Turning towards summer’s community work, feed your power from the inside out, in good company! Tap into & renew what’s important to you? Our communities have much to do – and need us to be resilient.
“…seeds are the embodiment of hope. Seeds assume a future of planting, of reaping, of sharing, of passing down.” – Leah Penniman, Farming While Black
“I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders.” – Henry David Thoreau
Something wants to be planted this season! We’re invited to notice, as persons who cultivate community…
- What is planted by us or in us – by habit?
- What do we want to plant intentionally– or what wants to be planted in us – that might be different than our habits usually plant?
- What kind of “efficiency” is wise? Which seeds want to be scattered vs tended in neat rows?
- And the foundational questions too often not asked: what is worth planting and why? Which seeds are true to who I am and who my community is?
Also, gardeners and farmers know it’s unwise and even dangerous for some things to be planted before Memorial Day.
It’s not just the unpredictable frosts of Northeast Ohio. Certain pests are unleashed if some things are planted too early or planted too late. Metaphor calls to us…
So much unpredictability is particular to our region! So.. how can we hope to be with the unexpected?
Come, experience a range of gentle, respectful options to notice the life that wants to live in you: inviting that to be savored, and to offer its wisdom.
Recharge for now, and grow practices that keep you fresh for the long run.
- If community builders burn out, then “the way things are” is the way they’ll stay – or get worse.
- So how about putting on your “oxygen mask” to catch your breath?
Who’s it for?
Anyone who’s engaged in building up their community or hopes to do so – however you define it, in any setting, paid or unpaid. Such communities can be found in neighborhoods and social movements, classrooms and congregations, ballfields and clubs, associations and networks, workplaces and beyond.
- We who give so much to others may want to recharge personally or professionally.
All are welcome! This series is convened by Neighborhood Connections & the Neighbor Up Network, known for bringing people together across lines of difference.
Any prior experience needed?
- None! No advance preparation either. Come as you are, who you are.
- Each mini-retreat stands alone. And for those who can attend more than one, these build upon each other.
- There are always newcomers. Please invite others to consider it?
How will we spend our time on the mini-retreat? (in Heading 3)
- We have a framework with a variety of whole-group, small group, and solitary activities. We’ll have time to tend to “the heart of the community builder.”
Learn more about the respectful Courage & Renewal® approach we’ll be using by clicking here.
- You’re not there to take care of anyone else but yourself. So there’s no fixing, advising, or “saving” one another.
- We neither go one-by-one around the circle, nor call out participants to speak.
- Everything here is an invitation, not a demand.
- This creates a rare space in western culture for the static within us & around us to subside, so each of us may hear more of our own inherent gifts, hopes & wisdom.
We’ll share poetry, images and stories from a wide variety of traditions including the sciences – and perhaps from the lives of those present. Art supplies are available for those who enjoy using those to explore their reflections. Each month since May 2023, we tap different themes rooted in NE Ohio’s geographic seasons.
Who’s facilitating?
The Center for Courage & Renewal and its facilitators do not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, height, weight, physical or mental ability, veteran status, military obligations, and marital status.
