Recently (Nov. 2008), during a sweat lodge ceremony, I had the odd experience of being unable to say my name. It was as if I am not quite who I was or who I will be.
And yet, I'm deeply grateful for my past: the fascinating experiences I've had, against the backdrop of so many different places, and in the company of such a variety of people.
So, whatever the future holds, whatever names I go by or don't go by, it still seems important to acknowledge what brought me here.
I'm English, though I do think of myself as a world citizen. I've lived in the US since 2000 and now have permanent residency here. I was born in July 1959 in London, grew up in Kenya (aged 2 weeks to 6 years), the South Pacific, and Brazil, and have had the fortune to travel widely.
From working-class London origins, my father Ivor became an adventuring tropical plant pathologist and my mother Anne a much-loved English teacher. They gave me (eldest), and my siblings Emma and David, bright and broad beginnings.
I dreamed of being a writer first and foremost (Ring of Bright Water was my childhood myth); then a plant doctor or people doctor (my brother and sister carried these forward respectively). I was always the family dream-boat, artfully impractical.
Opting for a scientific training (B.Sc. Genetics from Edinburgh; M.Phil. Plant Breeding from Cambridge in 1981), I spent 15 diligent but restless years working in scientific and medical publishing. It was hard not to rewrite stagnant prose, and hard not to edit my own writing down to bare bones.
After a year in London with the British Council; and living a mildly Bohemian life off Russell Square where Virginia Wolff and others once played; in 1986, I married a loyal and handsome friend. We moved to the mysterious Somerset levels around Glastonbury.
In 1993, by now divorced (peacefully) and trying to make sense of my beloved father's untimely death, I took a 6-month sabbatical at Schumacher College (center for ecological and spiritual studies in Devon, UK), which marked a turning point in my career.
Following a strong personal interest in health (my father had succumbed quite suddenly to cancer), I experienced and trained in a variety of massage and movement disciplines; and also explored the expressive arts as a means of mind-body integration.
From 1995 to 1997, I lived and worked in Israel, experiencing the creative edge and cultural/ political challenges of that country. I almost took up contemporary dance - an opportunity (offered in my mid-thirties) that I wistfully regret.
On returning to the UK, I was appointed as senior therapist and later manager to a beautiful Japanese-style spa in the ancient spa city of Bath (home of my favorite water goddess Sulis). I found myself torn between responsibility and my healing art.
When the Millenium dawned, I moved to Laguna Beach, California, to join my second husband. We had met in the rarified atmosphere of Harbin Hot Springs and shared a passion for Watsu-based aquatic bodywork that led to the creation of a practice we called WaterJourneys.
From 2002 to 2007, we operated a jointly created retreat in the Missouri Ozarks (Aquaest) centered around water; for both of us it was the manifestation of a dearly-held and dearly-paid-for dream. Sadly, our partnership eroded and ended dramatically.
I returned for a few months to Bath and the loving care of my family. For a while I worked at the new Therme Bath Spa in Sulis's own magical waters. But I yearned for the watery Ozark wilderness, and in 2008 came to live with another writer-dreamer in a protected forest haven called Greenwood.
An artist at heart, I continue to write both nonfiction and fiction reflecting my love for nature and my belief in human potential. Water, almost without exception, informs my writing. I don't know where my meandering path will lead me next but I am sure it will be a shining one.
Through my websites and blogs I aim to provide inspiration to others who wish to tap into their creative essence and manifest a unique vision, however big or small. Please feel welcome to comment on what you see here and to share your own creative work with me.
Sara Firman (aka Sulis, aka ?)
