Newsletter Winter into Spring 2013

Greetings to all on this Solstice day!

Having just returned from an amazing ten day retreat with the Continuum teachers @ Holy Spirit in Encino, California, I am feeling personally revitalized and even more deeply committed about “continuing the Continuum” explorations in our community. So deeply profound was my experience, that I am returning to California in January to attend another teachers’ retreat, work with Emilie and attend her classes at the studio and a special healers’ retreat with Susan Harper at the end of January.

It was such a contrasting experience spending much time at the computer over the last couple of days, making arrangements for this adventure and then feeling how that effected my body! How important in our electronic age to have practices that counteract the effect of these. Waiting at the LA airport, I noticed that hardly anyone reads books anymore. About 3/4s of the people there were at computers, smart phones or e-readers!

Here is a poem I read recently by William Stratford, entitled, “Cutting Loose.” (Don’t you just love that title!)

Sometimes from the sorrow, for no reason,
you sing. For no reason, you accept
the way of being lost, cutting loose
from all else and electing a world
where you go where you want to.

Arbitrary, a sound comes, a reminder
that a steady center is holding
all else. If you listen, that sound
will tell you where it is and you
can slide your way past trouble.

Certain twisted monsters
always bar the path—but that’s when
you get going best, glad to be lost,
learning how real it is
here on earth, again and again.

(from “Dancing with Joy”)

Finding a way to an alternate way of being in the world, holding high the candle of curiosity, past the song by Peggy Lee, “Is that all there is?” to the place where we open to the expanse and richness of who we might become beyond the self and the world that we know, that is the journey. This necessitates a certain amount of “cutting loose” and opening to the emerging unexpected (reflects the theme of my retreat day on March 16th, “Wondering & Wandering.”) Yet, at the same time, it is to be content with where we are in the moment. A line from a poem by Mary Oliver, “The nature of rock is to be satisfied, while the nature of water is to want to be somewhere else.”

For the Solstice and the new year, may you dance between your rock and water nature, and flow with contentment and curiosity about what’s next,

With love and blessings, Doris

December 21st, 2013

Following are my offerings for the season. We would be delighted to have you join us:

CONTINUUM CLASSES IN VANCOUVER

FREE INTRODUCTORY CLASS – Friday, February 1st, 2013, 11am-2pm @ Yoga on 7th, 156 E 7th between Main & Quebec, entrance on side off alley. (Please contact Doris to register for this introductory session.)
Followed by 7 week ongoing series, February 8 – March 22nd, 11am-2pm. Investment $225 (20% discount for underemployed).

Early discount $200 if registered by January 15th. Please send $50 deposit to register for class series to Doris @ 115-2033 Triumph St., Vancouver, BC V5L 4X3.

DROP-IN FOR ABOVE CLASSES $30. No drop-in after 1st class.

DEEPENING INTO CONTINUUM @ Inner Evolution Healing Centre, 3263 Heather (between W16 & 17th), Saturday February 23, 2013, 6:30-9:30pm & Sunday, February 24, 10am-5pm. Investment $150 ($100 underemployed). Early discount: $110 by February 5th. Open only to participants with Continuum experience.
At the request of participants wanting a more intensive time with the Continuum processes, this workshop enables us to dive deeper into the intrinsic sources of our organism and its connection to the larger realm. Participants have been amazed at the profound depths of their experience in that short space of time.
We will come together Friday evening and move into our individual silent play towards the end of the evening, maintain the silence when leaving and re-entering in the morning and then emerging from the silent time in the afternoon. The silence is always part of the Continuum depth retreats and referred to as the “all-nighters.” It truly is amazing how much this format with the silence can assist in the slowing down and dropping down which is so necessary to connect to the worlds beneath the world.

RETREAT DAY – Wondering & Wandering, 3263 Heather, Saturday March 16th, 2013. 12-5pm. Investment $80 (underemployed $65) Early discount $70 by March 1st.

MOVING INTO WORDS: The Heart of Healing, with Ingrid Rose (www.ingridrose.com) – Friday April 26 – 6:30-9:30pm, Saturday & Sunday, April 27 & 28 – 12-6pm @ Inner Evolution Healing Centre 3263 Heather. Investment $195 (underemployed $180). Early discount by April 12 – $175.

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Continuum Peace Event September 21, 2012

Greetings to my Continuum folks!

Following is a message I received from the Continuum studio re a global peace event on September 21 @ 4:30pm PST. I will be teaching in Kamloops at that time so am not able to organize a gathering here in Vancouver. Therefore, I am inviting any of you who wish to participate to sign up for the teleconference (if you have Continuum buddies, you could do it together). Just click on the link below to sign up &/or view the short video of Emilie’s peace dive.

Please feel free to share this announcement with anyone you think may be interested.

