Facilitating a Retreat

with Jennifer Morgan’s Universe Story Trilogy

by Tricia McMahon

 

Here are my notes for how I used Jennifer Morgan’s Universe Story Trilogy for children of ALL ages in a retreat.  The titles are: Born with a Bang (revised edition), From Lava to Life and Mammals Who Morph.   Tricia McMahon

 

Advent Prep/Universe Story Retreat in MN. November 2025 Some notes:

Created an edited version of the Trilogy to capture key moments from each book due to time available for the retreat.

Wanted to make it as experiential as possible—looked for moments where participants could actually see, touch, feel what’s going on in the story; could remember similar experiences in their own lives.

“It’s who we ARE!” ended up being a recurring anthem!!! As well as afÕrmation that we come by our courage, our ability to handle chaos, be creative, etc HONESTLY. It’s who we ARE from 14 billion years and ongoing!

Invitation: “As hear Universe share our cosmic story, I invite you to be aware of YOUR OWN SELF—Universe that has been and is emerging in you. Not in an egotistical—it’s all about us humans kind of way—rather, with an openness from the inside out; any resonance of your being within the details as you partake of our shared story.

Book One: p.23 “Was I proud making hydrogen atoms—you bet I was. Every gulp of water that slides down your throat is made of hydrogen that was created by me billions of years ago. Everyone takes a sip aware of this now!

p.28 “Your Mother Star mixed together….” Have you ever gazed at the stars? What thoughts, feelings arose? Maybe you feel something now in remembering that moment and knowing you are part of it…

We know how to move with chaos, wonder, confusion, courage etc from our ancestors over all these billions of years to dared the same. We come by it naturally! It’s who we are!

Reflection Questions: “…maybe you have learned some of these same things too.”

Small group sharing, then large group.

Book Two

P11 Even now, invisible bacteria are the living nuts and bolts of all life. Millions are in every breath you take. Billions are in every handful of soil….

Experiential: Inhale…exhale…inhale…exhale…

Experiential: Bowl of soil was passed around for participants to touch if they want. (touching soil now, rather than when sharing about earth, seemed it might be new to them and bit more challenging—‘touching bacteria’!)

Wood, Plants, Fruit —I looked for any/all opportunities to embody what was being learned from Universe telling us our story

p19 “Two battling bacteria tried to turn each other into liquid lunch. Instead, they merged into a new earthling…”

Experiences in our lives of battles that morphed into something unexpected..

P32 “Plants and animals struck a deal…”

Have you ever struck a deal about something/with someone???? You and I weren’t the Õrst to do that….therefore it’s who we ARE!

P39 “But Earth’s imagination wouldn’t quit. A lot more is still to come.”

Jennifer—that word “imagination” seemed to be the scariest word of the whole retreat as I asked them their thoughts about imagination in our lives. No comments at all. Which tells me I want and need to integrate that wonderful element MUCH MORE and EARLIER in future retreats/workshops/talks!!!

Book Three

P39 “Follow your dreams my dear Earthlings. They are my dreams too.”

Experiential: Did something YOU long for come to mind as you heard Universe say “follow your dreams”?Let’s take a few minutes to write down 1-2 things that you long for yourself, world…

Reflection Questions: small group sharing

After retreat concluded, I noticed several participants standing at our center altar where several glasses of water remained. They were sipping and cheering hydrogen, oxygen, each other! Fabulous!!

Jennifer,
You have magically articulated universe that we are from the very beginning, inviting us to know and own immense possibilities of our ever-evolving lives because it’s who we ARE!

Combining that with Chardin, Swimme, Delio, etc as well as poetry, song, dance to further inspire and integrate our lives….wow. I can’t imagine being human on this earth and not knowing these truths and then also being engage in exploring it with others!

Love,

cosmic earthling triciaj