Dear Caring Souls,

In America our hearts, souls, and physical selves are traveling to the Gulf Coast, and all the areas so affected by Hurricane Katrina. In other parts of the world, too, we are called to see and to help.

In all of this, love floods in. Billions of miracles are being generated all over the world each day in response to nature and unnatural disasters. In the midst of this love and these miracles, there is also frustration, helplessness, and blame. Love floods in there, too. We can communicate about all of our feelings and can take new action and create change. In chaos, and crisis, people are waking up, and speaking up, more than ever before.

I can feel the strength of love building and faith intertwining.

Also, crisis brings change, and it’s often agonizing to experience these changes. We need each person creatively thinking and taking action.

I know that the 30,000+ souls who receive this eLetter are all doing innovative and creative things to offer food, clothing, shelter, or cash to assist. I will add links for this purpose, too. Here at Planet SARK we’re putting up a donation link and special offer for subscribers to contribute.

We are also launching “Letters of Support and EnCOURAGEment” and are asking for you to contribute. Here’s how it works: There is a great need for joy and encouragement long after clothing and cash have been distributed. I remember when my mom was in a nursing home, and I asked for people to send mail. My mom received thousands of pieces of mail, many of which were put up on her walls, and other nursing home residents would visit to see and read the mail. My mother felt so supported and loved from receiving and reading this email.

Here at Planet SARK, we envision our creative community sending mail for those souls affected by the hurricane. A few short sentences written in bright colors can travel so far. To preserve your privacy, please do not put your return address or other identifying information in your letter, and this also eliminates the need for recipients to respond.

Please send your snail mail marked “Letters of Support and EnCOURAGEment” to Planet SARK, PO Box 330039, San Francisco, CA, 94133, and we’ll take care of forwarding them on to people who need them.

Thank you in advance, and we’ll let you know about the mail that comes in.

I’ve just returned from a summer vacation. I spent part of it at an experiential learning center in British Columbia called Hollyhock where I saw bright purple starfish and paddled a kayak at night through bioluminescent waters. This bioluminescence is caused by tiny plankton lighting up in the water, causing everything to glow. It’s as if the stars in the sky fell into the water. The glow clings to your skin and runs off in streamers of light. I felt truly amazed by this phenomenon and so gratefull for the time away. I send you the vision of the bioluminescent waters.

I had a realization about age recently, and that is:

The opposite of old is not young. The opposite of old is new. So as we do and feel new things, we can never be “old.” (Unless we wish to be.)

On my vacation, I had a visit from my 17-year-old niece Emily. She invited me to a punk rock concert while she visited San Francisco. At first I said “no thanks” to her invitation and then realized how precious her invitation was. So, I decided to do something new and go.

I actually liked it! I did wear earplugs and leave early. I also witnessed so much community at that concert. All the people attending were part of a community, and I liked what I saw and felt.

So instead of getting older, I’m getting newer. I intend to take that new energy and use it to fuel all sorts of new creative activities, which I will share with you! What new things are you doing or feeling? I’d love to know. Tell me at my Glorious Guestbook.

Sending you love, Susan (AKA SARK)

PS: My endearing brother Andrew turns 40 on September 21.
Please join me in wishing him the best year ever! Leave him birth*day wishes in the Glorious Guestbook. or on the Marvelous Message Board.

Gather together with kindred spirits to Celebrate YOUR Life!

I’ll be teaching two brand-new workshops this year. “Beachball Business” is about having more joy at work, and how that helps us to do better work in the world. In the post-conference workshop, I’ll be teaching “Juicy Pens, Thirsty Paper,” about gifting the world with your words and stories and creating the time and energy to actually do it. All experience (or no experience) levels welcome!

View more details about the Celebrate Your Life conference.

SARK’s 2005 Events and Book Tour Schedule

•   May 7 - West Coast Live, San Francisco, CA
• Sept 29 – Pilgrims Way Bookstore, Carmel, CA
• Oct 6-9 – WildChild Wisdom Weekend, Litchfield, CT
• Oct 10 – R.J. Julia Booksellers, Madison, CT
• Oct 15 – Shakti Foundation, San Francisco, CA
• Oct 20 – Copperfield’s Books, Napa, CA
• Oct 28 – East West Bookstore, Sacramento, CA
• Nov 11-14 – Celebrate Your Life, Scottsdale, AZ
• Feb 10-12 2006 - SARK's Succulent Pajama Party, Scottsdale, AZ
• Mar 3-5, 2006 - The Crossings, Austin, TX

Find out more about SARK’s Ecstatic Events on PlanetSARK.com

Stay succulent and cozy throughout autumn and all winter long with SARK’s Succulent Wild Woman throw. SARK’s beloved art and words adorn this 100% cotton, beautifully woven, color-full blanket that wraps you in encouragement and comfort. SARK's Succulent Wild Woman throw combines art, inspiration, and utility all together – a marvelous gift for yourself or a special friend.

Purchase SARK's Succulent Wild Woman throw in the PlanetSARK.com eShop.

Thank YOU for supporting PlanetSARK.com! Purchasing books and products through the eShop directly supports the creation of new SARK products and the development of the freebies offered through our website.

See all the latest products under New Arrivals in the PlanetSARK.com eShop.

Check out all the Free Stuff.

SARK invites you to post, play, and ponder (or quietly listen) on the FREE Marvelous Message Board on PlanetSARK.com, a place of learning, teaching, loving, and sharing what it means to be a succulent human bean.

If you haven't visited lately or are new to our online forums, we'd like to tell you about a new development designed to keep the MMB welcoming, fun, and worthwhile for all who visit.

We have assembled a volunteer MMB Support Team to assist the WebSpinners in responding to communications, general technical support, and account administration. You can post general questions and report technical issues in the Feedback forum.

You can also contact the MMB Support Team via email.

SARK’s vision for the MMB is that it remain an unmoderated forum. Therefore, we will continue to remind members to use the ignore feature and not engage by responding or quoting posts that clearly do not contribute to the community in a positive way. Our approach is generally hands-off, however, we WILL intervene to remove posts and/or ban users as necessary to maintain the integrity of the Marvelous Message Board – SARK’s gift to our creative community built from the heart!

We invite you to pour a cup of tea and see what's going on at the Marvelous Message Board today.

SARK's 2006 Pure Relaxation wall calendar is in stores now!
The theme is all about napping deeply, being cradled, finding calm…all conditions that we can welcome into our lives everyday. Enjoy having SARK's color-full art and encouraging words on your wall to inspire you.

EARLY BIRD SPECIAL!
Receive 15% off your order of $20 or more.

Purchase SARK's 2006 Pure Relaxation Calendar in PlanetSARK.com's eShop.

Planet SARK is launching a new publication called "What's News?", an email announcment with tidbits about new SARK books, products, events, and adventures.

To begin receiving "What's News?", simply update your eLetter preferences.

 

 

For the latest company news go to the Planet SARK Announcements forum on the Marvelous Message Board

SARK invites you to take pleasure and inspiration from her FREE five-minute recorded message. Call 415-546-EPIC (3742) or listen online (MP3 download).

Copyright (c) 2005 SARK. All rights reserved.
Permission is granted to reproduce, copy or distribute this eLetter, so long as this copyright notice and full information attributing SARK are attached.
SARK photo by Steve Kricun