Wishing you peace, resonance and love, Doris

Emilie was asked to participate in the Summer of Peace 2012 by Kennedy Braden who is involved with the Shift Network and other organizations. We put together a video of a simple peace dive Emilie did and we will do globally on September 21 at 4:30pm US Pacific time. This will coincide with other peace events around the world on sept 21. We will host a live event at 4:30 in the Continuum studio in Santa Monica and broadcast live as a teleconference. The teleconference will be recorded and available shortly after the call.

Kennedy will be sending out the announcement to different communities around the globe and posting info about our events on several sites and places, potentially reaching thousands of people, most of which will be new to Continuum.

We have set up a web page where Emilie’s event/video are listed and people can sign up and your events will be listed there as well. It is at http://www.continuummovement.com/peaceprayer2012/

Several emails will be going out about the events between now and September 21. Kennedy is meeting tomorrow with the Shift Network and Peace Collaborators and will be sharing what we are doing.

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NEWSLETTER FALL 2012

CONTINUUM VANCOUVER – NEWSLETTER FALL 2012

Greetings to All!

On my 75th birthday this past June which I spent at our waterfront cabin on Cortes Island, I wrote the following in my journal:

“—many ponderings about the remainder of my life and where these spiritual and physical challenges shall lead me.   I saw a film a few weeks ago based on the true story of a potato farmer in South Africa who came to an incredible turning point in his life about putting his trust in God.   Although this was Christian based, it really struck a chord in me, in that his ability to totally trust and have faith in this higher being and purpose in life for himself and his community was something that I dip into now and then.   

It feels like this is the direction in which I need to go now, to trust in that higher intelligence and to pray (as I do) to that intelligence for guidance & direction.   Perhaps I am not aware of the answers to this prayer or perhaps it is so subtle that it is difficult to decipher.   I will keep holding this insight and listen more carefully, not letting the held beliefs or monkey-mind thoughts get in the way.”

In many ways, I keep coming back to these reflections, knowing that they speak to me and steer me in a direction in which I need to pursue in my life. The theme of “Deep Listening” (upon which the Retreat Day December 2nd is based), occurs to me most strongly. I believe messages come to us, both from our own inner, intuitive heart and gut wisdom as well as from our guides in the universe. Yet we don’t hear them or if we do, we either dismiss them as “unrealistic” or don’t delve more deeply into their meaning.

From Pauline Oliveros’ wisdom, I offer you the following:

 I pray for deep listening in the new century–listening alone–listening together–listening to others—listening to oneself—listening to the earth—listening to the universe—listening to the abundance that is—awakening to and feeling sound and silence as all there is—helping to create an atmosphere of opening for all to be heard, with the understanding that listening is healing. Deep listening in all its variations is infinite. Deep listening is love.
–Pauline Oliveros
Composer, New York

Please note Susan Harper‘s visit to our area this fall – weekend in Seattle, October 26-28. Don’t miss an opportunity to work with Susan, a beloved and inspiring teacher. See below for details.

With love & blessings to you as you attend to your soul’s journey,
Doris

August 29th, 2012

OFFERINGS for this season – delighted to have you join us:

CONTINUUM IN KAMLOOPS – September 20 (introductory evening), September 21-23 – weekend workshop. For information & regsitration, contact: Audrey Meuse, 250-573-2789, alexaud@yahoo.com

CONTINUUM CLASSES IN VANCOUVER – FREE INTRODUCTORY CLASS – Friday, September 28, 2012, 11am-2pm @ Yoga on 7th, 156 E 7th between Main & Quebec, entrance on side off alley. (Please contact Doris to register for this introductory session.) Followed by 8 week ongoing series, October 5 – November 23, 11am-2pm. Investment $225 (20% discount for underemployed).
Early discount $200 if registered by September 15.
Please send $50 deposit to register for class series.

DROP-IN FOR ABOVE CLASSES $30. No drop-in after 1st class unless you have Continuum experience.

RETREAT DAY “DEEP LISTENING” – Saturdey, October 27 –
12-5pm. @ Inner Evolution Healing Centre (formerly Source Point Studio), 3263 Heather St (between W16 & 17).
Investment: $75 ($65 underemployed) – 10% early discount if registered by October 13.

In this retreat day, we will cultivate the art of dropping down and listening deeply with our auditory channels as well as out soul channels, hearing the fluid rhythms and tuning into the deep vibrations of life/love.

We will weave together the connection of our inner dynamic fluid selves through the Continuum processes of breath, sound and movement, with the play of our dreams, dreamtime imagery, ritual and expressive arts.

Deepening into Continuum @ Inner Evolution Healing Centre (formerly Source Point Studio) 3263 Heather St., between 16 & 17 Ave. Saturday, December 1 – 6:30-9:30pm & Sunday, December 2 – 10am-5pm. $125 ($100 underemployed), $100 early discount by November 15. Open only to participants with Continuum experience.

