Sister,
When was the last time you were brought to your knees?
Literally or figuratively?
There is you, in one corner.
And there is that next step that you need to take, in the other corner, looking more like your opponent than your ally. You know you have to get yourself up and take it, but that next step seems so impossible, or you are just so tired, disappointed, overwhelmed, exhausted, defeated, and you just do not, I tell you, do not have it in you to even move.
When at that crazy crossroads, how do you find the strength to go on?
I just got back from a trip to Spain, with my daughter Maggie and a group of parents, kids, and teachers. We hiked the Camino de Santiago, in Galicia, the northwest part of Spain, which is a centuries-old pilgrimage, with pre-Christian roots, that leads to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. We travelled 115 kilometers in 6 days.
And yes, it was a pilgrimage.
There is no other way to describe the sense of being utterly lost, and utterly found.
I am not what you might call an experienced hiker.
Walking around New York City thinking I walk a lot is not hiking. continue reading…
Darling,
I am going through this absolutely agonizingly delicious process, right now, of clearing out and reorganizing my office. (Impatient sigh.) Taking each book from the shelf, holding it in my hand, and deciding — do I want this thing? Will I read it again? Did I ever read it? Am I keeping it because it was a gift? Should I donate it? The whole process makes me lightheaded and queasy. I am working with an organizer, and it still smarts.
That is, until one shelf is done. And then another. And then, a whole mess of oxygen and space and light are freed up. Instead of feeling congested and pressed when I sit at my desk, I feel happy. And free. And when someone asks me for a book, I can race to the shelf and pick it up, knowing just where it is. Oh, what a feeling. No more agonizing over which pile it lives behind! I am like a gazelle when I reach for a book — no, more like a bird of prey, swooping down from a mountain, targeting my kill.
My poetry is back. I am myself again. And all I did was handle my own backlog of clutter and chaos. And I did it right on schedule. It is spring right now, after all.
Time for a little spring cleaning, anyone? continue reading…
Darling,
So grateful.
So moved.
So overwhelmed.
Still floating in the ecstatic brew of the fragrant spell of Mastery.
I am deeply grateful for the 250 exquisite women who have come together for this incredible 9-month journey.
Amazing.
Beautiful.
These women are filled with deafening passion, just waiting to erupt in bold new forms.
Voices that want to be heard.
Adventures that want to be lived.
Beauty that wants to be honored.
Batons twirling, we are on the trail.
Here’s what a few Mastery students had to say about this past weekend:
“I sat in the back on day one making snarky comments, thinking the whole thing was hokey, somewhat crass and feeling like the girl in a Chorus Line—I felt nothing. continue reading…
Darling,
Do you get as irritated as I do when you hear the phrase “having it all”?
Bleh.
I have met that woman.
I have been that woman.
Madly dashing around, trying to look good, feel good, do good, be good.
There is nothing more exhausting, really.
Even thinking about “having it all” makes me want to take a nap.
And yet, aren’t there those confusing times where it seems that you have simply bottomless energy, and you are living your passion?
Many women say it’s usually after a great piece of ass.
Or a night of karaoke.
Or a rock concert.
Not many women say that being a wife and mom feels that way.
So.
How do we bring ecstasy into our reality?
continue reading…
Darling,
Women are like trees.
When we are given fertile soil, glorious sunshine, abundant water, and a perfect climate, not only will we thrive and grow, but we will provide so much beauty and joy and nourishment for others.
But what are the ingredients necessary to cultivate a superior environment for a woman?
What causes her to thrive and be spectacularly healthy and creative?
This is an important question to ask yourself.
Are you living in an environment that nourishes you?
Or leaves you malnourished?
I wanted to share the story of a Mastery grad, Sister Goddess Darline, so you can experience exactly what happens to a woman when she is cut off from her power source, and then celebrate with her and for her, as she gets plugged back in…
Before I entered Mastery in the spring of 2011, the best way that I can describe my life was flat, numb, dimensionless, and grey. There were few ups and many downs. My marriage was swirling the toilet bowl. I had many acquaintances but few if any friends. I had a fledgling women’s health business that, despite my best efforts at the time, I couldn’t get to turn a profit. My family and close friends were thousands of miles away on each of the country’s coasts, and basically the only thing that I seemed to do with even marginal aplomb was raise my kids. continue reading…
I just got back from a trip to Spain, with my daughter Maggie and a group of parents, kids, and teachers. We hiked the Camino de Santiago, in Galicia, the northwest part of Spain, which is a centuries-old pilgrimage, with pre-Christian roots, that leads to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. We travelled 115 kilometers in 6 days.
