Media That Matters

Bill Weaver plans the Media That Matters gathering from the edge of his property on Desolation Sound on the east shore of Cortes Island

One of my favorite weeks each year (for the last 7 years) is this mid-May time, when spring is breaking and chartreuse leaves pop out in the middle of dark green Northwest forests. What makes it amazing for me is the opportunity to go to Cortes Island in British Columbia, Canada – to help facilitate a workshop called Media That Matters.

Media That Matters was created by a brilliant documentary maker, Bill Weaver (a Southern boy who did a stint in TV news in Portland, OR before becoming Canadian). Bill wanted to get media makers away from the “flickering screens” that become our lives and into the woods on one of the most beautiful places on the planet – to learn, work, dream, and play together.

Media That Matters is an invitational retreat which attracts journalists, filmmakers, web designers, novelists, academics, community organizers, and new media mavens. It’s always different, depending on who shows up. And depending on how open we all are to the astounding beauty of this place. The silences are even moreso (than Vashon Island or other places I’ve been). The birdsong (killdeer, wren, robin, oystercatcher, etc.) echoes across the water. Waves lap gently. Oyster beds abound. And the invitation to go inside and pay attention to inner voices resounds.

So this morning, my friend John Holliday drove me to the north end of Lake Washington, where I got on a floatplane and watched the water-dominated landscape of Seattle disappear as we made our way up past Whidbey Island and Port Townsend (paper mill pumping), past the San Juan Islands, across the Strait of Juan de Fuca and over Victoria, past the Gulf Islands to Nanaimo .

After a quick customs check (“do you have a work permit?” “no”), we flew over the Strait of Georgia, over many islands, BC ferry boats, forests, clearings, and limestone mines, to Cortes, where the Hollyhock Retreat Center is our Media That Matters home.

It’s always hard to get away from my routine, but when I do, I realize how important this is. I always have new insights here. I so look forward to this week. Deep breath.