Welcome to the Next Chapter

A new journey began last weekend

I won’t lean into the cliché metaphor of my life as a novel too much, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to absorb how it feels to be looking forward right now.

My fiancé Matt and I officially moved to the Des Moines Metro area this past weekend (hence, the lack of a column last week). With how the timing of my job starting and Matt traveling for his job worked out, we didn’t find an apartment and begin to pack until I was a few weeks into my job - shoutout to my sister and brother-in-law for letting me crash in their spare bedroom.

Living in transition feels stagnant. I floated in the in between for a bit, unmoored without a space that feels like mine. Now that we have settled, I no longer feel like I’m constantly running. The plot moves forward.

I’m struck by how much opportunity is standing in front of Matt and I. The nonprofit community in Des Moines is strong, with brilliant, kind, and creative humans willing to lend their support in whatever way they can. The way arts and culture are honored and revered in this area has already presented me with so many ideas and options for learning and creating. I’m setting intentions to prioritize networking, something I’ve never felt was my strong suit.

We are so excited to be here, and to build something magical and timeless with everyone we meet. As we begin our time here, I want to share a few moments of creative inspiration that I’ve found.

Beauty at the Des Moines Art Center

A few weeks ago, I attended the unveiling of the March/April edition of DSM Magazine with my coworker Kate at the Des Moines Art Center. The cover features the work of Chris Boeke, whose photo story explores perspectives of Des Moines architecture that are not usually seen. The spread is stunning, and compels me, a new Des Moines resident, to take a true look at the beauty of this city.

Kate and I spent some time after the party absorbing the work featured at the Des Moines Art Center. I’ve always felt especially in awe of these local and regional art museums. The prestige of location ceases to matter; the space becomes a vessel for each artist to tell their story, nothing more and nothing less. Each museum is a delightfully unique experience of beauty.

I took photos of any work that caused me to pause for a moment. Here are some of my favorites:

The DSM Book Festival

The DSM Book Festival takes place on Saturday, March 25th at Capital Square in downtown Des Moines. This festival, put on by the Greater Des Moines Partnership, features brilliant authors, writing workshops, children’s activities, and more.

I’ll be attending the festival this weekend with my mom, who is hands-down the biggest “book person” I know. Her home library, which is my parents’ sunroom, is filled with shelves and shelves of books - my niece once spent an afternoon counting the books and came up with over 1,000. Her to be read pile is bigger than my own personal collection of books. She loves to read (check out her Bookstagram, which features many photos of dog Shiloh’s famous underbite) and has passed that love on to my sister and me.

I haven’t personally read any of the authors in attendance this year, but there are some big-ticket names that I recognize. Sequoia Nagamatsu is on my TBR list, and Sarah Penner’s The Lost Apothecary is world renowned.

CultureALL’s Open Book program will be at the festival from 1-4:30 pm. During Open Book, Humans function as “Books” that you can check out. The human Book tells their story and poses questions for the reader(s), leading to a dialogue that explores ideas and allows participants to connect on a human level. I’ll be there taking photos - come say hi!

What Our Work Means to Us

Next week, The Midwest Creative will also begin a new journey. I’ll be featuring my first interview.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Mary Mathis last week about being intentional with how we build our creative lives. Mary is a photojournalist, podcaster, fact checker, and writer who graduated from the University of Iowa.

Mary has an incredible resume, which includes starting her own literary magazine as a student. I attended a meeting of that magazine and have followed Mary’s career on social media ever since. I’ve always admired how she’s been able to work within different mediums so brilliantly. She’s one of those people that you can just sense has an incredible spirit and a drive to make this world a prettier place. We talked about the idea of finding meaning in one’s work, being bold in building your career, and the importance of community when living a creative life. I felt strong and capable after this conversation, and I can’t wait to share with you.

The Midwest Creative is a proud member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. Please consider subscribing to my colleagues’ work.

Laura Belin: Iowa Politics with Laura Belin, Windsor Heights

Doug Burns: The Iowa Mercury, Carroll

Dave Busiek: Dave Busiek on Media, Des Moines

Art Cullen: Art Cullen’s Notebook, Storm Lake

Suzanna de Baca Dispatches from the Heartland, Huxley

Debra Engle: A Whole New World, Madison County

Julie Gammack: Julie Gammack’s Iowa Potluck, Des Moines and Okoboji

Joe Geha: Fern and Joe, Ames

Jody Gifford: Benign Inspiration, West Des Moines

Beth Hoffman: In the Dirt, Lovilla

Dana James: New Black Iowa, Des Moines

Pat Kinney: View from Cedar Valley, Waterloo

Fern Kupfer: Fern and Joe, Ames

Robert Leonard: Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture, Bussey

Tar Macias: Hola Iowa, Iowa

Kurt Meyer, Showing Up, St. Ansgar

Kyle Munson, Kyle Munson’s Main Street, Des Moines

Jane Nguyen, The Asian Iowan, West Des Moines

John Naughton: My Life, in Color, Des Moines

Chuck Offenburger: Iowa Boy Chuck Offenburger, Jefferson and Des Moines

Barry Piatt: Piatt on Politic Behind the Curtain, Washington, D.C.

Macey Spensley: The Midwest Creative, Iowa

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Buggy Land, Kalona

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Emerging Voices, Kalona

Cheryl Tevis: Unfinished Business, Boone County

Ed Tibbetts: Along the Mississippi, Davenport

Teresa Zilk: Talking Good, Des Moines

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