Upcoming events.
Under the Stars: Living Kula Summer Festival
Join The Living Kula Community for an unforgettable summer evening celebrating movement, creativity, community, and the wonder of the natural world. Held during Perseid Meteor Shower weekend, this outdoor wellness festival invites you to slow down and reconnect beneath the stars.
Your evening includes:
5:00 Welcome
5:15-6:15 Yoga w/ Chris
6:15-6:45 Picnic on the Farm grounds wherever you'd like (bring your own blanket or chairs)
6:45-8:15 Exploration (Kayak on the pond, explore the trails, relax in the hammocks, creative exploration station, hula hoop station)
8:15-8:45 Kirtan
8:45-9:00 Gong Bath & Stargazing (Hope to see some meteors- make a wish!)
Follow your curiosity, connect with community, and spend an evening immersed in nature at Little Dipper Farm. Rain or Shine Tickets are non-refundable but may be transferred to another guest.
East Meets West Wellness Retreat | White Mountains, NH
East Meets West Wellness Retreat
August 27–30, 2026
Eagle's Nest | North Conway, New Hampshire
Ancient Wisdom. Modern Leadership. Lasting Transformation.
Join us for a four-day wellness retreat in the heart of New Hampshire's White Mountains, where ancient contemplative practices meet modern leadership development. Through Yoga, Qi Gong, guided meditation, Energy Leadership®, ceremonial cacao, nature immersion, and meaningful community, you'll create space to slow down, reconnect, and return home with greater clarity, resilience, and purpose.
Whether you're a business owner, entrepreneur, leader, educator, coach, healthcare professional, creative, or simply feeling called toward personal growth, East Meets West offers an opportunity to step away from the demands of daily life and invest in your well-being.
Transformation isn't about escaping your life.
It's about returning to it with greater presence.
Is This Retreat for You?
This retreat was thoughtfully designed for people who are ready to reconnect with themselves while cultivating practical tools they can carry into everyday life.
You may find yourself here if...
You're constantly supporting others and rarely create space to replenish yourself.
You're navigating a season of change and looking for greater clarity.
You feel successful on paper but know there's another level of alignment waiting for you.
You want practical tools for leadership, communication, emotional resilience, and personal growth.
You're drawn to both ancient wisdom traditions and evidence-based coaching frameworks.
You're seeking genuine connection with like-hearted people who value authenticity, curiosity, and meaningful conversation.
Why the White Mountains?
Nestled in the beauty of North Conway, New Hampshire, Eagle's Nest offers the ideal setting to unplug from the noise of everyday life and reconnect with what matters most. Surrounded by forests, mountains, fresh air, and breathtaking views, the landscape becomes part of the retreat experience, inviting reflection, restoration, and renewal.
Nature has a remarkable way of helping us slow down, gain perspective, and remember what truly matters.
What You'll Experience
Throughout the weekend, you'll participate in experiences designed to nourish your mind, body, and spirit while providing practical tools for lasting transformation.
Morning Qi Gong
Yoga
Guided Meditation
Ceremonial Cacao
Energy Leadership® Index Assessment Debrief
Energy Leadership® Workshops
White Mountains Hiking Adventure
Reflection & Journaling
Community Circles
Farm-to-Table Meals
Sound Bowl Meditation
Restorative Yoga
Integration Practices designed to support lasting change
An Intentionally Curated Experience
Rather than following a rigid itinerary, each day unfolds with a natural rhythm that balances movement, learning, reflection, nourishment, and connection.
Thursday
Arrival & Welcome
Light Refreshments
Settle Into Your Space
Opening Community Circle
Friday
Sunrise Qi Gong
Morning Yoga
Opening Cacao Ceremony
Energy Leadership® Index Debrief
Personal Reflection
Farm-to-Table Dinner
Fire Pit or Movie Night
Saturday
Sunrise Qi Gong
Morning Yoga
Cacao Ceremony
Energy Leadership® Workshop
Guided Hike in the White Mountains
Farm-to-Table Dinner
Sound Bowls & Restorative Yoga
Sunday
Sunrise Qi Gong
Morning Yoga
Closing Cacao Ceremony
Integration Circle
Departure
Your Stay Includes
Three nights of accommodations at Eagle's Nest
Daily Yoga and Qi Gong
Guided Meditation
Ceremonial Cacao
Energy Leadership® Index Assessment, Individual Debrief, and Workshop (a $750 value)
Retreat workbook and materials
Farm-to-table meals prepared by Chef Erin Peña
Welcome gift
Community circles and integration practices
A supportive community of fellow participants
Investment
Shared Twin Room
Starting at $1,250
Shared Queen Room
Starting at $1,500
Private Queen Room
Starting at $1,800
Private King Room
Starting at $2,100
Your registration includes accommodations, meals, workshops, movement practices, ceremonial experiences, retreat materials, and all community programming.
