don’t marry a story

I felt really connected with the character.
I see what Jon is saying about sticking to the details that help us know the current state of the character and not build a storyline.
To me, knowing she struggles with addiction helps me to know the devotion she feels toward the garden.

In a sense it was like the garden is her church.

I think what he is saying is that grief is a stronger emotion/more relatable than addiction, as Geoff mentioned.

I feel that the whole scenario is very interesting in how much I connect with it.
The scar not healing properly/The way that it should is so symbolic.
She has been scarred and has some shame that she hasn’t been able to heal fully.
I can relate to this because my own addiction caused scars/my body to not heal properly. The reason for my addiction was my grief/loss (in addition to other personal reasons)
and while we were in class and talking about the garden, my own garden in my backyard was in view.
it is the first time I’ve had my very own garden and growing my own food and I really relate to growing your own babies and the healing connection you have with your garden.
I even have tomatoes that I had to try to lift up recently as well.

The connection with the days scenario was so uncanny!
I felt I could see it so vividly from the very beginning and I do realize that I did create a storyline and how that might actually be an obstruction but I felt it in my being.
We knew that it being a family drama
and that she’s probably alone and likely has a dog companion, and the garden as her Solace. We discussed that she likely lost her family somehow. 

Class Notes :

when I entered, some thing Jon said in regards to another class but that relates to everyone is that “we have to feel some success because no one can relax if they’re always feeling like they’re doing something wrong”

The goal of this work (streaming) is to use this effectively (as well as our other skills, Like script analysis) to be creative with our choices, find the person who lives in the script and portray the person.
—get out of our own habits and into their body.

—once you open the portal to the character, organic connections come.

—don’t skip steps— people want the frosting, but the cake is in the script.

we took notes on Tiffany‘s character.
she did a great job streaming.

in our group some of the themes I found important/we came up with— 
New life after loss/addiction.
Joshua had an interesting insight about scars around your neck is that generally you have a hard time holding your head up.
Scar not healing the way it should.
searching for solace, trying to find her self, replacing addiction, a runner with strong calves, dedicated to garden, animal companion/lonely, symbolism of fading word Jesus, dirty old handkerchief representing something lost, on her knees at garden in her safe space keeping up the tomatoes and keeping up from being a failure, flat rock from potentially rubbing.

as a class the core themes were of renewal, resurrection, redemption.
We want to get the theme to one or two words, and FIND HER.

we don’t want to create a story but more focus on where her story brings her NOW.
**don’t get locked in and married to a story.
WHAT she is doing in the garden is important.
• The story can be an obstruction to the core/primal part— what hits you in the gut.
the CHEEZE is directly related to a sense of them. Focus on symbols as they relate to her in this work.
—contrasting layers are very important  for characters. In this case, she had a fragility yet she was grounded.The garden symbolizes getting control and has somewhere she feels control and responsibility .

when we shared afterward we learned that extending off of Tiffany’s streaming is also streaming. 

You are growing like a weed. Spread your roots out, take hold, feed yourself and flourish in this art form.