A Soul Excursion for Couples
A three-day transformational retreat in the sacred space of Laughing Waters, Blue Ridge Mountains — where couples step out of time and into a new way of being together.
John & Phyllis Simonetta Present
A welcome message from John and Phyllis
A Springboard for Something New
We hold sacred space where couples step out of time — into a living transmission, co-created and intuitively guided by Spirit.
Here, something new becomes possible through the shared heart connection: a new way of expressing and being in flow together, deepening the unity consciousness.
Is this for you?
This excursion is for couples
on the edge of discovery…
You love each other and sense there is more — a deeper current, a new expression waiting to move between you.
You are spiritually open and ready for an experience that is guided by Spirit.
How We Play to Deepen
The Sacred Space
We create a safe retreat space to express and be vulnerable through mutual respect and sovereignty recognition. The power of the group, the circle, is greater than the sum of parts. We gently play together, using the power of joy, moving to trust.
Ancestral Healing & Free Expression
Many of the patterns between us are not ours alone — they are inherited. This work names those patterns with love, honors what they carried, and releases us into the free expression that was always our birthright.
Somatic Movement & Dance
The body holds what the mind cannot process. Through free-form somatic dance, we move through release and into reconnection — not through effort, but through play, flow, and the body's own deep knowing.
Connecting to Nature & the Land
The creek, the mountains, the ancient stones of Laughing Waters — the land itself is a co-facilitator and sacred space. In this retreat we step out of time and into the living intelligence of the natural world.
The Living Transmission of Partnership
John and Phyllis do not teach about conscious partnership. They embody it. The way they hold space together — in the room, in the field, in the seen and unseen — is itself the teaching. Holding space for you to find your brand of joy.
We awaken the union that is part of the shared heart consciousness
You have been called forth to remember
The deep connection with each other, and the shared heart consciousness
Full expression in the balance of masculine and feminine
Joy through play
Your Guides
Two people who kept saying yes
John and Phyllis Simonetta didn't arrive at their calling quickly or easily. They navigated marriage, parenting, anxiety, depression, awakening, financial fear, career changes and job loss, and a guided move to Asheville — and kept choosing the soul's call through every one of those thresholds. They are here because they lived it.
John and Phyllis had many opportunities to trust, not completely sure 100% of the time. Once they both understood there was a bigger picture, they learned to trust, and it became easier. Their story is about trust and holding space for each other, not perfect, continuing their work together. Ultimately they arrived at “trustfall” or a trusting of each other completely, knowing that everything is as it is meant to be, in divine orchestration. This journey could not have been possible without an opening to some awareness of all that is.
Phyllis and John intuitively guide with spirit, in joy. They follow divine guidance with invitations and experiences to open hearts and expand capacity, opening to possibilities for what could be. They offer an energetic component to deepen what the soul already knows. The retreat is an energetic experience to open, expand, and shift to a higher vibration of joy through play.
Phyllis Simonetta
Channeler · Healer · Guide
Phyllis channels Spirit directly, speaking light language and accessing guidance that shapes every retreat in real time. Her somatic dance facilitation, Lightning, ancestral healing, and Reiki mastery create a complete energetic field of transformation.
Reiki Master Teacher
Lightning Practitioner — ancestral trauma healing
Channeler and light language speaker
Somatic dance facilitator
Psychology degree, Masters in Early Childhood Education
John Simonetta
Guide · Practitioner · Cocreator
John brings thirty years of lived experience — as a CFO, a father, and a man who found his spiritual path through life’s trials and kept walking. His grounded presence, connection to the land, and spiritual practice create the steady container within which deep transformation becomes possible.
Reiki Master
EFT / Tapping Practitioner
Kripalu-trained Mindful Outdoor Guide
A Course in Miracles Practitioner
30 years corporate finance, CFO
What you carry home
Not tools.
Soul knowledge.
The body's wisdom
Somatic knowing that you can return to — the body as compass, movement as medicine, play as a path home.
Deepened unity consciousness
A living, felt connection to Spirit, to each other, and to the greater field in which your relationship exists.
A soul community
Couples who have shared something real — a circle whose resonance continues well beyond the weekend.
Freedom from inherited patterns
Ancestral wounds released with love and ceremony — patterns that were never yours to carry, finally set down.
A new current between you
A new way of expressing and moving forward together — not a return to what was, but something genuinely new.
The Place
Laughing Waters
Gerton, NC
"Laughing Waters holds a physical and energetic beauty that is hard to describe. There is such potency in the land and water. The water's song is always available — the evergreen comfort of moss and rhododendron surrounds. One seems to surrender with ease into retreat, grounded by cool rocks underfoot and cleansing water on skin."
Setting
900 protected acres in Hickory Nut Gorge, beside cascading waterfalls on Hickory Nut Creek
Location
Gerton, NC — 25 minutes southeast of Asheville in the Blue Ridge Mountains
The Land
Historic lodge, private grounds, waterfalls, orchard, forest trails, stone ruins, restored gristmill
Spirit
An eco-community in harmony with the land — stewarded with reverence and deep care for generations
Retreat details
Full three-day retreat
Investment (per couple): $1,950
Dates: Friday Aug 21 - Sunday Aug 23, 2026
Meals and lodging included
Please note, all meals are plant-based
One private space (stand-alone building) available for additional $200
Pre-retreat preparation call with John & Phyllis
Spirit-guided customization for your specific group
Post-retreat integration call (3–4 weeks after)
Space limited to five couples
Next retreat dates coming soon!
A gentle note - our couples are intended for straight couples, as that is our experience.
A message to the men from John