Karitos 2016

"We do not write to be understood. We write to understand," -C.S. Lewis

Karitos, the Chicago-area Christian Arts event of the year is over, and every time, I wish it didn't go so fast. Even though it was longer this year, it still flew by. 

There were things I loved, and things I was so disappointed about, but I wouldn't have traded the experience for anything. Since I missed last year due to vacation, it was so great to be back in community with other creatives. 

@minimadi16 and me

I saw wonderful familiar faces, like amazing artists Linda Harris-Iorio, Lynn Zuk-Lloyd, seasoned veterans in the writing community, as well as new people that I'll connect with over the year and next year. 

I took some fantastic classes, especially from newbie Howi Tiller, in the theater department who taught classes that I could apply to my writing. 

One of the best was Healing Art from Lynn Zuk-Lloyd. The presence was so heavy, and this was evidenced in everyone's artwork. This is a quick and arguably terrible oil pastel about the epidemic of self harm in my generation, and how God just wants to love them beyond anything they can imagine. 

However, there was a few things that extraordinarily disappointed me. The writing program sucked. Some of my favorite teachers like the wise and captivating Jane Rubietta were nowhere to be found. The deep and technical classes were traded out for discussion based and inspirational classes. While they would benefit a budding and unsure writer, they are extremely shallow and unfitting for a seasoned writer sure in their purpose. 

I found the theater classes, especially ones taught by Howi Tiller, to be enthralling and extremely applicable to my writing. I took a music class for the first time, which was really scary. It was Developing Your Musicianship Through Improvisation, and while it was another good class with an amazing teacher, it still was pushing me out of my comfort zone.

But what disappointed me so much about this wasn't as much of that I didn't learn more about Christian writing, but that I missed the Christian writing community. I missed talking with them and relating to them and being with them. Because, more than anyone else, they're my people. And I missed them. 

Yet again, I got an awesome necklace from the eccentric and amazing Linda Harris-Iorio. This necklace is hand made, and is titled Word Warrior: It's time to write! This lady is awesome I want her to be my grandmother. 

But there were many other, overall significant things of Karitos. God was definitely growing me in the other arts, getting me out of my comfort zone with taking zero writing classes and mostly theater, art, and music classes. I'm secure in my writing, He knows that, we all know that, and I couldn't learn anything, I couldn't grow in the ways I needed to by taking the writing classes (obviously), and I took a step of faith by going to classes I probably never would have taken otherwise. 

Fun times. 

With all of the violence and disarray going on between the races, it was beautiful and downright glorious to see people of every tongue and nation, every age and background, together just shouting praises to God. It truly was a slice of heaven on earth. It was a God-sent example of true Christian unity. 

And I believe that this is significant. It's going to change race relations, one hug and one conversation and one smile at a time. 

Overall, Karitos was thebomb.com. I look forward to going every year. 

~The WordShaker