A friend recently described the area of Olympos/Çirali on the South Coast of Turkey as a Mystery School. It has drawn me back again and again for over 30 years. I go there to re-charge, rest, see my friends, and to commune with the mountains, the pine trees, and the sparkling turquoise sea. The mysterious ancient city of Olympos sits in a valley on the route of the Lycian Way. Sarcophogi there have been dated at 400BC. Olympos nestles at one end of the 3km turtle beach and the eternal flame burns on the mountain at the other end.
In September 2022, I did a web search to see if there were any Focusers active in Turkey. My mouth fell open as the link revealed a recent Focusing retreat in the Olympos Valley hosted by Marta Fabregat. Not only is Marta a BFA member teacher, she had been my second mentor for my Practitioner training in 2021. I immediately and excitedly emailed her, and said “Marta, next time you offer the retreat I would love to join you.” Fast Forward to ‘The Path of the Sensing Being,’ May 16-19th, 2024
Excitedly I arrived at the ‘Pension Köy Evi’ (The Village House) in Olympos. I was open to things unfolding and didn’t really know what to expect. Marta and her group of 4 four Irish and one Turkish woman arrived back from Focusing in the ancient city of Olympos to greet me. They had been here for four days as part of their Professional/Practitioner training.
Our classroom on day one, ‘the kösk’, is my idea of paradise, combining my love of Turkish culture and Focusing. I was intrigued how this had all come about. Ceren Can (pronounced Jeren Jan) has studied the Skills course with Marta and was here on the Practitioner training. She had courageously invited four friends from Ankara and Istanbul who were new to Focusing. Ceren told me “I was so into personal development for years, like therapy, etc. When I came across Focusing I found it a very comprehensive method, basic yet powerful. Except for my yoga practice which continues, I realised that I didn’t need the other methods that I had learnt.”
We began day one with an attunement which revealed our expectations for the three days to come. Nazli expressed her concerns “is it something spiritual, or hippy?” Marta brings Focusing in a flowing and experiential way which lends itself to the relaxed atmosphere we were in. Her teaching reveals the Focusing process by just being there in the circle and sharing. She takes space to pause as someone shares and will reflect and accompany them on their journey until they reach a natural stopping place. At moments she’d invite more experienced Focusers to share their understanding of the Focusing process for example: ‘Felt Sense’ or Companioning. I experienced this as a glue which formed the community during our days together. Setenay said “There is so much information here about being human; to be heard, to be in the moment and in the body, and at the same time not being structured.”
In this land of Rumi, The Turkish women not only spoke excellent English but were able to express their feelings in beautiful and poetic metaphor “It’s like a small flower has been planted in my body and I hope it will grow” (Setenay).
In a country that values philosophy – Sevde, a Philosophy PhD student says that “when working with concept and argumentation there is usually not much room for sensation. Here I have the ability to communicate in a non-conceptual way and to be understood.”
As we strolled in the May sunshine through the ancient valley of Olympos we were literally walking the path of the sensing being. I am not alone in feeling how the people from ancient civilizations walked the brown earth and marble paths, stroking ancient limestone blocks and inhaling the intoxicating scent of the bay and pine trees. As the valley unfolds we see the jewel of the Mediterranean inviting us in, those who Focused in the water experienced a womb like holding.
Our group settled on Olympos beach, overlooked by the magnificent 2650m Tahtali Mountain. I feel that her vast maternal presence is guardian to this magical valley. Like the turtles that lay here, we nestled into the sand and inevitably a conversation around Focusing ensued. It seemed like our Turkish friends were experiencing the alchemy of Focusing. Questions arose like “What if my stuff is too much for the companion to handle?” These were gateways to teaching moments and deep discussion.
Our Turkish friends threw themselves into the experience, as our time together drew to a close, this is what they shared:
Nazli: “It has given me a tool to handle my feelings, to be myself in a non-scary way.”
Sevde: “I felt a sense of mutual recognition, a way of welcoming and being welcomed”
Setenay: “It’s an unforgettable and precious feeling.”
Didem: “Being gentle with yourself is a trendy topic but I don’t get it. I feel that everyone is improving but I’m not. Because I’m neurodivergent, I usually have to catch up. This is my way (Focusing) it is so powerful it showed me how to understand”
So what might the future of Focusing in Turkey be?
I spoke to Ceren who works for a Humanitarian Aid Organisation: “Working for the last few years with Syrian refugees, I’m always figuring out the best way to work with disadvantaged people and I got fatigued. After I learned Focusing I realised that I didn’t need to be a therapist, or offer intervention or advice”. As Gendlin said “If we had to be smart, or good, or mature, or wise, then we would probably be in trouble. Mirroring Gendlin’s words she said “just being present as a living being is enough.”
Ceren continued “This retreat of 11 people was intimate so that we all had the space to share individual experiences of our Focusing processes. It was a safe space where we felt really heard”
As she evolves as a Focusing ProfessionaI, I asked her how she dreams the future of Focusing in Turkey.
“As we returned home, this way of being has rippled out into our friendship group, it feels like we have found another way now of being present”.
She feels that Focusing is something that would be very useful in the aid organisations “My dream is to expand the training not only within humanitarian aid organizations but also to those working with disadvantaged people.
For myself I feel filled up and happy and super excited that, from a simple web search, my Focusing network of friends in Turkey will grow.
References
- Gendlin: ‘The Primacy of Human Presence’ https://focusing.org/gendlin/docs/gol_2110.html