What if “impossible” is a wall YOU build around your dreams?
Would you be willing to tear it down?
-Tammy Vitale
I love what Tammy says in the quote above! Seeing “impossible” as something that is self created inside by our minds is very possibly exactly what happens.
There are many women that have lived before us, and are living now, that have either torn the barrier down or never built it in the first place. Perhaps the wall was built of others expectations?!
Take some time to investigate what you are calling impossible today and imagine that you have indeed built a fence around it. Is it a dream that burns inside of you, or keeps coming back to divinely nudge you one more time?
Are you willing to take the pieces of the barrier down one by one, or even with fierce passion all at once….to reveal what your heart knew all along – that “impossible” is a construct dressed in fear, void of self love, and two letters too many. Take the “im” away and become fearless in taking the first step towards the dream that has called you here. It is time….
Your task is not to seek love, but merely to seek & find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.~Rumi
Two Resources For Practicing Being Fearless:
http://5wcw.org/SIGN THE PETITION AND BECOME INVOLVED!! “UN Women and a 5th UN World Conference on Women is a natural fit, a synergy between the two that would raise consciousness and funds for the benefit of women and the development of women’s leadership at every level of society. Since it takes 3 years to organize, a target date of 2015 would be the 20th anniversary of the Beijing conference, the first since the internet and globalization, a time to network a new generation of women leaders. Reaching a tipping point would make it possible to carry out the Beijing Platform for Action, the Millennium Development Goals, and the Security Council resolutions on Women, Peace, and Security. A world that is safe and sustainable would become possible.”-Jean Shinoda Bolen, speaking for 5WCW.
Fearless: Awesome Women Hub asks “What The World Needs NEXT” with Claudia Carawan
I came across this video yesterday and wanted to pass it on today to all women as it is a fun way to celebrate all that it is to be a woman, not just a mother! Catchy tune that I immediately started to sing and dance to!!
So many strengths in being a woman! If we will daily remember our worth, act out of that embodied space, and remind each other of our strengths….the world would shift in a moment!
As adult women we sometimes realize in open, aware, and quiet moments that we have come far away from our Source – that remembering and living of the magnificent, loving, confident, wise, knowing, connected, and creative beings that we are.
When my 3 year old granddaughter Sorenna told her mother, “Mommy, there is a baby in there!” and her mother said “no honey there isn’t” having no idea that she was pregnant, Sorenna was coming from an innate knowing……a sense of the sacred energy of creation felt by those that are consciously connected and not distracted by the stimulus that daily pulls us away from our Source.
In fact, upon Sorenna’s insistence, her mother decided to get a pregnancy test, and guess what? Yes, I will have a grandson in September, Sophia will be a mother again, Sorenna will have a brother, and my son will have his long awaited son.
Just today I watched a video (which is below) of one of the wise ones still connected to what is important in life. I don’t know how old Sadie is, but I do feel that each of us should take what she says (and is!) to heart!
In addition, I have added a short video, put out by theAwesome Women Hub of women who are sharing what they feel the world needs next. This could be you or me on this video…and I do believe that Sadie and Sorenna have a place there as well.
Remember who you are….live it daily…..and remind each other!!
Sadie tells us “Believe In Yourself”!
Awesome Women Hub Asks Women What The World Needs NEXT
This last week I was in Austin, Texas exploring the possibility of relocating there from Oregon. What has led me to check out this particular place has been an innate guidance system inside that has consistently informed me when I am on track for what is sometimes referred to as the Divine Design of ones life.
I haven’t always trusted this innate system, which is often called our intuition, or guidance from the heart – our feelings. In fact, on this very trip there was a choice that I made that was completely separate from my own GPS – and it was made vividly clear that I was “going the wrong direction”. ( For more on this experience go to NaturalWealthJournal.com to the post “Negotiating The Overpass – Creating Another Game” )
Wouldn’t you pay attention if the GPS in your car came on and said “What the heck do you think you are doing?? I told you not to go here and you didn’t listen! Now you are lost in a game that is not of your own creation. You weren’t supposed to be here in the first place, and I insist that you pay attention to me NOW!”
Well, we all know that the GPS system in our cars (and within us) is much more polite than that, and when we do make errors in the direction that will get us to where we are to go, it kindly (yet sometimes quite strongly!) gives us alternatives to follow. We are always well taken care of in that way and we trust that we will always get to where we want to go when we are paying attention. Lapses in this attention pay off in lessons well learned – like course corrections.
I am here to tell you that your own inner GPS system is just like that if only listened to and trusted. This guidance comes from the messages of the heart – our feelings – and our intuition which never – I mean never – steers us wrong. What if you trusted that your life is unfolding in a natural manner and you took all actions from that inner GPS?
