Races are a form of entertainment.
We don’t all win—that’s inherent.
Does your liver compete with your spleen?
If so, what are the consequences of winning?
And, who is having fun?
Find the joy in connection.
Races are a form of entertainment.
We don’t all win—that’s inherent.
Does your liver compete with your spleen?
If so, what are the consequences of winning?
And, who is having fun?
Find the joy in connection.
20 years ago at American Dance Festival I participated in amazing dance improvisation jams that went late into the night. At the end of a day full of classes and rehearsals, 100 or more professional and pre-professional dancers would come together just to move. We made a shift from prioritizing form to prioritizing connection. Connection to self, to other, and to spirit. These jams were magical for me.
Ecstatic Dance is something like a night club without the alcohol; with a sense of wonder and even prayer in its place. It’s about connection. At the end of the ecstatic dance I facilitated last night at JUMP Boise nobody wanted to leave. We’d let go of judgement and melted into togetherness.
A how-to guide for ecstatic dance could look like this:
Let go of trying to do it right (expectations of self)
Let go of expectations of others
Don’t grasp or chase others, physically or otherwise
Trust and maintain your boundaries (you don’t owe anyone anything)
Move when you want to move
Listen, see, and feel
A body—your body—is a collective.
From cells to tissues to organs and fluids, many parts collaborate to create the whole of you.
Your enteric nervous system—your belly brain—offers a portal for bacteria in your gut to have a strong vote in your emotions.
Your heart generates the most powerful electromagnetic field in your body.
Your consciousness is likely more diverse than just what’s in your head.
Organs move organically.
Fluids flow authentically.
Reflexes fire protectively.
Movement is the intelligence of the body in action.
As seekers we can ask for direction in many ways.
Observing and participating with one’s body in motion is a method for divining guidance that engages with the entire collective of self.
Personally, engaging with my consciousness from this perspective has been a practical and spiritual growth edge. A daydreamer as a kid, my parents always pushed me to find my ‘intrinsic motivation’. What do I really want? What is the place of curiosity in my engagement with the world? I study my body as consciousness because I value the authenticity and trust it guides me toward.
If you’re in Boise the 6 week SomaWorks Seminar on Inner Guidance starting Sept. 3rd. still has a few spots left. It’ll be an intimate, supportive, guided space for personal research. Sign up nowto get your spot–it’s intentionally going to be quite small.
I’ll also be offering theSomaWorks Seminar on Inner Guidance via Zoom videoconferencing starting Saturday October 12th so that wherever you are in the world we can explore together. Sign up here to get your spot—the size will also be limited so we can engage personally with each other.
Questions? Make a free appointment to chat on the phone.
Band-aids are miraculous medicine for a 5 year old.
The story goes something like this:
When I get a scrape I hurt, I’m vulnerable, and I’m broken.
A band-aid makes me safe. When someone puts it on me I feel loved. The band-aid makes it possible for me to heal.
I am no longer broken when I have my band-aid on.
As adults we know that a key function of a band-aid is keeping a cut clean, and that cleaning the cut first is the most important piece. Yet, cleaning the cut usually hurts and is scary.
The promise of a band-aid creates the tension necessary to clean a 5-year old’s cut: The patience and bravery needed to undergo the procedure arises more easily through the promise of a band-aid. The band-aid is the cape supporting a superhero’s journey.
Conversely, if we offer the band-aid without cleaning the cut we may do more harm than good.
Band-aids are highly effective solutions to navigate our journeys through pain and fear because they’re part of a larger emotional story. They offer a ritual of comfort because while there may be little we can do in the face of a scraped knee, at least there’s this, and it matters.
What do you do when you get injured, physically or otherwise? What stories and rituals support you in your growth and healing?
Somatic movement therapy, coaching, and bodywork are powerful methods for healing physical and emotional trauma. If you’re ready to examine your stories about what’s possible in your healing we can write new ones and take action together. Take 33% off of SomaWorks Somatic Assessments booked before the end of August and taking place before the end of September using the coupon code ‘AUGUST’. Available physically in Boise or virtually online.
How do you know–
when you’re aligned with your purpose?
when you’re in love?
what’s morally right?
when to say ‘yes’ and when to say ‘no’?
‘good’ pain from ‘bad’ pain?
Thinking is insufficient for discernment.
We move and feel–acting in our somas and our world to gather data.
We try it out.
Notice your right pinky finger.
How’d you do it?
If you didn’t move your finger already notice how much more you feel when you do.
Moving to Feel is a key aspect of how your soma works.
SomaWorks Seminar is a small-group movement class that progresses over six weekly sessions. We will use our bodies in motion to get out of our heads and tap into intuition, creativity, and internal guidance.
Inner guidance is the topic for this 6-session series. How do you listen to the messages from your body? What can you do when you’re feeling anxious and trying to make decisions? How do you know the difference between ‘good’ or ‘productive’ pain and that which creates injury? When do you need more boundaries in your relationships, and when is it time to let go? This workshop is for you if you would like the time, space, and community to further develop your relationship with your body.
We will engage with techniques and systems including Somatic Ideation, Circling, Authentic Movement, Laban Movement Analysis, Ecstatic Dance, and solo aspects of Contact Improvisation to connect with ourselves and each other. Come as you are: No experience is necessary to participate.The 6 session series is $150 and will take place at SomaWorks in Boise. There is a maximum seminar size of 8 people. If you sign up with a friend use the discount code BUDDIES and you each get 10% off!
Sign up via this link.If you are not local, or cannot make this time, there will be an online group via Zoom videoconferencing. In order to participate you will need a small but open space to move, including being able to lay on the floor, and a computer or phone that can connect to internet fast enough for video conferencing.