Starting the New Year with Gratitude
Dear Imagine friends and family,
Greetings to you this New Year! We hope that you are as well as can be.
Many of you have been companions and collaborators on our journey this past year. Some of you have supported us in one way or another. Others have attended our events or in some other way crossed our path. Each of you is important to us and we wanted to take a little time at the start of the year to say hello and share a bit of what we’ve been learning and what is bringing us joy.
We are finding ourselves feeling hopeful these days, and it’s more than the simple optimism that sometimes bubbles up with the turn of a new year. Rather, it’s a hope that comes from gratitude. And that gratitude comes from seeing the good fruit of work that many of you have shared in, and the anticipation of more to come.
We named our company “Imagine” because we believe that there is something bold and activating about using one’s imagination. Imagination can be a powerful force. It opens up new possibilities. It can change us and others around us. What we imagine is often based in our own longing—a desire for something that is not yet there, something better than what currently exists.
One way to engage our own imagination is to start with questions: What are we longing for? What do we hope to see in the world around us? How could things be better for us and for others?
As Imagine, some of our answers to those questions are things like honest connection, for each one to be seen as they uniquely are, for courage and joyful presence and breakthroughs of reconciliation, for conversations that open us up to growth and wholeness.
We seek belonging within ourselves and for the world around us. Our heroes from the civil rights movement called this work the creation of the “Beloved Community”. Imagine all living beings in true flourishing—harmony, equity, and interdependence. The Beloved Community extends into every facet of life and shows up in big and small ways.
After imagination comes creation. We unite to try something out (without the pressure of getting it wrong or right.) We explore. Art, play, creativity, and conversation are some of the tools for this. This exploration leads to becoming and building. Or rebuilding. And sometimes the results are beyond what we might have ever imagined…
In 2021, Imagine began with an ache and a longing. Then came wondering and daydreaming. Then creation, together with friends and collaborators, a start to building something new. There is much to tell about the last year and a half (and we hope to share some of it with you in the coming months!) For now, we just want to say thank you and invite you to keep imagining with us.
Love,
Catherine & Peter
Here are a few things that are giving us joy right now…
SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRANT - SAFA’S STORY LIVE ASSEMBLY
This past fall, we received a grant from the County of San Diego that has allowed us to offer a variety of programming in schools across the county, including a new tour in November of our anti-bullying play Safa’s Story. During the tour they sent a video team out to capture a little sample of the joy and barely-contained chaos which is the Safa’s Story Live Assembly. We thought you might enjoy seeing it.
And here’s the Safa crew and cast after the last show. They’re a little crazy…and we love them.
PLAY! YOUTH DEVELOPMENT THEATRE
The Play! curriculum, developed by Catherine, has become a core part of our offering in the schools in the San Diego area. It teaches belonging, empathy, self-expression, and confidence for kids from kindergarten to eighth grade using a variety of applied theatre techniques. One of the best things is seeing kids using their imaginations for the benefit of their friends, families, and themselves.
