Sunday Morning, we will close with conversations about hope, our individual and collective vision for the next year, a final breathwork experience, and our closing circle.

I hope you will join me for a playful, joyful, and profound weekend together of growing the seeds of hope!

All my love,
Hunter Flournoy
GSV 2021 Spring Convener and Mischief-Maker

“For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land …” —from The Song of Songs

My Beautiful Far-Flung Family,

Are you ready to cultivate the seeds of hope?

Are you ready to reconnect with the parts of yourself that have gone into hibernation?

Are you ready to reconnect with the sacred community that yearns to feel your presence, and the sacred cosmos that yearns for your creativity, passion, and activism?

How can we live into our yearning patiently, even when we want to leap into each others’ arms?

Spring has come, and after a year of cultivating resilience in the face of deep division, isolation, and deprivation for so many of us, the time for hope and patient reconnection has come.

I invite you to join me for our Spring Retreat—yes, still virtual—but a crucial time for coming together to envision our next steps for creating a new world together. We will draw hope from deep within, from each other, and from the sacred cosmos in which we live and move and have our being—and walk forward with one heart!

“Then it was spring; and in spring anything may happen. Absolutely anything.” —e.e. cummings

Our time together will be devoted to asking the important questions of our time, celebrating the rich web of connections that sustain and encourage us, reawakening our hearts, bodies, minds, and spirits, and cultivating hope.

We will begin our time together with laughter, heart-sharing, embodied breathwork, and ceremony on Friday Evening, followed by an open time of sharing the poetry, songs, and stories that have given us hope in the last year.

Saturday and Sunday Mornings will begin with a beautiful breathwork and movement meditation, and Tai Chi with Paul Plate. Saturday Morning and Saturday Afternoon, Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa and I will share the stories of our own journeys of hope and reconnection, drawing from our rich histories of deep spiritual exploration and sacred erotic activism, including over twenty years of combined experience shepherding GSV’s Sacred Touch committee. These stories will be interspersed with Q&A and opportunities to reflect in breakout groups on your own journey of hope and reconnection. We will complete the afternoon with opportunities for gentle breathwork and restorative yoga and harp music with David Jones and Teddy Jones, and an opportunity for deeper reflection with TS Pennington and Allen Lomax. Saturday Evening will offer an opportunity for a playful and inspiring workshop, Nourish Your Heart, with John Sorozcak, a long-time facilitator in California Men’s Gatherings. Sunday Morning we will close with conversations on our individual and collective vision for the next year, a final breathwork experience, and our closing circle.

One feature of this year’s virtual spring retreat will be the opportunity to deepen our experience of sharing and reconnection by participating in stable breakout groups. As well, a virtual “rocking-chair porch” will be provided so that we can visit with friends old and new.

Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is April 22, 2021. 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 April 22, 2021.

I hope you will join me for a playful, joyful, and profound weekend together of growing the seeds of hope!

All my love,
Hunter Flournoy, GSV 2021 Spring Convener and Mischief-Maker

IF YOU HAVE REGISTERED FOR THE WINTER MEDITATION by January 6 then the attendee letter has been emailed to you today. If you do not receive this, it probably means The Mountain doesn’t have a current email address for you. Please call or text 404 565-4080 or send an email to [email protected] with the best address to use and we will forward it to you – and work with The Mountain to correct their information.

David Cable
[email protected]

NOTE: REGISTRATION CLOSES TUESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 12, 2021.

Register Now!

Greetings siblings!

Another year has come and gone, and we’d like to take this time to reflect on some of the activities our organization has helped to put together over the last year, as well as point to some of the things coming down the pipe for next year. It has been quite an aberrant year, which has served to highlight all the ways in which our resourcefulness and indomitable spirit outshines our obstacles.

Before I go any further, I want to say how much of an honor it has been to serve as your presiding elder in 2020. As some of you know, this is my third and final year serving on the council, and I will be rolling off, along with Bruce “Dandy” Tidwell, to make room for other siblings to take up the mantle of service and leadership in our community. I have learned so much about this wonderful community and about myself, and I will always remain grateful to have had this opportunity. Thank you all.

I am excited to share with you that Neil Burns has taken the role of the new presiding elder in 2021. Joining the council this coming year will be Jeff “Timber” Beacham, David Berger, and Tony James. I have had quite a pleasure serving already with Neil, and I feel that he, our new council members, and the rest of our council members will do a terrific job leading this community into the future. Thank you all for taking care of yourselves, each other, and this place.

Jason Buchanan
Presiding Elder, 2020

This gathering was designed to help connect us to our ancestors: familial, queer, and spiritual. This involved invoking ancestral lineages, meditating, exploring family constellations, and conducting ritual. Through these practices, we got in touch with our true and deep selves in this incarnation to find the strength and abilities within us and bring them forth with the support of those who came before us. In this way, we prepared ourselves to meet the world with more tools than we knew we had.

We are still indebted to Rainbow Sprinkles who showed us that yes, our gatherings could be translated into a virtual platform. This gathering was a logical next step from the winter. We took what we learned about ourselves and our place in the world and built upon it by extending our reach to others and being met halfway. This combined meditations, workshops, and opportunities for members of our community to connect with one another without expectation.

This gathering continued the progression toward deepening our connection to others by sharing our stories and listening to others’ stories. Hearing what others have gone through and sharing what we have gone through not only brings us closer together, but also strengthens us by building a communal knowledge of what is possible. We were graced with Padraig O’Tuama, poet and theologian from Northern Ireland, as our keynote speaker. We also developed asynchronous interactive content through the Mural website that individuals could connect over independently. Workshops included mindful doodling, meditations, yoga, enneagram discussions, a panel of storytellers, and more. It also maintained our traditional practices of small groups and the variety show.

After our fall conference, we really learned how much work it is to facilitate a virtual conference, and how the skillsets of a convener and the skillsets of a Zoom room facilitator are not the same skills. Our convener, Mothra, did a wonderful job taking the lessons we learned from the spring and incorporating them into the fall, and that resulted in all kinds of new lessons to learn from, as our knowledge built upon itself.

This year, we had three individuals who requested scholarships, and we were able to grant all three requests: two full scholarships and one partial scholarship. Over the course of the year, a total of $735 was donated specifically to the scholarship fund, and $883.22 was donated to Gay Spirit Vision’s general operations fund. Thank you all so much for your continued support as we continue to support one another over the years.

In addition to the donations given to this organization, you all raised $4,136.64 in donations for The Mountain during our virtual gatherings alone to assist them in their time of need. Many of you also provided further donations to them outside of gatherings and during their fund matching donation drive, and they would like to express their continued gratitude and thanks for your generosity. In thanks for our efforts, The Mountain waived all the fees for handling registration during our virtual fall conference, which came to a total of $221.52.

It is an honor to have been asked to wear the mantle of presiding elder in 2021 of this organization so dear to me. I have attended most of the GSV gatherings over the past 10 years since I first arrived at a local GSV potluck and heart circle. I have served on the Altared Spaces Working Circle for most of the past 10 years as well. By participating in a working circle, I was able to deepen the connections I had made by attending GSV gatherings. Besides that, it has been a lot of fun, work, and personal growth to be part of bringing the gatherings into being.

As presiding elder, I would like to keep our organization as transparent as possible, and I would like to include you all as much as possible because we are all important to this organization, and we all have an equal voice in where we take it. We all hold part of this organization in our hearts, and we all deserve to be held by it in return. Without you, we don’t have this community.

So, thank you for being a member of our amazing community. We hope you like where we’re going.

Neil Burns
2021 Presiding Elder
Gay Spirit Visions

GSV is very much a living community, and we are ever looking forward to our next opportunity to gather. We have the Winter Meditation coming up in a few weeks and two other gatherings currently in the planning process.

As you may already know from the announcement made at the beginning of December, the theme for the 2021 Winter Meditation is “Reflecting on Resilience.” We will explore how we access and sustain personal resilience. Two meditation sessions will help us gain insight into how we have navigated adversity in 2020 and how we can use that to sustain us into 2021. We will contemplate how we come to a place of gratitude in the face of fear and sorrow and then glean what we have learned about ourselves and our relationships to the world around us. Additionally, we will strengthen our ancestral connections and bring forward our unique universe of mystery which lies within. There is bound to be a lot to learn about ourselves and our place in our world. I can hardly imagine what is to follow such an enticing winter in the spring and fall! Know that we on the council, the working circles, and our future conveners are all working diligently to put together the best gatherings we can for you. The 2021 Spring Retreat is currently being developed with its convener.

David Berger: My first GSV gathering was in 1992 when I was living in Kentucky. I’ve only missed 3 or 4 fall conferences since then, plus attended several spring and winter gatherings. I’ve been a small group leader perhaps a dozen times and coordinated the selection of small group leaders and contributed in small ways in some GSV rituals. I’ve played and/or sung in most of the Talent/Variety Shows and accompanied singers as well as accompanied the “Parade of Beauties.” Lastly, I’ve led a couple of “sing-along/cabaret” events at past GSV gatherings. I hope to be of service in any way I can to the council and for GSV.

Tony James: I live in Lithia Springs, a suburb of Atlanta, GA. My first GSV gathering was the 1996 Fall Conference. I joined the Planning Committee (later known as The Council) in 1999 and enjoyed it so much that I’ve been a member off and on for 13 years. Some of the council roles I held were Elder of Communications, Elder of Finance, and Elder of Records. I currently serve on the Welcome & Hospitality and Communications working circles and administer GSV’s email services, cloud storage, and office productivity apps. It’s an honor and privilege to return to the council this year. I look forward to working with my fellow council members to support GSV and its mission.

Currently the 2021 winter and spring events will be virtual for safety reasons. We are working with The Mountain and their new leadership to plan for the 2021 Fall Conference to be in person! This is where we are now, and we will keep you updated as decisions are made. We all want to gather in person as soon as it is safe to do so.

Let’s keep this an open dialogue. You are warmly invited to communicate with the council, to send us feedback, to ask us for what you need from GSV, to tell us of your sweet dreams of community and how our gatherings might make those dreams come true. [email protected] is the perfect way to reach out to us to make this organization what we want it to be. You have a voice. You have desires. We are listening. Our number one goal as a council is to keep these gatherings going, but we can’t do it without you. We’re a living organization. Every year several council members roll off so that new ones can roll on. You all have the right to be heard, to be heeded, to be held.

Volunteering with GSV working circles is a fantastic way to build community, to meet new friends, to help create GSV magic, and to ensure the continuation of our magnificent, open-hearted tribe. The liaisons are the coordinators of their respective working circles, and we encourage you to reach out to them if you feel called to dive into GSV for more than the occasional gathering. Being on a GSV working circle is one of the best ways to keep that GSV magic going all year long!

Working circle names with their liaisons and email addresses with which to reach them:
Altered Spaces: Randy Taylor ~ [email protected]
Communications: Ralph Fruchtman ~ [email protected]
Archives, Culture & Tradition: Bruce “Dandylion” Tidwell ~ [email protected]
Entertainment: Robert “Trio” Devereaux ~ [email protected]
Silent Auction: Wade Jones ~ [email protected]
Financial Assistance: Jeff “Timber” Beacham ~ [email protected]
Gender Freedom & Expression: Tony Bayles ~ [email protected]
Rituals & Fire: Kraig “Nightshade” Blackwelder ~ [email protected]
Sacred Touch: Mahan Kalpa Khalsa ~ [email protected]
Small Groups: Bill Harris ~ [email protected]
Welcome & Hospitality: Tony James ~ [email protected]
Technology: Brian Schroeder ~ [email protected]

Come join us. We’d love to have you.

Gourmet hugs to you from The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions.

GSV 2021 Winter Meditation

Sacred Brothers,

I invite you to join our January 2021 Winter Meditation where we will explore how we access and sustain our personal resilience.

Two “keynote” meditation sessions will help us gain insight into how we have navigated adversity in 2020 and how we can use that to sustain us into 2021. With the knowledge that a grateful mind and heart helps us to be more resilient and enhances our self-compassion and our compassion for others, Tom Comstock will guide us in a contemplative exercise that can help us develop a practice of gratitude that is deeper, more genuine and spontaneous, and more heartfelt. Andrew Elias Ramer will help us explore what we learned from last year’s rippling challenges to every part of our lives, beginning with a short body-focused practice that will help to anchor us as we share, in small groups and together, what we’ve learned and how we can use it in the coming year.

A heart weaving on Friday evening will engender more intimate connection with some of our siblings before we move into our opening heart circle. On Saturday, in addition to our two “keynote” sessions, Karma (John Schendel) will lead us in gentle guided breathwork. Franklin Abbot will host a time to share short statements, personal work, or favorite poems in a deeper dive into the idea of gratitude. Gabriel Nelson Sears will envelop us in a sound bath meditation as he facilitates a journey on the harmonious waves of Himalayan singing bowls, native flutes, gong, and other sacred sound instruments.

While we will not conduct formal, facilitated small groups, there will be two scheduled sessions, on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, when participants can be randomly placed in breakout spaces to share more about what we have experienced and what we are taking away. As an addition to our primary Zoom room for all program activities, a second Zoom space will be open throughout the weekend, acting as our virtual rocking chair porch and dining hall for informal visiting and sharing.

Join us for an opportunity to contemplate the last year and move forward into 2021 sustained and nurtured for your continuing journey.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE IN THE FORM OF SCHOLARSHIPS ARE AVAILABLE.
THE FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE APPLICATION SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS JANUARY 1, 2021.

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 January 1, 2021.

Your eager and excited Winter Meditation 2021 convener,

David Cable
[email protected]

NOTE: REGISTRATION CLOSES TUESDAY EVENING, JANUARY 12, 2021.

Register Now!

Greetings Siblings!

We hope that you all are thinking of safety when you connect to your loved (and liked) ones during this time of uncertainty and change. One of the projects GSV’s Council of Trusted Elders has initiated this year is the compilation of a directory of virtual resources. The virtual resources that will be listed in this new directory are either directly related to or closely aligned with GSV’s mission statement.

“We are committed to creating safe, sacred space that is open to all spiritual paths, wherein men who love men may explore and strengthen spiritual identity. We are committed to creating a spiritual community with the intent to heal, nurture our gifts and potential, and live with integrity in the world. We are committed to supporting others in their spiritual growth by sharing experiences and insights.”

If you are currently using virtual resources to nurture yourself and stay connected to the world, please consider allowing us to include these in our new directory. All we are asking for from you is a very brief description of the resource and a web address/link to the resource. Here is an example of the type of information we are asking for:

Easton Mountain’s Virtual Great Room: An Online Space for Community
https://www.eastonmountain.org/vcommunitylist/vgr
Every Wednesday at 8 PM EDT – 9 PM EDT
Join in a cyber version of our beloved Great Room. We offer meditations, readings, music, guest speakers, and small breakout rooms.

Please e-mail your virtual resources information to the Council at [email protected].

If you have any questions or simply want more information about GSV’s new virtual resources directory, please feel free to contact the Council at the same e-mail address.

With heartfelt gratitude,
The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions

Dear Siblings!

Have you ever wondered about the role of the convener at a Gay Spirit Visions gathering? Have you ever thought, “That looks interesting and fun – I might like to do that someday …”

In an on-going effort to offer interesting and heartfelt programming at GSV’s fall, winter, and spring gatherings, The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions is now compiling a list of brothers who have an interest in being a convener at a future GSV gathering. Convening a GSV gathering is a great source of joy and growth!

What does a GSV convener do?

In short … with the help of the Council as well as Working Circle liaisons and circle members, the convener plans and organizes both the behind-the-scenes work involved in putting a gathering together and executes some of the “on-stage” portions of a gathering.

Additionally, there is a very detailed and helpful Convener’s Guidebook which is designed to make your experience as stress-free and as fulfilling as possible.

EXTRA BONUS! GSV will pay your gathering registration fee!

If you have an interest in being a convener, want to know more, or have any questions regarding the convener role, please e-mail the Council at [email protected].

With heartfelt gratitude,

The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions

Sacred Brothers,

Plans are coming together for our January 2021 Winter Meditation, when we will explore how we access and sustain personal resilience.

Two meditation sessions will help us gain insight into how we have navigated adversity in 2020 and how we can use that to sustain us into 2021. We will contemplate how we come to a place of gratitude in the face of fear and sorrow and then glean what we have learned about ourselves and our relationships to the world around us during this momentous and fraught year. We will use other modes of meditation and contemplation in activities to ground us and expand our consciousness. A heart weaving on Friday evening will engender more intimate connection with some of our siblings before we move into our opening heart circle. Two scheduled sessions, on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, will randomly place us in small groups to share more about what we have experienced and what we are taking away. And the primary Zoom room will be open between all scheduled activities for drop-in visits, acting as our virtual rocking chair deck and dining hall.

Join us for this opportunity to contemplate the last year and move forward into 2021 sustained and nurtured for your continuing journey. The final detailed program will be shared as we get closer to the end of the year.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE IN THE FORM OF SCHOLARSHIPS ARE AVAILABLE. THE FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE APPLICATION SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS JANUARY 1ST, 2021.

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 January 1st, 2021.

Your eager and excited Winter Meditation 2021 convener,

David Cable
[email protected]

Register Now!

We hope that you all are thinking of safety when you connect to your loved (and liked) ones this holiday season! This coming year, we have a lot of things planned to help safely foster a continued connection for all within the GSV community. We used the Zoom platform quite a bit this last year and we realized the need to form a team of our siblings who are able and willing to work with the Zoom platform in order to keep our programming moving more smoothly. To help us achieve our goals, the Council of Gay Spirit Visions has created a Technology Working Circle to help facilitate its use to keep the community of GSV connected to one another in these challenging times. To that end, the Council is issuing a call to service for volunteers to serve on the newly formed Technology Working Circle.

The Council is seeking volunteers who have the skills, experience, and desire to initiate, host, and manage virtual events utilizing the Zoom video communications platform.

At this time, GSV uses Zoom for events which include winter, spring, and fall virtual gatherings, Gay Spirit Visions Chicago Heart Circles, and will use it for other GSV virtual events that are currently in development for next year.

If you have a desire to serve GSV and the brotherhood in this way, to get involved with the new ideas coming forth, to simply be around our siblings working together, and/or you have any questions about this opportunity, please e-mail the Council at [email protected] and let us know.

And remember, “many hands make light work.”

With heartfelt gratitude,

The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions

Greetings from The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions!

As we have mentioned in years past, we are continually building greater transparency between the work we do on council and all of you who benefit from that work. To this end, we would like to invite you to attend the council’s annual face-to-face meeting, which will be held via Zoom due to the active pandemic, on November 14th, 2020, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Eastern Time.
The topics we will be covering are as follows: •2021 Contracts with The Mountain
•2021 GSV budget
•2021 Winter Meditation update
•2021 Spring and Fall conveners discussion
Break for Lunch •20021 Working Circles re-evaluation (Technology Working Circle, Working Circle liaisons, etc.)
•Direction for future eBay Silent Auctions
•Posting a Community Resource List
•Hosting monthly Zoom meetups
•Questions, comments, concerns

Actual start times for specific topics are not listed to allow for flexibility based on the length of ensuing conversation.

To join our meeting, click on the following URL: Zoom link for GSV Council Virtual Face To Face Meeting

Meeting ID: 990 0205 3442
Passcode: GSV

If you have time, do consider joining us, even if only for part of the time. We ask that you keep your microphones on mute unless actively asking a question or making a comment. Questions or comments that do not pertain to the topic at hand will be tabled and readdressed prior to the close of our meeting.

Thank you very much. We look forward to seeing you!

The Council
Jason Buchanan
Neil Burns
David Cable
Jonny “Mothra” Gray
Robert “Bear of the RO” McDonald
Mackie Obando
John Rivest
Randy Taylor
Bruce “Dandy” Tidwell

Sacred Brothers,

I invite you to join our January 2021 Winter Meditation where we will explore how we access and sustain our personal resilience.

With our GSV siblings, we will experience two meditation/journey visioning activities, one focused on practicing gratitude and a second one on gleaning the things we have learned as we have all navigated pandemic, social unrest/awakening, and a charged, divisive political landscape over the past months. To enhance our sacred space, we will weave our hearts together on Friday evening before our Opening Ritual. We will also create small breakout sessions for further processing and sharing of what we bring forth through these meditations and other activities.

As you consider this theme of resilience, is there a workshop/experience your heart leads you to offer to our group?

Join us for an opportunity to contemplate the last year and move forward into 2021 sustained and nurtured for your continuing journey. More details on the weekend program will be shared as we get closer to the end of the year.

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 form submission deadline is January 1st, 2021.

David Cable
[email protected]

Register Now!

Greetings GSV Siblings,

This is not the conference I originally envisioned. Well, you know, life happens, and pandemics are a (thankfully, rare) fact of life.

As COVID-19 necessitated changes to how we do just about everything, I faced a familiar mix of resistance and excitement in planning for the fall conference. On bad days, I can’t face the challenges. On good days, I see so many fruitful possibilities.

I want this conference to be a space of sharing a similar mixed bag of experiences. We are full of so many stories. Some are about accomplishments. Some are about disappointments. Some are written on our bodies in scar tissue and wrinkles. Some soar up from our deepest spiritual center.

I don’t know what happens next; that is part of living in a story. Maybe you are eager for the end; maybe you want it to go on forever. Either way and at all points between, there is opportunity for recall, recounting, and resilience.

We tell our stories not just to record what happened, but to sing ourselves into being. And this is the story about the time we held our annual fall rituals online. Lean in. Listen. Share.

Mindful of best practices and advice for an online conference, I have endeavored to leave empty space on the schedule so that we don’t spend the weekend just teleconferencing. To the best of my ability, I have tried to schedule with the different time zones of attendees in mind.

I took note of feedback from the Spring Retreat Gathering to make sure small groups were part of this conference, both to honor our fall traditions and to provide more intimate virtual groupings to share in.

I have also worked to provide asynchronous content to facilitate different registers of engagement. Each day begins with a downloadable semi-guided meditation. You may sit with that at the usual early morning hour, or you can take advantage of that whenever you wish.

Similarly, I have set up several murals for the conference. One is linked at the bottom of this page and includes a more detailed conference schedule. That mural is “read only” but will contain links to other murals and content that you can interact with and add to. I chose this platform because it is relatively easy to use, with hopefully clear guides for how to add content and interact with the provided material. If you have questions about how to use it, please don’t hesitate to ask.

I believe that stories heal and help us. But I also know that healing can take a lot out of us. And some stories, whew! You need a moment, right?

Additional information about Guardians, pop-up sessions, ways to connect, etc. will be shared on the fuller schedule mural link. That is a work in progress and will be continually updated throughout the conference. We will also email out connecting information for the Zoom sessions to the attendees. Enjoy!

Registration is now open. The GSV program fee is $50. In addition, a donation to The Mountain would be greatly appreciated due to their loss of income caused by coronavirus and subsequent cancellations.

Blessed be,
Jonny/Mothra, Convener, Fall 2020

9:30-11 pm EDT
Self-Pleasure
With Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa

Friday, 9/25
Early Morning
Downloadable Daily Meditation

11-12:15 pm EDT
Yoga
with David and Teddy Jones
Or
Enneagram Circle
with Tim Flood

2-3:15 pm EDT
Small Groups

4-5:15 pm EDT
Embody Your Inward Sage
Guided by Andrew Ramer
Or
Archangel Gabriel brings us Inspiration/Creativity/Boldness
With Pete Cossaboon

7-9 pm EDT
Telling Our Stories
Panelists: Jonny Gray, Greg Hummel, David Manning et al.

9:30-11 pm EDT
Lingam Puga
With Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa

Saturday, 9/26
Early Morning
Downloadable Daily Meditation

11-12:15 pm EDT
Small Groups

2-3:15 pm EDT
Keynote Address
Padraig O Tuama

4- 5:15 pm EDT
Introduction to Rainbow Awakening
With Damien Rowse
Or
Mindful Doodling
With Jeff Beacham

7-9 pm EDT
“Making Masks Fun Again!”
Online Variety Show and Masquerade

9:30-11 pm EDT
Open Zoom Room – To do with as we please

Sunday, 9/27
Early Morning
Downloadable Daily Meditation

10-11 am EDT
Small Groups

11:30-1 pm EDT
Closing Circle and Farewells

I am getting so excited about our upcoming fall conference, “Resilience through Recounting.” Folks are stepping up and offering some amazing workshops that I think fit well with our theme and online format. And I am thinking a lot about how stories are helping me cope with this ongoing pandemic.

As I have been busy putting my college courses online this semester, I have been struck by the importance of narrative framing. With fall fast approaching, I realized I really didn’t want to teach online. I spent a lot of time this summer teaching myself how to do it. Very quickly, an important message from a colleague sank in: don’t focus on what you can’t do online, focus on what online teaching allows you to do really well. Such a simple piece of advice, but so profoundly helpful! As I met my students in teleconferences or on discussion boards, I avoided saying how we would be covering this material if we were in person. Instead, I approached them with excitement about the different ways of engaging our material that the online platforms would allow.

I want to pass this insight on to you. Our fall conference will not be what we have come to know, expect, and cherish in our time together on The Mountain. But if we let it, it can be amazing in its own way. It will be its own kind of conference, and it will come with opportunities that an in-person gathering cannot allow. I am getting very excited about that!

I am working with the GSV Council to provide some fall conference experiences additional to the Zoom rooms. We are figuring out how to hold the silent auction online. I am pursuing some ideas for sharing spaces and asynchronous interactions that feature exploring our stories together.

Perhaps most exciting is our keynote speaker, Pádraig Ó Tuama. When we realized the fall conference needed to be online, we challenged ourselves to find an exciting speaker who could contribute to our theme. Since travel wasn’t an issue, we reached out “across the pond” to find an excellent practitioner of resilience and reconciliation who makes poetry and storytelling central to his work. Padraig is, quite simply, an amazing human being, and I am so happy he agreed to join us. It is worth noting that he was already aware of our organization and was eager to join us this fall. If you would like to know more about Pádraig, I highly recommend this TED Talk.

I am looking forward to seeing you all online in just under a month. I am eager to add this year’s fall conference to our treasure trove of stories we tell about ourselves and how we persevere even in the face of challenges.

Registration is now open. The GSV program fee is $50, for which financial assistance is available. In addition, a donation to The Mountain would be greatly appreciated due to their loss of income caused by coronavirus and subsequent cancellations.

Blessed be,
Jonny/Mothra, Convener, Fall 2020

Keynote Speaker: Pádraig Ó Tuama. Irish poet and theologian Pádraig Ó Tuama’s work centers around themes of language, power, conflict, and religion. Working fluently on the page and with groups of people, Pádraig is a skilled speaker, teacher, and group worker. He is the author of four volumes of poetry: Daily Prayer with the Corrymeela Community, In the Shelter, Sorry for your Troubles, and Readings from the Books of Exile. From 2014-2019 he was the leader of the Corrymeela Community, Ireland’s oldest peace and reconciliation community. He is based in Belfast, Ireland.

Convener: Jonny Gray (Mothra). Jonny has been coming to GSV since 2015. When he isn’t being a fabulous if large moth dancing around the sacred GSV fire, he pays the bills by being a professor of Communication Studies at Southern Illinois University, where he specializes in arts-based environmental advocacy. He is also the host of the weekly show, Isn’t It Queer, which broadcasts on local community radio (WDBX) and is released as a podcast.

While we seek mirth and beauty and music light and gay
There are frail forms fainting at the door
Though their voices are silent, their pleading looks will say
Oh, hard times, come again no more
(From: Hard Times Come Around No More, Traditional)

Hard times. Many of us have been here before; many will be here again–but not all of us, and none of us in the same way. We know sickness at the door. We know incompetence at the highest level and dealing with such sickness only makes it worse. Both seem out to get us and see us suffer and die. Or, at least, that’s one way of telling the story.

Stories link us in networks of shared understanding if not always agreement. They help us learn about things we haven’t directly experienced. Stories give us a frame to hang the ambiguous on so that it starts to make sense. They make the uncomfortable a little more palatable when seen through the frame of familiar narrative structures. Ah yes, we say, I know this story.

When we cannot gather together in person, when we cannot hug and otherwise explore each other with sacred touch, when we cannot raise our voices together in song or generate steam from our bodies entwined in pulsing dance, we still have stories.

This fall, Gay Spirit Visions invites you to a COVID-19-compliant online gathering to connect as we are able. We come together to tell and to listen to one another’s stories, for stories, too, are a powerful medicine. How are we weathering this storm? How is it familiar? How is it strange? Are there other stories that arise from our current situation that we want to give space to?

Circle ‘round. Listen up. What I have is a story …

Many events conducive to sharing our stories are already being planned, including an online talent show, panels consisting of some of our best homegrown storytellers, an online silent auction, and opportunities for discussions in small groups. As always, our members’ willingness to provide workshops and activities is strongly encouraged and appreciated. If you have something you want to contribute or present, please contact the Fall Conference convener, Jonny Gray (a.k.a. Mothra).

Registration information and suggested donation options will be handled through The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center registration platform. Details will be coming soon.

Jonny Gray,
Convener
2020 GSV Fall Conference

Dear Members of the GSV Community,

The killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many other Black Americans, and moreover the persistent and pervasive racism that enables such acts of abuse, violence, and hate both large and small, call for a strong response. The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions, Inc. joins in solidarity with those who are working to end the scourge of racism and oppression in all forms.

As an organization of men who love men, we acknowledge that the murder of George Floyd ignites within us our own tribal and personal stories of hate and oppression. We represent men with a shared vision of a world in which men who love men can come together, be authentic, and share our spiritual vision. We feel the need to create a safe place because we live in a world where we do not feel completely safe. We acknowledge and applaud the desire and efforts of anyone to change the world to allow people of any race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, gender, gender identity, or disability to feel safe.

We acknowledge that in our quest in creating a spiritual community, we are often faced with oppression which we seek to overcome. We do not always speak out, however, when confronted with hatred and prejudice as has been evidenced by the recent killings of black men and women, we resolve to stand together to seek a more just and equitable world for all.