Here is what my friend Richard Cawte says about this: “Keep driving. Trust the pilot. The pilot is the part of you inextricably in tune with the brushtrokes…as well as the pots of gold…and the seamless electrical circuit that brings health to your cells…It’s you, God, everything. At the same time, it’s each atom in each cell of your body. Trust in that intricate design, much as you trust your lungs to inflate with the next breath, and the next…There is PLENTY OF OXYGEN for us all…”
So, I leave you now to play with your own innate GPS. In order to Be The Change we must listen, trust and take action from this unique wise inner director….or have an experience that reminds us what it feels like to be “lost” in someone else’s game. It’s all good!
Consciousness expresses itself through creation. This world we live in is the dance of the Creator. Dancers come and go in the twinkling of an eye but the dance lives on. On many an occasion when I am dancing, I have felt touched by something sacred. In those moments, I felt my spirit soar and become one with everything that exists. I become the stars and the moon. I become the lover and the beloved. I become the victor and the vanquished. I become the master and the slave. I become the singer and the song. I become the knower and the known. I keep on dancing and then, it is the eternal dance of creation. The Creator and the creation merge into one wholeness of joy. I keep on dancing — until there is only … the dance. ~Michael Jackson
I was rather amazed by this quote by Michael Jackson. Amazed because it captures so perfectly what dance and movement is to me in my life….and which I definitely do not do enough of !
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to wake up and dance into the beginning of your day, even for just a few minutes? We often forget in our very complex, over stimulated, busy lives that there is a simple remedy to remind us of these magnificent bodies that we inhabit. Not only a reminder, but a “wake up call” to breathe deeply and to move in a way that brings us back home to the moment – to our aliveness!
“17 seconds of focused pleasurable visualization is stronger than 2000 hours of working to obtain a goal.” – Esther Hicks
What if you combine words, breath, and visualization with movement to start your day? What if you shimmied into that beautiful body of yours (it is the only one you will ever have!) and felt that feminine power express and energize. Wonder what the day would be like starting out that way??
Sometime this week I invite you to start your day with your favorite music and dance your way into your day….or, try out Tonya Freeman’s Shift to Bliss: Dancing Meditations and Visualizations. By clicking on this link you can listen to some of her tracks and see if they fit for this earthy morning ritual.
“In ancient times, woman as Priestess, as Goddess, danced the Sacred Dance in the beauty of her nakedness. She danced in the temples, on the hills, in the valley, by the ocean, in caves and in the desert. The Sacred Dancer connected herself to the entire universe. She was one with all things. The dance was not only a way of telling the story of life it was a celebration of life itself. Uni-Verse. One Song. The Song of Love. Women knew the magic and the healing power of the Sacred Dance. They knew that by dancing together and for one another that they were doing the work of the Great Mother Goddess. They enjoyed a direct connection to the Divine Femi9 Energy. “
– Diva Mama Tonya
I say, we don’t dance and move enough from our sense-filled- self in our Western culture. It is about time we started to – daily!!
The Dance does live on…… and is a creation from our own uniqueness and creativity – a prayer for the day. Shake it up, clear it out, strut your stuff, and…..get to movin sistah!
When we were children magic was a natural part of our everyday life. We looked upon the world as an unending place of adventure, surprise, and magical moments if we grew up in a loving and caring family. Not everything could be explained, but we knew without a doubt that it was somehow connected with us, and we were connected with it.
Sorenna Making Bubbles
Recently I found that I was to be a grandmother for the second time. My sons partner Sophia had no idea that she was pregnant until my very connected and wise 3 year old granddaughter Sorenna told her one day as she was cuddled up with her – “Mommy, there is a baby inside of there (pointing to her belly), and it is my sister!” Of course Sophia denied that, but Sorenna insisted. Soon after that a positive pregnancy test revealed that Sorenna “knew” – she is connected! Whether it is to be a sister or not is still in the unknown.
The point of this post is a reminder of the magic that is indeed all around us and the wisdom of interconnection and knowing that we all have deep within our cellular structures – our heart and souls. Might it be a boring life indeed if this awareness was lost completely…..and it is NOW when we most need to remember the delight in the simple moments of interaction with life playing out around us and within us.
Here are a couple of videos that were passed on to me this week. The first is showing some very magic bubbles – be certain to catch the small girls delight near the end of the video. After viewing that one then sing along with Curtis Mayfield as he sings the great soulful gospel song “It’s All Right”!
As you go through your week find the magic moments and stay open to wonder. Pass it on!
Giant Stinson Beach Bubbles
It’s All Right with Curtis Mayfield – Have a good time!!
