Getting Creative at Community Café

Kelli McRobert | Oct 11, 2023

A dozen or so curious residents headed over to Piccadilly Hall in Godfrey, Ontario last week. They had seen an ad for a Creative Writing Workshop, through the Rural Frontenac Community Café, with a freelance writer ‘Jemma Dooreleyers’.

Upon entry to the small hall, they each took a seat and were offered a pen, paper, and a muse of a green frog who sat quietly at the front of the room. Jemma was animated and pleasant as she introduced herself and began to explain the creative process of finding interesting characters to write about.

The first exercise was to come up with questions to ask a ‘stranger’, perhaps. Questions that would provoke thought, and questions that may or may not be uncomfortable during a ‘normal’ encounter. Each writer was given the opportunity to discuss their questions, and you could see how characters were emerging, background stories building, and sub-plots developing within the details. Some questions were bold, provocative, and cheeky, while others were more subdued like “where you from?”, “where did you grow up?” etc….

One participant described a rather uncouth dog, his habits, and his likes and dislikes, while another had a pleasant encounter on a bus ride. We were taken along for the ride (on the bus), as the women chatted, and shared stories of their pasts, common threads emerged, and you were drawn into the journey that made you smile as you listened intently to the tale that unfolded. Each story was different, unique to the teller, and came from a creative place, drawn out by the facilitator as she helped guide the writer through character building tips and tricks.

Jemma herself created a tale surrounding her green frog, named Ricky Rain. She detailed his home, his profession, and his character flaws that drew us into his world as an optometrist. As the group became more comfortable more ad hoc stories were shared, and a few tears were shed, as one person wrote from the perspective of an elderly homeless woman… here is an excerpt:

“It’s raining…rainy days are more difficult than most, the makeshift roof is barely covering my temporary shelter. I am cold, but that’s not unusual. Noise from fellow squatters kept me up last night, and those dreams filled my head again with the memories of the struggles we had, after we fled the fires. My joints are stiff, again, not unusual, but the rain makes me ache, a deep ache, one that is only lessened on sunnier days. Today, I dress with an extra layer, an old blanket I found in the park, cast aside as it was tattered and torn. I slowly make my way to the food line, Styrofoam boxes are handed out, steam seeps from the edges. My mouth waters as I eagerly await the hot meal, my first in days. I am grateful as the warm coffee soothes me; it reminds me of happier times -family gatherings, breakfasts shared around a large plentiful table. A time before, a memory now, my past, my future unknown…longing for a rewind before the fires came….”

As the workshop ended, guests were invited to share in a well laid out lunch with tasty sandwiches, veggies, and sweet treats washed down with coffee, tea, and juice. Did I mention that the event was FREE? We are very lucky to have the opportunity to attend these types of workshops monthly. Check out the Rural Frontenac Community Services page for a detailed list of upcoming cafés and locations.

Next up is Wednesday, October 18th, at Piccadilly Hall, with a presentation from the Canadian Frailty Network.

Thanks to Juana for the invite! See you at the next one.