The Core Alignment with Joy
This is an excerpt from the weekly News-Loveletter. If you would like it sent to your inbox directly (with all the other juicy bits, including a mini joy practice), you can add yourself to my mailing list here.
What an adventure life is! Photo Credit: Katka Novakova
A few years back, I could barely get out of bed because of excruciating pain. My once-burly arms and hands had grown thin. My knees swelled, my heart raced, and I laid awake at night praying to get my life back.
I discovered Dr. Joe Dispenza, and I started meditating. I found exquisite relief in placing my attention on joy rather than pain, on wholeness rather than the fear of what had gone wrong. And suddenly, what had gone wrong became clear. I’d had all the compassion in the world for myself and others, but I’d not counter-balanced the honest experience of pain with a practice of joy.
I say a “practice” of joy, because being joyful about something outside of me was not enough. I had to actively engage joy to step into my power. I discovered the majority of my joyful experiences were fed by awareness and imagination. If I was excited and happy about a sunrise, then taking time to savor it, to appreciate that I was right here, right now to see it, and to describe it artfully to a friend — this was time spent in joy. I could put my attention on the pain and use my imagination for worry, or I could do this. You know what I chose.
I spent the next two years honing my joy practice and sharing it with others. It is playful, meaningful, and in the flow … yet that’s not all. I learned that joy is best friends with compassion. Both are grounded in love. Compassion holds pain tenderly. Joy is restorative.
January marks our annual launch of the series that brought me back and sends me forward. The Joy Collective has been riding this wave with me for nearly a year. Will you join us? The 8-week Zoom Core Alignment with Joy Series (1.25 hours each) begins January 18th. There’s still space in the Thursday morning class (10:00 PST) and classes Wednesday and Thursday evening.
Is it time to nourish yourself? To learn how to meet your emotions with compassion and direct them, when you choose, with skill? Our course is satisfaction guaranteed. 25% off with the coupon code HOLIDAY. What are you waiting for?
Camee’s story is in the YouTube links below.
I typically dedicate this section of the newsletter to ways that Mother Earth teaches and nurtures me through “What’s in Season.” I live in the Pacific Northwest, so rain is definitely in season at the moment, but what’s on my mind is community. I wonder what’s in season for you, the extended Joy Collective. I know some of you are in Germany, some in Italy, some in Florida, Chicago, Canada, and south of the equator.
Community is always in season. I wonder how you all are inspired by the patterns and offerings of Mother Earth in your part of the planet. Won’t you hit reply and share? If you received this newsletter from a friend, join our community officially by signing up for it here. The two hours I spend writing this news-loveletter to you is one of my favorite times of the week.
And because this newsletter is truly focused on January’s offerings from Collier Connections, I’m telling you that the Joy Collective community is one of a kind. People from all over the world share laughter and tears as we learn and test our hypotheses, feeling our way forward. Four sisters study and practice together in one class. They tell me how meaningful and valuable it is to share companionship on this path. We have supported one another through crisis and cheered together with celebration.
Every session brings growth, integration, accountability, and inspiration as my offerings intertwine with receiving and evolve in co-creation. Each group has its own flavor. We are transforming individually and together.
Where does your most luscious learning in community take place? Is it time to join a group where honesty and feeling good are valued equally? How would you live if you knew that your practice of joy could change everything?
The Core Alignment with Joy series is near and dear to my heart because its practical appeal draws people of all ages (current age span is 21-85) and walks of life.
Here’s what you get when you register for the Core Alignment with Joy Series here:
8 weeks of somatic practices with a little guided meditation, lively discussion, and homework offerings
A Zoom learning community no larger than 13 regular attendees
The possibility of “making up” a class if you miss one; there are 2-6 classes running the same week on that topic
Access to recordings from the class for one year (all classes recorded for this season’s participants only)
PDF’s of all the Core Joy practices.
A community of dear people with whom you might foster connections outside of class.
A 25% discount coupon code at check-out: HOLIDAY
Hear firsthand from Joy Collective participants in video form: a conversation with Lavinia on how it has affected her creative work as a photographer
and a conversation with Camee on how the work has improved her relationships and helped her step away from fear and toward greater joy
More testimonials:
“My clarity is becoming more pronounced daily, and my perspective has shifted from uncertainty and vulnerability to empowerment and strength. This shift is directly connected to taking the Core Alignment with Joy series and doing the practices daily.” —Andrea W.
"It simply never occurred to me that I had control over my thoughts. Isn't that crazy?! I learned that griping to myself and others about how I don't want to go to an event totally cuts me off from the positivity I might experience. Such thoughts actually make me feel physically anxious. I am now on my way to a third social function in a week that would have been something I'd have been anxious about. Priming the pump has really brought me a lot of peace and a feeling of control over my anxiety. I have story after story of how it's helped me." –-Sarah W.