“Find ways to connect back to your body and mind. Find ways to intentionally slow down. Find ways to re-imagine and snatch rest right now. It is your divine and human right to do so.”
– Tricia Hersey, thenapministry.com
Are you overwhelmed by “grind culture,” feeling caught in the inhuman expectations of an economic system that prioritizes work above everything else, that sees your body as a source of productivity for the building of capital? How do we uphold our values of wholeness, balance, well-being, integrity, and right relationship in the face of an onslaught of dysfunctional external as well as internalized cultural, economic, and institutional demands? How do we heal from the traumas of living in this culture?
Perhaps, you’ve rolled this conditioning into work that you love and want to do but drive yourself beyond what is healthy for your body or the balance of life. There is no easy solution, but I’m convinced that we can support one another in finding our own individual paths toward a saner, healthier, more loving way of living together on this planet. That requires resting.
I’ve been deeply inspired by Rest Is Resistance: A Manifesto by Tricia Hersey, in which she urges us to face that “since birth, we slowly are indoctrinated into the cult of urgency and disconnection via white supremacy culture.” She’s convinced me that resting – in its many forms, some yet to be invented – is a courageous, essential part of societal transformation: “We must imagine a new way, and rest is the foundation for this invention.” In our Soul Conversation, we will explore excerpts from this book, reflect in solitude, share in small groups and then in the larger group about how we rest and how we might find our way to slow down, rest more, dream, imagine, and resist grind culture even (or especially) when it feels impossible.
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.
