Heart pain, longing, and loss are inevitable here on Earth, yet modern American folk often feel ill-equipped to navigate the full, transformative potency of grief. We'll discuss ways diverse cultures weave ritual, grieving, and heart-centered community and talk about grief as one beautiful ritual strategy for mending cracks in the larger vessel of our humanity. 

After establishing a basic groundwork for the importance of grieving well, we call upon appropriate elemental powers and ancestral guides to hold a kind and protective space for grieving. This sacred tending takes place in the vessel of supportive community with ritual precautions to honor the potency and energetic reality of emotional pain. 

Participants are held in ways that allow for fully contacting the heart of their experience, expressing from this place, and also moving through the full cycle into ritual cleansing and return. This ritual will be offered Sat, Mar 12th in Saxapahaw, NC (Facebook event page).

Suggested $90, flexibility as needed. Be in touch to register or with questions.

The vast majority of our human ancestors lived as tribal, indigenous peoples and practiced some version of 'animism'. Animists view humans as only one type of person within a much wider web of relations (human and otherwise, seen and unseen). Animists aspire to be respectful people, not only with other humans but in relationship with the larger web (e.g., animals, plants, ancestors, deities, spirits of place). Animism is a highly relational approach to life that recognizes our profound interdependence on the sacrifice of others.

As we spiral deeper into global ecological crisis and the spiritual bankruptcy of modern capitalism becomes more apparent, people of diverse backgrounds are increasingly drawn to non-dogmatic teachings and traditions of animism (e.g., indigenous paths, shamanism, paganism). For the minority of folks blessed with recent indigenous ancestors, this calling may look like returning to participate in still-intact ancestral traditions. For the rest of us, how to actualize the calling to earth-spirit ways is often less straight-forward.

In this day of embodied learning, we'll explore the history of how modern Americans (of diverse backgrounds) got into our current cultural mess. Participants will learn to recognize dynamics of white privilege and cultural appropriation in contemporary spiritual circles. We'll discuss how to engage intact traditions in culturally healing and truly reciprocal ways. We'll spend time facing the depth of ancestral and earth healing needed and identify healing and authentic ways to participate in reinvigorating earth-spirit culture.

Total beginners and those with decades walking an earth-honoring path are welcome. We'll keep the dialogue heart-centered and invite perspective from our ancestors and helpers in the unseen. Cost for the day is $90, flexibility as needed, no one turned away due to cost. To register Paypal to: ancestralmedicine@gmail.com. 10am-5pm at Heart Path Studio. Facebook event page here. For more info see: ancestralmedicine.org/animism.

Everyone has loving and wise ancestors, and by reaching out for their support we access tremendous vitality for personal and family healing. In addition to supporting repairs with living family, our ancestors encourage healthy self-esteem and help us to clarify our destiny, relationships, and work in the world. 

Participants will learn to relate safely and directly with family ancestors, both helpful guides and the dead who are still in need of assistance. Expect to engage lineage ancestors through prayer, song, visioning practices, offerings, forgiveness work, and group dialogue. This is the foundational ancestor training I've guided throughout the United States since 2005. 

There are no prerequisites, however, experience with inner work/psychological healing and relating with spirit guides/teachers are both helpful. Folks new to ancestor work, adoptees, and those with a tough experience of family are welcome. Those with a healing arts practice will learn new skills to support your work.

Individual sessions tend to be about ancestral and family healing, spiritual guidance and mentorship, or occasionally consultation for folks building a holistic healing practice. People sometimes reach out to try to make sense of a spiritual calling, so that's welcome, and I'm also a psychotherapist with a Ph.D. in psychology if you're struggling with the 1,001 things of life and just want to approach it all from a more holistic angle.