Seeking Surrender Interview
I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed and featured on Kayce Hughlett’s blog.
Here is the interview:
Can you please tell us what finding the Divine day-to-day looks like for you today?
Colette: For me, finding the Divine day-to-day is about becoming more aware of God’s love—a great love that holds us and our lives every moment. One thought that’s emerging for me is that Divine love is already here, and all I need to do is simply become more aware of it, notice it, and live out of it. It’s not something I have to earn or try to receive more of, but rather awaken to. So the question for me is: How do I become more receptive to what is already there? How do I allow myself to truly receive what I have been given? God’s love is so big and great I can hardly grasp it, but I can have glimpses of it—in my heart, in the eyes of another, in a bird’s call, in the darkness of the night. And as I awaken to Love every day, I find the Divine right here where I am, every moment.
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“I surrender to the discovery that happens in the creative process, when goals are set free so the imagination can soar.” C.L.
How did this type of surrender play out in your writing of the book? What did your creative process look like? Did you experience writer’s block? If so, how did you move through it?
Colette: This book happened slowly because it was a very organic process. I had the letters. I had my story. But I wasn’t sure how they were going to come together. I found the structure of this book through inspiration, experimentation, and discovery. It wasn’t pre-planned. I tried one thing after another, until an authentic structure emerged. I was deeply committed to writing an honest, unpretentious book, and literally prayed my way through its creation.
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Would you please share a favorite scene or quote from “Seeking Surrender”?
Colette: “One afternoon, while I am standing in the cereal aisle at the grocery store, I run into a woman from yoga class shopping with her two children after school. We exchange a greeting, and she introduces me to her five-year-old son and eight-year- old daughter, both wearing navy-blue-and-white school uniforms. I know from small talk before class that she is a busy mother.
I finish my shopping, and as I am leaving the store, I notice a sinking feeling in my chest. I will never be that woman, I say to myself.
But as I am getting into my car in the parking lot, I catch the murmur of a new voice emerging. Let me love my life and trust its path, I say to myself. Can I pay attention to these words? I put the keys in the ignition, but I don’t start the car just yet. This is the voice of surrender breaking through, urging me to let go and inviting me in—if only I am willing to listen. Let me love my life and trust its path, I repeat to myself.”—excerpt from vignette “Breaking Through,” pgs. 44-45
Why did you choose this particular passage?
Colette: I chose this scene because I truly feel the heart of surrender is about listening, about being willing to listen to how the Divine is shaping and changing me. Surrendering is a deep interior listening and the response that comes out of that.
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What is your hope for people who read this book?
Colette: My hope is that people will allow surrender to permeate and shape their lives, and in the process discover the many gifts and graces that can unfold from this stance of trust and openness.
I also hope to share the wisdom in Brother Rene’s letters so that his advice and compassion are passed forward to others. This would be the greatest gift.