THELASTWORD
MARCH ’ S GUEST COLUMNIST LAURA WILLAN ON …
BALANCING THE ROLES OF MOTHER AND LITERARY FESTIVAL DIRECTOR
I CREATED THE WEALDEN FESTIVAL WITH MY HUSBAND IN 2016 . OVER THE YEARS , WE HAVE SEEN THE FESTIVAL BLOSSOM INTO THE UNIQUE CELEBRATION OF NATURE , BOOKS AND THE ARTS THAT IT IS TODAY AND HAVE HAD THE PLEASURE OF COLLABORATING WITH INSPIRATIONAL CREATIVES AND WELCOMING SOME EXTRAORDINARY SPEAKERS TO THE STAGE INCLUDING MICHAEL MORPURGO , CAROL ANN DUFFY , RAYNOR WINN AND THE CURRENT POET LAUREATE , SIMON ARMITAGE .
In that time , I have also become a mother , now to three children aged between ( almost ) one and four years old . It is fair to say that we have had a lot on our plate . But , in many ways , my roles as festival director and mother are less in conflict than you might think .
Perhaps that is because the festival and motherhood seem to share much in common . Both are about responsibility and care-giving , whether for the world around us or its individual , and most vulnerable inhabitants . Both concern reading , in one of the truest senses of the word that implies an ability to look at and truly comprehend the meaning of things , whether of stories , poems and ideas , the landscapes we are part of , or a child whose needs depend on our close attention and understanding . Both can be exhilarating and exhausting in equal measure .
In its quest to spark engagement with literature , creativity and the environment , the festival champions a brighter future for the next generation including our own three children . To that extent at least , my role as mother and festival director are not so far apart .
Recently , we have enjoyed the unutterably joyful experience of watching our eldest daughter start to learn how to read , to make sense of the shapes and symbols that define our world and help us navigate its waters .
If I could pick a single image that , to me at least , embodies the festival it would be of a family absorbed in creative play outdoors under the protective shade of the trees , having the time and space to dream and , simply , to be . It is here where my own aspirations as a mother and those of the festival merge , at the point where children are given the tools and opportunities to understand their place in an increasingly complex world .
Wealden Festival takes place on 24 and 25 June 2023 , at Boldshaves Garden near Tenterden in Kent .
www . wealdenliteraryfestival . co . uk
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