retreat, integrate, repeat

I remember the day my teacher Jim and I met to plan our first workshop together. When checking in for guidance before our meeting, I saw in my mind's eye a Prairie Dog, ducking into a hole. And the word retreat came to mind. Oh! Retreat! As in, not a 2 hour class but a weekend retreat.

So we sat together, Jim and I, in a space of availability. How might we serve? When I shared my vision of a retreat, I told him but I don't know where. And Jim chuckled, "I have the space. I built it."

And so the conversation, the creation, continued to unfold effortlessly. The goal, the experiences, everything flowed right in. We've done the Pathways Retreat together quite a few times now. Each one effortless, unique, and deeply transformative for us.

I realize now, that the space between retreats is an incredible integration time, and just as necessary as the retreats. Retreat-integrate-repeat.  How beautiful all the moments work together. Sometimes I still wish it was all ups and firey and woo! But it can't be. I'm embracing all the experiences and the spaces between...The Current Moment. And on a smaller scale each day, retreat-integrate-repeat.

Next retreat is Jan 22-24th. The prairie dog is being joined by Time and Space and Beyond Time & Space. Um. No animal rep for them at the moment. LOL.  It's going to be sooo different with this Energy Shift going on and the changes of 2010. Bring it! Pathways to Soul Wisdom Retreat.

9 reasons to adore nakedness, i mean tarot

1. Nakedness. Seriously. Naked women, naked truth, transparency. You pick the order.
2. Singing. Your inner wisdom doesn't just speak to you with cards, it SINGS to you! A raw, sweet, in your face song. Every song is different, but an endless possibility of songs, a complex range of notes. Velvety and grinding. Yum.
   
3. Makes the unseen seen. Whether it's your emotions, your thoughts, how energy is flowing, possibilities, emptiness, consciousness...you can see and experience vibrations happening in a more concrete way.
4. Helps the overly heady. Holistic patterns, rhythms. Helps bring right brain thinking, not just linear thinking. Also, drops you into your body by activating your hands touching the cards. For someone who can be overly analytical, I find it helps balance me and get me into heart-mind.
5. Symbol heaven. Objects, Colors, Directions, Planets, Signs, Animals, Numbers. Lightness, Darkness....so many gateways to get your attention and connect with meaningful insight. A thorough collection and range of consciousness to draw upon.
   
6. Storytelling. Rather than just a word or vibe, a story lays out before you. A pattern. A pathway that draws you deeper into you, deeper into truth, deeper into creation...if you listen to the whispers of the story, and the characters, and the theme...beautiful.
   
7. Answers, nice. Learning to question, priceless. Layouts teach you to ask, analyze, organize. And then when there are no cards, your ability to examine complex relationships is right there, in a layout/spread in your mind. Insights even come to a particular location in a 'frame' in my mind...on the right are possibilities, on the left are motivations. Below, what is hidden, above are actions. I don't need cards to have insights or visions show up in certain places within my mind. Organizing clarity.
   
8. Appearing friends. The cards just show up in my mind sometimes. They are friends. Honest friends, tricky friends, mischievous friends, sweet as honey friends....And just like different friends meet different needs, the cards just dance right up into my consciousness and say hello, here is what you seek....look closely at this part of me.
9. Nakedness. Seriously. Strip down and see the truth, baby...it's staring right at you.

Tools are just tools. I see naked, someone else sees whatever they see. The tool bearer is where the insight lays. Cardsl can really help people who are visual or clairvoyant. Can also help someone who is claircognizant (I just know!  This is my primary sense.) to learn to identify intuitions. I've never taught a class specifically on using cards, but this tool was instrumental in helping me trust and be accurate. Maybe someday.

Do you use or like Tarot? Or what helps you gain insight?

snakes talk to me

Okay. Snakes don't exactly talk to me. Spirit talks through snakes to me.

Okay. Spirit doesn't exactly talk through snakes to me, spirit talks through everything to me.

Now...on to the snake story...

I went for a lomi lomi massage (can you say yum!) and was early for my appointment. I thought to go in because I could start early, but my attention drew me around the parking lot to the side of the building. Sure, fine, a nice little walk on the grass before my appointment. Why not. I wanted to get the relationship thoughts I was having out of my head so I could just enjoy the appointment. Uneventful. Grounding. Not really sure why I'm here. Walk back towards studio and that's when it happened...

