Welcoming Our Daughters Letter
We sincerely welcome you to "Welcoming Our Daughters" monthly gatherings. The days are relaxed, fun and responsive to the needs of the group. We offer this short introduction to give you a sense of what you might expect if you are coming for the first time and to share an essence of our vision and intentions in offering this space. Our gatherings are appropriate for Mums or caregivers of 8 to 13 year old girls.
We gather at ten am on the day at a lovely venue in Brighton. You and your daughter will be welcomed with warmth by one of our holding group with tea, a chat and introductions to others who are in the space. We are a team of 5 passionate and experienced facilitators, three grandmothers and two mothers. There will always be a pair leading the group, and usually three women including one grandmother as we seriously value the importance of good eldership as we approach the thresholds of growing up.
We gather in a large space dedicated to group work. We open the days with games, ice breakers, stories and visualisations. We spend time altogether in the morning and explore a theme for a while. This may be connected to the season, some aspect of the female experience, our experience of life at the stage we are at, or something that a participant has brought that wants to be explored. We share a pot luck lunch, with every family bringing something to add to the table.
After lunch we as mothers gather in a circle together to have some space to connect, deepen into what might be coming up for in our lives and look at some of the issues of mothering our children and tending our own needs.
The daughters have time together, being held in fun, creative and gentle ways to support them to explore what is going on for them and to enjoy making things and each others company. We have some very skilled educators and wise women on our team and our goal is to make the sessions really fun. We have found that confidence grows and the feedback has been that girls begin to start to welcome the changes that are happening for them. We give then language to help then appreciate and understand their bodies, in simple and shame free ways, and we come from a perspective that encompasses more than a purely biological perspective but gives some magic, mystery and honour to the changes that gradually mark the movement from middle childhood into early womanhood.
We weave together together circle, education, community and ceremony. We find fun and simple ways to celebrate the girls in who they are and who they might become. Our intention is to support natural, whole and authentic feminine expression in our girls and ourselves.
Our days end at 3.30pm. We ask for £30 per mother daughter pair, with concessions available on request. Please register your attendance with Jill on 07931576007 or kettle.pettle@mail.com.
The feedback has been so powerful, beautiful and encouraging that these gatherings really do make a difference to esteem, confidence and a sense of value in becoming a woman.
In addition to the day gatherings, regular women's days will be held to offer the opportunity to explore with more depth some of the themes that arise when we start to go into this work. There will also be a summer camp in 2018, more info on the website.
We hope that you will enjoy this journey of exploration and support with us and find something of value to resource yourself and your family through these gatherings.
With lots of love, Jill, Tatiana, Samsara, Sam and Jamil