Wednesday 3 August 2016



Opening to the Wisdom of the Heart




In many cultures the word for heart is synonymous with mind and wisdom is understood as centered in the heart.  This workshop will explore the physical, emotional, spiritual and mental dimensions of the heart and introduce a somatic process for opening the heart. We will draw on heart teachings from Indigenous, Buddhist and Christian traditions that support the expansion of the felt sense of the loving compassionate heart. The workshop will include experiential anatomy of the heart, embodied meditation, art-making and movement.


Where: Royston Community Hall, Old Island Highway – wheelchair accessible


When: Saturday October 15, 2016, 10 am-4:30pm
 
Cost: $25-$40 sliding scale


Bring your own lunch or coffee shop next door. Light refreshments provided


Facilitators:

Denise Nadeau is a dance-movement therapist, spiritual companion, and educator whose work in the past twenty years has combined expressive arts with spiritual practice in the recovery of the sacredness of the body. She has worked in many interfaith and intercultural contexts.



Alison Fox is a creative arts therapist, counselor, nurse and educator, specializing in creative approaches to trauma recovery, grief and loss, end-of-life issues, and community healing processes. Formerly based in Iqaluit NU, Alison has been moving back and forth between the Comox Valley and the Qikiqtaaluk region of Nunavut.



Preregistration required by October 1. To register or for more information: contact Denise at dnadeau@shaw.ca or at 250-871-2401.




A Pause for Presence




"The rush and pressure of modern life … [allowing] oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything … .  neutralizes our work for peace … our own inner capacity for peace … the fruitfulness of our own work.” (Thomas Merton)




This six session program explores ways to step outside of a pressured way of living, to pause in the present moment, and to move from “doing” to “being.”  It will bring together embodied meditation, movement, art therapy and sensation awareness with principles of mindfulness and teachings on the pause from different faith traditions.  It is open to people of any or no faith affiliation. 


Where: Royston Community Hall, Old Island Highway – wheelchair accessible


When: Wednesdays September 7 to October 12, 7pm-9pm.
 
Cost: $42 - $120 sliding scale ( $7 to $20 per session) Drop-ins Ok for first two sessions.


PRE-REGISTRATION required by September 1. Contact Wendy McNiven at wmcniven@uuma.org / 250-338-3307 or Denise Nadeau at dnadeau@shaw.ca.


Facilitators:

Wendy McNiven ( MDiv, MEd), is a Unitarian minister, teacher, facilitator, meditator and certified counsellor.



Denise Nadeau (MDiv, DMin) is a dance-movement therapist, spiritual companion, and educator whose work in the past twenty years has combined expressive arts with spiritual practice in the recovery of the sacredness of the body. 

Nicole Crouch is a guest facilitator for one session. Nicole is an art therapist living in the Comox Valley. She has a Masters in Creative Arts Therapies from Concordia University. She has been working in the arts and in community development for over ten years.