Category: Winter Meditation

GSV 2024 Winter Meditation Post 3

Winter Meditation

Winter Meditation 2024
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation: Celebrating the Journey
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation

Celebrating the Journey


January 12-14, 2024


The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $210.00


Single Occupancy (private room) $350.00


For All Rooms Add Required GSV Program Fee $35.00

Register Now!

Dear Lovely Folks,

This is my last letter to you before the Winter Meditation gathering. We are in the final stages of planning the weekend and we have a good weekend ahead of us. I am hoping that those of you who are feeling called to be there will register soon. I know that if you choose to join us, there will be an entire community waiting to welcome you.

As you may recall, the theme for the weekend is Celebrating the Journey. As I have been fleshing out this idea, I’ve been able to bring together a group of fellow GSV siblings to offer their services around this theme. The following people will be taking you on workshop journeys.

Pete Cossaboon – Journey of the mind. Pete will be offering a meditation time with a bit of a twist.

Mahan Kalpa Khalsa – Journey of body and touch. Mahan Kalpa will help you dance through your chakras.

Greg Fields – Journey of movement. Greg will lead you in yoga.

Jonny Gray – Journey of creation. Jonny will help you create elder beads for the 2024 Fall Conference.

Before we get to those workshops, I will lead the group in a workshop delving into our individual journeys to reflect on where we have been, where we are, and where we might want to go. To wrap everything up, Chaser Robinson will lead us in a Rumi workshop that will hopefully send us on our way in contemplation, peace, and love.

At the end of Saturday, I invite you to celebrate your journey and yourself by attending a Celebratory Mocktail Party. Mocktails will be served. I ask that you show up in your version of mocktail attire whatever that means to you. I’ve got myself a fabulous frock for the occasion. Music will be provided by our own DJ Mackie Mack.

I ask that in addition to what you need to pack for your comfort and for navigating The Mountain and the climate, you also bring something to write with and in which you will use in the workshop that I am preparing for you.

Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is December 29. We hope that anyone who resonates with our mission and community, and who has the desire to attend, can join us at our gatherings. To that end, we offer financial assistance through the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. Please go to the Financial Assistance page on the Gay Spirit Visions website for more information about financial assistance (scholarships) and a link to the GSV financial assistance application form. Remember, the financial assistance application submission deadline is December 29.

Please note that GSV currently plans to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 guidelines in effect at the time of the gathering.

Registration is now open via the GSV website, so please join us. Private rooms may be available on a limited basis. Please note that the registration deadline for this gathering is January 6, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. ET.

I look forward to seeing all of you who choose to come. I await your arrival.

Love,
Rev. Dr. Pork Chop
Scott Dillard
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation Convener

Register Now!

GSV 2024 Winter Meditation Post 2

Winter Meditation

Winter Meditation 2024
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation: Celebrating the Journey
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation

Celebrating the Journey


January 12-14, 2024


The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $210.00


Single Occupancy (private room) $350.00


For All Rooms Add Required GSV Program Fee $35.00

Register Now!

Dear Fellow Travelers,

I hope that you are all doing well after the Thanksgiving Day festivities and are looking forward to the upcoming holidays. Each year we travel through this same journey. It can seem like a familiar thing year after year. However, if we look over the course of our lives, we realize that even these familiar yearly touchstones have meant different things to us at different times. That is what I am proposing we explore at our upcoming Winter Meditation gathering at The Mountain, January 12-14, 2024.

During our time together, we will celebrate the journey that is our life. We will look at the past, the present, and a proposed future. Participants will be guided through an examination of the good and the bad of their lives, the joyful and the sorrowful, the comic and the tragic. We do this as a journey of appreciation and acceptance of our individual journeys and that may help us see ourselves as unique and valuable beings in this world.

In addition to the workshop celebrating our journey, we will move toward integration through work on the mind, the body, and through action. You will have the opportunity to participate in meditation, touch, yoga, and craft-making. At the end of the journey, you are all invited to a Mocktail Party. We will be serving mocktails and socializing. I ask that you dress for the event. Whatever says “Mocktail Party Attire” to you will be appropriate, wonderful, and appreciated.

Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is December 29. Our hope is that anyone who resonates with our mission and community, and who has the desire to attend, can join us at our gatherings. To that end, we offer financial assistance through the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. Please go to the Financial Assistance page on the Gay Spirit Visions website for more information about financial assistance (scholarships) and for a link to the GSV financial assistance application form. Remember, the financial assistance application submission deadline is December 29.

Please note that GSV currently plans to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 guidelines in effect at the time of the gathering.

Registration is now open via the GSV website, so please join us. Private rooms are available on a limited basis. Please note that the registration deadline for this gathering is January 6, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. ET.

I do hope that you will be coming to join us in exploring your journey, hearing about the journeys of others, and celebrating those journeys as a community.

I look forward to welcoming all who feel called to take the journey.

Love,
Rev. Dr. Pork Chop
Scott Dillard
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation Convener

Register Now!

GSV 2024 Winter Meditation Post 1

Winter Meditation

Winter Meditation 2024

Celebrating the Journey


January 12-14, 2024


The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $210.00


Single Occupancy (private room) $350.00


For All Rooms Add Required GSV Program Fee $35.00

Register Now!

Dear Siblings,

I am pleased to invite you to come to The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center for the Gay Spirit Visions 2024 Winter Meditation. I am looking forward to seeing those of you who are called to this gathering. The Mountain is a magical place, and each season holds its own charms. Winter at The Mountain for me is about cozying up in The Lodge or in a cabin with my tribe and contemplating the stillness of the season.  