As part of our commitment to support others in their spiritual growth, we feel it is important, especially because of the event related to the murder of George Floyd, to hear stories of spiritual growth in our community as it relates to prejudice, oppression, violence, injustice, and apathy. We recognize the importance of a lifelong examination of internalized racism as part of one’s spiritual growth.

We continue to work to create safe, sacred space for men who love men and know that this space can only exist where there is no hate. Although at times we are tempted to avoid efforts at social change and focus instead on making our own personal sphere safe, in truth, we wish for the whole world to be like the world we are working at creating for ourselves: a world in which anyone who loves anyone can come together to heal, nurture our gifts and potential, and live with integrity in the world.

Holding love in our hearts and life in our hands,
Your Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions, Inc.

Dear Gentle Ones,

Our Spring GSV Virtual Gathering begins this coming weekend on Friday evening, May 15th, at 7:00 p.m. EDT.

I am pleased to share with you that we have an outstanding series of workshops planned for you on Saturday, May 16th, with Hunter Flournoy, Andrew Ramer, and David and Teddy Jones.

Across space and time, we will have the opportunity to create the gentle, warm, and playful community just like we have so enjoyed all these years previously on our beloved mountaintop. This year we open arms and hearts to each other wherever we are and welcome each other as we hold sacred presence with ourselves and with our community. Our capacity is 50 people. There are about 12 spaces still available. Please register today!
https://www.themountainrlc.org/gsv-spring-online

Once you have registered, you will receive an email from me later this week with Zoom links for each session. We recommend you familiarize yourself with Zoom before participating.

With grateful anticipation of our meeting,

Mark Medlin, Convener
Virtual Spring GSV Gathering 2020
________________________________________

Friday Evening
7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. EDT
Welcome and In-Gathering
Welcome — Mark Medlin
Fire Bridging — Scotty Simons
Calling in the Directions — Selected Siblings
Heart Weaving — Mark Medlin
Musical Reflection — Bob Strain
Heart Circle — Paul Plate

Saturday
Opportunities for Connection and Celebration
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. EDT
GSV Council Town Hall Meeting

Join your presiding elder, Jason Buchanan, and members of the GSV Council as they talk about our organization and community. You will also hear from a representative from The Mountain and have an opportunity to ask questions.

10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. EDT
Rooting and Rising: Discovering our Deepest Resiliency and Truest Visions
with Hunter Flournoy

In this turning of the worlds, each of us must root deep in the tremendous strength of the Great Mystery, the Sacred Earth, the community of those we love, the healing power of our own body and breath, and the truest visions of our hearts. In this 90-minute workshop, we will explore each of these through stories, sharing, and practical exercises. Come ready to move, to breathe, to share and bear witness to the incredible strength we can create together.

Hunter Flournoy is a two-spirited healer, life-coach, breathworker, writer, and master facilitator with a passionate commitment to building community for soulful GBTQ men and helping them change their lives. He is the vision-keeper for Spirit Journeys and a devoted member of our Gay Spirit Visions community.

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. EDT
Optional Virtual Saturday Lunch
Click on the lunchtime Zoom link and be randomly grouped with four other siblings for an hour’s informal conversation as you dine together in front of your computer.

2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. EDT
In the Temple of Father Earth: Embodying the Wisdom of our Gay Ancestors
with Andrew Ramer

We are living in a time of unprecedented challenges, caught between the global threats of climate change and the microscopic threats of a new virus. This time invites us to deepen into ourselves, whoever we are, and invites us as men who love men to tap into our own deep archetypal wisdom.

This workshop emerges from the teachings found in Andrew Ramer’s book Two Flutes Playing. After an introduction to the session, we will go on a guided journey of connection with our ancient gay ancestors, designed to support our own embodied elderhood. We will end with an open conversation about our work of global healing and the ways that we can support each other.

Andrew Ramer spoke at the first GSV gathering with Harry Hay and Franklin Abbott. In addition to Two Flutes Playing he is the author of Queering the Text and Fragments of the Brooklyn Talmud, a comic kweerish dystopian exploration of texts and stories. andrewramer.com

4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. EDT
Yoga with Affirmations for Challenging Times | Men’s Yoga and Harp Meditation
with David and Teddy Jones

Your session is a mixture of gentle active yoga as well as restorative yoga. Please have a blanket or big towel, a yoga mat and a strap or belt. Here is your opportunity to stretch and unwind after a full day of reflection and connection. Yoga and meditation will enable you to integrate all your awareness and learning in embodiment.

David Jones has been teaching in the greater Nashville area for eleven years. During much of this time he also taught at The Recovery Ranch, a drug and alcohol treatment center. In the recent year he began working at Milestones at Onsite with a focus in trauma recovery. He offers a basic hatha class, a light vinyasa flow accessible to all levels. His focus has become restorative yoga. He teaches spiritual and restorative workshops regularly.

Teddy Jones is an acoustic harpist who specializes in original music created for special events and ceremonies. His recordings are improvisations that can be used for meditation, stress release, massage, yoga, and healing.

Sunday
Celebration for Preparing Ourselves for Action in the World

10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. EDT
Releasing the Directions – Mark Medlin and Selected Siblings
Musical Reflection – Bob Strain
Heart Circle – Paul Plate
Closing Song: Dear Friends, Queer Friends – Wendall Johnson

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. EDT
Optional Virtual Sunday Lunch
Click on the lunchtime Zoom link and be randomly grouped with four other siblings for an hour’s informal conversation as you dine together in front of your computer.

Greetings Siblings,

We have been made aware that the registration process has a few unexpected issues concerning payment for this Spring Conference. We are currently working with The Mountain to clear up the confusion in the registration process. It has always been our intention to offer this conference *free of charge* and that any donation, including the suggested donation, to the mountain is totally optional, though appreciated. Your registration is sufficient for attendance.

We are all learning from this new experience and working out the kinks, so if more concerns arise, please reach out so that we are able to address them as best we can and make things right.

With love and appreciation for all of you in this community,
Your Trusted Council of Elders

Dear Siblings,

Greetings, heartfelt appreciation, and comforting hugs to each of you. How much has changed since my previous letter to you announcing the GSV spring retreat which was to have been held live and in person, face-to-face, and heart-to-heart, at The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center on May 8th through 10th. However, as you may have already been aware, The Mountain has cancelled all live and in person events and is temporarily closed in accordance with the North Carolina governor’s Stay At Home order.

Instead, I’m delighted to announce that we are holding the first ever GSV Virtual Spring Retreat! It will be held in four 90-minute Zoom sessions on May 15th, 16th & 17th .

Like so many other organizations, we have been working to reorient ourselves around a meaningful and engaging live Zoom video communications experience that we can use to explore and experiment with together. In venturing into this new technology-based way of being, we are each called upon to breathe even more deeply, to be patient with ourselves, and each other, and to be open to the moving of gay spiritedness between us across space and time to create community and connection.

The draft agenda for our virtual spring retreat, subject to last minute changes, appears below.

If you’ve never participated in a Zoom event before, please consider watching the following video tutorial prior to Friday evening’s opening event so that you will be more at ease and present.
https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-Meeting

Some basic suggestions:
1. When you are using Zoom, make sure that the light on your face is brighter than the light in the background; otherwise, we can’t see your bright eyes and beautiful smile.

2. Make sure the environment you are in — whether outside or inside — is completely quiet with no music or noise in the background.

3. Using a 4″ x 6″ index card or something similar, write the name you wish to be called by with a black magic marker, or print your name in large print, so you can hold it up as needed during a session. You’ll understand more about this during the event.

I welcome your presence as we create space together, leaning in to sustaining connection even across space and time.

With gratitude for each of you and for our living, breathing community,

Mark Medlin (Rainbow Sprinkles)
Convenor, GSV Spring Retreat 2020

Friday, May 15th
7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Welcome and In-Gathering
Welcome – Mark Medlin
Calling In the Directions – Selected Siblings
In-Gathering Music – Bob Strain
Heart Weaving – Mark Medlin
Heart Circle – Paul Plate

Saturday, May 16th
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
GSV Council Town Hall Meeting,
Jason Buchanan, Presiding Elder

10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Opportunities for Connection and Celebration
Two or three options to be determined.

12:00 Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Optional Virtual Saturday Lunch
Click on the lunchtime Zoom link and be randomly grouped with four other siblings for an hour’s informal conversation as you dine together in front of your computer.

2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Opportunities for Connection and Celebration
Two or three options to be determined.

Sunday, May 17th
10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Celebration for Preparing Ourselves for Action in the World
Naming of the Fall 2020 GSV Conference Convener
Closing Music – Bob Strain
Heart Circle – Paul Plate
Releasing the Directions – Mark Medlin
Closing Song – Wendell Johnson

12:00 Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Optional Virtual Sunday Lunch
Click on the lunchtime Zoom link and be randomly grouped with four other siblings for an hour’s informal conversation as you dine together in front of your computer.

Greetings Siblings!

The Gay Spirit Visions Council has been in discussion for the last month on how to respond to the changes COVID-19 has made in our gathering practices. As you may have already seen on The Mountain’s website, the Spring Retreat at The Mountain has been cancelled. We cannot in good conscience hold a gathering of this nature at this time with such an intimate family such as yourselves. We have hesitated to make the announcement official until we had something for you as an alternative.

There’s been a debate on whether we should simply cancel the Spring Retreat and do nothing until the Fall Conference, assuming things recover by then. However, during this time of physical isolation, where many are struggling to get their social and spiritual needs met, having a spirit-based community of like-minded people such as Gay Spirit Visions to connect with was worth stepping into the unknown to try to make happen for you all. Additionally, if the current epidemic cannot be controlled in this country by September, we might miss out completely on our Fall Conference as well.

Right now, the council is in discussion with our Spring Convener about the possibility of a virtual Spring Retreat so that we may connect safely with our community in these difficult times. We know that we need something more than a Facebook group and an e-mail list to make a gathering. We are still brainstorming and running logistics on possibilities for what this might look like and how best to implement it. We’ve decided it’s worth pursuing because it’s an exercise in adaptability for our organization and it gives us experience for handling similar circumstances in the future. We’re trying to keep options open, setting signposts and benchmarks for what may come.

In our daily lives, many of us are struggling to connect with our friends and family in satisfying ways. We understand a virtual gathering is not the same as hugging our siblings, but right now, it’s what is safe. Again, we’ll be upfront with you. We don’t know what this is going to look like. In truth, we don’t even know if we can pull it off. We have a lot of ideas and we’re trying to find the tangible things that we need in order to manifest our ideas (and to determine which ideas we are even able to implement), and one thing is becoming very apparent: we’re going to need a lot of help if we want to make this happen.

Most of our ideas come back to the importance of video conferencing to make this happen. That involves someone hosting it. One person cannot host an entire weekend. Our main limitation right now in this regard is the number of people who are willing and able to volunteer to facilitate for a specific amount of time, if we want to make it approximate a weekend retreat.

We’re also currently focusing on making the heart-to-heart connection happen above all else, which we believe to be at the core of the GSV experience. However, we are still open to potential workshops as long as they can be conducted over a digital medium. It may be difficult-to-impossible to have a traditional Heart Circle, so we’re trying to figure out an appropriate alternative, depending on how many people might attend the gathering. Again, all these ideas are subject to change as we sit down and continue working through what’s feasible and what’s not. Trust us, if we could, we would want nothing more than to give you a full gathering at The Mountain in a safe way, but right now we can’t.

It will be different. It may be very imperfect. But if we can get together for even a single two-hour gathering, we’re calling it a success. The more help we have, the more we can do. But if we don’t have help, we cannot guarantee that there will be even that to look forward to. So, if you have a desire and willingness to help make this happen, we strongly urge you to reach out to us.

The best part is you don’t have to leave the comfort of your bed to help!

If you are a member of a GSV Working Circle, please consider how you might translate your work at The Mountain to a digital medium.

Please contact [email protected] or [email protected] with your intent to be of service, or if you have questions. (Probably, though, we don’t have many solid answers right now.)

Thank you for your patience and for your compassionate understanding as we try to navigate the waters of this difficult time.

From The Council, with Love,

Jason Buchanan, Presiding Elder
Robert “Bear of the RO” McDonald, Elder of Finance
John Rivest, Elder of Records
Randy Taylor
Bruce “Dandy” Tidwell
Jonny “Mothra” Gray
Mackie “Luna Farfalla” Obando
Neil Burns
David Cable

These days, there’s a lot of buzz in the personal development and corporate professionalism arenas about the idea of “resilience.” However, in gay circles I don’t hear much about our inner strengths and how to cultivate and enrich these and then take them to the streets in new and impactful ways that will make a difference to our community.

As the beauty of spring 2020 unfolds, I invite you to climb the mountain and step out into a weekend of reflection and healthy community as together we go within to explore our inner strengths. We will also venture out to explore nature in order to gain a deeper knowledge of the unique queer resilience that each of us draws on and expresses as we navigate through the challenges and uncertainties of our daily lives. It will be a time to deepen our inner knowing, ground ourselves to our warm and gentle planet, and feel the bonds between us.

When you go within, what awareness do you notice about your greatest strength? How do you express it? How does it help you navigate challenges? What would help you nourish it more? What other strengths might you have that you may be unaware of? How could these support you?

One of our elders, Andrew Ramer, introduced us years ago in his book Two Flutes Playing to four primary clans in which men who love men express our consciousness in the world: scouts, flute players, shamans, and hunters. It’s time now for us to revisit these spirits and to explore ways to draw strength from their wisdom for our present day challenges and quandaries. At the Winter Meditation this year, I felt a visceral connection to the radiant well ancients in one of the workshop experiences. It made me curious about engaging in dialogue with them. I wanted to know more about what the positive ancestral energies would say in answer to our most heartfelt questions. In community with you, I invite you to join me in finding out.

In this spring retreat, we will celebrate our connection to nature, aliveness, sacred sexuality, and to embodying our centered and authentic spirit in everyday life. Let’s celebrate renewal and rebirth in the beauty of spring that moves into the fullness of summer green.

Now calling for workshop leaders for the aforementioned topics and anything else that your intuition and your spirits tell you needs to be at our spring retreat. Please contact me at [email protected] directly or [email protected] with workshop requests, proposals, and further questions.

If you are interested in helping with the retreat in any way before, during, or after the retreat, consider reaching out to me directly at [email protected] or to the council at [email protected] for more information about ways to be of assistance. Helping is a great opportunity to meet other people. Fire us an email too if you have any other questions, comments, or concerns.

And don’t forget, GSV offers financial assistance through the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. GSV recognizes that economic circumstances may impose undue financial hardships on some and prevent them from attending our gatherings. The assistance we offer is designed to help offset the cost of attending a gathering. Additionally, most of us are happy to carpool. Please do not hesitate to ask for assistance. Why else are we here but to help one another?

With appreciation for all that we are in life together,

Mark C. Medlin, Convener
GSV Spring Retreat 2020

Register Now!

Copyright © 2020 Gay Spirit Visions, All rights reserved.

Dear Siblings,

Our Ancestors are with us, supporting, gifting, and enfolding us. These are the loved ones we have known and not known; from our family of origin, our chosen queer family, and from the Queer Breath of the Universe that flows around us. They have given us gifts which we may not even know. Let’s bring them into the light.

Friday night, we will gather, meet, greet, and eat. The opening Heart Circle weaves us together in mutual purpose and transforms us into a sacred compassionate container in which we do our deep work together as a community. Together we will invite and welcome those who love us, the Sacredness, the Spirits, and our Ancestors. We will ask them to come and help us to know ourselves more fully, especially our hidden gifts and strengths.

On Saturday, we will connect with our deepest, truest self, and invite the luminous being of light within each of us to ignite, shine, and make itself known. Through Systemic Family Constellations, Systemic Ritual, and other techniques, we strengthen our ancestral connections more fully so that the unique universe of mystery which lies within us may come forward in beauty and safety. We will welcome all of ourselves into the circle.

Sunday morning, we break our fast together and share our experiences. We will speak our spiritual experiences out of the dream and into reality, thus solidifying their potency. We will thank the Ancestors and the Loving Spirits for holding us so beautifully and we will invite them to depart in beauty. As we take our leave of each other, we will carry into the wide world the bright seeds of our sacred container and all the beauty they contain. May they find fertile ground in which to sprout for all people.

Inviting and Opening Sacred Space and Weaving our Community Container (all y’all): In ceremony together we invoke Sacredness and weave our spiritual container with our hearts, words, and actions.
Silent Morning Meditation (T.S. Pennington): Beyond description.
Meeting the True Self (Jeffrey Rich): A Guided Meditation to meet our uniqueness in this incarnation. Before getting to know the Ancestors, we need to know who we are.
Systemic Ceremonial Constellations (Jeffrey Rich and Michael Murphy): Systemic Constellations (also known as Family Constellations) lets us look at the hidden dynamics operating behind the scenes in our family and ancestral systems. Using the “Knowing Field” of energy and information, this amazing methodology will help us unpack the seeds of queerness in our families to better see and receive the hidden gifts that come with them.
Exploring our Auric Fields and their Information (Jason Buchanan): A short meditation to center ourselves followed by beginning techniques to sense our auric fields. We will then have an opportunity to partner up or form small groups to look at each other’s auric fields. We may then probe past color and texture to sense the emotion and gnosis held there.
Dancing Through Your Chakras (Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa): In this exploratory session, we will identify our energy centers — called chakras in Ayurvedic medicine — and stimulate them with body movement, breath, and sound. Knowing our chakras allows us to open our eyes to the depth of our intuition, our desire, and our unrealized abilities. We will partner in a series of simple experiments that will be playful and adventurous.
Five Rhythms Dance (John Brock): A Moving Meditation –- we’ll move to an eclectic mix of music designed to help cast off inhibitions and cultivate transformational joy.
Finding Your Fierceness (Scott Dillard): In this workshop we will use guided meditation, movement, and storytelling to connect with our fiercest self in order to bring that being forward into the new year. We will be accessing story and body memory in order to reach into our past and then project into the future. Participants will work individually and in small groups. As we will be moving about, comfortable clothing is advised.
Conversations and Camaraderie: Casual conversations with friends, old and new.
Free Time to reflect, relax, journal, explore, nap, and soak in the beauty of The Mountain.
Closing Heart Circle and preparation for re-entry into the world with your gifts

Vic Mansfield, Convener
[email protected]

Sweet siblings in Gay Spirit Visions,

Welcome to the annual State of the Tribe address, in which we look back at what GSV has done over the past year and drop some hints about what we have to look forward to.

This year’s edition comprises two sections: Looking Back, where I discuss what our organization accomplished in 2019, and Looking Forward, where the new Presiding Elder shares what we have to look forward to in 2020.

It has been an honor to serve on the GSV Council and to help guide an organization so dear to my heart. From my first Fall Conference in 2000 (when I could barely get through a single process without choking up), through convening a fall conference, and serving for two years as the Presiding Elder of the GSV Council, Gay Spirit Visions has been instrumental to my growth and learning as a spiritually-connected queer man. In remembrance of my own GSV mentors, I have tried to bring the serene wisdom of Martin “Treewalker” Isganitus as well as the mischievous insights of King “Wing of Men” Thackston to my work on the Council. Those dear ancestors are the roots of my GSV experience, and I hope I have brought the best of their wisdom to my time on the Council.

With abiding love for this community of open-hearted men,

Nightshade

The Winter Meditation, “Tranquil Reflection and Mindful Intention,” was a beautiful and serene contemplative experience convened by the very talented Bill Harris. This was an opportunity to find that calm center to ground our Greater Work.

The Spring Retreat, “Awaken Our Magick,” was an exploration of the sweet queer magic in our lives, convened by the lovely Jason Buchanan. After centering ourselves, we opened to Spirit and recognized the gifts we have been given to share with the world.

In September, GSV reached a noteworthy milestone: our 30th Fall Conference!!! “Spiritually Sourced Activism” was convened by the incomparable Cami Delgado and featured Toby Johnson as Keynote Speaker and celebrated the actions only we can take to make the world better for all beings.

The stage is now set for another cycle to begin.

Members of the Council and past Conveners developed a Convener’s Guidebook to help Conveners navigate the sometimes-confusing waters of putting on a GSV gathering. The Convener’s Guidebook is intended to be a living document that can be refined and improved with the wisdom and experience of future Conveners.

In addition to the Guidebook, the Council also put together policies and/or procedures for each of the working circles as well as role descriptions for officers. We realized some of their responsibilities had been left rather ambiguous. We cleaned them up so that our hardworking members of the community who selflessly donate their time and effort can rest assured in what they’ve signed up for.

The Council voted to change our Convener policy so that Conveners no longer pay to attend the event they’re convening. (This was a total no-brainer, and we probably should have done this years ago, but it’s the policy now.)

The Council decided that Wells-Fargo no longer met our definition of an ethical financial institution (a quick internet search will show you why). Since we want GSV to be a force for good at every level, we decided to move our accounts from a big bank with questionable ethics to Regions, a smaller institution with a much better track record.

At the same time, we voted to put a portion of GSV’s working funds into a Certificate of Deposit to strengthen GSV’s financial standing and keep GSV strong going into the future. (We don’t mean to bore you with details, but sometimes that’s what transparency looks like.)

The Council voted to increase the annual budget for the Altared Spaces Working Circle and, thanks to input from Tony Bayles, to make an expenditure for the Gender Freedom and Expression Working Circle to get all new racks and bins for the Shauna Pleas Boutique! (More beautiful altars and better sacred drag! What’s not to love?!!)

The Council decided that we needed to be able to accept credit cards for the silent auction. Thanks to the diligent work of our own Bill Harris, you no longer have to pass on that fabulous frock, tantalizing tome, or bewitching bibelot you found in the silent auction simply because you forgot to bring cash. Just whip out your card and bid generously and with confidence!

The inimitable and wildly talented Craigalee has been a part of GSV for over two decades and has worn a variety of hats within our community, including that of Presiding Elder. As a member of the Altared Spaces Working Circle, Craigalee has been one of the creative forces behind the stunning altars that grace our gatherings, and neither our gatherings nor our community would have been the same without the creative gifts he has so graciously shared.

Many men come to GSV events to revel in the touch of their siblings, and we are fortunate to have a wise, bold, and 100% shameless man overseeing GSV’s Sacred Touch processes. With his playful spirit and wholesome approach to connection Mahan-Kalpa is a gift to our community. He has helped many, many men transcend shame and self-consciousness as they seek out healthy touch and intimacy in their lives.

Over its 30 years, GSV has made quite a bit of history, and we are grateful to Randall Cumbaa and Cal Gough for helping to preserve that history. The relationship they have nurtured with Georgia State University Archives and the video interviews they have conducted over the past few years will help ensure that GSV’s history will be preserved for those who come after us.

Lastly, I want to offer much hearty gratitude to Bill Harris for his amazing work as Elder of Finance. It’s one thing for the Council to decide to change banks or to get a Certificate of Deposit, or to get a Square account so that we are able to accept credit cards, but it was Bill who did the actual legwork to make those things happen, and on top of it all he convened an absolutely stunning Winter Meditation.

The men named above are a few of the many bright stars in the GSV constellation, and you are invited to thank them for their service to GSV when you see them next.

Leaving the Council at the end of 2019 were Randall Cumbaa, Bill Harris, Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa, and Nightshade.

Joining the Council at the beginning of 2020 are Neil Burns, David Cable, Robert McDonald, and John Rivest.

As the torch has been passed on to these new Council members, so too do the officer’s torches also pass on.
As the new 2020 Elder of Records, John Rivest has been elected to replace Jason Buchanan.
As the new 2020 Elder of Finance, Robert “Bear of the RO” McDonald has been elected to replace Bill Harris.
And lastly, as the new 2020 Presiding Elder, Jason Buchanan has been elected to replace Nightshade.

Welcome, gents! We look forward to the magnificence you will manifest!
And thank you, Nightshade, for your gracious service.

Greetings to all my relatives!

It is an honor to have been asked to wear the mantel in 2020 of Presiding Elder of this organization so dear to this fast-beating drum bucket I keep safe in this calcium-rich cage. I have officially attended nine gatherings since I bumbled into a heart circle I knew nothing about as a Mountain staff member just over five years ago. I have convened a spring retreat, and I have served on Council for the last two years.

As Presiding Elder, I would like to keep our organization as transparent as possible, and I would like to include you all as much as possible because we are all important to this organization, and we all have an equal voice in where we take it. We all hold part of this organization in our hearts, and we all deserve to be held by it in return. Without you, we don’t have this community.

So, thank you for being a member of our amazing community. We hope you like where we’re going.

Jason Lloyd Buchanan
Presiding Elder

The dates for our gatherings in 2020 are:
Winter Meditation: January 17-19
Spring Retreat: May 8-10
Fall Conference: September 24-27

As you may already know from the announcement made at the beginning of December by Convener Vic Mansfield, the theme for the Winter Meditation is “Seeing the Unseen: Bringing our Gifts into the Light.” With such exciting techniques as Systemic Family Constellations, Systemic Ritual, and others to strengthen our ancestral connections and bring forward our unique universe of mystery which lies within, there is bound to be a lot to learn.

I can hardly imagine what is to follow such an enticing winter in the spring and fall! Know that we on the Council, the Working Circles, and the future Conveners are all working diligently to put together the best gatherings we can.

Let’s keep this an open dialogue. You are warmly invited to communicate with the Council, to send us feedback, to ask us for what you need from GSV, to tell us of your sweet dreams of community and how our gatherings might make those dreams come true.

[email protected] is the perfect way to reach out to us to make this organization what we want it to be. You have a voice. You have desires. We are listening. Our number one goal as a council is to keep our gatherings going, but we can’t do it without you. We’re a living organization. Every year several Council members roll off so that new ones can roll on. You all have the right to be heard, to be heeded, to be held.

Volunteering with the GSV Working Circles is a fantastic way to build community, to meet new friends, to help create GSV magic, and to ensure the continuation of our magnificent, open-hearted tribe. The Liaisons are the coordinators of their respective Working Circles, and we encourage you to reach out to them if you feel called to dive into GSV for more than the occasional gathering. Being on a GSV Working Circle is one of the best ways to keep that GSV magic going all year long!

The current Liaisons for the Working Circles and an email address where you can reach them are:

Doug Emerson for Altared Spaces ~ [email protected]
Ralph Fruchtman for Communications ~ [email protected]
Dev “Trio” Devereaux for Entertainment ~ [email protected]
Jeff “Timber” Beacham for Financial Assistance ~ [email protected]
Wade Lee Jones for Silent Auction ~ [email protected]
Tony Bayles for Gender Freedom & Expression ~ [email protected]
Neil Burns for Music & Movement ~ [email protected]
Scotty “Banana Spider” Simons2 for Rituals & Fire ~ [email protected]
Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa for Sacred Touch ~ [email protected]
Bill Harris for Small Groups ~ [email protected]
Ted Gulick for Welcome & Hospitality ~ [email protected]

Copyright © 2020 Gay Spirit Visions, All rights reserved.

Dear Brothers,

Our Ancestors are with us, supporting, gifting, and enfolding us. These are loved ones we have known and not known; from our family of origin, our chosen queer family, and from the Queer Breath of the Universe that flows around us. They have given us gifts which we may not even know. Let’s bring these gifts into the light.

Friday night, we will gather, meet, greet, and eat. The opening Heart Circle will weave us together in mutual purpose and transform us into a sacred compassionate container in which we do our deep work together as a community. Together we will invite and welcome those who love us, the Sacredness, the Spirits, and our Ancestors. We will ask them to come and help us to know ourselves more fully, especially our hidden gifts and strengths.

On Saturday, we will connect with our deepest, truest self, and invite the luminous being of light within each of us to ignite, shine, and make itself known. Through Systemic Family Constellations, Systemic Ritual, and other techniques, we strengthen our ancestral connections more fully so that the unique universe of mystery which lies within us may come forward in beauty and safety. We will welcome all of ourselves into the circle.

Sunday morning, we break our fast together and share our experiences. We will speak our spiritual experiences out of the dream and into reality thus solidifying their potency. We will thank the Ancestors and the Loving Spirits for holding us so beautifully and we will invite them to depart in beauty. As we take our leave of each other, we will carry into the wide world the bright seeds of our sacred container and all the beauty they contain. May they find fertile ground in which to sprout for all people.

We envision time for reflection and recreation in our schedule, as well as workshops. We invite you to suggest workshops you may wish to offer as well as suggestions for workshops you’d like to see.

Vic Mansfield
Convener, 2020 Winter Meditation
[email protected]

Register Now!

Beloved GSV Tribe of Beautiful Men:

It’s countdown! Can you feel the buzz? Registration is high. Everybody’s talking about the conference, planning, preparing, and all psyched up…

Never before has a GSV event been more relevant than this conference given the dark times we are now living in. This is a spiritually challenging moment in American history and we as spiritually awakened men are called to rise in inspired ways, so let’s talk about how we are going to shine a bright light on these darker times.

There will be dynamic spiritual empowerment in our workshops and rituals. Raymond Rigoglioso, Toby Johnson, Hunter Flournoy, Mahan Kalpa Khalsa, Peregrine, Jim Stratton, Peter Cossaboom, Tim Flood, and Rocky Beeland are just some of those offering uplifting and inspiring workshops.

There will also be revelry and plenty of it. How can you have spiritually sourced activism if you don’t charge your heart-center battery with celebration? Wait until you experience the high voltage energy of this year’s rituals, dance, cabaret sing-a-long, walk of beauties, variety show, sacred touch, and yoga amidst the loveliness the Altared Spaces Work Group has sprinkled throughout The Mountain.

So, click on the link below to register for this year’s fall conference and remember to also…
* Pack splashy and creative wardrobe, rain gear, a flashlight, and hiking shoes.
* Bring items to donate to the silent auction as well as cash, personal checks or credit card to make purchases.
* Bring a very special gift for the small group gift giving ritual.
* Bring your drums and percussion instruments for the drumming circle.
* Sign up for the talent show in advance by contacting Dev at [email protected].
* Send favorite song suggestions for the Friday evening dance to Kevin at [email protected].

Vibrational hugs now, fleshy hugs in two weeks,

Cami Delgado
Convener – GSV 30th Anniversary Fall Conference

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Meade, American anthropologist.

Link to REGISTER NOW!

