Early Years
Christina Baldwin was born in Montana into large families of English/Scots-Irish (dad) and Swedish/Norwegians (mom). Tucked among buttes and farmland, her grandparent’s homestead and honey business drew generations of descendants back for summers harvesting the garden, the honey crop, and imprinting on the land and vistas of the west.
Growing up in the Midwest, Christina’s heart always faced the mountains. She loved wind in her face, cowboy boots, reading and journal writing.
First Career—Life’s Companion to people and their stories
In her early twenties, Christina worked for The American Friends Service Committee as their Youth Affairs Coordinator. She traveled across the US, and lived in Europe and the Middle East, working with peace efforts and later as a research assistant and freelance journalist.
After the publication of One to One, in 1977, her interest in writing and story coincided with the rising women’s movement and claiming memoir as a modern genre. She spent her thirties teaching, traveling, and writing self-help books. This life path culminated in her books, Life’s Companion, Journal Writing as a Spiritual Practice (1991), The Seven Whispers, Spiritual Practice for Times Like These (2001) and Storycatcher, Making Sense of our Lives through the Power and Practice of Story (2005).
Circle Career—PeerSpirit, Inc.
In 1991, Christina joined with naturalist educator, Ann Linnea, to develop seminars designed to integrate personal growth with environmental activism. These weekend retreats combined time in nature with journal writing and circle conversations. As they noticed how people’s experience seemed enriched by circle space, they began to research circle itself as a social structure. Pre-Internet, they studied pre-patriarchal societies, particularly their own Celtic roots, and arrived at the theory that “circle is our common First Culture.”
In 1994 they moved to western Washington and started a small, educational company, PeerSpirit, Inc. This work is chronicled in Baldwin’s book, Calling the Circle, the First and Future Culture (1995), and in their co-authored book, The Circle Way, a Leader in Every Chair (2010). For over two decades, across the US, Canada, Europe, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, they trained practitioners and facilitators in circle hosting and practice. In 2016, they donated their educational materials to the nonprofit collective: www.thecircleway.net where the work continues to diversify, honor multi-cultural and Indigenous roots, and adapt to meet 21st century needs.
The Silver-haired Novelist
Culminating in December 2022, Christina completed teaching her classic seminar, “The Self as the Source of the Story,” a 32 year offering. Interviews, podcasts, PDFs, and short essays are found under “Story Resources” on this site. The story continues through her blog.
From 2016 to 2022, she researched and wrote an historical novel—a multi-generational, family saga based in western Montana. The book is represented by Meredith Bernstein Agency in New York. Stay tuned for further details.
Media Materials
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