Mojo Monday ~ Listening to Your Heart

Listen_to_Your_Heart

Listening.

This is my focus this month.  

I am trying to quiet my mind that is known to race, make lists, check off to-do lists, focus on schedules and spiral or spin on a variety of subjects.

I am also attempting to get clearer on what makes my heart sing, what also brings me peace, happiness, contentment and joy.  

On May 2nd my listening to what speaks to me had me paying close attention to a post by Mary Anne Radmacher, a writer and artist I have long admired and found inspirational.  Here is what she shared on her Facebook page.

“What do you think of those ‘training opportunities’ that assure they will double, or triple your business activity? Hmmm. Just got a note from Twitter that they want to help me grow my business. So kind. A live stream webinar of experts teaching me how to optimize my twitter feed. Do I want to grow my business? Yes. Yes, I do. Do I want to grow my business applying a formula and rationale that is being taught to and applied by tens of thousands of people? I don’t think I do. When I offer something I’ve made, I tell about it. I show you. If I’m excited or touched or impacted, I tell you that, too. Sometimes I remember to link to twitter. Sometimes I don’t. But at least people know when I show up on social media it’s because I want to be there. I think formulas are great – and they are formulas because they work. That said, I think I’ll stick to my plod-along ” marketing formula.” What is that? Create fresh + meaningful message + sharing + showing = a business that feels good to me.”

This spoke to me when I read it.  I love how her focus is on creating fresh and meaningful messages, sharing and showing, and definitely connecting with other people.  This speaks to me as I explore my own dreams and goals.  I tucked this into my bag of inspirational messages for the month.

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This is also the month for the chapter called “Listening Woman” in The 13 Original Clan Mothers, by Jamie Sams.  Here is how the chapter begins:

Echoes of the Ancestors
Ride the Winds of Change,
Voices of the Creatures
Calling out my name.
Singing spirits on the breeze,
The crashing of waves to shore,
The poundings of Earth Mother’s heart
Teach me what to listen for.
In stillness, before dusk and dawn,
Hidden messages are set free.
Like the chants of my people,
Their rhythms speak to me.
My ears can hear this music,
And my heart can understand.
Clan Mother of Tiyoweh,
I am yours to command.
I listen for your whispers
On a course you will chart,
Searching for the still voice
That lives within my heart.

 

Quotation-Thor-Heyerdahl-live-people-university-listening-nature-Meetville-Quotes-76825 

One of my deep loves is to listen to music.  I love to really hear the lyrics and to seek out inspirational messages.  Here are two new songs that have my heart listening.  The first is called The Heart by a band called Needtobreathe.  The second is the song Love Me by Katy Perry.

Here is the official music video for the song The Heart by Needtobreathe

The Heart
Lyrics by Needtobreathe

Ain’t no gift like the present tense
Ain’t no love like an old romance
Got’sta make hay when the sun is shinin’
Can’t waste time when it comes time to dance

Slammin’ this door with a heavy hand
signin’ this line like a deed to land
keeping in touch with the windows down
Dreading this night since the rain hit the ground

[Chorus]
Long live the heart
Long live the soul
That knows what it wants
That piece you can find
That part is the whole
It never lets go

Always tryin to be the one outlaw
Goes where he wants never does get caught
Pushing this line like the Lord ain’t comin’
Building this house like they’re scared of something else

[Pre Chorus]
Be my winter in this living hell
Be my one last dying wishing well
oh well

[Chorus]
Long live the heart
Long live the soul
That knows what it wants
That piece you can find
That part is the whole
It never lets go

[Bridge]
Got’sta make hay when the sun is shinin
Can’t waste time when it comes time to dance
keeping in touch with the windows down
Dreading this night since the rain hit the ground

[Chorus]
Long live the heart
Long live the soul
That knows what it wants
That piece you can find
That part is the whole
It never lets go

[Chorus]
Long live the heart
Long live the soul
That knows what it wants
No matter how far
How heavy this load
It never lets go

There is no official video for the song Love Me by Katy Perry, but here is a fanmade video that paired the song with a promotional video for Katy Perry’s perfume.  

