Women Who Thrive, Change The World!

Posts tagged ‘women’s strength’

Wild Soul Woman

A Wild Soul Woman is rooted, powerful, authentic,
instinctual, and awake.
She feels her oneness with the Earth and the strength,
sensuality, and creativity this kindles in her…
~Mary Reynolds Thompson

I have always, since a small child, resonated with the natural world around me. It simply felt an extension of myself, deeply connected to the Source of my being. This sacred connection has continued on into adulthood. I expect that it will always be there right up to that last embodied transition into death.

Returning back into the Earth, encouraging other life into creation.

Without this connection nothing makes sense!

This is why I was thrilled to recently read Reclaiming The Wild Soul by Mary Reynolds Thompson. The content of this book gathers it’s impact from a very large contextual space. A space returning us to nature’s landscapes that hold, nourish and inform us of who we are in every moment of our lives, and intimately connect us to the elements that we are made from.

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An Invitation to Return Home

Reclaiming the Wild Soul: How Earth’s Landscapes Restore Us To Wholeness by Mary Reynolds Thompson

Delving into the wildness of this poetic prose of a book brought me “home”. Home to the elements that make up the “wild being” of who and what I am. The elements of Earth’s scared natural world, calling out to us so powerfully at this time in our planet’s history to come back “home” to the inner landscapes of our wild souls – reconnecting and communing in ways that shift the delicate balance back from the ego’s domestication, taming and destructive actions – into a natural state of cohabiting harmony in intimate and deep listening relationship with the Earth.

I could not stop reading this exquisitely powerful book, and am now on my second read through, stopping to ponder and inhabit the landscapes and the words that flow through me onto the journal page. At times I was reminded of John O’Donohue’s writing that draws us in to a much larger context from a place of simply Being. It is not just a “healing” that needs to happen here, but a complete return to absolute devotion to the wild landscapes and elements that bring us life with every breath we take. Mary Reynolds Thompson has brilliantly succeeded in opening that space for us to explore within and without, guiding us to take effective and conscious action from the wildness of all life – from the depths of our souls.

Gaye Abbott- Author of Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath, Weekly Breathing Spaces to Delight, Rest and Reflect In.

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A few days ago Mary Reynolds Thompson blessed many globally with her presence on an introductory conference call sponsored by Tree Sisters. You can listen to this same call by clicking HERE and also learn about a 6-week on-line course entitled A Wild Soul Woman: A Journey Into Your Untamed Self .

Are you a Wild Soul Woman?

Are you ready to embody and express from your wild soul—the part of you that knows you are one with rivers, forests, and mountains? Are you ready to break free of the fears and cages that hold you back? Are you longing to experience yourself and Earth as the powerful, embodied Feminine? If yes – then this course is an invitation your wild soul has been waiting for.

Join me and 100’s of women globally by registering soon. Starting on July 7th! I will hear you there….. READ MORE HERE

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Gaye Abbott, RYT

NATURAL PASSAGES CONSULTING

SERVICES OFFERED:

Coaching and Editing for Transformative and Visionary Writers

I help you reveal new possibilities in your creative work

Language is fundamental to who we are as biological beings and is the primary vehicle for taking action that produces effective results. It inherently carries within it our identity in the world and the potential for connection and collaboration.

As an advanced practitioner of Jin Shin Jyutsu I am able to see and work with the connection between the body’s energy system and that of language. Conversations actually live in our bodies. Words hold energy that stimulate our biology in various ways.

Transformative writing opens spaces, triggers possibility and stimulates your reader to take effective action.

This is Language as Energy Medicine.

Read More Here

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Jin Shin Jyutsu

Jin Shin Jyutsu is an ancient Art rather than a technique. An Art is a skilled, limitless creation whereas a technique is a mechanical application.

A session of Jin Shin can potentially harmonize, redirect, unblock and recharge the energy flows along the pathways of the body. Read More Here

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Yoga Therapy

Yoga therapy intimately works from the inside out to assist you in discovering areas in body, mind, emotions, spirit that may be contracting the essence of your full potential in life.

