Heal Grow Shine: Shifted Blog & Website

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I'm not wiring here much anymore, but I am writing!

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Best to you on your unique journey!
Wendy
BLOOM: Bring Out the Gift In You

a vision of “Revolutionary Love”

I highly recommend this Audiobook by Valarie Kaur; 

it is very much in alignment with this Blog (imoe ; )

"See No Stranger is a 
practical guide to changing the world, 
a synthesis of wisdom, 
a chronicle of personal and communal history
— all joined together by a story of awakening. 
Revolutionary love is medicine for our times. 
It just might be our best chance for our collective future"

Facts Still Matter

Bill Moyers: "Facts Still Matter ..." 

 Excerpts from this speech below, full speech is HERE. 

"History Makers is an organization of broadcasters and producers from around the world concerned with the challenges and opportunities faced by factual broadcasting. Bill Moyers was the keynote speaker at the 2011 convention on January 27, 2011, in New York City."

"As Milan Kundera’s insight reminds us, the struggle against power "is the struggle of memory against forgetting.""

"As Joe Keohane reported last year in The Boston Globe, political scientists have begun to discover a human tendency "deeply discouraging to anyone with faith in the power of information." He was reporting on research at the University of Michigan, which found that when misinformed people, particularly political partisans, were exposed to corrected facts in new stories, they rarely changed their minds. In fact, they often became even more strongly set in their beliefs. Facts were not curing misinformation. "Like an underpowered antibiotic, facts could actually make misinformation even stronger."

"I won't spoil it for you by a lengthy summary here. Suffice it to say that, while "most of us like to believe that our opinions have been formed over time by careful, rational consideration of facts and ideas and that the decisions based on those opinions, therefore, have the ring of soundness and intelligence," the research found that actually "we often base our opinions on our beliefs ... and rather than facts driving beliefs, our beliefs can dictate the facts we chose to accept. They can cause us to twist facts so they fit better with our preconceived notions."

"These studies help to explain why America seems more and more unable to deal with reality. So many people inhabit a closed belief system on whose door they have hung the "Do Not Disturb" sign, that they pick and choose only those facts that will serve as building blocks for walling them off from uncomfortable truths. Any journalist whose reporting threatens that belief system gets sliced and diced by its apologists and polemicists"

"The late scholar Cleanth Brooks of Yale thought there were three great enemies of democracy. He called them "The Bastard Muses": Propaganda, which pleads sometimes unscrupulously, for a special cause at the expense of the total truth; sentimentality, which works up emotional responses unwarranted by, and in excess of, the occasion; and pornography, which focuses upon one powerful human drive at the expense of the total human personality. The poet Czeslaw Milosz identified another enemy of democracy when, upon accepting the Noble Prize for Literature, he said "Our planet that gets smaller every year, with its fantastic proliferation of mass media, is witnessing a process that escapes definition, characterized by a refusal to remember." Memory is crucial to democracy; historical amnesia, its nemesis."

"Here's an example: One of my favorite of all interviews was with my sainted fellow Texan, the writer and broadcaster John Henry Faulk, who had many years earlier, been the target of a right-wing smear campaign that resulted in his firing by CBS from his job as a radio host here in New York, one of the low moments in that network's history. But John Henry fought back in court and won a landmark legal victory against his tormentors. After he returned home to Texas, I did the last interview with him before his death in 1990. He told me the story of how he and his friend Boots Cooper were playing in the chicken coop when they were about 12 years old. They spied a chicken snake in the top tier of nests, so close it looked like a boa constrictor. As John Henry put it, "All our frontier courage drained out our heels - actually it trickled down our overall legs - and Boots and I made a new door through that henhouse wall." Hearing all the commotion Boots' momma came out and said, "Don't you boys know chicken snakes are harmless? They can't harm you." And Boots, rubbing his forehead and behind at the same time, said, "Yes, Mrs. Faulk, I know that, but they can scare you so bad, it'll cause you to hurt yourself." John Henry Faulk told me that's a lesson he never forgot. Over and again I've tried to remember it, too, calling on it to restore my resolve and my soul."

"It's always a fight to find out what the government doesn't want us to know. The official obsession with secrecy is all the more disturbing today because the war on terrorism is a war without limits, without a visible enemy or decisive encounters. We don't know where the clandestine war is going on or how much it's costing and whether it's in the least effective. Even in Afghanistan, most of what we know comes from official, usually military, sources.

"Thus, a relative handful of people have enormous power to keep us in the dark. And when those people are in league with their counterparts in powerful corporations, the public is hit with a double whammy. We're usually told the issue is national security, but keeping us from finding out about the danger of accidents at chemical plants is not about national security; it's about covering up an industry's indiscretions and liabilities. Locking up the secrets of meetings with energy executives is not about national security; it's about hiding confidential memos sent to the White House showing the influence of oil companies on policies of global warming We only learned about that memo from the Bush White House, by the way, thanks to the Freedom of Information Act."




