36 www. AspireMAG. net | June / July 2018
The opportunity about which she spoke was a 12-week arts therapy course held on Saturdays at a local domestic violence center, the very center which had provided me information and helped me keep myself and my family safe. I applied immediately and soon received an invitation for an interview.
“ This isn’ t therapy,” the course leader said.“ The groups are carefully curated so as to ensure each person will thrive. We’ re only working with people who are no longer in an abusive situation and are in the healing process. Do you feel this describes you?”
I showed up at the first class feeling twitchy and nervous. The large room was nearly empty, a ring of chairs arranged in its center.
“ Write a nametag and grab any toy which speaks to you from the table,” our instructor said.
I wrote my name, and began riffling through the toys. A Barbie. No. Truck. No. Hairbrush. No. Shrek. YES. I snatched up the ogre and returned to my seat.
Slowly, the room filled up with a diverse community of eight women. Our instructor warmly welcomed us and read a poem.“ Let’ s go around and introduce ourselves, sharing what your object is, and why you choose it.”
One by one, my peers answered the questions.
I paused, biting the inside of my cheek. Yes and no. I’ d left my marriage eighteen months earlier but I wasn’ t certain about the healing part.“ I think I’ d be a good fit.” I went on to share that I’ d be out of the country for a couple of weeks.
We shook hands at the end of the interview. She said, handing me a schedule,“ You’ ll hear from me within two weeks.”
I returned home from France to discover that I’ d been accepted into the program. A sense of elation mixed with dread hit me. What were you thinking?
Finally, it was my turn.“ I chose Shrek,” I said.“ First, I love the movie and play. It holds special memories for me. Second, I chose him because there’ s a scene where Donkey asks Shrek a question to which Shrek replies,‘ Ogres are like onions.’ He goes on to explain that as you peel away each layer, you eventually get to his soft heart. That’ s how I feel: like I’ m shedding layers of external expectations to reveal my own tender heart.”
For the next eleven Saturdays, we gathered and explored our individual stories using poetry, crafts, or animal cards. The purpose was ultimately for us to give testimony on the last day of class. I wrote and honed my words, finally submitting them for review.
36 www. AspireMAG. net | June / July 2018