A simple peeling away of layers to bring to light and life the beautiful structure of your unique being. Read More Here

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OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.BreathingSpaces.net

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Authenticity, Feminine Presence, Union With Nature

Tagged with:

Aging With Creative Vitality

This last month I have come right smack up against the reality that I am no longer “young” in age and that this wonderful body is breaking down a little bit. This “break down” comes at a time when I am enjoying life tremendously and feeling the absolute freedom of being in elderhood.

When I found out that one of my knees had osteoarthritis and a small lateral meniscus tear it was a wake up call and a reminder that bodies do indeed break down a bit over time no matter how well we take care of them.

For some of us there are many more health challenges that we face, but in spite of those very challenges the human soul that lives within still wants to party! By that I mean live life in the fullest expression possible.

Today I came across a most beautiful project by Lauri Schur called The Beauty of Aging. Lauri, a once upon a time psychotherapist, took her life in a new direction when she decided to find inspiring role models for her own aging process and that of other women. The outcome of this is a one hour documentary film called The Beauty of Aging staring vital women over 80 years old.

Though some have now passed on all were living vibrantly at the time of the film and have many wise things to share with us. Mesmerized by these women and their stories I watched the almost 10 minute trailer posted below and found inspiration and often laughter. I have to admit that Lavada Campbell was a favorite of mine (pictured above with her husband) as her flamboyance (and her transparent discussion about sex!) left me laughing and saying “oh yes sistah!”

Here is some of their wisdom around the aging process:

THE SECRETS OF THE BEAUTY OF AGING

As shared by the stars, Hedda, Lavada & Shirley of the documentaries

HEDDA BOLGAR (103) Documentary short on her life in post-production

Stay connected to people of all ages. Live in the present. Be involved in things

that are meaningful. Give back to people and causes. Enjoy the freedom of old

age.

“I have a strong feeling of connection with everything that’s alive…”

“Somebody once asked me what time of life I liked best…I said now” (in her late

90’s)

“I don’t know why people are so afraid of getting old…there are tremendous

gains…the ease and the security of feeling essentially being able to cope…”

LAVADA CAMPBELL (Died at age 88) Co-Star of “Greedy for Life”

Live life fully. Spirituality is important. Sexuality continues into the older years.

Dance and be active. Service to others is essential.

“I didn’t live in a little box, I lived my life fully..I still got things I want to do.”(At 82)

“You’re never too old to have sex”

“Let go and do a lot of fun things…you know, enjoy life.”

SHIRLEY WINDWARD (Died at age 93) Co-star of “Greedy for Life”

Creativity is important. Meaningful relationships and loving people matters.

Having a sense of humor is helpful. A good attitude and adaptability are crucial.

“There’s creativity everywhere…it’s part of your existance…”

“And we have all these friends around us…the web…”

“Yes I’m greedy, but I’m greedy for experience and for wonderful things to

happen…”

THE BEAUTY OF AGING DOCUMENTARY PROJECT

http://www.beautyofaging.com

These women were a generation, or more, before me and as far as I am concerned have paved the way for the multitude of baby boomers, men and women alike, to co-create the best time of their lives in the last portion of a life well lived!

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Inspiring New Possibilities, Living From the Heart of Life While Co-creating Well Being of Body, Mind, Heart and Planet….One Breath At A Time

http://www.GayeAbbott.com

Gaye Abbott, RYT assists individuals to dissolve the layers that cover the natural innate blueprint we came in with and reveal, through a combination of the energy medicine of Jin Shin Jyutsu, yoga therapy and breath re-patterning, and as spiritual mentor/guide/coach, the larger purpose and co-creative expression that we are here for.

For those interested in receiving private sessions please contact Gaye at: JoyfulGaye@NaturalPassages.com. Travel to your location in the U.S. or globally is available as is Skype mentoring/coaching. Please inquire.

