Viktor Frankl quote on Meaning Making

"What matters is to make the best of any given situation. "The best," however, is that which in Latin is called optimum--hence the reason I speak of a tragic optimism, that is, an optimism in the face of tragedy and in view of the human potential which at its best always allows for (l) turning suffering into a human achievement and accomplishment; (2) deriving from guilt the opportunity to change oneself for the better; and (3) deriving from life's transitoriness an incentive to take responsible action."
Dr. Viktor Frankl

photo "the horse" C.L. McLean

Story for the Caregiver

"For many years, I have personally experienced a powerful relief in the expression of my own stories. Perhaps these stories are powerful because they challenge the oppressive flatland and scientific efficiency that still defines healthcare despite many knowing that care giving is an endeavor of human capacity. Perhaps the power of these stories is in acknowledging that I am not a robot and that the human, emotional, psychological, and spiritual dimensions of what I do are key if I want to be fully present as a caregiver."
Susan K. MacRae

From The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP,
"To be Human with Other Humans" Issue 9, February 2011

Creative Arts in Humane Medicine A Resource for Educators

Creative Arts in Humane Medicine is an educational textbook which will be a valuable resource for educators in medical education and healthcare, physician and nurse educators and their students, public health educators,therapists, those who work in health promotion, social services, social work and mental health and community health, health researchers and ethicists as well as professionals with special interests in stress management, creative arts and healing. (This book will be available in both hard copy and ebook formats.)

Johnny Saldana Ethnodrama About the Human Condition

"Ethnodramatic representations and presentations of health and illness bring participants' vulnerability, fragility, and, in most cases, resiliency to heightened prominence. Perhaps more than the academic journal article, the ethnotheatrical performance—if well done for a receptive audience—holds potential to increase awareness, deepen understanding, and provide experiences that generate sympathetic and empathetic responses and memories for future applications and transfer into clinical practice and possibly health care policy. If the shared goal of theatre and qualitative inquiry is to explore and learn more about the human condition, then the outcomes are doubly if not exponentially increased when the two disciplines merge, bringing with them their best representational and presentational modes of expression to the dramatic text."
Johnny Saldana

From The International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP, February 2011, Issue 9, "Expressing the Human Story"

see also quote McLean/on ethnodrama in education

What Does it Mean to be Human? 100 Thousand Poets Converge for Change

Poetry raises awareness about need for community change

100 Thousand Poets Converge to explore the question What Does it Mean to Be Human? Sept. 29 in a city near you.






London's happening.... Sept. 29 Landon Library, London Ont.

Carl Leggo Quote Poetry Honouring Health

“In poetry,
reading and writing poetry,
I learned to listen to my body, heart, mind, spirit and imagination in a holistic honouring of health consciousness.”
Carl Leggo
From IJCAIP archive: CCAHTE Journal 6, The Extraordinary Ordinary
IJCAIP http://www.ijcaip.com

photo C. McLean

Ethnodrama in Health Education, Embodying Lived Experience

"When used in health education an ethnodrama, for example, can raise awareness educating well beyond the podium, conveying lived experience in action with elements visual, emotional, physical and spiritual. In this field process we are told and we tell stories engaging in one of the most primal, meaningful and universal of human connections."
From Introduction to the book "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change," Editor C.L. McLean, Associate Editor, R. Kelly, Detselig Temeron Press, Calgary, 2010. (Photo C. McLean as Dora, "the survivor" from the ethnodrama Remember Me for Birds a performance based on research about aging, mental health and autonomy)