Pure magic and brilliantly written for the times we find ourselves in now!
Come back to the remembering of a world where all was intimately interconnected with the natural world, and magic prevailed throughout the land. Travel with 12 year old Tilly and 13 year old Zack in an adventure of a life time – an adventure that reminds us of who we are and how far away from that we have fallen to. You won’t be able to put it down…I couldn’t!
This video speaks for itself! As you listen to each woman, remember that you too have a part to play in this global transformational shift. We are being invited as women to examine the powerful creative expressions that we are holding inside and are being asked NOW to take action in whatever form is wanting to be birthed through us.
I invite you to go to Omega’s website as well to see other videos of keynote talks by some distinguished faculty at Omega Women’s Institute. We all inspire and inform each other!!
“Omega’s annual Women & Power conference is one of the most celebrated women’s gatherings in the world, unique in its rich diversity of speakers, performers, and participants. The conference is dedicated to empowering women to bring hope, healing, and change into their own lives and to the world around them.
Last year, the conference was a call-out to women of all ages and backgrounds to become the leaders we have been waiting for. Whether you are a professional, activist, volunteer, student, artist, mother, spiritual seeker, or social visionary, it is time for us to dig deep, retrieve our authentic voice and values, and lead with courage and heart—at home, work, and in the world.”
I have just come back from visiting two of my sons, and playing joyously and full on with my 3 year old granddaughter Sorenna. As she grows quickly I see the amazing girl she is, and forsee the powerful woman she will become.
I watch Sorenna and see how absolutely at home she is in her body, her mind, and her playful and creative spirit. She is not afraid to be exactly who she is – in the moment. She operates from a place of full self acceptance. I yearn to be like her….
I often wonder why women – including myself at times – are frequently so hard on ourselves. By that I mean attempting to fit into a “square hole” of our cultures making with our rounded, and curvy bodies (even if you are thin you have curves!!), hearts, and psyches.
This week I was blessed to view two videos – both of which are here for you – that speak to acceptance in all of its many forms. Here are two stunning women bringing themselves out to millions of people. They are stunning because they both have a track record of saying yes to putting themselves out their within their particular creative art form, and they keep showing up to do just that.
One is a musician who has written many powerful songs for women as she speaks of her own life experience through her music, and the other is a young woman that very early on found her love of poetry and theater arts could be put together – and oh what a perfect fit for her!
The first is India Arie singing Gift of Acceptance at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert with a global message for all of us. We are in a time on our planet when we are realizing more deeply that what affects one of us affects all of us. I say that acceptance of ourselves at deep levels of loving care allow us to accept others as we do ourselves. Just what the world needs!
The second video is a brilliant TED2011 talk by Sarah Kay that inspired two standing ovations. “Sarah tells the story of her metamorphosis — from a wide-eyed teenager soaking in verse at New York’s Bowery Poetry Club to a teacher connecting kids with the power of self-expression through Project V.O.I.C.E. — and gives two breathtaking performances of “B” and “Hiroshima.”
To me this is not only especially inspiring for our girls and young women coming up….but also a reminder to us as mature women that with acceptance of all of who we are (warts, fears, wrinkles, sexual preferences, and all!), the best of our creative gifts are unearthed. It is within our uniqueness that our genius shines!
International Women’s Day just celebrated it’s 101st birthday on March 8th. “This is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievement of women around the world. It is a national holiday in some 30 countries including China, Russia, Vietnam, Rwanda and Bulgaria. In 2010 there were approximately one thousand clebratory events in 64 Countries. On March 8, 2012, we will make history, with an unprecendetned celebration in every city around the world”.
….and YOU know we can create and manifest this!! Coming on the heels of my last post I wanted to share the video below with you and also give you a link to Women’s Day Live 2012, a vision in the making. It birthed on 3/8/11. The question posed by Lili Fournier (and ME!) is: How are you going to be a part of this?
The video below is an inspiring one reminding us of the power that we hold collectively and collaboratively to empower ourselves and each other as women. It starts with you taking care of YOU….and then reaching out for that “sister’s” hand. I will be there with my hand and my full expression to meet yours… Empower Women, Change The World!
With the most recent devastation in Japan (and New Zealand not long ago) showing us how small our global village is, and the deep interconnectedness that pervades everything – we as women have before us a task that is of the utmost importance.
We MUST step up and into our knowing, be willing to learn new skills, and not be afraid to speak our truth and follow that with action. This will often “upset the apple cart” of traditions and what has gone before (mindsets), yet we all know that many of the structures across the board that have been laid down are not sustainable, and haven’t been for a long time.
