Monday 12 September 2011

Our Fall 2011 Program

The Centre for Earth and Spirit in partnership with the Well Foundation presents

THE ELDER’S CALLING

This event is postponed until 2012

A WEEKEND INTRODUCTION TO CREATIVE AGING
with Michael Tacon

Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday, 21/23 October 2011


For centuries, the Elders were the wisdom keepers of the community. Today, more than ever, we need women and men of depth and experience to offer their unique perspective and contribution to society.

This weekend experience can open the door for you to explore new possibilities for your life as you approach retirement and leave the world of work. If you are already retired, this workshop can offer you a new model for living with meaning, purpose and significance in this stage of your life.

DEADLINE FOR THIS WEEKEND IS 19 OCTOBER 2011
BENEFITS: "The Elder’s Calling" weekend experience offers you these benefits:
  • How to approach retirement and your later years with confidence, enthusiasm and vision!
  • A strong sense of meaning and purpose while harvesting the fruits of your working and family life!
  • How to overcome the fear that is so often associated with aging and mortality!
  • The company of other people who are seeking to embrace elderhood as a meaningful and dignified way of life that offers much richness and wisdom society, community and family!
  • Feel more empowered and reassured as you consider a new model of living as an elder!
CONTENTS:
  • The foundations of elderhood – basic definitions and principles
  • What does elderhood mean in contemporary society?
  • LIFE REVIEW PROCESS - 4 steps:
  1. Mapping your life
  2. Gleaning the learning from key life experiences
  3. Dealing with “unfinished business” and getting to forgiveness
  4. Reclaiming our “unlived life” and finding authenticity
  • Looking at Aging and Mortality
  • Elders we have known
  • Exploring our own Elder path
  • Harvesting our lives – acknowledging our gifts
WHERE: Auditorium at the BCGEU Building, 2994, Douglas Street, Victoria.
(Just up from Finlayson next to Speedy Auto)

WHEN: Friday, 21 October 2011 - 7:00 pm to 9:30 pm
and Saturday / Sunday, 22 and 23 October 2011 - 10:00 am to 4:30 pm

COST: $120. Limited scholarships available - please inquire by phoning Michael at 250-642-2517. Payment at the door on Friday. Make cheques out to "Centre for Earth and Spirit".

PLEASE NOTE: You are advised to bring a bag lunch. Beverages and snacks will be provided. Also bring a blanket and something to write in such as a journal.

REGISTRATION: Please register in advance so we know how many people are coming. Call Michael at 250-642-2517 or Chris Bullock at 250-384-8236 or e-mail: earthspiritcentre@gmail.com or chrisbullock@shaw.ca

DEADLINE FOR THIS WEEKEND IS 19 OCTOBER 2011
BIOGRAPHY:
Michael Tacon is a retired psychotherapist who has been active in offering programs under the auspices of the Well Foundation in Victoria since 1999 and more recently with the Centre for Earth and Spirit. Since 1998, he has been interested in new approaches to aging and in reframing and reviving the role of elders in the context of these challenging times. In 1999 he designed a one year program of 10 weekends called THE ELDER PROJECT in which a group of 10 men took part. Michael lives in Sooke with his wife, Beverley England.

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PROMPTINGS FROM THE EMERGING FUTURE
A One Day Workshop with Michael Tacon
Saturday, 5 November 2011 - 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Have you ever felt that sometimes your life has been guided by an unseen hand? Have there been times when you knew with an inner certainty that you had made the right choice for you?
In these uncertain times, we seek reassurance that our lives make some kind of sense. We want our participation in the great drama of life to be meaningful and significant so that we feel we are part of something greater than ourselves as individual human beings.

DEADLINE FOR THIS WEEKEND IS NOVEMBER 2, 2011
This workshop offers a simple approach to discerning what our unique role and contribution in life could be, beyond merely taking care of our personal needs and making our way in the world.

Using some basic meditative methods, the workshop takes you through a process aimed at opening you up to the intuitive resources which lie beyond thought. In this way, you have the possibility of connecting with elements of your personal destiny so that you can be the person you were meant to be.

The invitation is to explore how we can relate to the future as co-creators rather than as victims of circumstances.

WHERE: The upper lounge at the BCGEU Building, 2994, Douglas Street, Victoria.
(Just up from Finlayson, next to Speedy Auto)

WHEN: Saturday, 5 November 2011 - 10:00 am to 4:00 pm

COST: $50
Payment by cash at the door or by cheque. Please make cheques out to "Centre for Earth and Spirit".

PLEASE NOTE: You are advised to bring a bag lunch. Beverages and snacks will be provided. Also bring a blanket and something to write in such as a journal.

REGISTRATION: Please register in advance so we know how many people are coming. Call Chris Bullock at 250-384-8236 or Michael Tacon at 250-642-2517 or e-mail: earthspiritcentre@gmail.com or chrisbullock@shaw.ca

DEADLINE FOR THIS WEEKEND IS NOVEMBER 2, 2011
BIOGRAPHY:
Michael Tacon is a retired psychotherapist who has been active in promoting proactive responses to societal change through his work with the Well Foundation, the Centre for Earth and Spirit, the Pachamama Alliance and more recently with the Sooke Transition Town Society. He lives in Sooke with his wife Beverley.
Michael says,
"This workshop is inspired by the book PRESENCE* written by Peter Senge and others which offers a compelling account of the "U Process", a method of letting go of habitual ways of seeing and acting in the world of human affairs so that it becomes possible to get in touch with what the unfolding future requires of us.

I have always wondered how we can resolve the wide ranging and complex problems facing our society when Einstein has pointed out that we cannot adequately deal with these issues from the same mindset out of which they were created in the first place. I am convinced that we have to go beyond our reliance on mental processes alone. That is what I want to explore with you in this workshop. Please join us for this adventure".
* PRESENCE – An Exploration of Profound Change in People, Organizations, and Society” by Peter Senge, Otto Scharmer, Joseph Jaworski and Betty Sue Flowers (Doubleday-Random House, N.Y., 2005)


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The Well Foundation and the Centre for Earth and Spirit are proud to present -

"AWAKENING THE DREAMER/CHANGING THE DREAM"
A symposium in partnership with the Pachamama Alliance of San Francisco
Saturday, 19 November 2011 - 10:00 am to 4:30 pm

This symposium was developed by the Pachamama Alliance* to engage people about the issues of change in our world today and to inspire us to get involved and become more part of the solution. It consists of inspiring short films featuring respected community leaders and leading edge information along with lively group interaction. The audiovisual segments encourage participants to reflect on the questions:
  • Where are we?
  • How did we get here?
  • What is possible for the future?
  • Where do we go from here?
The Pachamama* vision is that North America and the West generally need to awaken from a false dream based on growth, individuality, and endless consumption and help to create a world that has environmental sustainability, social justice, and spiritual fulfillment as key values.

[* Pachamama is a South American term for Mother Earth]

WHEN: Saturday, November 19, 2011 - 10:00 am to 4:30 pm

WHERE: The Auditorium at the BCGEU Building at 2994, Douglas Street in Victoria
(Just south of Finlayson next to Speedy Auto)

NOTE: Please bring a bag lunch – beverages provided.

FACILITATORS: Michael Tacon, Chris Bullock and team

SUGGESTED DONATION: $20 (includes refreshments at breaks)
Payable by cash or cheque on arrival on site. Cheques to be made out to "Center for Earth and Spirit".

REGISTRATION: Please register in advance so we know how many people are coming. Call Chris Bullock at 250-384-8236 or Michael Tacon at 250-642-2517 or e-mail: earthspiritcentre@gmail.com or chrisbullock@shaw.ca