Spirituality & Story: Remembering, Reclaiming, and Sharing Life Stories
Remembering our life stories has great value. Socrates is credited with saying that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” Richard L. Morgan, author of Remembering Your Story: Creating Your Own Spiritual Autobiography, writes in a poem: “We all have stories to tell; some we know, others are locked within our hearts. But we are our story.”
During this retreat, we will see how our stories are invaluable in deepening awareness of our spirituality and that our stories help us recognize the Divine Creator’s constant presence and movement in our lives.
In remembering our stories during this retreat, we will embrace the concept of the Sankofa Bird, a West African symbol whose body faces forward while the head is turned, looking behind, suggesting, “It is not taboo to go back and fetch what you forgot.” We will use scripture and a variety of activities to prime the pump of memory. As we “remember, reclaim, and share” our stories with others, we will create community, acknowledge and deepen faith, experience healing, and become open to many other possibilities that nurture our ongoing spiritual story. Lunch is included.
*Note: While this retreat is grounded in Christianity, all persons desiring to connect to their spirituality through stories are welcome.
Ostein Truitt, D. Min. is a Spiritual Director who leads and facilitates retreats through her company, Deepening Spiritual Connections, LLC. As part of her journey, she has been exploring the union of her African American Baptist and Contemplative spiritual practices and is excited to share this as a pathway that anyone can use to enhance their experience. She is an adjunct staff member at the Shalem Institute of Spiritual Formation, where she previously served on its board. She has also graduated from two of its programs: the Spiritual Guidance Program and Transforming Community: Leading Contemplative Spiritual Groups and Retreats.
Ostein recently retired after 20 years serving as the assistant pastor of St. John Baptist Church. Prior to her tenure in church ministry, she taught nursing and other healthcare students as a professor of Clinical Microbiology. She earned a Master of Divinity from Howard University School of Divinity and a Doctor of Ministry from Wesley Theological Seminary. She currently offers individual and group Spiritual Direction, leads Contemplative Spiritual Groups & Retreats, and is dedicated to living the contemplative path.