At the request of participants wanting a more intensive time with the Continuum processes, this workshop enables us to dive deeper into the intrinsic sources of our organism and its connection to the larger realm. Last year’s participants were amazed at the profound depths of their experience in that short space of time.

We will come together Friday evening and move into our individual silent play towards the end of the evening, maintain the silence when leaving and re-entering in the morning and then emerging from the silent time in the afternoon. The silence is always part of the Continuum depth retreats and referred to as the “allnighters.” It truly is amazing how much this format with the silence can assist in the slowing down and dropping down which is so necessary to connect to the worlds beneath the world.

FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION :
Contact: Doris Maranda      604-254-0147      , doris@dorismaranda.com www.dorismaranda.com

DORIS MARANDA, MA, is an authorized Continuum Movement teacher (www.continuummovement.com), a Registered Clinical Counsellor and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (www.traumahealing.com). “To me, this work is a spiritual practice and has opened me up to possibilities of living embodied that I had only begin to envision in my work as a psyche/soma therapist and educator. It is the basis for everything that I do. In movement, there is no separation and as we begin to live, breathing, moving and expressing our experiences, there comes a joining and a wholeness that leads to healing and to a creative excitation that counteracts the insanity and fragmentation that we encounter in the world around us.”

PRIVATE COUNSELLING & SOMATIC MOVEMENT EDUCATION
SESSIONS WITH DORIS BY APPOINTMENT (Free phone consultation)
604-254-0147 or doris@dorismaranda.com

Workshops with Susan Harper in this area: Details: www.dorismaranda.com/workshops

Deepening in Mystery Intensive with Susan & Penny Allport – October 31-November 5, on the Sunshine Coast – pennyallport@gmail.com

Heart of Belonging – October 26-28 in Seattle
Contact – dhmosler@aol.com

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SPRING INTO SUMMER 2012

NEWSLETTER SPRING INTO SUMMER 2012

There are many ways we are called to lead a fuller, more meaningful and more passionate life. For some of us, it’s an illness, a loss, an accident or some traumatic event that leads us to question how we’ve been leading our lives. For others, it’s a deep longing, a questioning and a questing of going against the tide, the rhythms of learned tribal behaviour that we as a social group create to belong, to feel safe rather than standing out and feeling the pain of isolation.

Meanwhile, nature weaves its ever-changing web of light and darkness, budding, blooming and composting so that there is a certain rhythm of sameness along with the ever-changing web. Spring is a time that beckons to us of new beginnings, a chance to begin anew while yet building on the seeds of the former that have been planted in the soil of our lives during the previous season, resting and waiting for a time to emerge. So, we reflect upon what is emerging for us in this time of transition and once again, how do we transit, how do we cross the threshold from one state to another. Thus emerged the theme of my mini-workshop on March 18th.

There is also the opportunity to work with Continuum’s founder, Emilie Conrad, who comes to Seatte, May 18-21 for her annual workshop there. I highly recommend this wonderful experience of being and exploring with Emilie.

I, too, have been contemplating on what is emerging in my life and how do I uncover and nurture these new seeds while honouring and accepting the old, that is, what is. For with all my struggles in accepting the realities of my health issues and the aging process, I still feel called to live my life in ever-renewing ways, reclaiming meaning and passion, acceptance and responsiveness to all that comes my way.

Dawn Markova, says it beautifully:

I will not die an unlived life.
I will not live in fear
of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
to allow my living to open me,
to make me less afraid,
more accessible;
to loosen my heart
until it becomes a wing,
a torch, a promise.
I choose to risk my significance,
to live so that which came to me as seed
goes to the next as blossom,
and that which came to me as blossom,
goes on as fruit.

With love & blessings for your emerging, Doris

March 11, 2012

OFFERINGS for this season – delighted to have you join us:

Sunday, March 18 – Mini-Workshop – Emerging-Crossing the Threshold – 2-5pm @ Yoga on 7th, 156 E 7, Investment $45 ($36 underemployed) No previous experience necessary, only the willingness to explore.

Classes – lst class of each series as an Introduction for $25

8 week ongoing series :

@ Yoga on 7th, Vancouver (enter @ side off alley) – April 13-June 8 (no class May 18)

@ Alchemy Centre, 3-431 Mountain Hwy, North Vancouver (exit off Upper Levels or 2nd Narrows Bridge, @ Main St., R onto Mountain Hwy) – April 18-June 6.

Investment for 8 week class series: $225 (20% discount for underemployed), $200 early discount by April 1.

Please send $50 deposit to register for class series. You may make-up a missed class if you are registered in one series by going to a class in the other series.

Drop in for above classes $30. No drop-in after 1st class unless you have Continuum experience.

Deepening into Continuum @ Source Point Studio, 3263 Heather St., between 16 & 17 Ave. April 28 – 6:30-9:30pm & April 29 10am-5pm. $125 ($100 underemployed), $100 early discount by April 15. Open only to participants with Continuum experience.

