Memento Mori; Finally ONLINE!

For all who have been waiting, we are finally offering the
Memento Mori Conversations online, via zoom! 

Live, in person meetings in Bucksport and Castine will also be happening
(barring further illness, flooding or blizzards)! 

We know that February is not everyone's favorite time to head out of the house, and even one more meeting online can feel like overload, but we hope you will join us in opening space for gentle and authentic conversations about many people's least favorite topic: DEATH and DYING. 

Note: All times are East Coast USA. You can find your time zone here:  
https://www.timeanddate.com/time/map/

Second Wednesdays, (Mid-Day) 12:00-1:30PM
ONLINE VIA ZOOM
Email [email protected] for the link!
Next Gatherings Wednesday:
2/14, 3/13, 4/17, 5/15
 
Second Wednesdays, (EVENINGS) 5:30-7:00PM
Castine Witherle Memorial Library
41 School Street, Castine, Maine 04421
207-326-4375 - [email protected]
https://witherlelibrary.net/
Next Gatherings Wednesday:
2/14, 3/13, 4/17, 5/15
 
Second Thursdays, (MORNINGS) 8:30-10:00AM
Bucksport Memorial Library
47 Main Street Bucksport, Maine 04416
(207) 469-2650 - [email protected]
https://www.bucklibrary.org/home
Next Gatherings Thursday:
2/8, 3/14, 4/11, 5/9

The following tenets are lightly modified from Circle of Trust Touchstones for Safe and Trustworthy Space,
Center for Courage & Renewal, founded by Parker J. Palmer.
As much as possible, we will hold our conversations within these:

1. Give and receive welcome. People learn best in hospitable spaces. In this circle we support each other’s learning by giving and receiving hospitality.

2. Be present as fully as possible. Be here with your doubts, fears and failings as well as your convictions, joys and successes, with your listening as well as your speaking.

3. What is offered in the circle is by invitation, not demand. This is not a “share or die” event! Share what and when your soul calls you to share. Your soul knows your needs better than anyone else does.

4. Speak your truth in ways that respect other people’s truth. Our views of reality may differ, but speaking one’s truth in a circle of trust does not mean interpreting, correcting or debating what others say. Speak from your center to the center of the circle, using “I” statements, trusting people to do their own sifting and discernment of what is right and true for them, as you do for yourself.

5. No fixing, saving, advising or correcting each other. This is one of the hardest guidelines for those of us who like to “help.” But it is vital to welcoming the soul, to making space for the inner wisdom of each soul to arise.

6. Learn to respond to others with honest, open questions. Do not respond with counsel or corrections. Using honest, open questions helps us “hear each other into deeper authenticity.”

7. When the going gets rough, turn to wonder. Turn from reaction and judgment to wonder and compassionate inquiry. Try saying to yourself “I wonder why they feel/think this way?” or “I wonder what my reaction teaches me about myself?” Set aside judgment to listen to others—and to yourself— more deeply.

8. Attend to your own inner teacher. We learn from others, of course. But as we explore stories, questions and silence in a circle of trust, we have a special opportunity to learn from within. So, pay close attention to your own reactions and responses, to your innermost – and most important - teacher.

9. Trust and learn from the silence. Silence is a gift in our noisy world, and a way of knowing in itself. Treat silence as a member of the group. After someone has spoken, take time to reflect without immediately filling the space with words.

10. Observe deep confidentiality. Safety is built when we can trust that our words and stories will remain with the people with whom we choose to share, and will not be repeated to others without our permission.

11. Speaking from Self: It has become popular to tell one’s own story using second person vocabulary (such as “when you face something like that, you are really scared”, rather than “I was really scared when I faced that.”) Using “I” statements and sharing from your own personal experience and feelings engages your most authentic self and invites deeper listening from others.

12. Gentleness: Intense feelings may rise up for you or others as rich topics are explored.  Be as kind and gentle with yourself and those around you as you might be for a tender child or any other beloved one; hold space for and be patient with whatever arises, and reach out for assistance if you need it.

13. Know that it’s possible to leave the circle with whatever it was that you needed when you arrived, and remind yourself that the seeds planted here can, and often do, sprout and grow in the days to come.