Teachers as Learning Partners

Labs were created to explore the space of deep personal connection and the possibilities such space can offer. Every one of us has something unique and precious to offer. At every moment, every one of us possesses a key that fits perfectly into the realm of another. When we meet on the street, in an office, or on the dance floor, we look for the quality of presence within ourselves and others that renders our communication delightful and nurturing. At the same time, we are used to surrounding ourselves with cultural routines that keep us away from “presence” more often than help us develop it. Labs were created as a place where we can research and play with this contradiction.

Labs were born out of a need to combine and balance the so-called “right” and “left-brain” learning. We offer one-on-one and group sessions structured around a particular ritual or skill set acquisition. In an interaction where you decide whether you want to be a teacher or a student, there must be a match between the "instructional capabilities" of a teacher and the intentions of the student. Thus, someone who wants to draw caricatures can work with a person who loves to draw caricatures, and someone interested in the healing properties of plants can work with a healer who does plant-centered rituals. The activity is designed to serve as a container of the interaction, not its primary goal, although in some cases, it can become a central focus point of an encounter. There is no limit to the number of domains of human functioning that can serve as the container for emotional healing.

A plethora of positive experiences in skill acquisition and social interaction, no matter how big or small, could be helpful for living the life one desires. Our view is that experiencing learning as a fully integrated emotional experience rather than a way to escape from one's unmet needs is the realm of the few. Until we can wholeheartedly enjoy true togetherness, we are committed to a collaborative exercise of presence: of seeing and being seen, speaking and being heard, acting and being met.

We are committed to working with educators and healers whose primary goal is to do what interests and inspires them most. Heart-centered self-contemplation is at the root of their work, regardless of what arts, sciences, and rituals they practice. The vast majority of the educators and healers we work with have chosen socially oriented work and service after a lifetime of more specialized professional experience.