Come join us for a magical celebration of GSV’s 30th anniversary conference! For thirty years Gay Spirit Visions has created safe, sacred space where gay men can open their hearts, heal within, grow spiritually, and form heart-centered bonds that nurture and uplift their spirits.

Never before has GSV been more relevant given the times we are living in now. This is a challenging moment in American history. How are we going to shine a bright light on these darker times? Are we going to respond to tomorrow’s headlines with self-defeating pessimism, or with vigorous spiritual empowerment and activism? What’s really at the core of America’s spiritual malaise, and how do we become a powerful healing presence in the midst of it?

This conference will be a conversation on this current challenge. We’ll explore the underlying spiritual misalignment that creates the daily events we see, hear and read about in the media. We’ll have conversations about inspired activism, sacred activism, and activism by other names — all activism emanating from a spiritual source as a response to today’s events. This conference WILL NOT be a conversation on bipartisan politics, individual politicians, or the outer crust and everyday discourse we see, hear, and read about in the media.

This conference will also be an anniversary celebration — a way to thank GSV for offering us three decades of spiritual magic. Thus, we invite you to join us in ritual, ceremony, dance, singing, parading, and performing. Spiritually sourced activism replenishes itself with joy, humor, music, dance, creativity, and childlike merriment … and there will be plenty of that!

Raymond L. Rigoglioso is the founder and executive director of Gay Men of Wisdom and author of the book Gay Men and The New Way Forward. Former GSV keynote speakers Toby Johnson, Will Roscoe, Jon Stasio, and Mark Thompson have offered positive reviews of Gay Men and The New Way Forward. Raymond’s work and vision are more relevant and urgent now than ever before.

Watch your email inbox, the GSV Facebook group, and gayspiritvisions.org for more information about the 2019 Fall Conference. If you’re ready to register, click here.

This year we are celebrating Gay Spirit Visions’ 30th anniversary … time for a great celebration! Never before has the organization been as relevant as it is today.

We are living in unusually challenging times. Our society is experiencing an unprecedented spiritual malaise. It manifests in the outer crust of everyday political discourse but has its roots at a much deeper level. GSV’s 2019 Fall Conference will be a series of conversations on our society’s deeper spiritual misalignment and how we, as spiritually awakened gay men, can respond in a spiritually sourced way downloading guidance from higher realms.

For centuries humans have faced challenging social and political scenarios. Some of them chose to tune in to a higher frequency, a higher intelligence, and responded to those scenarios from a spiritual perspective. They have left us a rich legacy. Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela, the Vietnamese monk Thích Nh?t H?nh, and our own Martin Luther King Jr. faced deplorable circumstances and had every reason to become hateful and vindictive. They didn’t. They opened up, tuned in, and downloaded inspiration for guidance as to how to move forward and respond to the darkness with light.

Our conference will NOT be a conversation on bipartisan politics. It will not be a conversation about individual politicians. Nor will it be a discussion of the outer crust and everyday discourse we read about in the media.

The conference will explore ways of invoking and tuning in to spiritual inspiration, guidance, and solutions that empower us to create a world that is fair, inclusive, caring, and respectful of the earth and all sentient beings. We will explore how present social and political conditions can be seen as a call, a very loud call, for deeper healing, personal healing, and collective healing. Call it inspired activism, sacred activism, or any other name, it is activism emanating from a spiritual source.

So let us have conversations on reaching out to spirit, opening to spirit, and receiving from spirit, so that we may move forward as empowered creators of a better world. Let’s share ideas, let’s cross-pollinate thought, and enrich each other’s understanding of the loving community we are.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Meade, American anthropologist.

Raymond L. Rigoglioso is the founder and executive director of Gay Men of Wisdom. He is the author of the book Gay Men and The New Way Forward. In his book, Ray assists the reader in realizing how he serves and heals humanity and frees and enriches the human spirit. Former GSV keynote speakers Toby Johnson, Will Roscoe, Jon Stasio, and Mark Thompson have offered positive reviews of Gay Men and The New Way Forward.

Ray is a certified Life Coach through the International Coach Federation. His professional background includes more than two decades as a writer and editor for non-profit organizations in New York City and Boston. He co-founded the Danbury Area Gay and Lesbian Youth Group where he facilitated groups. After graduating from the New School in 1991, Ray went on to work at New York City’s Gay Men’s Health Crisis. Ray’s work and vision are more relevant and urgent now than ever before.

Cami Delgado
Convener – GSV 2019 Fall Conference

Watch for future e-mails and posts about the 2019 Fall Conference. In the meantime, register now!

The time is nigh to awaken with the opening of the green world all around us. We humans often think we live by our own rules, but it is usually nature which holds final sway. Every spring is a time to shoot out of the insulating casings we’ve built around ourselves to survive harsh times with our delicate petals of infinite colors to attract the next step of our life’s journey.

The natural die-back of the winter is coming to a close. We have made our necessary sacrifices, and into that void, we thrust our being with the beating hearts of all our ancestors, our brothers and sisters of the natural world, and all our future realities, spun from our favorite dreams and woven into a growing community with our intentions, desires, experiences, and joys. I offer this spring retreat to you as an opportunity to build yourself a gossamer web of connections between past and future, self and other, heaven and earth, and space and form, built upon acceptance, understanding, and appreciation.

The world is such that we are interdependent beings, reliant on one another, whether we want to be or not. What kind of world can we create when we consciously come together? What limitations are left in life when we open our hearts to loving all beings? What do we want our lives, our words, and our worlds to become? Is it possible to separate the you from the understanding I have of myself? What part of nature exists independent of everything else? What can possibly live in a vacuum?

Coming together is not just a fun and fanciful idea. It is actually impossible NOT to do. You choose not to come together with one being, and that forces you to come together with something else. When we consciously come together and share our thoughts, hopes, fears, and desires, we can reach much farther than we could ever go by ourselves. Alternately, when we view ourselves as independent, suddenly all our resources are scarce, everyone is an Other, and if I cannot do it myself, it cannot be done. These are all lies. You know this to be true.

So set the old beliefs aside. Come and explore with us what life could be like, if only a taste, a sweet possibility, a temptation of another way to live. Or come and dive deep into our swiftly spiritual waters, if wading is not enough to quench your thirst. We all carry a bucket of beliefs with us wherever we go and if we pool these waters together, we begin to see that anything is possible.

There is always more room in this mountain lagoon for your beliefs. Let’s dissolve the destructive and limiting beliefs, take their component parts and rebuild our inner world with grace and kindness. Let’s share our truths, our theories, our experiences, and our techniques, and knit our worlds together tighter and stronger. There is love in this labor that yearns for release. Why not share it with those who are sure to cherish it?

You are welcome here. You will always be welcome here. You are felt in your absence, even if you have not yet walked these paths. Come as you are. Come with all of yourself. There is no need to be anything more or anything less that exactly who you are, in all your shame, glory, courage, or lack thereof. Generations of wisdom run through your veins, whether you know it or not. Like buds in spring, open yourself to the truth that you are already everything you need to be. For yourself, for us, for the world.

This is a liminal event. Yes, it exists in a specific place and time, but really, it’s where and when it’s not taking place that’s important: your daily life. Yes, it’s both real and very temporary. We cannot live in this space. It’s an infinite space, where anything can become anything else, so long as you believe that it can. This is something for you to use to break out of the winter cocoon of your spirit (regardless of how long you’ve been sleeping) and reenter your everyday reenergized.

Yes, change can be scary, but it can also be fun. And yes, change can be hard, but it can be so rewarding. Come and explore the possibility of what your magicks bring to community. We’ll be here for you, and you’ll be here for us, and isn’t this give and receive in the same act really something sublime?

If you are interested in helping out with the retreat in any way during, before, or after the retreat, which is a great opportunity to really inject your magicky goodness into this and meet other people, consider reaching out to me directly at [email protected] or at [email protected] for more information in ways to be of assistance. Fire us an email too, if you have any other questions, comments, or concerns.

Remember, we do offer financial assistance, if finances are an obstacle. And most of us are happy to carpool. Please do not hesitate to lean on us. Why else are we here but to rely on one another?

With love, light, and the indomitable spirit of play,
Jason Lloyd Buchanan, Convener
GSV Spring Retreat, 2019

Register for the 2019 Spring Retreat

The Spring Conference approaches and the liminal window it promises shudders in the winds of your coming change. Will you be here with us when we open this window and usher in our wildest dreams? We can do more together. Add your voice to ours and let the universe hear what you have to say.

If not here, where? If not now, when?

Spring is the perfect time to clean out our skeletons and take stock of what we’re left with after winter has finished whitening our world. The crocuses bloom, the daffodils creep, and the lilies of the valley pop along with the spring beauties while the song of the spring peepers trail close behind. It is time to shed our snow-stiffened snake skins and burn ourselves back to life with phoenix fire.

Here at The Mountain, I offer a space and a place for you to warm yourself with like-minded magicians of all walks of life. To swap mental seeds for your inner garden and explore what you may have been too nervous to try alone or in the past. You are more powerful than you know. You can do this and anything after. We are creating an opportunity for you to stand in your power, unafraid of your own God-self, supported by all of us who follow a similar path.

Maybe you’re unsure of what you have to offer. Come anyway. Your openness is a gift as good as, if not better than, any expertise you may or may not claim to have, but we often know more than we think we do. Even a small thing we pick up along the way has the power to change another person’s world. One of the tricks of magick is that you have to believe you’re fully capable of changing the world. If you feel you’re not there, come anyway. We’ll believe in you for you. The universe loves to play.

And play we shall.

Intermixed with weekend workshops will be free-form exploration in solo or spontaneous groupwork through the establishment of designated and open play spaces throughout the conference for various fields of spirituality, such as connecting to spirits, creating rituals of your own, sharing healing touch with others, and discussing concepts in a cozy and relaxed atmosphere. Wherever you are, you will find both mentors and seekers in whatever flavor you come: non-theist, poly-theist, mono-theist, medium, healer, psychic, shaman, spiritualist, practitioner, priest, dreamer, channeler, alchemist, mage, meditator, wizard, witch, writer, whatever. There is a place for you here.

We still have space for more workshops. Show your brothers what you can do; show them how to do it for themselves. Please contact [email protected] directly or [email protected] with requests and further questions.

Looking forward to magicking with you,
Jason Lloyd Buchanan, Convener
GSV Spring Retreat, 2019

Register for the 2019 Spring Retreat

Magick is defined as the science and art of causing change in conformity to one’s will.

Maybe this turns you off, but I want to magick with everyone, everywhere, all the time. You may not know it, but every single one of you magicks, and every single one of you magicks in a deliciously unique way.

When I say “you magick,” what I mean is “you think, speak, and act in ways that manifest your world.” The shadow side of this is that, in reality, you can never not manifest your world. You either do it consciously through intention, or unconsciously through reaction.

Our dominant society often indoctrinates us into a cold (minus 457.87 degrees Fahrenheit) and unfeeling (without consciousness and absolutely objective) universe of material limitations, which distracts us from our own limitless possibilities. As salve, we are often taught that “everything happens for a reason” and “there is a bigger plan for you.” But neither of these partial truths give us back our power to define our own universes and become what we desire to be, so let me offer this to you as a reminder: There is no power in the universe that can stop you. So long as you have your will, you will find a way.

As convener, I request your presence this spring at The Mountain to “Awaken Our Magick” as a community. Together, we are going to create a space for all your magicks to be present, heard, and shared with others. Whether your magick takes the form of basic intentionality, ceremony and ritual, trance and other altered states, energy manipulation, psychic intuition, spirit communication, or any other form you have dreamt up, you are welcome here. Advanced practitioners, complete neophytes, and everyone left of, right of, or in between, are welcome here.

Raise your freak flag, gather your talismans, and prepare yourself for explorations into the invisible fabric of reality that underlies this one. Hand in hand, let’s cross the veil, and feel the omnipresence of love and light on the other side (safe, sane, and consensual practice, of course). No dying necessary.

Now calling for workshop leaders for the aforementioned topics and anything else that your intuition and your spirits tell you needs to be at our spring retreat. Please contact [email protected] directly or [email protected] with requests and further questions.

So mote it be,
Jason Lloyd Buchanan, Convener
GSV Spring Retreat, 2019

Register for the 2019 Spring Retreat

Sweet GSV siblings,

A new year is upon us, and I wanted to give you an update on what’s happening with Gay Spirit Visions.

January gets its name from Janus, the Greek god who had one face looking forward and another on the back of his head looking backward. It’s an appropriately named month as January, with its post-holiday lull, is a fine time to reflect on the past, reassess, and to reengage with the future.

That is at least as true for organizations like Gay Spirit Visions as it is for individuals, and with that in mind, your GSV Council wanted to give you an update on what our amazing community did in 2018 and what we are looking forward to this year. We feel that it’s important that our community know what’s going on with this organization we hold so close to our hearts, and we hope to make this State of the Tribe letter an annual update so that the members of our magical GSV family, widely scattered as they are, are kept apprised of our efforts on their behalf.

2019 is going to be an amazing year for us. Not only is 2019 going to be the 30th anniversary of Gay Spirit Visions, it will also be the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots that launched the modern gay rights movement! The glamorous Cami Delgado will be the Convener of Fall Conference XXX, and we are expecting it to be magical!!!

Atlanta, the GSV Mothership, has found itself in a state of flux in recent years. Randall Cumbaa will be hosting a GSV Heart Circle on January 26th, and information about that event can be found on the GSV Facebook page or by contacting Randall. GSV potlucks are happening in the Atlanta area randomly several times a year, and we are always looking for men who would like to host. Also, Randy Taylor has proposed a GSV book group to read Gay Men and the New Way Forward by Ray Riglioso, who is slated to be our keynote speaker at the Fall Conference.

Asheville has a large and vital (if unofficial) GSV community that maintains a close orbit around house parties and monthly massage events at the lovely home of Mahan-Kalpa.

Chicago’s branch of GSV is now in its eighth year. It has hosted a potluck every month since its founding in the fall of 2011. Seven Chicago men attended the Fall Conference in 2018. At various times GSV-C has offered a coffeeklatch as well as a book group, and we currently plan on having a booth at Chicago’s Pagan Pride Fair in September.

And, like any living thing, it changes.

Our thanks flow to these extraordinary men for their loving service to our community. They went above and beyond the call of duty for GSV. They were on the council during a particularly challenging period in GSV’s history, and they stayed focused, maintained organizational cohesion, and ensured that GSV is able to continue its mission into the future.

Wendell was not just GSV’s long-term Treasurer, he has also been the tireless champion of the silent auction that funds our financial assistance efforts. Wendell was a mindful and responsible steward of GSV’s funds, and he left the accounts and the scholarship fund in excellent shape for his successors.

Doug has been a diligent member of the Altared Spaces Working Circle and a devoted overseer and defender of GSV’s Facebook page.

Tony James is, and has long been, a HUGE part of GSV’s organizational memory, and his years of diligent service to our tribe — on council and off — have been a truly gracious gift to our community.

The greater GSV community may or may not know how much these men have done for our tribe, but we on the council certainly do, and we are aglow with gratitude.

Jonny “Mothra” Gray began attending GSV at the Fall Conference in 2016. He has attended the Fall Conference and Winter Retreat since then. He has volunteered extensively with the Shauna Pleas Boutique, and he has also helped with sound for the talent show. In the fall of 2017 he took his Faerie name, “Mothra.” In the mundane world, Jonny is a professor of Communication Studies at Southern Illinois University. He is also the host of the community radio (WDBX) show and podcast, “Isn’t It Queer.”

Mackie Obando was born in Lima, Perú and moved to Atlanta in 1996, just in time for the Olympics. He works in the hospitality field, where he enjoys getting to know a variety of cultures.His first experience with GSV was the 2015 Spring Retreat, and he has attended several conferences since. Being in the Parade of Beauties and the Talent Show are his favorite aspects of the GSV experience, followed by the small group experience, which he feels to be enrichment for the soul. Music, singing, dance, and musical theater are few of Mackie’s many passions.

Randy Taylor graduated to GSV from being a Radical Faery. He has been involved with GSV from its inception, and it was he who designed GSV’s iconic dancing men images for one of the early flyers. His spiritual journey has included Christianity, Paganism, Shamanism, Buddhism, Science of Mind, Steampunk, agnosticism, Laconneau, Trance Postures, and Neuro-Linguistic Programming. His current practice includes sacred geometry, TM, playfulness, curiosity, and Yoga. His life is a synthesis of all he has experienced so far, and he brings this experience to his service with GSV. He remains a bit of a steampunk Faery, and his drag is costumes. He is semi-retired and lives in East Atlanta, where he recently celebrated a one year anniversary with his partner Cal Gough. Randy was the Convener of the 2018 Fall Conference “Insatiable Curiosity.”

After the changes mentioned above, The Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions for 2019 consists of Kraig “Nightshade” Blackwelder, Bill Harris, Randall Cumbaa, Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa, Bruce “Dandylion” Tidwell, Jason Buchanan, Jonny “Mothra” Gray, Mackie Obando, and Randy Taylor.

The officers are Kraig “Nightshade” Blackwelder (Presiding Elder), Bill Harris (Treasurer), and Jason Buchanan (Secretary).

Note that you can always find a current roster of who’s on council by going to the
participatory leadership page of the GSV website.

Volunteering with the GSV Working Circles is a fantastic way to build community, to meet new friends, to help create GSV magic, and to ensure the continuation of our magnificent, open-hearted tribe. The Liaisons are the coordinators of their respective Working Circles, and we encourage you to reach out to them if you feel called to dive into GSV for more than the occasional conference. Being on a GSV Working Circle is one of the best ways to keep that GSV magic going all year long!

The current Liaisons for the Working Circles are:

Doug “Kaptain Krunch” Emerson for Altared Spaces
Randall Cumbaa for Archives, Culture, and Traditions
Ralph Fruchtman for Communications
Dev “Trio” Devereaux for Entertainment
Greg “Puck” Fields for Financial Assistance
Michael “Cherry Penetrada” Gilchrist for Gender Freedom and Expression
Neil Burns for Music & Movement
Scotty “Banana Spider” Simons for Rituals & Fire and The Firekeeper is Ken “Fire Bear” Berman
Mahan-Kalpa Khalsa for Sacred Touch
Bill Harris for Small Groups, and
Ted Gulick for Welcome & Hospitality

The dates for our conferences in 2019 are: •Winter Meditation: January 18 – 20
•Spring Retreat: April 12 – 14
•Fall Conference: September 19 – 22

Thank you for being a member of our amazing community. We hope you like where we’re going.

Warm hugs to all of my GSV siblings! I look forward to seeing you up on The Mountain or wherever our paths may cross.

Nightshade, Presiding Elder
On behalf of the Council of Trusted Elders of Gay Spirit Visions: Bill Harris, Randall Cumbaa, Mahan-Kalpa Kalsa, Dandylion, Jason Buchanan, Randy Taylor, Jonny Gray, and Mackie Obando.

Winter at The Mountain is a magical experience. Long dark hours in retreat from life’s commitments create space for tranquil reflection and mindful intention. The Mountain beckons you to come, let go, and be in the moment.

This year’s Winter Meditation will provide you the opportunity to experience activities with the purpose of creating space to be present and open to clarity. Silent, Guided, and Mindful meditation will be offered. Additionally, Sacred Sound Journey, Chakra Dhyana, and Sacred Healing Touch will be offered. Active methods of creating present awareness will include T‘ai Chi Ch‘üan, Iyengar Yoga, Theravada Walking Meditation, and Contemplative Drumming. Finally, intention setting activities will include Soulful Breathwork, Mindful Scripting, and Sacred Elder Bead stringing. The weekend will start with a pilgrimage of light and be complete with the calm of thoughtful intention.

Pack a “steamer trunk” if you wish and include warm comfortable clothing for times of stillness, loose attire for movement activities, ritual attire (robe, cape, cassock, etc.) for a pilgrimage, a mat, pillow and/or blanket for other activities, a drum, pen and paper, and flannel jammies!

I hope you will join your brothers at The Mountain and be in the midst of love, reflection, consciousness, stillness, presentness, and…. to just be!

We want anyone who resonates with our mission to be able to attend our gatherings. The Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund was created to help offset the cost of a GSV gathering so that attending does not impose undue financial hardship. For more information and to apply for assistance,
click here.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

Bill Harris,
2019 Winter Meditation Convener

Register for the 2019 Winter Meditation

GSV 2019 Winter Meditation

Tranquil Reflection & Mindful Intention

January 18-20, 2019

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center ~ Highlands, NC

Dear Siblings, When there are no ripples on the water of a lake its surface becomes almost invisible as it reflects the beauty of the landscape around it; the trees and the sky. In the same way, the still mind reflects the beauty of creation and melts into a state of peaceful awareness. In this state of thoughtless awareness we think neither of the past nor of the future. We are entirely in the present moment as we start to enjoy our Self, our spirit, our own inner beauty and the beauty of creation. We simply embrace being and become less distracted by the simple joys of our existence. Meditation is a state of profound and deep peace that occurs when the mind is calm and silent, yet completely alert. This is just the beginning of an inner transformation that takes us to a higher level of awareness. Whatever method of meditation is used, the purpose is not to fight off the mind chatter of thoughts, but to stay focused on the present moment and use our breathing, a mantra, a repetitive activity or other technique to keep us grounded in the moment. When we have silenced the chatter and become focused on the present moment, we open ourselves to clarity, direction, and inspiration. This year’s Winter Meditation will provide you the opportunity to experience activities with the purpose of creating space to be present and open to clarity. Silent, Guided, and Mindful meditation will be offered. Additionally, Sacred Sound Journey, Chakra Dhyana, and Sacred Healing Touch will be offered. Active methods of creating present awareness will include T‘ai Chi Ch‘üan, Iyengar Yoga, Theravada Walking Meditation, and Contemplative Drumming. Finally, intention setting activities will include Soulful Breathwork, Mindful Scripting, and Sacred Elder Bead stringing. The weekend will start with a pilgrimage of light and be complete with the calm of thoughtful intention. Pack a “steamer trunk” if you wish and be sure to include warm comfortable clothing for times of stillness, loose attire for movement activities, ritual attire (robe, cape, cassock, etc.) for a pilgrimage, a mat, pillow and/or blanket for other activities, a drum, pen and paper, and flannel jammies! I hope you will join your brothers at The Mountain in January to be in the midst of love, reflection, consciousness, stillness, presentness, and…. to just be! I look forward to seeing you in January. Bill Harris 2019 Winter Meditation Convener Register for the 2019 Winter Meditation

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

This year’s Winter Meditation will be a time of “Tranquil Reflection & Mindful Intention.” We will be offering several forms of meditation from silent to sound, stillness to motion, and contemplation to mindfulness.

The Friday evening ceremony will include a pilgrimage of light to the Sacred Space to call in the directions, a release of the weights of your journey, and a sowing of seeds of intention. Prepare now for the pilgrimage by gathering your cassock, cheongsam, chasuble, cape, monks robe, or similar ritual attire. Saturday will provide numerous opportunities to reflect and go within through ancient and modern forms of meditation. Plan to bring warm comfortable garments for the times of stillness and loose attire for activities with movement. Also consider mats, pillows, and blankets for function and enhanced comfort during some activities. Saturday will also allow freedom to escape into unstructured activities designed for calm intent. Sunday will be the culmination of the weekend’s reflective activity into the calm of thoughtful intention.

I hope you will join your brothers at The Mountain in January to be in the midst of love, to be reflective, be conscious, be still, be present, and…. just be!

I look forward to seeing you in January.

Bill Harris
2019 Winter Meditation Convener

Register for the 2019 Winter Meditation

Last Call to Have Fun

September 27 – 30, 2018

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center ~ Highlands, NC

4 day / 3 night package (Thursday through Sunday)

Bunkhouse $324.18 | Cabin $380.22 | Lodge $418.65

5 day / 4 night package (Wednesday through Sunday)

Bunkhouse $398.90 | Cabin $473.63 | Lodge $524.87

Dear Men Who Love Men,

Many of us will soon gather at The Mountain for our annual fall conference. If you plan to attend but aren’t registered, please
click here to register now. We’ll send an email that explains how to prepare for and what to bring to the conference to all registrants around September 12th.

Our keynote speaker will be artist Patton White. Patton will present “Insatiable Curiosity/Radical Collaboration” as a two-part experience, asking deep questions and seeking answers. In the first session, we will get in touch with our bodies and creative energies by examining a dance/movement technique developed by Lawrence and Anna Halprin called RSVP Cycles. In a later session, we will work in small groups to create brief performances that embody the collaborative investigations that have happened during the weekend. These sessions will serve as bookends, of sorts, for the work that takes place throughout the weekend.

About Patton White

Patton has been working as a multidisciplinary artist for over 40 years. He has designed costumes, created installation sculpture, video art work, and photography, and has choreographed and danced since the late 1970’s. He has worked as an independent artist and has been a part of many performing ensembles, including Beacon Dance, Core Dance, Dance South, Ruth Mitchell Dance Theatre (now Georgia Metropolitan Dance Theatre), The Georgia Ballet, and many others. For the past decade he’s focused on improvisation as a performance technique and the intersection of social dance and dance for the stage. As a member of Alternate ROOTS since 1997, he believes passionately in the arts as a tool for social justice.

The fall conference workshops will address ideals set forth by one of history’s most insatiable curious gay artists: Leonardo da Vinci. These are some examples:

To test our questions and to demonstrate our thoughts we will create poetry and embrace our gender outsiderness.

To exalt in our sensuality and how we experience the world we will honor and adore our bodies and participate in sacred healing touch.

To celebrate ambiguity and paradox we will examine faith versus reason and question whether the beliefs we developed as children were based on faith or reason.

To cultivate grace, beauty, and spirit we will communicate answers to deep questions using motion storytelling and body language, practice yoga, and examine the male nude through drawing.

To learn how to embrace a balance of logic and imagination, and art and science, we will embrace the spirit of Peter Pan and Euclidian geometry, examine how things fly, and create flying objects.

To recognize and appreciate the connectedness of all things and phenomena we will explore the roots of our compassionate hearts and minds and examine our stories to go beyond the work of the ego.

To embody persistent empowerment we will acknowledge the cultural significance and importance of the role of the gay man as a leader, prophet, and healer for our tribe and community, and we will create personal symbols of empowerment to use in our daily lives.

Evenings at the conference will continue exploration of the theme of insatiable curiosity. On Friday evening we will have a contra dance (a communal-style folk dance that’s easy to learn and needs no experience) with live musicians. An expressive dance with recorded music will follow. There will also be opportunities to sing, perform, and find your drag persona with a cabaret sing-along, talent show, and the ever-popular Parade of Beauties.

The conference will be supported by:
• The opening and closing rituals that call upon the forces and ideals of hope to guide us in the work that we do.
• A community altar that represents the ambiguity and paradox that we find in the world.
• Heart circles that allow us to meet in sacred space, be fully present with one another, and share openly, honestly, and lovingly about our conference experiences.
• Small group meetings that allow each of us to feel acknowledged and supported while we share and discuss confidentially how our conference experience fits with (or challenges) our personal spiritual journeys.

Financial Assistance

We want anyone who resonates with our mission to be able to attend our gatherings. The Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund was created to help offset the cost of a GSV gathering so that attending does not impose undue financial hardship. For more information and to apply for assistance,
click here. Financial assistance applications must be submitted no later than September 16 th.

We’d like to thank everyone who’s given generously so that others may find sanctuary and space at our gatherings. Your tax-deductible donations are needed to sustain the financial assistance fund. Visit
GaySpiritVisions.org and complete the DONATE TODAY section on the right side of any web page.

In conclusion, please bring to the conference your affection for men who love men and your insights about how our being gay allows us to question society’s expectations and replace our subservience with insatiable curiosity.

With loving intentions,

Randy Taylor
GSV 2018 Fall Conference Convener

Register for the 2018 Fall Conference

Sweet Brothers in Spirit,

We have a special treat in store for you after this year’s Fall Conference! Many of you have recorded interviews for the GSV archives housed at Georgia State University, and some of you have donated programs, photos, and various assorted items to this collection. Now we’re going to gather while we’re still basking in Fall Conference afterglow to take a trip to the archives!

On Monday, October 1st (the Monday after the Fall Conference concludes) we will gather at the Chamblee Marta Station at 9:15 a.m. and board the 9:34 train for GSU. After spending a few delightful hours at the GSU Archives, wandering through the past, looking at our organization’s history, and, perhaps, identifying brothers in pictures we will share a late lunch together before returning to our default lives.
Brothers may leave at any time, and it’s an easy walk to the GSU MARTA station for those who need to get to the airport or other destinations.

If you would like to host an out-of-town GSV brother on Sunday night, or if you are an out-of-town GSV brother needing a place to stay Sunday after the conference, feel free to arrange that at the Fall Conference or send a note to [email protected] and we’ll see if we can help.

Call for Workshops

September 27 – 30, 2018

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center ~ Highlands, NC

4 day / 3 night package (Thursday through Sunday)

Bunkhouse $324.18 | Cabin $380.22 | Lodge $418.65

5 day / 4 night package (Wednesday through Sunday)

Bunkhouse $398.90 | Cabin $473.63 | Lodge $524.87

Dear Brothers in Spirit,

The GSV 2018 Fall Conference overall goal is to investigate how the gift of gayness includes curiosity. When this curiosity becomes insatiable we can change the world (see the invitation to the conference for more detailed information).

If you will be attending and would like to present a workshop that fits the overall theme of the weekend, please do the following:

Make sure your idea matches one of the goals or the theme of the gathering.
Through this curiosity we will explore the following:
• Find ways to test or prove the answers to our questions.
• Exult in our sensuality and how we experience the world.
• Create ambiguity and paradox.
• Cultivate grace, beauty, and spirit.
• Balance logic and imagination, art and science.
• Recognize and appreciate the connectedness of things and phenomena.
• Embody persistent empowerment.
We will use Leonardo da Vinci as a model that embodies these ideals.

Please provide the following information:
• Your full name
• Email address
• Phone number
• Workshop title
• Area of the theme to which the workshop connects or explores
• Objective of the workshop
• Description (include the format for the workshop, e.g. hands-on, lecture/talk, discussion, etc.)
• Time needed for completion
• Specific requirements (meeting space, setup, audio/visual, etc.)
Send the information to [email protected].

