“…I don’t have an ‘edge.’ No galaxy does. We’re all made of dust and gas, which maintains neither its shape nor its volume if allowed to roam free. So even though I’m big and strong and have enough gravity to hold myself together, those particles near the outskirts are always moving. It makes me feel kind of fuzzy, and I like it.”
- Dr. Moiya McTier, The Milky Way, An Autobiography of Our Galaxy
Thursday, August 25, 2022
 Last week I visited one of our local bookstores, Epilogue, and a new release at the circular front table caught my eye. The Milky Way: An Autobiography of Our Galaxy. Wait.. What? Autobiography? The Milky Way wrote a book about itself? Of course not, but it was brilliantly written by an astrophysicist, folklorist (yep!), and science communicator named Dr. Moiya McTier. She was apparently the first Harvard student to study both astronomy and mythology. Hot damn! The parts of me that both love the cosmos and storytelling was ecstatic.
Intrigued, I opened the book to a random page - to the excerpt quoted above. I got goosebumps and knew I needed to buy the book. I know…we all know…that humanity can learn a lot about itself by observing and learning from nature and the cosmos. We are, after all, comprised of the same “stuff.” My dusty and gassy self recognized the wisdom that the Milky Way offered around not contorting or getting too fixated on maintaining our current shape or expression. We must remember that we are designed to roam free - or rather, change shape. If our outskirts (which we can perceive as everything beyond the “edges” of our existence) are always moving, then whatever we feel bound by has the capacity to move. Or rather, we can move beyond it.
The visceral message I felt in my body was that I can be strong enough to know myself and hold myself together OR I can be strong enough to know myself, let go, and in the fuzziness, be reshaped by both my experiences and majestic cosmic environment. I got relief from this because, as I have shared before, I have a deep and long history with “holding myself together.” I wrote about this last October (2021) when my therapist said to me, “congratulations on not holding it together. Contorting yourself into composure has been interfering with your experience of aliveness.” I just took another deep breath reading this. This entire year of noticing where I hold on too tightly and learning to soften and expand my edges has introduced me to entirely new ways of feeling my own aliveness.
It also reminded me that for my birthday last year (Oct 2021) I chose to explore decomposing as my word/practice for year. It’s still an intense practice but I am really enjoying NOT having to hold myself together, no matter how uncomfortable it makes other people. I know the past couple of years have impacted my "usual" light and jovial nature and some people are taken aback by it and that is ok. To quote the Milky Way, losing my shape “…makes me feel kind of fuzzy, and I like it.” As my next birthday approaches, I feel like I am coming full circle with losing composure and gaining greater freedom of Being. In the fuzzy aftermath of decomposition, my familiar "shapes" are losing their rigidity and I am gaining a more fluid and flexible honest self-expression - and creativity! I am getting to re-create myself. It’s affirming to connect with both the destructive and creative energies of the cosmos. There’s a rebirth and fresh start in every moment of losing composure...and flourishing is possible in the fuzz!
This weekend we are revisiting the Dance of Flourishing. Co-created by me and Karlene Johnson, this dance is such a wonderful gift of self-honoring, self-celebration and self-evolution guided by compassion, gratitude and joy. There's also plenty of celebration of community and connection <3 Who would be without our galactic star community?
Note: I will not be teaching on Wednesday, August 31. In September, Embodied Movement Explorations for Body Wisdom and Wellness will be moving to a new time! Wednesdays at 9AM PDT/10AM MDT/11AM CDT/12PM EDT. Starting Wednesday, September 7.
All Embodied Movement Exploration classes in September will be one hour long and will focus on dancing with the Hermit - the archetype of listening to our inner wise one.
Classes in the weeks ahead - Sunday at 10:00AM PDT and Wednesday at 9AM PDT
Deeply grateful for this community,
Jennifer
Schedule Going Forward:
- Somos Luceros on Sundays at 10AM PDT
- Embodied Movement Explorations in Body Wisdom & Wellness on Wednesdays at 4PM PDT
- ArcanaDance - next workshop TBA
Somos Luceros
 Somos Luceros is a somatic dance practice designed to illuminate the wisdom of your body and cultivate deep embodiment of archetypal qualities that offer lightness, depth and joy. The dance moves are simple and guided by the language of storytelling, opening new chapters in our bodies where we can see and feel our most luminous potential. Release the stories in your body that weigh you down and reclaim your light. In Spanish, Somos means “we are” and Luceros means “bringers of light” or “bright stars.” This name honors my father, my paternal indigenous ancestors in South America, my heritage, and our collective oldest ancestor, the stars. We are dancing bodies of light.
