Earth Connection Spirit
Artist Residency at OM Sanctuary
Currently, Rebekah Joy is the Artist in Resident and OM Sanctuary, a holistic, nature-based retreat center in Asheville, NC. For her project, she is launching her book Meditation for Transformation Journal: Tools to Start a Daily Practice and Stick With It! and working on writing a full length meditation guide, Meditation for Transformation: A Six-Week Guide to Establishing a Daily Practice, set to be published early 2026.
To find out more about her recent publication, Meditation for Transformation Journal: Tools to Start a Daily Practice and Stick With It! click here.
To hear more about what it means to be an artist in residence and to read about her experience below.
To support future creatives, consider donating to OM Sanctuary on their website, or becoming an AIR sponsor.
Personal Testimonial
I was accepted into the Artist in Residence program at OM Sanctuary, a holistic and nature-based retreat center in NC, to focus on writing and publishing my book Meditation for Transformation: A Six-Week Guide to Establishing a Daily Practice. I feel a deep connection to the mission and vision of OM Sanctuary, and I knew it would be the perfect place to dive deep into the completion of the project.
My start date was planned for early October 2024. When Hurricane Helene hit just a few days before that, it was unclear if and how I would be able to participate. Without a safe place in Asheville to come back to, I ended up being displaced in Colorado for several weeks. Once the power and water were restored to the main facilities and trees were cleared weeks later, CEO Shelli Stanback invited me on-site to support relief efforts for the community. Honored to have a purpose that aided in Asheville’s recovery, I was eager to start.
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​At the end of October 2024, I dove right into planning recovery and relief efforts and organized a Weekend Wellness Recovery and Relief Market. This event supported members of the community in accessing tools to regulate their nervous systems, gather together in solidarity, honor and give voice to what was lost, be held in their grief, and also stock up on much-needed supplies. With the support of OM Sanctuary staff and 12 community volunteers, we had over 180 people on-site.
In December, my time and energy were focused on coordinating Healers Market, as well as the Winter Solstice Candle Light Meditation. Both gatherings were well attended and deeply valued by the community. In January and February, I focused my energy on coordinating the Unsung Hero Project as a collaborative offering with OM Sanctuary. This project was community-driven and honored those who gave so much to rebuild after Hurricane Helene.
It wasn’t until early February that I finally opened my laptop to revisit the book. After Helene, it took me almost four months to regulate myself and arrive in a mental space where I could tap into the creative flow. Helene asked all of us to put personal plans aside and focus on a bigger vision. My creative project was one of those.
By February, however, it became clear to me that the Meditation guide was a large part of that bigger vision. Meditation is a tool that allows us to find stillness and calm, to be present for what arises, and supports relieving stress and anxiety in our physical bodies. Everyone was tapped out, overgiving, and depleted.
It was time to step out of survival mode and bring focus back to our well-being. I knew that my mediation guide could help powerfully facilitate this process. The guide was still at least nine months from being finished, yet I felt the resource was needed sooner. So, I chose to switch gears and write a consolidated version of the book and release it as a journal to support people now. And so I began developing Meditation for Transformation Journal: Tools to Start a Daily Practice and Stick With It! This Journal was launched in August 2025.
Creating this resource in such a short timeframe would not have been possible without the creative space and refuge offered through OM Sanctuary and the Artist in Residence Program. Diving into this project, I was able to focus primarily on writing and publishing the Journal, as if it were a full-time job.
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Being supported by Om Sanctuary and held by the land here, inspiration flows through me. I can wake up early, energized and excited to get started. I feel a spaciousness that allows me to fully commit to the project, which wouldn’t be possible outside of the container of this residency.
Being here permits me to commit to this higher calling fully. It is such a life-altering opportunity, one that I do not take for granted, not even for a moment. In many ways, OM Sanctuary has been a lifeline for me through the aftermath of Helene, and I know that without their incredible faith and trust in me, this book would not have been born at the time it was most needed.
I am so grateful for the opportunity to be here, to work alongside a team that gives their all, and for OM Sanctuary’s vision to support not only creatives but also our community’s overall well-being.
To support future creatives and their mission, consider donating to OM Sanctuary on their website or becoming an artist sponsor.
Rebekah Joy
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© 2024 Rebekah Lührs