Love Me
Lyrics by Katy Perry

I lost myself in fear of losing you
I wish I didn’t do, but I did
I lost my own, my own identity
Forgot that you picked me, for me

But now, I don’t negotiate with insecurities
They always seem to get the best of me
I found I had to love myself, the way I want you to

Love me, no more second guessing
No, there’s no more questioning
I’ll be the one defining who I’m gonna be
No concealing feelings, or changing seasonally
I’m gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me

Sometimes I wish my skin was a costume
That I could just unzip, and strip
But who I am is who I’m meant to be
And it’s who you are in love, in love with
So now, I don’t negotiate with insecurities
You’re gonna have to take a back seat
I know I have to love myself, the way I want you to

Love me, no more second guessing
No, there’s no more questioning
I’ll be the one defining who I’m gonna be
No concealing feelings, or changing seasonally
I’m gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me

No more standing in my own way
Let’s get deeper, let’s get closer
No more standing in my own way
(I want you to love me)
No more standing in my own way
Let’s get deeper, let’s get closer
No more standing in my own way
(I want you to love me)

No more second guessing
No, there’s no more questioning
I’ll be the one defining who I’m gonna be
No concealing my feelings, or changing seasonally
I’m gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me

No more second guessing
No, there’s no more questioning
I’ll be the one defining who I’m gonna be
No concealing feelings, or changing seasonally
I’m gonna love myself, the way I want you to love me


Quiet and listen near a little stream

This week (or month) carve out some time to listen.  

What catches your attention when you make it a priority?  

Even when reading what jumps out at you when you listen with your heart?

Seek out some new music.  Listen to a new-to-you band.  What do you hear?

Go outside and soak in the sounds of nature.  How do the sounds make you feel?

When a loved one speaks to you really listen and then also try focusing on listening with your heart. Does anything change when you place a focus on it?

Mojo Monday ~ Cracks In the Universe

espaco

Mother, teach me how to see
The shining lights of stars,
The faces of the Ancestors,
In worlds both near and far.

Show me how to welcome
The visions appearing to me,
Seeing the truth in detail,
Unraveling each mystery.

Walk me through the Dreamtime
Of altered time and space,
That I may share those visions
With every creed and race.

Doorkeeper of all dimensions,
I seek your Medicine ways
Of how to earth my visions,
Seeing truth, inside me, today.

~ Jamie Sams from “Looks Far Woman” chapter
in The 13 Original Clan Mothers

Wings and fins.  They have been appearing in unexpected places lately.  I don’t always pay attention to signs or my muse.  I get caught up in the daily routine and my focus starts to narrow in on work and a busy family calendar schedule, which has me jetting off to play volleyball on Monday nights and shuttling my sweet twin daughters to softball practices and games twice a week.  All of this is after eight hours a day of supporting social workers, families and children at a foster-adoption agency.  On many a evening I just want to kick back and do some Netflix streaming with the hubby, in lieu of checking in with the oracles or my muse.  Yet if I stray to0 far from the creative energy within things also start to feel off kilter.  I know that on a soulful level it is important for me to make time for quiet, for reflection and for pondering.  Listening to my intuition and my creative impulses is also key for me to staying in touch with my soul.  It is through my writing, my art and the courses I take, that I am reminded of the deeper meanings to life and also of a spiritual web that connects us all.

musepostcard

There are several things that I turn to to keep me connected to the muse and spirit.  The first is creating the space for writing and creating, be that painting, collaging or some other form of creative outlet.  Fortunately I have writing commitments that require me to write at least three articles each month.  Those commitments can be a taskmaster at times (monkey on my back so to speak) but there can be a gift in discipline and accountability.  There have been months where the written words have flown easily and sweetly from my mind and heart over to the page.  There have also been weeks and months when I have procrastinated and struggled to get the ideas flowing, the stress growing as deadlines loomed over me.  In the end it comes down to making the time and doing it even when it feels like work.  Even when it is hard I still feel drawn like a moth to the flame, to compose words like music on a page into some form of lyrical story.  I am grateful for the results of showing up, even when I don’t always feel like it.

