What we’re about
Would you like to experience connection, to get a taste of what's possible when people get each other without judgment? To develop skills that support compassionate giving and receiving?
Would you like to cultivate inner resources to support self-healing toward self-actualization, so you can bring your gifts back to the community?
Join us for community learning and practice of Compassionate Communication (aka. "Nonviolent Communication - A Language of Life", known more generally as "NVC") by Marshall Rosenberg, Ph.D. complemented by cultivating wholeness nature-based practices inspired by Bill Plotkin's "Wild Mind - Field Guide to the Human Psyche."
This group supports in-person offerings in Kansas City (indoor and outdoor) and online offerings that explore different facets of the human experience, guiding us toward connection.
The following intentions/agreements are part of all our events:
- Confidentiality - you can share your story, but no one else's story.
- Consent - you choose the level at which you participate.
- Connection is the main intention behind all practices.
- Compassion - everyone is doing the best they know how to meet their needs.
### WHAT IS NVC?
"Nonviolent Communication is based on the principle of Ahimsa — the natural state of compassion when no violence is present in the heart." ~ Marshall Rosenberg, founder of NVC
Nonviolent Communication is a way of being in the world that has the purpose is to serve life and to create connection in such a way that everyone’s needs can be met through natural care. Learn more about the principles and the process of NVC by visiting the Center for Nonviolent Communication.
[Click here for original blog post with pictures -- Meetup doesn't support pictures here].
This offerings framework shows how you can be guided toward connection in various contexts, learning and deepening your life-connection practices by staying engaged throughout the year. Each 10-week series will focus on different areas of the NVC Tree of Life (NTOL) -- they will be offered only once in-person and online in 2024 (each session concurrently on the same week). Nonviolent Communication, aka. NVC was created by Marshall Rosenberg, Ph.D. James Prieto is a CNVC Certified NVC Trainer, and Wild Heart guide.
- In-person offerings in Kansas City, MO scheduled through Meetup will be on Tuesdays from 7 PM to 8:30 PM Central, with an additional optional 30 minutes of unstructured discussion.
- Online offerings with registration through my website will be on Thursday from 9 AM - 10:30 AM Pacific time (Los Angeles) with an additional optional 30 minutes of unstructured discussion.
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The simplified NVC Tree of Life (NTOL) shown above was created by NVC Trainer Inbal Kashtan; it provides a convenient artifact for clarifying the focus of each of the 10-week offerings. The NTOL shows the three modes of Nonviolent Communication (NVC).
The roots of the NTOL provide the foundation of the practice through Self-Empathy (Self-Connection), which is an inner-curiosity for one's thoughts, judgments, feelings, needs, and potential strategies.
As you go up the NTOL, the left-most branch invites you to Empathy, which is a respectful listening to the heart of another person.
The rightmost branch of the NTOL invites you to Self-Expression, which is a compassionate honest expression of what you discovered in the root system about yourself.
I have three 10-week offerings that focus on different parts of the NTOL. Each series can be taken out of sequence (each stands alone without the others). However, the suggested sequence below makes learning and retaining the practices easier. Why 10 weeks? Because research shows that on average, you can develop new habits within 10 weeks.
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1. The “Conversational Connection - Practical Skills for Communicating Compassionately” series represented above focuses on the crown of the NTOL -- deep empathic listening, compassionate honest self-expression, setting up a connecting conversation, and facilitating a flow of connection. This series can be seen as a good introduction to the classical practice of Nonviolent Communication (NVC), although I’ve extended it to include elements of Authentic Relating.
(Online Registration Link, In-Person Meetup link-TBD).
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2. The acclaimed “Free Yourself From Reactivity: 10-week Journey of Emotional Liberation” series focuses on the root system of the NTOL, a deepening of the practice of Self-Empathy focused on triggered/reactivity situations. Read a few of the Testimonials to get a sense for what is offered.
(Online Registration Link, In-Person Meetup link-TBD).
