Decade in Review: 2003

** May 2003.  Starhawk comes to Eugene.  

OK, this is outside the decade of 2004 2014; but it's Starhawk.   Think of it as a prologue.




Scene:  Evening. The garden courtyard.  John is sitting on a wooden bench under an apple tree, cradling a phone in his shoulder and looking at an invitation entitled "Honoring Starhawk" and subtitled "A Wise Woman Council Dinner."

Phone picks up.

Woman (on other end):  "Hello."

John (duplicitously):  "Hello, my name's John and I'd like to RSVP for the dinner with Starhawk, Friday the 22."

Woman:  "Oh.  Well.  What was your last name?"  (Sound of rustling papers)

John:  "Burridge... B-U-R-R-I-D-G-E."

Woman:  "Hmmm.  Well."  (More paper rustling.)  "You see, John.  I'm not seeing your name on my list.  How did you hear about the dinner?"  (Subtext:  it's an exclusive, secret, $15-dollar-a-plate dinner that isn't being advertised on all the "Starhawk in Eugene" flyers all over Eugene.)

John (thinking the woman on the other sounds like someone's grandmother and he should be extra nice to her):  "I have an invitation."

Woman:  "Oh.  Oh.  Who gave you the invitation?"

John:  "S.H. gave me hers."

Woman:  "Oh.  Well, you see, um, it's a women-only event.  I wonder what wasn't clear about that on the invitation?  The idea is that the women would trade their success stories during the dinner with Starhawk."

John:  "Oh." (Getting to the point on his secret agenda.)  "In that case is there a concurrent event that men may attend?"

Woman:  "Hmmm.  I don't know.  I'll have to call around; may I have your phone number?"

John:  "Certainly." [Gives number]

Woman:  "OK.  I'll make some calls and get back to you.

John:  "Thank you very much; I look forward to hearing from you."

---

Starhawk led a workshop and a very cool ritual.

The things I learned personally from the workshop were:  1) sometimes I'm a little too nice, with a combination of laziness and spaciness that gets me into doldrums with the other "left over" people.  2)  Often people go into relationships with people and groups looking for the perfect relationship, and then get annoyed or frustrated when they aren't perfect.

Afterward, Sunday, I realized two additional things.  The first thing is I think everyone who's read and admired Starhawk hopes that they will go to an event and have five minutes or so alone with Starhawk.  They hope this will be a life-changing event; Starhawk will say something that validates their life, or she will solve the one problem that's been bugging them for the last decade.  Or people hope that maybe there's something that they might say or do that is a missing puzzle piece; something that will ease whatever Starhawk is burdened with.  This makes people act a little goofy.

But the biggest thing I learned from this event is that there are A-list Hippies in Eugene.