Your proposal will be reviewed and considered for the Fall Conference based on the match to the conference goals. I want to confirm workshops by August 20, so please get them in by August 15. Thank you for your willingness to share your experiences and curiosities with your GSV brothers.

Randy Taylor
2018 Fall Conference Convener

Register for the 2018 Fall Conference

Fall Conference Tier Pricing

Sweet Siblings in Gay Spirit,

I hope summer is treating you well and that you’re looking forward to gathering with us again for the Fall Conference in September!

Many of you have noticed that you have more pricing options for this year’s Fall Conference than you’ve had before, with the cost being determined by your housing choice. This is something The Mountain does for other groups, and the GSV Council wanted to see if this would work for our community. We are mindful of the fact that our conferences — wonderful as they are — can be hard to fit into a budget. Our goal in moving to this tiered pricing structure is to make the Fall Conference more affordable for more people. This price structure could be the difference between a man being able to attend the Fall Conference or staying home. Or it could be the difference between a man being able to stay the extra night or not.

Last year the cost of the standard 4 day/3 night Fall Conference was $405.65, regardless of where you were housed. This year you get to choose from three price tiers, which are determined by your housing choice. Staying in a bunkhouse will cost $328.18, which is $77 LESS than last year’s Fall Conference. Staying in a cabin will run you $380.22, and if you opt to stay in the Lodge you’ll pay $418.65. Again, these prices are for the standard 4 day/3 night event; staying the extra day will, as it always has, cost a bit more.

We also think this system is fairer. In previous years, housing was randomly assigned, and you wouldn’t know until you got up to The Mountain whether you were staying in the Lodge, in a cabin, or in a bunkhouse. This way you’ll be able to choose the housing option that best suits your needs.

I hope this sheds some light on why we moved to the new pricing structure. Please bear in mind that this is an experiment. We will be asking for your feedback in the post-conference survey, and we look forward to hearing about how this pricing structure works (or doesn’t work) for you.

Here are a couple of points to keep in mind when registering:
• We recommend registering early if you know you want to stay in the Lodge; those rooms go quickly.
• If you want to have a particular roommate, be sure to coordinate with that individual to make sure you both have the same housing option in mind.
I hope to see you at the Fall Conference!

Gourmet hugs,

Nightshade
Presiding Elder, Gay Spirit Visions
On behalf of the GSV Council: Wendell, Tony, Doug, Randall, Bill, Mahan-Kalpa, Jason, and Dandy
[email protected]

Register for the 2018 Fall Conference

Insatiable Curiosity

September 27 – 30, 2018

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

4 day / 3 night package (Thursday through Sunday)

Bunkhouse $324.18 | Cabin $380.22 | Lodge $418.65

5 day / 4 night package (Wednesday through Sunday)

Bunkhouse $398.90 | Cabin $473.63 | Lodge $524.87

Dear Brothers,

By recognizing ourselves as evolving gay spirits we are forced to question the norm. This questioning opens the world and allows our curiosity to expand and be a force that can guide us throughout our life. We begin to become curious about phenomena beyond our love for men. We question what we have been told about sensuality, beauty, ambiguity, science, compassion, and the world of the spirit. By being this ‘outsider’ we have a unique perspective on the world and can share that perspective with others. Some cultures value this perspective, and others do not.

With this curious perspective also comes a responsibility to go beyond being curious. It is one thing to ask the question and another to seek an answer. The process of seeking is the process of revelation and empowerment.

When one considers who we have become, one often looks to those who have come before and have inspired us. We have individuals from our past, and we have those who are larger than us who came down through history. We can choose to select the role models to further our individual growth and inspire us toward the realization of our potential. In “Bazar’s Book of Genius – And How to Unleash Your Own,” the person who rated highest in “Originality,” “Versatility,” “Dominance of Field,” “Universality-of-Vision,” and “Strength and Energy” is a gay man — Leonardo da Vinci.

Through our insatiable curiosity we find ways to test our questions and demonstrate our thoughts. We exalt in our sensuality and how we experience the world. We celebrate ambiguity and paradox. We cultivate grace, beauty, and spirit. We balance logic and imagination, art and science. We grow to recognize and appreciate the connectedness of all things and phenomena. We embody persistent empowerment. These are the ideals that encompassed the life of Leonardo, and these are the ideals that will be the driving force for our time together at the Fall Conference.

We will gather at The Mountain to ask questions, celebrate, and enliven our insatiable curiosity.

Be prepared for Pageantry and Artistic and Scientific Expression. Bring material for artistic expression — poetry, musical instruments, art supplies.

Bring fashion, garb, costumes, and makeup for the talent show, dancing, music making, and daily promenades.

Bring your love for men who love men.

“Heaven sometimes sends us a being who represents not humanity alone but divinity itself.” — Giorgio Vasari, speaking on da Vinci in “The Lives of the Artists (1550).”

Randy Taylor
2018 Fall Conference Convener

Register for the 2018 Fall Conference

Saturday June 23, 2018 ~ 9:00AM – 5:00PM

Sunday June 24, 2018 ~ 9:00AM – 1:00PM

office of Positive Impact ~ 523 Church Street, Decatur Georgia

The GSV Council of Elders conducts a face-to-face meeting at least once a year. This is in addition to our monthly conference call meetings. This meeting gives the Council Members a chance to actually spend time together and do more extensive planning, etc. All council meetings are open to anyone involved with GSV, but most particularly we look forward to input and participation at our face-to-face meetings. Although only Council Members can vote, we have found community input to be invaluable.

Our next council meeting will be a face-to-face meeting, scheduled for June 23 & 24. The meeting times are 9:00 – 5:00 on Saturday and 9:00 – 1:00 on Sunday. The location will be at the office of Positive Impact, located at 523 Church Street in Decatur, Georgia.

If you are interested in joining us please message Bill Harris so that we have an idea on who will be attending.

Thanks,
Bill Harris

Embodying Community: Our Big Spring Thing!

April 13 -15, 2018

at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Cost is $257.43 (double occupancy) | $332.16 (single occupancy)

“The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.”
— Mitch Albom

Greetings Brothers!

We’ll soon gather at The Mountain, GSV’s spiritual home for more than 26 years, to enjoy hugs, laughs, great conversation, open-hearted men, beautiful vistas, hiking, napping and more. During our Big Spring Thing, you’ll have opportunities to explore what Embodying Community is all about. If you haven’t registered, there’s still time. Click here to get started.

Community Workshops

If you have an idea for a workshop, activity or discussion at the Spring Retreat, we still have a few times available. Just send a short description of your idea to [email protected] and include a list of supplies you would need, if any. Please send your proposal no later than Tuesday, April 10th.

A sign-up sheet will be available at The Mountain for any last-minute workshop ideas.

What Kinds of Workshops Will Be Offered?

Some of the workshops we have on tap will provide opportunities to:
•Let your inner kid come out to play
•Experience a one-man musical show about life in the theater and the theater in life
•Explore yoga in a free and liberating way
•Start your day with positive intentions
•Understand what makes you happy and develop deeper appreciation for who you are
•Learn about and experience the benefits of Sacred Sound
•Surrender to the healing power of Sacred Touch
•Take a wild ride from isolation to exaltation
•Explore erotic physical play in a safe setting
•Find the joy of non-verbal communication through physical movement
•Learn the power of positive affirmation
•Explore the importance of recording gay history
•and more!

Financial Assistance

Economic challenges may make it difficult or impossible for some to attend our gatherings. The Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund was established to help prevent registration costs from imposing undue financial hardship. For more information and to apply for assistance, visit the Financial Assistance page on our website.

Th-th-th-that’s all folks!

We hope to see many of you on The Mountain next weekend.

Your GSV Council

Register for the 2018 Spring Retreat

Embodying Community: Our Big Spring Thing!

April 13 -15, 2018

at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Cost is $257.43 (double occupancy) | $332.16 (single occupancy)

Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!”
— Auntie Mame

Lovely Brothers,

What are your driving passions? What fascinations do you have that you might want to share with others? What portion of the experiential banquet can you provide for Our Big Spring Thing?

We would love for you to present a short workshop on a topic dear to your heart, so that we can benefit from your enthusiasm and experience.

GSV retreats are, and have always been, a place for our community to share gifts, hone skills, and reveal our deliciousness to an open-hearted audience. This year’s Spring Retreat aims to be a showcase of our community for our community.

Sharing our interests in this way helps to expand our minds, share our fascinations with others, and tighten the weave of our community.

Several of your GSV siblings have already signed up to share their knowledge, gifts, and talents. Our Big Spring Thing is shaping up to be a delightful feast of experiences, and we’d like the benefit of your knowledge, your hobbies, and your experience as well!

Won’t you please join us for Our Big Spring Thing?

If you have a clear sense of what you would like to present, please send a short description of what you have in mind to [email protected] along with a list of any supplies your workshop might require. Those who sign up in advance will get the better presentation spaces, but, as in years past, there will also be a sign-up sheet for those who get up to The Mountain and decide at the last minute that they would like to offer a workshop, give a presentation, or host a salon.

We look forward to seeing you, and learning from you, up on The Mountain!

Your Council

Register for the 2018 Spring Retreat

April 13 -15, 2018

at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Cost is $257.43 (double occupancy) | $332.16 (single occupancy)

Embodying Community: Our Big Spring Thing

Sweet siblings in Spirit, we are delighted to invite you to this year’s Gay Spirit Visions Spring Retreat that we are calling Embodying Community: Our Big Spring Thing!

From its inception, Gay Spirit Visions has woven together the voices, stories, and gifts of our brilliant, open-hearted community, and this year’s Spring Retreat hearkens back to the early days of GSV when all programming came from the vast pool of talent that is y’all.

We have always striven to make our events a nurturing, empowering setting for revealing our gifts to our community, to the world, and, sometimes, to ourselves, and this spring we are inviting you to share your talents, your passions, your hobbies, and your calling with your siblings in the tribe.

What do you know, or know how to do, that you can share with us? What fascination do you have that you might also kindle in a GSV sibling? Whether you’re sharing a skill you’ve been honing for decades or a hobby you took up last year, we would love the benefit of your enthusiasm and knowledge. Can you show us how to knit? Can you direct us in a play? Can you host a witty, erudite salon? Have you always wanted to convene a puppy pile?

If you have a clear sense of what you would like to present, please send a short description of what you have in mind to [email protected] along with a list of any supplies your workshop might require. Those who sign up in advance will get the better presentation spaces, but, as in years past, there will also be a sign-up sheet for those who get up to The Mountain and decide at the last minute that they would like to offer a workshop, give a presentation, or host a salon.

We look forward to seeing you, and learning from you, up on The Mountain!

Your Council

Register for the 2018 Spring Retreat

2018 GSV Spring Retreat

April 13 – 15, 2018

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center

Highlands North Carolina

Registration and pricing information will soon be available for the 2018 GSV Spring Retreat. Mark your calendars and plan to join us at The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center in Highlands North Carolina from April 13th to April 15th.

Bringing Darkness to the Light

January 12 – 14, 2018

at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Cost: $235.02 – Double Occupancy | $309.74 – Single Occupancy

“What hurts you, blesses you.
Darkness is your candle.”
— Rumi

Dear Siblings,

As the days become shorter, and the nights enshroud us with darkness earlier, the GSV Winter Meditation approaches! Be a part of a beloved community of intentional queer men for a weekend of contemplation and celebration.

Together, we will share stories of our own dark nights, follow ancient heroes on their epic quests, and join mystics as they search the darkness for their Beloved. What will we find in the darkness? We may experience fear, but we will also encounter our deepest dreams and desires. We will boldly claim our darkness!

There will be time to get pampered and time to get crafty. Design your own devotional candle to bring light to your life after the retreat. Our GSV brother Rocky Beeland will offer gentle yoga on Saturday afternoon. His style of yoga is suitable for all levels of ability and experience. Saturday evening will include a ceremony of light and darkness, based on the ancient ritual of Tenebrae (with a queer twist!).

Those wishing to stay until Monday may register to do so, but meals will not be provided by The Mountain after lunch on Sunday.

In darkness and light,
Andy Foskey, Convener

Andy is an Atlanta native who now resides in the scenic city of Chattanooga, TN, nestled between the Cumberland Plateau and the Blue Ridge Mountains. He is a librarian by day. His essay “All About My Job Hunt” appears in Out Behind the Desk: Workplace Issues for LGBTQ Librarians, an anthology of personal accounts by librarians and library workers relating experiences of being gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or queer at work. He enjoys hunting for rocks and crystals at flea markets and creek beds, and creating tiny altars whenever and wherever he can. This is his third time contributing to a GSV gathering.

Register for the 2018 Winter Meditation

Bringing Darkness to the Light

January 12 – 14, 2018

at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Cost: $235.02 – Double Occupancy | $309.74 – Single Occupancy

Life’s waters flows from darkness.
Search the darkness, don’t run from it.
-Rumi

Dear Siblings,

Come gather during the darkest time of the year with a loving community of men who love men for a weekend of supportive exploration of the dark corners of our collective consciousness. Surrounded by loving siblings, we will create a safe vessel to share, listen, and celebrate the delicious darkness that both terrifies and inspires us.

We will explore mystical texts, such as Dark Night of the Soul by Juan de la Cruz, tales from world mythologies, and contemporary personal stories to enrich our understanding of the wisdom that is found in darkness.

We will experience different styles of meditation, including silent and guided meditation, walking meditation, and lectio divina, or divine reading. There will be plenty of time for reflection, writing, healing arts, and labyrinth walks, weather permitting.

You are invited to share your gifts during this retreat by proposing a workshop, offering massage, playing music, or whatever you feel called to bring! Contact the Winter Convener with your ideas, dreams, and questions. More information will be available in the coming weeks.

In gratitude,

Andy Foskey, Convener

Register for the 2018 Winter Meditation

GSV 2017 Fall Conference

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider

September 21 – 24, 2017

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

4 Days / 3 Nights: $405.65 (conference only, all inclusive)
5 Days / 4 Nights: $496.39 (arrive a day early + conference)

* Prices include taxes and program fee. *
The Conference begins at 5:00pm on Thursday and ends at 2:30pm on Sunday.
Registration starts at 3:00pm on Wednesday and Thursday.

Part III
Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider

(This is Part III of a series, for Parts I and II click here)

Sweet Men of the Tribe,

This year’s Fall Conference, Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider, is shaping up to be truly memorable on many levels!  We are premeditating joy and building delight! Sacred mischief is being planned and magic is afoot! The outsiders are coming together to create a spectacular, magical space beyond default reality, and we would love for you to join us!

As you have likely noticed by now, our keynote speaker is the brilliant Hindu drag nun (and YouTube sensation!) Sister Unity. In addition to our usual dance and “Talent” Show, we will be having a drum circle, a musical revue led by David Berger, a gorgeous Mabon ritual by Peregrine (Michael Chavez), and no fewer than three Sacred Touch events led by Mahan-Kalpa. We have an embarrassing wealth of workshops for the mind, the body, and the spirit led by Bob Strain, Nightshade, Tim Flood, Todd Humphrey, Bumblebee, and several others. Pariah status has never been so enviable!

If attending the Fall Conference would cause you undue financial hardship, the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund is available to help. To apply for financial assistance, click here.

Registration has been brisk, and we are rapidly pushing up against our attendance cap, so registering now will be doing yourself a kindness.

I hope to see you up amidst the magic of The Mountain!

Sincerely (and with epic levels of enthusiasm),

Your humble Convener,
Nightshade

Register for the Fall Conference>>

GSV 2017 Fall Conference

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider

September 21 – 24, 2017

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

4 Days / 3 Nights: $405.65 (conference only, all inclusive)

5 Days / 4 Nights: $496.39 (arrive a day early + conference)

* Prices include taxes and program fee. *

Part II

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider

(This is Part II of a series, for Part I click here)

Dear Brothers,

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider will celebrate the blessings we receive from being outsiders to the mainstream culture. We will consider the gifts we gain personally, those we share with our fellow exiles, and those we are able to share with our communities thanks to our outsider perspective. We will also contemplate forms of activism that improve the lives of other outsiders.

It is easy enough to dwell on the challenges and pain of not fitting in. Early on, especially, we may long to be “normal.” We may overlook the blessings we receive that the “normal” folks never experience. As wise, witchy Aunt Frances asks in the movie Practical Magic, “When are you going to realize that being normal is not necessarily a virtue? It rather denotes a lack of courage!”

To some, outsider status — life in the brambles — becomes a spiritual calling. With time and experience, we may come to find that it is our unique blessings and perspectives that provide us with our reason for existing; we realize that those same qualities that make us outsiders also give our lives meaning. We are necessary in that way that shamans have always been necessary; we are the conduits of grace from the Outside. As Frank Zappa said, “Without deviation, progress is not possible.” We are that necessary deviation, and if, in the name of normality, conformity, or comfort, we abandon our strange angels, our mischievous devils, and our inner weirdos, then we have silenced precisely the portions of ourselves that we are here to express, share, and live most fully.

On the yonder side of normal, we have woven a community amidst the brambles’ thorny canes and built a culture. We have grown resilient through challenge. We have grown wise in banishment. We have learned, through necessity, a queer form of alchemy that transforms exile into artistry, isolation into solitude, and pain into wisdom. Upon receiving these insights, we transmit them to others in our tribe and bestow them, eventually, to the world at large. By so doing, our small tribe’s visionaries have contributed to culture in ways that far exceed our numbers.

Please come join us for this discovery and celebration of our hard-won gifts! We will be waiting for you amidst the trees of that magical place, The Mountain, where hugs are abundant, where compassion flows like an ocean, and where all of you is welcome.

Bring garb for the “Talent” Show.

Bring garb (and drums) for the Drum Circle.

Bring garb to dazzle and seduce!
Register for the 2017 Fall Conference

Nightshade (Kraig Blackwelder)
2017 Fall Conference Convener

Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund

The Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund is available to help facilitate the presence of those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to join us due to lack of funds. If you require financial assistance to attend the conference, click here.

If you previously applied for assistance (or thought you did) and haven’t received a response, please complete the application again. We apologize for any inconvenience. Applications must be submitted by Sunday, September 10th. 

As you prepare to come to The Mountain, keep in mind that a Silent Auction Fundraiser will be held during the conference to benefit the Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. To participate simply select items of value that you no longer need, register them here by Wednesday, September 20th, bring them with you, and come prepared to bid on the treasures brought by others.

To make a tax-deductible gift by credit or debit card, visit gayspiritvisions.org and follow the DONATE TODAY instructions on the right side of the page.

On behalf of the GSV Council and the men who benefit from your donations, thank you!

Register for the Fall Conference>>

GSV 2017 Fall Conference

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider

September 21 – 24, 2017

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

4 Days / 3 Nights: $405.65 (conference only, all inclusive)

5 Days / 4 Nights: $496.39 (arrive a day early + conference)

* Prices include taxes and program fee. *

Part I

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider

Dear Brothers,
As a tribe, gay men are no strangers to the pain of outcast status. The thorns of alienation have pierced us all. We are more than casually familiar with the sting of loneliness and despair. At certain times and in certain places we have been obligated to hide our lives, our love, and our gifts behind a tangle of strategic illusions – or suffer the consequences.

Thrown as we’ve been into this briar patch, we’ve had the uncomfortable privilege of cultivating extraordinary lives of otherness and vision. We have taken long, meandering tours of Neverland and Oz and returned with souvenirs and insight. We have been down stranger rabbit holes than Alice ever imagined, and Spirit has cordially invited us to develop alternative gifts – some as personal (and useful) as gaydar, resilience, and empathy, others as grand as music, literature, and culture itself. How can we not celebrate?

Pariah Magic: Gifts of the Outsider will be both an acknowledgment of the burdensome nature of our gifts and a celebration of the queer joys of exile. Over the course of the conference, we will consider the gifts, obvious and subtle, that have flowed to us due to our outsider status. We will cultivate gratitude for these sometimes-challenging gifts. We will seek out opportunities to share our gifts with others, and we will discuss ways of assisting and defending those who may not yet see exile for the gift that it is.

We will gather together in a magical place atop The Mountain to take stock of the gifts that have flowed to us while we have walked the path of otherness. In our exile, we have become poets and warriors, firekeepers and shamans, faeries and philosophers, dancers and dreamers, tricksters and healers, explorers and mentors.
How can we not celebrate?

Bring garb for the “Talent” Show.

Bring garb (and drums) for the Drum Circle.

Bring garb to dazzle and seduce!

As you prepare to come to The Mountain, please keep in mind the Silent Auction that benefits GSV’s Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund. It is as helpful as it is simple: Bring items of value that you no longer need, and come prepared to bid on the treasures that speak to your spirit that were brought by others. All proceeds help facilitate the presence of men who otherwise wouldn’t be able to join us due to lack of funds.

Sister Unity, a drag nun since December 1995, is a founding member of the Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Inc. In her 22 years in bright orange habit, she has manifested in six states plus the District of Columbia, has exorcised and blessed the White House, the Lincoln Memorial, the National Office of AIDS Policy, and the Dolby Theater, home of the Oscars. She has performed seven weddings including one on the first day marriage became legal in California in June of 2008. She and the Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence subsequently led many of the protests against the Prop 8 ban on gay marriage until it was overturned. She has performed and lectured at UCLA, Loyola Marymount University, Occidental College, and Wesleyan University. Her 10 years of YouTube contributions feature over 80 videos with content including Hindu mythology, LGBT fairy tales, humor, philosophy, spirituality, and LGBT rights and activism. Sister Unity has practiced Hinduism and meditation since before becoming a drag nun and derives her name from Sanskrit.

Bennett Schneider: As a Sister of Perpetual Indulgence, Bennett has written hundreds of rituals, blessings, exorcisms, and performances. He teaches by combining ritual, spirituality, gay history, queer theory and theater in a variety of contexts that have included: UCLA, the Lee Strasburg Theater Institute, Radical Fairy gatherings, the California Men’s Gathering, and Highways Performance Space. He studied meditation, yoga, and philosophy at ashrams in India, New York, and California. Being born to a Shakespeare teacher and Bozo the Clown made him a lifelong theater practitioner performing with the queer theater company “Fabulous Monsters” as well as onstage with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and in various television shows, music videos, and commercials. This summer he was invited to teach meditation in Nida, Lithuania.

Watch for Part II in our next post. In the meantime, register now!

Register for the 2017 Fall Conference

Nightshade (Kraig Blackwelder)
2017 Fall Conference Convener

Greetings Dear Siblings,

The next semi-annual in person GSV Council meeting will be held in Atlanta GA, Saturday June 24 and Sunday June 25 at Positive Impact, 1117 West Peachtree St. NW, Atlanta GA 30309.  GSV council meetings are open for observation by members of our community and other invited guests.  And we encourage anyone in the Atlanta area, or willing to travel who is interested in GSV leadership, future conferences, GSV long term planning, or just GSV workings in-general to attend.

The Saturday meeting is scheduled from 9 am to 5pm with a lunch break. On Sunday we will meet from 9 am to approximately 1pm to wrap-up.

If you plan to attend Saturday and/or Sunday, please notify the Council so we can make accommodations for seating and building access.  Email the council at: [email protected].  A details agenda for both days will be available closer to the meeting dates.

If you plan to attend, please review the following from The GSV Policy Manual:

“Observers are welcome at Council meetings.  However, observers are expected to observe and not to comment or participate in discussions unless invited to do so by the Chair of the meeting.  Observers are different from guests who may be invited by the Council to present information or to share perspectives about items on the agenda.

“If an observer has an opinion or perspective to share, he may share it with a Council member before the meeting or at a break during the meeting.  The Council member may choose to share the perspective with the Council or may ask the observer for a short summary of the perspective.  Observers will receive a copy of the agenda if they have contacted the secretary beforehand.  Observers will be reminded that the Council has a pre-agreed agenda with time allotments to carry out much essential work, some of which is time sensitive, thus, observers will not disrupt the ongoing work of the Council by asking for information or offering suggestions which might impede the normal processes of the Council.

“As a routine practice, the chair will ask for observer feedback with a limit of 5 minutes for all observations at the end of each major section of the agenda.  If several observers desire to speak, each one can be given one or two minutes unless all wish to yield the full 5 minutes to one observer.”

Thank you for your support.

Dear Brothers,

We are posting this to inform you that we have a Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday 5/16/2017. Our intent was to make sure this conference call would be open to observers. However, we have encountered a technical problem and are working on a resolution which includes options suggested during the Spring Retreat open forum.

Sadly, it does not appear we will be able to correct this before the call. Therefore, we are inviting anyone that may have questions, concerns or comments to please email them to us by Monday 5/15/2017. We will be able to add to the agenda for discussion and in turn post results the following week.

Please use the email address: [email protected]

Thank you for your understanding,

Mark (Thunder) Zumback, Wendell Johnson, Doug Emerson,
Bill Harris, Kraig (Nightshade) Blackwelder, Tony James, and Mahan Kalpa Khalsa.

Registration and Information about the 2017 Fall Conference should be available by mid June

The information below is from the 2017 Spring Retreat

GSV Spring Retreat

April 21 – 23 2017
The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, North Carolina

The Sacred Fool’s Journey

Less Than Three Weeks – Please Register Soon

[standout-css3-button href=”https://gayspiritvisions.org/annual-gatherings/spring-retreat/spring-register/”] Register Today [/standout-css3-button]

Our schedule for the Spring Retreat is coming together, here’s what we have.

Aric, Randy, David, Vic, & Dave

Eric Rohner and Randy Johnson will facilitate our Journeys With the Sacred Fool using meditation, sharing, and dreaming to encourage us on those journeys.  David Chitara, Dave Cable, and Vic Mansfield have volunteered to share some personal stories to prime our pumps for the meditation and journey.

Teddy, David, Sugar, Mahan Kalpa, & Kraig

Mahan Kalpa Khalsa will lead the heartweaving on Friday evening and offer a workshop on Japanese Bondage which focuses on artistic, connective, and sensual pleasures.

David and Teddy Jones will reprise their always-popular Restorative Yoga accompanied by harp adding a “dress to your level of comfort” for this gathering.

Kraig Blackwell will share “The Wondrous and Sacred Mysteries of the 3 Sacred Trigrammatons.” It comes with laughter but should not to be mistaken for the Tetragrammaton, please! ;=}

David Chitara will offer a healing session that will likely include some gentle breathwork exercises (non-strenuous and suitable for all bodies), guided visualization, and/or intuitive healing work. Specifics will be tailored to the needs of those who attend.

Andy Foskey will lead a workshop/discussion exploring the nature of loneliness for men who love men.

Gary/Pleasure will bring tunes for movement/dance with an invitation to “Parade Your Peculiar.”

Andy & Gary
co-conveners

On Saturday evening, we’ll have a time to share your poems, songs, and stories with each other. Bring something you wrote, or a favorite created by someone who art you admire followed by some short videos.

On Saturday afternoon and on Sunday morning we have built-in lots of optional free time if you wish.

Click here join to us as we embrace each other with laughter!

Registration at The Mountain begins at 3pm Friday.  Dinner on Friday evening begins at 6pm followed by our opening activities at 7:30 pm. Our Closing Circle begins after lunch on Sunday concluding by 2pm.

We’ll have the option to stay at The Mountain from Sunday afternoon to noon on Monday. We’ll be the only group there, but another group that will be using the lodge is arriving after lunch on Monday. You may sign up for the extra day when you register for the Spring Retreat. The price for the extra day includes meals. If fewer than 20 people sign up, you will receive a $20 refund and we’ll buy some groceries and prepare our own meals.  This extra day is not sponsored or supported by GSV.

Please don’t forget the Spring Silent Auction that benefits GSV’s Financial Assistance Program. It’s really simple: You bring items that you value but no longer need and buy the treasures that speak to your spirit that were brought by others. All of the proceeds allow those with limited financial resources to join us.

GSV Spring Retreat

April 21 – 23 2017
The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, North Carolina

[standout-css3-button href=”https://gayspiritvisions.org/annual-gatherings/spring-retreat/spring-register/”] Register Today [/standout-css3-button]

The Sacred Fool’s Journey

“It is curious that physical courage should be so common
in the world and moral courage so rare.”

― Mark Twain

The Fool and his helpers in the image here have a different story than the one we know from tarot cards. The tarot Fool is happy to let us witness his courage as he steps off on a new journey, but he shows no interest in sharing how he developed that courage.

The Fools in this image are from commedia dell’arte. Unlike the tarot Fool, they encourage us to join them on their journey. They are experts in the art of laughing at themselves; their mission is to teach us this life enhancing skill. The Fool dressed in white is the sad clown; he invites us to project our sadness and fear on to him. With seductive glances, some of the other clowns offer humor to encourage and support us as we explore our sadness and fear. They rejoice when we find the courage to laugh at ourselves and host a bacchanal when we go forth and encourage others to do the same.

In his book, “The Spirituality of Comedy,” published in 1996, Conrad Hyers posits, “laughter is carbonated prayer.” He uses the phrase in speaking of how best to deal with the essentially tragic nature of the human condition. Twenty-one years later, the conditions of our humanity have more potential tragedy than ever and doubly so for those of us in minority communities who have long been oppressed by the majority.

“Prayer” can be a fraught word for those who were told that if we would just pray to God, and behave in a way that pleased Him, we would get an A on the math test tomorrow despite the fact that we had straight C’s so far. Alternatively, that if we counted enough beads as we prayed, mommy and daddy would stop fighting and we could find some peace. When, despite our prayers, we got a C and our parents got divorced, the folks who prescribed this kind of prayer shamed us by suggesting that we clearly had not counted enough beads or used words that their God could understand.

Please take a breath with us …

Blessedly there is now research indicating how and why prayer does and does not produce the results we desire. That has led to a new understanding of prayer as a way to open ourselves to healing rather than subordinate our strength to some “holy” being or image. This same research describes how meditation and breath are effective tools for finding peace.

The beneficial neurochemical changes that we experience from meditation/centering prayer are also present when we laugh. When we laugh at ourselves, we find synergies that enhance carbonization. When others laugh with us as we laugh at ourselves we create an encouraging and inspiring spiritual celebration.

