Why do I write to you?

Hello Dear Friends,

I hope this finds you well today! 

It’s been awhile. 

The muse hasn’t been very active for me and I try not to write if I don’t have anything to say!!

However, someone asked me this question the other day:

Why do I write a blog/newsletters? 

What a great question to explore and

Here’s what came:

• Because a friend of mine told me I needed a bigger audience than her!

• Because one of the qualities I have is input (this is from strengthsfinder, my other top four qualities are; developer, empathy, connectivity and belief). You can click on input to read the definition, or the short story, is we collect information and store it!

• Because I like being creative, silly, kind, intense and helpful.

• Because years ago my life coach asked if I wanted to give talks, or write---as a way to get myself out in the world---I was less terrified (not by much though) of writing than I was of standing up in front of people.

• Because I love the way a pen moves across a page and how much I’ve grown by writing something almost everyday.

• Because my voracious love of reading has, is, does--radically change how I see the world-- and I feel re-inspired when I pass that along to you!

• Because I am an introvert and it’s an easy way to connect.

• Because I love my work and the guidebooks we create and believe they are helpful in this time of deep transformation!

• Because I am a coach, need clients, and am not a great marketer. It’s a gentle way to remind people I am here.

• Because I love poetry and music and cooking!

• Because I enjoy sharing simple practices or insights that have helped me and/or my clients.

• Because I really do want to be part of creating a world that works for all and this feels like it’s part of my work to do!

That’s it!

Now ask yourself a question about something you do with your time that you might want to get clearer about;

Why am I doing this job? 

Why am I in this relationship? 

Why do I treat my body this way? 

Why do I tell myself that?

Why do I spend time doing____? 

Why_______________________?

Play with it. See what comes.

Let me know what you learned. 

And this poem is one I memorized in a few minutes years ago--which sort of blew my mind--the ease with which I learned it---and how much it resonates as truth to me now. 

A dreamy playlist

And I just had some halloumi  the other day, yummy, and found this recipe to eat more of it! 

Soon!

Carol

p.s. If you find my newsletter helpful or hopeful send it along to a friend!
p.s.s. the dog in the photo is my son's girlfriends dog Mia who is the most joyful, exuberant being I get to be in regular contact with!

The Floor as a Body!

This morning.
I was lying on the floor as usual.
Preparing to move. Some dancish, yogaish, feldenkrais-y---wake up my body movement. 
And I put on this song by Kamai. 

Whale sounds.
Yummy.

The vocalizations began entering my body. I wasn't just hearing. My body was in full listening mode.
My head began to turn, my shoulders moved up and down, my chin dipped and swayed and suddenly my body was dancing with the floor, not dancing on the floor.
A subtle, super powerful shift in the moment. 
My awareness of the floor as my dance partner.
The floor taking my weight and lifting it off.
Oh my. 

Acknowledging the floor as a partner to be in relationship with is not a completely novel idea. I sense that partnership when I lie down on in the Grassy Meadow under a Tree in the Spring time, or when my body is floating buoyantly in a Mountain Lake.

However today for whatever reason it felt reborn. Reawakened. Reimagined,  in such an awe inspiring delightful way, that before the 11 minute song was over, I turned to dance with the air around me. 

I/we are wired for relationship.
And in this time, for many, of limited contact with other humans a relationship with the floor, or air, while perhaps sounding crazy, is also such a gift to receive.

Try it!!

I encourage you to take a 4 minute break sometime today.

Lie on your back on the floor.

Put on this song. (or pick a favorite of yours!)

Close your eyes. 

Let the sounds enter your body.

Let it lead your body to begin to move.
Imagine the floor is your partner. 

How do you move with it now. 

Small or big gestures. 

Simply play. Explore. 

Turn over on your front and try it.

Have 4 minutes of unabashed exploration.

Notice how you feel afterwards?

Because guess what? 

I think we are in relationship with everything around us.
Even when I forget and need to be reminded by the floor and the hauntingly beautiful sounds of whales.  
It's a moment of time to treasure.
In the annals of life as we know it.

And speaking of relationships.
And intimacy. My Wonder upRising co-creator Casey and I, are about to launch two new guidebooks on relational intimacy. Guidebooks designed to retrieve wholeheartedness and lift up our relational selves!
They were designed to explore human to human relationships mostly, however I realized this morning -- sated from the revolutionary moments of relationship to air and floor, they can be so much more. As always. Where my heart tends to lead me...I follow.

We’ll keep you posted about the launch and launch party in case you are interested in checking them out. Or you can click on this post!

Many blessings to you,

Carol

Who Is Driving the Bus?

There is a lot UP in the world right now. The Great Turning or The Great Unraveling. 

I prefer to point my heart, my head, and my actions towards it being a Turning. I function better that way!

And in the last few months I have been unraveling, a bit, in my own life. The loss of my beloved 94 year old mother has brought a few things to the surface for me to reweave.

To Turn towards.

On top of that loss. We have the coronavirus, and elections, and too warm February’s, and trees being marked to kill, and the small daily pile ups. 

I have been practicing for decades, to welcome what comes. To be with my feelings, and thoughts, and sensations, with kindness. To be hospitable and attentive, especially with discomfort.  

So unsettledness...
Which has not been my middle name, has arrived with a flourish. 
A throbbing in the center of my chest. 
A clutch in my stomach. 
A jumpiness.
Tears well, and spill.
Many sleepless nights.
And fear draws closer to the surface. 
Rises up in the inky black middle of the night. 
Slinks in as the day ends
When my resilience has waned.

So I ask myself.

A lot.
These days.

Who's driving the bus? 


Because welcoming and letting something drive are two very different things. 

I know that fear is not a good driver. 
Nor unsettledness. 
Nor worry. 

Asking myself; Who’s driving the bus?, has become a beautiful practice. 

When I notice unsettledness, or fear, or worry running the show. I pause.  I remind myself. Everything is welcome. But not everything can drive. 

I take a moment or two to imagine the bus. It’s a school bus. Not the biggest one. Large enough.

And I see my wisest self in the driver's seat. 

She is wearing her favorite sassy red cotton dress, and her tall brown boots that tie up the front of her calves.

She is smiling.

Her smile is chameleon like.

Sometimes it’s serene. 

Sometimes fierce and compassionate. 

And other times filled with laughter. 

She feels relaxed, alert, and attentive. 

She is wearing a pin that says, Creating A World that Works for All, that she got from Shariff Abdullah. 

She is the most skilled and compassionate driver. 

She’s got this. 

She swivels her neck to see who is riding with her. One passenger so jumpy she is all but falling out of her seat, another curled in a ball, head down. Other’s chatting. Or distracted. 

She acknowledges them all, silently, kindly, and turns back to face the road. 

She’s got this.

The next time you notice your bus running amok, check and see who is driving?

If it’s not the part of you that is best suited, simply offer them a seat on the bus. You don’t have to kick them off. 

Then pause.  Imagine, feel, and sense into that wisest part of you.  Have them sit in the drivers seat! Take a breath. Feel your feet. Present. Eyes forward.  

And watch what happens.

It works every time I remember to do it. A little magic. 

Need some help with this. Email me for a free first session.

Want to read a short article I wrote a few years ago on listening, attention and Devotion?

Let me know how it goes.
You've got this.
Hugs,
Carol

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