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Authenticity, Creative Expression, Feminine Presence

Tagged with:

Soul Musings/Day 29: Our Sacred Body

Tao Porchon-Lynch, Age 96, Central Park, New York

The image above is one of a stunning yoga series of 108 shots done by photographer Robert Sturman. I am certainly taken by the age of this beautiful model, but more by the combination of natural beauty and a powerful sense of body being the expression of the Soul.

I will be a bit heretical here and blast the often used statement “We are a spiritual being having a human experience”. This polarity and reference to separtness makes me feel a little bit like the body is simply a container for an entity (Spirit/Soul) that is more fully awakened than the bones, muscles, tissues, skin, organs etc that bring us to life each and every moment.

Yet it has been shown that all life is co-creative energy and vibration. This includes the tiniest of particles that make up the body known as you.

This absolute creative masterpiece called “body” is an integral part of what structures us to the world and is an amazing work of sacred art.

Those philosophies that deny the body are simply missing the point for without this scared, interconnected, grounded alchemical structure there would be nothing to experience – the body IS the spiritual Being.

Tao Porchon-Lynch, Age 96, Katonah, New York

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RESOURCE:

http://robertsturmanstudio.com/108-asanas-2014-1/

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NATURAL PASSAGES CONSULTING

Inspiring New Possibilities, Living From the Soul of Life While Co-creating Well Being of Body, Being, Heart and Planet….One Breath At A Time

Soul Musings is a 31-day practice for the month of December immersed in deep listening to what is emerging and unfolding day by day. Eight sentences with occasional resources to explore more deeply.

Each post, invited by Soul, allows the words to emerge unscathed from prior planning, editing, or censorship. Dwelling in uncertainty and dipping a toe into mystery this union of words is an attempt to resonate within an innate way of Being…. returning “home”.

To receive daily posts simply sign up for this blog and you will be notified through e-mail. In addition there will be daily posts on the blogs below. Thank you for being part of this practice with me!

Gaye Abbott – http://www.GayeAbbott.com

OTHER BLOGS:

BreathingSpaces

NaturalWealthJournal

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Acceptance, Awareness, Creative Expression, Vital Health & Well Being

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Soul Musings/Day 27: The Catalyst of “Failure”

As the year draws to an end many of us are aware of shifts in our personal lives and certainly planetary. The thoughts of “success or failure” within these shifts takes us into a polarity that isn’t particularly helpful.

As Oprah says in the video below, “Failure is there to point you in a different direction” and it is most often not fatal. Impermanence makes certain that success is never final.

Thus the life continuum that holds a myriad of experiences opens possibilities for the next steps along our life’s path. Without each one of them we would not be willing to embody the courage to walk a little more to where we are called or be who we are today.

As we step into the uncertainty, as Cheryl Strayed did in the recent movie “Wild”, we see how much of a catalyst “failure” can be. As she reaches her goal and “succeeds” at the end of her hike along the 1,000 miles of the PCT she finds in deep reflection that it is all a continuum…..a continuum that brings us exactly to the place we are in this moment elegantly unfolding the next set of life possibilities.

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NATURAL PASSAGES CONSULTING

Inspiring New Possibilities, Living From the Soul of Life While Co-creating Well Being of Body, Being, Heart and Planet….One Breath At A Time

Soul Musings is a 31-day practice for the month of December immersed in deep listening to what is emerging and unfolding day by day. Eight sentences with occasional resources to explore more deeply.

Gaye Abbott – http://www.GayeAbbott.com

OTHER BLOGS:

BreathingSpaces

NaturalWealthJournal

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Authenticity, Courage, Empowerment, Trusting Unfoldment of Life

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Soul Musings/Day 17: Lit From Within

Holding the families, children that have died and yes the perpetrators in Peshawar in a space of peace as I light candles this morning on their behalf.

Feeling helpless to remedy terrorism leaves us bereft as we reflect on what we can do to shift the pain and suffering of all concerned and effective actions we can take to heal this wound in our world.

