And then... the Light.

“The wound is the place where the Light enters you.”~ Jalaluddin Rumi

I peruse these words sometimes.

Wander back over the terrain I've covered, carried by the breadcrumbs of image.. language... soundbyte... & prayer that I've scattered along the way.  

And I'm struck sometimes by the melancholy of  what's there.  
There is a stream of ennui, an undercurrent of not-quite-right-ness that permeates this river of Thought.

And frankly, I'm all right with that.

In the happy-shiny world of "Wellness" and Namaste, there can be an overbearing tendency toward "keeping it light".  This propensity toward a sort of fierce happiness.  
Throw up a Rumi quote.  
A pretty, perfectly-filtered shot of a handstand.  
A green smoothie.  
A beach.  
The visage of the placid, perfectly-groomed yogi poised Just So atop their meditation cushion.  

And all of it is sparkling & grand.
(& Believe me, after a grazillion straight days of literal rain in my neck 'o the woods, I am not knocking some pretty pictures of Sunshine!!)

And yet...

I wanna give voice to the shadowy bits.
I wanna speak to the places that ache.
I wanna stand in the tiny patch of ground which I've been granted, lift up the mini-megaphone that's in my hands - and speak to the BIG WHY - behind all the silvery-sweet-even-saccarahin WHAT's that permeate this modern permutation of Yoga.  Practice.  Tending the Sacred.  Dipping into the Well.  All that.

There's a reason why We Do the Things We DO.

I roll out my mat in the morning not in some vain effort to achieve an outward physical appearance or form - but to Love up the one that I'm in.  To show up - strong, gentle, steady, listening - and offer what medicine I have to this imperfect body I possess.  

I sit upon the cushion for a bit each day not because I am hoping to levitate out of the mess and muck swirling around me and out there in the World - but to find a still point inside of it - and carry that clarity into the places that have need.

I bust out the tiny, ill-tuned ukulele and sing a line or two each day, not because I imagine that my small voice echoes magically out into the Eher and shifts the whole vibration of everyone around me.  
I know it changes me.  
I know these small acts of daily devotion re-arrange my own humble particles and cells.  They help me shift what needs shifting - deep within - so that I may once more open my eyes - re-enter the landscape around me - awake - empowered - ready to do the work of Healing in a broken world.  

And so I give voice to the Sadness.  
I paint a picture of the fracture and the futility I feel sometimes.

I let the Wound have a Voice.
So that I may point the way back to the Bigger Light - that's wanting to get through.

I turn there to remind myself - and hopefully us all, as well - that all these lovely things - handstands and smoothies and practices of all shapes and sorts - are not here to lift us up OUT of the pain and struggle inside this world.  
But to equip us to step more deeply into it. 

These practices our Salve, the nectar, the Balm.
And we fill our cups - to take it back out to Wherever There is NEED.

As we head into this (still wet, winter-hangover-style) season of Spring, I feel my energy begin to surge once more.
I feel the call to sweep through the house, take stock of what's there - & let go of anything that's not useful or calling in Joy.  

I feel ready to ignite the practices that uplift & sustain me once more.  

To harness the tools available me - to fully step into this new season - and all the ripening, growth and potential it contains.  

To that end, I'm opening up a few toolkits, as it were, to share with you all.  

*For the past two months, I've had the great delight of sharing the practices of the Divine Feminine with a sweet, spirited group of women.  
We've gathered virtually inside the energy of the New Moon to share teachings, stories, and rituals related to different facets of the goddess (and, in turn, ourselves).  

We call this circle The Shakti Sessions, and you can read a little bit more about it here.  

*For this month, I've decided to re-open the circle to those who might like a taste of this sweet work that we do for a single-month-only price of $47.

This month, we're working with the energy of Durga - the Mother.  The Warrior.  Who uses her skill & great, fierce presence ( & compassion) to conduit change inside the world.  She is the embodiment of Strength.  She is Love as an active, potent & radical force in the World.  She is the energy we call upon when we are ready to step forth and do Real, powerful, change-making work in our lives, our families, our communities and more.  

The work of this course includes:::
Weekly Insights, Stories & Practices to your Inbox...
            ~ Ideas & Inspiration for building/maintaining/refreshing your Altar 
           ~ Meditations & Visualizations to work with and build into your existing Practice{s}  - or to start one up!
            ~ Journaling prompts to help you carve out Time and Contemplation to be inside the Truths wanting to revealed
           ~ Creative Rituals & Ideas to integrate into your weekly rhythms and routines
            ~ Mantra Recordings to take anywhere you go - so you can practice wherever your Life currently resides
           ~Embodiment Practices - for integrating the Wisdom of Contemplative Practice into the Fabric of the Everyday 
           ~ Herbal & Dietary Wisdom - to foster growth & healing on a Cellular Level
            ~ Suggestions for Sacred Adornment & Self-Care Practices

The work and feedback from this Circle already has been tremendous.  

 "Beautiful and just what I needed..." ~Carla
             
"What an awesome session today. Thanks for putting this together. I'm so glad I showed up.   Can't wait to keep playing in the visionary landscape of clearing, cleansing, grounding, cosmicing, and calling in the goddesses. I love your classes!!!! I am super glad to be on this path, on another adventure with you. Your online classes are the best!" ~ Rebecca

"I am really enjoying the visualization/meditation offered on the Call. I've been using that image frequently of calling my energy back to me and letthing go what is not mine down the 'grounding cord'. I love it.  Thank you." ~ Therese

*If you feel called to join us, please feel free to drop me a line. 
*Scoot on over to the larger course info page, and find out a bit more.
​*Or sign up here for the month.  
(Your One-month price of $47 gets you lifetime access to our private FB group & to the monthly New Moon Live Calls as well for the duration of the Course.) 
​

If you're feeling yourself in need of a little tune-up or some Spring Cleaning....
​
Consider joining us inside the (free) private Temple Days FB Group.  

*There, each week, I pop in with a little love from the SElf-Care Toolkit.  Sharing bits of movement, meditation, herbal wisdom & some sweet & juicy tea-cup chats with other women inside this rich Community - to talk about what practices they employ in their day-to-day that re-connect them to their innate sense of Joy, Wellbeing, Strength & the Sacred - in the temple of their Body, Mind & Heart.  
Would love to have you there. *