Meet Your Facilitators
Christopher Peña, MBA, CPC, ELI-MP and Rachel Leigh Goldberg have dedicated their work to helping individuals and organizations cultivate greater awareness, resilience, and intentional leadership.
Drawing from coaching psychology, mindfulness, Yoga, Qi Gong, contemplative traditions, and Energy Leadership®, they guide participants through experiences that bridge ancient wisdom with modern personal and professional development.
Together, they created Feedback Loop Coaching to help people move beyond surviving and begin living with greater presence, purpose, and possibility.
Return to Resonance
East Meets West is more than a wellness retreat.
It's an invitation to reconnect with the wisdom that already lives within you.
Over four days, you'll slow down, nourish your body, quiet your mind, strengthen your leadership, and experience the power of authentic community.
When you return home, the mountains may stay behind.
The presence, practices, relationships, and perspective you've cultivated will travel with you.
Because the greatest journeys don't end when we leave.
They begin when we return.
Your Adventure Awaits
August 27–30, 2026
Eagle's Nest
North Conway, New Hampshire
High Tide of the Spirit
HIGH TIDE OF THE SPIRIT
A Full Moon Gathering
Join us for an evening of movement, music, connection, and soulful celebration beneath the light of the Full Moon.
As the tides rise under the Moon's influence, we are called to gather, release, and reconnect with the deeper currents moving within us. High Tide of the Spirit is a community experience designed to nourish the Heart, ignite the Spirit, relax the Mind, and move the Body through ceremony, dance, song, and shared presence.
Our evening begins with a heart-opening Ceremonial Cacao Circle facilitated by members for Shamanism for the People, creating space for reflection and connection. After a brief nourishment break, we'll move into an Ecstatic Dance Journey with DJ Remediana, allowing the wisdom of the body to guide us through rhythm, expression, and liberation. We will close the evening in community with chanting and a closing circle, grounding the energy of the night and honoring the connections we've cultivated.
Whether you come seeking renewal, inspiration, healing, community, or simply a space to be fully yourself, you are welcome here.
The Worcester Stronghold
Join us for The Worcester Stronghold, a community initiative created to strengthen and connect Worcester’s small business owners.
This gathering is an opportunity to step out of the day to day of running a business and into a space of reflection, conversation, and shared growth.
Together, we explore:
Leadership tools to help you navigate challenges and lead with clarity and confidence
Financial perspectives to support sustainable and intentional growth
Meaningful connections with other entrepreneurs shaping the future of Worcester
Whether you are just getting started or have been serving the community for years, this space is designed to meet you where you are.
This is not traditional networking. It is a space to exchange ideas, share resources, and have real conversations about what it takes to build and sustain something meaningful.
The Worcester Stronghold
Join us for The Worcester Stronghold, a community initiative created to strengthen and connect Worcester’s small business owners.
This gathering is an opportunity to step out of the day to day of running a business and into a space of reflection, conversation, and shared growth.
Together, we explore:
Leadership tools to help you navigate challenges and lead with clarity and confidence
Financial perspectives to support sustainable and intentional growth
Meaningful connections with other entrepreneurs shaping the future of Worcester
Whether you are just getting started or have been serving the community for years, this space is designed to meet you where you are.
This is not traditional networking. It is a space to exchange ideas, share resources, and have real conversations about what it takes to build and sustain something meaningful.
Betting on Yourself: From Scarcity to Stewardship
Reclaim your relationship with money, time, and your role in the flow of wealth.
We’re living through a shift in how we relate to money, power, and purpose.
For many, financial wealth has felt like something to judge, reject, or distance from, often associated with greed, corruption, or disconnection.
But what if what we’ve labeled as “greed” is, at its core, fear?
And what if, instead of pushing wealth away, you became someone who could receive it, trust yourself with it, and redirect it with intention?
This workshop is an invitation to step out of avoidance and into stewardship, to engage with money as a tool for regeneration, not extraction.
You didn’t come here to sit on the sidelines of wealth.
You came here to participate in the re-circulation of energy.
It’s time to bet on yourself.
The Art of Mindfulness
The Art of Mindfulness Online Course
4-Week Live Journey – May 2026
The Art of Mindfulness is a 4-week live online mindfulness course designed to help you slow down, build awareness, and develop a more grounded relationship with your inner world.
Through guided meditation sessions and weekly practice, you will begin to integrate mindfulness into your daily life in a practical and sustainable way. This program is ideal for individuals seeking stress reduction, emotional awareness, and greater presence in both life and leadership.
