FINDING OUR WAY THROUGH
Grief & Resilience in Troubled Times
SAT, OCT 28, 2023 |
10AM ~ 6PM | NEWPORT, OR
“When we open our eyes to what is happening, even when it breaks our hearts, we discover our true size;
for our heart, when it breaks open, can hold the whole universe. We discover how speaking the truth
of our anguish for the world brings down the walls between us, drawing us into deep solidarity.”
~
Joanna Macy
EVENT DESCRIPTION
We are living in unprecedented times, with news of drought, wildfires, widespread pollution, endless war, political unrest, social division, species extinction, and the collapsing of the very ecosystems that all life depends on. Our lives, and the lives of those we love, are being affected in myriad ways, and many of us are dealing with levels of confusion, despair, overwhelm, and fear that are increasingly difficult to navigate. The good news is that we do not need to make this journey alone.
This workshop offers an opportunity to come into a brave and safely held communal space to share the burdens we are carrying and open to the healing that emerges naturally when we tend to our grief together. Our focus will be on nurturing a deeper sense of belonging, cultivating greater resilience for the journey ahead, and exploring ways to connect with and bring forward our unique gifts in ways that bring a sense of meaning and empowerment, despite the troubles we face.
Drawing from The Work That Reconnects, developed by activist and writer Joanna Macy, this event combines cross-cultural ritual, experiential group practices, poetry, and song. By grounding our hearts in gratitude we can build the strength we need to embrace what we feel, and by opening to new ways of seeing the challenges of our times we can elicit the courage, creativity, and inspiration we need to respond to our changed and changing world with wisdom and compassion.
FACILITATOR
Lara Lwin Treadaway has facilitated the journey of healing and transformation with groups, couples, families, individuals, and communities for over two decades, through therapeutic support, experiential group work, and communal ritual and ceremony. She is passionate about creating safely held, brave, and sacred spaces to illuminate, metabolize, transform, and integrate the burdens of grief we carry around our personal and collective trauma, loss, and pain, and nurture a deeper sense of belonging within ourselves, between each other, and with all of life. Lara is also the founder of Wild Peace Sanctuary, a place where people, animals, and the land are healing together in circles of reverence, repair, and reciprocity.
“The world is not a problem to be solved; it is a living being to which we belong. The world is part of our own self
and we are a part of its suffering wholeness. Until we go to the root of our image of separateness,
there can be no healing. And the deepest part of our separateness from creation lies in
our forgetfulness of its sacred nature, which is also our own sacred nature.”
~
Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee
EVENT DETAILS
DATE/TIME:
Saturday, Oct 28, 2023
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
LOCATION:
The Fellowship Hall
Atonement Lutheran Church
Newport, OR 97365
(This event is non-denominational and not affiliated with any particular church)
RECIPROCITY:
Sliding Scale $150 - $250
Space is limited
Early registration recommended
Offered in the spirit of the Gift Economy. Non-monetary options
available in the case of financial hardship. Please enquire below.
For any questions please contact Lara:
LEARN MORE
Listen to activist and writer Joanna Macy speaking to Ayana Young on this For The Wild podcast on responding to our suffering world.
TESTIMONIALS
"Lara is a skilled facilitator who navigates the most challenging issues of our time with wisdom, sensitivity, and
a wide-open heart. Her event was a deep experience that challenged me to explore my grief
and pain, while empowering me to face those hurts with resilience and hope."
~ Kevin Gallagher, Santa Barbara, CA
"When the world is shaking at its core and nothing feels safe or certain we need to be brought together in such
a way that we can FEEL what is happening and then carry each other through. Thank you Lara
for having created such a space for us all to find healing and mutual support."
~ Gwen Moore, Eugene, OR
"The practices Lara took us through were deeply transformative. Her sensitivity to the needs of all the participants,
individually and collectively, was inspirational. She brought an incredible quality of presence
to the room that helped us all feel safe and supported."
~ Francesca Simms, Portland, OR
"I went specifically to grieve about the Earth and all we are losing. Those of us who love the earth and are awoke to what is
happening are carrying so much grief. Taking the time to feel and express grief for disappearing species, desecrated
places, and our difficult future does not mean we are giving up, but rather it can re-energize us to continue our
activism. Grief is the other side of love and we can’t have one without the other, yet there are so few places
where our grief is welcomed and accepted and can be fully expressed in community."
~ Sharon Blick, Eugene, OR
"The next day I felt a great capacity to hold life and things that were unbearable before. It was a life-changing practice
that I intend to make a part of my life on a regular basis. Lara is an extraordinary spirit and a skillful facilitator.
The container she created felt incredibly safe and inclusive allowing me to do very deep work."
~ Jana Holm, Portland, OR
"This work was very powerful and transformative for me and I highly recommend it. I cannot say enough about you
Lara and the safe space you held communally. You are masterful at what you do, and so clearly and
beautifully committed to helping heal the planet with this work. Deep bow of gratitude.”
~ Laura Ghiringhelli Knutson, San Luis Obispo, CA
"Here's a wonderful opportunity to reclaim energy you may be unknowingly wasting just trying to hold back despair.
My close friend, Lara, is a gifted facilitator bringing many years of study and practice to create the
safe space needed to grieve through despair into the power of community."
~ Leonard Higgins, Eugene, OR
"I would absolutely recommend this event for anyone who is longing for authentic, safe, and reverent engagement
of our deepest most profound emotions. This is profound experiential work for both personal
and communal nurturance and therefore healing.”
~ Richard Leversee, Morro Bay, CA