We touched on this briefly at last fall’s conference in the context of bullying and snark. Queer folks have long used snark as a creative response to being bullied. In addition, we have long used snark within our own community since it is usually safer to bully those in our own tribe because it feels safer than speaking truth to power.

There is a sea of difference between laughing at others and laughing at ourselves while inviting others to join us.

Enter the Sacred Fool!

We already know that The Mountain rings with the sound of laughter when we are there. One of our goals this spring is to encourage laughter that offers a deeper understanding of our hearts and the hearts of others.

Do you already know how to laugh at yourself and encourage others to join you? Are you willing to share your experience at the Spring Retreat? If so, please email Pleasure ([email protected]) and we will explore how that might happen.

Registration for the retreat, begins at 3pm Friday. Following dinner, the Opening Circle begins at 7:30pm. Closing Circle begins after lunch on Sunday with a goal of finishing by 2pm.

We’ll have the option to stay at The Mountain from Sunday afternoon to noon on Monday. We’ll be the only group there, but there is another group that will be using the lodge arriving after lunch on Monday. You may sign up for the extra day when you register for the Spring Retreat. The price for the extra day includes meals. If fewer than 20 people sign up, you will receive a $20 refund and we’ll buy some groceries and prepare our own meals.  This extra day is not sponsored or supported by GSV.

Please don’t forget the Spring Silent Auction that benefits GSV’s Financial Assistance Program. It’s really simple: You bring items that you value but no longer need and buy the treasures that speak to your spirit that were brought by others. All of the proceeds allow those with limited financial resources to join us.

We are happy that Aric Rohner has agreed to join us in creating the Spring Retreat. Since hierarchy holds no charm for any of us, we are giving “convener” a rest and referring to ourselves as “co-creators.” If that is not hip enough for you, please think of us as “co-makers.”

GSV Spring Retreat

April 21 – 23 2017
The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, North Carolina

The Sacred Fool’s Journey

“Whoever travels without a guide, needs two hundred years
for a two-day journey.”

-Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī

Our life’s journey comprises innumerable smaller journeys which in turn create and append our larger life’s journey.  Think of it as spirit’s spiral dance.

It is really easy to make decisions that direct our journey on autopilot; a consciousness based on the experience and knowledge of others. Autopilot keeps us safe on planes, but does little to enrich our spiritual lives that thrive on inquiry and openness. Unlike autopilot, spiritual journeys call us to be courageous as we choose our journeys and navigate their paths.

The Sacred Fool’s job is to be our guide; to buoy our courage and lift our spirits.

This Fool we will explore at the Spring Retreat, is not witless, fatuous or shortsighted.

Quite the opposite. Our Sacred Fool encourages us to embark on new journeys with our eyes, minds, and, most especially our hearts, open.  This Fool is filled with curiosity and calls us to explore ever-greater aliveness, a greater consciousness and deeper union with spirit.

The Sacred Fool is the very definition of generosity of spirit, filled with cheer and skillfully using laughter in the service of morphing fear into trust. GSV’s Spring Retreat is traditionally the lightest and most ebullient of its three yearly gatherings. This retreat will be brimming with the pleasures and the rewards of connecting through play.

Come to explore your courage and ours. Courage acknowledges the presence of fear and willingly engages it, while bravery requires little thought or consciousness and thus knows nothing of fear.
This is the courage of the drag queens and sissies who ignited gay liberation in the ’60s. This is the courage of the communities that came together in the ‘80s to care for each other and demand that the political and medical establishments take action to halt the AIDS pandemic. This is the courage that is at the core of peaceful resistance and the guiding light of non-violence; the courage that it took for you to come out and to come to GSV. This is the courage that will allow us to challenge all who would silence spirit.

The schedule will similar to last spring allowing big blocks of free time and/or the option to participate in community-led workshops.

[standout-css3-button href=”https://gayspiritvisions.org/annual-gatherings/spring-retreat/spring-register/”] Register Today [/standout-css3-button]

Registration for the retreat, begins at 3pm Friday. Following dinner, the Opening Circle begins at 7:30pm. Closing Circle begins after lunch on Sunday with a goal of finishing by 2pm.

We’ll have the option to stay at The Mountain from Sunday afternoon to noon on Monday. We’ll be the only group there, but there is another group that will be using the lodge arriving after lunch on Monday. You may sign up for the extra day when you register for the Spring Retreat. The price for the extra day includes meals. If fewer than 20 people sign up, you will receive a $20 refund and we’ll buy some groceries and prepare our own meals.  This extra day is not sponsored or supported by GSV.

Finally, please don’t forget the Spring Silent Auction that benefits GSV’s Financial Assistance Program. It’s really simple: You bring items that you value but no longer need and buy the treasures that speak to your spirit that were brought by others. All of the proceeds allow those with limited financial resources to join us.

GSV 2017 Winter Meditation

Cocooning and Transformation

January 13 – 15, 2017
at The Mountain, Highlands NC

Cost is $ 226.47 – Double Occupancy
$301.20 Single Occupancy

[standout-css3-button href=”http://cwngui.campwise.com/Customer/Mountain/browser-check-reg.html” opennewwindow=”false”]Register for the 2017 Winter Meditation[/standout-css3-button]

Dear Brothers,

Come join with a loving community of your GSV brothers for a time of mindful
presence and gentle celebration. The long nights of January will offer us space
for quiet and inspiration–think of ancient farmers who honored the dark and
silence of a season long past harvest. We seek the wisdom of all creatures who
wrap themselves in a mantle of repose, awaiting a transformation into new life.
We’ll bundle our individual memories together and lay them on the altar. Guided
meditations will help us take stock of our present lives, and especially of patterns
that no longer serve us well. We’ll envision new directions for the coming year:
our intentions and our hopes, both as individuals and in community.
Come create strings of meditation flags to surround us in our gathering. Help
decorate a communal shawl to wrap ourselves in our visions for the days and
months ahead. In the season of cold and darkness, we’ll honor fire, warmth, and
light. Share in creating an evening of poems, songs, performance, costume, and
dance.

Registration for the GSV 2017 Winter Meditation is now open to all men who love men. Early registration will assure your place. Programming for the Winter Meditation will conclude on Sunday afternoon, but some of us will stay on to savor the winter beauty and spend more time with our brothers. For an additional charge, you can register to stay on at The Mountain until Monday afternoon.

As a spiritual director, Kurt Schreiber helps others heal discordant conditions, clarify goals, and respond to (or initiate) change. He approaches this and the rest of his life on a basis of fundamental spiritual principles and a related practice that draws mainly on Christian and Buddhist traditions. Often, he works with individuals, groups, and organizations on problems resulting from what he sees as broadly held misconceptions of cultural, religious, gender, or sexual identity. For about thirty years, Kurt worked more than full-time in the corporate world, where he was a senior officer and general counsel of large companies. While he no longer practices law or works in companies, his business background is sometimes useful, especially when he is asked to help inter-religious, charitable, and business organizations. Kurt’s home is in Nashville, where he’s now lived longer than anywhere else. There are many there whom he holds dear, including his two grown children.

David Townsend first made friends with the GSV community at the Fall Conference in 2004. He’s spent over thirty years as a teacher. Now he’s making more space for his calling as a spiritual companion, ritualist, and sacred intimate. Last August, he co-led a retreat in Maryland, under the auspices of the DC-based group Jonathan’s Circle. The program helped nineteen men create personal and shared-ritual to support the integration of their spiritual and erotic lives. David believes we’re all happiest when we live our lives with gratitude, and with a desire to give back. A slut who will pray with anybody, he’s fascinated by how ritual works across cultures and religious traditions. He keeps his blog on queer men’s spirituality at www.anchorholder.blogspot.com. David lives in Toronto and on the East End of Long Island with his partner Jonathan and their cat Bracket.

Kurt Schreiber, Co-Convener
David Townsend, Co-Convener

[standout-css3-button href=”http://cwngui.campwise.com/Customer/Mountain/browser-check-reg.html” opennewwindow=”false”]Register for the 2017 Winter Meditation[/standout-css3-button]

GSV 2017 Winter Meditation

Cocooning and Transformation

January 13 – 15, 2017
at The Mountain, Highlands NC

Cost is $ 226.47 – Double Occupancy
$301.20 Single Occupancy

Dear Brothers,

We invite you to join with a loving community of your GSV brothers for two days of stillness, peace, mindfulness, and gentle celebration. Our models include ancient farmers who honored the dark and quiet of winter long past the season of harvest. The wisdom we seek is that of all creatures who wrap themselves in a mantle of repose to await a transformation into new life.

We’ll seek through guided meditations to understand more clearly our 2016 lives, and especially the patterns that no longer serve us well. We’ll envision new directions for the coming year. We’ll explore our intentions and our hopes, both as individuals and in community. We’ll bundle our individual memories together and lay them on the altar.

We’ll create strings of meditation flags to surround us in our gathering. We’ll decorate a communal shawl to wrap ourselves in our aspirations for the days and months ahead. In the season of cold and darkness we’ll honor fire, warmth, and light. We’ll celebrate together with poems, songs, performance, costume, and dance.

An option to stay on an extra day after the Sunday close of the gathering is pending. We’ll have more information in a subsequent e-mail.

Kurt Schreiber, Co-Convener
David Townsend, Co-Convener

[standout-css3-button href=”http://cwngui.campwise.com/Customer/Mountain/browser-check-reg.html” opennewwindow=”false”]Register for the 2017 Winter Meditation[/standout-css3-button](external link)

For online registration help or to register by phone, call:
The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
828-526-5838

Registration and Information about the 2017 Fall Conference should be available by mid June

The information below is from the 2016 Fall Conference

Superheroes

Unlocking your secret superpowers
to live whole-heartedly and change the world.

Greg Walloch, Keynote Speaker

September 22 – 25, 2016

At The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

Three Nights: $398.90
Four Nights: $489.64

My Dear GSV Family,

The Gay Spirit Visions 2016 Fall Conference is less than 2 weeks away! If you haven’t registered yet, and you’re planning to come, there’s still time to register. Please don’t delay any further because spaces are filling up fast and we just have a few openings left.

And if you weren’t planning to come, but just needed a little push, this is it! We’re going to have a fantastic time at The Mountain this year and you don’t want to miss it! Please register today!

Our theme, Superheroes: Unlocking Your Secret Superpowers to Live Whole-Heartedly and Change the World, has created a lot buzz. In addition to our fabulous keynote speaker, Greg Walloch, our team leaders and workshop presenters are putting together a great weekend that will be fun and engaging. For those of you who are first-timers, you’ll learn why GSV gatherings are so special, and for those longtime attendees, we have a few surprises in store for you.

In the coming days there will be additional announcements, including a “what to bring” announcement, so keep watching the GSV website, our Facebook page, and your e-mail inbox.

Remember, check-in begins at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 22nd (on Wednesday the 21st if you are registered for early arrival). We’ll have a welcome reception at 5:00 p.m. and dinner at 6:15 p.m. The conference will officially start with our opening ritual at 7:30 p.m. The conference will wrap-up by 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 25th.

I’m getting really excited to see all of you at The Mountain and I look forward to fellowship, heart-centered work, playtime, and of course heartfelt hugs.

With love and laughter,

Thunder
2016 Fall Conference Convener

Read More About the 2016 Fall Conference>>
Register for the 2016 Fall Conference>>

Registration and Information about the 2017 Fall Conference should be available by mid June

The information below is from the 2016 Fall Conference

Superheroes

Unlocking your secret superpowers
to live whole-heartedly and change the world.

Greg Walloch, Keynote Speaker

September 22 – 25, 2016

At The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

Three Nights: $398.90
Four Nights: $489.64

My Dear GSV Family,

It is with great excitement that I announce who our keynote speaker is for the Fall Conference.

Greg Walloch is an internationally renowned comedian, writer and storyteller whose live solo shows have toured in Moscow, Toronto, Vancouver, London, Ireland, Germany, Australia, Poland, Scotland, Tel Aviv and in various festivals across the United States. As an openly gay artist with a disability, he uses humor to expose cultural and social fault lines. Greg is best known for his comedic autobiographical stories which deal with events from his own life in a style characterized by sharp wit, poignancy, and sexuality.

Greg is passionate about bringing together community through storytelling. He strongly believes that sharing our personal narrative has the power to change not only our own lives, but the lives of those around us. He regularly teaches concepts from his master class The Alchemy of Storytelling. Some of Walloch’s engagements have included the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University, George Washington University, University of California at Berkeley, New York University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Loyola Marymount University, Newton High School of the Performing Arts in Sydney,Australia, Escuela Campo Alegre in Venezuela, and The Calhoun School in New York City, among others.

Greg hosts the popular monthly live meta-food storytelling show Eat Your Wordswhich can currently be seen every first Thursday of the month at The Standard, Hollywood, California. He currently resides and works in Los Angeles, California.

I’ve long followed Greg’s career and am so thrilled to have him joining us on The Mountain in September. I hope you all are as thrilled and excited as I am.

If you haven’t registered yet, please do so this week or next to ensure you have a spot. Additional details are forthcoming.

Much love to all of you,
Thunder (Mark),
Fall Conference Convener

Read More About the 2016 Fall Conference>>
Register for the 2016 Fall Conference>

Our Beloved Community,

We, your brothers on the GSV Council, want to express our ongoing commitment to you, our community. We are committed to transparent, respectful, and efficient communication. We are committed to ensuring that every member of our community is heard and has equal access to consideration for all service and decision-making positions within the organization, regardless of personal relationships, financial contributions to the organization, popularity, race, color, religion, gender expression/identity, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, sexual orientation, marital status, military or veteran status, age, weight, or disability.

We are committed to holding each other accountable for respectful communication, and being strong allies to each other in the face of bullying, outside and within our own community. We are actively pursuing these goals through several avenues. These include: the creation of a community liaison council position; improved orientation for council members including non-violent communication and respectful confrontation; preventing, recognizing, and responding to bullying within the community; and bylaw revisions to streamline operations while protecting our community from the concentration of power and avoid any conflicts of interest.

GSV is an all-volunteer and consensus-driven organization. This means communication, action and change sometimes happen more slowly than any of us would like. We also know that many in our community, including members of our current council, have not always experienced the council’s commitment to these values — and for this, we are truly sorry. We invite you to reach out to us with your concerns and desires, whether through emailing us at [email protected], or attending a council meeting to witness and give feedback. We will post the next Council meeting dates on Facebook and send an announcement via email. We will follow up with a list of decisions and an action item list on our webpage.

Thank you for the incredible love, wisdom, courage and strength each of you bring to our community and our conferences, and thank you for working with us to make our conferences even more wonderful.

Your Brothers on the GSV Council,

Steven Wilson

Hunter Flournoy

Wendell Johnson

Tony James

Mark “Thunder” Zumbach

Todd Humphrey

Doug Emerson

Registration and Information about the 2017 Fall Conference should be available by mid June

The information below is from the 2016 Fall Conference

Superheroes

Unlocking your secret superpowers
to live whole-heartedly and change the world.

September 22 – 25, 2016

At The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

Three Nights: $398.90
Four Nights: $489.64

My Dear GSV Family,

During the early morning hours of June 12, 2016, a gunman entered the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, killed 49 members of our LGBT community, and injured another 50. The media as well as politicians continue to debate what the Orlando incident means in regard to gun control, terrorism, and homeland security policy. But we in the LGBT community knew all too well that at the core of this horrible incident was another hate crime targeting our community. In the weeks following the Orlando incident, and after the vigils and the grieving, many of us are left questioning if we are ever safe. Many of us are wondering how to handle the anger we have at the ongoing racism and homophobia that spurs such terrible tragedy. Many of us are asking “how are men of spirit to respond to such a thing?”

After many months of planning, the focus of our 2016 Fall Conference has shifted and solidified in the wake of the Orlando tragedy.

Over the course of three days we will come together and work toward unlocking our secret superpowers. How will we be doing this? We’ll be doing this through skill building, storytelling, meditation, movement, love, and fellowship. Each and every one of us has at our core the heart of a superhero. We’ll be working to unlock our superhero gifts, remove blockages, and reconnect in ways we’ve never done so before.

Many of your brothers are already working hard to create the 2016 Fall Conference and they share a commitment to create a safe space that encourages personal growth, community connection, hard work, and a lot of fun. As we are finalizing workshops and activities, opportunities remain for additional offerings and input. If the theme of the conference speaks to you and you’d like to present something, or you just want to get involved in making it all happen, please drop me a line at [email protected]. And of course, there will be free time in the schedule should spirit move you to present something once you are at The Mountain.

Over the coming weeks we’ll be sharing more about the theme, activities, and our keynote speaker. We’ll elaborate on which of your favorite fall activities are returning (although with a new spin) and we’ll also have some surprises in store. Watch this page, your email, and/or the GSV Facebook page for announcements and updates!

In the meantime, registration for the GSV 2016 Fall Conference is now open. Please consider registering today! Early registration will assure your spot at this life-affirming and life-changing conference.

Yours in Spirit,
Mark “Thunder” Zumbach
Convener, 2016 Fall Conference

Read More About the 2016 Fall Conference>>
Register for the 2016 Fall Conference>>

Our Spring Retreat

at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, NC

April 22-24, 2016

two Nights Lodging & Meals: $237.15

 Please Register Soon

It’s less than two weeks until we gather at The Mountain. We will likely not sell out for this gathering so you may be able to register up until the last minute, but the sooner you register the better we can plan. Please join us. It won’t be the same without you! Financial assistance is available if you need it.

The Silent Auction

If you are planning to attend, please bring something of value to you that would like to find a new home. Place it on the auction tables so that others may bid on it. Likewise, bid on a treasure that wants to go home with you. The proceeds go to our Scholarship Program. Last year your generosity provided twenty-three spirits with the funds they needed to come to a GSV Gathering.

Submitting bidding sheets for your auction items digitally is
quick and easy if you use this form.

You’ll Have Lots of Free Time

While there is never an event at a GSV gathering that has required attendance, we hope you will join us for the programing specifically focused on the theme of Exploring Inner Marriage which will end around 3pm on Saturday.

Official “free time” begins at 3pm on Saturday and continues until closing after lunch on Sunday.

During that free time, a group of generous community members will offer a variety of experiences created to give us a deeper knowledge of who we are and how we go in the world. And have fun.

On Saturday Afternoon

• An Exploration of Dreams and Synchronicities offered by Sted Mays who invites you to bring a recent dream or synchronicity to share if you so wish.
• An Astrological Exploration of Mars; The Prince, Warrior and Porn Star in You offered by Jeff Graham. Jeff asks that you send your birth information to him before the Retreat ([email protected]) so that he can prepare your chart. Or feel free to just show up.
• Gentle Yoga lead by David Jones and accompanied by Teddy Jones on harp.

On Sunday Morning

• A Guided Soul Journey to Connect with Our Inner Lovers offered by David Chitara.
• Play Time offered by Dev Deveraux. Cooperative games and activities (a little like last fall, but also different).
• Creative Letter Writing offered by Zach (Sugar) Matteson. The Focus will be on writing a dialog between our Feminine and Masculine selves, but feel free to write whatever letters need to be written.

At Other Times

• Saturday and Sunday mornings: Sunrise Meditation. John Schendel will hold the space both days. Teddy Jones will play the harp on Saturday.
• Friday Night: “Getting Go” an award winning film that takes a worn out topic (unrequited gay longing), sets it in the now, and fills it with new life and meaning. Todd Humphrey will be you host.
• Saturday Night: GSV’s first ever Symposium. Think Plato not grad school! An exploration of beauty, love and virtue woven together by music, food, touch, and breath. Zach (Sugar) Matteson is your host and encourages togas and head wreathes. No toga? Ms. Google and a bed sheet will have you up to speed in no time. Sarongs and skirts can be fun too if that strikes your fancy.
• Saturday Night: After the Symposium, we’ll show “Were The World Mine” a Disneyesque, queer romantic comedy-fantasy based on “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with a long list of awards and accolades. Sweet dreams are made of this.
• Anytime: Explore the amazing sub-tropical rain forest that surrounds us. Late night snacks and beverages in the dining hall. Visit Meditation Rock and do just that. Hold hands, share hugs, laugh, cry and be gay.

Our Spring Family Reunion

at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, NC

April 22-24, 2016

two Nights Lodging & Meals: $237.15

Catching up with old friends and making new ones is at the very heart of every GSV gathering. 

Yes, we have a compelling theme and our schedule includes a number of ways to explore your understanding of Inner Marriage through ritual, story sharing, meditation, movement and touch. There will be community led workshops that include Dream Work, a Meditation connecting us to our inner lover, Restorative Yoga, Play and Writing.  Saturday night’s events include a GSV 2016 riff on two classic Greek themes. Prepare to laugh, learn and open your heart.

That said It is what you bring to The Mountain (your love, your fears, your humor, your yearning) that creates magic and allows the weekend to come alive far, far more than the sum of its parts.  

Our family Spring Reunion and Retreat is only a month away.  Your presence, and that of your friends, will only make it richer.  Scholarships are available, so please don’t let a tight budget keep you at home.

Presenter Update

On Saturday morning Andrew Lawler will set the stage for Andy Foskey, John Schendel and Gary (Pleasure) Kaupman to share their very personal and very different stories about Exploring Inner Marriage. After we’ve heard those stories, Andrew will lead us on an Inner Marriage Meditation followed by sharing in small groups.

You met Andrew and Andy (Ann Dee) Foskey last month. Here’s a bit of background on John and Pleasure.

John Schendel attended his first GSV gathering on September 13, 2001. Describing his

journey he says “Inner marriage for me is a crude, willful attempt to reunify the masculine, feminine, old, and young inside of me who have always been just one despite what my wounded, unsettled body thinks it knows.” He and Gary have been friends for longer than either can remember.

Gary (Pleasure) Kaupman started coming to GSV gatherings about eight years before there was a GSV. Asked about their conscious inner marriage exploration which started three years ago, Pleasure says, “Wow! I’ve understood inner marriage in my brain for most of my life, but coming to understand it in my body led to an understanding and healing that I could never have imagined.”

Yin and Yang
(made very simple) 

You know the symbol; it is almost ubiquitous in our binary culture. It’s easy to see the black (yang) and white( yin ) sides of the circle as being in opposition to each other, but that is not what Chinese philosophers had in mind in the fourth century before common era as they pondered the world around them.

They saw ying and yang as different but complimentary energies that create a whole larger that the sum of its parts. (If you have been to a GSV gathering, that’s a concept that you likely understand easily.) The little dots of opposing colors present in both yin and yang are there to remind us that everything has both yin and yang energies.  

In Daoist Metaphysics the distinctions between black and white, masculine and feminine, thinking and feeling are understood to be perceptual rather than real.

Together, and in balance, they create the Tao/Dao which can be understood as our spiritual path.

[standout-css3-button href=”http://cwngui.campwise.com/Customer/Mountain/browser-check-reg.html” opennewwindow=”false”]Register Now[/standout-css3-button]

(If you need help registering call The Mountain
at (828) 526-5838 x218)

Exploring Inner Marriage

at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, NC

April 22-24, 2016
Two Nights Lodging & Meals: $237.15

Several folks have asked ‘How am I going to benefit from exploring inner marriage?”

It’s a good question.

Different traditions and philosophies approach this question through different lenses, but they all come to the same conclusion: this exploration is a vital step on our journeys to becoming whole.

Another way to say that: these explorations can help us move from ego-centered consciousness to a soul-centered consciousness.

Or in the context of the hippies and flower children and “make love not war” you might think of inner marriage as the path to deepening your internal love of self which allows your external expression of love to be more authentic.

How are we going to do this come April 22-24?

We’ll start on Saturday morning by listening to the stories of three folks whose approaches and experiences with inner marriage are very unique and different.

Andy (Ann Dee) Foskey is longtime friend of co-convener Romer Taylor and newcomer to GSV. His explorations on this path began organically when he was quite young.  Ann Dee is a Librarian who lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  “I love the feel of the wind in my beard, but I don’t mind friendly fingers either…”

We’ll introduce the other story tellers in our next update.

After we’ve heard these stories, Andrew Lawler will use a guided meditation to help us go inside, explore our own unique masculine and feminine energies, and encourage them to begin a dialog with each other. Andrew is a writer who lives in Asheville, NC and is on the faculty of the Body Electric School. He has been in Inner Marriage Counseling for more than a decade and has a deep knowledge of this exploration. His wisdom provided an essential piece in co-convener Gary Kaupman’s understanding of his inner marriage.

The remainder of the weekend will provide a number of opportunities to continue these explorations through movement, meditation, touch, writing, dreams, play, and song.

The Marriage of Shakti and Shiva

(made very simple)

In the tantric understanding, the god Shiva is the symbol for consciousness, the primary masculine energy. The goddess Shakti is the symbol for activating power and energy, which is the primary feminine energy. Kundalini/Shakti is the feminine energy that resides at the bottom of the spine of every individual.

Consciousness/Shiva is the top most chakra, the head. In order for Shakti and Shiva to live in harmony, Shakti rises up to meet the Shiva with the goal of inner marriage and a life filled with pleasure.

When Shiva’s wife Sati (who was an incarnation of Shakti) died, Shiva was so overcome with grief that he isolated himself from the whole world. He retired into a dark cave buried amongst the snow covered peaks of the Himalayas and became inclined towards asceticism, rejecting the outside world.

Shiva’s meditation practice was so focused and so deep that he acquired great knowledge that filled his body with heat and energy. Problem was, all this knowledge was within Shiva and of no use to anyone else.

The other gods got worried and started invoking the mother goddess, Shakti, who appeared before them as ‘Kundalini’ a coiled serpent. In answer to their prayers, Shakti said that she would coil herself around Shiva and would wean out his knowledge and energy for the good of the world. Shakti then took birth as Parvati and united with Shiva again.

Together, completing each other, they become the divine parents and constitute the whole of the universe. They are inseparable; neither exists without the other.

If you would like to know more about a practical understanding and use of the Shiva/Shakti legend, we recommend the book “Kali Rising: Foundational Principles of Tantra for a Transforming Planet” by Dr. Rudy Ballentine, a past Keynoter at GSV.

We are pleased that Jason Buchannan will be joining our team as Faerie Wrangler for the Spring Retreat. His initial job will providing support to the presenters to be sure they have the support they need to make their contributions rich and meaningful. And to wrangle Gary and Romer if they stray from the pasture. Jason makes his home in Raleigh, North Carolina where, when not working in consumerism with plants, he can be found organizing young adult resistance movements that work to reclaim self and divinity.

Merry Meet! Merry Part! And Merry Meet Again!

Gary, Romer and Jason

[standout-css3-button href=”http://cwngui.campwise.com/Customer/Mountain/browser-check-reg.html” opennewwindow=”false”]Register Now[/standout-css3-button]

(If you need help registering call The Mountain
at (828) 526-5838 x218)

Exploring Inner Marriage

at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center
Highlands, NC

April 22-24, 2016
two Nights Lodging & Meals: $237.15

The philosopher Carl Jung believed that the culmination of our Soul’s journey is the inner marriage of the opposites within the psyche: masculine/feminine; conscious/unconscious; divine/human. The goal: to move from Ego-centered consciousness to the Soul-centered consciousness of the Sacred Inner Marriage.

That’s a bit much to take on at a two day Retreat.

So, we’ll be exploring the role of our internal masculine/feminine energies and how they contribute to a deeper understanding of who we are now. And, what paths we may want to explore next on our journeys towards a Sacred Inner Marriage.

Our Keynoters will be members of the community sharing short stories of their journeys of on this path followed by brief conversations.

The rest of the retreat will use embodied experiences to explore Inner Marriage. While some of our journeys may have similarities, what you will discover will be uniquely yours. You may find words for your experiences, or you may find the kind of wisdom for which there are not yet adequate words. Spirit works in many ways.

There will be free time, time for pop-up workshops, and fun times. There will be experiences that are familiar to you and others that we’ve not seen at a GSV Gathering before.

More shall be revealed!

[standout-css3-button href=”http://cwngui.campwise.com/Customer/Mountain/browser-check-reg.html” opennewwindow=”false”]Register Now[/standout-css3-button]

(If you need help registering call The Mountain
at (828) 526-5838 x218)

Dear Brothers,

If you are not already registered, please consider joining us for a heart-centered, energizing, and enlivening community experience. Renew, replenish, and restore yourself at the 2016 GSV Winter retreat.

Positive emotions play a key role in invigorating all human endeavors, and cultivating positive emotion is one strategy that generates benefits in every area of a person’s life.

Every single one of us is capable of a lot more happiness than we have experienced so far.

There is scientific evidence that happier people are kinder and more generous. They are healthier, live longer lives and they’re smarter and more creative. They have happier relationships and marriages, and have a wide range of friends. They are also more resilient, more productive at work, and enjoy greater financial comfort.

Happiness does not happen by chance, it happens by choice. It is a practice, like exercising, the more you practice, the better you get at it. That simple.

So come join us for fun, camaraderie, solidarity, and some interesting conversations of happiness, true happiness.

“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.”
–Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

“Be happy, for your only function here is happiness.”
–Course in Miracles, Lesson 102.

“Unconditional happiness is the highest technique there is…This is truly a spiritual path, and it is as direct and sure a path to Awakening as could possibly exist.”
–Michael A. Singer, The Untethered Soul

Tony James, Convener
Cami Delgado, Keynote Speaker & Co-Creator
Jim Stratton, Co-Creator

Register for the 2016 Winter Meditation/Planning Retreat >>

This is the fourth and final in our series of pieces on the theme of Holidays, Spirit and Me.

When Pleasure asked me to write about “spirit, the holidays, and me,” I didn’t know (and still don’t) that I would have anything much to say (without being completely cynical). Over the next few weeks, I meditated on my somewhat tumultuous relationship with spirit and ended up writing several short fragments, several of which, I collected into the poem, “Spirit(s)”. I hope you enjoy it! Love you, siblings!!

Spirit(s)

Sugar le Fae

1.
Meaning “to breathe” in Latin,
cognates of spirāre include:

respire   to breathe again
inspire   to breathe into
expire    without breathing

and, of course, from spīritus,
spirit   breath.

2.
He and I are reincarnated
spirits of little old ladies
who speak what they think
who dye their hair purple
who smoke and drink
and don’t give a shit
what other people think.
Who are we to argue fate?

