Hello Rivertide Friends!
My head has been swirling around what to say about the upcoming holiday, a place of mixed feelings for many. And we have TWO amazing fundraising raffles to share with you! But first let’s take care of some basic housekeeping regarding our schedule for the upcoming holiday weekend: We are closed from Thursday November 27 through Saturday November 30. Regular classes resume on Monday December 1.
A day for holding contradiction?…
This Thursday is a significant day for many of us – joyful, fraught or maybe both at once. In my own family, we have multiple approaches and viewpoints about recognizing this national holiday commonly called “Thanksgiving”. As a yoga teacher, i find myself visiting and visited by the idea of gratitude often – and often accompanied by a side-eye from my inner landscape. Of course the word “gratitude” seems impossible to avoid this time of year in particular. And there are, in fact, research-backed benefits to a “gratitude practice”. There is also the possibility that when gratitude is prescriptive, it can make our struggles and pain feel dismissed – leaving us feeling isolated from rather than supported by community. I wonder if there may be a bit more spaciousness in a practice of holding contradiction as we interact with this cultural inflection point. Is there value in opening ourselves to the joy and love and connection we may feel at having the opportunity to spend time with loved ones? Is there also value in the grief of feeling the absences of those we love who are no longer alive, or who we are unable to be with for other reasons? Can we create space for the grief of colonialist oppression, abuse and genocide past and present?
I’m not saying you should… there are likely very good reasons not to carry any of this. You may have enough to carry – i see you. I’m not saying i am capable of any of this either, just that i keep wondering about the potential to grow my capacity. To grow my capacity for pain, for joy, for holding contradiction… and for creating capacity within myself to hold that space for others.
Maybe a resource like this one – 11 Ways to Decolonize Your Thanksgiving and Honor Native Peoples, feels supportive to you in exploring ways to reframe our understanding of this day. Maybe you don’t feel the need to list the things you are grateful for, but rather to show it through an act of sharing with your community – this raffle for our local Greene County community and this raffle for members of our BIPOCLGBTQIA community are great opportunities to do just that. (Please see below for more details about the fundraising recipients and about the awesome gifts you could win!)
Another resource i feel called to share is the person who has been my core teacher regarding gratitude over the past few years. Colorado Poet Laureate Andrea Gibson died on July 14 2025 and has been teaching still (some say even more.) When i find myself caught up in (what seems like) the drudgery of daily life or the sticky gobs of anxiety that get caught somewhere deep in my solar plexus, one teaching that i return to again and again is their poem Tincture.
Whether this Thursday marks Thanksgiving, National Day of Mourning, or none of the above for you, we hope you are well nourished and resourced, and we are glad to be holding space for you on the other side of whatever your own journey entails.
As a wellness center that rejects the premise that wellness is an individual endeavor, Rivertide Center is honored to be donating All Access Rivertide Gift Certificates in multiple community fundraisers that we are excited to share with you.
The Catskill+ community has joined forces to support Community Action of Greene County and the Community Clinic at Yaad Wellness.
Winter Wellness Basket Raffle prize valued over $1100 includes
including a One-month All-access pass to Yoga, Fitness, Kettlebell and Aikido classes at Rivertide Center!
Other amazing community members donating to this cause include @hanysharvest @thejuicebranchcafecatering @joustjuice @tenthhousehealth @atina_foods @catskill_chocolate_co @willascatskill @lavahotyoga @catskillcryo @theavalonlounge @nycitiot @stingingnettleny @tokoprovisions @saladbarcatskill @leftbankciders @bottegabernard.co @creatureofhabithairstudio @sweet_ramas_soaps @mighty.moon.medicine @kaaterskillmarket
Winner drawn Dec. 21st 8pm.
First you can learn more about the prizes being offered here. Then fill out the ticket form and let us know what prizes you’re open to recieving, how many tickets you’re purchasing, and at what price. Send the corresponding amount through venmo and you’re all set! We’ll contact you when we draw winners!
We’re raffling off an array of offering from our community, including artists, movement workers, academics & spiritual healers. All proceeds are going directly to support 3 trans folx for housing, medical and mental health needs, legal fees and food to help folx stay afloat. This raffle is not connected to any non-profit or organization – it’s a mutual aid effort for our community members.
Take a look at the offerings and submit a raffle entry for a chance to win a prize of your choice! (Direct donations also welcome!) Suggested Ticket price: $10
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