Life & Work with Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg

Today we’d like to introduce you to Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg.

Hi Caryn, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born hard-wired to make things. At first, it was drawings and paintings, but when I was 14, I switched to poetry, which lasts to this day. But I also was concerned from an early age about justice and meaning, spirit and the living earth, which first, strangely enough, led me to labor history and labor organizing while writing poetry on the side. How, where, and why people work has always fascinated me as the confluence where so much of sense of self, use of our time, and way of supporting ourselves meet. From there, I stumbled upon another calling: teaching, which I began doing at the University of Kansas to support my study of poetry.

While writing poetry—along with fiction, memoir, songs, and essays—has been a thread throughout my life, my love of teaching led me to found a master’s program at Goddard College in Transformative Language Arts, which lived there happily for 20 years, educating people on making a living from writing, storytelling, drama, and other arts. Throughout it all, I’ve been exploring and teaching Right Livelihood: the work we do to grow our souls, contribute to our communities, build on our gifts, and work our edges.

About five years ago, I launched Your Right Livelihood, an intensive to help people find the work they love, whether it’s for livelihood, art, or service (or all three). I’m thrilled to collaborate with creativity coach and career transition guide Kathryn Lorenzen on the Your Right Livelihood annual class and retreat.

For my own Right Livelihood, I lead writing workshops for many populations, including, for the last 18 years, at Turning Point of Kansas City, which provides services for people living with serious illness. I also offer a co-lead a writing and singing retreat, Brave Voice, with area singer-songwriter Kelley Hunt. And I coach people on writing, Right Livelihood, and facilitation in between teaching writing classes, doing readings and workshops on Zoom and all around, and producing my new podcast, Tell Me Your Truest Story.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The way I make a living now wasn’t conceivable when I was coming of age, so yes, there have been tiny and massive learning edges along the way. Yet all of my struggles revealed gifts and guidance, sometimes in what seems like miraculous ways.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002, which led me into a labyrinth of intensive chemo and multiple surgeries, but that experience showed me how much I love working with people living with serious illnesses, whether patients, caregivers, or survivors. In our writing workshops, the veil is gone, and we write, laugh, cry, and unearth what’s most vital and meaningful to us. Likewise, a second diagnosis, this time with eye cancer, in 2019, is still unfolding for me new ways to see and be in this world, which has led me deeper into my own writing and into working with other writers.

One of my biggest surprises was, three years ago, realizing I needed to leave academia because something else was calling: working even more directly with groups and individuals looking for their voices and visions. I also wanted to create programs and coaching to help people discover more of their callings and Right Livelihood.

But I can’t talk about struggles without giving a call out to my husband Ken, my grown-ish kids, my community, and especially the earth and sky. I get so much of my inspiration and energy, courage and insights from just being outside as much as possible.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
When people ask me how I make a living, I usually have to ask them, “How much time do you have?” but as time has gone on, my work has gotten much more focused into these areas:

Your Right Livelihood: The Work, Art, and Service You Love: With Kathryn Lorenzen, I offer an annual class (with lots of extras: coaching, resources, guidance through creating your own best portfolio, and more) and an annual retreat.

Brave Voice: Writing & Singing For Your Life: Kelley Hunt and I have led this annual retreat in the Flint Hills of Kansas for the last 17 years, helping people find what they have to say or sing while deepening their creativity.

Workshops, Classes & Presentations: I teach regular writing workshops through Turning Point of Kansas City for people living with serious illness, and I offer writing workshops through my website and through various organizations, including Lighthouse Writers and Humanities Kansas.

Coaching: It’s my delight to coach people on writing, Right Livelihood, or facilitation.

Tell Me Your Truest Story Podcast: I just launched a long-dreamed-of podcast exploring the stories we’re living and how to find greater truth and resilience. My first episodes include interviews with eco-visionaries David Abram and Stephanie Mills, storytellers Lyn Ford and Joseph Bruchac, best-selling author and wise psychologist Harriet Lerner, and I’m getting ready to share an interview with filmmaker Kevin Willmott.

Patreon: I also offer lots of gifts and supports for your creative life through my Patreon page, including weekly care packages for a creative life, cool perks, a writing guide just for patrons, and more.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was, no surprise, a weird kid. I was fixated on making art and music, and I had a hard time making friends, possibly because trying to talk with other kids about God in the playground or standing on tables belting out show tunes doesn’t win a little kid pals.

I grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y. and also central New Jersey, but my dad and grandpa had a store in the subway arcade at Nassau and Fulton streets in lower Manhattan (he sold stamps). So I grew up underground some, drawing abstract pictures of endless snakes while looking at stamps from Angola, Bolivia, and Mongolia. Then I would go above ground and wander about lower Manhattan on my own for hours, which surely gave me a wider view of life than I would have had.

I also worked at my dad’s side business at the Englishtown Auction in central New Jersey, the largest open air flea market in the world at the time, selling women’s plus-size double-knit polyester pants and tops (it was the 70s). The auction drew all kinds of people, including people living well below the poverty line, and that opened my eyes even more to the struggles people were living. My dad made me stand on a table and yell out, “2 for $5, ladies! Step right up!” So any possibility of shyness (although I never had much) vanished.

Pricing:

• Coaching: I offer single-session and packages for coaching, ranging from $75-95/session.
• Patreon: I invite you to be one of my patrons for as little of $3/month.
• Your Right Livelihood: $390 for the retreat and more for the class. Please see http://yourrightlivelihood.com.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: http://carynmirriamgoldberg.com,  http://carynmirriamgoldberg.podbean.com,  http://yourrightlivelihood.com,  http://bravevoice.com
• Instagram: YourRightLivelihood and Carynmg
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YourRightLivelihood and https://www.facebook.com/CarynMirriamGoldbergWriter/
• Twitter: Carynmg

Image Credits
Image Credit:
Top photo: Caryn with the late, great dog Shay, and bottom photo: Caryn with Kathryn Lorenzen, planning Your Right Livelihood