Round Table

Round Table is a discussion night here at Petit Portál. Nothing is off the table, with weekly topics (this weeks' below!) ranging in theme from spirituality, to kink, to science, to art-- and everything in between; that we explore respectfully through our shared and differing viewpoints. Come, having explored the week's topic, or ready to! This season of Round Table is hosted and mediated by Ash Sanders! With event space host, Li Michelle.

This week's topic: Alone/Together

Hey discussionistas! I'm so excited that I get to host a few more discussion nights -- and we're gonna make them good ones. I wanted to go in a bit more of a personal direction with these next couple, so on Wednesday we will be discussing...loneliness!

We'll talk about times we've been lonely, times we've been content (alone or with others), dark nights of the soul, community as cure/possible not-cure, individualism as curse, America as The Problem, our biological hardwiring for surviving alone-ness, and the difference between solitude and the lonely soul. So come with your hearts on your sleeves, babies! Let's talk about being alone -- together!

This discussion is based on Kristen Radkte's beautiful work, which sketches people in different states of aloneness as the author meditates on different aspects of the loneliness epidemic.

See you there!

Discussion links:

https://nytimes.com/2021/05/15/books/review/kristen-radtke-loneliness.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6P6-QJE9i8U&ab_channel=BlackMountainInstitute

About Ash:

Ash Sanders is a journalist, audio producer, and creative who writes about place, environment, religion and mental health. She's also an erstwhile climate organizer and performance artist who creates circles for processing public or political grief. As a young weirdo trapped at BYU and looking for her people, she started a weekly discussion night on art, politics, and psychology that turned how she saw the whole world on its head and introduced her to the fellow seekers and loveable freaks of Provo. Since then, you can find her organizing salons and elaborate theme parties here in Utah or in her other home in Brooklyn. Oh, and rest assured: she'll never miss an opportunity for an around-the-room question. :)