At the request of participants wanting a more intensive time with the Continuum processes, this workshop enables us to dive deeper into the intrinsic sources of our organism and its connection to the larger realm. We will come together Saturday evening and move into our individual silent play towards the end of the evening, maintain the silence when leaving and re-entering on Sunday morning and then emerging from the silent time in the afternoon. The silence is always part of the Continuum depth retreats and referred to as the “allnighters.” It truly is amazing how much this format with the silence can assist in the slowing down, dropping down experience which is so necessary to connect to the worlds beneath the world.

Retreat Day – Weaving the Extraordinary into the Ordinary – Sunday, June 3rd – 2-6:30 pm @ Yoga on 7th. Investment: $75
($65 underemployed) $65 early discount by May 25.

What happens after the amazing experiences of a workshop or retreat when we enter into our everyday lives? Does anything change? Is there any carry-over from the revelations that emerge? It is so important that what we have learned become part of our ordinary lives and how we move back and forth between these states, merging and flowing between them.

We will explore through the Continuum processes of breath, sound, subtle, inner & dynamic movements as well as expressive art tools, to enable this weaving to become a rich and nurturing transformation.

FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION :
Contact: Doris Maranda      604-254-0147      , doris@dorismaranda.com
www.dorismaranda.com

DORIS MARANDA, MA, is an authorized Continuum Movement teacher (www.continuummovement.com), a Registered Clinical Counsellor and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (www.traumahealing.com). “To me, this work is a spiritual practice and has opened me up to possibilities of living embodied that I had only begin to envision in my work as a psyche/soma therapist and educator. It is the basis for everything that I do. In movement, there is no separation and as we begin to live, breathing, moving and expressing our experiences, there comes a joining and a wholeness that leads to healing and to a creative excitation that counteracts the insanity and fragmentation that we encounter in the world around us.”

Private counselling & Somatic Movement Education sessions with Doris by appointment. 604-254-0147 or doris@dorismaranda.com
Free phone consultation.

Emilie Conrad in Seattle, Moving Medicine, May 18-21, 2012
Don’t miss this opportunity to work with Continuum’s founder and visionary, considered to be one of the somatic genius’ of this century, as we redefine & experience new ways of what “body” is.
www.continuummovement.com – Registration: dhmosler@aol.com.

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Winter/Spring 2012

CONTINUUM VANCOUVER

NEWSLETTER – WINTER/SPRING 2012

 What an amazing time of the year, echoing with the earth’s receding into dark, creative rest, restoring energies germinating within us and the turning of the light beginning to emerge. The earth calls out to us to join her in this hibernative time yet around us we see in our culture, signals to gaiety. As well as party gatherings, I visualize restful, meditative gatherings of people, honouring the external earth calling to us to resonate with her internally. Our culture values much more turning to the ascending movement of the light rather than the descending of the dark & the creative rest from the composting that is occurring in the earth and in us. We need both movements.

Our greatest fear is a fear of death. Recently, I revisited a film, produced by CBC some years ago and narrated beautifully by Leonard Cohen, on “The Tibetan Book of the Dead.” I found myself much moved by the reading of the text of this book to the dead person by the Tibetan monk cautioning the dead person to listen as he goes through the Bardos, watching our for the monsters that emerge, reminding him that they are the products of the mind and to continue on his journey. I think that we also go through the “Bardos” during the transitions that occur during our lives, calling on us for movement, change & transformation.

We can listen to the wisdom that is offered by the Tibetan tradition during these times and keep moving forward, connecting to our felt senses, to the present moment, to help us contain and ground during these powerful, yet difficult transition times.

Recently, I have been noticing how potent transitions are and how we often go from one event to another, without much reflecting or dropping down. This was most striking to me when I have travelled to a very different culture and have noticed the time it takes for me to really be present in this new context that I have entered. Even more simply, I have been practising taking the time each day upon awakening to make the transition from sleeping to waking, rather than jumping out of bed as soon as the alarm goes off or something else wakes me up. Or even simpler, each breath you take (10,000 breaths a day) is an opportunity to make the transition from inhaling to exhaling, from exhaling to inhaling, with your sensory awareness, a creative & healing experience.

With love & blessings for the season and for your transitions,

Doris

December 15th, 2011

OFFERINGS FOR THIS SEASON:

CONTINUUM CLASSES IN VANCOUVER – FREE INTRODUCTORY CLASS – Friday, January 27, 2012, 11am-2pm @ Yoga on 7th, 156 E 7th between Main & Quebec, entrance on side off alley. (Please contact Doris to register for this introductory session.) Followed by 8 week ongoing series, February 3-March 23, 11am-2pm. Investment $225 (20% discount for underemployed).

CONTINUUM CLASSES IN NORTH VANCOUVER – Wednesdays, 9:30am – 12:30pm, February 1 – March 21 @ Alchemy Centre, 3-431 Mountain Hwy, North Vancouver (exit on Main St off Second Narrows Bridge or Upper Levels Hwy, turn right onto Mountain Hwy.) Investment $225 (20% discount for underemployed).

