Join Me & Karine Bell for The Alchemy In Edge Play

Hi Dear Ones - It’s been a few weeks since my last post! Apologies, and fear not, dear readers - I’ve got a post titled “Does Transformative Justice Actually Work? And Other Questions That Keep Me Awake At Night” on the way that should be up in the next few days. In the mean time, I’d like to invite you to check out this program I’m teaching with my dear friend and somatic expert, Karine Bell, who also heads up the Rooted Global Village ecosystem. I don’t intend to use this Substack to promote/sell many programs, but I am VERY excited to teach this course on complexity, inner and outer conflict from a depth psychology perspective, the Collective Shadow, and cultural archetypes of victim, perpetrator, hero, and villain. There are scholarships available to support financial accessibility.
xoxo
KCT

There is a desire greater than fear that can be our most powerful motivator to do what feels hard or impossible to do.

At some point, the discomfort of staying in the same holding patterns becomes harder to bear than the uncertainty of change, or the new circumstances or relationships in our lives (like becoming a parent), point us towards the edge-places that scare us. We might have a moment of recognition that we do NOT want to repeat or pass on certain patterns.

On May 29th, 2025, Kai Cheng Thom and Karine Bell, embark on a program arc in a truly unique program experience called the Alchemy in Edge-Play: Personal and Cultural Transformation in a Complex World. Another term for the edge-places we learn to dance with is the waterline; a term that comes from Lewis Deep Democracy.

The waterline is that place where what is hidden from consciousness meets the surface of our awareness. It’s the line between what we’ve learned to show and what we’ve had to suppress, but that contains tremendous wisdom and potential for us.

Many of us hover near the waterline but fear to drop below it. And often, we don’t go there until there is a desire greater than fear to face what has felt scary or impossible to do.

Who is this program for?

This program is for people who are ready to stop avoiding tension and conflict (within themselves and relationally), and are ready to start learning from the wisdom of what we try to avoid.

It’s for people who want to integrate somatic and depth psychological practices into their work and life—as a commitment to staying present with what’s actually happening in the body, in relationships, and in our culture at large.

This program is for those who feel the strain of navigating complexity and contradiction in their personal lives and in our world right now, and want to build the capacity to meet it with more creativity, connection, and clarity. And who are also looking for a container to hold this work in the company of others.

It is also for people doing social change work—facilitators, leaders, artists, healers—who find themselves at relational edges and want more tools for supporting others through conflict, not by bypassing or smoothing it over, but by understanding what it’s pointing to and how to navigate it well.

It’s also for those who are interested in challenging dominant cultural patterns: the pressure to choose a side, to perform certainty, to collapse into hyper-independence or collapse entirely. It’s for those who want to develop deeper self-awareness, and who know that shadow parts of ourselves below the waterline, so to speak, are not things to be banished—but to be met and integrated.

What to Expect from Part I: The Somatic and Relational Self - Exploring Edge & Shadow in Relationship

In Part I of the program, we begin with the personal. We explore the embodied landscape of our nervous systems, internal tensions, and the paradoxes we hold. We look at how protective patterns—both psychological and physiological—show up in our daily lives. You’ll learn how to identify “shadow cycles”: unconscious habits shaped by past experiences that both protect and limit you.

We move from there into the polarities we carry—right/wrong, good/bad, protector/perpetrator—and how those binaries shape our actions, relationships, and identities. Instead of resolving the contradiction, we practice staying in it, learning to move with complexity instead of trying to eliminate it. We then begin to explore how our internal dynamics show up in our relationships. You’ll learn to track the connections between your own protective reflexes and moments of conflict or disconnection.

We also introduce the idea of the collective body—how groups carry shared tensions and how we might listen to what’s emerging beneath the surface.

Throughout the four modules of Part I, you’ll build capacity for empathy, listening, and somatic awareness, and hopefully leave with a clearer understanding of your patterns and the tools to relate to them differently—in yourself, in your relationships, and in the spaces you tend.

While Kai Cheng and I bring humor and playfulness into the space (you have to learn to laugh at yourself), we also take the work seriously. Each module is grounded in clear learning objectives, and the program as a whole offers a spacious container where theory meets practice in ways that are immediately usable.

You’ll be introduced to a range of tools, techniques, and frameworks drawn from somatics, depth psychology, Processwork, and group facilitation traditions—as well as resources you can bring into your personal and professional life and continue to return to long after the program ends.

These are not abstract concepts—we’ll work with them in embodied, relational ways so they can be integrated into your daily life, relationships, and professional practice. Whether you're showing up in facilitation spaces, one-on-one work, creative practice, or simply navigating the complexities of human connection, this program offers skills and resources you can return to again and again.

We will share more soon about Part II.

Registration + Payment Options

Space for this program is limited. If you are ready to step into this unique cohort experience with two enthusiastic teachers and explorers, you can learn more and register here.

It is possible to register for the full 9-month program arc, or just part I (May-August) or part II (September-January). There are payment plans available for all options, as well as a partial scholarship that can be applied to all payment options. (see the program registration page for more information).

For folks who register for the full program, or one of the parts, by May 26th, 2025, we're offering a bonus session working with money, the shadow & relationship (to be offered in February 2026).

We hope you might join us for what is promising to be an enriching journey!