Painting, collaging and general ol’ creativity is another great love.   That I may go days and weeks without playing in the art room seems mad, but that is the reality from time to time.  If there are extended time frames when I am not playing and creating I now see that this coincides quite regularly with feelings of lethargy, sadness, boredom, general malaise and so on.  Here is where being involved in a journaling class can give me the kick in the ass I need.  Its like my muse has this wicked sense of humor and entices me to sign up for something, even when the practical office manager in me is saying, “But you already have too much to do my dear, how ever can you make the time for this class?  Get real.”  Fortunately the muse is very persuasive and manages to lure my inner artist to retrieve the credit card and sign up while the office manager is busy doing taxes or organizing her files.  It is so worth it too, for I have loved, loved, loved, the several Storywalking courses that I have taken with Jenafer Owen.  The current one began on March 1st and is called Storywalking: A Very Daring Tail.  Click here to read more about the intriguing details and take note that the next course begins April 21st.  These courses have forced me to be more in touch with the muse, my intuition, symbolism, signs and creative visions.   

Mermaid fin

One of the recent activities we were asked to complete in The Daring Tail course involved an Oracle.  If you want to try it out for yourself visit the Oracle here and write down what it has to tell you.  Visit it three times in row, recording each cryptic message.  Then sit with it.  Ponder it.  Look up the true definition of key words.  Be surprised sometimes to learn that words can mean something other than you thought.  After much reflection how have you translated the message of the Oracle?  Let me share my recent communication.

Oracle

It has grown more obvious to me how, when I am closed off and in task master mode, that I can be oblivious to noticing the nuances of spirit.  When I slow down and open myself to creative spirit the influx of synchronistic images or words can be profound.  In January and February I had felt like I needed a break from any new commitments and had abstained from taking any on-line courses.  I was still in the mode of not taking anything new, but at the last minute I signed up for The Daring Tail course, which started on March 1st.  There is a theme regarding mermaids and sea life in this course.  Once I was signed up I had several occasions to note that mermaids and sea life images had been showing up around me for several weeks, but that I had not noticed.  A couple of weeks into the course I also remembered how I had just read the novel The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd only a couple weeks prior.  Even in the prior December Storywalking course I was astonished when flipping back a few journal pages to discover the funky mer-creature I had drawn, as well as my companion animal from a guided meditation, which was none other than a whale who had a very specific message for me: “We are going to plumb the depths…and swim among the stars.”

Plumb the depths

Lastly, one other way this past year that I have seeked out greater vision and communion with spirit, has been by participating in a personal Vision Quest with a spirit guide.  One of the inspirations for the journey is the book The 13 Original Clan Mothers, by Jamie Sams. Each month I am to read the assigned chapter and create my shield.  My shields took the form of prayer flags and that particular vision came to me the first day I spoke with my spirit guide.  There are also additional monthly assignments to complete.  The journey began last June and will come to a conclusion at the end of my 13th month. I will admit that sometimes I have felt like throwing in the towel. Sometimes I have felt like an imposter.  Sometimes I have questioned if I am doing enough and/or doing it right.  Yet I have committed to the journey and have grown to embrace that it is mine and is not to be compared to the journey of another.  This Vision Quest has also pushed me to reside in a space of greater spiritual reflection.  

Storyteller ~ my first prayer flag from June 2013.
Storyteller ~ my first prayer flag from June 2013.

What are some ways that you stay connected to source?

Do you have regular creative practices that
feed your soul and keep you inspired?

Have you ever noticed that if/when you drift away
from doing those things that feed your soul
that you start to feel down, blue and disconnected?

Any words of wisdom about how to keep your soul fire burning bright?

