On a beautiful and unseasonably warm October day, I entered the woods behind The Well. It was a restorative pause between a full day’s work and an evening meeting. I entered the path and looking to my right, I was drawn immediately into the beauty of the late afternoon sun as its long angle lit the tree tops and illuminated the multiplicity of color that the forest was displaying. I paused in gratitude, breathing in the peace and beauty.
Then I turned and looked to my left. This side of the path was dense and cluttered with downed trees. I stood there in the middle, in the space between. Some might have named the right beautiful and the left ugly, or the right peaceful and the left chaotic. An awareness rose in me. Each side was uniquely stunning. Perception is everything. I stood in the both/and space. The forest, like life, holds all: peace and chaos, joy and sorrow, unity and division, life and death and new life.
Where we put our attention matters. We live in a time of chaos, upheaval, and unrest. There’s an antidote to the feelings of anxiety, powerlessness, division and grief. It begins with pausing and realizing that the power of transformation runs through us. That where we put our attention matters. We can put our attention on both/and rather than either/or. We can focus on Love that unites rather than division. We can stand with our eyes to the future or our eyes to the past.
The work of The Well helps us to pause, broaden our attention, hone our perceptions, and give ourselves to the wisdom of God that is calling us into the more that is yet to unfold. The future that is luring us is the birthplace of transformation and it is desperately needed at this time.
This Autumn, David Ellzey will offer a program for personal transformation that will broaden our attention and hone our perceptions. Kathleen Duffy’s presentation will awaken us to the wisdom of the universe that is calling us to perceive the “both/and,” and to trust the God who is both within and up ahead.
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Emerging Spirituality in a Chaotic World
A workshop with Kathleen Duffy, SSJ, PhD
October 28
Kathleen Duffy will be sharing her latest insights about our future in these challenging times. Her view includes a hopeful message about the dynamic, creative, and beautiful universe of which humanity is only a speck. We will consider what the universe reveals about our creator God and how we can become continually more conscious of our part in its ongoing evolution, especially at this time of chaos and breakdown.
Kathleen Duffy, SSJ is Professor of Physics at Chestnut Hill College, where she directs the Interdisciplinary Honors Program and the Institute for Religion and Science. She is editor of Teilhard Studies and serves on the Advisory Boards of the American Teilhard Association and Cosmos and Creation.
CLICK HERE for more info and to register online for “Emerging Spirituality in a Chaotic World.”
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The Freedom and Power of Letting Go
A workshop with David Ellzey
November 4 & 5 (Introductory workshop, October 31)
David Ellzey, author of The Ocean of Now: How to Navigate The Unsure Waters of These Challenging Times with Courage and Peace, and teacher of The Sedona Method, is returning to The Well Spirituality Center for a special intensive workshop as well as an introductory workshop.
Ellzey’s message and experiential teaching method has helped hundreds of students find inner freedom and confidence. Through ancient and modern questions of self-inquiry, a technique David calls The Sedona Method, he helps workshop participants gain control of the anxiety and emotions triggered by our challenging world and find a calm that holds unshakeable strength and wisdom. Called a “gifted teacher and healer, who makes you laugh,” by bestselling author Christiane Northrup, M.D., we look forward to having him back for two different events: a stand-alone introductory workshop on Tuesday morning, 10-Noon, October 31 AND an intensive two-day workshop on Saturday & Sunday, 9-4 pm, November 4 & 5.
Here’s a preview of some of what David Ellzey will share at his upcoming workshop: