What a joy, for my first this evening, to attend this class, taught by my dear friend, Cate Hart. It was an honor to be present for the launch of her newest adventure. And I greatly benefitted from attending the class. In our society, where busyness and overachieving are applauded and rewarded, how refreshing to gather with a group of amazing souls and learn techniques for releasing stress and entering deeply into relaxation.
I met Cate earlier this year and we became immediate friends. I have loved getting to know this beautiful, kind woman. We have shared our stories and aspects of our journeys these past months, often during a great meal that Cate has prepared. Cate has learned much during her journey, about living green and sustainability, about helping a community recover from a major disaster such as an EF5 tornado, about the flow of life itself and shedding resistance, stress and illness. She has such a heart and passion for enriching the lives of others. Just engaging in conversation with this dear soul has been encouraging to me and my journey.
When Cate shared that she was branching out to offer a new line of services, designed to teach others in a rich variety of topics, I was excited for her and thrilled to be in the audience for tonight’s class. Chill was a casual evening geared toward the introduction of easy to learn techniques to enhance overall well being. Cate offered several approaches to relaxation and raised awareness, practices that we immediately put to use during class. She encouraged audience interaction and her approachable teaching style made it easy to ask questions and be engaged.
I enjoyed the class and the techniques. We met in a classroom at the Wildcat Glades Audubon Center, which was the perfect location for a class on releasing stress. As I practiced walking mindfully, along the bank of windows overlooking one of the nature paths, a family of rabbits frolicked nearby while a brilliant red cardinal perched on a bush. The serenity seeped into my body as I slowly walked the length of the room, aware of my surroundings, aware of others, aware of my body. I deeply appreciated a thought that Cate shared, called If Love Could Speak. She helped us to see that in speaking to ourselves, we should speak as we would to a beloved only child. Rather than criticizing ourselves or beating ourselves up, we can be reminded, what would love say in this moment? Beautiful.
I left the class feeling refreshed and with tools and resources to help me in creating more space in my life for relaxation, beauty and peace. As a bonus, Cate offered a month of follow up, via email, with gentle encouragement and helpful suggestions. What a lovely evening, and what a delightful teacher is Cate. I look forward to her next class!