Sandtray experiences at The Women’s Self-Discovery Center can happen in two ways.

One way is to have an experience in an Individual Session. Individual sessions are an hour and a half. This begins with a meditation that invites the builder of the sandtray to set an intention for the session. After the guided meditation the builder begins by choosing objects she wants to incorporate in her world. Water can also be used to build or sculpt the sand. After objects are chosen the builder begins to create her world. Words during this period are optional. Often the world is built in silence and after the building has ceased there is a time of witnessing the world, by the builder and the facilitator.

Here is where the world uncovers itself to the builder, through careful exploration of the many symbols and objects. A dialogue may ensue between the builder and the facilitator that helps to discover what lies within this world unique to this builder.

No two worlds are alike and the facilitator documents the session from beginning to end and includes photo documentation for the builder to take home to use for further exploration and to keep a record of their process.

The session ends with another brief meditation.

The second way is to have a group experience. Specific groups are explained in detail in flyers provided at the center. In general, a group experience begins with a guided meditation that focuses on the intention of that particular group. Then the group is instructed to choose an object or objects to which they are drawn from the sandtray collection. Process work or exploration is done around the sharing of these objects and their individual meaning to the chooser. A group sandtray may be part of the experience but is not always used. Connection to oneself and to one another is fostered through these experiences.

The collection of miniatures has taken over ten years to create and is still growing! The intention of the collection is to be full of rich symbols that represent everything to which our spirits are drawn… in this world and beyond. People come to this work and begin searching for just the right tree… or just the right heart… and the intention of the facilitator is to have enough choices that the person would be able to find some object that would “work”. An attempt to represent all religions, races of people, ages of people, stages of life, animals on land and in the sea, fantasy creatures, forms of transportation, housing and structures, and natural objects is made. The idea is to be able to facilitate the building of whatever world may lie within someone that does not have words… yet.

With the help of these objects, worlds can be born and we can take a peek into the emotional, symbolic worlds we all carry around everyday, all of our lives!

Objects vary in sizes and some miniatures are over a foot tall, while others are as small as a ladybug. The amount of information an object can hold does not correlate to its size! You’d be surprised!

So if you are curious, and want to give a sandtray experience a try, I invite you to come to The Women’s Self-Discovery Center and discover first hand what worlds await you!

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