Spiritual Autobiography: Exploring the Story of Your Life Through Writing (6-Part Online Series)
Monday, February 22, 2027 @ 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm EST
An event every week that begins at 6:30 pm on Monday, repeating until Monday, March 8, 2027
I appreciate the safe space Amy created and the intimacy within the group she was able to facilitate even though the program was conducted remotely, which I liked by the way. Amy also shared her resources with the group participants sending them out immediately after each session. I admired how Amy conducted herself throughout the program. Amy modeled respect and what it looked like to stand outside of judgement. I would welcome the opportunity to participate in any program Amy facilitated and am most grateful for having had this experience. – Theresa M.
Magnificent program and facilitation! Most appreciated! – Emily K.
Amy is a wonderful and gifted facilitator. She is talented at creating and holding a sacred space for the group. The prompts she suggested encouraged deep reflection. – Jean Anne W.
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Irish poet Pádraig Ó Tuama reminds us that we are all “story full and lovely.” Our stories hold the memories, relationships, questions, joys, losses, discoveries, and turning points that have shaped us. They help us remember where we have been—and perhaps notice something new about where we are going.
Over the course of six sessions, with reflective time between gatherings, we will explore our own spiritual autobiographies through writing and other creative practices. Gentle prompts will invite us to remember and reflect on the moments, people, places, questions, and experiences that have shaped our inner lives.
We all live this spiritual journey every day, whether or not we are grounded in a specific religious tradition. Indeed, most wisdom traditions affirm that our spiritual or inward journey unfolds in the ordinary moments of our days—in what we love, what we struggle with, what awakens wonder, what breaks our hearts, and what gives us hope. By writing with and for other attentive writers, we will honor the things that make us human together and share, as Ó Tuama invites “the things that do not fade: generosity, truth-telling, silence, respect, and love.”
This is not a traditional writing workshop. We gather not to offer feedback or critique one another’s work or to offer advice about how to write a spiritual autobiography. Instead, we will practice the sacred art of listening. We will write, share, and receive one another’s stories with openness and care, receiving the gifts that flow through each other’s generous sharing of our lives, and to open ourselves to our own story.
We are delighted to welcome back Amy Schmaljohn for another session of this beloved program. Join Amy and others to remember, write, and share the journey that is uniquely your own.
No previous writing experience is required—only a willingness to wonder about your own story.
DATE: Mondays – 1/25, 2/1, 2/8, 2/22, 3/1, and 3/8/27
TIME: 6:30 – 8:30 PM ET
COST: Early Bird Discount (prior to 12/15/26) – $175; Regular Cost (12/15 and after) – $195. We have an registration deadline for this program of 1/18/27. Please register early!
LOCATION: ZOOM
REGISTRATION is required. Please register here.
IMPORTANT: You will receive an email from programming@wellforthejourney.org at least 24 hours in advance of the start of your program. If you are unable to find the email, please check your SPAM or JUNK email folders. This email will include details to help you prepare for your program including any pertinent handouts, location information, and the ZOOM link for online programs. Please be sure you have received and read this email a minimum of 24 hours in advance of the start of the program. Thank you!
FACILITATOR: Amy Schmaljohn
FACILITATOR BIO:
Amy Schmaljohn enjoyed a 35 year career as a leader and teacher in both higher education and at Friends School of Baltimore (Quaker). Her classrooms offered students opportunities to explore world literature and art, movements for nonviolent social transformation, and the human experience of religion across global traditions. A member of Gunpowder Friends Meeting (Quaker), she leads contemplative spiritual retreats in the tradition of the Religious Society of Friends and offers spiritual deepening programs for seekers in the Baltimore region. She is enlivened by the sharing of our stories, by the mystery and power of the written word, and by her daily encounters with the natural world just outside her doorstep. Amy and her husband Alan, a retired virologist, live in northwestern Baltimore County, where they steward seventeen acres of woodland, meadow and streams that have been placed in the Maryland Environmental Trust and serve as a gathering space for those seeking immersive experiences in nature.
