The Wildacres Conference Center, in Little Switzerland, NC is situated near the Blue Ridge Parkway. It sits atop the mountain; Pompey’s Knob, at 3300 feet elevation and is one of my favorite get-a-ways. While attending the Wildacres Fall Gathering at the end of October, I was greatly inspired by meeting and talking with various artists there– painters, potters, quilters, musicians, and writers, just to name a few. The mountain is constantly filled with lots of energy during this week. My goal was rewriting and learning several Appalachian legends for two upcoming programs I had booked. I also wrote a family story that was percolating in the back of my mind.
I can say that what I accomplished has certainly paid off in the past couple of weeks. These new stories were applied during several storytelling events. I anticipate that they will continue to be added to the list of my favorite stories to tell.
Winds blew in a big surprise the first evening and the next day at Wildacres – snow, beautiful snow. Brrrrh, but it was so cozy to sit before a huge glowing fire in the fireplace of the lodge. Though most of the snow blew further down the mountain, it was still snowing with a beautiful “dusting” on the ground, a delight to see the following morning.