With immense gratitude for your continued support,
Jennifer
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Somos Luceros – Dance of Flourishing: An Embodied Exploration of Joy, Aliveness, Presence, Self-Compassion, Connection & Gratitude (via Zoom)
Date: Sunday, August 28, 2022 at 10:00AM PDT
Time Zones: 10:00AM PDT | 11:00AM MDT | 12:00PM CDT | 1:00PM EDT
Pay what you can in exchange for the class experience ($5-$25)
Register for class:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUudeGhrDIuG9XAkCLAVfFznXmZASAq6Z-e
Join us for the Dance of Flourishing: An Embodied Exploration of Joy, Aliveness, Presence, Self-Compassion, Connection & Gratitude
 To flourish is to grow, prosper and reach new heights.
This dance was co-created and crafted in celebration and honor of one our beloved community members (Karlene) birthday intentions for the year ahead. This playlist and dance is such a gift to us all!
The Dance of Flourishing is a journey of calling in and nurturing sensations of joy, celebrating our aliveness, and honoring a deeper conscious Presence in this embodied existence. Along the way we are invited to engage our curiosity, especially around inner experiences of self-doubt, criticism and judgment, and nudge our hearts and minds towards self-compassion and grace. Our dance culminates in feeling the fullness of our gratitude for the wonderful people we are connected to and with.
The dance moves are simple and guided by the language of storytelling. You are invited to receive the choreography, bring it into your body and make it your own.
Somos Luceros is a somatic dance practice designed to illuminate the wisdom of your body and cultivate deep embodiment of archetypal qualities that offer lightness, depth and joy. The dance moves are simple and guided by the language of storytelling, opening new chapters in our bodies where we can see and feel our most luminous potential. Release the stories in your body that weigh you down and reclaim your light. In Spanish, Somos means “we are” and Luceros means “bringers of light” or “bright stars.” This name honors my father, my paternal indigenous ancestors in South America, my heritage, and our collective oldest ancestor, the stars. We are dancing bodies of light.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the class/meeting.
Pay what you can in exchange for the class experience:
Embodied Movement Explorations for Body Wisdom and Wellness (via Zoom) - NEW TIME - 9AM PDT!
Date: Wednesday, September 7, 2022
(No class on August 31)
Time Zones: 9AM PDT, 10AM MDT, 11AM CDT, 12PM EDT
Class is one hour
Pay what you can in exchange for the class experience ($5-$25)
Register for class:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMvdeuorz0uHtPKMBj6CZBiLng0yv-ABhYu
Join us for Embodied Movement Explorations for Body Wisdom and Wellness
 Body wisdom is being aware of and attuned to what our body needs to feel well. This somatic intelligence and tending can be accessed and cultivated in many ways.
Every week we will explore a variety of somatic movement practices that include somatic dance, yoga, QiGong, archetypal expression (mainly tarot), and other modalities that emphasize mindfulness and that guide self-knowing.
Classes for the month of September will focus on Listening to our Inner Wise Self.
It’s Virgo season, and soon the seasons will shift from summer to fall. We begin to turn our attention inward and to reflect on where in our lives we need rest, pruning, cultivation, attuning, and care.
Our guiding tarot card for this class is the Hermit. In the tarot, the Hermit is the archetype of the wise-one within and teaches us the art of self-reflection, self-discovery and self-knowing. The Hermit is the ultimate template for the art of embodied listening. As a guide, it can reveal to us deeper understanding and can illuminate the things, qualities, people, and experiences in our lives that have heart and meaning.
For the entire month we will be exploring the Somos Luceros body of work,
Dancing Lanterns of Wisdom: An Embodied Exploration of Listening and Revealing What Has Heart & Meaning. This dance is a template to explore connecting head and heart, walking with our lanterns, expanding our lens of perception, listening deeply, sifting and uplifting, and both embracing and sharing the wisdom revealed.
In this class we center the experience of living, feeling, sensing and moving in our bodies. We learn practices to know ourselves more deeply, cultivate joy, restore from stress, explore creative self-expression, and ways to nourish the various systems (fluid, muscular, skeletal, organ, nervous, and cellular) of our body.
Come to move your body, develop a deeper appreciation for the intelligence and wisdom of your body, and to learn practices to be well in mind, body, heart and soul.
Wear comfortable clothes to move in. No shoes required. Feel free to have a yoga mat, blanket or towel for floor-based practices.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the class/meeting.
Pay what you can in exchange for the class experience:
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Tarot Sessions - Now September and beyond
 I am now scheduling into September and beyond.