Please send $50 deposit to register for class series. You may make-up a missed class if you are registered in one series by going to a class in the other series.

DROP-IN FOR ABOVE CLASSES $30. No drop-in after 1st class unless you have Continuum experience.

MINI-WORKSHOP – Sunday March 18th, 2-5pm @ Yoga on 7th. Investment: $45 (20% discount for underemployed). Please send $25 deposit to register for this workshop.

Theme – Emerging – Crossing the Threshold – an opportunity to see & explore how endings contain the seeds of new beginnings and how we cross the threshold into a new and yet connected flow from within us to the wider spheres surrounding us.

RETREAT DAY – Saturday, February 18th 12-5pm @ Source Point Studio, 3263 Heather St. Between W16 & 17. Investment $75 ($65 for underemployed). Please send $25 deposit to register for this workshop.

Theme – Lost & Found, revisiting this theme from last summer’s retreat day. It is a profound feeling, being lost and attempting to find one’s way back to familiar and habitual landmarks. Yet it is necessary to enter a state of losing (loosening) these habitual landmarks, even though difficult (even when we want to) in order to move on to a new and more coherent state of being. We will explore through the Continuum processes of breath, sound, subtle, inner & dynamic movements as well as expressive art tools, to enable this transition to become a rich and nurturing transformation.

An opportunity for a enriched weekend experience by combining this Retreat Day with ingrid rose’s workshop on Sunday February 19th for a 10% discount for each workshop. The theme of her writing from the body workshop (a wonderful combination of Continuum processes & writing) is re-member-ing: writing autobiographically. A fitting follow-up after you have “found yourself” in the Continuum retreat day on Saturday! For ingrid’s workshop:  ingridrose.com

Coming up after Easter: Following increasing requests for a longer dive into the Continuum waters, I have booked Source Point Studio for a Deepening intoContinuum Movement workshop: Saturday evening, April 28th, 6:30-9:30pm & Sunday, April 29th from 10-5pm. Details to follow.

FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION :

Contact: Doris Maranda      604-254-0147      , doris@dorismaranda.com www.dorismaranda.com

DORIS MARANDA, MA, is an authorized Continuum Movement teacher (www.continuummovement.com), a Registered Clinical Counsellor and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (www.traumahealing.com). “To me, this work is a spiritual practice and has opened me up to possibilities of living embodied that I had only begin to envision in my work as a psyche/somatherapist and educator. It is the basis for everything that I do. In movement, there is no separation and as we begin to live, breathing, moving and expressing our experiences, there comes a joining and a wholeness that leads to healing and to a creative excitation that counteracts the insanity and fragmentation that we encounter in the world around us.”

PRIVATE COUNSELLING & SOMATIC MOVEMENT EDUCATION

SESSIONS WITH DORIS BY APPOINTMENT

604-254-0147 or doris@dorismaranda.com

Free phone consultation.

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Addendum to Fall Newsletter

Having just returned last Tuesday from our annual Continuum teachers retreat, I find it is important to update what I shared on my last email message to you. First of all, an error was made in the subject line of my vacation responder stating that I was unable to respond due to health reasons. That message was from an earlier time but in some sense it was appropriate as my attending the teachers’ retreat was important to my “health,” both physically, mentally & emotionally. I apologize for any confusion this may have caused.

Following the incident of the infection, the subsequent surgeries & medical interventions from last fall, as I returned to my life activities, I found myself feeling rather lost, not really knowing who I was any more nor quite how to engage in the activities in my life that have sustained me. In the retreat time, I realized that what I faced was a life & death situation & that has deepened my sense of what it means to be human. The exit door beckoned & yet I came back, but not being quite the same as I was before.

As a consequence, I was able to enter into the Continuum processes at a much deeper & more slower, dropped down way than ever before. The organic response in my body was amazing & carried through into new aspects of moving, walking & being with my body, mind & soul.

When I wrote my last message to you, I was still at the “struggling with it” stage which we do have to honour & stay with, no matter the tendency to rush through it, get on with life, cope and so on. The slowing down is key. Upon entering back into the city & the life around me, I find the pace is out of sync with the field I’ve been in. And I, like so many of us, find it a challenge to maintain a more organic, fluid, bio-intelligent approach to how I walk, eat, wash my dishes, bringing in a more Zen-like, more aware & slower aspect to these everyday activities. The reward is great & yet the habits are strong.

With love & blessings to you in your journey to lead a more fully engaged life, Doris

I am excited to bring some of my newfound discoveries to my upcoming fall offerings, beginning with a free introduction to Continuum on Wednesday, September 28, 9:30am-12:30pm @ Alchemy which will be followed by an 8 week series. The intent for the 3 hour class is to allow enough time for each person to get the richness out of our explorations.