This is the article referenced in associated post: Facts Still Matter

How Facts Backfire: Researchers discover a surprising threat to democracy: our brains
By Joe Keohane

One Excerpt from this article below, full article is HERE.


“Whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government,” Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1789.

The perils of so-called 'Spiritual Romance'

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Many are hungering after a spiritual partner, to Really start living their 'spiritual life'. 

Someone to 

- eat Vegetarian with, 

- partner with in daily Meditation, 

- practice Releasing ego and fear continually & consciously together

... whatever the pictures are.

.
It is always tempting to WAIT 

for Something, Someone, Sometime... 

- outside of here, now, with, 

- outside of myself 

to BE/ DO my ideal concepts.

Of course the answer is: 

Start NOW.

 

We can do these things individually, 

with groups of friends, 

and in conscious connection with all our relations. 

Why wait? 

Vegetarianism, daily meditation, practicing releasing ego and fear continually, et al, 

- who can argue? let's GO!
; )

Trying to add 'romantic love' (really dependency on any other person) to the mix 

is a recipe for disaster.

It stops me from my path. 

AND 

Truth is: I need to have my act together when that Romance wave hits 

- it Really upsets the applecart, 

- and I Really need to know Who I am and What I want, 

or it is easy to be Swept Away....

.
Tying one's Relationship 

to expectation or demand of some list of beliefs, ways-of-being, practices (from self and other) 

make always-changing relationships between always-growing people, even harder than they already are!

But, as a conscious practice choice of one individual, 

who is already vibrating more and more in this way, 

who desires to attract another in a love dance...

 

With someone who hopefully will at least sometimes / often? 

be in alignment with these practices, knowing sometimes they may not!!!

; ) 

This seems a more obtainable and healthy path, to me.

We attract the vibration we are, after all. 

SO being the practice, 

seems the most likely path to attract someone in alignment with the practice, seems to me...

After that, what is Absolutely Necessary for them to be/do?

For me, I Require nothing discussed above, of Them. 

What about you?

: ) W

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Warrior or Victim, choose

Don Juan said:
The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior
is that a warrior takes everything as a challenge
while an ordinary man takes everything as a blessing or a curse.
― Carlos Castaneda

 .     For a long time I misunderstood this quote.

I thought he meant that I had to Fight everything.
I knew this was not the Way for me.
I also really appreciate perceived blessings ; )

 .     Then I resisted this teaching.

I wasn't ready to take on my life as a creator.
I believed: patiently letting life hit me as blessing and a curse was a noble thing.

I let my habit of just letting life happen to me 

- 'putting up with' people, places and things rolling over me - 

continue unexamined.

 .     Now, I appreciate this way of looking at my life, a lot.

Don Juan puts his finger right on the working edge of my expereince.

What I hear now is: Warrior or Victim, choose.
I feel encouraged to stay on this bucking-bronco that is my reality...
and when I get thrown off, to get back on.

Life is not Happening to me. 
As the co-creator of my reality:
I am happening to Life!

What is your relationship with this world-view?
- Wendy 

In relationships, there will be tears... this is par for the course

I like to say,
once in a relationship, there will almost definitely be tears:
at least one person, leaves or dies, and at least one person cries.

I don't mean to be whiny, here,
actually the opposite:
I mean to put the whining to rest.

All things in life ebb and flow,
this is the natural course of things and
there is No fighting it, in the long run.

When we play the game of Love,
we are in-for a Wild Ride!

I like to say with children,
loving them is like having pieces of our heart dancing out there in the world, without us.
Anything can happen to them, and we live the consequences!

I say this about kids, because it is SO damn obvious,
but really, this is how it is with all our relations...

.
This is just the game;
pain and loss are part of the game...
if we don't like it we shouldn't play.

.
This is how I deal with all my relations:
I know when I engage in a relationship, my heart will break open;
the more I invest, the more it will break open... in ways I enjoy and in ways that I don't.

I always like to look at the worst-case scenario,
it helps me choose, it helps me plan, it helps me consider the risk-reward...
maybe you are different, and you don't like this way of looking at relationships, that's cool.

But, this frame helps me.
It has me remember that my precious little heart, 

my precious little heart-breaks, 

my precious little feels-like-all-the-walls-of-my-life-are-all-falling-down...

this is not Sooo Special, 

but, my particular loss and pain is not Sooo Special.

It is just the game that we are All in... 

how we play it matters a lot, 

but it is still the only game in town.

