A Solstice virtual retreat for heart & soul
Positive growth and change… may involve passage into darkness as part of the cycle of perpetual renewal. As in Nature, the progression consists of five parts: death, decay, fertilization, gestation and rebirth… remain mindful that the new form, the new life, is always greater than the old.
– from the rune Uruz / Strength, the rune of termination and new beginnings. Author Ralph Blum
Tired of too many half assed sacred Solstice times?
Sorry to miss the call for stillness and depth yet again?
Each year, the solstice season calls us to go to our depths, and get real with our lives. But December’s traditions leave you exhausted, and often all you want to do once it’s done is recover. Veg deeply versus pray or center too hard. So there you are again!
- You’re left without deepening that spiritual connection with yourself that refreshes your being
- You don’t heed the call to bless the year that is leaving, clearing any questions or regrets
- Without using this time for centering and rejuvenation, you start 2015 on the wrong footing
Well, what if you honored yourself and your last year by giving your soul time to exhale? What if with a minimal time investment, and fun structure, you could explore some of these sacred depths? This would mean true soul nourishment that clears the past year, and makes way for the new. You turn the page brilliantly from 2014, and create a ready template for the new year. When your soul exhales the last year’s efforts, you can step forward with full presence into the now, and the new!
It’s understandable that this is hard to do, after December’s madness. It’s completely sensible to plan ten days of napping after all that. But it’s also possible to recover and rest – which this time was also made for – as well as pray, speak to your soul, and renew your self and next steps.
Instead of missing it yet again, imagine saying yes to this:
- To 12 holy nights and days
- 15-60 min a day
- in a virtual sanctuary designed for you to go deep with yourself
- So as to clear, so as to center, to prepare and invite in the sacred to your next year
- to bless and inhabit 2015 – which starts in 30 days!
The Twelve Holy Nights, the time period from December 25th through the 5th of January (these dates vary – and can be flexed), is a sacred time that hails from various traditions. This seasonally quiet time is an ideal time to rest, to reflect on the past year, to heal unfinished business, to rejuvenate, and to clear the way for the new year threshold. Each day of the retreat you’ll explore the past and then dream the future.
This magical time can serve as a template to allow your insights and wisdom to bless the past year as well as the year yet to be. It also gives you a time to psychically exhale 2014, rest, and recharge.
In the Soul Savvy tradition, clearing and healing are sacred and ongoing tasks. In this retreat, you’ll be invited to create space to clear regrets and heal unfinished business. This can be from the past year, as well as your entire life. Often deep regrets have a lot of meaning and can take time and several cycles to be fully heal. Once this is done, clarity and inspired momentum can more easily follow.
Additionally, this retreat will create sacred ground for the New Year, 2015. In this phase you’ll be invited to take time to review your life and take stock of the gifts and the gaps. From there, you can envision the most powerful steps and projects you’d like to seed and nurture. You’ll leave with a vision and a plan for entering 2015 with clarity about what is most meaningful and how best to devote your energy and attention to these areas.
The way this e course works
Email messages: you’ll receive an email each of the twelve days that will provide instructions for your prayers, contemplations and musings. There will be cues for what to be conscious of, spiritual lessons to consider and practices to apply, as desired. You are encouraged to track your dreams and the outer world for messages, breakthroughs, and synchronicities.
Return emails: You are welcome to email back to Denise, to share your experiences, and ask any questions. Denise will be on “low duty” (not off duty but close) during this time but will get back to you as soon as possible.
January 6th Telephone Conference Call: Included in the course is a hour long phone conference, at 12 noon mountain time, to share with the community and set intentions for the year. Denise will share her energy and movement tool of magnetizing/inviting desires. Headphones encouraged.
Individual support: For more support, see below for the option of adding a private session with spiritual coach Denise Barnes. Sessions include: recording, notes, and a week of unlimited email support post session for follow up questions and thoughts. Session times are during January 2015.
