Chapter I

• Where would you locate yourself in these four phases of the life cycle?
  • We learn.
  • We apply.
  • We step back and reflect.
  • We savor.
• Discuss why you placed yourself in that phase. Is this where you want to be, or is there a place you’re working to get to?
• Do you ever feel:
  • A sense that you have brought to your present work all that you can and it is time for a new challenge? Talk about a specific event.
  • A vague but pervasive feeling of discontent with the configuration of activities and relationships in your life? How do you deal with these feelings?
  • A growing desire to step out and allow a recurring fantasy to become a reality? How is your creativity affected by these feelings?
• What are some of your interests and abilities that seldom get tapped?

Chapter II

• Think back to when you were in grade school. What interested you then? What seemed to come naturally to you? What has happened to those inclinations and talents over the years?
• In what areas of your life do you feel “frozen”? What are some things you could do to begin to give yourself permission to “scribble,” to experiment with something different?
• What things do you do well? How do these things reflect your innate creativity?

Chapter III

• What is the first time you can remember feeling awe?
• Talk about someone who has inspired you by stretching your imagination, by expanding what you thought you were capable of. How did that person help you express your creativity?
• What experiences in your life have given you new vision and energy?
• What experiences have given you a sense of the presence of the Creative Spirit in the world?

Chapter IV

• Which of your senses would you say is most acute? What pleasures do you derive from this sense? With what emotions does this sense link you? What kinds of experiences are most likely to awaken this sense in you? Discuss two or three.
• What is your relationship with nature? Which of its sanctuaries most draw you—mountains, desert, waters or woods? What are some of the places that wake up or stretch your dormant creative energies? Why?
• Discuss any movies, plays, athletic performances, books, pieces of music, poems or other works of art that have inspired you. What was it about that particular experience that moved you? Why did it touch you in such a deep place?

Chapter V

• Can you identify areas of your life where you tend to engage in “scarcity thinking”? Where do you hold back from “going for it” because you’re afraid your luck might run out or you’ll overspend your spiritual abundance? What might it mean for you to “surrender” to the adventure?
• What does “listening to your longing” look like in your life? What might you do to support this process of inner listening?
• Suppose that, in the interest of tapping your creative potential, you were to undertake something you’d like to be better at, but that would be outside your comfort zone. What might that be? Talk about two or three possibilities.

Chapter VI

• Have you ever felt a “God-shaped emptiness” in your life? What seemed to fill it? Discuss two or three possibilities.
• What kinds of experiences feed your imagination? When was the last time you sought out such an experience? Talk about a few.
• What would you consider some of the sacred moments of your life?
• Think of some surprises in your life that have brought you both gift and responsibility. Talk about a few.