For example, our home -the earth – in no uncertain terms, is letting us know that new sustainable working solutions need to be created, implemented, and honored as the way that will connect our global village in peaceful and creative relationship/partnership. We all want to survive…but even more to thrive.
I believe that everyone holds a key to creating the shift that is presently sweeping our planet to a more sustainable, socially and culturally just, and empowering world. We can either fight against the changes, hide our face under the covers, or we can ride the wave with determination, purpose, and surrender.
It takes both you see, for it is in the determination and purpose that we commit to – whatever our passion and free expression is – and it is in the surrender or deep letting go, that we find the paths and solutions/resolutions that have been right before us all along. It is here that our most ingenious and committed creations happen. However, this also means that we first have to take the best care of our own beings in order to be sustainable ourselves.
As a long time supporter for Women For Women International I have been aware for a long time that women are at the forefront of global change by first empowering themselves and each other, then their families and communities. Here is another example I came across recently reflecting this stepping up.
In the far away village of Tilonia in Rajasthan, India, where few tourists ever wander, an experiment has begun to bear fruit globally. Established in 1972, the Barefoot College is a non-government organization that has been providing basic services and solutions to problems in rural communities, with the objective of making them self-sufficient and sustainable.
This village is situated in arid land where water is scarce and poverty rampant. Here is what Sathya Saran says about women in this village:
“The women of the village work together with their menfolk towards sustainable development, and also help educate and inspire those in nearby villages to rise above the vagaries of nature and their hardships by effort and education.
Tolonia’s most famous export is the solar engineer concept. Making the most of the abundant sunshine, the Barefoot College has trained its women to set up solar electrified systems that can provide light and power to entire villages. In fact, the 80,000 square foot campus of the Barefoot College is electrified and maintained by the women solar engineers, most of whom have little or no formal education and live within the broad dictates of a rural, feudal, chauvinistic, male-dominated social milieu.
The women engineers are trained to create everything such a unit needs, to help install and run it, and to train the villagers of the receiving village to maintain and run the units themselves.
Going a step further, the Barefoot College also trains women from many other parts of the world to create this cheap, endurable and sustainable source of alternate energy, and how to take it in working condition to their respective villages.
Language and regional differences are forgotten in the giving and taking of knowledge so vital to better living. Women’s empowerment finds new meaning, as Tilonia’s solar-energy-giving-women help light lives across the world. “
These ‘Barefoot solutions’ can be broadly categorized into solar energy, water, education, health care, rural handicrafts, people’s action, communication, women’s empowerment and wasteland development.
So far, the Barefoot approach has been replicated in 17 states of India, 15 countries in Africa, 2 countries in Asia and 1 country in South America.
Barefoot Approach and its objectives:
*Provide sustainable solutions to improve the quality of life in poor, rural communities
*Reduce migration by generating employment within villages
*Provide vocational training to semi-literate and illiterate men and women through the process of learning-by-doing
*Reduce drudgery of rural women and girls by providing them access to education, vocational training, health care etc.
*Empower rural women socially, economically and politically
*Encourage community based, owned and managed initiatives
*Demystify technologies and decentralize their uses to improve their quality of living
*Use and promote traditional knowledge and skills that have been passed on through generations
Dr. Bunker Roy, the creator of Barefoot College, answers this question in an interview on Empowering Rural Women:
What do you think needs to be done by the Indian government to make the environment more enabling for enterprises such as yours? Between 2004 and 2009, the Barefoot approach of training illiterate rural women to solar electrify their villages was extended to Africa. By this year, more than 100 semi-literate and illiterate grandmothers from 21 countries in Africa will have solar electrified their own villages. Under a unique scheme called ITEC, the Indian government has covered the air tickets and six months’ training costs to each of these grandmothers to come to India. What the Barefoot College has effectively demonstrated is how sustainable the combination of traditional knowledge and demystified modern skills can be when the tools are in the hands of the rural poor. Our message has reached the far corners of the globe. The respect our community has for the Sun (solar electrification) is really a simple message which is easily replicable in inaccessible, neglected and backward communities all over the world.
For more of this interview go to: http://gulfnews.com/news/world/india/empowering-rural-women-1.635403
This is just one of 1,000’s of efforts across the globe in which women hold a pivotal and vital role. This is also where men and women can come together in equality and work on behalf of the betterment for all.
In one of my favorite stories, Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz stepped up over and over again in spite of her fears, and at the very end found that the bucket of water right in front of her was the key to melting her biggest fear embodied in the “Wicked Witch”.
Curiosity, willingness to engage and collaborate, and perceiving ourselves as an active participant with something to offer will pave the way. I wonder what is right in front of us that will potentiate our coming out of hiding and stepping up?? Don’t forget, it can be simple….
WildlyFreeWoman 