The women in the video link below – Strength Within – have taken a pledge to heal themselves and pass that healing and wholeness on to others who may need it.

It may be that taking action from a place of commitment to wholeness of Being changes the landscape of violence within and is then passed to others through awareness and practice of this self-love.

Everyone has the same need, even if deep inside, to be loved and accepted, happy and healthy. Where is the opening for someone who is lost in the violence of terrorism?

It is not simple.

Yet it starts with you….

VIDEO: STRENGTH WITHIN

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NATURAL PASSAGES CONSULTING

Inspiring New Possibilities, Living From the Soul of Life While Co-creating Well Being of Body, Being, Heart and Planet….One Breath At A Time

Soul Musings is a 31-day practice for the month of December immersed in deep listening to what is emerging and unfolding day by day. Eight sentences with occasional resources to explore more deeply.

Gaye Abbott – http://www.GayeAbbott.com

OTHER BLOGS:

BreathingSpaces

NaturalWealthJournal

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Acceptance, Be The Change, Self Love

Tagged with:

Risk or Possibility?

RISK OR POSSIBILITY?

I don’t know about you, but when I hear the word “risk” I often feel a physical reaction in my body. My stomach clamps down just a little, my breath stops or becomes shallow, and my shoulders and jaw tense.

Upon looking it up in Wikipedia I found there were two definitions that drew my attention:

1) “Risk is the potential of losing something of value. Values (such as physical health, social status, emotional well being or financial wealth) can be gained or lost when taking risk resulting from a given action, activity and/or inaction, foreseen or unforeseen.”

2) “Risk can also be defined as the intentional interaction with uncertainty.”

The first definition puts the emphasis on loss by the very first sentence. It makes up for it in the last sentence, but you are left with the overall feeling of potentially “losing something”.

The second definition makes it an effective action that you take with full attention and letting go, or surrendering, into the relationship with uncertainty. This could also be called trusting what is unfolding.

This last brings more spaciousness in the body, whereas the first one could provoke the reaction of clamping down preparing for “battle with the powers that be”. A relationship with uncertainty seems to exist every moment of our lives no matter how much we might wish to control things. It could be seen as the very nature of existence.

Having dedicated the 66^th year of my life to “living fearlessly” during a ritual standing in the waters of the Pacific ocean in July, the ever present “risks” are now seen as a vehicle for opportunity and possibility. That isn’t to say that my old patterns of “security” and “survival” don’t show up, but at least they have a louder voice that I can hear versus the stealth maneuvers they have done in the past.

An example of this showed up this past Sunday morning during my Gentle Yoga with Keith at Dharma Yoga here in Austin. Now this class could be seen as a “risk” unto itself as one never quite knows what the focus of the class will be or what the practice will hold. Rather like life…..thank you Keith!

This day the class was focused on risk and exploring edges…. was definitely not all that gentle, and supplied a multitude of opportunities to choose to move into edges or “stay safe”.

The peak of the class for me was in a two partner assist where we were to choose between two poses to be assisted and supported in. One was something that I knew I could do easily and though may take me into some new territory, was definitely not a “risk”.

The other one was a pose that I hadn’t done for years as it takes upper body strength to push into from the floor, which I have let go of as I have aged. There was no going back and forth between the two in the decision making process.

I knew immediately that the assisted wheel (from standing into a backbend arch coming down with hands on the floor) was to be the one by the energy flow that moved through me when I considered them.

As I felt my two assistants attempt to support me in the best way they knew how I put my total attention on the movement of my spine and the breath. Suddenly there was another pair of hands assisting (my teacher Keith) which created spaciousness for me to celebrate coming into this pose with relative ease and mindful movement.

In those moments a space opened up within. It wasn’t only being in the pose, but the additional after effects from trusting the moment to moment movement of my body, the breath guiding me, and the hands and hearts assisting me.

The joy that I felt and the opening of spaces within spilled over to my assistants who greeted me with brilliant smiles as I came up out of the pose.

