Mountain Laurel Dream Circle

An ongoing hybrid dreamwork group in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Asheville, North Carolina

“Our job is not to comprehend or control everything, but to learn which story we are in and which of the many things calling out in the world is calling to us. Our job is to be fully alive in the life we have, to pick up the invisible thread of our own story and follow where it leads. Our job is to find the thread of our own dream and live it all the way to the end.”

Michael Meade

Dreaming Home Into Being

In a "post-truth" world of algorithms and AI bots, as we wake up to the many ways our minds, bodies, and souls are shaped by external forces and narratives, it is more important than ever to cultivate tools of self-sovereignty. Beneath all the conditioned inputs, in the quiet places of the psyche, we are already whole and aware, already dreaming alive our own unique story of Life.

In this digitally-driven timeplace, dreamwork is one of the most powerful tools we have in the preservation and flourishing of our own, and each other's, consciousness. While media manipulation and political agendas construct outrage and enact violence, a deeper voice offers whispered guidance in the form of intuition, dreams, and synchronicites. No matter what daily distractions we're captured by, the Real in each of us knows where we are, and how to respond to these times.

For countless generations, humans have drawn upon dreams for healing, guidance, community, and foresight. By turning toward the well of inner wisdom, we take a bold step into the birthright of a soul-driven life and open the door to this form of long-forgotten wisdom.

The Mountain Laurel Dream Circle is an ongoing, bi-weekly dreamwork circle for anyone hearing a call to navigating by their own true north at this critical historical moment.

Each month, we will meet once online and once in-person in a natural setting to explore dreams, share from our hearts, and feed a collective body of earth rooted wisdom. Engaging individual and group dreamwork techniques, animistic/earth based contemplations, expressive arts practices, explorations between sessions, dreamwork partners, and a dedicated online group sharing space, this circle aims to cultivate personal insight, healing, and artistry while fostering communal sincerity, connection, and resilience.

In this circle we will:

Slow down into our bodies through somatic practices, contemplative practices on the land, and sacred talking circles
Work with dreams and learn how they connect us to our specific place and time and point us toward meaning, healing, and insight
Explore dreams individually and collectively through several frameworks/theories
Consider how dreams offer direct access to our most authentic ways of seeing and being
Work with integration practices to embody the insights and invitations of our dreams
Utilize poetry, movement, rhythm, music, and visual art to deepen into relationship and meaning with our dreams

Explore the “imaginal realm” through the practices of wild wanders, art/collage, dreams, poetry, deep imagination journeys and more
Build a trusting community of ceremonial exchange
Cultivate wholeness through being in co-regulated relationship with the natural world and human and other-than-human communities

Facilitator

Kristopher Drummond

Kristopher is a wilderness guide and co-founder of Remembering Earth, a poet and writing teacher, and recently earned his MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Expressive Arts Therapy from Appalachian State University. He has been practicing personal dreamwork for the past ten years, and professionally for the past five in wilderness and clinical settings. He is trained by The Animas Valley Institute, The School of Lost Borders, Theravada Buddhism, The Sacred Space Foundation, and Appalachian State University.

Dates: TBD - Currently registering interest through the RSVP form; dates and times will be determined via survey for participant availability. If you are interested in joining, please fill out the RSVP form and I will be in touch by email.

Each month, meetings will happen once online and once in-person in a natural setting. (Dates may be variable - not precisely bi-weekly - depending on the month based on my pre-existing travel dates and in-person programs - participants will receive notice of date variability at least a month in advance).

To preserve the intimacy, confidentiality, and integrity of the circle, participation will be limited to 10 people. Once we have reached capacity, a waitlist will be formed and new participants will be invited to join when/if existing participants leave the circle.

Further Deets:

This is a group for people in the greater Asheville area who are feeling a call to engaging with their dreams for healing, insight, or as an act of resistance to the homogeneous influences and impacts of the current overculture. Dreams offer direct access to unconscious, animistic, and spiritual aspects of reality, and as we commit to engaging them, they commonly begin to reveal deeper layers of the above. For this reason, this is also a group for people who are willing to dedicate themselves to their dreams and the integrity of the group - aka making this a priority.

This group is not intended as personal therapy. While dreams can be a central component of traditional therapeutic models, and there will undoubtedly be moments of healing, insight, and connection in our work together, it is important that participants consider their current state of mental health and life obligations and consider whether this is the right time to open a conversation with the elemental forces of life.

And! Don't let that scare you off. Sometimes there is an edge we're standing on and we are finally ready to step across it, fear and all. I welcome those who have never worked with dreams, are in the midst of a life transition or upheaval, are seeking healing or resolution, or who are simply curious. The magic of dreams is that they show us precisely where we are, and none of us are standing on the same ground!

The Work

Sessions will be both planned and emergent. As the group coheres and trust is built, deeper and more varied possibilities become available. Many different theories and modalities of dreamwork will be included. This will involve group dreamwork, individual dreamwork, and partner dreamwork practices. Expressive arts modalities, somatic processes, and ecological contemplative practices will also be utilized.

Between sessions, participants will be paired up with a dream buddy to practice dreamwork together, as well as offered personalized invitations for deepening into their own dream story. Suggested readings will be provided as well. The group will also have a dedicated Mighty Network page for sharing art, insights, and inspirations.

For the duration of you participation, I will offer 15% off one-on-one dreamwork sessions, which are 75 minutes long and offered on a sliding scale of $90 - $120.

Pricing

Participants are billed monthly on a subscription basis, which can be cancelled at any time with 7 days notice. The sliding scale monthly fee for the circle is $80 - $120. My hope is that this rate is a wild bargain for what you get. If this rate is out of reach and you're feeling a call to join, please don't hesitate to reach out to me at admin@kristopherdrummond.com and we can talk about possibilities for reciprocity - I am open to work trades and circumstantial scholarships.

KRISTOPHER DRUMMOND