These sessions are my lifeblood and I so appreciate your continued support in scheduling appointments and referring your loved ones and friends to me. As you know, I don't advertise. All of my client work has been via referral. For that I am immensely grateful.
To schedule a session, choose the session type at www.jenniferluceroearle.com/tarot-with-me/sessions and email me your questionnaire.
Tarot Consultation Packages
There are several tarot packages to choose from, including options for multiple one hour to two hour sessions throughout a one year window.
Huge thanks to Brooke Lowe Johnson for the photo (top) above!
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Mary Lenox's Poetry
Following are two poems, Journeys and Consequences that Mary wrote and shared with us after class this past Sunday, August 21. Mary came prepared to share the poem Journeys with us but a conversation we were having about consequences inspired us to ask Mary to share her Consequences poem - thanks to Kelly and Karen for letting us to know to ask Mary!
Journeys
A posse of pelicans
Fly low over the sea in tranquil ease
Oblivious of brown, red, and green seaweeds
Resting on the beach
I wonder
Where have those seaweeds been?
What have they seen, touched, heard
Riding waves to shore
Where will they go?
Sooner or later
Will high tides carry them back into the ocean
On their voyage Into the mystery
The odyssey of seaweeds
So reminiscent of life
Fraught with uncertainty, unknowns, change
Sunny days or not
Yet
We are not alone
When we embrace love
Forever with us as we travel
Home
©2022 Mary F. Lenox
Notes on Seaweed: https://catapult.co/stories/how-seaweed-shapes-our-past-and-future-botany-history-jessica-j-lee
Consequences
You knew you shouldn't have done it
But you did it anyway
So sad
You'll have to pay today or someday
You knew you shouldn't have done it
But you did it anyway
So sad
You'll have to pay today or someday
©2015 Mary F. Lenox, Author, Threads of Grace:Selected Poems
To join Mary's email list: mflenox69@gmail.com
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Community Offerings
Nia with Janice via Zoom on Saturdays at 10AM PDT
For those of you interested in a Saturday 10AM PDT Zoom class, I highly recommend Janice Steinberg's Nia classes! She is one of our beloved Somos Luceros community members and I dance with her whenever I can. I love her classes and know you will too.
 This Saturday, August 27 at 10AM PDT, Janice is teaching Passage to India.
To join Janice's Saturday Nia classes (10AM PDT), email her to get on her mailing list. She sends the Zoom link for class via email on the day of class. And like my classes, Janice's classes are donation-based as well.
Email Janice at: janicesteinberg@cox.net
One of my dear friends is guiding a retreat in the Catskills in NY in October.
ReWilding Retreat: Reimagining Freedom with Dr. Kristy Vanacore
October 6 - 10, 2022
Location: Catskill Mountains NY (Specific Address and directions sent upon registration)
To register or learn more, contact Dr. Kristy Vanacore:
Call 914-497-8006
Or email kristy@kristyvanacore.com
Learn more about Kristy: https://kristyvanacore.com/
 The retreat includes:
* Vocal resonance practices to find your voice, heal old core wounds, express your truth, step into your purpose.
* Neuro-sensory and somatic experiencing programming to rewire your nervous system & release trauma
* Energy Medicine to remove energetic blockages and restore harmony to the system
* Creative expressive arts to unleash creativity, release stuck emotions, and invoke a sacred life
* Medicine dance ®, a unique healing elixir that fuses ancient medicine with modern science to restore health and vitality
* And also Yin Yoga, Massage therapy, Aromatherapy, Hiking, Nature walks, Ceremonial and sacred ritual practices, and much more …
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Poured Over - Moiya McTier on THE MILKY WAY
To me, science is the rigorous attempt at understanding the world around you. And most people think that that means you're in a lab wearing a coat, working with test tubes. But I think that that's just a matter of using the scientific method in your everyday life. It's a matter of observing the world around you and being curious enough to ask questions and having the logic skills and some math and science skills to find the answers to those questions. But it goes beyond physics and chemistry. It goes beyond math. It goes beyond psychology and sociology, the social sciences.”
Dr. Moiya McTier delivers a very fun and somewhat surprising look at our universe in her debut, The Milky Way: An Autobiography of Our Galaxy.
Dr. McTier joins us on the show to talk about stepping outside of herself to find our galaxy’s voice, the importance of story (and how it relates to science), growing up in rural Pennsylvania, her hit Exolore podcast, why space isn’t just for billionaires, and more with Poured Over’s host, Miwa Messer.
Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. |
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