Daylong Retreat: The Dance of Joy and Sorrow

"Your joy is your sorrow unmasked... The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain." - Kahlil Gibran

Join us for a day of meditation, reflection, and community as we explore the interplay between joy and sorrow. The retreat will include guided practices, contemplative exercises, silent meditation and shared reflection to deepen our understanding of these emotional states and how they are deeply connected to our well-being.

Moments of joy, whether arising from connection, beauty, or simple presence—can energize our meditation, fuel our compassion, and sustain us through life's challenges. When cultivated wisely, joy is not a distraction from practice but our very foundation for growth. Sorrow, that can find us all at any time, is not something to be avoided but understood. Becoming intimate with our sorrow, suffering, and the impermanent nature of all things, deepens our ability to cultivate compassion and greater wisdom.

In today's polarized political climate, many of us may carry a deep collective sorrow—for our divided communities, environmental challenges, and the suffering we witness daily in the news. During this retreat, we'll create space to acknowledge how these larger societal tensions affect our emotional wellbeing, exploring how mindful awareness can help us respond with wisdom rather than reactivity.

We'll also examine the revolutionary act of cultivating joy in difficult times. Far from spiritual bypassing, authentic joy can be a form of resistance and resilience in challenging circumstances. Can we find meaningful moments of delight, connection, and beauty, even amidst uncertainty—not as an escape, but as a wellspring of energy for compassionate engagement with our world.

Please bring a lunch, a beverage, and appropriate clothing for outdoor walking meditation. Hot tea and water are provided. Chairs and cushions are available but you are welcome to bring your own.

All are welcome. No one is turned away for lack of funds.

"The wound is the place where the Light enters you." - Rumi

Bios:

Fresh “Lev” White is a love and compassion activist. He offers mindfulness, mediation, and diversity training as tools for shifting towards more authentic, conscious, and passionate living. As a certified coach, and professional trainer, Lev has offered over 400 diversity trainings in the San Francisco Bay Area and Beyond. He earned his coaching and leadership certifications through the Co-Active Training Institute. Lev is also mindfully grounded at the East Bay Meditation Center, and a graduate of Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leadership and DPP programs. Lev offers secular mindfulness, and non-secular meditation in addition to Spiritual Counseling, mentoring, and talks on Self-Compassion in corporate, spiritual, or other private settings. Lev credits their ability to reach diverse audiences to his years growing up in multi-ethnic communities in New York.

Forrest Hill has been practicing Insight Meditation since 2004, starting at the East Bay Meditation Center in Oakland CA. He is the founding member of Napa Valley Insight Meditation (NVIM) and has served as a facilitator at NVIM since its inception in 2011. Forrest is a graduate of the two-year Community Dharma Leaders Program, a Buddhist teacher training program sponsored by Spirit Rock Meditation Center. He is also a singer-songwriter and over the past ten years has released 6 albums inspired by the dharma and his meditation practice. He has a PhD from MIT in Biological Oceanography and currently works as a socially responsible financial advisor.

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