3
Listen to “Spirit in the Dark”
by Aretha Franklin
and tell me that
“getting the spirit”
can’t mean in the same breath
“touching God”
and “in the mood.”

4.
When one of my best friends
finally got approved for her
knee osteotomy, we kept
our spirits up over her winter
recovery by making silly
videos of us singing Christmas
carols in wigs and dresses.

Years later, no longer needing
a walker, she could finally
accompany me to the faerie
mountain, where in faerie
tradition, she named herself
Felda Spirit and was welcomed.

5.
Just last week at a teddy bear party,
I played impromptu duets with Blue-
bird, who, topping my Heart
and Soul, turned every note blue.
Spirit can perhaps be conjured,
but tastes best when it’s not lured.

Sugar le Fae (aka Zach Matteson) is a poet, teacher, song writer, photographer, and Radical Faerie. Dozens of his poems have been published by journals in the States and Canada. He currently resides in Nashville, TN

This is the third in our series of four pieces on the theme of The Holidays, Spirit and Me.

The Christmas Heart

Doug Emerson

I believe I first really got in touch with Spirit on Christmas Eve 1982. My roommate, a handsome man with such unbelievable eyes that his nickname became Blue, or Your Royal Blueness, and I were trying to manage to make it through the season. Money was short and friends were dying from AIDS. It just looked dismal.

Blue came home Christmas Eve in the afternoon with an unexpected bonus from his part time job. That led to the development of an event that became legendary. It began simple enough, we went to see if we could score a Christmas tree cheap. While we walked we chatted about how we could somehow give all of our friends a memorable holiday.

The scheme was hatched. I was sent to get champagne and snacks. Blue started calling friends with an invite our “First Christmas” party. By that we meant guests showed up at midnight to a party that was the first one on Christmas.

[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]About 4am, all of my beautiful brothers began to go home. Blue and I were ultimately left exhausted cuddling on the couch. [/pullquote]

We didn’t think we could pull it together and when it was midnight had come with no visitors, we had resigned ourselves to drink until we were out of our minds with cheer. Then the door buzzer went off. The first of over 60 men entered our small apartment to share love, humor and memories of friends here and gone.

About 4 a.m. all of my beautiful brothers began to go home. Blue and I were ultimately left exhausted, cuddling on the couch. Holding each other in that wonderful embrace of love and companionship that touched the spirit and gave the room a wonderful special feel and light.

That was the night that I really understood the meaning of family and the spirit that touched each of us that blessed night.

Aho




Doug will be spending this Christmas in Atlanta, GA. He hopes to share time with GSV family and renew and expand the circle of love and service. And says, “I continue to be grateful to you all in allowing me to shine.”

This is the second in or series of four articles on the theme of The Holidays, Spirit and Me

Uh oh, It’s Majick

Whispurring Pussy (Joe)

I remember when it was magic…

The time of year for which days were marked off the calendar. There were two of these times-of-year.  Summer break and Christmas. Now I’m not talking about the Twelve Days of Christmas countdown. This was different. As I sit here today, I can honestly say that I do not know what other little boys got excited about around Christmas. Perhaps watching football games with their dads.  Perhaps going hunting with their dads.  None of that for me. For me, the countdown was to the day my mom and I pulled out the boxes of Christmas decorations and began turning our mundane living room into a magic kingdom.

As time pushed me into the realm of puberty and eventually adulthood, I found a bitterness for the Holidays. Oh, the magic is gone. During this time, I often found myself depressed and feeling very alone. I now know it was, in part, bi-polar depression. I was also struggling with the self-acceptance of being a  gay man.  During this time, I dreaded the Holidays. I longed for a way to escape, a way remove myself from life for two months or so.  I hated seeing family during this time. I felt guilty for not feeling happy.   I began to resent the Holidays.

I began the process of coming out as a gay man in my thirties.  I experienced anger from family members for coming out. I was told I was selfish for coming out, that I was being influenced by the devil.  Holidays became even more difficult. There were times I refused to visit family during the Holidays.
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]And with this new-found self-appreciation, I have found, dare I say it, happiness. Happiness within myself.[/pullquote]

Today, my bi-polar depression is well managed, thanks to those fine folks at Pfizer pharmaceuticals.  And with lots and lots of therapy, I am downright happy to be gay. I am gay in every sense of the word. I am 51 years old and have the highest sense of completeness that I have ever had. And with this new-found self-appreciation, I have found, dare I say it, happiness. Happiness within myself.

I no longer dread the Holidays. I find joy in celebrating the Holidays with my family of choice. I now spend time with my biological family without dread.  Though some of them continue to struggle with my being gay, I now know that struggle is theirs and not mine. I have begun to regain a sense of wonderment, a sense of hope.

If that’s not magic, I don’t know what is.

In mid-December, Whispurring Pussy will be vacationing with Santa in Key West for some last minute naughtiness. Upon his return, Whispurr plans to spend the Holidays with family and friends lapping up vast quantities of Egg Nog while watching his favorite Holiday classics ‘Home for the Holidays’ and ‘Sordid Lives’.

We asked some GSV folks to write whatever came to mind on the theme of “Holidays, Spirit and Me” and share it in Visionary. Jason Buchannan, Doug Emerson, Joe Kiser, and Sugar le Fe agreed. Jason’s poem is the first of these contributions that will be posted on each on the Wednesday’s in December.

“Like most of my work, the topic of spirit and self is apparent, but the concrete (holiday, Thanksgiving) has been heavily abstracted.”

Fully grounded

Jason Buchannan

She speaks to me of grounding, like I need it,
all wrapped up in shrouds and veils
of otherworldly mysteries and delights.

Living without limits takes more
discipline than my airy whims suggest.
The hounding of those voices of reason
in every niche like wind through cracks
in the old wooden door on which
we model the future from our past
do not deafen these ears.

Your Old World malice and refuge
across seas glittering arrive on me
wet and washed out, like this mother
was made to make you her children.
Take her, take me, take this
and that bristle pine down and shelter
your selves on land that isn’t yours.

Maybe these stones remember,
and if we but lower our resonant tones,
we’ll be swimming in their heart songs
cold and slow like the night sky, moving.

Maybe this Old World dream like rain
soaks into those older bones, receptive
to the altercating alterations of melodies
pregnant in the whispering of trees.
When we open a space between,
does that synapse give us life,
or is that vitality found in the death of form
in the trails we blaze through Her?

I am open; I am closed.
I am the window you can’t latch.
I am the curtains billowing,
drawing your attention, distracting
you from yourself to find you.
I am the wind, rippling
the objects you’re strung taut against.

So what anchors my divine vessel down to solid earth?
What orients my constant maiden voyage?
I am the welding of worlds. The crux of creation.
Sound, light. Silence, shadow. I am everything.
And being so drunk on all of existence,
where is my firm footing? What is my next step?
My compass ion, charged with universal meaning
I readily recreate constantly.

Is there solidity on my course? When I leave the Earth,
am I still walking my path? When I return,
am I where I always was?

She says, bend your knees. Send your light down
through the legs, and through your coccyx.
Make that pyramid and send your sacral stream
straight through into Mother. Feel her
heat your heart like blanket love,
and let Spirit above surrender you. This, she says,
will ground your path and center your soul.

But will this sufficiently join Jai’s spirit to the Earth
and keep him from losing himself in the ethereals?
If this doesn’t work, find another. If that doesn’t work,
keep searching. You will know by the way it feels.
Trust your body’s sensations. It knows love,
even when the mind fails to recognize.
Really feel your flesh again for the first time in ages.
It is there; you exist.

Immanence.

Jason can be found organizing young adult resistance movements that work to reclaim self and divinity in Raleigh, NC, when he’s not working in consumerism with plants.

Dear Brothers,

Everything you have ever done is because you thought it would make you feel better. Every purchase you made, every interaction you have had with another person, and every life decision you took is because you, at that moment, hoped it would make you feel better. That’s how important positive emotion is.

And at times, it didn’t quite work out as well as you expected…right?

At our upcoming winter retreat, we will have conversations on how to mindfully and intentionally create a more sustainable positive energy flow. Meditation, mindfulness, and owning joyful and creative response-ability for your life experience are just some of the many core practices that elicit and cultivate that energy flow.

And then we’ll talk about how that energy flow enhances our lives, how it makes us more generous and loving people, and how it empowers us to make significant contributions to dear friends, the LGBT community, the world, and maybe even GSV.

Please join us for what will be an uplifting, enlivening, energizing, and upbeat conversation on the most important topic in life.

“To be (happy) … or not to be (happy) … THAT is the question.” — Shakespeare/Delgado

Tony James, Convener
Cami Delgado, Keynote Speaker & Co-Creator
Jim Stratton, Co-Creator

This is the fourth and final in a series of articles about Bliss republished from the Visionary archive.

WHAT IS MY PASSION?

– Roger Beaumont

My typical response to this question would be to say that my passions are my dressage horse, Coty; gardening; cooking; wine; entertaining; blah, blah, blah. In my new life, I am compelled to be more honest.

A few years after coming out as a gay man in 2003, I was at a men’s spiritual conference in Albuquerque, NM. I heard a speaker describe how he had to return to his wife because her doctors just told him that her cancer had returned and the prognosis was not good. He was distraught, not knowing what he would do to continue living without his beloved wife.

I turned to a friend who had lived his gay life for many years after an experience of straight marriage, children and a successful law career. I asked him, “Jim, what is the difference between what the speaker and I feel about our respective wives? I loved my wife of 43 years but not in the same way he describes his relationship with his wife. What’s the difference?”

Jim said, “Roger, you may have loved your wife and may have experienced joy and a certain happiness, but there was no passion in your marriage.”

What a breakthrough moment.

I was married in the same era as Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain, when being openly gay was hardly an option. I lived in unconscious denial for more than 60 years. I was youngest of 12 children, born in Canada after The Depression. My father moved us to the Maine woods to a miserable camp and worked as a lumberjack when I was three. Two years later, he abandoned us all by succumbing to alcoholism and took his own life. I’ve always kept the death certificate which attributed his death to “alcoholism aggravated by drinking lemon extract.” Except for his tainted sperm, I can’t think of any other inheritance.

My French-speaking mother and her children lived in a foreign country, away from the support she had known in Quebec. Fortunately, my father had qualified for benefits in that new system called Social Security. This gave my mother a meager income that helped support the family until the children could work. (Guess how I feel about the current illegal immigrant issue?) I and a couple of my sisters went to convent schools, then cold and heartless institutions. I survived somehow, learning to be the perfect Enneagram nine, self-effacing, knowing I didn’t matter much, hoping that no one would ever guess the self-loathing turmoil in my heart.

After leaving the seminary in Bucksport and Bar Harbor, Maine, in 1955, (I wasn’t good priestly material because I jerked off too much) I found the warmth I craved by marrying the second woman I ever dated and the only one I had ever had sex with. She had the strength and common sense for both of us. Soon, I had purpose in my life as a teacher, a father of a beautiful daughter and three handsome sons. I finally had a home and a family where I belonged. I was, however, disappointing as a husband. From the twin bed honeymoon to the years of not knowing or sharing my feelings, I lived a straight life that saved me from facing what was deep in my heart – a longing and a craving for beautiful men. I denied my addiction for gay porn until 2001 when I was 62. By then, my daughter had come out as a lesbian 12 years earlier. That was a gift to me because it allowed me to start exploring my hidden life and start facing the possibility that I was gay.

When I attended a rite of passage in the New Mexican desert with Richard Rohr, I finally had the courage to know myself. Richard sent us out into the beautiful valleys and mesas with two questions. The first: what is your greatest fear? I was bowled over by the answer I wrote in my journal: “I’m afraid that someone will find out that I am gay.” That was my real birth as an authentic human being. The second question: “What will you say to God when you die and He asks ‘Who are you? I don’t recognize you. You never lived the life I gave you. You denied a whole part of yourself. Who are you?’” Since I’d gone to the retreat to better know my God, this question was just as disturbing as the first.

And so began, finally, my acceptance of who I am, a gay man who has half-lived a good life, full of comforts and much joy from a good woman, four children and 17 grandchildren and a satisfying career. But where was the passion?

I’ll tell you passion. Passion is enjoying the intellectual and the sensual company of beautiful men. [pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Passion is living in the moment, surrounding yourself with people who know who you truly are and love you because you are you.[/pullquote]
Passion is living in the moment, surrounding yourself with people who know who you truly are and love you because you are you.
Passion is attending a Body Electric weekend. Passion is looking into the eyes of honest and brave men, regardless of age or size, and loving unabashedly what you see. Passion is feeling the full embrace of another man, skin-to-skin, simply enjoying the closeness, the warmth, the love. Passion is greeting each new day without guilt and shame. Passion is belonging to your tribe, knowing that you can ask anything of your brothers and that they support you with love and understanding. Passion is being able to face the end of your life, knowing that you celebrated every gift that God gave you, most especially the gift of your sexuality. Honoring others and yourself, openly and without holding back, that’s passion.

   Caress me beloved, I cried out then. And now, ten thousand years later, I see a world about to  

   happen where men can answer me. And only when a man has played flutes with the presence 

   within him can he play flute with a man of flesh. Two flutes, echoing, echoing.

        —Andrew Ramer, Two Flutes Playing

Baby, that’s passion. And a whole orchestra of men, flutes playing. That’s passion!

Roger Beaumont, happily plays his flute in Asheville, NC, and surrounding areas.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2006 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.  Read the original article in the Visionary.

Roger’s 2015 Update

Wow! I highly recommend that everyone keep a journal. Nothing like reading one’s thoughts/beliefs/passions nine years later. Here I am in my 80^th year and I am still talking about Passion? As we say at Jubilee!: Oh yeah! I still can’t keep my eyes off any attractive man of any age over 18 (an age limit being very important for “Mature” gay men).

The first person I shared the above article from the Visionary with, just last week, was my beautiful lesbian daughter who got married to a marvelous girl friend in a Napa Valley winery in October. If anyone had read it previously, no one had ever commented.  Her reaction was very complimentary and accepting. She requested a copy immediately.

Nine years later my passion really hasn’t changed. It may have evolved but it still is my celebration of life. A celebration of being a healthy old man and living out his passion by being open and vulnerable. And by telling someone what I feel when I connect with them, be it by touch, word, or simple eye contact. I always prefer an honest hug to handshakes.

I do admit that as I move along in years and find myself alone, I occasionally have regrets. How could I let my orientation be more important than staying close with my wife and spending the last few years of my life sharing our feelings and our memories? That thought only lasts a few moments before I revert to my honest embrace of my continued passion for my gay world. I guess what I’m saying is that what this gay guy enjoys to the fullest is honest communication with any authentic person regardless of gender or orientation.  Oh Yeah!

Of course that eliminates most presidential candidates.

Dear Brothers,

Do you want to have a greater voice in shaping GSV gatherings? Do you want to increase community representation, communication, and transparency on the GSV Council? This is your opportunity! We need suggestions for nominations for three different roles!

Two new roles have been created for our community that are specifically devoted to increasing community representation, communication, and transparency: the Steward of Community Development, a Council position, and the Service Coordinator, who will coordinate volunteer efforts for our community. In addition, the position of Elder of Records, one our Corporate Officer positions, will be coming open as Pat Boyle completes his time on the Council in January 2016.

Please submit suggestions for nominations for any of these positions to [email protected] by Friday, December 4 (the sooner, the better). Every nomination will receive an email acknowledgement after it is received! A brief description of each role follows.

Thank you!

Hunter Flournoy & the Council of Nine

Steward of Community Development (New Role)

A three-year Council position, the Steward of Community Development (SCD) will serve as liaison between community and Council to develop, maintain, and implement pathways for service, pathways for feedback, and response mechanisms for these pathways. The SCD will oversee and support the Service Coordinator, and oversee storytelling to all of GSV’s published channels. Qualifications for the SCD are available upon request!

Service Coordinator (New Role)

The Service Coordinator (SC) serves to drive the work of GSV forward through a community of volunteers. The SC promotes GSV as a community-driven organization where all members are encouraged to participate and are provided opportunities for volunteerism in committee work and/or as an individual contributor. The SC accomplishes this by identifying individuals’ interests and skill sets and linking those individuals with the appropriate committee work and/or individual contributor opportunities. The SC acts as an advocate for individual volunteers, looks for opportunities to develop volunteers, and brings any trends and on-going concerns related to volunteerism to the Council. The SC reports to the Steward of Community Development. Qualifications for the SC include attendance at three or more GSV conferences; a list of additional qualifications is available upon request!

Elder of Records

A three-year Council position, The Elder of Records serves as the corporate and recording secretary of the Council. He attends all Council and Executive Committee meetings and maintains accurate minutes of such meetings. He maintains official records, such as copies of the annual corporate filing with the GA Secretary of State and the annual IRS 990 form. In addition to hard copies of documents, he places electronic copies on Google Drive and works with the Elder of Communications to provide accurate information on the business of the GSV Council to any interested party. He responds to all official inquiries to GSV and the GSV Council on behalf of the Council. For electronic inquiries, he coordinates responses with the Elder of Communications. Qualifications for Elder of Records include being a Georgia resident; a list of additional qualifications is available upon request!

This is the third in a series of articles about finding Bliss, republished from the Visionary archive.

FINDING JOY

Paul Plate

About a year ago, I mentioned to a friend that I was having trouble with joy and that hawks were coming to me often. She suggested that I go see the therapist whom I have been journeying with for the past year. Together we experienced a spiritual, counseling, backpacking adventure in the high desert above Santa Fe and a breath-work retreat with other therapeutic activities to look at the issue of not experiencing joy.

For me, sadness seems to come easier than joy and I am aware of its presence more. Sadness is comfortable; I know how to do it. [pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Although I understand the idea of balance – that there is joy and sadness – when I review my life, I think mostly of the sadness.[/pullquote]
Although I understand the idea of balance – that there is joy and sadness – when I review my life, I think mostly of the sadness.I am aware that the sadness seems more overwhelming or more intense than the happiness.

I often seem apart from joy, detached, as though it is not reachable or that it is not mine. I know that I am not moving toward joy and that, sometimes, I am clearly moving away from it. Not only am I not experiencing it, I am turning from it. Last year, after a week of learning about culture and teaching counseling in El Doret, Kenya, I spent a couple of days in the Maasai Mara. The great herds were already assembling in the northern part of the Serengeti. I felt like I was home. I felt joy in the presence of these incredible creatures and with people who were living their lives so close to the earth.

Then, after an incredibly wonderful year, the dog of my heart died in December. I had to make the decision about when she would leave. I was heartbroken. I remember the intensity of the pain of losing her more than any of the joyful experiences of the past year.

I get stuck on wanting things to stay the way they are when they are good and not to change. Maybe I get stuck on wanting things to stay the way they are when they are not so good.

What I have learned is that there is a script, one that I did not write but that I am great about following. At first, I accepted this idea somewhat halfheartedly until I mentioned it to two of my siblings. My brother knew the feelings while my sister knew part of the script. It has something to do with honoring the joyless life that our Mom has experienced. In loyalty to her, we can’t experience the joy of our lives.

So, back to the counselor. Knowing my love for ritual, she told me that I needed to use ritual to move the script from a place of power. I’m not exactly sure yet how the script goes and I’ve not finished the ritual. What I do know is that the script lives deep inside my heart and that it hurts.

For me, the journey to living in my own joyful place is slow. I’ve made some progress. My partner of nine years died about eight years ago and, when I lost him, I also lost his family. He gave me cherished gifts; both beautiful things and wonderful memories. He helped me to know how to be in relationship. I learned some things that I wanted and that I wouldn’t do without in future relationships; honesty, trust and sex. I have since spent some time with two incredible men who fueled some joyful feelings. Through them, I knew that I’d learned some lessons well.

So, joy is not easy for me. However, there is joy in my life. I think about:

discovery,
the rising moon,
lightening bugs,
the first daffodil,
the smell of a gardenia,
the salt mist of the ocean,
the hawk circling above,
loving family,
supportive friends,
a talented and dedicated staff,
a sarong in the morning air,
feeling the fur of an animal companion,
resting in the arms of a lovely man
and being grounded in the earth.

Paul Plate is executive director of PositiveImpact, an organization that provides mental health and prevention services for people affected by HIV. He lives in a 100- year-old farm house in Decatur, GA, with several animal companions.  He has room for another loved one. 

This article was originally published in the Summer 2006 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.  Read the original article in the Visionary.

November 2015 Update from Paul

So much has transpired since the writing of this short essay.  I am especially aware of several significant endings that usually come spaced further apart.  The death of my Mother and my Father within the last three years also initiated the dismantling of the family home.  After about five years of service, I completed my elongated term as Walks between Elder of Gay Spirit Visions.  After 23 years as the only director of Positive Impact, the agency merged with AID Gwinnett to form Positive Impact Health Centers and I transitioned to a staff position assisting the new director. This is also part of my retirement plan which has been extended.  At sixty-six, I am still vitally committed to important work and feel that I continue to make meaningful contributions.

This journey is still very intense, and although I cannot say that joy has been evident, I have learned a few things.  Most important, I have learned that I have been given many gifts and opportunities and I have been given the time and respect to fully participate in how these endings play out.  This has been a gift and I will look at this time as a joyful opportunity to understand and hold my accomplishments and to fully contribute during the transitions.

This is the the second in a series of articles about Bliss and Passion republished from the Visionary archive.

A POSITIVE PERSPECTIVE

– Lem Arnold

When I think of what keeps me sailing through life with a positive perspective on the people and the world around me, I think of my perspective of where I am now. (I will add that my partner, Pat Boyle, asked for the ability to respond to this article.)

I am a complete person. I have a tendency to not be as open to expressing my feelings, so sometimes I may seem standoffish. That’s just the insecurity speaking or because I am lost in thought. The complexity comes from the fact that often I operate on two levels simultaneously, emotional and intellectual, most times without realizing and hopefully better integrated than it sounds.

My intellectual side comes from a strong interest in analytical thinking, evaluating issues, acquiring data and coming up with solutions. I see challenges not as barriers but opportunities to challenge my own thoughts and abilities. I thrive on finding unique solutions to these challenges and sharing them with peers or friends. Much of this comes from my love of math as a child, especially doing complex calculations in my head without paper. In college this interest was significantly stimulated by an elective I took my freshman year that challenged us to find answers in fields beyond our educational training at the time by using a logic-based approach to problem-solving. This is a part of my daily life especially in the office as a physician as well as in everyday life experiences. This is also true with adoption of new technology – digital cameras and digital photography as an example. This does not feel impersonal, because it is the drive to bring positive results to those around me. I have learned that convincing people that my idea is a good solution requires that they need to have had time to process the problem for themselves before I share my proposed solution. So one thing I have learned is greater patience.

My creative drive also carries over into my gardening. It is a great way to see results of my work on a more concrete level. [pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]I thoroughly enjoy digging in the dirt and planting seeds and watching them grow. [/pullquote]
I thoroughly enjoy digging in the dirt and planting seeds and watching them grow. It is interesting that, at times, I enjoy planting and caring for the garden more than actually harvesting the product of my endeavors. (I can sometimes use help harvesting!) However, giving away the results is great fun and I so look forward to the arrival of the first sweet corn out of the garden.

On an emotional level, I see myself as a caregiver who enjoys giving and frequently has a hard time receiving. Recently, I had one of my families at work tell me how they love me as a doctor. I have learned to say thank you and am becoming much better at hearing that when said. I learned long ago that the best physician is one who listens well and expresses care and interest in addition to making the right diagnosis and treatment. As an only child, one of the things that I really missed was having siblings. I always dreamed of having a brother and at one point had an imaginary brother. I have had some close friends in the past and have a wonderful partner with four brothers, but it was getting involved with GSV that allowed me to feel that I really have that family, that brotherhood, that I missed. I have come to realize that the intellectual challenges are good, powerful and a great adrenalin fix, but it is the feeling of true friendship and care that I experience with many of you in GSV that keeps me going and giving, letting me experience that natural high that can only be felt and not thought.

Lem Arnold is a 54-year-old physician, partner and son and educates health care professionals on culturally competent care for the LGBTI. He lives in Atlanta and LaFayette, GA.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2006 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.  Read the original article in the Visionary.

A POSITIVE PERSPECTIVE – 2015 Follow up

Following my bliss 10 years later finds a life that is little more complicated. With the onset of physical problems – specifically my back problems – I have come to realize that there can be limitations in life and I am not ready for those.  I can no longer ride the tractor and gardening has become picking only.  I had one major surgery and am hoping that I do not have to have another one. I still get the patient gratitude fix – back to work after 3 ½ months off after surgery – and hugs from my brothers in GSV, but I am uncertain what the future will be.  How mobile and free of pain will I be? So I will keep on working a while longer, contemplating retirement in the not too distant future and trying to keep a positive outlook. So for the time being, it is taking life just one day at a time.

Since “Happiness” is the theme of the 2016 Winter Meditation, we searched the Visionary archives for past articles on a similar theme and found them in the Summer 2006 issue which had Following Your Bliss as its theme.

Lem Arnold, Roger Beaumont, Randy Johnson and Paul Plate authored those articles and have kindly agreed to republishing them now. At least three of the articles have follow-ups written in 2015.

This is the first in a series of four articles about following one’s bliss republished from the Summer 2006 Visionary Archives.  It includes a brief 2015 update from Randy.

Following Bliss Home

Randy Johnson

Today I believe that to follow one’s own bliss is to be on a journey that is, itself, one of bliss. Daniel Webster has defined bliss as “great joy or happiness; spiritual joy; heavenly rapture.” Thus, I can rephrase my opening statement in simpler terms: the way to happiness is to find happiness along the way.

I stated that “Today I believe…” because for most of my 41 years, I could not even see past myself to really be open to the possibility of a life of bliss. For many and varied reasons, growing up as a black male with repressed homosexual feelings in Spartanburg, SC, in the late 1960s and 70s was distressful, frightening, and lonely. Both of my hard working, high school-educated parents insisted that my sister and I strive to reach our fullest potential. I knew that they loved me and sacrificed to make our lives materially comfortable. But I did not feel that I could share certain parts of myself with them. So, I buried these parts – hid them away from the eyes of the world and myself. I did not have close friends or relatives that I felt I could open up to, although I was fairly popular and well-respected. And, despite having grown up in the church as a conscientious, God-fearing child, I had yet to experience the reality of love.

In the 13th chapter of I Corinthians, love is described as the quintessential virtue, without which all of our most noble sacrifices and exquisite gifts are empty and vain. When I used to read this passage, I could never understand why anyone would do such sacrificial, heroic deeds if they did not have love. Now, however, I can look back over my life and see how much of my giving and doing was rooted in my own neediness – my desperate attempts to get something from God or others to validate myself. I was trying to earn the favor of God and men when these are the inheritance of those who have chosen to believe that they are already loved, highly favored, heirs of happiness.

Despite all of my religious exposure and education, my heart remained full of doubt, unbelief, and fear. I did not believe that the world was a safe, nurturing place where I could expect to flourish. I did not understand how this God that I sought to worship could love me and yet permit my existence to be so utterly lonely and despondent. I longed to be able to share myself with a male companion in an intimate, caring relationship, but doubted that such a longing would ever be fulfilled. I was afraid to speak of my true feelings of attraction for classmates who may also have been homosexual, for fear of rejection or ridicule, if I turned out to be wrong. In short, I was a double-minded man, saying I believed/wanted one thing, but in my heart distrusting the very desires and questions birthed within me by the One who created me, was lovingly indwelling me. Instead, I chose to remain reliant upon my achievements, my reputation and my possessions for any sense of significance and self-worth (the full-time job of the ego). This need to continually feed my ego, or false self, was directly opposed to following a path of bliss because it led me away from my truest, most natural self.

[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]My coming to follow bliss meant giving myself the gift of self-acceptance of my history, positive and negative traits, dreams, and desires.[/pullquote]

My coming to follow bliss meant giving myself the gift of self-acceptance of my history, positive and negative traits, dreams, and desires It meant seeing the beauty in the midst of the hardships and the disarray of my life. It was finally beginning to feel, in a lasting and profound way, the love and understanding that I had so longed for. It meant knowing that I had the power to choose to become what I’d always hoped I might become. I heard the familiar words to Whitney Houston’s song “The Greatest Love of All” in a downtown Charleston restaurant a few years ago and, for the first time, really understood the beauty and power of what they meant. This is the love that, as I Corinthians 13 so eloquently states, will never fail. To quote author Aldous Huxley: “The spiritual journey does not consist in arriving at a new destination where a person gains what he did not have or becomes what he is not. It consists in the dissipation of one’s own ignorance concerning one’s self and life and the gradual growth of that understanding which begins the spiritual awakening. The finding of God is a coming to one’s self.”

As I considered how far I have come on this journey of “the dissipation of [my] ignorance” about myself, and the opening up of my heart to all of the good it longs to experience and to share, I was overwhelmed with feelings of bliss. I sobbed uncontrollably as my heart flooded with gratitude for the relief and delight of having, at last, come home to myself and found God already there.

In 2006 Randy Johnson lived and worked in Seneca, SC, as a dentist. His interests included bicycling, physical fitness and development, study in the fields of spirituality and psychology, massage and new recipes. He currently lives in Asheville North Carolina. The article was originally published in the Summer 2006 Visionary.

Where Bliss Abounds – Randy’s 2015 Update

As I stated just over nine years ago in “Following Bliss Home,” the joy is in the journey. Reflecting on my circuitous path since 2006, I am delighted that I have continued to follow the energy of expansion, joy, and possibility. Being with what is, without judgment or resistance beckons the lightness of bliss. It is Life’s ongoing invitation to Be. All of me. Here. Now.

Since 2006 I have moved six times between four cities, been involved in six different intimate relationships lasting from four months to my current one of five years, left private practice, worked for three different dental companies, studied massage therapy, steeped in a year long program of energetic healing and awareness, traveled to Italy, developed new friends and let go of old ones, and started a new enterprise. Though some of the situations and relationships were fraught with difficulty and angst, I can now see that they were a reflection of some aspect of my internal state which required acknowledgement and integration.

In his book The Presence Process, Michael Brown posits that as we allow ourselves to fully feel and integrate unresolved fear, anger and grief, we become more available to experience the present moment. And that, I believe, is where bliss abounds!

