All of these experiences can result in and or be from the process of grieving and none of us are immune to this transformational journey. We will go in and out of grief in our lives and we are in a collectively potent time for opening more deeply to and learning to navigate grief.

Many of us are in grief over loss not only in our personal lives, also from the loss we are collectively experiencing on our planet. And the change we have gone through with the pandemic has accentuated the human loss as we bear witness to the extinction of species, cultural ways of being and homes for many of the most vulnerable because of the climate crisis. What if we could be present to this all and find connection, belonging and meaning amidst the depths of our grief? What if loss opened us up to what it means to be a part of the larger family of life and to open our perspective to what is possible? What if joy, pleasure and aliveness in community could emerge from the pain that we’ve felt in our isolation? 

The world has been changing at an increasing rate and we are called to continue changing as well to cultivate greater resilience to meet these challenges from a place of greater wholeness. It’s from this wholeness that we are better able to meet our needs as well as those of our families, communities and the collective. Grief comes with all experiences of change and is a challenge that we all face now more than ever. Grief can also separate us from our wholeness if we don’t allow ourselves to move through it and learn from it. We invite you to take a step into honoring your wholeness in community amidst the many ways that we can feel torn and drawn in different directions. Let us instead come together both within ourselves and in community to heal together.

Come get a taste of the process of healing through grief that can be nourishing and grounding, joyful and expressive, comforting and connective as well as a growth experience. In so many traditions, grieving has been a collective practice and those of us who have been separated from this communal healing practice can once again return to it in tender and profound ways. We will be using our bodies, our breath, our knowing and our creative expression as our guides to awaken latent wisdom that can offer us greater inner resource and resilience amidst the challenges we face. Inspired by the Buddhist tradition and somatic movement, this workshop will invite you to learn about and move through the directions and layers of grief in gentle and powerful ways. We are all united through our grief and it is in grieving together that we are able to remember who we truly are and what we are here to be and do in service to all beings. 

Join in this ceremonial gathering for Earth Day to honor our bodies and the Earth who holds us all as we invite ourselves to heal the grief that we carry together. Our intention is to invite moving through our grief and learn from it as we learn from the land, the waters and each other in community. In the evening there will be teachings offered as well as a grief ceremony that will include a collective movement practice to support our embodied healing. The morning will include a gentle embodied movement and meditation practice as well as sharing together to cultivate community before we return home. There will be a nourishing home cooked vegetarian dinner and breakfast served. There is the option to stay overnight or commute. If you’re interested in staying overnight see rates below. There will also be an optional online integration session offered the following week.

Through this experience you will receive:

• Tools and practices to address grief and that will support you to heal through your grieving process

• An understanding and perspective of how we are all in grief and grieving collectively

• An experience of how grieving can open us to our joy, our creativity, the beauty of life and our ability to celebrate and connect more deeply

• Learn about and practice cultivating greater awareness with nature, the elements and with the land to deepen your relationship with yourself

• Resourcing your own inner wisdom through our body

• Practices to help you boost your immune system

• Connection to others who are willing to feel through their healing and grow together in community

• Nourishing vegetarian meals around a cozy kitchen in community

• Guidance for your own personal healing practice at home 

Acknowledgements:

This ceremony is inspired by many traditions and comes directly from Joanna Macy, Ph.D, who is an author, teacher, scholar of Buddhism, systems things and deep ecology. She developed The Work that Reconnects. Hilary collaborated with Grandmother Kaariina Saarinen, a shamanic bloodline chief and pipe carrier, and offered an online Grief Wheel Facilitation Training last winter.

There are also threads from Tibetan Buddhism and Body Mind Centering including . . .

*His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche, Lama Willa Blythe Baker, Lama Tsultrim Allione

*Sky Otter (Bill Pfeiffer), Author of Wild Earth, Sacred Earth and Founder of the Sacred Earth Network

*Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, Founder of Body Mind Centering; Christine Cole, Founder of Somatic Body Training

*Embody Lab teachers of the Embodied Social Justice and Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy Certifications

*All clients & students all are teachers

Here’s what others are saying:

I moved into a new realm of experience and awareness with Hilary. The combination of guided meditation, contemplation, body awareness, movement and sound was a delicious and nutritive feast for my heart and mind. By tracing the emergence of my physical being into the world I feel more connected to the creative process that continues to create and recreate me every day. What a beautiful gift. ​

-C.H.M.

Throughout my work with Hilary I’ve increased my capacity to love myself, and feel the depths of gratitude as much as the depths of grief. I feel lighter, more at peace, kind, and gentle with myself, and in so much gratitude for my life. I’m really grateful for how she showed up and met me where I was, and for holding her own intuitive guidance, and allowing our ebbs and flows to go with the plan or veer off the tracks as needed. I am so grateful for being deeply held, seen, accepted, validated, and supported in my process, allowing an unfolding with ease and gentleness and curiosity in a nonjudgmental space to move, feel excited, and be!

-Jessica Mortel, business owner and healer

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Hilary holds a compassionate and responsibly shared space for learning, feeling, and experiencing a more integrative flow in relationship with our ancestors, the earth, her elements, and various layers of our human community – including the wild interconnected nature within!

– F.S.

​

Hilary holds a deeply authentic, grounded and generous human. I felt accepted and met right where I was with no judgment or expectations- safe. She shares powerful practices & tools, a way to live that connects us to ourselves, each other and the world and elements around us. I am grateful and inspired. Thank-you!

-Jenn Evans

Logistics:

Friday, April 21st 5:30pm – Saturday, April 22nd 12pm
At Gather Northport,
110 South Bay Street
Northport, MI

Schedule:

Saturday
Arrival – 5:30
Dinner – 6
Opening Circle – 7
Grief Wheel teachings – 7:30
Grief Ceremony – 8:30
Sharing – 9:30
Rest for the night – 10

Sunday:
Breakfast – 8:30
Morning Circle – 9:30
Ending by 12pm 

Self Investment:

Thanks to Rev. angel Kyodo Williams and The Embody Lab for this inspiring this payment structure to help make this gathering more accessible. The scaled pricing offers three options rather than one fixed price. This structure makes it possible for more people to access the program, supported by the community and those who have access to more resources. Please choose the option that feels appropriate to you and your circumstances. There is also the option for a scholarship or to attend just the ceremony if you are in need of a greater discount. Email hilaryjlake@gmail.com if you are interested. We want this experience to be accessible to those who are called to be present for it.

Option to attend just the ceremony Friday April 21st, 7-10pm

If you’re wanting to stay overnight at Gather Northport please reach out to Brianne at contact@gathernorthport.com the rates are:

Primary suite: $100

Additional Guestrooms: $75

Sleeper sofa guestroom: $50

Air-mattress stay: $25

The ceremony is limited to 12 participants. Register early to ensure your spot and

before Tuesday, April 18th 12pm when registration closes.

Payments are non-refundable after April 18th.

You can also sign up for a free discovery call with Hilary to ask any questions and get a

better sense if this experience is right for you at this time.