Gene & Jess, Newest Leader Couple

In August, 2022, Friends Couple Enrichment welcomed Gene Sonn and Jess Walcott as the second couple to complete the new, self-paced, online training.

Gene and Jess live in Pennsylvania and have been a couple for more than 25 years. Together they are raising two creative independent boys and an energetic rescue dog. They were drawn to Quaker worship when their children were younger and they felt a deep need for more blessed silence in their lives. Now, they have a strong connection to their Quaker meeting in suburban Philadelphia, while maintaining a connection to their mission-based Catholic church in Camden, New Jersey.

The minute from the Meeting for Worship supporting Jess & Gene says, in part:

Jess and Gene model a heartfelt commitment to the spiritual practice of Couple Dialogue with weekly dialogue time, achieving this in the context of busy family and work lives. They repeatedly rediscovered the joy and tenderness of dialoguing, whether or not they were "in the mood". Their trust in the process of dialogue allows them to bring their authentic selves to dialogue, even in publicly witnessed dialogues. . . . The words of one FCE Couple Leader expresses with quintessential Quaker simplicity the great faith we place in Jess and Gene’s ministry; “Anyone participating in a workshop led by Jess and Gene will be in good hands.”

Online Information Sessions in Spanish (Sept 10) and English (Sept 18)

On September 10, Friends Couple Enrichment is trying something new -- reaching out to Spanish-speaking couples with an online information session titled “Nos-Otros.” Two bi-lingual Leader Couples - Maria and Jose from Ontario, Canada, and Kathy & Jeff, from California, USA - are offering Nos-Otros to bring together a community of Spanish-speaking couples from Mexico to Canada to learn about how Couple Retreats can deepen relationships, build community, and strengthen peace-making at home and in the world.

For those who don’t speak Spanish, there will be English online information session on September 18, 2022 led by Mike and Marsha Green from North Carolina, and Kirsten Brink and Andrew Dembski from Texas. This will provide a chance for folks to learn more about FCE and two upcoming 3-day workshops: an online workshop on October 22, 23 & 29; and an in-person workshop at Pendle Hill on April 14-16, 2023. (Registration for Pendle Hill will open later this year.)

Please help us spread the news to couples you know or members of faith communities in your area. You can refer them to the website, or follow our Friends Couple Enrichment Facebook account and share our Facebook Events.

What is Drop-In Dialogue?

By Kirsten Brink

If you have not joined us for a Drop In Dialogue (DiD), it is a 90 minute once-a-month Zoom opportunity for couples who have gone to an FCE workshop and want to practice their dialogue skills with their partners. (You may choose to witness, if you prefer not to dialogue.) Unlike a growth group, Drop in Dialogues are not a long-term commitment: you can join us one month, every month, or something in between.

After Andrew and I first had our FCE workshop, a monthly email inviting us to DiD was a reminder to keep practicing. Often, I thought ‘oh yeah, we haven’t dialogued lately’. Soon, we became much more comfortable with the dialogue practice and we started learning from other couples and making Dialogue a habit.

As an isolated Friend at the time (before the pandemic), this Drop-in Dialogue community became very meaningful. Andrew and I now lead DiD and it is a pure delight to offer this space to other couples. The FCE community is a special one, and we are glad we can support it.

Upcoming DiD opportunities are on Saturday, September 24, Saturday November 19, and Sunday, December 18. (There will not be a Drop-in Dialogue in October). The Zoom link will be sent to you after registration. The link below will take you to more information, including the times of each Drop-in Dialogue.

The title of this workshop sums it up nicely, "Listening with love to strengthen and deepen our relationships."

So often, what we need most is simply to be heard. Why, then, can it seem so difficult to speak from the heart and for our partner to listen with love?

In this workshop, we will explore the roles of the speaker, the listener, and witnesses in authentic, connecting dialog. When in the role of speaker, we will learn to tend the ear of the listener, to speak from the heart, and to remain connected and engaged with our partner. When listening, we will learn to clarify our understanding, withhold judgement, support the speaker, and relax our compulsion to correct or debate. When witnessing, we will hold the dialog and gathering in sacred light.

The three leader couples will participate fully, modeling skills while sharing gratitudes and processing events from their own lives in authentic couple dialogue.

This retreat is for any couple in a committed relationship. Same-sex couples are welcome. It will be held over Zoom, so it is open to any couple in any location with the appropriate technologies, including those with mobility, child-care, health, scheduling, and other challenges to meeting in person. The workshop will consist of 6 two-hour sessions over 3 days, on Oct. 22, 23, and 29. Suggested donation is $40 per couple.

The Lasting Effects of a Couple Enrichment Weekend

Love Tag: Hiding Your Heart

The ♥, when exchanged, means “I Love You”.

The partner with the ♥ is IT!

Your job is to hide the ♥ in a fun and creative way.

Your partner lets you know it’s found and is now IT.

Keep the ♥ in play for fun and Love!!

POETRY

For Keeps by Joy Harjo

Sun makes the day new.

Tiny green plants emerge from earth.

Birds are singing the sky into place.

There is nowhere else I want to be but here.

I lean into the rhythm of your heart to see where it will take us.

We gallop into a warm, southern wind.

I link my legs to yours and we ride together,

Toward the ancient encampment of our relatives.

Where have you been? they ask.

And what has taken you so long?

That night after eating, singing, and dancing

We lay together under the stars.

We know ourselves to be part of mystery.

It is unspeakable.

It is everlasting.

It is for keeps.

Joy Harjo was appointed the new United States poet laureate in 2019. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1951, Harjo is a member of the Mvskoke/Creek Nation.

Did You Know?

If you have 4 or more couples in your community who are interested in attending a Couple Enrichment workshop, we are happy to talk with you about how we might make this happen. Learn more on our website.