The Retreat Days are October 15th & November 26th from 12-5pm @ Source Point – there is a 10% discount if you attend both days.

For more information go to: www.dorismaranda.com/schedule.

 

 

 

 

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Newsletter = Fall 2011

CONTINUUM NEWSLETTER – FALL 2011

 As autumn intrudes its touches upon the long-awaited summer warmth, we begin to contemplate the renewal of the wintering, hibernating time of year & I begin to plan my offerings for the fall season. The seasons are such a poignant reminder of the ever-changing, ever-evolving nuances of our lives & how one metamophs into the other. It is also a reminder to let go of the things we no longer need, as the old leaves die & fall from the trees, carrying within the trunk, limbs & roots, the seeds of a new beginning in the spring. This prompted the first of my retreat days, “Letting Go” (see details below).

I am also reminded that Emilie Conrad often says that “Health is responsiveness” and as I continue the struggle to integrate the health events that occurred during the months of November last year into this spring, I remember other challenging times in my life, both physical & mental, which culminated in a deeper & more peaceful acceptance of what life has to offer. It was a process, not an over-night phenomena, & involved much frustration, even anger, the “why mes,” that we entertain as well as the grieving of the loss of what I identified with as “me,” that gave me a sense of worth & value. It is difficult to stay with & honour this place.

Although this time around, it feels different (perhaps each round gives one more depth of acceptance for oneself & empathy for others’ challenges) I still engage in the struggle & am not willing to “make it happen,” “it” being the place of peace & acceptance & a more agile connection to the Source, to that broader band of bio-intelligence that is the Self. I remember Ram Das speaking of the “grist for the mill,” that while it differs for each of us, it is our unique schooling. Michael Mead would call it, “The World behind the World.” It is important to embrace what is, to embody the dark time & see it through. In my attending to my own responsiveness, I am given an opportunity to clear my slate, to deal with unresolved issues hanging around in my psyche. This issue prompted my second retreat day, “Descent into Soul” (details below).

 Hoping you find the desire & the time to join me in the ongoing series of classes Wednesday mornings @ Alchemy or at one of the Retreat Days,

With love & blessings, Doris

August 21st, 2011

 

CONTINUUM CLASSES IN NORTH VANCOUVER

ONGOING – Wednesday mornings @ Alchemy Centre, 3-431 Mountain Hwy, North Vancouver (Main St exit – R off Main onto Mtn Hwy) 9:30am -12:30pm. FREE INTRODUCTORY CLASS – September 28th. Series – October 5-November 23. 8 classes – Investment $225.

DROP-INS – $30 – no drop-ins after the first class of the series unless you have Continuum experience.

DISCOUNTS: Students & underemployed: 20% off 

RETREAT DAYS IN VANCOUVER     –Interweaving the connection of our inner, dynamic, fluid selves through the Continuum processes of breath, sound and intrinsic movement with the play of our dreams and dreamtime images, ritual and expressive arts.

SATURDAYS @ Source Point Studio – 3263 Heather (between W16 & 17)                                  12-5pm – Investment – $75 ($65 for underemployed)

October 15th“Letting Go – Shifting Habit Patterns” – Neuroscience speaks to brain & cell plasticity & our ability to add new connections no matter what our age or life experiences. Habitual patterns in our brains & our lives get in the way of this happening.

November 26th“Descent into Soul” – Our souls are calling to us to deepen into ourselves in order to heal & to reconnect to the external world by slowing down & dropping down into the mysteries, into our unknown potentials.

FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION

Contact: Doris Maranda @ doris@dorismaranda.com, or             604-254-0147      ,

DORIS MARANDA, MA, is an authorized Continuum Movement teacher (www.continuummovement.com), a Registered Clinical Counsellor and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (www.traumahealing.com). “To me, this work is a spiritual practice and has opened me up to possibilities of living embodied that I had only begin to envision in my work as a psyche/somatherapist and educator. It is the basis for everything that I do. In movement, there is no separation and as we begin to live, breathing, moving and expressing our experiences, there comes a joining and a wholeness that leads to healing and to a creative excitation that counteracts the insanity and fragmentation that we encounter in the world around us.”

PRIVATE COUNSELLING & SOMATIC MOVEMENT EDUCATION

SESSIONS WITH DORIS BY APPOINTMENT

604-254-0147 or doris@dorismaranda.com

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Newsletter/Schedule Summer 2011

Emerging from the cocoon of my “retreat” time over the past 6 months, I am sending out this message to you, my community in Vancouver. I feel like a novice in some sense, testing once again the waters of teaching the Continuum work that I love & that touches my heart, body, mind, soul and spirit, I seek to find messages & ways (both new and old) to weave you into the spell of the Continuum tools and processes with what I have been soaking in in the past while in this difficult, challenging and yet healing journey that I’ve been on.