Now as some of you know I practice as a yoga teacher/therapist thus in this “risk” I was asked to move out of the “personal” (proving that I know what I am doing, the realm of good/bad, right/wrong, etc..) and instead trust that the unfolding would take me where I was to go.

Let’s just say that is a MUCH LARGER space to play and blossom in!

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NATURAL PASSAGES CONSULTING

Inspiring New Possibilities, Living From the Heart of Life While Co-creating Well Being of Body, Being, Heart and Planet….One Breath At A Time

http://www.GayeAbbott.com

Gaye Abbott, RYT assists individuals to dissolve the layers that cover the natural innate blueprint we came in with and reveal, through a combination of evolutionary energy work, Jin Shin Jyutsu, yoga therapy and breath re-patterning, the larger purpose and co-creative expression that we are here for.

For those interested in receiving private sessions please contact Gaye at: JoyfulGaye@NaturalPassages.com. Travel to your location in the U.S. or globally is available. Please inquire. Skype: gaye.abbott

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Authenticity, Awareness, Empowerment

Tagged with:

Making A Difference As An Elder

Jane Goodall is one of my favorite and inspirational women elders of this day and age. She just turned 80 years old and is still traveling the world as a very powerful agent for positive change in the world. In this last year I have had the honor of connecting with some very powerful women who are not only older than me, but in some cases decades older.

As I near the age of 66 in July there are moments when I wonder if I have the stamina, energy and yes courage to not walk in the footsteps of these amazing women, but instead create my own path, and as Jane says above “decide what difference I want to make”! This question is most probably in many of your minds and hearts these days as our planet demands that we shift our consciousness and take actions from that place of deep listening and opening to new and authentic places within ourselves.

A couple of weeks ago now I was privileged to listen to Gladys McGarey, MD, MD(H) give an hour long talk here in Austin, Texas filled with stories from her life and demonstrating to me that age only inspires a greater longing to be taking action and serving from that higher purpose that we came in with. Dr. Gladys as she likes to be called was brought up in the Himalayas by American parents and climbed up 1000 feet everyday (from 6,000 to 7,000 feet) after school to be embraced by her amah and taken into her shawl where she was comforted after a challenging day at school (she was severely dyslexic).

Gladys McGarey, MD, MD(H), age 93

From this start Dr. Gladys became the “Mother of Holistic Medicine” here in the United States and now has The Foundation for Living Medicine. The new Living Medicine model recognizes the wholeness of life rather than the absence of disease. Dr. Gladys states that life and love are the aspects that really do the healing. She is still seeing patients and is the director of The Foundation for Living Medicine. Dr. Gladys is 93 years old!!

As I watched her that evening speak of the concerns that she is most passionate about I saw a vital, alive, vibrant, intelligent, beautiful woman standing erect in her flowing clothing from India and not once taking a break in an entire hour of speaking. The inspiration for me came not from her words, which were very wise indeed, but from her presence!

It is women like Dr. Gladys, Jane Goodall, Jean Houston, Barbara Marx Hubbard (whom I was privileged to study with for 6 months last year), Lynn Twist, elder women in political, economic, creative and social change roles and the thousands of global “grandmothers” that are doing such important service in the world – who have found what making a difference is in their own unique ways.

There is an inquiry that I use in my breathing workshops often. It asks, “if you were to live your life as you breathed, how would you want to be breathing?” My answer of course is fully, naturally and authentically….which can be the foundation for every thought, word, movement, choice and action we take impacting the world around us.

What kind of difference do you want to make?

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Gaye Abbott, RYT assists individuals to drop the layers that cover the natural innate blueprint we came in with and reveal, through a combination of evolutionary energy work, Jin Shin Jyutsu, Reiki and breath re-patterning, the larger purpose and co-creative expression that we are here for.

