Gratefulness Events

The Art of Gratefulness

What does it mean to be grateful through the ups and downs of life? How can we appreciate the gift of each day without minimizing the challenges that face us personally and as a global community? Through the mediums of music, movement, poetry, conversation, and collage we will explore how we even come to ask such questions and how gratefulness applies to our losses, to our everyday lives, and to our relationships. 

This workshop will be offered again May 18-20, 2012  at the Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center in Windsor, Vermont.

Friday, May 18: 7:30-9:30pm - Introduction to Gratefulness
Saturday, May 19: 10am-5pm - Workshop (lunch provided)
Sunday, May 20: 10am-12pm - Workshop continued.

Costs 
Friday only $25
Friday, Saturday & Sunday $135
We highly recommend that weekend retreatants also come for the Friday introduction.

The Retreat Coordinator is Mike Denmeade, Therapeutic Recreation Director at Mt. Ascutney Hospital. Mike is handling registrations and can answer any questions about directions and accomodations for out-of-towners, if you have special mobility or dietary needs, etc.  To contact him by email, write to michael.denmeade (at) mahhc.org, or by phone at (802) 674-7293.  Any other questions, please contact us.

Living the Hours

Available on demand, Living the Hours is a retreat based on the monastic tradition of marking  nuances of dawn, day, dusk, and dark with prayer. Retreat sessions, delivered right to your email inbox, explore how this ancient Christian practice can be made universal and can enhance our daily lives. You choose the start date and the frequency with which you would like to receive the sessions.  For more details and to sign up, see this page.

Restoring Gratitude in a Fast-paced World
A renewing retreat led by Patricia Carlson and Margaret Wakeley

This retreat is designed to help refill the reserves of people suffering from burn-out that results from compassion fatigue, overwork, or (as is often the case) a confluence of the two. We will explore gratefulness as a way of life with specific practices that restore our sense of sufficiency and wonder in the present moment – the only moment fully given to us – thus easing our anxiety about whether we have enough money, friendship, and other resources to get by. Through guided meditation, journaling, dialogue, life review, music, quiet space to breathe, and other tools, we will reconnect with what most inspires us. This is a non-judgmental retreat in which it is okay to be ungrateful, which is sometimes a necessary step in peeling off layers to a fundamental gratitude that springs from simply being alive.

This retreat was last offered September 2-4, 2011 at Rolling Ridge in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.  If you would like to invite us to give this retreat in your area, please get in touch here.

Poetry of Gratefulness DVDs and CDs

Now you can relive the Poetry of Gratefulness 2008 or experience it for the first time, through a DVD or CD created by Conference Recording Services, or you can view free video clips.

E-courses for Reflection and Practice
An ongoing series from our sister site,
Spirituality and Practice

Special readings several times a week and community interactions let you reflect, share, and practice at your convenience.  Taking part in e-courses benefits your personal growth and also supports the work of A Network for Grateful Living (ANG*L) and Spirituality and Practice.

Click here to see an index of available courses.