Author: Don Wilson

GSV 2023  Winter Meditation:  Updated COVID-19 Requirements

Gay Spirit Visions, Winter Meditation

Winter 2023

A Serene Weekend of Kindness


January 13-15, 2023


The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


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


Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $200.00


Single Occupancy (private room) $320.00


For All Rooms add Mandatory GSV program fee $35


Register Now!

UPDATED COVID-19 REQUIREMENTS—PLEASE READ

Dear Siblings,

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Register Now!

    GSV 2023 Winter Meditation

    Winter Meditation

    Winter 2023

    A Serene Weekend of Kindness


    January 13-15, 2023


    The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands NC


    3 Day/2 Night Package (Friday through Sunday)


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


    Lodge or Duplex Cabin (double occupancy) $200.00


    Single Occupancy (private room) $320.00


    For All Rooms add Mandatory GSV program fee $35.00


    Register Now!

    Dear Siblings,

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Register Now!

    GSV 2022 Fall Conference: Last Call

    Fall Conference, Gay Spirit Visions

    GSVFallRetreat2022

    Who do you think you are?


    September 22 – 25, 2022


    The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC


    4 Day/3 Night Package (Thursday through Sunday)


    Lodge (shared room) $315.00

    Cabin (shared room) $315.00


    Bunk House (shared room up to 4 people) $270.00


    Register Now!

    “A thought is harmless unless you believe it. It’s not our thoughts, but our attachment to our thoughts, that causes suffering.” — Byron Katie

    Dear Siblings,

    In just a few weeks, we will be gathering once again at The Mountain! You will be welcomed home to the summit of magical possibilities and embraced in nurturing serenity. Our time of introspection will be spent exploring the potential of our thoughts, those that guide our human development, and those we choose to create for our spiritual evolution. This journey called life is our creation and limited only by the constraints of our own making.

    Remember an early childhood memory and how that is still with you today. Are you still scared of the flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz? Do you still sleep with a light or TV on? Do you still have visions of people burning in hell? Do you still long to wear a crown and walk the runway? Have you reframed that memory to something that has enhanced your journey? You can spend a lifetime trying to forget a few minutes of your childhood.

    “The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
    — Ralph Waldo Emerson
    Fall Conference
    With adulthood comes the realization that we have a choice in the thoughts we create. Thoughts created in the present moment and thoughts created long ago. In many ways reframing conditioned thoughts is a return to your essence. Your true self is right there, buried under cultural conditioning, other people’s opinions, and inaccurate conclusions you drew as a child and adult that became your beliefs about who you are.

    Our keynote speaker will be David Ault. David is an award-winning author, leadership coach, and global education advocate. His books include the bestseller Where Regret Cannot Find Me and the multi-award-winning book The Grass is Greener Right Here. David is known by many in Gay Spirit Visions as the former Spiritual Director at Spiritual Living Center of Atlanta. He loves leading through example and abides by the motto that people would rather “see a lesson than hear one.”

    COVID-19 and Monkeypox Information

    To help make this event safe and healthy for everyone attending, please review the following hyperlinked documents:

    2022 Fall Conference COVID-19 Safety Protocols
    2022 Fall Conference COVID-19 Notice of Actions Taken
    2022 Fall Conference COVID-19 General Liability Waiver
    2022 Fall Conference Monkeypox Information

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

    Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is September 7. We hope 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 a link to the GSV financial assistance application form. Remember, the financial assistance application submission deadline is September 7.

    Make plans to return home to The Mountain in September, as you have been missed.

    In gratitude,
    Bill Harris
    GSV 2022 Fall Conference Convener

    Register Now!

    GSV 2022 FALL CONFERENCE: WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

    Fall Conference

    GSVFallRetreat2022

    Who do you think you are?


    September 22 – 25, 2022


    The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC


    4 Day/3 Night Package (Thursday through Sunday)


    Lodge (shared room) $315.00

    Cabin (shared room) $315.00


    Bunk House (shared room up to 4 people) $270.00


    Register Now!

    “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

    Dear Siblings,

    As the hot, sticky summer weather gives way to the temperate breezes of autumn, you are invited to come home to the magic of The Mountain. In this serene atmosphere, you will be surrounded by loving siblings to rekindle longtime relationships or spark new ones. During our time together we will explore who we are, identify what restrains us, and choose what we can unload to enhance our life journey.