One day I was sitting in my front room, glanced over at my bookcase & pulled out the book “Grace & Grit” by Ken Wilber, the story of his & his beloved wife’s, Treya Killam Wilber, five year journey as they dealt with her initial diagnosis of breast cancer following their marriage and the ongoing challenges leading up to her death. I first read this book in 1993, when my husband was in the last stages of his life, dealing with a brain tumour, in fact it is his book. It also contains many of Treya’s journal entries. It’s so amazing rereading books at times. This has been one of the most powerful books I’ve ever read; many times I was moved to tears and amazed at the insights they gained and where they came to at the end of her life.

A quote in the book from Nanama Maharish maintains that “only in befriending our suffering, our illness, our pain, could we truly find a larger and more encompassing identity with the All, with the Self, who is not the victim of life but its impartial Witness and Source. And, especially befriend death, the ultimate teacher.” In Treya’s words, “Because I can no longer ignore death, I pay more attention to life.”

Some of you may be attending Emilie Conrad’s workshop in Seattle next month so I will see you there. I am anticipating immersing myself in the Continuum field of her “Moving Medicine,” workshop to dip deep into the waters & launch myself back into teaching this summer. I will be offering two Sunday Retreat Days in July & August (details below) . Regular classes & workshops will resume in the fall.

In addition to the teaching of Continuum, I will be resuming my counselling practice with renewed insight into how to deal with ongoing & recurring crises and challenges in our lives. It seems so strange but ever so true, that until one has dealt with suffering in the Buddhist sense that a basic truth is that “there is suffering,” and managing to meet that pain with love, letting it be as it is, and in some sense even embracing it and meeting it with mercy instead of fear and hatred, then we cannot know fully compassion for ourselves and others. However, before this meeting and embracing, one usually has to deal with the emotions that arise be they despair, fear, “why me,” sadness and grief.

Otherwise, it is an empty coping and enduring with no heart. Such a challenge, to learn from the information contained in the emotions which is our life force, without delving into their poisons, or taking up residency therein.

It is Mother’s Day as I am writing this, so to all of you in your “Mothering” ways, I wish you much nuturance and richness in your life, both in the giving and in the receiving of caring and support for one another and sending that level of compassion out to all beings everywhere. One of the reasons that this time of healing has been so incredible for me has been the love and support of my community of family and friends. I could not have come through this without you. All who have sent messages, as well as visiting, preparing meals and taking care of me in so many ways, you have my undying gratitude and love.

With love & blessings, Doris

May 8th, 2011

 

SUNDAY RETREAT DAYS – 12-5PM

SUNDAY, JULY 10TH @ Yoga on 7th, 156 E7th, (enter @ side off alley)

Theme, “Lost & Found” – In a dream a few weeks ago, I found myself feeling dreadfully lost & attempting to find my way back to familiar landmarks. The feeling was profound as it is when one enters a state of losing (loosening) familiar & habitual landmarks. This can happen for a variety of reasons. Yet, it is utterly necessary, yet difficult to let go of those comfortable places (even when we want to) in order to move on to a new & more coherent state of being.

In this retreat day, we will explore through the Continuum processes of breath, sound, subtle, inner & dynamic movements as well as expressive art tools, to enable this transition to become a rich & nurturing transformation.

Investment: $75 ($65 for underemployed)

 

SUNDAY, AUGUST 7TH @ Source Point Studio, 3261 Heather St (@16th Ave.)

Theme, “From the self to the Self” – Although the self is an important developmental phase in our lives which creates a sense of identity & our place in the scheme of things, there comes a time when it is important “to die to the separate self,” & come to embrace the larger expanse of the Self, which is our connection & Source . This differs for each of us, both in its context & when it occurs in our life, as well as moving in & out of the self to the Self. They are contrasting experiences & can be complementary. We need to let the self be affected & infused by the experience of the Self.

In this retreat day, we will use the Continuum processes of breath, sound, & subtle, inner & dynamic movement, as well as expressive art tools to explore these two states, letting them dialogue with one another & finding the embodied ease in each & in their blending.

Investment: $75 ($65 for underemployed)

Special 10% Discount: Take advantage of two weekend retreats to nourish your body & soul by combining this retreat day with Tannis Hugill’s weekend workshop, Friday evening, August 12th & Saturday, August 13th @ Yoga on 7th, “Moving into Stillness; Opening the Heart.” For more info: tannisis@shaw.ca, 604-267-9951.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION ON THE RETREAT DAYS:

Contact: Doris Maranda @ doris@dorismaranda.com, or 604-254-0147,


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Farewell to Barbara

Barbara’s words to me when I last spoke to her was, “I’m going.” We don’t know where or how that will be for each of us and as I have quoted on my signature, from Joan Baez, “You don’t get to choose how you’re going to die or when. You can only decide how you’re going to live.” However, I would add that how one lives shapes how one dies. I believe Barbara’s parting from this world was peaceful and full of the joy, love, gratitude, light and zest for each moment with which she lived her life. She will live in my heart and in my dreams for as long as I live. Her sweet, precious spirit will continue to inspire me and all who knew her. She touched so many lives and hearts. We will never forget her.

