The New, Expanded, and Updated Patreon, A Change That Has Been In My Heart All Along…

Well, it has been quite a time. I knew that April, the month of my 67th birthday which is on Friday, was going to bring what I felt would be a rather large change, an answer to a question I have had for a very long time. Can I dare do this work just exactly as it is in my heart to do, or do I need to keep trying to maintain a paradigm created by others which is not an authentic way for me to work? I started Dragonfly Cottage Community For Women in the fall of 1999. My work has always been about women, and it was all housed in a little cottage in my heart called Dragonfly Cottage. In those years, and for many years (I moved 7 times after my 31 year marriage ended) every place I lived I called “Dragonfly Cottage” because it was as much a dream, a metaphor, a state of being, and a long, longed for place that I wanted to be, and settle, and do my work. 11 years ago I moved into this place which is the physical manifestation of the Dragonfly Cottage I had long dreamed of, but it is far more than a place to live, it is the place that holds all of my life and my dreams and my work, that which I feel I was born to do. To reach out to other women, and, as I do my work, help and inspire them to do their own, despite any limitations, no matter what their age, I want other women, as I am, to create a life that they love and to celebrate all of who they are.

This Friday, the 30th of April, I will be 67 years old. If you were to describe me in the world’s terms you might say that I am a disabled senior citizen living on social security without a lot of worldly goods. I have lived, for a lifetime, with mental health issues due to longterm abuse from 4-18, I have lived through the ending of my precious marriage, this house, which was the realization of my dreams, burn down finally being rebuilt over a year’s time only to be seriously damaged in 3 hurricanes in 3 years. I could go on, but the thing is all that that says is that I have lived a life, as we all do, with its ups and downs, but more, what it says, what I am proudest of, is that I have survived and I continue to do so, come what may, and despite it all, in my 7th decade with physical disabilities and ongoing mental health issues, created a beautiful, magical life that I love, I am doing work that brings me tremendous joy, and I want, so very much, to help other women, no matter what they may have been through in their lives, to do the same.

And so yes, September 1, 2020 I created a Patreon account. Now, few people really understand what Patreon is but if you think back centuries ago great artists, who were then unknown, and had no money, but work that was important, were supported by Patrons so that they could do their work. Mozart was one of them, and there were so many more. That is the model that Patreon was created on. Artists, writers, musicians, and more around the world are now using the Patreon platform and people who want to support them become their “Patrons.” You can contribute monthly ongoing until you choose to quit. It is all up to you and you need never stay longer than you wish, but your support helps those of us who have work to do that matters but not the financial means to do it to do our work. And my work has always been, not just for me, but to reach out and help other women around the world. For as little as $5 a month you get lots of what is referred to as “content.” And I am adding more all the time.

Going into my 9th month now on Patreon I am so deeply grateful for my community of loving, supportive women I can barely express it, but I like to feel that I have given back to them in return, and the fact that almost to a person everyone has been with me since the first of September says that they are getting something out of this too. They have my undying gratitude and it is more than just the money. I have struggled so hard in my life simply to survive, but the fact that my Patrons are there, believing in me, and my work, and appreciating what I offer them in return, has changed my life. And for a very long time, grateful for all of this, I knew I had to make a change.

I started out calling my Patreon community “Maisie’s World” because a lot of people had been drawn to Maisie, the character I have drawn and painted for over 2 years and many more than 40 paintings. She is my alter ego and her little dog Daisy is my Molly’s alter ego, and her world is filled with amazing creatures, magical and real. My work with Maisie was, and will continue to be, front and center in my Patreon community, but Maisie did not come out of thin air. Maisie grew out of this life at Dragonfly Cottage that I have created for over 2 decades. The writing and art and garden, the tending of hearth and home, living closely with animal companions and the wildlings outside, and so much more. And as I am a hearth tender in all areas of my life, and have run many women’s communities, I wanted not just to get the financial support that I needed but I wanted to offer other women a place that could become a home, to support them, to encourage them, and live Maisie’s and my message which I stated above that no matter how old you are, what your limitations might be, you can still create a life that you love, do work that inspires and delights you, and help you achieve your dreams, perhaps not in the way you thought they might manifest when you were younger, but dreams are still possible, and worth having, and I want to help you achieve them.

