We understand the stress we feel during family gatherings to seek joy, read to children, and ask engaging questions.
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Hi there,
I’m writing to you from an Airbnb in Carlsbad, where I’m gathering with my partner’s family for the Thanksgiving holiday. No one in the family lives here, and over the years, we have created a tradition of meeting in a third, neutral city and simply ordering in. This tradition works for us, but we didn’t get here without some trial and error.
As I write you, the kids are enjoying breakfast, and I am taking some space for myself. I am excited to spend time with everyone and know myself well enough to know that if I don’t have some quiet and downtime, I won’t make it through the day.
This month’s blog article explores what makes family gatherings so stressful and offers some tips on making them more enjoyable. If you plan on spending time with your family this holiday season, I hope it can help.
For those seeking support on this topic or anything else, please reach out to us. You can contact us via email at info@takeroottherapy.com or by phone/text at (323) 388-5578.
Warmly,
Saba Harouni Lurie (she/her/hers)
On The Blog
What Can Make The Holidays Joyful?: How To Navigate Family Relationships Over the Holidays So You’re Not Just Powering Through
Over the summer, I got to join my mother and our extended family for a family reunion. It was the first time in a long time that I was with my parents, brother (and his family), cousins, etc., and my partner and children in tow, too. I had approached the trip with both excitement and trepidation…
How to Help
List for Holiday Volunteer Events
Starting in October and running through December, we’ve built this page to be your easy GO-TO for getting yourself, family, and friends into the Holiday giving spirit!
Year-round, and especially during the holidays, nonprofits all over L.A. come to us to connect with volunteers like you!
So, bookmark this page and check back to see what new events get added. Be the first to get into the giving spirit by helping a worthy cause and deserving Angelenos!
WHEN:
Various Dates
WHERE:
Various Locations
Read Aloud to Children Each Month
Reading to Kids is a grassroots organization dedicated to inspiring underserved children with the love of reading, thereby enriching their lives and opportunities for future success.
What to Expect:
- Reading to Kids organizes monthly reading clubs on the second Saturday of every month at eight downtown Los Angeles elementary schools. The reading clubs run from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
- Teachers at the elementary school provide supervision and guidance throughout the morning.
- Pairs of volunteer readers read aloud to small groups of students from the elementary school (typically between 4 and 6 children per group) in a fun environment that includes creating crafts.
- Reading to Kids supplies all of the books and craft supplies, and teachers at the elementary schools provide supervision and guidance throughout the morning.
WHEN:
Saturday, December 14
9 AM – 12 PM
WHERE:
Los Angeles, CA, 90065
Sign up here for location details
Community Events
Weekend Workshops at Arlington Garden
Arlington Garden is a climate-appropriate, habitat garden offering learning, inspiration, and enjoyment for all. We use only regenerative gardening techniques, which means that we harness natural processes to care for the garden. Weekend Workshop participants will acquire knowledge and skills related to regenerative gardening and learn about the natural world!
Weekend Workshops is the weekend program at Arlington Garden. Workshops include volunteer projects, speaker or panel events, and small tutorials focused on topics related to our mission, regenerative gardening, and the cultural heritage of gardening.
Volunteer Projects: Volunteers work on longer-term garden projects while learning regenerative gardening and climate-appropriate landscaping.
Roots and Regeneration: Our free or low-cost guest-speaker series focused on land stewardship, urban ecology, and native ecosystems.
Tours and Tutorials: Outdoor classes and events devoted to special topics.
No prior experience is necessary for volunteer projects, but space is limited, and you are strongly encouraged to sign up for free in advance. Please bring water (there is a water bottle refill station but no drinking fountain), weather appropriate clothing, sunscreen, and gloves.
WHEN:
Saturday, December 14
9 AM – 12 PM
WHERE:
Arlington Garden in Pasadena
275 Arlington Dr, Pasadena, CA 91105
What Water Wants; Audio Tour
During twin crises of storm floods and droughts, how can Angelenos reimagine our relationship with water? Clockshop and Los Angeles-based artist Rosten Woo consider this in What Water Wants, a temporary art commission on the Los Angeles River. Woo activates a section of the Glendale Narrows channel in Elysian Valley to situate visitors within the hydrological networks of the greater Los Angeles Basin, one of the city’s most misunderstood and complex infrastructural systems. In a 30-minute experience, the audio tour moves between a guided meditation and speculative disaster horror, sonically transporting listeners across geographic time and space to experience water’s flows, speeds, and movements across the basin.
Join us for What Water Wants, a 30-minute audio tour by artist Rosten Woo.
The tours will begin promptly at 3:15 PM, 3:50 PM, and 4:30 PM for up to 40 participants per tour. All attendees will be provided over-the-ear headsets to experience What Water Wants. The tour is available in both English and Spanish. Guests will be encouraged to enter the inclined river channel with assistance from Clockshop staff, but it is not required to enjoy the audio tour. Participants can listen to the tour from the level pedestrian path.
If this event is at capacity or you are not able to join this event, you are welcome to visit Lewis MacAdams Park and listen to the tour at anytime. We recommend over-the-ear headphones, visiting at sunset, and bringing a cushion to sit in the river channel for the best experience. Project signage can be found on the light post in front of the park, with a QR code to access the tour.
WHEN:
Saturday, December 7
3 – 5 PM
WHERE:
Lewis MacAdams Riverfront Park
2944 Gleneden Street
Los Angeles, CA 90039
Featured Publications
30 Questions to Engage Someone Beyond ‘How Are You?’
featuring Saba Harouni Lurie
Daylight saving ends Sunday. Why that extra hour of sleep isn’t all it’s cracked up to be
featuring Saba Harouni Lurie
