Award-winning speaker and local author of The Grateful Jar Project, Krystin Clark turned existential unease into a moving experience. The feelings she recognized are universal. They accompany the loss of a role that defines identity; the loss of a job or the death of a loved one; being mid-transition and no longer who you once were — though not yet who you are becoming.
Responding to the unravelling of her life, Clark embraced the Camino Frances trek as a personal rite of passage to bridge the gap. She explained it was to honour “what once was” while holding space for something to reveal itself. The journey entailed traversing the French Pyrenees mountains along Napoleon’s Pass, through two different countries and across four different Spanish regions, walking 800 kilometres (1,224,546 steps) in 57 days.
Clark will present an evening of storytelling as she shares breathtaking photographs of the quest, candidly confessing her many moments of self-doubt — and regaling her audience with some of her favourite people and experiences from along “The Way.”
Her presentation at the Raven’s Cry Theatre on Thursday, April 10 offers the opportunity to walk the Camino Frances from the very beginning to the very end, all in one stretch, without taking a single step.
Tickets will not be available at the door, but can be purchased online at krystinclark.ca/57-days.
Prime for writers festival
There is still time to register for the Sunshine Coast ElderCollege’s preview of the 2025 Festival of the Written Arts. Due to popular demand, an afternoon session, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., has been added. The course will take place over five Thursdays, May 1 to May 29, at St. Hilda’s Anglican Church in Sechelt.
Former and new participants can join Sunshine Coast ElderCollege for the 23rd year of its interactive course. Members of the group will read and discuss a book by five of the writers appearing at this year’s Festival of the Written Arts; everyone is encouraged to express their observations in open and friendly conversation — similar to a book club! The books being discussed are: In Winter I Get Up at Night, by Jane Urquhart; All Our Ordinary Stories, by Teresa Wong; Hearty, by andrea bennett; The Mystery Guest, by Nita Prose; and Message in a Bottle, by Holly Hogan.
Eager registrants should visit Sunshine Coast ElderCollege website at sunshinecoasteldercollege.ca. Books will be available at both the Sechelt and Gibsons libraries. Talewind Books provides participants in the course with a 10 per cent discount when they buy the course books through them.
April is the cruellest month
T. S. Eliot’s bleak assessment of April (which opens his work The Waste Land) was made long before the Academy of American Poets lifted spirits by instituting National Poetry Month in 1996.
The Gibsons and District Public Library is observing National Poetry Month with a Teen Poetry Contest and other activities. Youth poets ages 12 to 18 can write a poem in any form (sonnet, ode, haiku, etc.) and submit their entries through the library’s online form (gibsonslibrary.ca).
Winning poems will be published in print and online. Prizes will also be awarded to three winners. The contest closes next week on April 11.
The library will also host a poetry reading from Sheila Weaver on April 30, who will be reading from her latest book, Taste of a Raindrop and other Haikus of the West Coast.
Organ recital with a difference
This weekend, Tien Neo Eamas (who in 2001 was the first Asian trans man in Vancouver to go public with his identity), will be leading a safe and uplifting session for participants to converse openly, to share concerns or confusions, and to ask any questions about gender and sexuality.
The event is presented by the Sunshine Coast Arts Council, and takes place at its gallery on Sunday, April 6 at 1:30 p.m.
Gender Talks is a free series for people aged 12 and older; conversation about sexuality and sex organs will inevitably arise. Doors open at 1 p.m.; seating is limited.
Time for nominations
The nomination period is now open for annual awards administered by the Sunshine Coast Arts Council. Its honours are funded through donations made to various endowments managed by the Sunshine Coast Foundation.
Recipients are selected by a committee based on community recommendations. The awards have been established to recognize artists from all disciplines and individuals who have contributed significantly to the arts and culture community on the Sunshine Coast.
The deadline for submissions is April 17 at 4 p.m.
For more information, to self-nominate, or to nominate someone deserving, browse to sunshinecoastartscouncil.com/awards.