Course Schedule
Wednesdays in May
7:30 – 9:00 p.m. (EST)
Session Dates:
Wednesday, May 6 - Mindfulness of Body & Breath
Wednesday, May 13 - Mindfulness of Emotions
Wednesday, May 20 - Mindfulness of the Mind
Wednesday, May 27 - Metta/Loving Kindness
Course Details
Format
Live online via Zoom (link provided after registration)
Duration
4 sessions (90 minutes each)
Investment
$120 (includes support throughout the 4-week program)
What You’ll Learn
Foundational mindfulness and meditation techniques
The Four Foundations of Mindfulness
Practical tools for stress reduction and emotional regulation
How to bring awareness into daily life and decision-making
What’s Included
4 live guided mindfulness meditation sessions
Weekly integration practices
Ongoing support throughout the duration of the course
Who This Is For
This course is designed for:
Individuals new to mindfulness and meditation
Professionals and leaders seeking more clarity and presence
Anyone looking to reduce stress and build a more grounded internal state
About the Facilitator
This journey is guided by Chris Peña through a blend of lived practice, leadership experience, and formal training as a Certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher through the Sounds True program, led by Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach.
His work is further informed by ongoing study and practice under the guidance of Jesse Lee Parker of the Immortal Arts Academy.
Based in Worcester, Massachusetts, this online offering is open to participants across the United States and beyond.
4-Week Live Journey — May 2026
The Art of Mindfulness is a 4-week live online course designed to help you slow down, build awareness, and develop a more grounded relationship with your inner world.
Through guided meditation and weekly practice, you will begin to integrate mindfulness into your daily life in a way that feels practical and sustainable.
This experience is designed for those seeking greater presence, emotional awareness, and clarity in both life and leadership.
Course Schedule
Wednesdays in May
7:30 – 9:00 p.m. (EST)
May 6 — Mindfulness of Body and Breath
May 13 — Mindfulness of Emotions
May 20 — Mindfulness of the Mind
May 27 — Loving Kindness (Metta)
Course Details
Format
Live online via Zoom
Link provided after registration
Duration
4 sessions (90 minutes each)
Investment
$120
Includes support throughout the 4-week program
What You’ll Learn
Foundational mindfulness and meditation techniques
The Four Foundations of Mindfulness
Practical tools for stress reduction and emotional regulation
How to bring awareness into daily life and decision-making
What’s Included
4 live guided mindfulness meditation sessions
Weekly integration practices
Ongoing support throughout the course
Who This Is For
This course is designed for:
Individuals new to mindfulness and meditation
Professionals and leaders seeking more clarity and presence
Anyone looking to reduce stress and build a more grounded internal state
About the Facilitator
This journey is guided by Chris Peña through a blend of lived practice, leadership experience, and formal training as a certified mindfulness meditation teacher through the Sounds True program, led by Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach.
His work is further informed by ongoing study and practice under the guidance of Jesse Lee Parker of the Immortal Arts Academy.
Based in Worcester, Massachusetts, this online offering is open to participants across the United States and beyond.
Virtual Taoist Qigong Community Class
Virtual Taoist Qigong Community Class
We will be gathering on April 29th for a special virtual Taoist Qigong community class.
This offering is held in dedication to our teacher, Jesse Lee Parker of the Immortal Arts Academy, who has recently experienced a serious injury requiring surgery and will be unable to teach or earn income during his recovery.
This practice is an opportunity to come together in support of our teacher and in honor of the living lineage he carries forward.
All proceeds from the class will be donated to Jesse.
The Practice
This class will be a 90-minute seated Qigong practice focused on internal cultivation.
We will work with foundational elements of Taoist Inner Alchemy, or Neidan, an ancient system devoted to refining internal energy in support of vitality, clarity, and alignment with the natural order.
Through breath, awareness, and subtle energetic work, we cultivate and stabilize the internal field.
This session will be experiential in nature, with no emphasis on theory.
What to Expect
90-minute guided seated Qigong practice
Focus on internal awareness and energetic cultivation
Space for stillness, refinement, and integration
A shared container of practice and support
Lineage & Intention
This offering is rooted in the Immortal Arts tradition and shared through the teachings of Jesse Lee Parker.
For thousands of years, these practices have been passed from teacher to student, preserving a living lineage of internal cultivation.
This class is offered as a way to both continue that transmission and support the teacher who has so generously shared it.
The Worcester Stronghold
Join us for The Worcester Stronghold, a community initiative created to strengthen and connect Worcester’s small business owners.
This gathering is an opportunity to step out of the day to day of running a business and into a space of reflection, conversation, and shared growth.