    Who we are and what we become are based on our thoughts! They include perspectives we bring to any situation or experience that color our point of view. Thoughts can be reactive and situational or grounded in willful awareness. While thoughts are shaped by life experiences, genetics, and education, they can be brought under conscious control. In other words, if we are aware of the thoughts that have formed our character and attitudes, we can choose to change them. We can change the tenor of our story and thereby enrich the quality of our journey.

    “Thoughts lead to acts, acts lead to habits, habits lead to character – and our character will determine our eternal destiny.” – Ezra Taft Benson

    Our keynote speaker will be David Ault who is currently walking the Camino de Santiago. David is an award-winning author, leadership coach, and global education advocate. His books include the bestseller Where Regret Cannot Find Me and the multi-award-winning book The Grass is Greener Right Here. He loves leading through example and abides by the motto that people would rather “see a lesson than hear one.”

    You are invited to share your gifts during this retreat by proposing a workshop. We are looking for persons with topic-related ideas who desire to provide an interactive and informative workshop experience. Contact [email protected] with your ideas and questions.

    COVID-19 Information

    To help make this event safe and healthy for everyone attending, please review the following hyperlinked documents.
    2022 Fall Conference COVID-19 Safety Protocols
    2022 Fall Conference COVID-19 Notice of Actions Taken
    2022 Fall Conference COVID-19 General Liability Waiver

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

    Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is September 7. 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 September 7.

    Make plans to return home to The Mountain in September, as you have been missed. More information will be available in the coming weeks.

    In gratitude,
    Bill Harris
    GSV 2022 Fall Conference Convener

    Register Now!

    GSV 2022 Fall Conference: Who do you think you are?

    Fall Conference

    GSVFallRetreat2022

    Who do you think you are?

    September 22 – 25, 2022

    The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center, Highlands, NC

    4 Day/3 Night Package (Thursday through Sunday)


    Lodge (shared room) $315.00

    Cabin (shared room) $315.00


    Bunk House (shared room up to 4 people) $270.00


    Register Now!

    “Who you think you are each day, completely determines the universe you live in.”—Ram Dass

    Dear Siblings,
    Come together during the time of harvest. Celebrate your bounty; replenish your soul; examine your essence; acknowledge your gifts. Surrounded by loving siblings in a serene atmosphere, we will share time to reflect, inspire, and empower. Let us open the steamer trunk of who we are, see what is weighing us down, and what we can unload to enhance our journey through life.

    Who we are and what we become are based on our thoughts! Thoughts are our ideas, opinions, and beliefs about ourselves and the world around us. They include perspectives we bring to any situation or experience that color our point of view. While thoughts are shaped by life experiences, genetics, and education, they can be brought under conscious control. In other words, if we are aware of our thoughts and attitudes, we can choose to change or discard them.

    Let us first explore the experiences that formed our beliefs. By looking at our formative self, we can nurture our innocence and provide the encouragement we desire. We will then identify our created story and examine the constraints that may no longer serve us.

    “Life is a journey, not a destination.”—Ralph Waldo Emerson

    “Pack lite, throw it in the overhead, grab a window seat, and enjoy the ride.”—Bill Harris

    Our 2022 Fall Conference keynote speaker will be David Ault. Known by many at Gay Spirit Visions as a spiritual teacher from Spiritual Living Center of Atlanta, David is also an award-winning author, leadership coach, and global education advocate. He loves leading through example and abides by the motto that people would rather “see a lesson than hear one.”

    You are invited and encouraged to share your gifts during this conference by proposing a workshop. We are looking for persons with topic-related ideas who desire to provide an interactive and informative workshop experience. Contact me at [email protected] with your ideas, dreams, and questions, and we will be glad to support you in the creative process.

    Financial assistance, in the form of scholarships, is available. The financial assistance application submission deadline is September 7. 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 September 7.

    Make plans to return home to The Mountain in September, as you have been missed. More information will be available in the coming weeks.

    In gratitude,
    Bill Harris
    GSV 2022 Fall Conference Convener

    Register Now!