The Dreamer’s Outlet is a passion project I dreamed up with a fellow coworker at the domestic violence center we staffed together in 2017. I had just spent the entirety of 2016 couchsurfing across North America and China, and before that I spent a decade in Mexico livin’ la vida loca as an educator, spouse and traveler. I landed the advocacy job at the crisis organization after a year and a half of global travel. I was brimming with stories of adventure, excitement, wonder and compassion. Over the next few years of crisis advocacy, my colleagues and I found refuge in the stories of my travels. It was common for a colleague to seek self-care after a hard intake by coming to my desk to ask for a story. From my humble office where postmarked postcards of my wandering lined the walls, I would share about the time I got into a Beyonce concert for free, or how I was off the grid in California living off the land, or how I witnessed the Obama administration with The National Parks Service inaugurate New York City’s Stonewall Inn as a national monument the day after Pride and only weeks after the Pulse shooting that hit too close to my Florida home. It became a beautiful outlet for my own stories and an entertaining distraction from the trauma stories of the day.
My colleague, who was often the first to begin a story circle, asked if I could be a guest on her podcast. She saw value in these stories and wanted to draw some out of me for her listeners. It was a thrilling experience to speak on her podcast. After recording, she asked if I would like to have my own podcast and offered to help produce it. Finding the experience not much different from story-time in the crisis worker break room, I took her up on the offer and together The Dreamer’s Outlet was created. I needed an outlet for all the ideas swirling in my head and I found tremendous relief after recording. The process was healing.
Inspired by my own healing, I wanted to share the platform with local creatives who lean on art and expression as an outlet. I began hosting what we call Outlets, creative networking meetings where we would all have a chance to share our creative projects, pool together resources, and cheer each other along. These meetings were being held face-to-face at local small businesses as keeping it local is a value we share.
Fast forward to 2020, we were only able to produce and release one podcast episode before global crisis took over and our jobs were pushed closer to the front line. My skills in crisis management were in high demand at the agency I worked for at the time. I drove myself down desolate roads while the rest of the world stayed quarantined during the first “Stay at Home'' initiative of the COVID-19 pandemic. Playing John Lennon’s “Working Class Hero” all the way to the center, I would give a nod of respect to any other essential workers I may have crossed eyes with at a traffic light or nearly empty gas stations. It was an eerie time for everyone that lasted far too long.
In crisis work we are trained in practices of self-care and healthy coping skills. We are also trained to recognize signs of burnout so as to implement self-care before the job starts to take its toll on our personal lives. Coping by spending time with friends, going to the beach, having an artist’s date, etc wasn’t accessible at the time and slowly the burnout crept in. Unfortunately, one common symptom of burnout is a loss of creativity. While head-down in survival mode getting myself and the people I supported through a global crisis, there was no time or emotional energy left at the end of the day to create on a public level. For the next year and a half, I was called upon by several agencies, local advocacy groups and protests to speak on mental health, safety planning and self-care. While I am very proud of how I used my skill during such a difficult time for humanity, I nearly served myself into the ground.
Doing what I do best after crisis, here I am again, healing, creating and stimulating the community. It’s not only my passion, it’s become my daily bread. I want to share what nourishes me with the world. I also want to continue to create community spaces where art and innovation is celebrated. I want to prove to my Dreamers, my podcast listeners and social media followers, that the arts have their place in this world and are vital to the healing process we are all going through. We’ve all been through it, we likely know someone who was lost to the virus, systemic oppression or unhealthy coping habits during quarantine, or have experienced hardships ourselves. Let’s get through this next season of healing and rebuilding together.
The Dreamer’s Outlet is opening its virtual doors to creatives who want to connect, collaborate and create together. You don’t have to be an artist to join the community. In fact, we love to nurture those who have yet to identify their own unique creative outlets. If you hang out long enough, you’re sure to be inspired!
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