 Dearest ones, As the holiday season approaches, let us take time to remember to be living in the moment... not swept away by the hustle & bustle. How do you become more present, you may ask. Here’s my super simple 6 step process for quick impact- 60 seconds or less. Try it now and let me know how it goes! 1. Stop moving. Find stillness- standing or sitting. 2. Steady/focus your gaze or close your eyes. 3. Feel the earth beneath you. 4. Bring gratitude into your heart and mind. 5: Take three deep breaths. 6. Smile. May this simple practice of presence be a gift to you as the season of jolly & bright commences. May we also remember as we offer our thanks around our tables this week, that our giving is also so valuable! Please, check out all the opportunities below to give back to our community. And even more opportunities to serve are forthcoming. Let's remember to live out our mantra- feel better, DO GOOD, four hours a month in community service. Together we make the world a better place! Here's to being thankful & generous! See you back on the mat for a special night of Yoga & Sound November 28 with Dana & new guest Carrie Grossman, our beloved CAROLYN KOEBEL, and Sokhna Heathyre Mabin! Carolyn will be in the house two times with us before year end- how lucky are we?! Mark your calendar & bring your friends. Honesty, it's not to be missed! Wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving! Love & gratitude, Dana Upcoming EventsNO EmbodyGR November 21, 2018- Enjoy the holiday with your family & friends. November 28, 2018 Who: YOU and all your people for a holiday treat of presence and inspiration! What: SPECIAL GUESTS! Carrie Grossman, Carolyn Koebel & Sokhna Heathyre Mabin will join Dana for a sacred night of song, percussion, breath, and movement. Where: Social Hall - Fountain Street Church When: Wed Nov 28 - 6:30-8:00pm Why: Feel Better Do Good Ask: To give yourself back in service to your community 4+ hours/month  Let's celebrate & DO GOOD! Mel Trotter- 22nd Annual Thanksgiving Community Meal on November 22, 2018, 11:00am-1:00pm. Anyone who might not otherwise have a Thanksgiving meal is welcome to attend this community meal. No RSVP is necessary for attendees. Or simply show up to share in fellowship and unity this holiday. First Annual Eastown Tree Lighting Party- Thursday, November 29, 2018 at 6 PM – 11 PM @ Harmony Brewing Company on Lake Drive (Bring on the LIGHT!) World Aids Day (Rock The Ribbon)- Dec. 1, 2018- 6P-8pm Bethlehem Lutheran DA Blodgett St. John's- Mentoring Orientation - Over 100 Youth Waiting! Dec 4, 2018; 5:30-7:30pm WOULD YOU LIKE TO VOLUNTEER AS A MENTOR? Come to the orientation and learn more! RSVP's required - call Hanna at 616.588.7217 *Snacks provided* EMBODYGR WELCOMES SPECIAL GUEST CAROLYN KOEBEL!! DEC 19, 2018- Solstice celebration! 6:30-8:00pm FSC Social Hall A Very Merry Jingle Jam for Mel Trotter Ministries Wed. December 19th, 2018- HOME at The BOB - FREE & open to all ages! DJ JayVee will be spinning tunes. Plan to go out after our gathering together for a night out on the town in support of our brothers & sisters who struggle with housing. Mel Trotter 'Code Blue' Winter Drive- ends Dec 31, 2018. "Code blue” is a term used by MTM describe the most extreme winter conditions in West Michigan, when temperatures fall significantly and stay below freezing over a period of time, putting those experiencing homelessness who are exposed to the elements at severe risk of hypothermia, frost bite or even death. Donations Needed for Winter Warm Up list: New or like new items for men, women & children. All ages and sizes. Hand warmers (new only) Winter coats Waterproof winter boots Hats (Please no handmade hats) Mittens/gloves Wool or fleece socks Long underwear Embody The Stars, March 7, 2019- 7:30-10:30 Goei Center 
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 Precious ones, I hope you are all so so well and happy today. I'm excited to announce that Embody will be expanding to bring our 'feel better do good' movement to more people across the country! What we have is too good not to share, grow, and expand. The time has now come to bring this possibility to life. My family and I will be moving to Northern California, Summer 2019 where the wheels will be put in motion. Not to worry, EmbodyGR will continue! I'm sure you will have questions. Plans to keep rocking are in the works and will be communicated as we know more. The Board of Directors and I are dedicated to continue what we've created here in Grand Rapids; a spectacular community of people dedicated to inclusive community, physical & mental wellbeing, and a life of service. Though Grand Rapids & each of you will always have my heart, my new place of dwelling will be in the mountains near the ocean... a place that calls my soul. As you take in this news, I imagine you may be feeling a variety of emotions. Please know I love you all. We do such important work in our lives and in the world. Keep it up and so will I. Let's make every moment count 100%. See you on the mat Wednesday, November 14, for week two of "The Four Agreements." With love & gratitude, Dana  Upcoming EventsNovember 14, 2018 Who: YOU and friends What: EmbodyGR & 4 Agreements w/ Dana Where: Social Hall - Fountain Street Church When: Wed Nov - 6:30-8:00pm Why: Feel Better Do Good Ask: To give yourself back in service to your community 4+ hours/month Ongoing event! UPDATED NEEDS: We are collecting donated goods for Dégagé! Please bring the following to a Wednesday gathering if you are able *please note, all items must be new*: Current needs - Body wash (can be large bottles), rain ponchos, and belts!   