This year the theme for the gathering is “Celebrating the Journey.” You will be asked to come ready to contemplate your life journey, the good, the bad, and the indifferent.

An added treat this year will be a Mocktail Party on Saturday evening. Participants will have their choice of several mocktails. There will be music, schmoozing, and sparkling conversation. I envision each of you showing up in your version of fashionable mocktail attire.

Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is December 29. Our hope is that anyone who resonates with our mission and community, and who has the desire to attend, can join us at our gatherings. To that end, we offer financial assistance through the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. Please go to the Financial Assistance page on the Gay Spirit Visions website for more information about financial assistance (scholarships) and for a link to the GSV financial assistance application form. Remember, the financial assistance application submission deadline is December 29.

Please note that GSV currently plans to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 guidelines in effect at the time of the gathering.

Registration is now open via the GSV website, so please join us. Register early so that The Mountain will know how many cabins to heat up! Private rooms are available on a limited basis.

Scott Dillard
GSV 2024 Winter Meditation Convener

Register Now!

GSV 2023  Winter Meditation:  Updated COVID-19 Requirements

Gay Spirit Visions, Winter Meditation

Winter 2023

A Serene Weekend of Kindness


January 13-15, 2023


The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


Bunk House (shared room up to 4 people) $180.00


Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $200.00


Single Occupancy (private room) $320.00


For All Rooms add Mandatory GSV program fee $35


Register Now!

UPDATED COVID-19 REQUIREMENTS—PLEASE READ

Dear Siblings,

The Mountain beckons you to come, let go, and be in the moment. This weekend will be focused on going within, being one with the stillness of The Mountain in repose, and taking time to be kind to yourself. You are invited to join us for a weekend focused on serenity and kindness.

Among the workshops we will explore is the potential of physical change incurred from spiritual expansion, synching our chakras with one another, the invigoration of deep breath work, and small group discussions around kindness, internal journeys, and circular expansion. We will spend one evening by the fire, in our jammies, sharing inspirational short stories. We are also planning a workshop creating elder beads, and time with meditation stones.

We would like one or two more volunteers who would like to facilitate a workshop in line with the theme, so please let us know. If you are interested, please contact Doug Emerson at [email protected] or Bill Harris at [email protected].

Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is December 30. Our hope is that anyone who resonates with our mission and community, and who has the desire to attend, can join us at our gatherings. To that end, we offer financial assistance through the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. Please go to the Financial Assistance page on the Gay Spirit Visions website for more information about financial assistance (scholarships) and for a link to the GSV financial assistance application form. Remember, the financial assistance application submission deadline is December 30.

To help make this event safe and healthy for everyone attending, you must review and complete the following:

  • You must be up to date with your COVID-19 vaccinations as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (“You are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines if you have completed a COVID-19 vaccine primary series and received the most recent booster dose recommended for you by CDC.”) To attend you must be up to date at least two weeks before the event — on or before Thursday, December 29, 2022.
  • Due to the highly contagious nature of the BA.5 variant, all event participants will need to perform a COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Self-Test and test negative for COVID-19 no more than 24 hours before leaving for the conference. Anyone who tests positive must contact The Mountain to cancel their registration as soon as possible. Failure to do so could result in forfeiture of registration fees.
  • Review the General Liability Waiver document, print it, sign it, and bring it to The Mountain.
  • Review the Notice of Actions Taken document and the COVID-19 Safety Protocols document. These documents describe the various actions taken by The Mountain and Gay Spirit Visions to create a safe and healthy environment.
  • Your signature at check-in will acknowledge that you have read and understood the Notice of Actions Taken document and serve as proof of a COVID-19 vaccination.

    • Please reach out to [email protected] if you have any questions or concerns.

    Registration is now open via the GSV website, so please join us. Register early so that The Mountain will know how many cabins to heat up! Private rooms are available on a limited basis.

    Doug Emerson and Bill Harris,
    GSV 2023 Winter Meditation Co-Conveners

    Register Now!

    GSV 2023 Winter Meditation

    Winter Meditation

    Winter 2023

    A Serene Weekend of Kindness


    January 13-15, 2023


    The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


    3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


    Bunk House (shared room up to 4 people) $180.00


    Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $200.00


    Single Occupancy (private room) $320.00


    For All Rooms add Mandatory GSV program fee $35.00


    Register Now!

    Dear Siblings,

    Winter at The Mountain is a magical experience. The air is crisp, the atmosphere is serene, and all of nature is in repose. Long dark hours in retreat from life’s commitments create space for reflection. The Mountain beckons you to come, let go, and be in the moment.

    You are invited to join us for a weekend focused on serenity and kindness. We will spend one evening by the fire, in our jammies, sharing inspirational short stories. We are also planning a workshop creating elder beads and time with meditation stones.

    As you consider our Winter Meditation theme, is there a workshop or experience your heart leads you to offer to our group? If so, please let us know by contacting Doug Emerson at [email protected] or Bill Harris at [email protected]. Thank you!

    Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is December 30. Our hope is that anyone who resonates with our mission and community, and who has a desire to attend, can join us at our gatherings. To that end, we offer financial assistance through the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. Please go to the
    Financial Assistance page on the Gay Spirit Visions website for more information about financial assistance (scholarships) and for a link to the GSV financial assistance application form. Remember, the financial assistance application submission deadline is December 30.

    Please note that GSV currently plans to follow the CDC Covid policy in effect at the time of the gathering.

    Registration is now open via the GSV website, so please join us. Register early so that The Mountain will know how many cabins to heat up! Private rooms are available on a limited basis.

    Doug Emerson and Bill Harris,
    GSV 2023 Winter Meditation Co-Conveners

    Register Now!