Our event starts at 11 am on the 1st floor of the Koffler House (569 Spadina Avenue). Social 10:45am – 11:00am.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS WEEK WE WILL BE MEETING IN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT LOCATION – THE SAME BUILDING, KOFFLER HOUSE 569 SPADINA AVE., BUT ON THE 1ST FLOOR ROOM KP113.
Emotions are a powerful determining factor in our lives. In the 2015 Pixar movie Inside Out, for example, five personifications of our basic emotions (Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, and Anger) were depicted as influencing us via a control console in our mind’s Headquarters. We depend on our emotions to fuel and spur us into action. Our emotions are the source of our energy – the psychological energy and state of mind we need to live our lives. Sometimes the right/logical course of action may be clear, but unless we feel the passion to jump into action to follow that course, nothing happens. We may say our heart is not in it.
But where do our emotions come from? How much control do we have in shaping and channelling them? Can we trust our emotions? Do our emotions reflect a deep wisdom of our subconscious mind – the end product of millions of years of evolution? Or are our emotions largely/partly obsolete remnants of our evolutionary history? How can we distinguish between when to harness and take direction from our emotions and when to manage, quiet and dissipate them away?
For example, is it anger or hanger – easily remedied by some food in our system? Are people really being hurtful/annoying or is it a hormonal imbalance/surge we are feeling? How seriously should we take our emotions? Can we trust our emotions as a reliable alert system, appropriately responsive to our environment?
Emotions can be empowering but sometimes also debilitating. Emotions like joy and passion can put you in the proper mind space to get a lot of productive work done. On the other hand, emotions like sadness and depression can be devastating and make it impossible to get out of bed. One of the morals of the movie Inside Out was that all our emotions should be respected and have some useful purpose. To what extent is this true? Should we ever allow ourselves to indulge in some of our unpleasant emotions such as sadness, anger, jealousy, or disgust/hate?
What are some of the models/theories of emotion that could help us frame and understand our emotions?
Our featured speaker, Laval Martin, will share some of his insights and lead us in a discussion on this topic. Laval Martin is a corporate trainer on topics such as resilience, conflict resolution, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness (lavalmartinconsulting.com). Holding a Master of Social Work degree, he also provides psychotherapy and relationship therapy (wisemindtoronto.com). Additionally, Laval has practiced various martial arts and self-defence systems since 2001, with a focus on avoiding and de-escalating conflict. He is a full-instructor of Senshido and also holds an instructor certification with Safe International. Laval has been hosting a monthly Beer and Philosophy Night for over five years.
Our guest musicians will be Lunar Bloom (https://www.lunarbloomband.com/). Lunar Bloom is an all-female indie-folk trio with voices that weave seamlessly in and out of harmony. The three ‘blooms’ are long time friends, and have been collaborating together as music makers for 2 years. Pulling inspiration from other artists, they create a sound that has the quirkiness of Regina Spektor, the sweet innocence of Dala, and the witchy appeal of Florence and the Machine. Their music features dynamic range and honest story telling.
You can RSVP for this on our Meetup page at:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/pzdxgryzqbcb/