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3. The “Wild Heart - Cultivating Wholeness, Self-Healing for the Self You Always Wanted” extends the NTOL to include Self-Empathy and the root system underground representing the Unconscious. Based on James' active research integrating NVC with the nature-based depth psychology of “Wild Mind - Field Guide to the Human Psyche” by Bill Plotkin, Ph.D. The first half of the series is focused on cultivating wholeness in the four facets of the self, each corresponding to a different NVC component. The second half of the series focuses on Self-Healing of the immature, protective fragments, or subpersonalities of the Self.
(Online Registration Link, In-Person Meetup link-TBD).
A final series for the year is under development -- it will likely include Dreamwork, Shadow work, Self-Healing, as a practical continuation and integration of Wild Heart series and all other series offered (for real life practice and integration).
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James Prieto is an author, poet, CNVC Certified Nonviolent Communication (NVC) Trainer, and nature-based Wild Heart guide. James guides toward connection through NVC workshops and “Wild Heart” nature-based depth-psychology personal development -- inspired by Wild Mind - Field Guide to the Human Psyche by Bill Plotkin, Ph.D. He’s passionate about the intersection of Animas Valley Institute inspired work with NVC as a way to contribute to Earth elder Joanna Macy’s “Great Turning” and Thomas Berry’s “Great Work.”
Upcoming events (4)
See all- Session 1. Wild Heart - Cultivating Wholeness for the Self You Always Wanted1626 E 75th Terrace, Kansas City, MO
Would you like to:
* find inner peace, mental clarity and autonomy thru Self-Healing?
* become more grounded in yourself, reawakening dormant capacities?
* re-wild yourself while accessing natural compassion?This is the first session of the 10 week series, where we'll start with an exploration of Needs, the Window of Knowing of the Deep Imagination, and the archetypes of the West.
Join us for a connected immersion experience of cultivating wholeness and the self-healing of our subpersonalities. This 10-week series extends Nonviolent Communication with nature-based depth psychology by Bill Plotkin (Wild Mind - Field Guide to the Human Psyche) - so you can find the connected self you've always wanted.
Wild Heart extends the internal practice of Nonviolent Communication through archetypal depth psychology by Bill Plotkin's Wild Mind. Each of the NVC components (Observations, Feelings, Needs, Requests) are mapped to the 4 cardinal directions of the Wild Mind Map, exploding the potential for self-connection and self-healing through cultivating wholeness practices. We'll explore the four facets of the self for expanded experiences of who we are and the resources available to us in every moment. We will also identify and befriend our subpersonalities -- the fragmented parts of our selves -- as a means of integrating them into our wholeness.
Series Desired Outcomes
- more aliveness
- knowledge of the four facets of wholeness and associated subpersonalities
- reinvigorate your wildness and connection to nature
- identify a path toward freedom from destructive patterns of subpersonalities
- inner-peace and harmony that is grounded in self-connection
- enhanced awareness of the self (through the four facets of the self)
- development of strategies for acknowledging and integrating sub-personalities
- development of practices for cultivating wholeness
Series Prerequisites
- During the session, you will be guided to identify and connect with different facets of yourself, and then engage with other participants from these facets.
- You will need access to a wild or semi-wild area for nature-based practices each week, which happen outside of our group time.
- Participation in the series requires a commitment to also engage in the outdoor practices (min. 1 hour each week).
The emphasis of the series will be on Wild Mind. This is NOT an introduction to NVC!
