Wisdom traditions have often turned to the metaphor of light as a way of describing what it feels like to find hope in places where it shouldn’t be, as a way to name what community feels like in the midst of loneliness, as a way of explaining how you can know what the next right thing is in the confusion of life’s many questions.
Finding a light in the darkness of the night is a powerful image for finding your way. Being a light for others is a powerful image for living with love, compassion, and justice.
When we speak of the light we mean many things: wisdom, the presence of God, love, joy, hope, and comfort. How are these gifts radiant within you? Where do you need them kindled right now? How can you illuminate them in our world?
The days are growing shorter and in the holiday rush it can feel like the time you need — to rest, to get it all done, to sit and breathe — is too quickly waning.
Gift yourself two hours to gather with others yearning for a bit of light in a busy time.
We will connect, write, make, laugh, get still, enjoy some quiet, and together tend to the spaces in our lives that need the clarity and accompaniment of light and celebrate what is already all lit up inside us.
Here’s how it works:
We’ll gather on Zoom from 10 a.m.-noon ET (find your local time) on Saturday, December 11th. We will come together in the midst of the Advent season, just days before the winter solstice.
We will begin with a guided centering practice to invite us to be present to ourselves, each other, and the hopes we bring for this moment and the coming days.
We’ll engage in reflective writing practices to connect with the lights we all already carry in our lives, and to name the spaces where we both need and can be a light.
We’ll each create a beautiful candle holder, designed to hold our intentions, wishes, and hopes, alongside reminders of the light that you can revisit daily, weekly or whenever you like throughout the season.
Along the way there will be music, poetry, laughter, and opportunities to share with one another. Ultimately, we’ll find strength in ourselves and in one another to carry us through the rest of 2021, and into the coming spring of 2022.
After our gathering we’ll send you a small gift to open on December 21st, the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year, when you might want to reconnect with the practices you began with us on the 11th.
Workshop Cost: $21
What happens next?
After you sign up, you’ll receive a confirmation email that includes a short list of supplies you will want to begin gathering. A day or two before the workshop we’ll send you an email with the morning’s Zoom link, plus a PDF file of your writing activities to print at home.
When we gather on the morning of December 11th, we invite you to log in from a quiet, comfortable space. Pour yourself a cup of something comforting, and bring your printed materials and supplies.
*Please Note: Due to the personal and reflective nature of this event, it will not be recorded. No refunds will be given—full or partial—at any time. Think of it like buying a ticket to your favorite live concert—you’re purchasing a seat in that arena, whether you show up or not. If you sign up then find you cannot attend, please consider sharing your ticket with another who might like to join us.
Hi, we’re Cat & Lauren!
Cat (top left, she/her) is a writer, mother, wife, Presbyterian youth worker, and retreat creator who works with folks seeking sacred space for meaningful pause in their busy lives. She enjoys all things crafting, board games, movies, and cooking, and she lives north of Asheville, N.C. with her husband, son, and rescue hound dog.
Lauren (top right, she/her) is a writer and teacher of writing whose idea of fun = a bunch of folks sitting around talking about the words they just found. There's an MDiv and years in the classroom + being a parent and human that guides her writing workshops. She lives in High Point, N.C. and believes deeply that all you really gotta do is try to get quiet and sometimes God shows up.
We created Tending the Light because we believe that gathering with others (even over Zoom) is one of the surest ways to remember our own gifts and to receive the gifts we didn't know we needed from others and from God. We also love to create words and stuff and rituals but unless we make time to do all that, those loves can get lost in the shuffle of life. We created this offering because we want to tend to our hearts and to yours!
Praise for Opt Inward’s online events:
“Cat brought a sacredness through the screen and into our personal experience, allowing us to reflect and connect with ourselves and each other.”
