Blackbirds are singing. This winter will soon turn over into a chapter of sunlight, flowers, and noisy nests. I look forward to this change, and yet, winter offers space for creative growth. I cherish the quiet hours, the blanketed streets, the opportunity to shape my seasonal torpor into a collage of slow-formed thoughts.

Craig Childs, in reflecting on the ambiance of winter, writes:

You go out for wood and find yourself staring at the stars, the sky so cold it feels like it could crack, and you remember what time of year it is. A far arm of the galaxy is laced from horizon to horizon. Orion chases the beautiful Pleiades nonstop. You are in winter’s cave. This is where you paint the walls with your dreams, counting airplanes as they pass.

                      -From Places, Craig Childs, December 24, 2020

We have all felt these moments, the ones where we know we are indeed residing within a seasonal hibernaculum, a cave. The question is, with what do we paint our walls?

As the sloping folds of snow begin to melt, our eyes adjust to a mosaic of earth tones. We greet familiar scenes: Purple Rattlesnake riverstones lining a favorite beach. A toy truck buried in the sand. A long-forgotten tree root. In this oscillation between freeze and thaw, when the land is still deciding how much to reveal, we find ourselves straddling the entrance to our cave, one foot in, one foot out. Our thawing self can decide how much cave to bring with us into the warming world. In this decision, creative gems wait to be found. They glitter. Grab them. 

With warmth,

Zoey Greenberg
Editorial Apprentice at Freeflow Institute

Help keep Freeflow alive and thriving by sharing our offerings with your people

We ask you, friends and creative inspiration to Freeflow, to please help us spread the word about SHIFT and our other 2022 experiences. Freeflow spends less than $250 annually on marketing. Instead, we invest in what we feel matters most: our instructors, outfitters, curriculum, scholarships, and other elements that fuel this vibrant endeavor. Our community is our marketing team. We depend on alumni, collaborators, and those who believe in what we do to spread the word about each upcoming course. With this in mind, might you consider sharing SHIFT and our 2022 programs with those in your life who are interested in engaging with wild lands through creative arts and expansive discussion? We would love to meet and share an adventure with them. Thank you, dear Freeflow family, for helping keep the vision alive.

We would like to highlight Freeflow Institute alum and Freeflow Foundation board member Lauren Smith, who joined the Owl Research Institute (ORI) in 2021 as the Director of Communications. Lauren has a background in ornithology, writing, and science communication. She holds a graduate degree in Environmental Studies with a writing focus from the University of Montana, and has experience as a field biologist and environmental educator. In her role as the Director of Communications Lauren helps ORI communicate their findings to a wide range of audiences, furthering their mission of better understanding the compelling lives of North America’s owls. 

Writers 30 and younger are invited to submit their best work to the Montana Quarterly’s 2022 Big Snowy Prize contest. Previously unpublished works of fiction and nonfiction, up to 3500 words, may be submitted by April 15 for consideration. Two $500 prizes will be awarded. Applicants should be current or former Montana residents. Submit to editor@themontanaquarterly.com.