“Looks Far Woman is the Clan Mother who is the
Guardian of the Fourth Moon Cycle, which falls in April.  
The full spectrum of pastel colors is connected to the
Clan Mother’s cycle, because she carries the
Medicine of Prophecy, see the truth in all colors.  
She is the Doorkeeper of the Crack in the Universe
and the Golden Door of Illumination that
leads to all other dimensions of awareness.  
She stands at the Crack in the Universe
and safely guides all human spirits taking Dreamtime journeys
into the other realms and then, back home,
being present and fully conscious of their bodies.

This Clan Mother is a Seer, an Oracle, a Dreamer, and a visionary.
She teaches us the validity of our impressions, dreams, visions
and feelings as they exist within our inner potential.
Looks Far Woman instructs humankind on how to unravel
the symbols found in psychic impressions.
She shows us how to see the truth in every vision we receive
in the tangible and intangible worlds.
In her wisdom, Looks Far Woman assists every seeker
in finding the seeds of personal and planetary prophecy
that the Great Mystery planted inside all human beings.”

~ Jamie Sams from The 13 Original Clan Mothers

Tears of Transformation

CC Magazine Logo (1)

Today in Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine is my latest article called

Tears of Transformation

“Walks Tall Woman felt the tears of transformation run like slow moving, lazy rivers down her cheeks. The truth had taken root in her heart and the impregnated seed of change had been planted in her womb. It would gestate until it was time in the future for the Clan Mother to give birth to her new, more vulnerable self. She quietly sat and reflected on the words Mountain Lion had spoken before she asked a question. ‘How can I be an example to other women, Mountain Lion, when I have to learn these lessons for myself?’

Click this link Tears of Transformation or the one above to visit Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine to read the full article.

 

The Sacred Space In Between

CC Magazine Logo (1)

Today in Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine
is my latest article called

The Sacred Space In Between

“My Grandmother Twylah taught me that the Sacred Space can be found in between the in breath and the outbreath.   Holding the breath to the count of ten allows us to stop the outer world and to open the door that leads to the inner world of the Self.  I developed a way to get to that place within myself so I can connect to my Orenda (Spiritual Essence).  By inhaling, holding the breath for a moment, then exhaling, I can calm myself and enter the Stillness. Then I listen to find the small, still voice of love within my heart.  The voice of the Orenda, which always speaks from love, stops the outer world’s chaos from impinging on my senses.  In this place of quietness that exists within myself, I am able to find the Eternal Flame of Love from the Great Mystery that feeds the voice of my Spiritual Essence.”

Click this link The Sacred Space In Between or the one above to visit Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine to read the full article.

Indian Paint Brush painting by Thomas Blackshear

Indian Paint Brush painting by Thomas Blackshear

Mojo Monday ~ Weaves the Web

Spider Web 3

Gossamer threads of life hold me,
Perched between Earth and Sky,
Weaving the web, dreaming the dream,
Through the two worlds I will fly.
With you as my muse, Mother,
I create the substance of dreams,
Allowing the artist within me
To fashion my life with esteem.
I mold the clay of experiences
Into a sacred Medicine Bowl,
Capturing the essence of living
As it sings deep in my soul.
Your secrets of creation, Mother,
Have taught me when to destroy
The chains that have bound me,
Limiting the expression of my joy.
You have taught me how to labor,
Giving birth to the visions within,
Setting them free like silver arrows,
Kindling the fire of Creation again.

~ Jamie Sams

On Saturday I traveled up into the mountains to meet with my Vision Quest spirit guide and to gather with some clan sisters. As we talked and shared about the experiences so far this month I realized how fitting it was that an extra burst of creativity had been very much a part of my life.  As part of the Vision Quest spiritual journey we are reading the book The 13 Original Clan Mothers by Jamie Sams.  It just so happens that the month of October is represented by the Clan Mother of the Tenth Moon Cycle, Weaves the Web. “Weaves the Web represents the creative principle within all things.  Her moon cycle falls in the month of October and is connected to the color pink.  Working with the truth is her Cycle of Truth.  She teaches us how to use our hands to create beauty and truth in tangible forms.  Pink is the color of creativity.  Weaves the Web shows us how to use crafts and art to create our ideas and dreams in the physical world.  Through using our hands, we show our willingness to be of service to All Our Relations.”

