will NEVER look at myself in the mirror the same again. . .

so. . .hooray for the healing powers of the Fest BB. . .and have a marvelous time exploring fest and all that it can mean. ..
SKWD

Thanks so much for your kind words SKWD ^_^ I'm just dying to be on the Land right now.

I don't know if I'll remove my clothes per se at this first Fest but I know I'll be wearing shorts and possibly not doing the underwear/bra thing. It's really wonderful to hear that so many womyn have the experience of "normalizing" their bodies on the Land. A lot of my issues with food came from being raised by someone who thought my existence nothing more than a nuisance, so I learned from a young age not to ask for things and just to scavenge for what I could find from what was brought into the house in terms of food as well as clothing, hygiene supplies, reading materials etc. I grew up in a well-off home, so I didn't starve or not have any clothes, it's just that I wasn't really taught how to relate to food/clothing/hygiene etc properly. (Being an undiagnosed autistic did NOT help matters at ALL.)

Now that I'm in a different living situation, I'm being taught how to ask for what I need and relate to basic life issues in a healthier way, but it's hard and I know now I have used food as an emotional buffer... but it's hard to untangle this kind of thing even with literally years of patience and love and support from others. I know the womyn of Fest helped me so much in such a short amount of time on the Board, and I KNOW being on the Land will cause me to re-evaluate a lot of what I am/do, and hopefully I'll be able to treat myself more gently because of that.

ahhh. . .that is the key. . .being gentle with oneself (and with everyone else).
Here's a song that is a favorite of mine from singing circle (Tuesday-Saturday, 9am-noon, all welcome, come and go, all singing abilities welcome)

I will be gentle with myself
I will love myself
I am a child of the universe
Being born each moment

and another singing circle song that regularly has me in tears of gratitude for the "cradling" I get from the earth

Cradle me, Cracle me
Oh dear mother, cradle me
Earth and breath and sky and sea
All rise up and cradle me. . .

Sooooon! Safe travels. . .
SKWD

I get whatever it is that I need....even when I don't know what that is. Peace. Clearity. Healing of my heart. Love. Friendship. This year,....who knew I needed so much fun??!! Big LOVE to all my sisters. See you next fall!!!

This was my first fest, although W. Coast was a mainstay for me for many years, and then NorCal for a few more recently. I got so much from fest. I went alone, met up with some womyn who I knew (from Santa Cruz, my town and from past fests). I got to experience myself as I am now, much more whole and happy than ever. I got to feel how it can be to feel so complete and to delight in every experience from one moment to the next throughout each day. The comfort of resting while travelling on the crosstown shuttle, beautiful womyn smiling, laughing and being good to one another...a breeze right when you need it, having people willing to help when you need it (camping way out in crone heights, I needed help to find my way a few times!), and fun fun things to do all day long. I felt like I was at a giant playground with the best people there to enjoy it with. I decided that upon leaving fest, I wanted to live my life with as much of this feeling as possible. And it is working. I look for the joy, beauty, love and safety...and I find that although the real world isn't the ideal that Michfest is, still there is a lot of wonder, generosity, beauty and safety if you look for it. I don't have loneliness anymore...not like I used to. I am far more fulfilled, even as a single person. Michfest was a huge feast and it has helped me to keep taking in nourishment and sensory delights. All of this I got from fest. Oh--I also got a big dose of seeing old womyn in a better way. Helping me to make better peace with my own aging.

Oh--and I got to meet Amy Ray (heart pounding even as I remember!). This was a fest dream that got answered. :-)