Coming to the Well


~How to Live a Healthy, Vibrant, Spirit-Filled Life for the Rest of Your Life ~

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About the Program

Coming to the Well is a one of a kind program for women who are ready to embrace the next phase of their lives with strength and vitality.  Created in 2007 by Satyena Ananda and Joanna Ezinga, this program grew out of their own experiences as older women and a desire to help their peers live fuller lives.

In this guided process, each woman comes to the Well to discover the deep source of ultimate nourishment that she needs in her life right now and how to drink from the Well daily.

After completing an in-depth self-assessment, the facilitators will guide women in a holistic process that works with the four bodies – physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.  Through this facilitated process, women will draw on their own inner resources to bring strength and vitality to each of their bodies.  Be prepared to enter into a transformative relationship with yourself as you engage in an on-going process weaving together a new and joy-filled fabric of self.

The 2008 Fall Workshop series has been designed as a “taste” of Coming to the Well.  You can attend all four of the Fall workshops, or choose among them.  During this time we will be building a core group of women who want to participate in the 2009 yearlong mentored Coming to the Well journey for women 50 and beyond.

Fall Workshop Series

September 12-13, 2008 – A Snapshot of Yourself
The first step in your journey begins with an honest appraisal of where you are right now. What is the state of your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual self right now and where do you want it to be.
Opening Session, Friday @ 5:00pm    Closing Session, Saturday @ 4:00pm
Fee:  $150.

October, 25-26, 2008 – Radical Self Care
The second step is about deciding that you are important Enough, to truly give yourself the care and nurturance you require right now, and before a breakdown
Opening Session, Saturday @ 10:00am   Closing Session, Sunday @ 2:00pm
Fee:  $150

November 14-16, 2008 – Nourishing Your Physical Body
Includes: Rio Abierto, dynamic body/mind work with master teacher Joeritta de Almeida as well as a “Fall Inner Tune up” for cleansing and revitalizing the body
Opening Session, Friday @ 5:00pm    Closing Session, Sunday @ 2:00pm
Fee:  $350

December 14, 2008 – Spiritual Nurturance
Few times of the year call us so clearly to consider spirit, as does the month of December. It is a time of deepening spiritual reflection, intentionality and purpose
Opening Session, Sunday @ 10:00am    Closing Session, Sunday @ 4:00pm
Fee:  $75.00


Location:   Starseed Healing Sanctuary, 672 Chapel Road, Savoy, MA, 01256
More Info: Satyena Ananda, 413-743-0417 or Joanna Ezinga, 518-781-3017 or email Starseed@bcn.net
Fee:        Cost is all inclusive of program and accommodations in the retreat house Attend two or more workshops and receive a 10% discount off your total fee. Make check to Starseed and mail to above address. Partial barter and scholarship available


Facilitator Bios

Satyena Ananda
Satyena Ananda is a holistic educator and spiritual counselor with thirty three years background and training in designing and implementing programs for people of all ages in the areas of healing, self-development, holistic living and spiritual alignment.  Her work promotes spiritual connection, peace, self-acceptance, self-sovereignty and self-empowerment.  She is co-founder of Starseed, and has been directing it as an interfaith healing sanctuary and holistic retreat center for twenty one years.  Her current focus is on: feminine spirituality and leadership; earth based healing; conscious creation; intentional community and the creation and stewardship of sacred space.  She is currently on the boards of the Women’s Interfaith Institute and The Women’s House of Peace. Her work has been presented for 19 years at Rowe Conference Center, for the Whole Earth Expo, for Project Aim, and for many private groups and organizations.  She is a Certified Polarity Therapist, and has a degree from UMASS in Holistic Education and Spiritual Counseling.  She has trained in Body Electronics, Reike, Flower Essence, Aromatherapy and Organic Gardening with medicinal herbs and flowers.  In the past ten years her work training has evolved in Earth Based healing with Indigenous teachers.
 
Her work at Starseed is to facilitate meaningful ways for people to connect with themselves through retreats, workshops, and private sessions. People who come to Starseed are often seeking clarity on issues and difficulties in their lives. Others come because they want to take time for stillness, recovery and transformation. Her calling is to guide the individual or group on a journey that is self-directed. There are several techniques she often utilizes: inner cleaning – using healing nutritional foods, herbs, and fasting when desired: body work – hands on healing, polarity energy balancing and deep emotional release work; spiritual counseling – assisting a person in finding, recognizing and deepening their own inner connection;  sacred space – teaching people how to create their own ceremonies and rituals;  nature attunement – sharing the many ways of connecting with Mother Earth and the elements of nature for clearer alignment. The purpose of this work is to support spiritual connection, inner peace, self-acceptance, self-sovereignty and self-empowerment.