Dear Brothers,

Come join us for friendship, brotherhood, and a heart-centered community experience. Renew, replenish, and restore yourself at the 2016 GSV Winter Meditation.
 
It could be one of the most significant retreats you will ever attend. Why?  The energy you flow immediately affects your physical health, your emotional health, your human interactions, your value in the world, and your connection to Spirit. The energy you flow, the emotion that beams from your heart, changes EVERYTHING in your life.
 
AND you have total creative control over it…through spiritual practice. In this retreat we are going to have some real significant conversations about it. 
 
Please join us.

“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.”  —The XIV Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness
 
“Be happy, for your only function here is happiness.”  —A Course in Miracles (Lesson 102)
 
“Unconditional happiness is the highest technique there is … This is truly a spiritual path, and it is as direct and sure a path to Awakening as could possibly exist … Events don’t determine whether or not you’re going to be happy. They’re just events. You determine whether or not you’re going to be happy.” — Michael A. Singer, The Untethered Soul

“To be (happy) … or not to be (happy) … THAT is the question.” — Shakespeare/Delgado

Tony James, Convener
Cami Delgado, Keynote Speaker & Co-Creator
Jim Stratton, Co-Creator

This is the fifth, and final, in a series of articles about altars republished from the Visionary archives. It was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.

My Little Altar

By Andrew Ramer

 The small wooden chest beside my bed comes from a Danish Modern wall unit that my father and his second wife purchased in the mid 1960’s. I got it in 1975 when I moved to my first apartment in Brooklyn. The vertical supports didn’t reach the ceiling of my hundred-year-old brownstone so I put them out on the street, along with all the bookshelves. But I kept the chest and it’s been my meditation altar ever since.

A succession of objects have sat on top of this chest, with only one constant feature: a pair of brass Sabbath candlesticks that my mother’s mother’s mother brought here from Russia.

[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]In the middle of my earliest altar, created when I was 5, were two ceramic figurines I was in love with, a cowboy and an angel. They no longer exist, except in a blurry photograph.[/pullquote]

Around and between them have been crystals, feathers, shells, beach rocks, post cards, photographs, icons, statues of goddesses, gods, animals, angels and often – nothing. Today a glass hand sits between the candlesticks. To the right of it are a brass egg, a crystal on top of a polished lapis disk my mother gave me and a statue of two metal flute players sent to me by Sister Who. To the left are the silver kiddish cup my father’s father sipped his wine from on the Sabbath, a tiny glass globe of the earth, and a plastic deer that I bought in Cliff’s hardware and variety store on Castro Street for $2.29

In the middle of my earliest altar, created when I was 5, were two ceramic figurines I was in love with, a cowboy and an angel. They no longer exist, except in a blurry photograph. Arranging altars has always been calming and focusing for me. Long before I ever heard the word “meditation,” I would sit in front of my altar; tuning into … something. The objects remind me of things that are important, the burning candles still my senses and the blank white wall behind the altar has always been a source of rest. As a firm believer in disorganized religion, I do not sit and meditate every day at my altar. But Its there all the time, generating an energy field that I can slide into when I need it.

I also have altars on top of both of my toilet tanks and on a kitchen shelf. My public altar is in the living room, on top of two larger chests from the same old wall unit my bedroom altar came from. It is covered with icons, kachinas, menorahs, Buddhas, Zuni fetishes, rocks and more candles. Some of my friends think it’s a coffee table and put their cups on it when I have a party.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.  Read the original article in the Visionary.

GSV Annual Planning Retreat
January 17 – 18, 2016

Sunday afternoon – Monday afternoon
No cost for participants*

Every year, the Council of Elders of Gay Spirit Visions sponsors a Planning Retreat for the Council and all working groups. Participation is open to those who currently serve on a work group, those who have attended at least one GSV conference, or to individuals that have received prior Council approval.

We especially encourage work group liaisons and active work group members to attend. Expenses for the Sunday overnight stay and meals will be paid by the Council. You may attend the Planning Retreat without attending the Winter Meditation.

Read more about the annual Planning Retreat >>
Register for the Planning Retreat >>

* Planning Retreat registration costs are paid for by the Council of Gay Spirit Visions.

GSV 2016 Winter Meditation

Happiness: Positive Emotion and Creating a More Vibrant GSV, LGBT Community, and World

January 15 – 17, 2016
at The Mountain, Highlands NC

Two Nights: $226.48

[standout-css3-button href=”http://www.themountainrlc.org” opennewwindow=”false”]Register Today[/standout-css3-button]

Dear Brothers,

Come join us for a conversation on happiness, true happiness. Come to this heart-centered, upbeat, uplifting, inspiring, experiential, interactive, energizing, and enlivening retreat.

Why?

People who live mostly in positive emotion are healthier and live longer lives. They make better friends and have a wider circle of friends. They make better spouses and have better relationships and marriages. They are smarter and more creative. They are more resilient—they bounce back faster after adversity. And they are also kinder, more loving, more generous, and more giving.

Happiness does not happen by chance—it happens by choice. It is a practice, and the more you practice, the better you get at it. Anyone can be happier, and happier, and happier, if they choose.

This workshop provides the vessel for you to examine and begin to dissolve obstacles to happier living and gives you insights as to how you can be a more valuable presence in GSV, the LGBT community, and the world.

“To be (happy)… or not to be (happy)…THAT is the question.”
— Shakespeare/Delgado

Tony James, Convener
Cami Delgado, Keynote Speaker & Co-Creator
Jim Stratton, Co-Creator

This is the fourth in a series of articles about altars republished from the Visionary archives. It was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.

Feeling Close to Spirit

by Jennings Fort

I want to be a spiritual person. So it makes sense to me that I should have a daily spiritual practice. I’ve pondered this often, thinking other GSV people must have satisfying daily rituals that make them feel one with Spirit.

I have an altar on our bedroom dresser. There are framed photos of my mother, sister, and late father. My partner, John, and I are in a photo taken on top of the fire tower at a GSV Fall Conference. I have photos of my dear friends Mark Clinard and Doug Parrot, three of my grandparents, and my uncle Jennings who died in World War II. I have a lapel pin of the One Voice Chorus in Charlotte, NC, where I sang for nine years. This gay chorus was a gift from Spirit that has helped me along my spiritual path. In the middle is a candle. I have it in a small clay cauldron my friend, Larry Jackson, gave me. Underneath, there’s a tile that says “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine” John gave me when I first moved in with him. Sometimes I burn incense there, but not often. Between work, the gym, errands and just vegging out, I feel guilty that I neglect my altar. Sometimes, I’ll add a card from a loved one or something just to change it a little. [pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]I meditate nearly every morning. It’s transcendental meditation that I learned 25 years ago. You’d think by now I would have reached some kind of cosmic consciousness, but I really haven’t. [/pullquote]

I meditate nearly every morning. It’s transcendental meditation that I learned 25 years ago. You’d think by now I would have reached some kind of cosmic consciousness, but I really haven’t. I’ve meditated off and on for years. It’s a way of easing into the day. After 20 minutes of reciting my mantra, I pray, thanking Spirit for my life, for John, asking that I don’t expect too much or too little from him, for my mother and her health and the well-being of Mark and Doug. Then I ask for help to let go of anger that I have about my father, who drank himself to death eight years ago. Even if my meditation isn’t the best, I still offer my prayers to Spirit and I think Spirit listens.

I meditate nearly every morning. It’s transcendental meditation that I learned 25 years ago. You’d think by now I would have reached some kind of cosmic consciousness, but I really haven’t.

One of the most spiritual things for me right now is making compost. I love gardening. It’s a passion handed down by my mother. I collect all the coffee grounds, banana peelings, eggshells and rotten things from the refrigerator in a brass bowl on our kitchen countertop. When it’s full, I take it to the dogwood tree in the the back of the yard. In this shady and green place, I pour the food scraps, rousing the flies and gnats. I stir the pile and take in the sweet rotting smell. Sometimes I’ll grab a handful of compost and feel it between my fingers, thinking about how this will nourish the flowers we plant. I’ll linger a moment, watching the insects and the worms, and just enjoy the quiet. It makes me feel good to think I’m helping the earth, even in this small way. But the best part is the quiet. Maybe between my altar, meditation and composting, these few quiet moments are enough. Then, at least, I feel the warmth of Spirit beside me.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.  Read the original article in the Visionary.

This is the third in a series of articles about altars republished from the Visionary archives. It was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.

Altar Building Rediscovered

By Cami Delgado

The ancient art of altar building has made a comeback and it’s no wonder. Altars nurture and uplift our souls, support prayer and meditation and remind us of an invisible world we can’t see.

Building an altar can be a creative, energizing, and affirming experience that celebrates you and everyone who has enriched your journey. In your living room, it creates an atmosphere for soulful sharing. In your bedroom, it accentuates the sacredness of lovemaking.

Be bold and juxtapose contrasting power objects. On my altar, Quan Yin, shamanic rattles, Merlin the magician, an Om symbol, ceremonial feathers, sacred bells, a Celtic urn, and Jesus, all live harmoniously and celebrate the diversity of my spiritual sources.

Bring nature into your altar by including stones, minerals, sea shells, and live plants. Call forth the cleansing power of water by having water from a very special ocean, lake, river or spring, in a sacred vessel and let this natural element speak to your soul. Elicit Earth energy by collecting sand or earth from a favorite sacred site and keep it in a sacred container. Personalize your altar by honoring special beings who have inspired you, walked the journey with you or enriched your inner life. Images or quotes from your favorite spiritual mentors, elders, and teachers add inspiration. Particularly honor special gay men whose presence or written word have inspired you along your path.

An altar that celebrates all that you are would include a celebration of your gayness and sexuality. My altar includes rainbow flags and pink triangles. I’m still searching for a self-standing phallus. [pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Others honor a loved one by placing his pubic hair in a sacred pouch. [/pullquote]

Images of the naked male body placed amidst sacred objects speak to the harmonious integration of spirit and body. Others honor a loved one by placing his pubic hair in a sacred pouch.

Enhance the self-expressive character of your altar by creating special objects you have made. Hand painting spiritual symbols onto rock, fabric, candles or wood is a way of creating your own personalized and unique sacred objects.

My altar also includes the goddess Psyche (I’m a psychotherapist), Chinese Foo Dogs, Native American medicine beads, Greek Orthodox icons, Buddhas, yin yang symbols, a spiritual colonial Mexican painting,Tibetan and Hindu mala beads, sacred stones, I Ching coins, two plants, a rain stick, a Kabbala tree of life, an African goddess, a Lalique angel, 14 candles, my country’s coat of arms, and other personally meaningful items. It mirrors, expresses and supports essential aspects of my inner world.

These ideas awaken your intuition and inspiration. Let your altar be a genuine expression and celebration of your soul’s richness. Use the gift of your imagination to create a visual reminder of the potential that lies within you and of the sacredness of being gay!

Do it joyously!

This article was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.  Read the original article in that issue of Visionary.

Dear Brothers,

Thank you for registering for the upcoming 2015 GSV Fall Conference, positive anticipation is rising daily. Can you hear the drum roll? The rustle of yards of fabric?

We in the entertainment committee certainly can, and are inviting you to sign up for the 2015 talent show. Performance art is a form of healing, of growth, of sharing and bonding with brothers and as the conference theme suggests, this may well be the wildest show ever!

Some of you are visual artists, not performers. We’re looking for several visual artists to do signs announcing the different acts. Can we count on you? Let us know.

For the performers, the sign-up sheet will be posted on the bulletin board of the Commons Room (behind the dining room). Please sign up ASAP to assure a spot and please keep in mind the following:

• Acts must be no longer than 6 minutes. After that, a swarm of stage faeries will make you disappear, it won’t be pretty…we promise.
• Attending rehearsal is mandatory; no act can appear without rehearsal.
• For piano accompaniment, please send your sheet music to David Berger in advance [email protected] and schedule one-on-one rehearsal time upon arrival.
• If you’re using a musical track, please present it to the sound tech at rehearsal.
• Acts work best when enhanced with costumes, props, music, and movement. Keep this in mind as you prepare your material.
• Freedom of expression requires that both performers and audience keep an open mind and a sensitive heart; we ask that everyone be mindful of this.

See you at the Mountain!

Cami

In addition to the two sessions by our Keynote Speaker, Buddy Wakefield, we have four conversations that will be moderated by members of our tribe. The topics are derived from conversations at conferences over the past few years and from online postings that generated significant interest. You’ll be able to attend two of the following conversations:

The Discomfort and Safety of Surviving
with host Scott Dillard

Since the advent of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, many of us have lost a good number of friends, family, and partners. Some of us have carried on our lives as we witnessed the passing of those we loved and also worried for our health at the same time. Still others have wondered, “Why them and not me?” It is a sort of survivor’s guilt that makes us wonder about our own mortality, the fairness of life, and how we continue to live with loss.

We will engage in a conversation that seeks to honor those we lost, those we carried for, and our own sense of self in these most trying of times. This is more than a chat. We will do some writing, some sketching, some storytelling that uncovers the emotions we each feel as survivors of the plague. Come prepared to share at our own level of comfort and to contemplate the shared sense of community that living through this has meant.

The Discomfort and Safety of Aging
with host Joe Kiser

As I move from one decade to another, I have experienced many changes on many fronts…and backs. How I experience life has evolved. Emotionally, physically and spiritually. From wild to mild and back to wild again. As my body, mind and spirituality evolve, I am presented with opportunities to embrace, deny or adapt. Additionally, questions have arisen for me. What responsibility, if any, do i have for the next generation? What, if anything, can I offer to future generations?

During this session, I will share some of my experiences and the impact of my decisions and reactions. I would also like to hear the experiences and expectations of others.

The Discomfort and Safety Around the Gender and Sexuality Continuum
with host Greg Hummel

Man, woman, straight, or gay. Do you remember when these were our only options? For some, these identifiers are enough. But for many of us, these labels are limiting and leave us left out of the conversation. At a time in history when women like Caitlyn Jenner and Laverne Cox are creating (much needed) ripples in our social fabric, we sometimes find ourselves struggling to keep up. Come join me in confronting our discomfort around gender identity and sexuality. Together we can create an even safer GSV environment and a safer world.

The Discomfort and Safety of Victimization and Oppression
with host Hunter Flournoy

Join us for a discussion of our experiences of victimization and oppression, and how we perpetuate these experiences even within our own community by oppressing each other, and projecting the role of oppressor onto each other. Explore how we can step off of the drama triangle and empower ourselves and each other.

This is the second in a series of articles about altars republished from the Visionary archives. It was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.

Home Altars and a Daily Practice

by King Thackston

Ever since I saw Rebecca Wells’ Ebook, Little Altars, Everywhere, that’s how I tend to think of my home. There are literally little altars, everywhere!

I assembled the main altar in my bedroom a decade ago after my first GSV Conference. But I had been a “closet-altar- kind-of-guy” for years. For a long time the centerpiece was a bronze statue of Kwan Yin, the goddess of mercy but she has moved to the mantle above my bed. Now the center is an oriental wooden temple with a small statue of a wise man on the porch. There is an ever-changing array of candles, blessed water and oils, stones and talismans. The constants are a drawing of the word “love” as if it were written in water and a picture of “The Green Man.”

Above my drawing board is a photograph of a formal Japanese Garden, some hand-made brushes and pencils, a bas- relief of the Egyptian owl, Horus, and a print of the first Zen patriarch/follower of Buddha, Bodhidharma Daruma. He had his eyelids removed when he was caught sleeping during meditation!

On my living room mantle is a candle I light each morning and extinguish each evening before bed. The flame is a remembrance of the spirits of friends who are no longer with me on this plane and a reminder of the gift of life. It reminds me how precious each second is. There is also a small chime that I ring when I light and put out the candle. I also ring it when I leave the house to remind myself to have a safe journey, to accomplish the task successfully and with ease and to have a safe return home. I began this ritual after seeing the Dalai Lama do this before a journey in the movie, “Kundun.” I also think it alerts my guides and angels that I am leaving and reminds them to protect my home and cat, Oskar. A have a toy dome of the ocean with animated dolphins that swim serenely through the sea when you push a plunger. It reminds me to “swim” through the currents of the world and not fight them. Silly, perhaps, but it really puts me in a better frame of mind when I leave my “world” and face the other one outside. This simple act lets me swim/dance with the world instead of pushing against it.

My daily practice is Yoga, breathing, Chi Gung, meditation and Planetary Acupuncture. Decades ago I studied Yoga with the Pierce Program in Atlanta with Martin Pierce’s first Men’s Class. Then for several years I attended a “Wellness Workout” taught by Jean Dunham that combined breathing, stretching, Skinner Releasing and dancing. Here I was also introduced to the Tao Animal Exercises in which you “become” different animals to energize different body systems.

Around is time at an early GSV Fall Conference, George Miller taught me Chi Gong wake- up exercises. Rocco Patt taught Planetary Acupuncture at another GSV Conference. This is a series of breathing exercises involving breathing the universe down though the top of your head and wrapping it around your heart. You breathe it out, down into the center of the Earth. Then, repeat in reverse, breathing the Earth up into your heart and then out the top of your head into the universe. Finally, you pull the third breath into your heart from both directions, wrapping it around your heart and then breathing it out in all directions. Now I do my own routine, mostly- based on all these sources.

It doesn’t take long for a daily practice to become a habit, especially when the benefits begin to appear and it feels integrated into my life.

During the last year, I have learned and benefitted from the regular GSV Yoga classes taught by Rocky Beeland and Sterling McVay.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2001 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.
Read the original article in the Visionary >>

The creation of altars in public spaces, as places to connect with Spirit in the now and reconnect with Spirits past, is a practice common to many belief systems as far back as the Greek and Norse traditions. The tradition of having public altars at all Gay Spirit Visions gatherings came directly from The Radical Faerie and Native American traditions from which GSV emerged.

Individuals who identify with any of these traditions frequently have personal altars in their homes as a way to be with Spirit regularly. The items on these altars, and their meaning to those who placed them there, can be very personal and intimate.

We are blessed that the five men who wrote about their personal altars in Visionaries past were willing to share their stories then. And, again now in the present.

— Gary Kaupman, Visionary Cooordinator

This is the first in a series of articles about altars republished from the Visionary archives. It was originally published in the December 1995 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.

Altars: A Place to Worship

by Dandelion

The first step in spiritual practice is choosing a path, or tradition, to follow. Next one must make a place to worship. For most of us an altar is an appropriate focus for our spiritual rituals. Altars may be temporary or may have a permanent place in your home. They need not be large or elaborate but I think it is important, if possible, to make room for a permanent ritual space. As the saying goes: Out of sight, out of mind; having a permanent altar makes regular spiritual practice easier and more convenient and just the existence and sight of an altar can bring more spiritual mindfulness into your life.

An altar could be as small as part of a shelf in a book case or as large as a small cabinet. Generally a small end table or bedside table is a nice size, especially if it has drawers or a cabinet underneath to hold supplies and ritual tools that are not going to remain on display. My own altar is a small occasional table, I keep a rosewood chest underneath it for storage. This is also convenient for transporting my altar to other places. The size of your altar may be partially dependent on the implements required for your chosen form of worship.

The type of objects on your altar will largely be determined by your spiritual path while their form and design should be determined by your own taste and aesthetic sensibility.

A good place to begin is with a cloth. An altar cloth can be made of any material you choose, though most traditions prefer natural fibers. You might want to have a number of different cloths, in a variety of colors or designs, each appropriate to certain seasons or ritual uses. The main cloth on my altar is a square of Point de Files lace. The hundreds of tiny hand-tied knots remind me of the many interwoven experiences that make up my life; we are each an individual tapestry of experience and, at the same time, threads in a larger tapestry of community.[pullquote align=”left” cite=”Dandelion” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The hundreds of tiny hand-tied knots remind me of the many interwoven experiences that make up my life; we are each an individual tapestry of experience and, at the same time, threads in a larger tapestry of community.[/pullquote]

A pair of candle sticks is also appropriate to most traditions and if you pursue ritual candle magic you will need about half a dozen smaller candle holders in addition to the larger main pair for the altar. A container for burning incense is also good. This may range from a simple joss stick holder to an abalone shell with a turkey feather fan for burning sage in a Native American ritual, or a brass filigree holder for the charcoal briquettes used to burn traditional powdered incense, perhaps with chains attached so that it can be lifted up and swung to disperse the smoke as in Catholic or Anglican worship. You might also include such things a chalice for ritual offerings of wine or water, crystals and stones with personal or ritual significance, a brazier or cauldron for burning, icons or votive figures, a vase for flowers, or a plate for offerings of food, among other things.

As mentioned before, the design of ritual objects and tools should be carefully considered for any symbolic significance they might have and for their ability to aide you in finding a spiritual frame of mind. One person’s altar might be a simple stone slab with plain glass candle holders, an abalone shell and few crystals, while another might be a baroque collection of painted figurines and elaborate metal work. Being an eclectic Faerie spirit my altar varies from an ornate cloisonné enamel brazier from India, to a Zuni fox fetish, to a small well worn plastic toy dog whose personal significance could be the subject of a whole column.

Reserve your ritual objects exclusive for ritual use, and treat them reverently. However, don’t forget that they are only symbolic. Whatever power exists in your spiritual practice comes from your own heart and the Mind of the Divine. The ritual objects you use are merely physical manifestations of your spiritual intent, but carefully chosen and properly used they can be a great help in focusing your mind and inspiring your worship.

This article was originally published in the December 1995 issue of GSV’s Visionary journal.
Read the original article in the Visionary >>

Between 1995 and 2012, Gay Spirit Visions published Visionary, a reader-written journal that contained announcements about events, reports from the Council and hundreds of short articles on dozens of topics, serious, sublime and silly.

Prior to 2003, Visionary was printed and mailed to men who had attended GSV gatherings at The Mountain. After that time it was published as a PDF that was available to everyone on the Gay Spirit Visions website. The Spring 2012 issue was the last published in that format.

In 2014, the 25th anniversary of GSV’s founding, we saw a Visionary that included the most detailed history of our gatherings ever published, reviewed the 2014 gatherings and looked into the future with words from both community and Council Members.

We’ve heard so many compelling GSV community voices over these 20 years that we decided to bring some of them to the fore by using the GSV website to republish a series of articles on different themes on the next few months. The first theme, Altars, starts with an article by Dandelion and continues with thoughts from King Thackston, Cami Delgado, Jennings Fort and Andrew Ramer.

As Visionary continues online, we hope to explore topics that call to us now and in the future with content from a variety of diverse voices.

This is an experiment. We don’t know what Visionary will look like—digital, print, implanted chips—and we’re open to whatever direction it takes in reflecting and enriching our community.

If you’d like to browse past issues of Visionary, they’re all available here.

You are invited to email your ideas, encouragement, and suggestions for growth to [email protected].

— Gary Kaupman, Visionary Coordinator

Hello Brothers!

As we are preparing for the 2015 Fall Conference, the Council is working hard to continue our efforts to respond to community feedback by improving communication and pathways into leadership in GSV. As part of that, we wanted to write you a brief note to let you know about an exciting development in our Gay Spirit Visions Community, and put out an invitation for your suggestions for themes, keynote speakers, and conveners for our 2016 and 2017 conferences. We want to draw on the tremendous wisdom, creativity, curiosity, and passion in our community as part of the planning process, and we need your input to do that!

First, the Council is delighted to welcome Mark Thunder Zumbach as Elder of Archives. Thunder has been an instigator, teacher, performer, advocate, guardian, and organizer in GSV and the larger faerie community for many years and brings to the Council tremendous skills in community building, creative flair, and a passionate commitment to including and empowering every member of our community. We are excited to have him on the team!

Second, the Council is actively seeking suggestions for themes, keynote speakers, and conveners for GSV’s 2016 and 2017 gatherings. If you have a passionate desire to organize a conference, be a keynote, explore a particular topic, or hear from a particular GSV brother, please send your suggestions to [email protected]. All suggestions will receive a response from the Council and will also be shared with the Keynote and Theme work group. Because we need to begin planning for the 2016 Spring Conference, we need all of your 2016 Spring suggestions before the  2015 Fall Conference…so please send them in right away!

We hope you are having a wonderful summer, and we look forward to seeing many of you at the Fall Conference! Remember to get your registration in soon—enrollment is moving quickly this year!

The GSV Council

Read about the Council of Nine >>
Read more about the 2015 Fall Retreat >>
Register for the 2015 Fall Retreat >>

I embraced an opportunity to experience the spoken-word artistry and storytelling of Buddy Wakefield at an event in Greensboro during his recent World Tour. I wrangled Thunder Zumbach into joining me. I was immediately enamored of Buddy’s authenticity, his openness in sharing his story, his passion for language, and his willingness to be comfortable in his discomfort. The World Tour stopped in Tampa where I encouraged Tim Flood to experience this delicious dance of words and emotion. When I checked my knowingness (in my own dance with Wild Mind, doubting myself plays its role), Tim said, “YES.” Thunder said, “Oh my, YES!” (I figured spirit was saying “YES.” Who has a world tour and stops in Greensboro?)

Most importantly, Buddy said, “YES!” I truly believe if you join us in September you will too! Click on the link below for more information about Buddy, our keynote speaker for 2015, and for highlights of the program for the GSV 2015 Fall Conference: Trusting the Wild Mind: Confronting Discomfort in Our Search for Safety.

About Buddy Wakefield

“Buddy Wakefield aims to cause a disarming de-haunting of accidents. He is pursuing a career in judgment suspension but sometimes wants to blend in so badly he forgets his purpose and worries that everyone else is doing it right, or wrong. He once sat on top of the whole world and told it jokes about the ocean until everybody crumbled into tattoos of bakeries. It smelled good. Felt right. We laughed. So much. Sometimes, he studies propellers because they can make themselves invisible. Buddy has collected enough humongous titles to be crushed under their weight. There are no stunt doubles performing the accidents in his work, or the bursts of beast in his behavior. There is a recurring theme in his nightmares where he wakes up only to realize that whatever supposedly awful thing was stalking him was really just trying to help. His interests include cephalopods, chopping wood and untrembling, unless trembling is imperative to a successful dance move.”

Visit Buddy online at buddywakefield.com >>

My Dearest Brothers,

Not long ago I wrote to let you know that registration for the GSV 2015 Fall Conference had opened. In just two months we will join together again at The Mountain to continue the work that was started more than 30 years ago at Running Water Farm. The previous ten months have flown by for me; I guess it’s true that time flies when you are having fun. The greatest gift for me in this time has been the visioning and planning and sacred space I have shared with so many of you as Trusting the Wild Mind: Confronting Discomfort in Our Search for Safety has evolved from concept to the transformative experience I hope you will share with me.

Wild Mind is the primal instinct to live, to celebrate, and ultimately to embrace the truth of our being. Wild Mind is the root of our peace, the fierceness of our passion, the wellspring of our joy, and the voice of our power. Stand hand-in-hand in our sacred circle of men who love men. Together, with whatever willingness is possible, we can consciously lean into our discomfort and have the authentic, honest conversations that our souls crave.

Like all the work of GSV, this endeavor may be a stand-alone experience for some. For me, Trusting the Wild Mind: Confronting Discomfort in Our Search for Safety is an intersection of ideas from our previous three fall conferences; it continues the arc of Storytelling as a Spiritual Practice (2012), The Kingdom Within (2013), and Waking Up in Community (2014). This year, come and be present with the stories you carry about comfort and discomfort. Come explore the intimacy of self-trust and unravel this idea of feeling safe. Come explore the story of yourself, the story of community, and the story of how, to the extent we can (or are willing to) release any suffering over being safe in ourselves or with one another.

Todd Humphrey, 2015 Fall Conference Convener

View a PDF of highlights from the 2015 Fall Conference >>

GSV 2015 Fall Conference

Trusting the Wild Mind:
Confronting Discomfort in Our Search for Safety

September 17 – 20, 2015
at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Four Days: $398.90
Five Days: $489.64

My Dearest Brothers,

After many months of planning I am excited to announce that registration for GSV’s 26th Annual Fall Conference is now open. Many of our brothers already have the conference on their September calendars. Others are more spontaneous when deciding if they’ll attend. In whichever group you belong, I hope to see you at The Mountain. While it’s fresh on your mind, I encourage you to register today!

When thinking about the times I have joined together with my tribe – the brothers of GSV – I discover memories of the most transformative and heart-opening experiences of my life. The many men already at work on the 2015 Fall Conference share my commitment to creating a space that allows and encourages personal growth and community connection. Spiritual discernment and the intention to co-create a safe space for heartfelt communication guide the formation of our upcoming gathering: Trusting the Wild Mind: Confronting Discomfort in Our Search for Safety.

Over the next few months you’ll learn more about the theme and our keynote speaker (he studies propellers because they can make themselves invisible). You’re going to find out about our intentional conversations that were prompted by our community chats, workshop opportunities, and other fun activities for our gathering (including a hat and wig social!). Watch your email for updates … and please consider registering today! We have in the last ten years never fallen beneath the anticipated number of attendees; early registration will assure your spot!

Are you willing to trust the wild mind? Come explore the edge of your comfort zone, engage with your tribe of amazing brothers, and possibly uncover your authentic voice.

Todd Humphrey
Convener, 2015 Fall Conference

Read More About the 2015 Fall Retreat >>
Register for the 2015 Fall Retreat >>

Dear Brother,

First of all, let me thank you for your generous contribution to our Twenty Fifth Anniversary Gift To The Mountain campaign. Today, we have raised over $26,000!!

Initially, the monies raised were to be used in the renovation of Ascenders Cabin. However, after much consultation with The Mountain, it was decided that a new structure would be more beneficial to both The Mountain and to GSV. The new structure will be built on the site of Cabin 5 (see accompanying images) and would:

• be a 3 story building – approximately 28 ft. x 48 ft.,
• contain 7 double guest rooms with jack-and-jill baths,
• a kitchen,
• a meeting/dining room with seating for 30,
• restrooms
• meeting/lounge loft, and
• two observation/gathering decks.

At the moment, we do not know when construction will begin. We have, however, been assured that it will start shortly after a majority of the funds have been obtained.