About a year ago I started working on a journal that I called “Days At Dragonfly Cottage.” I have had many successful small presses in my life. I was excited to do this and I had begun but Covid caused a lot of us to stall with what we were doing, and then I started work on my Patreon and I knew I would have to table the journal for awhile. Now, I am not only resurrecting it it will be something that all of my Patrons at every level (You can join for as little as $5 a month) will receive as PDF downloads, they will be for sale here on my website, and eventually all of the collection of journals will be edited together as 1 book which I will self-publish on Amazon. And all of this is possible because of the support of my Patrons. To that end over the weekend I changed the name of my Patreon account from “Maisies World” to “Days At Dragonfly Cottage” because while I will still be creating Maisie’s art I will be doing/offering so much more. Let me share with you the cover of the issue I was working on last summer so you will be able to see and understand what my work is about and all I have to offer…

And so over the weekend the change was made, after having discussed it with my Patrons who were very encouraging and supportive. It was scary, but when I did it I felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off my shoulders because it just spotlighted Maisie’s work, which I dearly love and will continue to do, but I was losing my connection with all of the other areas of my life, those things that make my life a living whole from which everything else, including Maisie, comes. I have so much more to offer and give than just sharing Maisie’s art. And as soon as I consulted with my Patrons and knew they were fine with it, I made the change and I felt like my whole world had opened up again, I could live and be and work and offer all that I am, all that I have learned in 67 years as a writer, teacher, mentor, artist, women’s community builder, gardener, and more. It felt like, just days before my 67th birthday, I have come home.

In ending I thought I would share with you the Welcome Letter that comes with the painting at the top of this post. It will give you a really good idea of what my community is all about. I offer it to you with all the love in my heart. I hope you will consider joining us. It would be my privilege to have you as part of my community, and I would be deeply grateful for your support.

“Welcome To Patreon Dear Patrons…

Welcome Dearhearts! We’re so glad you’re here, we are so excited to see you and spend time with you and we are deeply grateful for your support. Maisie & Daisy & Molly & I are sending you warm gentle hugs and it is a real celebration for us to greet each member as they arrive. Confetti and Champagne and Blowing Kisses and Doggie Tails Wagging and more. You’re here!You’re here! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

Just a few notes as we begin our journey together, I’ll call them community guidelines, and they are simple. My work in creating this Patreon community is to spread love, kindness, and gentle communion. Given that, with respect, I ask you to remember that this is a private women only community, not a social platform, it is safe and sacred space, and not a place to argue about causes, politics, etc. We all need a place where we can rest, where our tender hearts can feel ease. All those other important topics have their place and there are plenty of places to discuss them. This is not one of those places. I want us to share our art, what we are working on, what our fears are around creating a life of our dreams and receive support for creating them in a lovely environment. All of that is ever present everywhere today. Inside “these four walls” I ask that everyone be gentle, respectful, and kind to one another. That is what matters to me.

It is nearly May as I update this welcome letter, this, my 9th month on Patreon, and after having consulted with my current Patrons they agreed that the change I proposed making here which is very dear to my heart, isn’t something that takes away anything that was already here, but will broaden, and deepen, the experience of being part of this community, allowing me to do the work that is my lifelong heartwork, and, in using my life here at Dragonfly Cottage, my home online and off for more than 20 years including Dragonfly Cottage Studio where all of my writing and art are created, Dragonfly Cottage Garden which is my most deeply spiritual place and in which much of my work is conceived, and my home, Dragonfly Cottage which I have consciously created for more than two decades to be the place I, an aging, disabled woman could create a life that she loved, could do her work, and from which she could encourage other women to still work toward their own dreams no matter what age they are, or what limitations they might have. I want to create my own work and at the same time celebrate yours and encourage you on your journey. 

In creating my original Patreon name, “Maisie’s World” I found that more and more I felt too constricted. My life is all of a piece. I am a lifelong writer, teacher of creative journal writing for over 40 years, a mentor for women, an artist, a gardener, a woman whose relationship with her animal companions is one of the most important things in her life, and more. Only in sharing it all, the whole picture of my life and work, can you fully understand how I have created what I have created, how I do what I do, and perhaps how you might as well.

I hope that you will enjoy the changes, still receiving everything I promised at the outset on September 1, 2020, but now even more, a picture as complex and many-faceted as a patchwork quilt (More aptly, a Crazy Quilt!) of one woman’s life and art. One of my main projects, in addition to creating Maisie’s World, will be to create a journal called “Days At Dragonfly Cottage” which all Patrons at every tier will receive as a PDF download. Eventually all of these journals will be edited together into a book and you, my Patrons, are making this possible with your generous support. I cannot thank you enough.

With Love, and a Gentle Warm Hug, Welcome To Dragonfly Cottage…”

And so now, dear friends, I offer to you this work that I do, this work that has been developing for nearly 7 decades, and a lifetime of living and loving and teaching, writing and making art, and mentoring other women, and believing, with my whole heart, that so much more is possible than we ever knew, and isn’t it time to do it? As I have long asked my students, “If not, why not? If not now, when?” I invite you to join me, and find out what is possible for you.