Happy November! It's a new month which presents exciting opportunity to begin anew. Today is extra special because it's daylight savings which offers us an extra hour to get after our lives, even if that means simply an extra hour of sleep. Goodness knows we all could use a little more rejuvenation to our days. As the light decreases, let this be our call to turn inward, reground, and reflect. Let us, like the season, embrace this time of change. With leaves flying, temps cooling, and preparing for the onslaught of the holiday (commercials are already on tv selling us everything our lives SHOULD look like). I want to challenge that outward focus on more bling and guide it inward to where the true treasure lies. The gift of YOU in preparation for the holidays. Our inner exploration will begin with our first EmbodyGR book study aligned with our weekly gatherings. For the next four weeks, we will weave The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz with our yoga, meditation, service, & day to day lives. I find these simple teachings profoundly helpful & vital to living a life that is beautiful & sustainable. Do not be fooled... just because they are simple does not mean they are easy. Wrestling, experimenting, succeeding, failing, and getting up over & over is the name of the game. Let us do it together in community and know we are not alone in the work.  This week we will explore Agreement #1- Be impeccable With Your Word. At first glance this can be as easy as do what you say you will do. It is that yes, and so much more. The words you speak to yourself or aloud have created the life you have right NOW! Think about that for a moment... the words you have spoken up to this point have delivered you into the life you are living this second. What do you say to yourself over & over? Is it positive or negative? What messages do you put into the world- ones that add value or not? What vows have you made to yourself or another- AND have you kept your word or broken it? These questions are not to give more reason to be hard on ourselves. In fact, they are to deliver us into more life that we CHOOSE, not just accept or stumble into by simply existing for another 24 hours. In a personal development training I attended two years ago, our leader said repeatedly, "Your word creates your world." I did not like that; no not at all. I did not like those green eggs Sam I did not. Up until that point, one of the care teachings I based my life upon was Maya Angelou's "People don't remember what you said but how you made them feel." My life's foundation was rocked. My mind repeated the question over and over: 'If your word creates your world yet people don't remember what you say but how you make them feel- which is correct... how do I reconcile the two?' After many tears & much anxiety, I thought I must have gotten it wrong and switched to the word & result model. Less about feeling. That didn't work out so great either because I detached more from feeling & leaned into the more concrete, literal, linear focus. My personal focus became more on the results & living up to my word, commitments, and action oriented ways of being. I did get things done well & with results yet I also did not allow myself the space to really feel, believing it was not worthy of my time & that it wasn't really valid or helpful anyway. I even told myself that 'being emotional' is a waste of my time & energy. Pretty enlightened strategy, eh? Not so much. So two years later I still wrestle between the balance of word/action & feeling/being. What have I learned besides that I still have a lot to learn? Both are valid and crucial. Choosing words & commitments mindfully while also respecting intuition, gut feeling, & acknowledging the small still voice that first whispers then will scream if not paid attention to, is our duty. Emotions are not weakness; they are the body's response to what your word is creating in your world. They work in tandem, not in opposition. That my friends is the yoga of life. The yin & the yang. Finding symmetry in the asymmetry. Weighing & sifting. Aligning & realigning. Again & again. Come practice making your world more of what you love this week at EmbodyGR. If you can't read the book, no worries. There is no test. Only the gift of breath, stillness, movement & community with more life on the other side. Yours on the path, Dana Upcoming Events November 7, 2018 Who: YOU and friends What: EmbodyGR & 4 Agreements w/ Dana Where: Social Hall - Fountain Street Church When: Wed Nov - 6:30-8:00pm Why: Feel Better Do Good Ask: To give yourself back in service to your community 4+ hours/month  Let's celebrate & DO GOOD! Ongoing event! UPDATED NEEDS: We are collecting donated goods for Dégagé! Please bring the following to a Wednesday gathering if you are able *please note, all items must be new*: Current needs - Body wash (can be large bottles), rain ponchos, and belts! November Nov 6th - ELECTION DAY! Get educated on the candidates and proposals and go VOTE!!! Your voice is important!
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“The EmbodyGR community embraces and supports, says ‘yes you can’ when the noisy inner voice says, ‘no you can’t’ – Kari Wilson, Community Member Archives
September 2021
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Our MissionEmbody is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to positively impacting global health and well-being for all people. We provide access to physical and mental wellness education for all regardless of race, identity, orientation, creed, abledness, or ability to pay. Using the healing tools of yoga and mindfulness, and through providing meaningful volunteer and service opportunities, we help people regain agency over their own well-being. Our FREE weekly programs and events empower individuals to become healthier, happier, and make the world better in their own way. We are dedicated to improving the quality of people’s daily lives so they can “Feel Better Do Good.
Copyright (c) 2020 Embody, 501 (c) 3, all rights reserved.
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