Grief Alchemy: Awakening Love

Grief Alchemy: Awakening Love

Join us for a heartfelt gathering in North Vancouver. This in-person event is a unique opportunity to come together and express our whatever we are grieving. Through shared stories, songs, and ritual, we'll create a safe space to honour our losses and find solace in community. Whether you're mourning something deeply personal such as the loss of a loved one, a relationship, or an event or situation that changed you in some way, or if you're grieving something more communal like the state of the world or the climate, this circle welcomes you. Tend and befriend your sorrow, find comfort in each other's presence, and navigate the path of remembering why we grieve in the first place - because we love.

This ceremony is inspired by the Celtic practice of "keening" - singing to express sorrow and other emotions that come alongside grief. While we won't necessarily be singing, this circle invites us to express our feelings. The role of the Bean Chaointe (keening woman) was to bridge the passing of a soul to the spirit world by speaking truth of the person, naming both their virtues and vices. She also acted as a "truth teller" for the community, speaking about social injustices or communal losses. Her voice gave permission for those holding back their emotions to begin to express them, to feel less alone, to begin the healing journey through grief and loss, to transmute suffering through communal expression of emotion.

Flow of Ceremony

Welcome and grounding

Naming grief and acknowledging it's complexity

Somatic tools for grief and other emotions

Community connection, sharing stories

Community Keening - expressing grief

Somatic tools to recenter

Closing

Community gathering with tea and snacks

Through this practice, we find belonging, we have the opportunity to learn somatic tools that help us stay grounded as we navigate this challenging emotional terrain. We invite grief to move through our expression while holding it gently, with courage and compassion.

Grief is a doorway to love (one that we all walk through at some point in our lives) and it is my hope that Grief Alchemy helps each of us remember this. In this ceremony, you will have the opportunity to express the truth of your loss or longing, and explore expressive and somatic movement practices that support the alchemical proces of transforming grief from something painful into something precious that reminds us of what we love.

Past participants have described this ceremony as "powerful," "transformative," and "healing." While the specific benefits of this practice vary from person to person, here are a few you might experience:

• increase vitality by not using energy to avoid or mask your feelings
• become more deeply connected to yourself
• feel stronger and more capable of managing your emotions
• learn tools to support your well-being in times of stress
• feel a sense of belonging and connection to community
• feel less burdened by sadness, guilt or regret
• gain clarity about your feelings and needs

Light refreshments provided, along with a custom curated tea (infused with high-vibrational energy work and ingredients that soothe the heart).

All genders welcome. Tickets - $75.00 regular rate, $55.00 community accessible rate.

Further scholarship may be available upon request.

Host or Publisher Wendy MacPherson