Together, we explore:
Leadership tools to help you navigate challenges and lead with clarity and confidence
Financial perspectives to support sustainable and intentional growth
Meaningful connections with other entrepreneurs shaping the future of Worcester
Whether you are just getting started or have been serving the community for years, this space is designed to meet you where you are.
This is not traditional networking. It is a space to exchange ideas, share resources, and have real conversations about what it takes to build and sustain something meaningful.
The Central Massachusetts Ram Dass Fellowship
Meditation and Spiritual Community Event in Worcester, MA
The Central Massachusetts Ram Dass Fellowship is a meditation and spiritual community gathering held in Millbury, MA at Mati Yoga Studio. This event brings together individuals interested in mindfulness, presence, and the teachings of Ram Dass.
Through film, reflection, and shared space, we create an environment for connection, self-inquiry, and inner awareness. Whether you are new to meditation or have an established practice, you are welcome to join this growing community in Central Massachusetts.
Small Business Stronghold Gathering
Join us for the first gathering of the Small Business Stronghold, a new community initiative created to strengthen and connect Worcester’s small business owners.
This evening is all about:
Sharing Leadership Tools to help you navigate challenges and lead with confidence
Exploring Financial Strategies to keep your business thriving
Building Connections with other entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of Worcester
Whether you are just starting your business or have been serving the community for years, this is a space to exchange ideas, share resources, and discover opportunities to collaborate.
Event Details
📅 Date: Thursday, August 21, 2025
🕖 Time: 7:00 p.m.
📍 Location: Root Awakening, 180 Harding St, Worcester, MA
Come ready to share your story, learn from others, and be part of a growing network committed to uplifting Worcester’s small business community.
Reserve your spot today and help us build something strong, together.
Introduction to Energy Leadership
As graduates of iPEC (Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching), Rachel & Chris are well-versed in the language of Energy Leadership and are honored to be sharing this knowledge and modality with community.
Join us on January 19th as we dive deep into the Art of Energy Leadership for this introductory workshop.
What to expect:
Gain an understanding of the two types of Energy: Catabolic & Anabolic;
Learn how both types of Energy affect our biological health;
Learn the Core Thoughts, Core Emotions, and Actions/Results of each of the 7 Levels of Energy;
Develop greater awareness around reactivity vs. responsiveness;
Redefine Leadership in ways that empower and inspire each of us to optimize systems, whether at home or in the workplace.
Because everyone is a leader. How we choose to lead is up to us.
Introduction to Energy Leadership
As graduates of iPEC (Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching), Rachel & Chris are well-versed in the language of Energy Leadership and are honored to be sharing this knowledge and modality with community.
Join us on November 5th as we dive deep into the Art of Energy Leadership for this introductory workshop.
What to expect:
Gain an understanding of the two types of Energy: Catabolic & Anabolic;
Learn how both types of Energy affect our biological health;
Learn the Core Thoughts, Core Emotions, and Actions/Results of each of the 7 Levels of Energy;
Develop greater awareness around reactivity vs. responsiveness;
Redefine Leadership in ways that empower and inspire each of us to optimize systems, whether at home or in the workplace.
Because everyone is a leader. How we choose to lead is up to us.
The Group Debrief
Space is Limited
RSVP by April 16th
A seperate e-mail will be sent with how to access the ELI Assessment & the Zoom event
Coach’s Corner
Catch Rachel and Chris on Twitch every Tuesday from 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. as they share a discussion about their coaching practice and energy leadership
The Art of Mindfulness
An exploration into Mindfulness Meditation and how it can enhance the present moment. Each session will include; a Dharma Talk, Guided Meditation, Seated Practice, Group Shares, a sense of Loving Awareness & more.
Cacao Circle
As one of the most popular gifts on Valentine’s Day, chocolate has been associated with love for generations. Though its connection with the heart dates back thousands of years, long before industrialized chocolate entered the cacao farming arena.
There are some key differences between ceremonial grade cacao and industrial cacao.
True Ceremonial-grade Cacao is a heart-opening medicine, which pairs beautifully with inner work, creativity, study, meditation, journaling, dance, strengthening movement, and all forms of expression. In Ancient Civilizations, Cacao was instrumental during conflict resolution, as tribal leaders would invite the medicine to cultivate empathy and facilitate diplomacy. And now, Native Heirloom Cacao is in the process of extending her branches from the jungles of Central and South America and offering her fruits to the hearts of people all over the world.
As Cacao grows in popularity, it’s becoming increasingly important to connect with her roots.
And that’s what I hope to inspire during our Cacao Circles.
Coach’s Corner
Catch Rachel and Chris on Twitch every Tuesday from 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. as they share a discussion about their coaching practice and energy leadership
Coach’s Corner
Catch Rachel and Chris on Twitch every Tuesday from 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. as they share a discussion about their coaching practice and energy leadership