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Authenticity, Be The Change, Finding Your Voice

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She Let Go

SHE LET GO ~By Rev. Safire Rose~ “She let go. Without a thought or a word, she let go. She let go of the fear. She let go of the judgments. She let go of the committee of indecision within her. She let go of all the right reasons. Wholly and completely, without hesitation or worry, she let go. She didn’t ask anyone for advice. She didn’t read a book on how to let go. She didn’t search the scriptures. She just let go. She let go of all the memories that held her back. She let go of all the anxiety that kept her from moving forward. She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right. She didn’t promise to let go. She didn’t journal about it. She didn’t write the projected date in her Day Timer. She made no public announcement and put no ad in the paper. She didn’t check the weather report or read her daily horoscope. She just let go. She didn’t analyze whether she should let go. She didn’t call her friends to discuss the matter. She didn’t utter one word. She just let go. No one was around when it happened. There was no applause or congratulations. No one thanked her or praised her. No one noticed a thing. Like a leaf falling from a tree, she just let go. There was no effort. There was no struggle. It wasn’t good. It wasn’t bad. It was what it was and it is just that. In the space of letting go, she let it be. A small smile came over her face. A light breeze blew through her. And the sun and the moon shone for evermore.”

How often in our lives do we strive for the answer or struggle to push onward when everything in us wants to surrender? Surrender meaning not “giving up”, but instead resting in the place of strength and courage that it takes simply to let go and find out what is underneath all of the striving, angst, control and fear.

The quote above reminds me of how awareness can expand and possibilities arise once the walls come down and the striving and struggle stops. Once the ego stops fueling the mind and the quest for answers becomes something that is less for security and more for being willing to rest in and act from the being of who we are. Trusting that being…

I remember a very powerful dream that I had quite some years ago during a time that I was teetering on the edge of simply letting go or hacking my way through the challenges that presented and proving to myself that “I could do it”. In this dream I was walking with many others along a trail out in nature and we were all traveling towards a “university of higher learning and knowing”.

I noticed that some had come with equipment – ropes, backpacks and such – and was curious about why. As we drew closer to being able to see the “University” in the distance we came to an abrupt halt where the path apparently ended and a cliff with a very steep drop was right before us. I watched as others put on climbing gear and started repelling down the dangerous slope. A few fell, others became injured and many made it down to continue on their journey.

As I stood at the cliff side filled with fear and indecision about whether I wanted to go on or not and if so how I would go about it, my thoughts hit a point of stillness, a full breath arose, and I was guided to look to my left. There in full view was a continuation of the path which meandered through the forest out into open valley and right to the doors of the “University”.

Sometimes we are challenged to strengthen the knowing of who we are by moving through obstacles and barriers in our lives. When these challenges become a means to “prove ourselves”, versus inhabit ourselves more fully, then there is a decision to make. In this dream I made the decision to take the path to the left.

Not out of fear of the challenges on the cliff side or having to prove that I could do it, but out of a place of letting go into my breath, into the moment and being curious enough to wait and see what would unfold. There is no right or wrong decision to have made in this dream….and perhaps you will find even deeper meaning for yourself….yet it was in simply letting go and becoming curious that it became clear what my choice was to be.

….and the sun and the moon shone forever more.

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OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

http://gayeabbott.com/books/

Category:

Acceptance, Awareness, Self Love

Tagged with:

The Rescue Syndrome

OK, I know many of us got sucked into the fairy tales that we were told as young girls and boys. Some of them had good things to teach us….and others lead to belief systems into adulthood that caught us in patterns which were not necessarily the healthiest for our whole being. Many of these tales had the feminine as helpless and/or in a precarious situation so that masculine needed to save her (read rescue here)….and invariably he became captivated by her beauty (perhaps the beginning of a need for make up and designer clothing?)

A few weeks back I was at a gathering of artists (writers, painters, singers, photographers…..) and we were asked to think of a pattern that we would like to let go of and then capture the image/words on paper with pen/colored marker/crayon/paint so that we could share it with the others. This was just the beginning of the ritual.

