Mar 27: Retrain Your Lizard Brain in St. Paul

 

What:  Retrain Your Lizard Brain: Somatic Singing for Trauma Awareness and Resilience

When:  Thursday, March 27, 2025, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Where:  Dendros Group, University Ave, St. Paul

Register:  Eventbrite

Mar 6: Visiting Songleader Lu Aya

 

What:  Come Sing + Learn with Lu Aya

When:  Thursday, March 6, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Where:  CTUL/IX, 3715 Chicago Ave, Minneapolis

Suggested Donation: $10-20, no one turned away for lack of funds

Come sing and learn with Lu Aya of The Peace Poets!

Lu is a legendary movement songleader and hip-hop/spoken word artist, and one of the co-founders of The Peace Poets. The short, singable, memorable songs that The Peace Poets have been seeding throughout movement organizing work have supported Black Lives Matter, the climate crisis, Stop Line 3, Palestinian liberation, and more. Lu is the author of the HARMONIZING ORGANIZING manifesto our local movement songleaders have been learning from - we are so grateful he is coming to Minneapolis! Come sing with him and learn from him (we will probably wind up writing a song on the spot together!)

Masks strongly encouraged

***Childcare available!***

Setlist from 2025 Tending Your Heart, Tending Your Fire Retreat

Dear Friends,

If you're reading this, you might have attended the Tending Your Fire, Tending Your Heart retreat for Twin Cities Organizers + Mutual Aid Folx from Friday, February 21 through Sunday, February 23, 2025. Thank you for carrying a load for your community in a season of deep service and to lay it all down for a weekend to receive some spaciousness and care.

Here is a list of the songs we sang over the weekend with links to online recordings.

• Carry This All (Ahlay Blakely) 
• Come and Gather Round the Table (adapted from Fly Away Home) - ask Liz for a recording
• Endless Boundless Gratitude (Samara Jade)
• Gather / We Are Not Alone (Joanna Laws Landis)
• Healing is Possible (Orion Johnstone)
• (Hey There) Abolish (adapted from Hey There Delilah by Plain White T’s) - Video-chorus: Video-verse: 
• I am receiving (Lyndsey Scott) 
• I did not come here alone (The Peace Poets)
• I think you shouldn't do more (Gloria's song) - see the link in the post-retreat email
• I send my hope (Jordan Mudd) 
• Liberation, Solidarity (adapted from Earth My Body) - ask Liz for all the words
• Loosen, Loosen (Aly Halpert) - OR https://youtu.be/X-_7XfaS7Mc
• Net of Remembrance (Ahlay Blakely) - youtube
• O Bless the Food* (Okie Dokie Brothers?)
• Open Sentences (Ahlay Blakely)
• The Way Knows the Way (Lyndsey Scott) - plus https://thebirdsings.com/thewayknows/; and new album https://lyndseyscott.bandcamp.com/track/the-way-knows
• There is enough (Kerri Meyer) 

* no known recording online. Please share in the comments if you find one!

** the composer/catcher of this song is not known to us. If you do know, please pass it on in the comments. :)

Here's a list of Resources:

Oracle Card Decks 

Having a tangible tool to sit with and reflect our feelings back to us helps us slow down, process, and make space for emotional work and intentions we otherwise tend to ignore. 

• Rest Deck by Tricia Hersey (https://thenapministry.com/rest-deck/) based on Hersey's book "Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto"
• Sacred Incantations: rituals of trans wisdom for every season - from Enfleshed.

Buddha Board 

https://buddhaboard.com/

Instruments

• CajonTab by Louson Drum - Liz has one of the Pro series. Get to know a bit of the cajon's musical history here. Use Liz's affiliate link to get 10% off.
• Shruti Box, literally "sound" or "singing" in ancient Sankrit, replicates the sound of the Tambura, an East Asian Indian drone instrument. Part of the family of drone instruments that show up in many cultures, related to bagpipes and harmoniums. Conie's instrument is from Shrutibox.com run by Ron Kravitz of https://www.musicinthemoment.com/ in Philadelphia, PA

Gratitude for Episcopal House of Prayer at Collegeville for providing the gift of this Community Retreat.  

May all of these resources support you in your work and in your rest.

Liz and Conie, a.k.a. Good Trouble 

Winter-Spring 2025: Heart Songs Schedule

What: Heart Songs: Lament, Longing, & Love (an online community space for you to bring your heart and your voice)

When: 6:30-8p CDT (05-UTC until Daylight Savings Time ends)

Dates for Winter-Spring 2025:

• January 13, 27
• February 10, 24
• March 10, 24
• April 7, 21
• May 5, 19

Where: Online: https://zoom.us/j/431161455 (see call-in options on Heart Songs' main page)

Gather for an informal singing time to re-center our hearts in community. Simple songs will be led paperlessly/taught by ear by Conie Borchardt, Nancy W, Sarah M, other song leaders, and you, if you have a song to share.

Join us. Bring friends. (Signup for the email reminder here; select Heart Songs)

Songs will be about the human experience and in that way, spiritual in nature, but not specifically religious.

This is a space intended for self-care, however that shifts for you in every moment. Bring water. Come and go. Sit in a chair, lie on the floor, or stand as you need to.