The Lioness Tale Circle

This circle will be a gathering of people from many walks of life who hold an intention to express from the deepest knowing of their essence. Suitable as training for therapists, spiritual leaders, practitioners, and chaplains who will also find worth in this opportunity. The heart of this program is about connecting with our own spiritual essence, regardless of faith or belief system.

With various forms of expressive arts, we will become more capable of communicating from our strongest and most vulnerable places inside and learn tools to support our clients and/or community members to also access a deeper place of self-knowing and self-expression.

We hope to share the wisdom that came from working with women serving life sentences in prison and who have participated in the Lioness Tale Prison Project and will include guest speakers who have participated in, and taught the program inside.

This workshop is an opportunity for LMFTs, LCSWs, and LPCCs to earn 12 CEUs while expanding their knowledge of expressive arts therapy modalities and gaining insight into working with women in prison.

The workshop will also serve as a volunteer training program for the Lioness Tale Prison Project for those who are considering joining our team. It may also serve as a vehicle for anyone wanting to dive into a greater awareness of their essence and give voice to their irrevocable freedom.

Circle Three – Unlocking the Gate – The Enneagram as the Key

“There’s a part of every living thing that wants to become itself, the tadpole into the frog, the chrysalis into the butterfly, a damaged human being into a whole one. That is spirituality.” ELLEN BASS (Enneagram Resources Series. The Wisdom of the Enneagram . Kindle Edition.)

The theory of the Enneagram is not merely a bridge between the two worlds but a thorough and applicable integration of spirituality and psychology. All too often in the western approach to mental health and wellness, we find a chasm between psychology and spirituality.

The Enneagram symbol is found in ancient texts of both eastern and western spiritual traditions. And more recently, has proven to provide a precise map of the underpinnings of our greatest strengths and deepest neuroses. I (Russell) have not found a more accurate description of the human experience than through my studying of the Enneagram and I hope to share those findings with you.

Along with stories from the Lioness Tale Prison Project about how the use of the Enneagram has contributed to the growth and development of women facing long term prison sentences, we intend to provide you with useful tools for gaining insight into the figurative prisons you and your clients find themselves in; and how to free yourselves from them.

The Executive Director and Co-founder of Skyline Harvest, a California 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization, Diane Pendola is the founder of the Lioness Tale Prison Project and the author of The Lioness Tale, upon which the program is based.

The intention of The Lioness Tale Prison Project is to awaken the inner freedom of women serving long term to life sentences, giving purpose to their lives, and lighting up the prison where they live from the inside out.

Diane has been a contemplative presence in county jails and prisons since 1986 when she completed her Masters degree in theology. In her graduate studies she was deeply influenced by feminist and liberation theologies, with their emphasis on giving voice to the voiceless and bringing the disenfranchised in from the margins to the very center of authentic life. She has worked among incarcerated women for over 30 years.

Diane has sought her own transformation through prayer and meditation, Gestalt Awareness Practice and the Enneagram, all of which she teaches and integrates in her life and work.

Diane knows all things are possible through the Love that resides at the center of our expanding universe and at the center of our human hearts.

Born in Australia, Nikki Fryn, considers herself a perennial student of human nature, a trait she has found invaluable in her coaching and consulting work with businesses.

Nikki participated in the business world for many years, until discovering an inclination for computers and programming systems, when she began consulting in systems design, and taking extended breaks to live in Japan, Tonga, and New Zealand for months or years at a time.

Eventually missing deep joy in her life, in late 2000 Nikki decided to fire her consulting clients, began learning to fly, taking singing lessons, and took a deep dive into the world of behavioral sciences exploring meditation, group process, hypnosis, and more.

Nikki completed life coach training in 2001, and began a practice. Watching clients transform and seeing them fulfill lifelong dreams, she soon realized she was somehow a spectator in her life.

In 2003 Nikki started to travel the world, but soon discovered a new life of work and personal development with gifted Gestalt practice teachers such as Christine Price and Dorothy Charles at Esalen Institute, in Big Sur, California. Staying for more than 2 years, she learned what it takes to create a fulfilling life for herself.

Since joining the Lioness Tale Prison Project Nikki has discovered ways to give back what has been shared by her teachers, and guides. Working with the women inside has helped her to acknowledge her own inner prison, and understand incarceration can be a state of mind rather than a state of being. Nikki considers the opportunity to work with women in prison a gift and a privilege, and has found courageous teachers and mentors hidden within prison walls.