Immediately I saw a scene similar to the one above (you will of course remember “Rupunzel, Rupunzel let down your hair”) however, instead of the masculine presence climbing up my hair to rescue me from the tower that had no way out I saw him riding the white horse across the plains as I screamed “Help! Help! (kind of like Scarlet O’Hara with Rhett Butler or the damsel in distress tied to the railroad tracks).

No, my horse did not look like this…..

Well, my first thought was “I can’t draw!”, but decided right then and there that I would not ask for a way out of this exercise, but instead picked up colored felt tipped pens and started in on my masterpiece. Now if you put a group of drawings by a kindergarten class up on the wall let’s just say mine would fit right in. BUT, I actually had fun doing it and laughed all the way through my creation. (you should have seen the horse!!)

Believe it or not the other members of the group did get what I had drawn when I shared and before the end of the evening was over with we had all gone outside, stood around a fire and tossed our out lived and no longer needed patterns into the flames.

It was very curious to me that this is the pattern that showed up as I pride myself on being such an “independent women”, but when I really got down to it I realized that this pattern has lasted a very long time. It actually has many levels to it including taking the role of the rescuer as well. (switch the picture above in your mind and place a beautiful woman with her heart in her hand (no sword baby!) taking off to rescue everyone she can possibly “save”, but leaving her own needs somewhere behind on the road she is traveling.)

To keep this simple though let’s talk about the one being rescued.

As I see it there is a “light” and “dark” side to the “rescue syndrome”. The light is when we graciously accept help when needed and then use it as a springboard for making distinctions and opening to possibility. Granted there are times in life when we need someone to be there for us and it is an act of self love to allow that person/s to help us. Just like being able to give and receive love with equal ease.

Now for the dark side of this pattern. For me I saw it manifest a great deal in the financial realm oftentimes cleverly disguised in credit card use, asking for (or accepting from self identified “rescuer’s”) personal loans, and oh yes taking jobs that did not honor who I was in my fullest expression or promoting other people’s businesses/visions – all at the expense of trusting my own.

In younger years the rescue came in the need to be loved, desired, accepted and to belong and often came in the form of relationship. In more mature years that is still present under the surface, but it goes much deeper – honoring the potential of my own being in fullest expression, creativity and soul purpose. Trusting that I have all that it takes to be successful in whatever endeavor I take on whether it be a business, artistic expression, relationship or spiritual quest.

This means a weaving of the Divine Feminine and the Divine Masculine – versus the Doubtful and Disempowered Feminine with the Static Masculine. This tapestry happens inside of us and then is reflected in the outside circumstances and relationships of our lives.

No longer able to walk away from ourselves we instead turn back to face ourselves and take a really close look at the magnificent being that we are.

It may take time to integrate all of the parts, and there may be times when we are about to fall into the “rescue syndrome” once again….but I am willing to bet that once you have seen who you are and the potential that you have there will be no turning back!

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Gaye Abbott, RYT assists individuals to drop the layers that cover the natural innate blueprint we came in with and reveal, through a combination of evolutionary energy work, Jin Shin Jyutus, Reiki, mentoring, yoga therapy and breath re-patterning, the larger purpose and co-creative expression that we are here for.

WEBSITE: www.GayeAbbott.com

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:
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Assumptions About Women – Taking A Stand

A few days ago I was kept awake off and on all night after reading the memoir – Unbowed – of Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and mother creator of The Green Belt Movement in Kenya, Africa. Every time I awoke her persistence, commitment and passion for what she stood for was infiltrating into my being.

About six years ago now I missed seeing Wangari at a Global Healing Conference in Bali, Indonesia. I remember clearly that I had been so excited that she was going to be with us as well as Desmond Tutu, Lynn Twist and other Nobel laureates. Unfortunately, at the last minute she could not travel to Bali. I felt a great loss.

I knew that she had passed on in 2011 but did not know why, so the day after this wakefulness happened I found out the cause of her death and the date. She died on 9/25/2011 – the same day/evening that she visited me so intensely!!