.
Some like to use the lever:
"I have been hurt before, 

so you have to accommodate me; 

my pain gets to run the show."

This is BS, IMO.
Everyone has been hurt before, 

no one's pain gets to run the show.

Within ourselves, and in our relationships, 

optimally, we live in freedom and joy:
our pain doesn't get to run the show.

Of course, a lot of times our pain does run the show,
THAT is what healing is For ; )

That's my opinion, YMMV,
Wendy

Too Much Spirituality?

In response to the question:

CAN THERE BE TOO MUCH SPIRITUALITY?

Spirituality is a word so broad, that it seems to have no meaning; 

unless it is the being and practice of consciously manifesting spirit in the world.

We already ARE spirit, there is no where to strive to or from. 
Our practice is only to assist us to allow us to uncover our Light, and allow it to Shine.

We do this by focusing spiritually, not physically - and there cannot be too much spiritual focus:
Being spirit in my body and acting powerfully from that place is the practice and the Being.

Meanwhile, much of what people consider spirituality, 

is actually the body trying to understand, shift and change 

to obtain some physical or allegedly spiritual result.

There is no end to our desire, physically; 

including the desire for 'spiritual' wisdom, power, results.  

THIS is where we are tempted to imbalance 

- with physical desire, even too much is never enough! 

Therefore, when my body is in charge of my spiritual experience, practice and goals 

- I am up the river, without a paddle.

Most of us start in this physically-focused place in our spiritual walk. 
But, if we allow it, we move to a move spiritually-focused place, 

in which we live in balance, freedom and affinity, 

while we learn our lessons, create/heal, serve and enjoy this earth-game.

Blessings, Wendy

Weebles wobble, but they don't stay down

I spent a lot of my adult life in depression,
or with big gnarly melancholy dominating my life on a regular basis.
Since I started my current soul work, that is all a memory.

I still go through Intense stuff, no worries!
But the challenges are from my real life, now, and handle-able.

More often and more uncomfortable 

is the stuff I am 'clearing' that feels rotten in my space.

But I Know and, by the use of my inner-tools, I ensure
that yuckiness is merely on its way up and out of my system.

The garbage truck is full of sound and fury,
sometimes it smells awful, and it is a really bad place to have a picnic! 
But unless I block/resist it, 

soon it is GONE, carrying all my rotten stuff along with it ; )

Again, this wasn't always the case!
For most of my life, all the crap was just Happening To Me! 

- ahhh - 

and I couldn't make it stop.

But for over a decade, I stand in a different place than I used to stand 

- this has made everything different:

I Know:
- the overwhelming emotions,
- the grinding thought patterns,
- the habits like Victim and Shy, and
- the set-points on 'low power' and 'give everything I can to others and not myself'…
no longer Dominate me, if I don't choose for them to do so.

I have experienced over and over:
I am a weeble: I wobble but I don't stay down ; )
I bounce right back up, in a minute, an hour, a day...

If it takes me longer to get up, I usually need a hand!
I Ask one of my healer friends to assist me to shift, or to hold my hand while I face my demons...
When I am Ready to Get Up, all I have to do is Ask and Receive!

This shift to Choosing My Inner Experience didn't happen because I am smart, or strong, or tenacious. 
I am blessed with those qualities, but that didn't help me for decades.

What helped me is learning and using Inner Tools, that give me leverage in my inner choices
AND learning and applying a few Distinctions (ways of seeing myself and the world) that serve me much better than my old belief-patterns.

I KNOW this soul process works when you work it.
I have seen it for myself and in so many others.

Blessings on your unique journey, Wendy

I happened to write about some of my beliefs and experience, yesterday.  I was encouraging a friend who was facing his own inner demons.  If you would like, read more here.

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Your Way through Darkness

You are spirit, you are precious to God and many others.
You are unstoppably on your path.
You are whole and complete, full of Light and Possibility.
Your conscious, palpable experience of this reality is growing.

You know these habits of thought and storehouses of feelings that plague you, 

are not you.

They are vestigial detritus,
the shadow that stands in the way of Light;
in the way of owning yourself, your body, your life, your world, and your amazing contribution in this reality.

You are so brave and tenacious in your healing, spiritual deepening, soul evolution;
especially as you engage in your cleansing process:

Allowing dark, ugly, heavy, viscous, vile energies/ pictures/ experiences/ identifications, habits...
- to rise from their shallow graves, as well as from from your core,
- to say hello to them, keeping your wisdom,
- to de-energize them - taking your power and efficacy back from them, and then
- to let them go: clearing them from your space forever: putting them to rest.

These dark energies and fixed way of being
have been the foundation you have been living your life upon.
But, as you move forward, your foundation is shifting.

Like Joshua, allow yourself to 

BE strong and courageous.

