Join this interactive, free monthly workshop dedicated to improving on important relationships and your own awareness and well-being.

How do you express that? What if someone in your life takes a chance and is vulnerable--sharing or doing something with which they are not usually comfortable--with you?

How do you respond to fully support the moment and their choice? These important moments can slip by us unawares, but practicing attunement can help respond more fully in every moment.

"Appreciation" is having a feeling of gratitude inside you.  "Celebration" is expression of that appreciation in a way that connects with other people. Both aspects are important!

And here is a question: how can we live with appreciation and celebration when we see struggle and confusion in our surroundings? We are all faced with this question, and we will explore some answers for this question using experiential exercises and discussion as a group.

The primary focus will be on appreciation and celebration, with awareness that there are causes for stress and overwhelm due to factors we do not control.

The event is facilitated by David B. Alexander, Licensed Psychotherapist and gestalt therapist. In addition to being a psychotherapist, David's longtime practice of Zen and Tai Chi Chuan is especially relevant now, because finding answers to life's larger challenges require deep resources.

Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is an approach to communication and relationships that is based on empathic connection, and that also provides a clear description and understanding of what kinds of communication help bring more joy and vitality into life, and what kinds of communication prolong conflict or separation.

Together with a large view of our life and of our true nature, these approaches provide answers to doing well in adverse circumstances--and in good circumstances!

As a psychotherapist, David has seen the great value of these principles, and has guided numerous couples and individuals to improve the quality of their communication and their relationships.

The workshop meeting will take place online via Zoom. The meeting can be joined via ordinary phone, but for a full experience use of a computer will allow seeing all participants more easily.

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Most of us know karma as, basically, the concept that our thoughts and actions have consequences, whether immediately or at some future time. Although that statement captures the basic principle of karma, there is significantly more to karma than that.

Another important teaching is the Four Immeasurables, which can be seen as a solution for creating good karma, leading to liberation. To find our true freedom we need to use our higher capacities as human beings, which help us break free from limitations. Actions that are "clean", and do not create bad karma, help us toward our own and others' liberation.

Our higher capacities allow us to cultivate a mind that frees itself from following past negative karma, gradually breaking those chains. By connecting to one's unlimited mind rather than to the narrow mind, we can help free ourselves and others from painful complications in living.

During and after the presentation we will discuss and practice these principles, and enjoy community.

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The teacher, David B. Alexander, has practiced Zen and studied with leading teachers for more decades than he would like to declare. With approval from recognized Zen masters, he is offering these talks on Zen and Buddhism.

Good communication makes for more enjoyable and enduring relationships, and more personal fulfillment. In this webinar, David B. Alexander, LP (licensed psychotherapist) will present some of the primary principles of Nonviolent Communication, and their application in daily life. After the presentation, there will be time for questions and answers. Discussion will also be invited as a way to engage those attending in a more direct way. See some testimonials below.

This will be an enriching, safe opportunity for learning how to deepen relationships of all kinds through better communication, including through authenticity towards oneself, achieving more often the results we desire.

As a psychotherapist, David has seen the value of these principles, and has guided numerous couples and individuals to improve the quality of their communication and their relationships.

Topics that will be covered include:

• Compassion vs. Labeling and Judgment

• Observation vs. Diagnosis and Evaluation

• Listening With Empathy

• Feelings, Needs, and Requests

• Liberation From Our Internal Programming

There will also be interactive exercises allowing participants to share connection with each other while becoming more aware of their own ability to communicate more fully.

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David's workshop on Non-violent Communication was insightful, practical and interactive. I especially appreciated the time he took to listen to and respond to people's real-life communication challenges. Practical and thoughtful workshop especially relevant in today's turbulent times.

Note: if any attendee does not wish to join in the discussion after the presentation, but prefers to observe and absorb, that preference will be respected.

The webinar meeting will take place online via Zoom. The webinar can be joined via ordinary phone, but for a full experience use of a computer will allow observing other attendees and those who are speaking.