2020 Workshop Series: ALIGN! With Nature’s Sweet Cycles for Deep Rest + Wholeness
byAngela KittockonFebruary 14, 2020
All workshops include Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony and Yoga Nidra Guided Meditation. Exception is Spring Equinox workshop which includes Acupuncture + Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony.
All workshops held at the Moondance Wellness Yoga Studio. See workshop location details at the bottom of this page!
Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony
Yoga Nidra Guided Meditation
1. SPRING EQUINOX: Embrace New Beginnings
Saturday, March 21st@ 2-4pm – [CANCELLED]
WHY: The spring equinox marks the official first day of spring, and is associated with themes of renewal, rebirth, growth, and new beginnings. It is also associated with cleansing and detoxification – a time to release the stagnation of winter and embrace a fresh start.
TEAS: Taste the winter into spring transition in a teacup! Toasty winter notes give way to the fresh floral notes of spring.
Full Description:
Licensed Acupuncturist Rachel Jensen (of Acupuncture with Rachel & Healing Arts) joins us for an embodied session of cleansing and letting go. Shifting from winter into spring encourages us to breathe deeply, release tension that we build up from bracing against the cold, and promote the flow of energy in the body to assist in our natural processes of detoxification.
We’ll begin with a guided meditation to center the mind and ground the body, followed by acupuncture and somatic work to release long-held tension, counter energetic stagnation, and let go of what no longer serves us.
Once we’ve cleared out the old and created all this beautiful space within, we’ll come together to enjoy the peaceful ritual of Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony with a guided tasting of some favorite spring teas. Learn about the calming and detoxifying benefits of tea, while we use this time to reflect on the wisdom gained from the winter, and begin setting some intentions for this next chapter of expansive growth.
“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” -Lao Tzu
Financial Investment in Self-Care & Healing: $40
2. FULL MOON (SPRING): Embrace Letting Go
Saturday, May 9th @ 7-9pm [CANCELLED]
WHY: The Full Moon marks a time of fullness and abundance; a time to practice and express gratitude for everything that has come to fruition over the previous weeks. It also marks the beginning of a cycle that is especially useful for letting go of everything that no longer serves us.
WHAT:Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony + Yoga Nidra Guided Meditation + Burning Ritual for Releasing/Letting Go
TEAS: The full moon is a time for trying the unusual, mystical or experimental in the world of teas! A time for being bold and maybe just a little loony.
Full Description:
Enjoy the peaceful ritual of Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony with a guided tea tasting of some unique spring teas. Experience deep breathing, centering, and meditative moments while learning about the health supportive benefits of tea.
You’ll then be tucked into cozy blankets for a guided yoga nidra meditation to relax the body and mind, nurture feelings of gratitude + begin to let go of what no longer serves you.
Following this you’ll write down everything you’re choosing to release at this time – thoughts, habits, beliefs, people, places, things. You’ll make a list ….and then you’ll burn it! Weather permitting, we’ll do this part outdoors under the light of the moon.
Let it all go + start a fresh, new chapter.
Your workshop experience will close with an affirmation statement that you’ll be able to take home with you, hang on your mirror, and remind yourself for the weeks to come of the all the space you’ve created in order to welcome in new positivity and abundance.
WHY: The Summer Solstice, or “Midsummer,” symbolizes the longest day of the year and is a time of expansive growth. This is the perfect time of year to carve out time to relax and do less – as a way to counter the hot, ambitious nature of summer.
TEAS: Summer is the perfect time for lively and refreshing green and white teas, used in Chinese Medicine to clear heat, quench thirst, and encourage the body’s cooling mechanisms.
Full Description:
To keep our energy balanced during this very energetically “yang” time of the year (hot, light, fast, turning outward), we will s l o w d o w n and embrace our “yin” energy (cooling, quieting, nurturing, turning inward). Our practice will incorporate deep breathing, guided meditation, relaxing lavender eye pillows, and self-care massage with cooling essential oils.
The second half of our workshop will be Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony. This stress-relieving ritual allows us to become fully present, encouraging us to let go, breathe deeply, and relax the body and mind. The high antioxidant content of tea has a detoxifying effect on the body, while the amino acid L-theanine produces a calming sensation for the mind. We’ll celebrate the Summer Solstice by enjoying fresh, vibrant teas and enjoying the intoxicating, detoxifying, and stress-relieving effects of good tea and good company!
Financial Investment in Self-Care & Healing: $30
4. FALL EQUINOX: Embrace Deep Rest
Saturday, September 19th @ 10am-Noon
WHY: The Fall Equinox marks an especially balanced time of the year: equal day and night within a time of equal yin & yang energy. The hot, fast, light and expansive yang energy of summer gives way to the cooler, quieter more grounded yin energy of autumn. Come to honor and enjoy this time of great balance and transition by encouraging yourself to pause and reflect on all that you’ve accomplished during the busy spring and summer seasons of expansiveness and growth, and to ground and refresh yourself as you prepare to enter the cozy fall and winter seasons of contemplation and rest.
