LOVING YOURSELF & OTHERS:

A Men's Practice Group

8 Thursdays weekly (begins 9/29)

7:30-9:15 pm

Fremont UMC Narthex Room (NE Fremont & 26th Ave)

$15/session Drop In (1st & 2nd sessions only)

$12/session if Donate for Series by 1st or 2nd session

FREE for Manifest Members

An 8-week practical men’s mindfulness group in which you will practice love, compassion, generosity and understanding of the many parts of yourself & others.  You'll practice moving away from shame, self-hatred and judgment; thus becoming aware of the self-destructive actions that follow negative and abusive beliefs.  With the support of the group you'll cultivate loving thoughts and beliefs in hopes of discovering and manifesting your strongest & truest longings. We will be supported by Zen, Buddhist, Taoist, Sufi and Metaphysical teachings which illuminate the notions that we "are" and we "act" and we “manifest” as we "think."

Each week we'll learn new skills for discovering & sharing what we want, as well as talk about practical ways to turn these skills into new ways of relating with ourselves and others in our day-to-day life.  You'll notice your negative thinking & communicating patterns and try on more inspiring thoughts & more curious & compassionate ways of communicating with yourself and others.  Each week you'll design playful experiments for yourself to change what you tell yourself & others.

FACILITATOR:  Michael Gerard Mele is a Guidance Counselor and Licensed Clinical Social Worker.  He has been in Private, Group, Institutional and Agency practice for nearly 20 years. He has held GLBT as well as traditional family practices in Florida, Washington State and Portland. He is a Certified Sex Therapist and has specialized in the areas of Trauma, Grief, Substance Abuse and Domestic Violence counseling.  He utilizes Artistic and Mindfulness based Therapies; Photography, Writing, Poetry, Journal Writing, Music, Meditation and many other healing processes to help guide and heal himself, his clients and communal systems. Michael is a member of the Portland Mindfulness and Psychotherapy Collective, and is currently working as an International Domestic Violence Advocate with a local non-profit agency. Michael has produced an audio and visual meditation DVD with his personal contemplative photography and created a mindfulness group practice for “at-risk youth” to help them process through and deal with the difficult emotions and circumstances associated with substance abusing and domestically violent family systems. This process is titled, “A Peaceful Start” and has been utilized in regional school guidance systems. Michael welcomes individual and family therapeutic sittings in his private practice to help all discover the “Wellness Within”.

INFO:  Michael at 503-223-8822 x1