Media
Newsworthy Book & Author Mentions
Guest Post
Trail Of Blue Ice
Words for the Hiker
Your footsteps are a rhythmic heartbeat.
A pattern similar to many, but one of a kind.
A theme that differs in each place it is played.
A symphony that accompanies the Earth’s progression.
A music that only the Universe understands.
Your measures fill in the rests that have appeared along the path.
They seem more frequent as the atmosphere cools. Steps are louder in this gelid air.
Heard almost like an exhaled breath is seen, lingering a moment longer, not quite an echo.
Your eyes soak in the color before it sleeps.
Blues brush the water, the mountains, the glaciers, the horizon, the sky, the moon.
Every blink frames a story, centuries old or just now new.
Tales tickle the inward eye filling in where more ice once rested, where stone was shaved flat, and where water smoothed rough edges.
Your heart keeps its pace counterpoint to your step,
the contrast emphasized by wind whirling leaves across the ground.
For it is here the post-glacial rebound lifts your feet,
reminding you to return from where you came before light slips down.
And as you do, the Trail of Blue Ice gifts you again with a whole new symphony.
Guest Post
49 Writers
The Covid 19 pandemic is isolating Alaskan writers. We can no longer attend workshops or public readings. The coffee bars where we met with other writers are closed. To bridge these physical gaps, 49 Writers is providing this on-line forum for Alaskans writing the distance.
Katherine Haghighi measures the lilt of the wind.
Guest Podcasts
Living Well Today
Podcast interview with Living Well Today host,
Susan Wheeler-Hall, BSW
About the show:
Thoughtful interviews and insights aimed to inspire and ignite living well no matter what is going on in your life.
Guest Podcasts
We're Listening
Podcast interview with host, and 3P Coach, Rob Cook.
About the show:
It’s a lighthearted show about the human experience with live conversations, discussions, and interviews of some of the newest to most established 3P practitioners from all over the world.
Guest Podcast
Say Yes to Holiness Podcast
Quiet Surrender as a Path to Growth
About the show:
The goal of this weekly podcast is to encourage, challenge and empower people to Say Yes to living their life to the fullest. Listen in to Katherine’s discussion with Christina on finding ones’ path to growth.
Speaking Events
Stepping into the Garden with Words
Location: Alaska Botanical Garden's Spring Garden Conference & Expo 2024
Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center
Date: March 23 &24th 2024
When we step into a garden our senses are highlighted, our mind’s eye widened, and our understanding of the present noted. We open ourselves to experience what we see, taste, hear, smell, and touch in the moment. And we return again and again to see changes, nurture what is, and anticipate what is coming. It brings us joy.
We try to describe it to each other with words, out loud, stating a color, a scent, a name, a feel. We may not be aware of it but write as we speak.
This program is an exploration of writing in the garden. We move beyond “how do I” or “what do I write about?”. Instead, we lean into the words that appear when experiencing garden spaces and think about different ways to capture words, stories, tales and lore. We are all writers in the garden.
Guest Speaker
Moving Forward with Grief
Grief is a natural response to loss, and it can affect all aspects of our lives. More often than not, it is a topic that most people avoid. We get tangled in what we think, believe and feel about loss and get stopped in our tracks. Changes in everyday life add stress, let alone the loss of a job, of our health or the death of a loved one. We can change the conversation about grief and loss and take a step forward.
Guest Speaker
Pathway To Music Therapy
When students hear about music therapy as a profession, questions arise. Does my school have a program? Where could I work as a music therapist? What training is required? Are there advanced degrees? Do I need to be a musician? How can I start my path? Let’s experience music therapy together to see if it is a good fit for you!
Guest Speaker
Landing on Our Own Two Feet
In the rush of the week or the hurry of the day, we may lose sight of ourselves and our ability to be focused and engaged. This may keep us from making the most of the day or disrupt our sleep at night. How can we land back on our own two feet and be present in the moment? We can center and ground ourselves by focusing on the five senses. All we need is a minute for each sense, wherever we may be.
Guest Speaker
Sound Consciousness
With sound consciousness, we can become more aware of the sounds we take in and make choices to lessen the negative effects and evoke the positive. Katherine Haghighi and Stacey Schriner combine music and horticultural therapy experiences throughout the garden to boost health in the great outdoors.
Workshop Events
Alaska Botanical Garden Kids Camp June 2024
Campers at the Alaska Botanical Garden Kid’s Camp paired their experiences in nature with stories and poetry!
Children used their surroundings, feelings, and imagination to create story and poetry sticks. Storytelling sticks have been used in Alaska dating back 200 years.
In the Alaska Botanical Garden, we used storytelling sticks to tell stories of where someone had traveled, what they had seen, and to entertain.
The students worked together to create a story in sand and then later created poetry sticks to describe what they saw and felt around them in the garden.
Before the Light Leaves:
A Unique Writing Experience
Location: Alaska Botanical Garden
Date: July 27th 2024
Have you ever felt inspired in the garden? Have you ever heard your creative voice in the garden? Have you ever dreamt of writing in the garden? Let’s do all three before the light leaves! Bring your favorite paper and pen and your curiosity. The garden will provide the magical space. Together we will tap into what is next. Never written before? No problem. Need a creative boost? It will be ready for you. Not sure why this is intriguing? Come find out. Give yourself the gift of time to create with words. Discover the creative prompts placed throughout the garden to inspire your ideas. Share the joy of the late July light. The clapping leaves are our only audience.