In addition to the writing I do for blogs and Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine, and the creative process included in my Vision Quest, I have also been participating in the amazing course by Jenafer Owen called Storywalking: Retrieve.  (You can find out more about Jenafer’s on-line courses at Inspired Inquiries.) We have been creating collages the past few weeks and  then this week during a guided meditation the most amazing traveling companion revealed itself to join me on my journey ~ a whale. Below is an artistic rendition of my friend as I envisioned.  The message my whale had for me ~ “We are going to plumb the depths…and swim among the stars.”

Plumb the depths

I also could not resist participating in the course being offered by Brene Brown (and sponsored by Oprah) called The Gifts of Imperfection.  During the first week of class I wrote permission slips for myself, took the pledge and created a courage heart, which included a short list of my most trusted confidants, or as Brene Brown puts it, the list of those who love me because of my imperfections.

Gifts of Imperfection
Permission Slips, The Pledge, Heart of Courage

It was rather interesting that even through I had read the chapter She Who Weaves right at the beginning of the month, I had not fully connected all that had been blossoming creatively in my corner of the world.  Of course October is also the month that includes Halloween, a favored holiday in our home, and there have also been creative opportunities in the creation of costumes.  My twin daughters chose to be a fox and and owl this year and we put together playful , comfortable and simple costumes for them to wear.

Costumes

There is more from the introductory chapter about Weaves the Web that also bears sharing. “Weaves the Web is the Guardian of the Creative Forms in all things.  She helps us express our creativity in a positive manner and use the energy available to us.  The Clan Mother is also the Keeper of Life Force and instructs us to create health, to manifest our dreams, to develop and use our talents, and to access our spiritual potentials.

The Clan Mother of the Tenth Moon Cycle is the Mother of the Creative and Destructive principles; she shows us when to destroy limitations and create anew.  She also teaches us when to nurture our creations, because she is the Keeper of Survival Instinct.  When our physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual survival is at risk, Weaves the Web shows us how to tap into the life force to grow beyond this stagnation.  She is an artist, a creatress, and the muse who beckons and inspires us to create the beauty found in our heart’s desire.  Through making something tangible and filling that creation with beauty, we are shown that the stuff of dreams can be expressed, giving form to our visions.  She is the Clan Mother we turn to when we are afraid of failure or lack self-expression.”

The last sentence above “She is the Clan Mother we turn to when we are afraid of failure or lack self-expression” is one that I had somewhat suppressed this month, but has been ever so present in a deeper and more subconscious way.  On Saturday I also experienced a heart tuning by a beautiful young woman from Costa Rica who practices Reiki and is also a yoga instructor.  After the heart tuning she shared with me that there was one message she was receiving for me which was that “It was okay for me to release the fear.  That the fear was not necessary.”  I nearly teared up at hearing those words for I knew I had been suppressing deep seated fear for a couple of months.  I had been pushing and stuffing it down, in an attempt to make it go away, and here I was being told by a messenger that I could just release the fear.

Grandmother Spider art by Amethyst Moon Song
Grandmother Spider art by Amethyst Moon Song

Let us return to the final paragraphs about Weaves the Web from The Thirteen Original Clan Mothers.

“When we follow the steps necessary to bring our dreams to life, Weaves the Web shows us how to use the life force found in the four elements of air, earth, water, and fire.  We learn how to mix these elements with the creative essence that is our gift from the Great Mystery.  This creative spark is called the Eternal Flame of Love and live inside our spiritual Essences.  When the desire to create is in place, we are then able to make the decision TO BE.  We then give form our our Spiritual Essences or Orendas through self-expression.