She has re-entered my life through a global organization called TreeSisters – birthed into this world by Clare Dakin. Clare follows in Wangari’s footsteps as she passionately upholds the importance of reforesting our planet – and by women!! Part of membership in being a part of this planet Earth is to take a stand as Wangari, Clare, Lynn Twist (Pachamama Alliance), Jane Goodall , Barbara Marx Hubbard and so many other women are doing now as we experience environmental, social justice, economic and deep spiritual crises.

These imbalances have been co-created by splitting off from our true nature – the Earth. We have forgotten our roles as stewards of the Earth and have become dis-eased in the process. The rampant incidence of depression, anxiety, panic and other disease processes mirrors the very split from that which has given us life. Natures cycles are women’s cycles!

We all know the assumptions that have been held in regards to women for so many centuries and now seems the time to upset the apple cart in regards to these very assumptions. The one that has hurt us the most – and one which we have bought into – is “As a woman I am powerless”. There were good reasons to think so down through the ages, but not now, not ever again.

Why do I say that? Because not only are women waking up and coming out in our full embodied expressions, but we are standing with each other to facilitate the changes that so many of us are committed to on behalf of the well being of all life here. We don’t have to step forward without fear, we simply need to be persistent and form alliances with others that are willing to bring their expression to the creative solutions and innovations.

As Wangari says in Unbowed: “What people see as fearlessness is really persistence. Because I am focused on the solution, I don’t see danger. Because I don’t see danger, I don’t allow the mind to imagine what might happen to me, which is my definition of fear. If you don’t foresee the danger and see only the solution, then you can defy anyone and appear strong and fearless.”

I love this quote as in her life she faced injury, life threats, imprisonment, gender discrimination, and great opposition from the political powers that were present as she was growing The Green Belt Movement. Today this very movement has been responsible for 51 million trees being planted in Kenya and thousands of women finding their own power and purpose in life thus affecting the quality of life in her country.

She says about those that have walked by her side: “Throughout my life, I have never stopped to strategize about my next steps. I often just keep walking along, through whichever door opens. I have been on a journey and this journey has never stopped. When the journey is acknowledged and sustained by those I work with, they are a source of inspiration, energy, and encouragement. They are the reasons I kept walking, and will keep walking, as long as my knees hold out.”

Now take some time to think about women that inspire you, whether they are present day or from the past. I have chosen those that are working on behalf of our environment and sustainable living and thriving, however yours may be from any walk of life or focus. What qualities did/do they possess? They may have been or are called “heretics” and if they are, take a very careful look at who is naming them. Assumptions are dangerous and at the core are what got us to the place we are today tipping over into imbalances that will and are seriously affecting us all.

I say to each of you – take a stand! At our core we all have the “stuff” that is needed to “take a stand” even if that is simply being absolutely true to our own unique expression and unfailingly trusting it. We are all healers and creators. Let us trust our soul, honor our spirit, open our heart, transform our mind and heal our bodies. ( Heart of the Healer by Don Oscar Miro-Quesada, Peruvian curandero).

Come into ritual space with each other and co-create Earth centered living from the heart ignited by soul and spirit….We can have a gentle birth to the next stage of evolution by accepting, trusting, and stepping into the innate power that we have been given by simply being born a woman. You are both the midwives and the ones that are giving birth!!

I Am

We Are

Here Now

One Within

The story of the hummingbird by Wangari Maathai:

Taking Root trailer – The story of Wangari Maathai and The Green Belt Movement

http://www.takingrootfilm.com/trailer.htme

…AND ONE MORE TASTY GIFT! GET UP AND DANCE!! DON’T FORGET THE PASSION!!

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**NOTE: If you live in Austin, Texas or near by please join us for a showing of the film Taking Root on 10/27/13 co-sponsored by the local Sierra Club, global TreeSisters, and me – Natural Passages Consulting. A representative from Pachamama Alliance will also be with us!! Go to htt://www.GayeAbbott.com and click on the EVENTS tab.

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WEBSITE: http://www.GayeAbbott.com

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Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:

www.GayeAbbott.com/books/

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