Required Skills
* take responsibility for your inner experienceDesired Skills
* reliably distinguish between observations and evaluations
* familiarity with feelings/needs
* know how to give yourself empathy, identifying feelings and needs (self-attunement)
* are comfortable and skilled at giving empathy to others
* are able to express yourself authentically with compassion
* have the ability to make clear/doable positive action requestsWeekly Session Agenda
- Council check-in circle around nature practices and experiences (from previous outings)
- Overview of NVC Component
- Wild Mind facet of wholeness or corresponding sub-personalities
- Online Practice: Engaging our facets of wholeness or sub-personalities
- Define and Discuss nature based outdoor wholeness practices
- Outdoor Practice: Solo practices in nature (1 - 2 hours per week)
SERIES AGENDA
Cultivating Wholeness - Conscious Self (first 5 weeks)- Deep Imagination/Needs - West: Dark Beloved Muse — creativity, imagination, identity
- Embodied Feeling - South: Wild Indigenous One -- embodiment, aliveness, movement
- Present-Centered Sensing/Observation - East: Innocent/Sage/Trickster — presence, knowing, understanding, play
- Heart-Centered Thinking/Requests - North: Nurturing Generative Adult — compassion, contribution, growth
- Four-direction Circle for Cultivating Wholeness
Befriending Subpersonalities/Fragments - Unconscious Self (second 5 weeks)
6. North: Loyal Soldier
7. South: Wounded Child
8. East: Addict, Escapist
9. West: Shadow, Shadow Selves
10. Four-direction Circle for Self-HealingClosed/Drop-In Group: We'll close the group if at least 8 people register for the 10-week series -- otherwise, it will remain a drop-in group. Benefits of Closed Group:
- Receive slides PDF before the session
- Consistency creates community
- "opt-in" to a sliding empathy buddy schedule outside of class
Series Tuition: if interested in the full 10-wk series, please send money through Venmo @Jaime-L-Prieto-Jr, or Zelle through your bank "james.prieto@gmail.com" (phone ends in 2026) or least favorite because 3.5% fee PayPal @jamesprieto. Discounts available. No one turned away due to lack of funds.
Requested Tuition: $200
Comfortable Tuition: $300
Corporate Tuition: $500 - Wild NVC Connection and Integration (Loose Park)Jacob L. Loose Park, Kansas City, MO
Would you like to be more connected and integrated? Join us for “Wild NVC Connection and Integration” - an opportunity to deepen, expand and cultivate NVC self-connection with Wild Mind practices in nature.
*** Register here for Wild Connection and Integration email reminders for series ***
Dates: Series meets each 2nd, 4th Saturday of the month: July 13, Aug 10, Sep 14, Oct 12
Time: from 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM Central
Location: Loose Park - on the South-West side of Loose Park Garden Center, 5200 Pennsylvania Ave, Kansas City, MO 64112, near the grandmother tree (register here for location information in reminder emails)Each month, we will meet at Loose Park to focus on a different Window of Knowing - you will be invited to deepen your to access each through nature-based practices.
These sessions feed into the Wild Heart Intensive: Cultivating Wholeness, Self-Healing and Integration, a 4 day/3 night camping retreat Oct 24-27, 2024.
Bring:
- A chair to sit close to the ground
- A time piece that is not your cell phone (phones requested off)
- A notebook/journal for personal notes
- Your own personal lunch (optional: items to share)
- Reusable water bottle (no single use bottles please)
- Sun Protection: Shade hat, sunscreen, lips
- Clothing layers to match the weather
Agenda: We’ll follow this general structure:
- Introduction, Check-in Circle
- Window of Knowing
- Solo Wander in Nature for Cultivating Wholeness
- Council Debrief on Wandering Experiences
Cost:
Donations and gifts requested. No one turned away for lack of funds.References:
* “Wild Mind - A Field Guide to the Human Psyche” by Bill Plotkin, PhD - a nature based depth psychology inspired by experiences in guiding the descent to soul since 1980, following in the lineage of Carl Jung, James Hillman, while being inspired by indigenous cultures. James Prieto is apprenticing to guiding Wild Mind through Animas Valley’s Wild Mind Training Program (see animas.org).
** "Nonviolent Communication - A Language of Life" by Marshall Rosenberg, PhD. For more information, go to the Center for Nonviolent Communication.About the facilitator:
James Prieto is an author, poet, CNVC Certified Nonviolent Communication (NVC) Trainer, and nature-based Wild Heart guide, completing the Animas Valley Institute Wild Mind Training Program. James guides toward connection through NVC workshops and “Wild Heart” nature-based depth-psychology personal development -- inspired by Wild Mind - Field Guide to the Human Psyche by Bill Plotkin, Ph.D. He’s passionate about the intersection of Animas Valley inspired work with NVC as a way to contribute to Earth elder Joanna Macy’s “Great Turning” and Thomas Berry’s “Great Work.”