You are stopping being and identifying as a slave to anything and everything, inside or outside yourself.
You are stopping being and identifying as a wanderer: un-moored, impotent, disenfranchised, alien.
You are coming HOME, although you will need to Stand for it, OWN it.

You are continuing being and identifying as The Authority in your inner space: 
every step you take, owning back the land that is already yours.

You are learning and building muscle as you make war upon anything and everything that stands in your way.
Your ownership, your way, your truth, your light, your life, your reign, your dominion: 

inexorably, by any means necessary.

You are winning back your spiritual freedom, your free will, your greatest gift in this reality. 

Don Juan said:
The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior
is that a warrior takes everything as a challenge
while an ordinary man takes everything as a blessing or a curse.
― Carlos Castaneda

In your inner land:
Is IT happening to you, or are YOU happening to it?
This is the fundamental choice of your life, every moment.

This context is some of what supports me to keep moving
when I experience ambush 

by heavy, stuck, darkness.

Viktor Frankl pointed to this amazing truth for us humans:
we can bear any challenge, if we have meaning.

What is a big enough Truth
to hold you on your Way through darkness
until you break through to experience the reality of your Light and Life Abundant?

.

Prices rising in September, who wants to start now?

Hello friends

Do you know someone who needs
- Deep Healing?
- Spiritual Counseling / Direction?
- Support to follow their Inner Genius?

Participants are absolutely Loving their Process AND their Results.
See here for some feedback I've recently received.

I am finally increasing my prices for one-on-one appointments, as of September 1st.
I will honor my current prices for the next year, with folks who start before the summer ends.
I sure would appreciate if you shared this opportunity.

Questions?
Folks who are already participating would be happy to share their experience, as would I.
Ask and Receive.