Check out the garter snake there! My vibes start pinging. Pay attention. Hello there little guy. What's up. I start watching. Oh, 2 snakes! Laughing. Okay, spirit, I'm paying attention. I know you don't see two snakes in wild together very often. What do you want to show me about relationships. I'm open. (I know that I'll notice what I need to notice.) So here's what I notice:

• One snake leaves the other snake. (Really?I breathe into whatever is so. Snakes are all about shedding and growth. Non-emotional. Are we outgrowing each other? Is my big expansion lately going to move me away from this relationship? I'm open to guidance.)
• Then the snake comes back, hmmm, and gets the other snake to follow. (Not sure if this is me or him. Seems irrelevant, no vibe there. Seems like either of us can venture off and come back. Ping. Independence. Curious. Seems the message is growth and sharing, I help him grow.)
• Then the other snakes leaves, and comes back and gets the first snake. And this pattern repeats several times. (Okay. We don't outgrow each other. We each grow our own ways. We do our own thing and reconnect with each other. We each teach each other. And we each are shedding big patterns and growing. Got it. Thanks, loves.)

It was beautiful watching this continuous dance back and forth between the snakes. And they finally wrap all around each other. It's lovely. I get it. Thanks for teaching me more about interdependence.

Spirit is everywhere, everything. I notice what I notice. And everything teaches me (in surprising ways). And everything supports me (in surprising ways). And everything is wonder.

How does spirit talk to you through animals and nature?

burb-ing, bourbon vibe

The suburbs definitely have a different vibe for me then the city and the mountains and the beach. It's a different ambience, environment, sense about the place. I believe most people can relate to sensing how a place feels different. Well, really, everything has a vibe, and we can tune into the sense about a store, a person, even an idea.

Well, the idea of the burbs is just flat for me. It's not wavy, or sparkly. It's not fast or slow. It's just flat, like a flatliner. Much sameness. Not much movement. Not much change. I'm far more at peace in the city or in the mountains. Both very different types of movement, but movement. And this is no judgment on the suburbs, just my relationship to it.

I'm a bourbon drinker. I like the spice of it. Prefer that to a Vodka or a Gin, for example. I prefer a Shiraz wine to a Merlot, a chai to a green tea, a Blue Moon to a Bud Light.. And when I used to drink soda, I drank a Dr. Pepper rather than a Coke. To me, I relate the burbs to shelf Vodka, not much taste or flavor for me. Once when I did a reading for someone, and was tuning into the vibe of her move, I got the sense of bourbon and wondered what it meant. I intuitively asked, and got that the move would bring her a kick and some spice. Being descriptive and using analogies helps a lot in this work. And a sip of bourbon after the occasional hard reading is okay, too.

Maybe if I drink more bourbon in the burbs, there will be more movement for me. :) I think I'll start putting an intention out there to find a bourbon place to live, for me. Hmm, I wonder what that will bring! I better word that one carefully!

how the suburban dream turned into a medieval fairy tale, turned into a suburban hope

My client's relationship played out before me like a fairy tale with her man being the proud lord of the manor and ruler of his possession and kingdom, not to mention his wife.

She wasn’t liking that part much and was feeling lonely. Everyone thought she had the princess life and she put on the good smile but was really suffocating underneath. I could feel her choking back and repressing those thoughts & emotions because she feared it could ruin her life. It was hurting her deeply inside.

But beautifully, the fairy tale started to shift and I could see her starting to rule, like a queen rather than princess trapped in a castle. Instead of her husband being the lord, he could be the knight and do her bidding. Of course, a good ruler, a good leader, is a servant. And for it to really work, as the queen, she needed to quietly serve with the intention of doing the best for her subject, her loyal and most trusted knight. Hilarious guidance. She could invite him to new tasks in the kingdom, especially within the castle (the outer, material structures is built, now build the intellectual and emotional structure). This was her area to rule, lead and bring depth to their relationship.

As a lord, he was merely doing what he knew how to do, even if it was controlling. I could see he would be a willing participant in this shift of power to a better balance together.

It was a lovely scene. The queen would need to be quite creative with her tasks. I believe she can do it. She's strong. I hope they build this new life together. That was pretty hilarious and charming all at once. Suburbs turned medieval. Whatever works.