Wellness Monday: Circus of the Heart and Its Funny Now with Rev. Barbara Ann Michaels

Rev. Barbara Ann Michaels, Jester of the Peace wants to laugh with you about your life. She promises you can “Find the Funny, Find the Freedom.” Join us, as the interfaith minister, performance artist, and wellness leader invites participants to learn firsthand why humor is sanity and the harbinger of healing. Circus of the Heart: #ItsFunnyNow encourages us all to investigate our lives to find stories that were hard to experience when they were happening, yet, over time, have become funny to us, in part, today. Participants will practice identifying and telling their own stories that have found humor – and learn how and why to be altruistic with these tales. Come discover how getting to that first laugh together creates the space for healing to emerge. This special Wellness Monday is a part of our exhibition programming for Are You Joking? Women and Humor.

Both laughter and tears come from the same place; laughter is a cathartic release of emotion that reconnects us with ourselves and each other. The art of healing through humor rests in our ability to laugh with our circumstances rather than at them. Join us as we embrace the importance of that first laugh after a hard event, and how we can ask ourselves, “Who can we help today get to their first laugh?”

Led by an expert from our healing or wellness space, Wellness Mondays harnesses the wealth of experience and expertise of our local area, which is rich in wellness leaders, and offers it back to the community. This series celebrates and explores one’s creative self, centering on personal wellness in mind, body, and spirit.

Aligned with our existing programs Insight Sunday and Knowledge Friday, which provide insight into the creative processes of artists and the lives of community leaders, respectively, Wellness Mondays encourages attendees to position themselves as dynamic conduits of energy and creativity.