Joanna Ezinga
Joanna Ezinga has been a long time runner and fitness enthusiast. Three years ago she decided to take her personal commitment to wellness to the next step and returned to school to get a degree in physical fitness and certification as a personal trainer.  Her specialty is working with women, particularly those who are new to fitness and she maintains a full schedule as a senior trainer at a local fitness studio.

In 2006, building on 15 years as a triathlete, she spent a week at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and received certification from USATriathlon as a coach.  This led to her launching a women's triathlon training program entitled Give it A Tri.  Last year, 9 women completed their first sprint distance triathlon under Coach Jo's instruction.  This year, 15 women have signed up for the 12 week training program.  Her calling to work with women on finding and reclaiming their strength, grew out of a weekend retreat at Starseed many years ago and continues to grow and find new forms of expression.


Registration Information

Location:   All programs are presented at Starseed Healing Sanctuary, 672 Chapel Road, Savoy, MA, 01256
Questions:  Call Satyena Ananda, 413-743-0417 or Joanna Ezinga, 518-781-3017
Fee:  Make check to Starseed and mail to above address. 

Some partial scholarship and barter opportunities are available.  Additional information sent upon registration.

2009 Mentored Journey for Women 50 and Beyond


Our culture says the older we get, the less useful we become and consequently the more worthless we are.  However, the Truth is, we can choose to have this be the most worthwhile time of our life, a time of deepening quality, a time of connection, a time of Presence and Purpose, a time when our greatest gifts are given and received.

If you are a woman in a challenging life change, if you feel stumped, stifled or stagnated, if you long to dive deep into your own essence, drink of your own nectar and emerge into all that you have come here to be.  You are called to Come to the Well!

Coming to the Well is a year-long program for women 50 and older, who are ready to embrace the next phase of their lives with strength and vitality.  When a woman reaches her fifties, it can give rise to deep personal exploration.  By this time, many of us have experienced many significant events – divorce, loss of loved ones, illness, menopause, empty nest, plus the physical and psychological effects of aging – and we are ready for change, growth and a fuller understanding of who we are.

But engaging in self-awareness, inner reflection, and behavioral change at this time is difficult to make in isolation.  This program will offer you the opportunity to participate in a mentored and facilitated journey.  It will teach you how to claim the tools and insights you already possess and use them to navigate the unknown landscape of the future with strength and courage.

As a group we will meet every other month for a weekend retreat over the course of 2009.  Our approach is holistic and each weekend retreat will use innovative, experiential and creative means to help you move further along your path.  Be prepared to enter into transformative relationship with yourself as you engage in an on-going, guided process of weaving together a new and joy-filled fabric of self.



Communicating with your body - opening up the intuitive channels that we were born with, learning to listen to the body and following its inner knowing and guidance

Movement for Life – an exploration of physical movement that will benefit the body on all levels. Yoga, the FiveTibetan Rites, strength training, Rio Abierto (Open River system) and other modalities will be experienced

Nourishing your ageless body – nutrition, energizing your body, food preparation, fasting and inner cleansing, super foods, cooking for health and enjoyment

Releasing negativity –mental and emotional reprogramming, releasing negative patterns, shifting the focus of your thoughts from what isn’t working to what is working

Earth based healing - it is an illusion that only other humans can nourish you, all life feeds you. Take the limitless energy from the sun, the moon, earth, plants, animals, and myriad living forms utilizing the healing and uplifting power of nature

Life visioning - using awareness, attention and intention to unveil the next segment of your life journey

Breath work - learning to use the breath to heal, balance and restore the entire being

Healing – with sound, water, the earth, energy balancing, and experiencing grief

Taking time – moving away from rushing, allowing yourself to be present in the moment, being rather than doing

Paired sharing – creating a support system by working in pairs, staying connected throughout the journey

Telling your story, singing your own song - in a different way

Relationships – healing, clarifying and deepening your relationships, working with your unconscious definition of love, discovering the beauty and divinity of your own feminine nature
 
Mental and Emotional Cleansing - clearing patterns inherited and ingrained through our culture, experiences and our lineage

Deep soul searching and spiritual questing – connecting with Source, consciously taking the reins of life, learning from the past, applying in the present, and redefining the future, the power of giving, realizing the pure joy of existence

COST:   The cost of each weekend workshop in the 2009 program is $350. There is a $150 deduction if the program is paid in full. Some partial barter and partial scholarships are available.