Do you ever yearn for a sense of belonging, and to trust life more deeply?

Nature and our ancestors are part of one larger wisdom
that organizes our lives for health and thriving…

Nature Constellations:
Going Beyond the Walls

Our Next Gathering…
Saturday, October 6th, 10a-4p

Tilden Park, Berkeley, CA

A day dedicated to constellations in nature with friends,
in a spirit of reverence and play.

Save $20 through October 2nd!

A new way forward

Do you ever feel that you have problems that maybe don’t belong to you? There is a growing body of evidence that it is possible to inherit ancestral trauma – whether we know our family’s history or not, it can still show up in our lives.

Systemic (or Family) Constellations are an elegant approach to releasing our entanglements with larger family patterns and replacing it with deep ancestral support and love.

Since it’s founding by Bert Hellinger in the 1980s, Constellations has been adapted in a number of new and powerful ways. A few people – especially Francesca Mason Boring in Washington State and Sneh Victoria Schabel in Germany – discovered a way to do Constellations in nature. They remembered that nature is its own system (like a family) and we’re immersed in it.

Nature Constellations allow us to connect with the health of that larger system for our own healing. For more information, take a look at Mason Boring’s anthology on nature constellations, Returning to Membership in Earth Community.

Why constellations in nature?

In 2015, I took part in a Horse Constellation workshop at Silver Horse Ranch with Sara Fancy outside of San Diego. As the workshop unfolded, I realized that we were really doing Nature Constellations. What does that mean? It means that we do the work immersed in nature (in this case, a private, beautiful picnic site in Tilden Park), open to the ways nature might influence our healing work. Trees, the wind, animals – anything might be part of the constellation!

As we do this, more and more, we develop a profound trust in our environment, feeling connected and cared for, belonging to the larger field of what surrounds us – not alien, not a stranger, always, always part of what is. So, our dis-eases will be seen in environment. And, our healing will also be seen in the environment.

This event is for you if…

…you still have a one or two big persistent problems you want to change, heck, maybe just a little?

…you love and are inspired by nature

…you are a constellation facilitator or other healing practitioner who wants some new tools in your toolkit for helping your clients

…you are a constellation geek (you know who you are!)

Your coordinator for this event:

My name is Leslie Nipps (that’s me picking berries!). I have seven years of experience leading constellation events, and over twenty years of gathering people for spiritual and healing work as an Episcopal priest. I have trained with Bert & Sophie Hellinger, Francesca Mason Boring, Jane Peterson, Michelle Masters, Carl Buchheit, Heinz Stark, William Mannle, Dan Booth Cohen, and many other leading constellation facilitators.

I have lived in the Bay Area for fifteen years, and during that time I have hiked most of the East Bay Regional Park System and Mt. Diablo State Park. All of the photos are ones I’ve taken (although not all in California). I have a reverence for nature and for the specific place we will gather.

Find more information about me on my About page.

What’s special about our location?

Tilden Park in Berkeley is part of the larger, amazing, East Bay Regional Park District, which encompasses 120,536 acres in 65 parks, including over 1,250 miles of trails in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. It reaches as far as Livermore in the southeast and Brentwood in the northeast.

If you look at a map of Tilden Park , you’ll see it’s quite close to dense urban areas. As a result, it is one of the more visited parks, and yet it contains many trails that can make you feel like you’ve left civilization behind. I regularly swim in one of its great jewels, Lake Anza.

We’ll be meeting in a private reserved picnic spot with bathrooms. It is in one of the less-visited corners of the park, nestled in a dell with trees overlooking the lake. It includes a grill and several picnic tables. Upon registration, you will be sent a list of things to bring, but you should plan on bringing enough water for the day, lunch, snacks, sun block, layers in case it turns cold or hot, and a folding chair.

What will we do?

We will be doing constellations together – these are friendly but deep group processes that will help us move forward on problems that are really holding us back.

Everyone will get a constellation. Some will get longer ones, and some shorter ones, but we will all leave with healing for some things that are in our way.

We’ll also:

• Take breaks and enjoy the nature.
• Make friends.
• Connect, network and enjoy each others’ company.

What will the day look like? Although these kinds of events need to remain a bit fluid, and respond to what shows up in the group, the plan is for us to:

• Open with introductions, some instruction about Nature Constellations, and creating a safe space.
• Then, we’ll do some miniature constellations that will give everyone a chance to tune into the nature, and start our own healing work.
• We’ll do one or two longer personal constellations for individuals.
• We’ll have a nice break for lunch, which will give everyone a chance to either connect more with each other, or spend some quiet time on their own.
• For the rest of the afternoon, we’ll continue with a mix of miniature constellations that give everyone a chance to do more healing work, and one or two longer personal constellations.
• Finally, we’ll end with some sharing reflection on the day.
• There will be lots of room for anyone who wants to take more breaks or skip an exercise.

The Details:

Cost: Register through October 2nd – $95; after October 2nd – $115

Time & Place: Saturday, October 6th, 10a – 4p, Picnic Area in Tilden Park, Berkeley, CA (exact location will be shared when you register)

Space limit: 30 people

Getting there: AC Transit does have a weekend bus that stops at the Botanical Garden in Tilden Park, which is about half a mile walk from our picnic site. However, if you don’t have a car and need to carpool, there’s usually someone willing to help you get there.

Refund Policy: Full refund until 48 hours before the event starts, minus a $15 admin fee

Upon registration, I’ll send lots of more details, including a map to the picnic area.

So, if you want a great day to go deep into constellations, healing and nature, click here…

…to join in!

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Questions?

Let me know! Contact me at leslie@conviviumconstellations.com.

I look forward to seeing at Tilden!

The Canticle of the Sun (excerpt) –
attributed to St. Francis of Assissi

Be praised, my Lord, through all Your creatures,
especially through my lord Brother Sun,
who brings the day; and You give light through him.
And he is beautiful and radiant in all his splendor!
Of You, Most High, he bears the likeness.

Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars;
in the heavens You have made them bright, precious and beautiful.

Be praised, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air,
and clouds and storms, and all the weather,
through which You give Your creatures sustenance.

Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Water;
she is very useful, and humble, and precious, and pure.

Be praised, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom You brighten the night.
He is beautiful and cheerful, and powerful and strong.

Be praised, my Lord, through our sister Mother Earth,
who feeds us and rules us,
and produces various fruits with colored flowers and herbs…