Add session for $199 $179
During the retreat, you’ll be asked to:
- Keep a journal on the inner work that surfaces: old patterns, regrets, questions, doubts, fears
- Watch and note your dreams for insights and intrigues from the nether realms
- Visit regrets of this year and your life, so that you can heal and clear this baggage
- Pay attention to the inner realms of your being for messages, memories, and insights
- Be alert to messages from the outer world – nature, synchronicities, relevant happenings
- Track any inspirations, clarity and renewed energy that arises
Recommended Tools you’ll need:
- The books, No Regrets, Hamilton Beazley and The Untethered Soul, Michael Singer
- A journal or writing tablet
- Internet access to receive the daily messages and connect with others
- Space and time to devote to the inner work
- Curiosity, desire and ability to reflect, wish to bring awareness and creativity to 2015
Your Solstice Retreat guide:
Denise Barnes, MA, LPC is a licensed therapist, trained life coach and intuitive / psychic healer. For 19 years she worked as a counselor and project manager with cancer patients, helping them cope with the stress of facing death. She earned her Master’s degree during the eighties in body/mind psychotherapy at Naropa University, a Buddhist college. Her list of accomplishments also includes training with a third generation psychic in energy healing, being a nationally certified trainer for Motivational Interviewing, and getting the Best of Denver 2007 award for Kick Ass Peace Prayers, a Sunday service featuring her comedy character, Tina Tomasichio. (Tina was one of three characters in Denise’s one woman comedy musical show in the Boulder International Fringe Festival 2006.) Yes, this woman has faced fear and loathing, and many dark nights. She still keeps whooping it up on the light worker path to heal self and world, never mind crazy family history, while hoping to get better at cross country skiing.)
Perhaps Denise’s most relevant skill for this retreat is that she was born on the Winter Solstice. This alongside her decades of spiritual practice and self refinement, make her an ideal guide for you and for this special solstice time of reflection.
How to sign up:
1) Make your pay pal payment, or send a check
made out to Denise Barnes to PO Box 1342, Boulder CO 80306. (must be received by 12/24)
2) By the next business day, you’ll receive an email with instructions to sign up to the Soulful Solstice elist so that you can receive messages for each day, and teleconference instructions.
Email Denise with any questions. Denise at soul savvy dot net
Gift certificate
Just pay the $49 rate below, and in the “note to seller” – include the email of your friend. You will receive instructions and will be included in the daily email messages that start on Dec. 25th, 2014.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What kind of time will I need to do this retreat well? I will be traveling for part of it.
You won’t need a ton of time, but you will need some time each day ideally to contemplate and reflect. It’s also ideal if you can have your journal handy when you wake up or during the night, to write down any dreams you might have. I pull out my calendar for the past year so I can remember the past months. Some people might even review their journal to remember the prior year. All in all, you can do this retreat well if you can take say an hour a day to simmer with the email message, and review what is relevant and what arises. More is better, of course, and for those who have time off, more time could be used for meditation, for walks in nature, for quality time with loved ones that may even include discussions of the material you discover, etc.
In the past, I’ve had more hectic end of year times, and still attempted this work. It wasn’t a problem but it just wasn’t as complete or deep of an experience. Then again, each year will build upon prior experiences, so really it won’t hurt anything to do it with less focus or time. It just might be frustrating for some. I don’t recommend you take this on if it will come to feel like a burden or failure. Just get still and see if you get a yes or no. OK to say no if it’s not the right timing.
How important is the dream tracking? I don’t always remember my dreams…
Dream tracking is a great option if it’s happening, but not to worry if not. There are plenty of messages you can receive from inside, and the outside world. Sometimes you might hear of a book, or watch a movie that has a synchronous or healing impact. The intention will be set to open up awareness to any way messages or insights wish to land.
One note to consider is that the festivities of the holidays – specifically partying – can decrease dream amount and recall. This doesn’t mean you need to eliminate festivities entirely, in my mind. You may just find you naturally adjust a bit to stay attuned to the contemplative track. Or, you may lose it entirely for a day or so. It’s just like in meditation – we never eliminate thinking, we just continually and kindly return to the work of staying conscious.
What if I don’t have any nagging regrets?
Regrets and forgiveness work is something I’ve only recently come to appreciate. If this doesn’t feel relevant, you don’t need to go there now. If you are curious, I do encourage it. This work is something that deserves our attention and is quite transformative and heart opening. Often, there are recent or past regrets, but we usually don’t slow down very much to attend to them. That said, if you honestly have no regrets that you can think of, that’s fine. There will still be plenty to work with in this retreat.
Other questions? Email denise at soulsavvy dot net.
Hope to share this with you; it’s wonderful stuff that will really nourish your heart and soul and bless the previous and coming year.