Namaste,
There were 22 present for the Men’s Mindfulness Practicum on July 18th. The age range spanned 17 to 73 with most of the ages falling along a continuum in the middle range. We gain so much from the presence of elders (take a look at the piece on Elders below) and we are inspired by the earnest pursuits of the young. The men were quite impressed with Ryan, a 17 year-old participant. He had attended the April Call to Adventure Retreat and had expressed his desire to participate in the Practicum but confided that he wouldn’t be turning 18 for a few weeks following the event and he knew that we typically require men under the age of 18 to be accompanied by an adult. I had reassured Ryan that his participation in the Call to Adventure qualified him for the Practicum and he rose to the occasion with real vim and vigor.
The day was quite powerful. The Mindfulness meditations were deep and the Rebirthing sessions were profound. The men authentically shared about their challenges and some spoke about their daily spiritual practices and how the Mindfulness tools have helped them cope with the stress and pressure of life these days. You can read some of the comments of the men below.
I will be facilitating a Mindfulness Practicum for Couples on Saturday, September 26th. This is an opportunity for you to attend with your significant other. The day will be crafted along the lines of our other Practicums to include meditations and conscious connected breathing sessions as well as Talking Stick Council rounds to share insights and discuss strategies for strengthening, balancing and revitalizing enduring relationships. If you’ve wanted to attend a Practicum with your partner, this is your chance. After this event there may be one more Practicum at Holy Spirit Retreat Center and, if so, that will be a day for women on Saturday, November 7th. I may be out of the country in early November, which would necessitate a cancellation of the November event. Mark your calendars for that one and we’ll confirm the date in the newsletter for September. You’ll find the flier and registration form for the Couples Practicum below. I suggest that you register right away to reserve your spot.
On Sunday, October 4th I will be one of the presenters on Mindfulness at the Group Psychotherapy Association of Southern California annual conference in Santa Monica. It is open to the public. More information will be available in the September newsletter.
Our 22nd Annual Fall Sacred Path Men’s Retreat is fast approaching. Commencing Thursday, October 22nd through Sunday, October 25th we will convene for the MAN UP! WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A GOOD MAN TODAY: Men, Mentors and Mindfulness Retreat. One intention of this program is to continue our exploration of Mindfulness carrying the work from our one-day Practicums into the depth and breadth of our 4-day program on the hill. We also wish to expand our mentor program to support those desiring mentoring and those wishing to evolve their capacity for mentoring others. We envision the fall men’s retreats as serving our mission of awakening the mentor within and encouraging men to do their work in the Fall and then return in the Spring to give back to younger men during our Call to Adventure Rites of Passage Retreat for fathers and sons, boys and mentors, April 15-18, 2010. See below for the October retreat flier, my letter of explanation and invitation as well as the application form. If you’re planning to attend please register early.
In July I signed a six-month agreement to pay a person to cultivate funding to support our programs. Dawn Osborne is a wonderful lady who has written grants to secure funds from private and public sources to support organizations that she wants to help. She feels a real connection with our organization and shares our passion for helping men and youths that are in need of financial assistance in order to participate in our programs. Five of us from our Executive Board put up the money to pay for the first month. We are requesting assistance from our community to pay Dawn’s monthly fee through the first of the year. Our endeavor is to raise funds to run our programs, provide scholarships and pay those on staff that have been donating their time and talents pro bono for years. If you would like to help with the fee to pay Dawn for her services please let me know. Checks can be made out to Men’s Center Los Angeles or M.C.L.A. and mailed to Men’s Center LA, 21243 Ventura Blvd., Suite 214, Woodland Hills, CA, 91364 and if you’d like to make your donation via a credit card we’ll be happy to accommodate you. Thanking you in advance for your consideration of this request.
Summer is almost over and many will return to school and work. I hope you’ve had a chance to rest and have some fun since summer arrived and, if not, bring some awareness to balancing your active lives with some recreation and relaxation before summer is over.
Wishing you my best,
Stephen Johnson
To download the flyer/application for the September 26 Couples' Practicum, click HERE
To download the flyer for the Fall '09 Men's Retreat, click HERE
To download the application for the Fall '09 Men's Retreat, click HERE
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