happy summer!!
Wendy

~~~~~~~~~~

Spiritual Direction, Soul Counseling, Personal Instruction and Spiritual Healing by appointment.

$250 for 2 hour session. (currently $200)

OR

$500/month (currently $400) for Soul Evolution Members. Members choose any or all of these possibilities:

• You receive private sessions for 4 - 6 hours per month, to facilitate your Soul Evolution.
• You are supported by limited phone and e-mail interaction, as needed.
• You participate in workshops and classes, in person, via internet, and archived training.

    Available regularly in Seattle,
    about 6 weeks per year at the Jersey Shore,
    and at your location.
    Also work powerfully with individuals and small groups through Skype.

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The 'curse' becomes Blessing

Every 'curse' that affects me
is one to which I spiritually consent.

I have learned to be glad of these challenges,
because without them,
I would Never have gotten where I am,
or where i am going.

The 'curse' becomes Blessing
as it 'encourages' me back into alignment,
with myself, my path, my God.

May we all find our Way, Truth, Life,
in our own unique alignment,
as quickly and comfortably as possible.

.

All Manner of Things Shall be Well

On a forest road, off of Mountain Loop Highway:
my favorite Mountain area near Seattle,
a quick and easy connection to Momma Nature,

I got stuck in the snow, in my friend's RV.

I had been on this road, near its singular entrance, for 27 hours,
and had only seen one truck come and go.
I was now near the top of one of 3 branches of this road.

I tried many ways to release the RV from the snow:
digging,
rocking,
wedging branches behind the tires
… repeat.

The snow was like a sno-cone,
packed down hard after much thawing, freezing,
so that my big-self on my little-feet barely sank-in.

Which was convenient for walking around,
not so convenient for getting the RV free.
I grumbled to myself: 'Darn this front-wheel-drive RV, with it's weight is over the back tires!'

After the RV was not immediately released,
I had offered a quick mock-up (prayer), that I would shift out of this with ease,
and set restfully to work, without haste, without fear, without concern:

All will be well...
All is well.

This is just an adventure, of many adventures.

I met my friend David, about a dozen years ago, in Baja.
He loved to say at the time:
Adventures start when breakdowns occur.

Of course, he is right. 
And what a blessing to stand in that place.  A place of serendipity.
Life, God breaks-through and breathes new direction into my well-laid plans.

It is a joy to have the luxury of time.

So that a breakdown has the time/space/energy to be a joy, a blessing;
not a time to hold my breath while I am knocked off-kilter.

Usually my life feels like there is never! enough! time/space/energy,
and of course that is tied directly to money.
Breakdowns usually seem to mean a cascade of frustrations and disappointments.

In my life, I think this is one of the most undermining cycles that I get caught in:
the lie that there is not enough time/space/energy/money.
and that the answer is to rush! to try! harder!

As if scurrying and effort actually get me anywhere...

It was Wednesday afternoon in late-May, the least traveled time of the week in a National Forest,
at a time of year unpopular for summer-activities, as well as waning interest in winter-activities.
It crossed my mind that another vehicle may not come way up here, until the weekend.

I had plenty of supplies, so my only real concern was the cold,
for the RV was resting on and surrounded by snow.
I knew I could handle the cold, with the resources I had... possibly even comfortably.

Or... I could walk the many miles down to the 'main' road,
although it would be near the edge of my endurance.

So, I went about, doing what I could do,
working/playing with snow and the RV:
in peace, in contentment, in play and in comfortable challenge.

And a half-hour after I got stuck,
long before I was out of schemes to disengage myself from this rut I got myself into,
up the road came a truck.

I was pleasantly surprised!
And as I walked up to the truck and the party unfolded before me,
I knew that God was taking amazing care of me.

This 4-wheel drive truck had a sweet man driving,
with his wife sitting beside,
with two dogs romping out of the back,
and next a babe-in-arms emerging out of the cab.

I knew I was ok.
Even if it had been 4 guys in the truck, drinking beer and toting rifles (a more likely option out here).
I knew I was ok.

But my body/thoughts/emotions were a lot happier with this rescue party
I now found frolicking around me.
A family who lived 50 miles away, and hadn't been up here in months...

The guy had a four wheel drive,
a heavy-duty web that easily hooked to our vehicles,
and he did all the work.

It took no time,
and when we were done,
he would take no money, or food, or anything I offered.

It was a joy though, to repay the debt,
when (you can't make this stuff up) they got stuck in the same snow I did,
and I was right there to pull them out. 

Ha. God is Good.

God is so good to me! and
I rest in the gentle arms of Momma Nature.
This is always true, but often I don't notice.

Jesus said: 'when your eye is single, your whole body also is full of light.'
One of the things I love about being out in Momma Nature:
life is so simple, uncomplicated, singular, of human-scale.

I sleep.  I eat.  I do nothing.
I read.  I write.  I play with quotes.
I hike.  I play in a creek.  I lay on stones in the sun.

I daydream.  I vision.  I meditate.
I play with Spirit.  I savor Momma Nature.
I just be, I am.

In day-to-day life, there are so many layers of challenge.

As we all do, I have so many piles of to-dos,
so many people/places/things to manage.
I am a good juggler and yet, life is intense.

I enjoy being in Momma Nature
where I can let that all stand aside:
challenges are straightforward, uncomplicated, solvable.

In this scenario,
a need for a bit more friction under the front wheels,
or a little help from a gracious stranger.

Less then an hour after getting stuck in the snow,
I was off on a hike up the road through which I couldn't drive.
With my snowshoes on my back.

Slipping snowshoes on and off, as needed;
I climbed the gorgeous, increasingly snow-packed road for an hour,
all the way to its amazing end.

Enjoying the view.
Savoring the challenge.
Knowing more deeply that God is with me.

Knowing All is Well…
All Manner of Things Shall be Well.

When have you known God was taking really sweet care of you?  How has that changed your life?

