The Power of Wonder and Awe

Reclaiming Beauty as a Revolutionary Act

Led by Sarah Averill & Marcia Eames-Sheavly

Friday, November 1 – Sunday, November 3, 2024

This Circle of Trust® retreat is offered as a space to reconnect with curiosity, awe, and wonder, cultivating a deeper appreciation for beauty in the world, even as we witness pain and suffering. We will explore dormant parts of ourselves and seek to reveal what has de-formed our sense of beauty while examining the forces that illuminate and rekindle an inner sense of awe to nourish our journeys. By awakening the senses, exploring creative expression, and welcoming beauty, we will wake up to the gifts that can guide our lives in our families, communities, and vocations. Drawing on Courage & Renewal® principles and practices and through large group, small group, and solitary reflection, this retreat offers a trustworthy container to…

• Explore awe, wonder, and beauty as an influential teacher

• Acknowledge personal and cultural barriers to authentic beauty

• Discover aspects of ourselves that may have gone underground or are yet unknown

• Imagine what we might let go of to claim the genuine awe, wonder, and beauty that aches to be witnessed, heard, and known

• Emerge ready to embrace the life we are longing to lead.

The retreat will be grounded in the Courage & Renewal® approach, which you can learn more about in Parker Palmer’s book, A Hidden Wholeness. It is designed for anyone longing to cultivate awe, wonder, and beauty as an antidote to these challenging times. All are welcome.

About Your Retreat Leaders: Sarah L. Averill is a physician educator at the University of Rochester, where she is the Vice Chair of Wellness and Inclusion in the Department of Imaging Sciences. She has experience developing wellness and inclusion policies and curricula within healthcare organizations. In addition, she is a licensed yoga instructor with wellness coaching certification from Cornell University. For the last several years, she has directed her energies towards teaching wellness practices within healthcare organizations, from mindfulness and meditation to fun and play to cultivating awe and wonder. In her Courage & Renewal facilitation, Sarah is devoted to offering welcome on the journey to wholeness. Sarah lives in Western New York, where she enjoys gardening, singing, and cycling. She has two grown children who have flown the coop, but delightfully, they occasionally come home to bless her roost.

Marcia Eames-Sheavly offers keen attention to mindfulness, creativity, personal growth, and cultivating community in my facilitation, whether engaging with retreat participants, students, or online learners around the world. She is an ICF Certificated Integral Professional Coach, fostering spaces into which she can bring reflection with keen listening, insight, and energy. As the demands of contemporary living increase, her intention is to help to close the gap between where we find ourselves currently, and who we might long to become, in our personal and professional lives, by supporting transitions, tapping into our gifts to access our strengths, and pursuing clarity about meaning and purpose – all while engaging with this beautiful earth.

Cost: $550.00 covers two nights of cozy, beautiful lodging and delicious, nourishing meals prepared by Light on the Hill retreat center’s culinary staff using locally sourced ingredients. If you are a student or on a fixed income and would like to attend, there are several partial scholarships available.

Registration: Registration is through the Center for Courage and Renewal Website.

https://couragerenewal.org/programs/the-power-of-wonder-and-awe-reclaiming-beauty-as-a-revolutionary-act/

For more information, contact Sarah: sarah.averill@gmail.com