Circles
What’s a circle?
The central inquiry in a circle is “What’s it like to be you right now?” In a circle, we’re present with what is here between us. We’re informed by our past: from what we carried in from the day, as well everything that made us who we are, but the goal is not to explain that. Our objective is relational connection. How does the fatigue that I’m feeling interact with the excitement that you bring? What’s it like to hear that I feel sadness or compassion when you share your anger?
In a circle, we get to explore our emotions with each other Instead of locking them inside or calculating how much to reveal. We slow down to notice the internal shifts. Sometimes it feels edgy or adventurous; sometimes we gain clarity or healing by learning what’s going on for others beneath the surface. At a minimum, we all benefit from realizing everything we feel is universally shared and part of what unites us as human.
How do I try this out?
Many different people and organizations around the world offer circles, both in-person and online. I lead two in-person sessions a month in Washington, DC.
All-Levels Circling is typically held on the fourth Monday of the month. As the title suggests, these sessions are open to everyone, including those who have never circled before.
Circling for Experienced Practitioners is usually held on the second Tuesday of the month. These sessions are intended for folks with some knowledge of circling.
Circling sessions are $20 per person. To reserve your spot, please send payment via Venmo @rebeccahassell or PayPal to rebohassell@gmail.com. If money is tight, please contact me to discuss pay-what-you-can options.
The doors open at the venue at 6:45PM, the session starts at 7:00PM, and the session typically ends at 9:00PM. Please do your best to arrive on time. If you are late, please enter quietly and wait until I can integrate you into our activities.
What is a circle like?
We ask everyone to arrive on time and to put aside the previous part of their day, both physically — like your phone and other belongings — and mentally. We really do sit in a circle so that we can see each other easily.
Everyone’s voice is welcomed into the circle with an initial go-round of names, pronouns, and an opening question, like what brings you here tonight?
We have a short meditation to help us become more grounded and to synch up as a group.
I’ll give an overview of session and introduce the theme. Having a theme is not required and, in fact, is unusual in a circle, but I find that having something to focus on or explore can be helpful. Past themes have included specific emotions and the principles of circling, among others. If the theme doesn’t feel helpful, participants are free to ignore it.
At an all-levels session, I’ll typically lead a few activities to explore the theme or to build skills helpful in circling. These might be partner-shares on the topics of authenticity vs belonging or playing the noticing game. It also feels good to share with just one or two people before expanding into the larger group.
Then we go into the full circle for 60 to 90 minutes. After we close the circle, we have a debrief to discuss the mechanics of what happened, not the content. People often stick around for a little while to socialize or follow up with other members of the circle.