.

Finding Balance: let the waves come, let them go

I allow balance to come to me:
Balance happens
when I do not attach to being perfectly balanced,
and I let go of fighting to stay balanced.

It is only fighting the waves that keeps me out of balance:
When I let go, I slosh back and forth for awhile;
but roaring waves rather quickly settle to ripples,
when I allow them to resolve naturally.

I allow balance to come to me,
when I let go of judging, of attaching to, of resisting
the waves of intensity, of dichotomies, of extremes that pull me off center;
I settle into a dynamic centeredness.

It is only fighting the waves that keeps me out of balance!
As I practice letting go,
I find myself comfortably floating,
swaying around center,

I allow balance to come to me.
It is only fighting the waves that keeps me out of balance.
This is a picture, a practice I received from Lao Tzu.
I have profited from his insight, for awhile now.

.
.
and associated post with Lao Tzu:
Mountains are not better than valleys. Valleys are not better than mountains.

Magick

We are spirit, a spark of Divinity, in this physical world.
As spirit in bodies, we have great influence in this physical reality.
And it helps everyone, when we consciously choose to exercise it.

Magick is our will as soul, levered into this physical world.
When we consciously act as spirit in the world, in that spark of co-creation,
our spiritual intention shifts the physical world from its inertial course.

Magic is not a thing; it is a behavior, a practice, a choice.
It is not physical, it is not merely spiritual,
it is the intersection of both: where we fully engage; 

we play as spirit in sandbox earth.

Magick is a practice: a school, a gym, a playground
in which we Become Ourselves, we Become Powerfully Whole,
we Become the Mature spiritual Adults who shift Heaven and Earth.

Being Magick (growing into our capacity as spirit, to act in the world),
aligned with Source and our Unique soul path,
we mature, and inspire others to mature, come to fruition.

As my favorite Christian teacher, Dr Bruce Morgan, used to say:
"We are becoming who we are going to be for all eternity."
Let's keep at it.
.

Being with Issues & Emotions stored in our Bodies

Photo: Anguish by Porschelinn on Flickr

Below is most of the article by Bernie Clark: Issues in our Tissues: Looking at the Emotions We Store in Our Bodies

Just as it is inappropriate and unhealthy to push past our physical edges, it is also unskillful and unhelpful to push past our emotional edges.

The first thing to recognize when strong emotions arise in our yoga practice is: “I am not alone!” Many people experience discomforting emotions and even elating emotions while doing their practice. Just being aware that others have gone through the same experience—and survived very nicely, thank you very much—helps to take the edge off the anxiety of the moment...

We all have issues in our tissues, which is to say, we store emotions in our bodies. Where else could they possible be?

Emotions are not stored out there in some cloud server on the Internet: they are not on a Google computer in hyperspace. They are within you, close at hand and ready at a moment’s notice to manifest.

The dance of yoga is one of playing our edges: we approach the point of being too deep, never actually arriving at this point, and then we back off to see if we can approach that edge again, safely. This is the art: never actually going too deep, but moving constantly towards that edge where the sensations are juicy, where there is definitely something happening, but it is not too much sensation and we are never in danger of ripping the body open.

When we think about our edges we often think in physical terms, and you may well have had such an image in your mind when you read the above words, but we have edges emotionally, mentally and spiritually as well. Just as it is inappropriate and unhealthy to push past our physical edges it is also unskillful and unhelpful to push past our emotional edges. Just as we may have scar tissue in our body that prevents our full range of movement, we often have emotional scar tissue as well that can restrict our interpersonal and lifestyle ranges of movement. These stuck, contracted areas can be painful when worked into and we can only go so far in our yoga practice to really open up...

Once again the answer is to play your edge, but with enhanced awareness.

Our basic emotions exist within us to provide protection, healing and growth—they are not inherently bad: they are in fact very necessary for a whole life well lived. But sometimes emotions are evoked unskillfully and it is in these cases that we need to evaluate the raw experience of the emotion unemotionally, with dispassion.

Let’s take a real life example: let’s say that recently you have begun to experience a strong feeling of fear, desperately wanting to get out of the posture, wanting to scream like crazy, “A pressure on my chest!” as one student recently noted when she went into Straddle (Dragonfly) pose during a Yin Yoga class. She had been practicing Yin Yoga for over a year so this sudden arising of fear was surprising, perplexing and worrying. What does it mean and what should she do?

First, realize that you are not the only one. Emotions will arise at some point in your yoga journey. That is quite natural when you consider that yoga works the full body, not just the physical tissues. Next, consider the depth of the emotions and whether these feelings are limited only to your yoga practice or also arise at other times in life, because if they do, you may want to seek some professional assistance in determining what it means and how to work through the challenge. Finally, know that this is a wonderful opportunity to deepen your yoga practice, to go beyond the mere postures and into the depths of your own being.

Photo: raganmd on Flickr

David Williams, one of the first two Americans to practice Ashtanga Yoga, once observed that the real yoga is what you can’t see. He means that the real process of yoga unfolds beneath the obvious shapes that we contort our bodies into, it involves the breath and the way we pay attention to what is happening within. This is the invitation your strong emotional response is offering you. Rather than blindly or automatically react to the emotion, cultivate an attitude of acceptance and curiosity. Ask yourself what is really going on: “What is this?”...

