Amy Hyun Swart

There are places inside of us that 1:1 psychotherapy cannot touch. There are dark rooms of hidden grief that can only light up in ceremonial and ritual space: through song, art, poetry, authentic sharing, communing with nature, and softening our hearts to tend to our grief together. To remember we are not alone, together.

In a time where so much literal and symbolic death is happening — including the death of our communal fabric — simply being at ease in groups of others feels like much needed work.

It such a treat and blessing to have dear friend and co-facilitator, Naila, come all the way out from Philly! And a big thanks to Matt who supported us by holding down the rhythm and beat during the ritual.

We are so grateful to the group of brave and tender hearts who chose to show up and feel in a time where there is so much draw to “numb and purchase, numb and purchase,” as adrienne maree-brown says. Thank you for showing up, doing the hard work of keeping your heart alive amidst the collective numbing of our times, and helping others find their courage through you.

It truly takes a village to make these gatherings be such potent portals of healing, and these trees are definitely part of it! We can learn so much from these trees who rely on one another by fusing their shallow roots together to weather the wind and storms. It felt so surreal to feel the collective wisdom of their survival as we felt the heavy charge of the internal and collective winds and storms as we interlocked our care to support this sweet pop-up village. May we continue to create these refugias, these homing beacons, these felt senses of what community is and can be, and find our way together through the dark, together. #griefretreat #griefandnature #collectivehealing #griefgroup #redwoods