A Journey of a Lifetime
So I got the email that set me off on a beautiful journey. An email that started with "Congratulations...". A journey that I'm still on a month after. You see, as writers we tend to send in so many different kind of applications like short story competitions, writing prompts, essays, etc that we sometimes lose track of what it is that was sent out, but this was not one of those. It was even more nerve wracking because it was a Scholarship award to the prestigious Hedgebrook. So although there was that usual feeling of "oh let me just send this and see what happens, if anything, there was a big mix of secretly wishing to be picked for the program. Well few weeks later my journey to Hedgebrook began; literally, from the US embassy right here in Lagos where nothing that I've previously been told took place - such information as the one that keeps passing down from a previously denied visa applicant to a prospective first time applicant like myself. Information that have been passed down through generations of Nigerians that they've become common beliefs. These include among many: tales of document rejections that ultimately lead to Visa denials, as well as the consulate interviewers harshness, security guards unnecessary cold attitudes and meanness, general hostile reception and so forth. Quite on the contrary and as a matter of fact my interview took the form of chatting with a new acquaintance (a deeply interested one in my writing career that is). Who rather than being hostile was keen to know what books I've written and if they were available in US bookstores or on amazon etc. There was even a moment of jotting down titles of the books amidst friendly chatter like those of old friends (you had better believe it). Strategy to catch me out at a later stage or not, (as some critics were quick to point out to me afterwards) at the time though it made me feel good. And why not, my interviewer was a kind, middle aged man who made the whole process fast, effortless and hassle free. Lol. So, finally my day of departure arrived and off I went. I had to travel via Addis-Ababa (Ethiopia), then a layover at Dublin (Ireland), then off to Washington where I finally got off, (this took more than 24hours in case you were wondering). Few hours later I was on another flight to Seattle which took roughly close to 6hours! And they say Seattle is in Washington state?! Finally in Seattle, another waiting game began which lasted for about 3 hours before I got on the shuttle that conveyed me to the ferry heading towards Whidbey island - my final destination. By this time, to say I was tired would be akin to saying that mosquitoes cause malaria! I had been traveling for more than 36 hours by then and was in a-matter-of-life-and-death-need-of-a-soft-pillow-to-sink-my-head-in, and a warm bed to rest my stretched-to-its-limits-body. But little did I know that the real journey was just about to begin!
Did I mention that it was raining? Heavily that is? Oh yes, it was. Riding in the shuttle from Seattle Tacoma airport on the way to board the ferry heading to Whidbey Island, we encountered traffic resembling that obtainable back home in Lagos. Slow moving, wet roads, and a few rough drivers who eventually overturned their vehicles just like in Lagos too. It was a relief to see that bad driving is not a monopoly of Lagosians! Yes, I said relief, but it was a sad one. Moving on, I thought that was all the fun I'd be having, but was I wrong?! The real journey was not in the big flying machines that I flew in to and fro, or the many sit outs in airports, or the slow moving Seattle roads that made a 30 minutes trip take an hour, or the ferry that was too short a trip, (I was barely seated in the upper deck of the ferry when I had to rush back down to the shuttle) the whole thing brought on a nasty headache, or the little puzzles on my mind about the entire trip thus far without any means of being solved; I realized that the real journey was in my excitement! With mild shock I noticed that regardless of all the hurdles that I had to scale through during the course of the trip, I was exceedingly excited. The real journey was indeed with the people waiting for me at Hedgebrook as I found out later. Made up of established authors, upcoming writers, poets, screenplay writers, and creative program facilitators - the Hedgebrook/Vortex Writers Workshop is a gathering of ordinary people doing extraordinary things through their craft of writing. A group of women who knew exactly what to say at any point in time. The warmth I received is not the sort to talk about to just anyone for fear of cheapening it. You need to experience the Hedgebrook warmth to fully understand it. It was amazing how quickly bonds were formed, allies made, friendship struck, even writing partners were forged all in a matter of days. The workshop sessions with some of the best literary instructors, the feedbacks I got on my writing samples, as well as during my open mic reading session (which I almost chickened out of), the wonderful women I shared, laughed, ate, and goofed around with was overwhelming to say the least. It was an experience that conveyed volumes to the power of women in a confined space; women on a mission to impact the world by authoring change one story at a time. It ingrained my belief that writers are made of a different stock.
Hedgebrook is a journey I'm prepared to be on for a very very long time. One that I'm convinced will usher in doors of lasting opportunities for my writing career. For now though, I'm content with wearing my experience in Hedgebrook around like a crown.
