Grief Circle & Workshop

We are living in a Both/AND moment.  The entire world is going through a collective shift. We are sentient beings and so we feel this together whether we know it, deny it, or not. Yes, there are many lessons/gifts we receive from change, grief, death and so forth. AND, we have tears in this moment, and they are rising. 

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As one of my teachers Linda Star Wolf reminds us, “The light and the dark no difference.” The current movement is the literal embodiment of this phrase. There is much darkness and still the light shines.

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For example, the earth is breathing smog-free air for the first time in decades. Our grief offers us darkness through challenge, pause, pain, suffering, AND it also gives us light via awakening, new beginnings, awareness, wisdoms, and other gifts that are for only you to understand. It is important, perhaps now more now than ever, to not spiritually bypass what is going on for you but to open yourself to feeling the emotions that are bubbling up for you.

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Grief is different than sadness. We learn from the award-winning author, social science researcher, and empathy pioneer, Karla McLaren, that “Grief arises when something is lost irretrievably, or when a death occurs – be it actual death, or the death of important attachments, ideas, or relationships. Grief does not simply bring you the capacity to relax and let go (as sadness does); grief transports you to the deepest places when you have no choice but to let go – when the loss of vital relationships or vital attachments feels like (or is) death itself.”

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Looking to the earth as a model we understand how death feeds life, accepting that after birth comes death and after death comes birth. We acknowledge and appreciate that in this cycle there is(are) a gift(s).

I invite you to think of death as not only the time we leave our physical bodies, but that we have countless opportunities to die off to what does not serve us in our lives. We can do this over and over again as we evolve into our soul’s purpose as humans-being. Now is a time we can choose to release what does not serve us as a part of this larger shift.

We all walk with grief from many kinds of loss and various initiations (rites of passage, changes, challenges, etc.) in our lifetimes.  Time is a strange construct right now but even before the ‘rona came into our lives we were all going through various growth moments.

Some of those may have included grief from the passing of a beloved human or fur kid (more-than-human), lived trauma, residual trauma, trauma from your childhood or some event in this lifetime or another, sadness and rage for the destruction of the earth, the more-than-human’s suffering on it, and its ecosystem destruction. Loss from a breakup, loss of a body part, a job we loved that we are laid off from, a friendship we cherished that has ended, and on and on we grieve.

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So now we find ourselves in the middle of a worldwide pandemic and what we were grieving before is perhaps still present AND no matter what we think of what is going on in the world there have been felt and lived consequences.  

Our every-day realities are changed. 

Many have had new grief arise from the current moment with varying degrees of severity, such as not being able to attend our graduation, trips canceled, trainings postponed, loved ones who are sick, people crossing over from this illness shifting to the next world, loved ones who are in an essential worker category going out each day and the fear this brings up, and on it goes. 

As empathic people we may also simply be needing a space to release our sadness and residual trauma over what we have seen on TV related to COVID-19.

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Your tears, anger, sadness, and grief are honored and very welcome in this circle. We see the gifts being born of our current moment AND still we grieve!

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This circle is for you…

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• If you feel exhausted and need a “break from it all” to vent and be held in community.
• If you wished you had more tools to cope with grief, anger, and sadness.
• If you have questions about why it is so hard to express emotions like grief, anger, sadness etc.
• If you sometimes put yourself second, focusing on helping others first.
• If you want to experience community witness as you deal with your grief.
• If you desire to invest some time to sit with your loss(es).
• If you want to expand your ability to receive more love from yourself and others.

Join us as we experience a circle of the heart holding you in community as we grieve.

This circle and workshop will help you:

1) Accelerate and expand your ability to release stuck emotions about our current moment that may be a block for you in your life.

2) Set strong intention that can help you remove blocks that may keep you from receiving all the gifts that this challenging moment is offering to you.

3) Help you shatter any limits preventing you from recognizing it is OK to be sad and angry right now. It is also OK to feel grief and sadness for the loss of whatever you are feeling.

As a circle we will be gifted several opportunities:

• Hear a shamanic astrologer speak about the astrological empowerment of our current moment
• Explore the tarot for insight
• Gather in small breakout rooms for more intimate sharing
• Participate in a loving kindness meditation and other healing activities together

Please bring:

• a candle if you have one
• whatever smoke you like to burn for grounding (sacred smoke)
• a journal
• a pillow to scream into
• small cornhole bags or bean bags to throw on the floor (optional)
• anything you need to be comfortable (water, snacks, etc.)

This circle and workshop is free to attend, however, we ask that in lieu of payment you please make a donation in any amount you are able to Crooked Media’s Coronavirus Relief Fund here.

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Your contribution will be divided evenly between No Kid Hungry, The National Domestic Workers Alliance, and 6 other groups, or you can specify which of the eight groups you would like your donation to go to upon payment.

Let’s contribute to the healing of others while we do the work of healing ourselves.