Authentic Movement Retreats
First Sunday of the Month
12:00 pm - 5:30 pm EST

Spiraling Inward Through Authentic Movement
with Simona Aronow, BC-DMT, CMA,NCC
Julie Leavitt, DMin, BC-DMT, LMHC.

You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body Love what it loves. -(excerpt) Wild Geese, Mary Oliver

The practice of Authentic Movement allows movement to unfold without expectation from the inner wisdom of the body. Sensations, images, thoughts, feelings and memories are woven into what emerges within our movement experience.

This dance can be expansive and active, a small gesture, or even stillness. We allow the unconscious truth of the moment to be expressed through our willingness to allow embodied attention. This embodiment guides us and can empower us to grow the roots of our full aliveness.

We will have a limit of 12 movers with some Authentic Movement experience. We will use a Zoom platform with all of its resources. Invitations with link will be sent before retreat.

$80 for the day payable by Venmo (@JulieLeavitt) or other means. Please register and send payment before Monday, July 26 by contacting Julie: injewel1@gmail.com or Simona: saronow@verizon.net.

We so look forward to sharing this time with you.

I teach movement as expression of emotion & devotion. We create time & space for holy listening inside the sacred vessel of our bodies. Authentic Movement offers an opportunity to move from an embodiment or longing for Divine presence. We bring song and silence into our movement practice.

Authentic Movement encourages us to listen carefully to the body and provides us with an opportunity to respond to its needs. An approach to movement rather than a specific form or technique, this practice brings our awareness into our bodies revealing the impulses that lead us into motion. Each mover responds uniquely to his or her particular body and in doing so may open to a wide range of sensations, sounds, images, and emotions. As witnesses we practice giving full attention to the mover while observing our own, internal experience. Together we strive to create a safe, respectful, and non-judgmental space. By participating in this practice, we may come to a deeper, richer appreciation and compassion for others and ourselves.

I invite you to join us in this simple, yet profound practice. Both those familiar with Authentic Movement and those wishing to explore for the first time are welcome to workshops, groups, and individual work.

Dance and Movement are praise, prayer, meditation, creativity and expression. The simple act of being centered in our bodies offers an experience of being present that can connect us with Presence in a deeply sacred way.

I have studied, taught, and practiced dance, movement, and Authentic Movement for twenty years in secular and spiritual settings. I began with a class called, "Authentic Movement and the Sacred Body" in 1996 and continue to teach Movement as a Spiritual Practice locally and nationally in synagogues, retreat centers, conferences, and universities.

I served on the faculty of Lev Shomea, a training program for Jewish Spiritual Directors and teach embodied Spiritual Direction and Authentic Movement. As spiritual director/companion at the rabbinical school at Hebrew College and my private practice, I incorporate embodied listening and creative expression.

I received my Doctor of Ministry in Jewish Spiritual Direction from the Graduate Theological Foundation in 2014. My doctoral project was based on my work with Spiritual Direction and Authentic Movement as parallel and braided practices that deeply inform each other.

I am deeply grateful to my mentor, Janet Adler, the amazing collective of movers I've been privileged to move and witness, and my students, directees, and clients who have invited me to walk with them and learn with them on their very special journeys.