Once again, thank you, thank you for your participation in this project!

Wendell Johnson & Steven Berman, co-chairs

In March of 2014, as part of our 25th Anniversary Celebration, the GSV Council organized a Visioning Retreat with John Ballew as a facilitator. This retreat, with about 35 diverse participants, considered next steps for GSV. The June 2014 Council meeting in Atlanta provided the first opportunity for us to consider thoughts from the Visioning Retreat and the recommendations from John Ballew’s summary. As a result, we’re evolving a plan called The Path Forward to help us take the next steps towards even more participatory leadership.

Here are some recent efforts toward implementing these ideas:

• Recruit more diverse leadership drawn from the general community: Luis Alvarez as the 2015 Spring Retreat convener to serve a two-year term; Steven Wilson as a Walks Between Elder to serve a three-year term; and Wendell Johnson as a member with special skills (fundraising) to serve a two-year term. These additions represent both age and ethnic diversity for the Council.
• Open up the Scholarship process to make it easier to apply for assistance and use scholarships to increase the diversity of our conference attendance. You will notice the largest groups of younger men and men of color at Spring 2015 in the history of GSV, partially as a result of this change.
• Include more open space in our conference program for brothers to share their interests and gifts. You will notice these spaces in the Spring 2015 schedule.
• Create a new, more inclusive welcoming statement to be read at the beginning of each gathering. Note the wording of the Welcoming Statement used at the beginning of the heart circle.
• Demonstrate more transparency in the Council’s processes through providing more information online, more frequent communications with our participants, and community sessions at conferences. You will notice our constantly improving website and the community meeting at Spring 2015, intended as a time for the Council to listen to the ideas of conference participants.
• Implement liaison training and empowerment. At our Winter Planning Day, January 18-19, we appointed work groups and liaisons (chairpersons) for the work groups which assist the council in producing the three annual conferences. Much of the Planning Day was devoted to training the liaisons. At the Spring 2015 Retreat, you will see activity by several of the work groups (Welcome, Ritual, Altared Spaces (prepares the altar). If you are interested in serving on a work group, see the signup sheet in the Commons, where you checked in.

We hope The Path Forward will support all of us in bringing our planning process into even greater alignment with the spirit of service, brotherhood, love, and encouragement which fills our gatherings.

Pat Boyle, Walks Between Elder, for the Council of Nine, April 24, 2015

Terry and I are thrilled about our workshop facilitators! Two of the workshops are described below, and we’re still planning on setting aside several spaces on Saturday afternoon for anyone to lead a workshop or activity.

Circle of Healing

with Franklin Abbott
(and Bob Strain on music)

Energy is a nonverbal form of communication. We will be communicating healing through energy and touch in pairs and in the circle. This will be enhanced by guided imagery and music. The Circle of Healing format was used for over five years in a monthly gathering at First E in the early years of the AIDS epidemic to provide comfort and support for those infected with the virus and those in the community who supported them. It is not AIDS-specific and can be used in all forms of healing: physical, emotional, and spiritual.

Let your kid come out to play!

with Dev ‘Trinity’

Using ideas from Transactional Analysis, Non-competitive play, Improvisation, and Theatre Games, the goal of the workshop is for each of us to get in touch with our fun-loving kid and let him come out to play. Most of the play is nonverbal, though that does not mean silence. It does mean focusing on our experiences when we get out of our heads and into our bodies. Touch is involved at a safe level and a participant may choose to sit out any game.

As humans, we tend to compartmentalize ourselves. We sometimes see ourselves as part mind, part body, and part spirit. We even have different doctors for each one of these parts. However, all three parts are one and the same.

There is a concept in social work, Holon, which establishes that we are more than the sum of our parts. In fact, illness in any one of these areas affects the others. This spring we would like to engage all three areas—mind, body, and spirit—to communicate our needs. In order for us to communicate our needs to each other, we first have to connect with these three areas in ourselves.

As a practice, connection and communication offers two opportunities: one, to learn and internalize new skills and tools, and another to self-explore and express yourself on your own terms. This cycle of discovery continues throughout our lives; we often call it growth.

The Spring Retreat will provide safe spaces for us to explore how we communicate though our words, bodies, and spirits. When we cultivate an inner connection in ourselves, we can then connect with others. And for that, we have scheduled unstructured time throughout the weekend.

So, come brothers, and grow with us as we seek to create a spiritual community with the intent to heal, nurture our gifts and potential, and live with integrity in the world.

Peace and Love,

Luis and Terry

Connection and communication is vital to human relationships and community. Brandon Kazen-Maddox practices connection and communication using an original art form he’s created called ASLAD, or American Sign Language (ASL) Acrobatic Dance. He says, “I want to spread its breath, lift, flips and sweeps far and wide across our world, in hopes that one day we humans might communicate through gestures that are so emotive, so communicative, that we won’t even have to look twice.”

A gymnast since the age of four and a grandchild of deaf adults (or GODA), Brandon maintains a professional career as a freelance American Sign Language Interpreter for the deaf and hard-of-hearing and has worked in the television and entertainment industry through shows involving deaf performers. He has also trained Chinese Acrobats in a Professional Training Program in San Francisco, CA.

Brandon’s unique perspective as a biracial, gay artist that has fused communication with movement can help us discover ways to expand how we connect. When asked if he saw his work as a spiritual practice, he said, “Oh definitely!”

About Brandon

Brandon Kazen-Maddox is a freelance American Sign Language interpreter in the Bay Area who focuses the bulk of his artistic efforts on blending the linguistics of American Sign Language (ASL), the explosive inverted qualities of acrobatics and the technique of various styles of dance to cultivate a new form of performance art he has named American Sign Language Acrobatic Dance, or ASLAD. Brandon has performed works of ASLAD in both live performance and video through his performance company, Body.Language.Productions. Recent works from B.L.P. include a video performance project for the 2013 Bay Area Deaf Dance Festival, an ASL dance duet choreographed by dancer and choreographer Antoine Hunter for the 2014 Black Choreographer’s Festival and an upcoming ASL project with Rosa Lee Timm, a notable Deaf performer whose passion is rooted in signing poems and songs in American Sign Language.

Brandon’s Mission: To meld the intricate emotions of American Sign Language, the kinesthetic dynamics of rhythm and dance and the percussive qualities of high-energy acrobatics together in order to create a brand-new medium of art that resounds within the souls of hearing and deaf people alike.

Brandon’s Motivation: His deaf family members, friends, and fellow dancers who have the ability to feel as far as the sky.

Brandon’s Muse: Rhythm, music, and dance that evokes the body to feel compelled to physically and emotionally express itself in a manner all its own.

Watch Brandon’s American Sign Language performance:

Terry and I would like to hear about workshops you would like to offer or participate in during the 2015 Spring Retreat. We have already heard some fantastic ideas through Facebook, but we want to take it a step further. We would like you, our brothers and community, to help us develop your ideas into workshops.

Workshops will be held on Saturday morning and will last one hour and forty-five minutes. Your proposal should include the following information:

1. Name of workshop
2. Facilitator(s)
3. Summary of the workshop (including goals and sample activities or outcomes)
4. Description of how the workshop enhances the Spring Retreat’s theme of connections and communication

Send us your proposals soon so we can determine how best to integrate your workshop into the retreat and ensure it’s fully supported.

Complete this form to share your workshop idea >>

Hello dear brothers,

My name is Luis Alvarez and I am happy to introduce myself as convener for the 2015 Spring Retreat, co-created with Terry Allen. Having attended Gay Spirit Visions since the 2010 Fall Conference, I have come to love my times of connection at The Mountain. I started and fostered meaningful relationships with many of you throughout the past four years, and I am honored and humbled by the love and support you have shared with me. Now it is time for me to give back by holding sacred and safe space for us to connect and ask for what we need from ourselves, one another, and the community.

This Spring, we will engage in many different activities that will encourage us to grow spiritually through connectedness and communication. The purpose of communication is both to reach out to another and to express what the speaker is thinking, feeling, and needing. The conference will allow participants to expand their abilities in both reaching out and expressing their needs.

Please consider joining us in this adventure.

Visionary, The Journal of Gay Spirit Visions 2014

“To understand how Gay Spirit Visions came to be, it is helpful to look at what came before, and especially what happened in gay consciousness between about 1970 and 1990.”  – Bob Strain (Palindrome)

Thus begins the prologue to this special 25th year edition of the Visionary, the Journal of Gay Spirit Visions. Tremendous gratitude is due Bob Strain, Gary Kaupman, and Tony James for the passion and vision each of them brought to this issue of Visionary, which would not have been published without their dedication. There are also many other voices in this issue, and gratitude is extended to each of the men who shared their words and wisdom.

Download a PDF of the 25th year Visionary (Recommended) >>
View a PDF of the 25th year Visionary in Google Drive >>

With warm regards and bright blessings,

The Council of Nine

“The world is holy! The soul is holy! The skin is holy! The nose is holy! The tongue and cock and hand and asshole holy! Everything is holy! everybody’s holy! everywhere is holy … Holy the supernatural extra brilliant intelligent kindness of the soul!” —Allan Ginsberg

We are beings of living energy in an ocean of infinite bliss.
We are beings of blood and bone, breathing spirit.

Join us for a playful and profound bodymind meditation retreat, devoted to gently and safely nurturing our experience of spirit in the body. With awareness, compassion, and curiosity, we will explore the spirit in the body through bodymind meditations, including:

Touching The Spirit in Our Own Body

Standing in Spirit, Sitting in Spirit
Ecstatic Breathing Meditation

Touching Each Other’s Spirits

Discovering the I Am through Touch and the Surrendered Breath
Touching Each Other: Intimate Sacred Touch with Partners
Touching Each Other: Sexual Sacred Touch with Partners

Touching The Spirit in the World

Touching the World with Our Whole Being

Cultivating Sacred Self-Touch

Cultivating a Sacred Self-Touch Practice

This weekend is designed to cultivate a mindful atmosphere of awareness, compassion, respect, and curiosity. Meditations will be offered at all levels of intimacy. Participation is always optional, and we will support every person’s participation at a level that feels safe and sacred for them. We’ve also included unscheduled time for self-reflection, and for brothers to offer their own safe and sacred workshops and ceremonies.

Read about the Winter Meditation >>
Read about the Planning Retreat >>

at The Mountain, Highlands NC

with Hunter Flournoy, Convener

The 2015 GSV Winter Meditation will convene January 16-18, 2015 at The Mountain in Highlands, NC. The overnight Planning Retreat traditionally follows our Winter Meditation and ends on Monday at noon.

Touching the Body, Touching the Spirit:
A Bodymind Meditation Retreat

The Winter Meditation will convene January 16-18, 2015 at The Mountain, Highlands NC with convener Hunter Flournoy.

Registration for the GSV 2015 Winter Meditation is now open.

Read about the Winter Meditation >>
Read about the Planning Retreat >>
Register for the 2015 Winter Meditation >>

Brother,

Gay Spirit Vision’s Fall Conference is just a few days away. Our conference theme is Community and I am very excited to be in the community of a group of men that I first encountered fourteen years ago. As this is our twenty-fifth anniversary, we will look back at what we have created and where we might be headed.

As you prepare to make the trek to The Mountain, I would love you to be thinking about what it is you bring to this community and what this community has given to you. We will gather together to contemplate who we are, what we come together for, and where we want to go next.

I hope you are all anticipating a meaningful, full, and delightful conference. I know I am.

I await your arrival with hugs, good will, and an open heart.

Love,

Scott Dillard
Convener, Fall Conference 2014

Preparing for the Conference

Please take a moment to read about our time together and what you might consider bringing with you in preparation for this weekend, especially if this is your first time with us.

• If You’re New: Preparing for Your First GSV Event >>
• About the GSV 2014 Fall Conference >>
• Directions to The Mountain >>
• Reminder: Preparing for The Mountain >>
• Reminder: About Safe Space >>

This weekend’s conference will start with a social time on Thursday at 5:30 pm in The Commons next to the dining room and will end with lunch on Sunday starting at 1:00 pm. You may check in as early as 3:00 pm on Thursday afternoon.

What Will I Need?

Small Group Gift
Come with a small gift that has some personal meaning to exchange during your small group ritual. Some folks purchase something, others bring something from home or something found along the way.

Altar Object
Come with something to place on the altar; something that might represent your intentions for the retreat, some memory you hold dear, or a way to honor an ancestor.

Clothes for Movement
Come ready to move; bring clothing in which you will feel good doing so.

Talent Show
Come with sheet music or anything that might be necessary for your talent show performance.

Optional Items
Consider bringing any of the following optional items you may choose to share with our circle: personal writing journal, sketch pad, drums for drumming and other instruments, photos, sacred objects, floor pillows, night light, rain gear, layers and varieties of clothes, shoes for indoor/outdoor, for changing activities, water bottle and/or travel mug.

Silent Auction
Consider making a donation to the Silent Auction to benefit the GSV Scholarship Fund. Bring one item you wish to donate and complete an auction form when you register, or download and bring the completed form with you.

Alcohol & Non-Prescription Drugs
Please leave all alcohol and non-prescription drugs at home.

As part of our ongoing effort to financially support brothers who would like to attend our gatherings, the Scholarship Committee organizes annual silent auctions to benefit GSV’s scholarship fund.

Please consider donating an item for the Fall 2014 Silent Auction that a brother might enjoy taking home with him at the end of the Fall Conference. To donate:

1. Complete a donor form.
2. Bring your item with you to The Mountain (or coordinate delivery with someone attending the conference).
   

When you arrive at The Mountain, please bring your donation to the Silent Auction display area. The Silent Auction will likely be displayed in the basement of the Tree House, and you can ask for more information when you check in at registration.

Complete a donor form >>
Read more about the Silent Auction >>

Community-led workshops are one feature returning to this year’s conference that we haven’t seen in a while. Our workshops will be facilitated by extremely capable and knowledgeable brothers and each workshop will be offered twice so you can attend more than one. I know that these men will make your time in the workshop worthwhile.

In addition to our community-led workshops, John Stasio will be offering a workshop for the entire gathering that will further explore his keynote address on Community.

Scott Dillard, 2014 Fall Conference Convener

Beginning Again…Reflections of Life on the Edge

Dennis Van Avery

The gift of a tragedy is that it can take you to a space in your life where you have never been before; a place to begin again. Our “tragic” experiences remain our own: a loss of Self, a life with HIV, a loss of dear love, growing old, an addiction, or leaving the world of work.

In this workshop, we will focus on our own journeys during a guided process. Using silence and sharing in a mutually supportive manner, we will reflect on: : awareness, blame, courage, help, humility, the losses, the cracks, and the Openings.

Beyond Gay Marriage:
Alternate Forms of Family Life for Gay Men

Pat Boyle

How do you say family for gay men? The institution of heterosexual marriage has a long history grounded in property rights for the male and submission/assent by the female party.  The roots of this institution go back several millennia. Although modern western ideas of marriage have moved more toward the partnership concept and greater equality, there are serious hangovers in many areas both legally and in traditions.  In many US religions, there is still a clause about “obey and until death do us part.” It is usually the female who is the party with less power.  Since most gay men are raised by heterosexual couples or single parents, much of the unconscious as well as conscious thinking about marriage is based on the dominant cultural norms.  Although a strong case can be made that heterosexual marriage has been a failing institution for at least 100 years, many gay men are now basing their committed relationships on that model.  The push for legal gay marriage can be seen as acculturating a minority group into the dominant culture.  However, for many, if not most, gay men, the current heterosexual model of marriage and family does not seem appropriate, functional, or even desirable.  Fortunately, there are other evolving models, some of which have been around for a while in quiet ways.  This workshop will examine alternate ways of conceiving of gay family, including partnering, open relationships, polyamorous lifestyles, communal families, and ways of developing a chosen family.  Really, it is all about getting and giving the love that we need.

From Plague to PrEP: The Evolution of HIV Within Our Community

Bob Strain & David Salyer

Condoms, safer sex, Rock Hudson, ACT UP, drug cocktails, undetectable viral loads and barebacking…. HIV has been part of our consciousness since those first cases of AIDS were identified in 1981. How well have we navigated fear, stigmatization, and overwhelming loss? Is HIV the elephant in the room at GSV? Do people living with HIV feel invisible here?

If you’re ready to share ideas, opinions, and experiences about life with the virus, then join us for a guided conversation about all this and more—including slut shaming and the revolutionary emergence of PrEP, the pre-exposure prophylaxis pill that blocks the transmission of HIV.

The session is open to anyone, infected or affected by HIV.

Greetings, Brothers.

For the past six months, I’ve been contemplating last fall’s introspective question, “Who am I?” and, looking forward to September, considering the outward question, “Who are we?”  To help us explore this question, I’ve been working with the theme of Community and have invited keynote John Stasio of Easton Mountain to speak about his own experiences of how men participate in spiritually healthy community.

As this year’s convener, I want to invite you all to come and share, play, and grow with us; we’ve been preparing space for you at this year’s Fall Conference.

About the Conference

There will be a number of familiar aspects at the conference I think you’ll enjoy. One feature I’m particularly excited about is the return of workshops. I’ve asked a number of men to offer workshops relevant to the community that have been a part of our talk over the last year. Some of our topics include: HIV/AIDS and how it continues to affect our community, the creation of alternate forms of family, and how tragedy can be seen as a “gift” in our lives.

In addition to the workshops, we will continue our tradition of small group meetings, an evening dance, and a talent show. I’ve also done my best to leave free time each day for men to explore the mountain, rest on the porch with friends, and offer spontaneous workshops, experiences, and events.

Most of all, I want you to know that what makes the Fall Conference so special is you. What do you bring to this community? What would you like to share? What has this community meant to you and what has it given to you? These questions will guide our journey during our time together in September.

I look forward to greeting each of you as you arrive at The Mountain.

Love,

Scott Dillard
Convener, Fall Conference 2014

John Stasio will keynote GSV’s 25th anniversary Fall Conference. Entitled The Call to Community; waking up in the company of others, John’s keynote will explore who we are in community by sharing his own journey and his beliefs about the universal desire and need all people have for community.

John will also examine the construct of “gay community” and outline the skills we each need to develop to maturely participate in and generate community.

As part of our time together, John will help develop this idea with discussion points for what makes a psychologically and spiritually healthy community – both in general, and specifically for queer folk.

About John

John Stasio  is the founder of Easton Mountain. His vision for social justice, interfaith spirituality and the potential of a spiritual community of gay men began at a young age and motivated him to begin Easton Mountain. In 1989 he founded Brothers Together, Inc. to promote community, spiritual growth, healing and transformation among men who love men. Prior to establishing Easton Mountain in 2000, John worked as a body-centered therapist and workshop facilitator. John was a member of the Jesuit Urban Center’s Urban Ministry team where he provided spiritual direction and bodywork to people living with HIV/AIDS. He is a former seminarian and member of the Catholic Worker Community. John’s undergraduate studies at Boston College focused on Philosophy and Theology and their application to contemporary social challenges. He received the Lisle Fellowship in 1987 to study non-violent social change at the Gandhi Peace Foundation in New Delhi India and then stayed on in India to work with Mother Theresa’s sisters at the home for the dying in Calcutta. While in India he met Dom Bede Griffiths with whom he had a powerful connection and remains committed to promoting interfaith dialogue. Additionally he seeks to apply the principals of Spiritual/Global Psychology, studied at the Concord Institute under the direction of Tom Yeomans, to his work for social change, in his own life and in his work with others. He splits his time between sharing a home with his partner and a golden retriever in Albany and retreating to his cabin in the woods of Easton Mountain.

Visit Easton Mountain online >>

Dear Brothers,

We hope you are having a wonderful summer, even as we all begin to look forward to our time together in the fall! Just recently, the Council met with John Ballew to continue the work begun at the Visioning Retreat in March. Our June Council meeting in Atlanta provided the first opportunity for us to consider in depth what we heard from the men at the Visioning Retreat and the recommendations outlined in John Ballew’s Visioning summary. As a result, we’re creating a plan we’re calling The Path Forward. This plan will help us all to take the next step towards even more participatory leadership.

To give you an idea of how we envision The Path Forward unfolding, here are a few actions begun at the June meeting:

• In response to a request for more diverse leadership drawn from the general community, we are delighted to welcome several brothers into new leadership roles: Luis Alvarez as the 2015 Spring Retreat convener to serve a two-year term; Steven Wilson as a Walks Between Elder to serve a three-year term; and Wendell Johnson as a member with special skills (fundraising) to serve a two-year term.
• We’re making a conscious effort to include more open space in our conference program for brothers to share their interests and gifts.
• We’re creating a new, more inclusive welcoming statement to be read at the beginning of each gathering.

We hope The Path Forward will support all of us in bringing our planning process into even greater alignment with the spirit of service, brotherhood, love, and encouragement which fills our gatherings. We’ll talk more about The Path Forward in the coming months and hope you’ll join us for further discussion at the Fall Conference, September 18-21.

As always, your voice is welcome – share your ideas, thoughts, and encouragement at [email protected].

Bright Blessings,

The Council of Nine

Twenty five years ago a small group of men came to The Mountain to create an annual gathering of men who love men. They came to share their spiritual insights, to connect, to play, to grieve and heal, to love, and to explore. In the years since then, Gay Spirit Visions has grown. We have shifted our models of leadership. We have included more and more men. We have expanded to have not one, but three annual conference. There are groups that meet in locations throughout the country between conferences to keep the energy of conferences alive.

This year we invite you to come and celebrate the past twenty five years and to explore who we have become. Who are we as a community of men who love men who contemplate the spiritual in our lives? We will come together in ritual, workshop, and small groups to continue the journey that that small group of men started twenty five years ago.

Bring your talents, your stories, and your heart.

My Journey: Cherishing the Past & Embracing the Future
by Pat Boyle

I came to know GSV through a friend who knew I was interested in exploring my gay identity and spirituality. Like many men in our circle, I grew up in a small southern town trying to fit in – I excelled in academics and worked very hard in my spiritual development, believing that acceptance could be found through academic success and participation in church leadership. Yet, even with college degrees and careers in social work and the ministry, I found life in the closet increasingly unbearable.

I needed a change. I came out and simultaneously switched from social work to a career in university teaching. As if on cue, I discovered GSV and the community and conferences quickly became a lifeline. I will celebrate 20 years of connection with GSV as GSV celebrates its 25th year of conferences at the Mountain. I do cherish the past!

I also embrace the future. Looking around the circle at any recent GSV conference, I see many men who have recently discovered GSV. What a joy to have such companions! The dominant culture is rapidly changing to accept us as just another part of the human family. Yet, our being walks-between or two-spirit persons still involves deep meaning, a calling, and particular gifts of spirit. Come join us April 25-27 as we explore these special qualities and their expression in the future.

Following a long-standing GSV tradition, several men will be offering optional activities on Saturday afternoon. These include:

• Breathwork with Plamen Russev & Hunter Flournoy
• Labyrinth Meditation
• Gardening with John Wright
• Hiking & Mountain Exploration with Steven Wilson
• Yoga with David Jones

Gay Spirit Visions plans three gatherings every year—the Spring Retreat, Fall Conference, and Winter Meditation. Each gathering has its own character and each year usually features a different theme.

2014 is Gay Spirit Visions’ 25th Anniversary year!

To kick off GSV’s 25th anniversary year, the Spring 2014 Conference will feature panels exploring four themes:

• Spirituality
• Erotic Life
• Action in the World
• Friend and Family Network

As brothers in the GSV community, each panelist has been invited to offer heart-centered sharing that speaks to both his personal experience and how GSV may have impacted his growth and development. Each panel will consist of three to four brothers in the GSV community, and listeners will be invited to pose questions and interact with panel members after each member has spoken.

Sprituality

Gay Spirit Visions is committed to: 1) creating safe, sacred space that is open to all spiritual paths, wherein men who love men may explore and strengthen spiritual identity; 2) creating a spiritual community with the intent to heal, nurture our gifts and potential, and live with integrity in the world; and 3) supporting others in their spiritual growth by sharing experiences and insights.

This panel will explore the varied spiritual experiences of men who love men, and how their identity has impacted their spiritual journey.

Panelists: Duncan Teague, Kurt Schreiber, Jim Best, Gary Kaupman

Erotic Life

Gay Spirit Visions honors each person’s unique exploration of spirituality, intimacy, and sexuality, celebrating both the choice to stand apart in order to connect with ourselves, and the choice to reach out in order to connect with each other.

Panel participants will share how their erotic life has developed, speaking to the larger context of human sexuality, their experiences with men who love men, and their communities.

Panelists: George Miller, Roger Beaumont, Hunter Flournoy, Bob Strain

Action in the World

Men who love men often serve as scouts in the field, filling unconventional roles that reflect their authentic selves. This panel will explore how their offerings to society are linked to their identity and personal growth, and to their participation in the GSV community.

Panelists: Lem Arnold, Aric Rohner, Phil Robst, Todd Humphrey

Friend and Family Network

Family has many definitions, particularly among communities that aren’t able to participate in institutionalized models. This panel will discuss how their concepts of family were defined, redefined, and expanded, and how communities like GSV have contributed to these concepts.

Panelists: Terry Allen, Luis Alvarez, John Brock

One of the original radical faeries to gather at Running Water Farm in 1978, Franklin Abbott keynoted the first Gay Spirit Visions conference twenty-five years ago. We’re happy to welcome him back to keynote in preparation for GSV’s 25th Anniversary year. In addition to helping organize the early GSV conferences, he attended the first faerie gathering at Short Mountain Sanctuary and coordinated ritual and process at the first Eurofaerie gathering on Terchelling Island in the Netherlands.

Franklin is an Atlanta-based psychotherapist, poet and community organizer who has led numerous workshops on issues of gay identity, spirituality, and creativity. A clinical social worker by training, Franklin has been in independent private practice in Atlanta since 1979. He co-founded the Atlanta Circle of Healing, a monthly circle for the early years of the epidemic, and also co-founded and chairs the Atlanta Queer Literary Festival.

He has travelled broadly and written about his experiences in stories and poems published in his two books of poetry, Mortal Love and Pink Zinnia. He is a contributor to Radical Faerie Digest (RFD) and was its poetry editor for a number of years, also working as poetry editor of the profeminist men’s journal Changing Men. His first anthology, New Men, New Minds was collected from both RFD and Changing Men as well as other sources. Published in 1987, it brought together work by Essex Hemphill, Thomas Moore, Assotto Saint, James Broughton, Harry Hay and Robert Bly among others.

Franklin currently works with Special Collections at Georgia State University, both on his own papers and on a virtual symposium for the centennial of James Broughton. He has an ongoing interest in personal narratives drawing on Harry Hay’s three questions: who are we, where do we come from, and why are we here? He lives just outside of Decatur which is just outside of Atlanta with a cat and five fish.

Why We Pray

if your luck goes bad
get a witch to give you
a bath
get a shaman to cook
your supper
get a high priestess
to do your hair
get a siren to sing you
a lullaby
all ritual is illogical
and impractical
but when it works
the absurd
becomes
the sublime

—Franklin Abbott, Pink Zinnia

A few months ago, a group of men gathered to look at the rapid changes GSV has experienced in the past five years and how these changes might inform where we’re going. We’re grateful for the members of the visioning committee and all the men who participated with such love, commitment, vision, and honesty in service to our retreat goals, which included:

• Reflect on the changes of the past four years and, with the guidance of spirit, seek a path forward by refining our process and identifying ways to open the organization through collaboration, community participation, and mutually supportive leadership.
• Ensure the continuation, longevity, and sustainability of the GSV community, and consider how GSV can support men in their spiritual growth.

The retreat’s facilitator, John Ballew, delivered a wonderful report with recommendations for fulfilling our goals based on the voices he heard during that weekend. As our events quiet down for the summer, the Council of Nine will be working with John Ballew to look at how GSV can best integrate both the feedback from the men at the visioning conference and the recommendations in John’s report, and how best to make that information available.
Please keep the Council in your hearts as we work with John.

Update: In response to sharing at the 2014 Spring Retreat, GSV’s Working Agreements are now called the Three Agreements.

During the Visioning Retreat, our brothers identified some implicit core values within GSV’s mission statement that were woven into three agreements. These agreements are intended to guide and support us as we co-create our conferences and steward the larger container of the organization.

GSV Mission Statement

We are committed to creating safe, sacred space that is open to all spiritual paths, wherein men who love men may explore and strengthen spiritual identity.

We are committed to creating a spiritual community with the intent to heal, nurture our gifts and potential, and live with integrity in the world.

We are committed to supporting others in their spiritual growth by sharing experiences and insights.

GSV Working Agreements

In the spirit of love for ourselves and each other…

1. We engage in respectful, honest, and openhearted dialogue.
2. We agree to hold ourselves and each other accountable to speak and act with integrity in our community.
3. We embrace opportunities to empower others and challenge ourselves to grow spiritually.

We acknowledge these agreements before us and we enter into them together.

The Council will meet during the Spring Retreat to review the agreements and consider adding them to our official documentation. Until then, we’d love to hear your feedback regarding these agreements at [email protected]!

Gay Spirit Visions (GSV) is celebrating its 25th year of creating safe sacred space where men who love men can explore and deepen their spirituality.

• As part of the 25th Anniversary celebration, GSV is hosting a visioning retreat March 7-9 at The Mountain to look at where we have been and where we might go as a community in the next 5-10 years. During the retreat, we will:
• Reflect on the changes of the past four years and, with the guidance of spirit, seek a path forward by refining our process and identifying ways to open the organization through collaboration, community participation, and mutually supportive leadership.
• Examine the present moment in gay culture and identify the new rhythms, arcs, and themes. Also, provide a framework to collect, document, and propagate the wisdom of our community.
• Ensure the continuation, longevity, and sustainability of the GSV community, and how GSV can support men in their spiritual growth.
• Consider ways to attract new participants to diversify our community-introduce new ideas, connect us with new communities, and create a synergy that helps GSV remain relevant and move forward as a perpetually synthesizing community that honors our core values and history.

Do you feel called to participate?

Participation in the retreat is limited, and participants will be selected by nomination. Please consider nominating yourself or someone who might have a pulse on our community, similar communities, or the direction we’re being called toward as men who love men.

View the Visioning Retreat PDF for more information.