TEAS: Taste the summer into fall transition in a teacup! Bright green notes of summer give way to the dark, earthy, toasty notes of fall.
Full Description:
Workshop begins with Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony with a guided tasting of teas selected to represent the summer into fall transition. Taste the change of seasons in a teacup! Weather permitting, we’ll enjoy our tea ceremony outdoors under a beautiful canopy of foliage. Learn about the health supportive benefits of tea while experiencing centering, grounding, and deep breathing – allowing your body and mind to unwind and relax.
We’ll then move our practice indoors for a soul-soothing session of yoga nidra guided meditation. Our bodies will relax while tucked under cozy blankets, and our eyes will rest soothed by lavender eye pillows as we release the leftover heat of summer and embrace a sense of deep and profound rest.
Our practice will conclude with brief instruction on mindfulness meditation and the experience of compassionately teaching our minds to find stillness by focusing on the present moment – a tool with important implications for our stress and health. When we can teach ourselves how to find our “stillpoint” at the center of whatever drama or chaos is happening around us, we gain the resilience to endure any challenge and an immovable sense of calm within that no one can take from us.
Think your mind is too busy to meditate? That’s exactly why you need this class! Yoga Nidra offers our minds the deep rest it so badly craves, and mindfulness meditation teaches us a skill to change our lives.
Financial Investment in Self-Care & Healing: $30
5. FULL MOON (AUTUMN): Embrace Letting Go
Friday, October 30th @ 7-9pm
WHY: The Full Moon marks a time of fullness and abundance; a time to practice and express gratitude for everything that has come to fruition over the previous weeks. It also marks the beginning of a cycle that is especially useful for letting go of everything that no longer serves us.
WHAT:Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony + Yoga Nidra Guided Meditation + Burning Ritual for Releasing/Letting Go
TEAS: The full moon is a time for trying the unusual, mystical or experimental in the world of teas! A time for being bold and maybe just a little loony.
Full Description:
Enjoy the peaceful ritual of Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony with a guided tea tasting of some favorite fall teas. Experience deep breathing, centering, and meditative moments while learning about the health supportive benefits of tea.
You’ll then be tucked into cozy blankets for a guided yoga nidra meditation to relax the body and mind, nurture feelings of gratitude + begin to let go of what no longer serves you.
Following this you’ll write down everything you’re choosing to release at this time – thoughts, habits, beliefs, people, places, things. You’ll make a list ….and then you’ll burn it! Weather permitting, we’ll do this part outdoors under the light of the moon.
Let it all go + start a fresh, new chapter.
Your workshop experience will close with an affirmation statement that you’ll be able to take home with you, hang on your mirror, and remind yourself for the weeks to come of the all the space you’ve created in order to welcome in new positivity and abundance.
Financial Investment in Self-Care & Healing: $30
6. WINTER SOLSTICE: Embrace Quiet (and Coziness!)
Saturday, December 19th @ 7-9pm
WHY: Though it’s the season of “silent nights” we rarely get them during this busy time of the year. Try something new this year and carve out one quiet night. Bring along your loved ones (or use this as a reason to get away from them, hey I’m not judging) and come welcome in the return of LIGHT. Though the Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year, it also provides us with a wonderful gift – from here on out the nights get shorter and the days get longer.
TEAS: Chocolate. It’s all about those notes of chocolate. And maybe caramel. Mmm.
Full Description:
Let’s get hygge! Quiet can also be oh-so-cozy. Hygge, the art of coziness, is more than just an outer experience of warmth – it’s also a feeling we get inside. It involves feelings of togetherness, contentment, peacefulness, pleasure and joy. In cold climates, we naturally seek out hygge as a way to bring comfort and warmth to our bodies and hearts. Midwesterners have had a stoic reputation for far too long – deprivation is not hygge at all, it’s about being kind to yourself, even treating yourself!
This is the stuff that’s good for the soul.
Tonight we’ll pull out all the stops to embrace our outer AND inner hygge.
Light candles – our whole evening will be lit by the warm and soothing glow of candlelight.
Dress for coziness. Wear your favorite big warm sweater or thick cozy socks. Being cold is the quickest way to kill a hygge vibe! During our guided yoga nidra meditation I’ll tuck you into cozy blankets and give your eyes a rest with a soothing lavender-scented eye pillow.
Take a break – cultivate that inner feeling of hygge: presence (a perfect time to silence the phone and computer); comfort (away from the harsh office lights & general busyness of this season); gratitude (we’ll spend some time remembering what we’re grateful for).
Enjoy a warm beverage – following our guided meditation we’ll enjoy the peaceful ritual of Chinese Gongfu Tea Ceremony with a guided tea tasting of some favorite winter teas. Experience deep breathing, centering, and meditative moments while learning about the health supportive benefits of tea.
Togetherness – bring a friend or meet some new ones. In a circle of lovely souls surrounded by candlelight, we’ll sip tea from tiny cups and enjoy tiny snacks, we’ll learn, we’ll laugh, we’ll breathe, we’ll embrace that feeling of true human connection.
