‘Loving’ and ‘Leap’-ing at the Luke

The Marjorie Luke Theatre, which earlier this month began its own ongoing series on spirituality and healing called Mind, Body & Soul, is now also the home for events from the Santa Barbara Consciousness Network. Next up is Dr. Gay Hendricks, Ph.D., the famed author, personal growth and relationships expert and speaker who, alone or with his wife and frequent business partner Kathlyn, has written more than 40 books, including bestsellers such as Conscious Loving, Five Wishes and, most recently, The Big Leap. The latter will be the topic for Hendricks’ talk on Friday, October 4, in which the former Montecito resident who now lives in Ojai will be outlining his take on the most effective approach to overcoming barriers to happiness and fulfillment to provide a clear path for achieving success in love, career and life in general.

Hendricks’ will explain his “Zone of Genius” concept in which individuals can uncover and discover what they are meant to do in life – and learn how to do it by optimizing their innate capacity. Operating from that place, Hendricks says, reboots energy and vitality, reduces self-sabotage, and allows for working and living in a state of effortlessness and flow. Tickets to Hendricks’ “Making the Big Leap to Your Highest Potential” cost $29-$55. Visit www.thecn.org or www.sbhendricks.eventbrite.com.

Meanwhile, the Luke’s Mind, Body & Soul continues for the next three Tuesdays, with Carpinteria author, coach and speaker Dave Mochel discussing “Kindness, Gratitude and Awe: The Neuroscience Behind the Benefits” on October 1, and examining the benefits of embracing mortality in “Making Every Day Count” on October 15, sandwiching “Creating Your Life by Intention,” Kim Stanwood Terranova’s talk on manifestation and the use of focused energy, on October 8. Tickets cost $22 for each of the 7:30 pm events. Visit https://mindbodysoul.brownpapertickets.com. 

Montecito Meditation Makes its debut

The new center for meditation, retreats, sound healing and more had its soft Grand Opening last weekend, when several of the locals who will be leading ongoing classes showed up for a sampling of mini-sessions, including Guided Loving Kindness Meditation with Silvi Winthrop, Sound Healing with Jenn Parma, and Breath Awareness & Chocolate Meditation with Jamie Zimmerman. Of course, co-founders Sarah McLean, a 25-year veteran meditation teacher who was a founding director for the Chopra Center for Wellbeing now directs the Meditation Teacher Academy, and Tina Lyn, a Montecito-based personal trainer who has added meditation and mindfulness to her practice and teaching, were also on hand to welcome visitors with champagne and tasty treats and to celebrate International Day of Peace at the gleaming studio and boutique located upstairs at 1805 East Cabrillo Boulevard, across the street from the Andree Clark Bird Refuge and next door to the new Magic Castle Cabaret.

Montecito Meditation launches its regular schedule including workshops, seminars and retreats as well as individual classes on October 8. Call (805) 770-8188, visit www.montecito-meditation.com, and see next week’s interview for details and a conversation with the founders.

Wild Adventure Yoga

The outdoor adventure combining yoga, meditation and nature returned last week with a session at the Mission Gardens, and this weekend heads for the hills. Sonya Barriere from Wild Yoga Santa Barbara will lead an exploration of the trails of Rattlesnake Canyon which begins at 10 am on Saturday, September 28, with dropping in, setting intention and some light movement before hitting the trail and a group conversation of a relevant mindfulness subject, most likely to be around water as the destination is a hidden waterfall. A light yoga session and a meditation or mindfulness practice closes out the three-hour event. Bring a backpack with snacks to share, a mat or blanket for yoga, eco-friendly sunscreen, layers of clothing, and an optional song or instrument to share in closing. Admission by $10-$15 sliding scale. Meet at Rattlesnake Canyon Trailhead, 1783 Las Canoas Road. Visit www.meetup.com/Wild-Yoga-Santa-Barbara.

Soup’s On

Gestalt, grief, cacao and silent disco senior Gestalt facilitator Dorothy Charles leads an immersive Introduction To Relational Gestalt Practice from Friday-Sunday, September 28-30, at Yoga Soup. The workshop presents an atmosphere of mutual support where participants can learn skills to improve contact with others, develop and track awareness of emotions and corresponding sensations, learn and practice communicating needs effectively, and discover issues that are diminishing the quality of life. The weekend will include time for basic practice, continuum of awareness, and a mixture of didactic and experiential exercises including tracking emotions as sensations and learning to recognize them as signals calling for awareness and attention, rather than problems to be avoided. Admission is $275 in advance, $300 day-of.

Blake Spencer and Hana Pepin team up for a Breath-work and Cacao Ceremony that aims to have participants regain a sense of aliveness through ritual, ceremony, cacao medicine and breath-work. Timed for the week after the Fall Equinox, to reflect on our year’s harvest and to honor the cycles of Life, Growth, Death and Rebirth, the container will take time to create gratitude for what was grown, reflect on what seeds bloomed and thrived and which ones didn’t as an opportunity to learn from our failures and mistakes. Admission to the 7-9 pm session on Friday, September 27, costs $35 in advance, $40 day-of.

Alexis Slutzky leads “Resiliency, Courage and Sharing Our Gifts,” the conclusion to her four-part Awakening Earth Series about coming together to unite in a shared context of our love for the world and common care for people and planet to build connection and courage for bringing forth what is most alive in us in response to a world in need of repair. Admission to the 3-5 pm gathering on Sunday, September 29, is $20.

Fire up your Saturday night with a Silent Disco Ecstatic Dance, Yoga Dance Magic’s new monthly offering at Yoga Soup that begins with an optional 50-minute all levels silent disco yoga class in which participants activate the breathe with intuitive postures, followed by a dance party where everyone can express, stretch, ecstatically dance, do contact improv, meditate or whatever else works without infringing on others, all while wearing comfortable headphones providing both the music and voice instruction simultaneously, at the volume of your choice. YDM founder Emma Davis teaches the yoga and offers instruction, while September’s DJ Nyrus provides the beats for the 7-9:30 pm event on Saturday, September 28. Admission is $15.

Yoga Soup is located at 28 Parker Way. Call (805) 965-8811 or visit www.yogasoup.com/category/events.

Free-quinox

DiviniTree Yoga invites everyone to a free community yoga and partner stretching session with Sierra Nolan, followed by complimentary goodies from Kotuku Elixirs, to celebrate the Fall Equinox, albeit a week later. No partners are necessary for the 5:30-6:30 pm all-levels yoga class that concludes with 15 minutes of partner stretching, followed by the sharing of the nutritious goodies. DiviniTree is at 25 East De La Guerra Street. Call (805) 897-3354 or visit http://sb.divinitree.com.