Weaves the Web, life Grandmother Spider who wove the web of the universe, teaches us how to weave the web of our experiences.  She shows us how every circle we create grows to touch the circles created by all other life forms.  The webs we create can trap us, if we do not create them in truth.  We are asked by the Clan Mother to work with and for the truth in order to manifest a world dream that all living things can share.  A web that is created in greed with eventually trap and devour the one who wove it because it was woven too tightly to allow giving, receiving, and sharing.  A web woven too loosely, without care, lacks the craftsmanship that is necessary to make it strong and durable.  A web woven from fear will attract the lessons needed to overcome that fear.  A web woven from the love of creating and desire to share the abundance caught in the web’s silvery fibers is a web that will endure until the dream is fulfilled.

Weaves the Web is the Clan Mother we turn to when we need the skills to make our dreams real.  She shows us how to take the actions necessary to tap our creativity and go with the flow.  Giving birth to our dreams is always accomplished by having the desire to create, deciding to create, and taking the actions necessary by using the flow of life force to give birth to the dream in the tangible world.”

Image by Sandy Stewart
Image by Sandy Stewart

Has creativity been flowing in your corner of the world this month?

Are there dreams that you have been longing to birth?

Are there fears (fear of failure) holding you back?

What would it take to release your fear?

What do you desire to create?

Are you taking actions on your desires?

Consider this quote from the chapter Weaves the Web:

“Weaves the Web taught the children that every painted symbol had meaning to an artist and that every color had a significance when an artist created an object of beauty.”

What symbols resonate with you?

Do certain symbols show up in your dreams, thoughts, art or objects that draw your attention?

What colors are you currently drawn to at this time?

Mojo Monday ~ Do You See Your Essence?

We Are Quote

Yesterday I drove east for an hour, up a highway that takes me into tall trees and near to Lassen Volcanic National Park which is home to smoking fumaroles, meadows freckled with wildflowers, clear mountain lakes, and numerous volcanoes.  I listened the whole time to the cd These Changing Skies by the band Elephant Revival.

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My destination was Dos Aguas,  the home of friends and my spirit guide who I am journeying and vision questing with for 13 months.  The journey includes reading month by month the book The 13 Original Clan Mothers by Jamie Sams, creating an art piece/shield each month, fasting on the full moon day, ceremonies, and additional exercises/assignments.  I arrived and was greeted warmly by my friends and all their fur-kids (four cats and seven dogs) who all clamor, wiggle, purr, lick, jump for some pets, scratches and hugs. My guide and I spent two hours together, part of the time in conversation and then in a very grounding ceremony barefoot, under the canopy of trees over a hundred feet tall, with the water from Battle Creek rippling and babbling by us.

I had been feeling overwhelmed with the demands of my day job for a few weeks and I had been under a tight deadline to complete a special project the week before too.  Prospects of potential opportunities and change also had me attempting to keep anxiety at bay. A grounding ceremony, bare feet touching the ground, time spent in that beautiful environment and reminders about what really matters most and who I am were things my soul were in extra need of on this day.

On the drive home, listening to more Elephant Revivial music I reflected and let my mind wander, all while keeping a watchful eye for deer along the sides of the road.  I contemplated what to share with you all in this Mojo Monday.  My thoughts traveled to one of the more recent newsletters I received from Dr. Margaret Paul, therapist and co-creator of a program called Inner Bonding.  I enjoy her insightful and thoughtful newsletters and her approach regarding such subjects as healing, wellness and healthy relationships.  She had shared a more personal story in her newsletter entitled Do You See Your Essence?  Here is her very insightful commentary about loving ourselves and recognizing our true essence.

Do You See Your Essence?

By Dr. Margaret Paul
September 16, 2013

I grew up with parents who had no idea they even had an essence. They believed they were their wounded selves, and that they were not good enough. Because they could not see their essence, they could not see mine, so I also grew up believing I was not good enough.