Following are the words of her partner, Dennis, informing us of her passing:

Yesterday evening Barbara slipped away, ever so peacefully. For all of us who knew her, the arc of her life will forever shine brightly. Her wish was that her ashes be scattered as soon as possible in the Pacific Rim National Park on Vancouver Island. For your love and support during these past months: a thousand petals of appreciation.

Love, Dennis M. February 13th, 2011

So, her ashes will remain close to us. From the trip Barbara and I took to the coast after her first workshop here in Vancouver, she carried a love of British Columbia, the trees and the greenery here, and especially the Pacific Rim National Park. She and Dennis revisited it last year.

I feel that Barbara is speaking to us through the words of the following poem by Mary Oliver:

WHEN DEATH COMES 

When death comes

like the hungry bear in autumn;
and takes all the bright coins from his purse

To buy me, and snaps the purse shut;
when death comes
like the measle-pox;

when death comes
like an iceberg between the shoulder blades,

I want to step through the door full of curiosity, wondering:
what is it going to be like, that cottage of darkness?

And therefore I look upon everything
as a brotherhood and a sisterhood,
and I look upon time as no more than an idea,
and I consider eternity as another possibility,

and I think of each life as a flower, as common
as a field daisy, and as singular,

and each name a comfortable music in the mouth,
tending, as all music does, toward silence,

and each body a lion of courage, and something
precious to the earth.

When it’s over, I want to say: all my life
I was the bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it’s over I don’t want to wonder
if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don’t want to find myself sighing and frightened,
or full of argument.

I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.

Indeed, Barbara did not “simply visit this world.”

Below is a copy of my favourite of Barbara’s paintings, “Inner Back,” a print of which I have hanging in my home. Some of you may not be familiar with the brilliance of Barbara’s art but many are with her blending of Continuum & Art that she taught in her workshops. Having never painted before, I found myself having great joy and surprise with the play of colour and form and movement that I was able to create in these workshops & share with others.

Goodbye my beautiful & precious friend! May you continue to light up the path in your journey, wherever you are and however that may be!

With love & blessings, Doris

February 19th, 2011

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Winter/Spring 2011 Newsletter

Greetings for the new year!

Two years ago I took a 6 month sabbatical from my work which proved to be a delicious & productive period of time for me & sent me further on an inner quest which had begun around the time of my 70th birthday.

Well, last November, on November 9th to be exact, another sabbatical was imposed on me. It began that night with extreme pain in my right hip which over the next days, got worse & worse. I ended up in hospital a few days later, & after many tests to ascertain the cause, they established that I had a most serious staff infection which had settled into my right hip replacement. The treatment – surgery on November 17th to remove the hip replacement, inserting a temporary one, IV antibiotics (which I’m still on for another two weeks), and after ascertaining that the infection is indeed gone, another surgery with a permanent hip replacement. So probably by May or June, I should be back where I started from in November! Or maybe not!

Remember Robbie Burns’ poem, “The best laid schemes o’ mice an men gang aft agley?” One never knows do we, what the universe will send our way – more opportunities & challenges to test my Continuum theory, “Health is responsiveness.” Moving with & through the struggles to find the sourcing of resiliency, to find the patience & the peacefulness of allowing oneself to be with whatever comes our way, we join in the river of life.

Watching a DVD film of a workshop presented by Ram Das & Stephen Levine in San Francisco some years ago, entitled “The Heart of Healing with AIDS,” for persons with AIDs and those who were caretaking people with AIDs, I was struck with what Ram Das said about suffering. We suffer when we are not able to be with what is happening, be it pain, both physical & emotional, disabilities or losses. If we can embrace the pain & drop down into it with all our senses, no matter how difficult, there is no suffering.

Needless to say, I have not been able to work & had to cancel the remainder of my classes & workshops last fall. Perhaps by the summer time & into the fall, I will be resuming my Continuum teaching and my counselling practice. I will let you know what transpires.

With love & blessings, Doris

January 28th, 2011

Following is a message about Barbara Mindell whom some of you know through her “Continuum & Art” workshops which she has taught in Vancouver many times through the years:

For those of you who know Barbara Mindell, or have heard of her through the Continuum circles, this remarkable being is gravely ill and is at her home with hospice care. As well as being a dear friend in my life, she has been a guiding light for me and all who know her, with her courage, her bountiful heart, & incredible wisdom which she has gained through her challenges and struggles and her love of Continuum movement. She has inspired me in dealing with my physical limitations as well as lighting up the room with her radiant spirit whenever I am gifted with her presence. She is dying with that same spirit, being grateful for the fullness of her life and accepting what is to come. You may want to join with her in this transition: light a candle, say a prayer both for her & also to have her spirit send you blessings.

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