Poses in yoga work the body physically and energetically, stimulating the meridian lines that correspond to the major organs of the body and sometimes eliciting strong emotional responses. In the example of the woman who experienced fear while she was in Straddle Pose, she may have created a deep stress along the inner thighs, the adductor muscle group, through which the liver and kidney meridians run. This stress may be sufficient to trigger an emotional response if there is some blockage psychically or emotionally in the pertaining organs of the liver and kidneys.

Regardless of the cause of the emotional response, the prescription is the same: awareness with dispassion. Watch what is occurring without trying to change it, without running away from it, without giving into it in despair or resignation. Of course, as we have already discussed, if you really feel you are past your edge and are too deeply into an emotional state, then back off! But if the emotions are just challenging, not dangerous, stay and observe the raw experience that is occurring. This is when something interesting is about to happen. Don’t miss it!

Ask yourself constantly, “What is this?”

Note the emotions and the associated physical sensations in detail to yourself: what are you feeling, what is your breath like, your heart rate, is there increased tension in your jaw, shoulders, neck? For example, if you are feeling fear, notice what fear feels like: “my breath is shorter and choppy; my shoulders are tense; my thoughts are foggy and I can’t focus.”

Don’t judge these sensations as good or bad and don’t try to change them; just observe them as they are...

To sum up, when a strong emotion arises in the middle of a yoga practice pay attention to it. If it is too strong, back off and perhaps even stop the practice for that day. If this continues to happen to the degree that you can no longer practice skillfully, then seek help from a qualified yoga teacher or counseling. However, if the emotions are challenging but not dangerous, use this opportunity to take your yoga practice to a new level: play the edge of the emotion without going over the edge. Start to observe what is actually occurring, without adding anything to the experience and without taking anything away from it.

One last thought, and for this I will quote Rod Stryker: “If you have never laughed or cried in a yoga class, what are you waiting for?”

  Bernie Clark

The Healing Power of NO

My encouragement to a healer who can't say NO:

In my experience:

I learned NO, MINE, and BYE-BYE by the age of two 

- but I allowed myself to be socialized out of it.  

Yet, these are the energetic cornerstones of a well, whole, self-directed system: 

I must own these tools to be a well HEALER. 

Otherwise, soon I am a broken healer of no use to anyone, including myself 

... been there got the T-shirt! 

If I say NO, I make way for a bigger YES - for everyone involved. 

It helps me to TRUST Spirit, Self, Other, Life...

My compulsion to say Yes as a healer, 

tends to be a band-aid for my own experience of pain, brokenness and need, 

the 3 most likely suspects (some of the many HUGE temptations of a healer):

1) I want to focus on others healing instead of my own.

(But the secret is the more I face my self and allow myself to heal, 

the more I am a healing presence for others.)

2) I want them to love me and think I am great.

(But the secret is the more I am my real self, 

authentically shining and doing what is best for Me 

- the more I am authentically loved and appreciated by others... 

and they are inspired to live and love, and shine!)

3) I want to believe and/or I want them to believe I am SPECIAL: 

they Need ME - ha!

(But the secret is, their healing is between THEM and their bodies and Spirit... 

I am honored to assist when appropriate! 

They don't need Me, and it is beneficial for us both to keep that at the top of mind.)

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What is your experience?
Peace and Grace to you on your unique journey 

- Wendy
         

How to receive a Spiritual Reading

I just answered this question, so I thought I would share here:

What would you tell someone who was considering a Spiritual Reading?
I would tell them what I tell my readees, and my students:

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1)  When getting a reading, remembering your Free Will is key

Humans are infinitely creative!
We can keep going in the directions we have chosen in the past 

or we can change direction whenever we choose to. 

Each of us can learn and grow and heal and change - yee ha!

This can drastically alter our lives, energies, bodies, relationships, perceptions, abilities, etc. 

This has been my experience in my own life.
I have also had the privilege to watch so many others 

become more conscious of themselves as spirit and 

co-create a very different life for themselves than might have happened otherwise.

I say all this to underline why I believe in free will. 

There is a rumor going around that our free will is a gift from Spirit. 

Therefore, I suggest:

 - avoid advice 

(information is very useful, but you are an adult, you don't need to be told what to do!)

 - avoid predictions of your future 

(you choose your route, and you can shift your direction any time!)

 - basically, I am saying, avoid 'programming' 

('buying' and 'wearing' someone else's information, expectations, desires...

that do not fit you as well as your own)

This is not meant to hamper or discourage you in your questions 

or the value you will receive in a reading – just the opposite.

You can ask to look at any situation or choice that is before you 

and ask about what the energy is now – in the present - 

and the direction you are going.

This will support you to make your own choices 

and honor the gift of your own spiritual freedom.

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2) Getting a reading, can be a wonderful gift of an outside perspective, a spiritual perspective.

A reading is like what folks say about an accident at a cross-street, 

each person on a different corner, sees a different accident.

This is the gift of a reading 

- you are receiving a different perspective on yourself and your creations 

(your life, body, relationships, etc) 

that is outside your own usual consciousness. 

It can be like looking in a sacred mirror, 

getting a reflection of yourself from a different angle.
This is potentially an incredible blessing!

Optimally, your reader will give you a spiritual perspective 

- neutral, amused, validating, spiritually-focused -  

this can be a wonderful healing, encouragement and inspiration to learn and grow.