Everything changed for me when I finally saw my true essence.

Since my wounded self was programmed to believe that I was not good enough, I could not see my essence through the eyes of my wounded self. In fact, my wounded self was so convinced that I was not good enough that she spent a lot of energy hiding my essence. I could not see my essence until I started to practice Inner Bonding and began developing my spiritual connection.

Through my consistent Inner Bonding practice, my connection with my spiritual Guidance became stronger and stronger. By testing out, many times, what my Guidance told me, I finally learned to trust her.

So when she showed me the magnificence and beauty of my true essence, I believed her. That’s when I stopped needing others’ approval. That’s when I started to be able to fully manifest my life.

My Guidance not only showed me how incredible my essence is, she showed me how incredible everyone’s essence is. She helped me develop the ability to see and relate to people as their essence rather than as their wounded self.

Now I know, as Anita Moorjani states in “Dying to be Me,” that the essence of all of us is love – an individualized expression of the love that is God. Not only are we love, but each of us has been given unique gifts and talents to enable us to express our love in unique and individual ways.

Inner Bonding is about learning to love yourself – but you cannot fully love yourself until you know who you really are.

Right now, take a deep breath. Put your focus into your heart and move into an intent to learn with your Guidance about who you are. Use your imagination to envision your Guidance – whatever that is for you.

Now imagine that you can see your soul essence – your true self – through the eyes of your Guidance. What do you see? You need to get beyond your wounded inner child to the child you were before you became afraid, and learned to protect. You might even need to go all the way back to before you were born, since if your mother didn’t want you, or there was a lot of conflict in your environment, you might have already been afraid – even before birth.

See if you can FEEL the love that you are, and all the other unique and wonderful qualities that you are as a soul. You might want to write down what you see.

One of the habits I’ve developed is the exact opposite of self-judgment: I acknowledge out loud to my little girl whenever I behave in a way that truly expresses my soul essence. I tell her how grateful I am that she is within me and that I get to take loving care of her. I marvel at her creativity, her kindness, the joy she receives from giving to others. I praise her for her love of learning, her joy and laughter, her connection with people and animals, her playfulness and her aliveness. I let her know how much I value her deep sense of integrity and honesty.

In other words, I do what good parents consistently do – I mirror to her, throughout the day, who she really is.

Yet even this isn’t enough. In order for her to believe me, I then need to treat her as a cherished being. I need to love her by taking loving action in her behalf. Seeing her is only the beginning. Taking consistent loving action in her behalf lets her know that I truly love and cherish her. This is what Inner Bonding is all about.

grace-yourself

For more thoughts about
embracing yourself as your own beloved
come read my most recent article called
The Embodiment of I AM
in Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine.

Here is also a taste of the music of the band Elephant Revival as they perform their song called Go On.

ELEPHANT REVIVAL

Go On Lyrics

Go on, go on,
Go on and find your life now.
Go on. It’s alright.
We all feel something similar
Sometimes. Oh, oh.
Oh, sometimes. Oh, oh.

Don’t wait, don’t fear,
And don’t work too hard.
Don’t worry ’cause you’re here.
You’re here, through ever-shifting shades,
And now somehow. Oh, oh.
Oh, somehow. Oh, oh.

It’s love, it’s love.
It’s love that keeps me high enough
And the drugs and sex,
Or the lost respect and sacredness.
And it’s sad, and true,
‘Cause most things can hurt or help.
It’s up to us. Oh, oh.
It’s up to us. Oh, oh.

I know, I know.
We’re here to sow some words
And hope they’ll grow, they’ll grow
In moundless fertile hearts and endless fields,
We’ll know, cause most things can hurt or help.
It’s up to us. Oh, oh.
Oh, up to us.

Oh, oh.
All up to us.

Go on, go on.
Go do those things you’ve always wanted to.
My friend,
When the morning comes our dreams
Don’t have to end.
It’s true,
I’ll be there when I can for you, my friend.
Oh, I’ll be there when I can.