hey there,
I'm Olivia
I've always been a collector.
Not of things, exactly — but of disparate ideas, questions, and experiences intuitively felt connected somehow. Theology and art and food and psychology and justice and creativity and hosting.
The inside of my brain has always looked a little like a squirrel's nest in fall — full of seemingly random treasures, accumulated with great enthusiasm and a deep trust that each piece is necessary for the whole.
What I didn't know for a long time was that I was chiseling…
here at the gathering school, we help burnt out modern adults “learn the art of aliveness”. But what does that actually mean?
our framework…
for us, aliveness consists of four essential pillars:
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Embodied Living – Engaging our five senses fully—tasting, touching, seeing, hearing, feeling our way through life rather than simply thinking our way through it.
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Curiosity Without Outcome –
Reconnecting to childlike wonder and creative risk-taking—doing things for the joy of doing them, not for what they produce. -
Emotional Fluency - Letting our emotions move through us as they arise, learning what they're teaching us rather than denying or performing them.
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Authentic Belonging - Reconnecting to ourselves, other humans, and the natural world—understanding our interconnectedness and learning to nurture it.
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You might be
thinking...
”amidst a world
on fire, what's
the point of
presence, play,
feeling, or
connection?”
BUT WE SAY…
“THEY ARE THE
WHOLE POINT,
MY LOVE.”
Aliveness isn't a luxury we get to enjoy after we've solved all of our problems.
at the gathering school, we’re learning to hold both truths: aliveness is an end in itself and the source from which everything else flows. It’s circular, not linear.
it’s what we’re solving for.
reclaiming presence, play, feeling, and connection, not only helps us become better advocates, teachers, parents, and citizens—it makes us more fully human. from that aliveness, we have something real to give.
So we're not teaching these practices to make you more “useful.” We're teaching them because being human—fully, deeply human—is the whole point. Everything else radiates from there.
Ready to feel alive again?
Come make something with us.
