#ComingHome2015 What Coming Home Means to Me by Catherine Ann Jones (M.A. Mythology 2002) #PGIAlumniStories “It’s not what I am going to do with mythology, but what mythology is going to do with me.” -->Read Catherines Story here-->It all began with a dream one night of a woman six months pregnant. I interpreted this to mean that in three months the birth of a new life would come. The next day I had lunch with a colleague in Ojai where we both lived, and she mentioned she was a student at Pacifica. Hearing the name of the school for the first time, intuitively I felt that this was my next step. The next morning I drove from Ojai to Pacifica and was told the fall submission deadline was the next day. Sept was the 9th month according to my dream so I said I was ready to sign up that very day. I chose the Myth track as I had worked as a playwright and screenwriter for the last many years. I knew that Story was my path. I had taught graduate school for almost twenty years, first at The New School University in New York City then at U.S.C. When my conservative Texas mother challenged my decision to go back to school for another degree and in mythology of all subjects, I said, “It’s not what I am going to do with mythology, but what mythology is going to do with me.” I didn’t understand my response then yet knew it felt right. Living from within had always been my way and I knew from experience that some right decisions might not be understood until much later. Pacifica was a wonderful and meaningful journey. Top teachers made it all the more enjoyable. Looking back, there is one thing I would do differently. I worked full time my first year and part-time the following year. I also commuted from Ojai. This meant I missed bonding with my fellow students, a definite potential part of the Pacifica journey. For over twenty years I had worked as a professional playwright and screenwriter but had not written prose. All those Pacifica papers enabled me to develop a prose style as well as ‘find my voice’ as the papers invited us to write from within. This resulted in two non-fiction books, The Way of Story: the craft and soul of writing and Heal Your Self with Writing (Nautilus Book Award 2014) and also writing workshops taught all over the world now. So Pacifica trained me for my next career – a more #soulful career - though at the time, I had no idea what would follow. Influenced by Jung’s writings since college, I simply listened to my dream and followed an inner intuitive call to sign up. How glad I am that I did! The Alumni Coming Home Conference is a confirmation and deeper commitment to listen within and follow your star. - Catherine Ann Jones wayofstory
Posted on: Wed, 14 Jan 2015 19:04:53 +0000
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