If you perceive your reading as primarily physically-focused:

emotional, judgmental, invalidating, blaming... 

I would suggest wiping your feet and walking away.

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3)  Getting a reading is like a Spaghetti fight  - what sticks to you, is yours ; )

It is useful to stay neutral and amused, present and open in your reading.
Keep only what validates you, and leave the rest.

Just like the rest of life, 

YOUR information and experience is central.
Stay senior in your own space, 

and avoid allowing yourself to be 'programed' by other's perspective.

If something the reader says doesn't jive with you, 

don't let yourself get Hooked:  

I recommend letting go of judging, resisting or invalidating the information and experience.
If something seems to not fit, if it feels wrong:  

you don't have to 'buy it', letting go of the tendency to Resist! 

– just let it go.

But, as a rule: take what is said and meditate on it 

- there are probably a lot of jewels in there for you.

Even things that don't initially seem true for you, 

there May be truth in it for you – 

So, if something is bugging you, niggling at you: 

I recommend letting it sit on 'the shelf' for a few days; 

then meditate on it, ask Spirit: what is the gift for me in this information?

I encourage you to let this perspective from outside yourself, 

hopefully a spiritual perspective, 

inform your life and your living.

But, most importantly, 

I urge you to continue to develop your own spiritual 'ears', 'eyes', 'knowing' etc 

- so you can continue to deepen as the authority in your own life, the driver of your own car (life).

YMMV,
Wendy

Clearing Trauma: it takes. Minute AND its Worth our Investment

I have had the dark blessing of a long and winding way 

with much opportunity to Clear Trauma, Abuse, PTSD, anxiety, depression, emotions, habits, addictions...

Deep wounding takes more than saying a few words to clear it. 

It takes turning the ship, not 're-arranging chairs on the Titanic' ; )

As I told a healer I worked with a while ago, 

"if it was easy for me to change and let this go, I would be healed and whole years ago."

Utilizing intention, along with meditation techniques, and wise and compassionate support, 

I have cleared a large percentage of my abuse pictures/energy and all that came with it.

As well as the 'bent-ness; that perpetuated into my adult life, and which I built my self and life upon. 

And I am still fully engaged in this process, and I will be for a long time. 

It takes courage and persistence. 

And for me, as with many, it got worse (as things came up and out to clear) before it got better.

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Healing and experiencing wholeness is available to us. 

When we clean up the mess, life can be a joy: easy and fun! 

We don't have to live with PTSD or any other brokenness, 

without hope of healing and restoration. 

And, yes, I had to change!

to begin identifying with myself as spirt, 

and not with my abuse and the brokenness that I experienced from that.

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Meanwhile, with extreme issues, it is not usually as easy as 'falling off a log.' 

I believe it is absolutely necessary to have powerful energy techniques; 

and wise, compassionate support for this process. 

For some, it is a very challenging path: 

it can feel like hell, or dying, or going completely loony, or all the above!

Wise and compassionate support is essential for many, for many reasons, including:
1) It is almost impossible to face some of the worst stuff alone.
2) It is important not to 'fall off the edge.'
3) It is necessary to deal with the tremendously temptation to want to run back to living with the terrible pain and brokenness, rather than pushing through the horror, to eventual experience of freedom and lightness and wholeness.

Enough for now, I am going out to play!

Yay for wounded healers: 

may we keep healing ourselves, so we can be Well and Happy; 

and from there we can effectively assist others!

-wendy

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spiritual senses

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Do We Have The Ability To Feel Others? www.youtube.com
- Prof. Ervin Laszlo talks with Rav Laitman about how feeling others is the mark of a higher consciousness that we need to achieve.


Wendy R Wolf
Yes, I agree, in addition to physical senses and abilities are spiritual senses and abilities. I find it encouraging to have these validated by folks from different backgrounds and religions.

In my tradition, we distinguish between different spiritual senses, including: spiritual physical feeling (including pressure, taste and touch); spiritual emotional and sexual information - where resides sympathy for example; spiritual affinity (experience of oneness) - where resides compassion and empathy; spiritual hearing and other communication information; spiritual sight; spiritual knowing.

We have distinguished, as we go along this list, information becomes more neutral, less body-focused & more spiritually-focused (for example, seeing spiritually can help me have more clear, neutral information about a relationship than perhaps utilizing my spiritual emotional or sexual information). So we practice the 'higher' senses, to access and enjoy clearer information, as well as clearer connection with God.

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When we heal ourselves, we heal the world

"I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank you."

you can some about this here

I don't practice Dr. Len's method, but I am informed by it in my own healing practice.

I shared about Dr. Len's modern application of hoʻoponopono 

with a couple of my students the other day in an advanced healing class. 

They came back reporting a shift for themselves 

by referencing/utilizing some of Dr Len's distinctions within their own spiritual healing practice.

I had shared about this tangentially, and i was excited to see this fruit.

I think each of these:
"I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank you."
can be useful doorways for healing

More usefully, from my perspective, is the KNOWing, BEing and DOing that:
what we heal inside ourselves
really does heal the world outside ourselves.

BEING the change we want to see in the world
IS the WAY

I believe Dr. Len's story is a modern example of many powerful healers through the ages 

and the shift that HAPPENS, when we shift.

I like to share it for inspiration.
Blessings, w