Circle Guiding Principles

In a circle of strangers or of friends and familiars, it is helpful to remember:

Each one of us brings wisdom.

Let us express.

Each one of us brings experience.

Let us contribute.

Each one of us brings concern.

Let us articulate and emote.

Each one of us brings curiosity.

Let us inquire.

Each one of us has witnessed.

Let us share our perspective.

Each one of us has a need.

Let us listen.

June 1 2014

Healing My Voice

Meenal has been part of our circle from the beginning.  She has shared openly with us.  She has been authentic.  She has not been perfect in everyone's eyes (including her own), but she has been slowly, gradually transforming toward the pure expression of the essence of Meenal.  Her choices to share her journey publicly have inspired me.  I felt so honored when she accepted my invitation to do a photo session with me to create some new portrait images.  We were both blown away by the experience.

Even just a few weeks later, I continue to be blessed by the unfolding of Meenal's budding butterfly wings.  As the new book release buzz is picking up, I was asked this morning to post on the Healing My Voice forum wall on facebook.  At about the same time I opened an email with a quote in it.  Rather effortlessly, I grabbed that quote, clicked over to the facebook forum page, and wrote this:

"It is uncertainty that creates the space for invention. We must let go, clear the space and leap into the void of not knowing, if we want to discover anything new."
-- Margaret Wheatley
Healing my voice is about discovering that I am an innovator and understanding how that has affected my life.  After feeling disconnected around over 50% of the population my whole life and feeling "different" I grew hesitant to share my truth because so many people didn't understand my vision and my abilities.  I didn't understand that I had a narrow audience and that trying to share my passions with the masses would actually tear me down rather than build me up.  Learning about the social self and the essential self in all of my explorations has been key.  Joining circles, groups, guilds, tribes, and communities of like minded people has been critical in healing my voice.  I am grateful for the learning, the journey, and the connections.
Aho.

Thank you Meenal for being in my life.

Thank you Lindsay, Andreea, Laura, Jill, Sheri, Billy, Michelle, and all of the other deeply caring friends that have been in circle with me and are part of my life.

Thank you those outside this circle who have been a part of my personal growth, expansion, and healing.

There is still a lot ahead.  I couldn't do it without all of you.

Masks, Dreams, and Celebration

"When there is no more separation between 'this' and 'that,' it is called the still-point of the Tao. At the still point in the center of the circle one can see the infinite in all things." 

╭♥╯Chuang-tzu

As we approach the celebration gathering for our circle this coming Sunday, I think about this current group of women who have chosen to participate for the past several months.  I was particularly touched by the sharing about our dreams during out most recent meeting, which unveiled a new level of knowing and support between us.  I noticed a shift.  I noticed a release of something between each of us that moved us closer and at the same time allowed us to let go of attachment to outcome.  It was very subtle.

When we share our dreams, we show people what motivates us.  In a conversation with Sue Bryan last night (Sue is not in our Center Circle at the moment), she said to me, when we are born, we come in with three motives: to pursue our calling (or purpose), to learn and grow, and to connect.  I feel the truth of that in my own experience and I believe that our dream is the way we see that happening for ourselves in our own unique expression.

This Sunday, the ritual we have chosen for our celebration ceremony is a mask ritual.  The point is to use this as a process to really look at what we are letting go of that we have taken on in this life so far that is not serving us and to glue it to that mask.  Then, we also create a mask to represent what we are moving into and toward.  In the ceremony this Sunday we will dance to the music of our choice and take the old mask off and put the new one on.

I hope that each of us will not rush through the still point between that mask and this mask .  I hope that each of us will honor the moment.  I hope that each of us will feel the infinite-ness of our existence and the expansiveness of our being.  I will.  I do.

"Do you Wanna Meet the Love in Your Life? - Look in the Mirror "

"The voice within is what I'm married to. All marriage is a metaphor for that marriage. My lover is the place inside me where an honest yes and no come from. That's my true partner. It's always there. And to tell you yes when my integrity says no is to divorce that partner. ~ Byron Katie ~

A Reminder to Honor Your ME Time

"To have a sacred place is an absolute necessity for anybody today. You must have a room or a certain hour of the day or so, where you do not know who your friends are, you don't know what you owe anybody or what they owe you. This is a place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are and what you might be...This is the place of creative incubation. At first, you may find nothing happens there. But if you have a sacred place and use it, take advantage of it, something will happen."

--Joseph Campbell

I've been neglecting this lately, letting a long list of tasks take over like weeds in a garden. This is a good reminder. I am thankful that my 9 a.m. appointment this morning asked to reschedule. Now I have time to go pull some weeds.

copyright 2012 Lori Steed Sortino

Finding Silence

A couple weeks ago I drew a card from the Denise Lin Soul Cards deck. It said Silence. The fine print said something about being calm and still no matter what was going on around you. I thought to myself "that's odd" and practically discarded it. That's how people describe me all the time. That's how I am. Never dis a card when it's trying to tell you something.

A few days later in a completely different venue with someone completely different, she used the same card deck and I got the same card.

Okay, I thought, you got my attention. I shook my head and put it aside, still not sure what it meant. Later that night when I had the time to bring it up again, I said out loud "I don't get it!" and stared at the card. Then I asked "if I'm already this way, what else is there?" and the answer came immediately.

Outward vs. inward. Yes, Lori, you are projecting calmness outwardly consistently. Certainly. Now what about what's going on inside?!

Oh. I get it.

Somewhere deep inside me a voice had risen up through all of the constant mental chatter of analyzing, contemplating, innovating, and extrapolating, and said "shut up!", "turn it off!", "give it a rest!".

If you're anything like me, you know how hard this is. Fortunately there are tools, so I'm turning to the tools. Here is a visual tool that I like. In addition, I have hired a yoga therapist who gave me specific whole body exercises that help balance a person like me, so I use those tools as well. I hope these reminders are helpful for you as well!

The next week after the Silence card appeared to me, a walking stick showed up. If you read the significance of this animal totem (yes insects definitely have messages as well as "regular" animals), it's about camouflage and being silent; not telling everyone what's going on. Waiting for the right time.

The world around me is always full of personal messages when I am open to them. I so enjoy this aspect of life. Everything is here to assist me in staying in my essence; staying true to who I am and what I want most. Everything wants to help me with being balanced and centered. All I have to do is allow it.

Embody the Goddess

"A goddess is a woman who emerges from deep within herself. She is a woman who has honestly explored her darkness and learned to celebrate her light. She is a woman who is able to fall in love with the magnificent possibilities within her. She is a woman who knows of the magic and mysterious places inside her, the sacred places that can nurture her soul and make her whole. She is a woman who radiates light. She is magnetic. She walks into a room and male and female alike feel her presence. She has power and softness at the same time. She has powerful sexual energy that’s not dependent on physical looks. She has a body that she adores and it shows by the way she comfortably lives and moves in it. She cherishes beauty, light and love. She is a mother to all children. She flows with life in effortless grace. She can heal with a look or a touch of the hand. She is fiercely sensual and fearlessly erotic and engages in sex as her way to share with another in touching the divine. She is compassion and wisdom. She is seeker of Truth and cares deeply about something bigger than herself. She is a woman who knows that her purpose in life is to reach higher and rule with love. She is woman in love with love. She knows that joy is her destiny and by embracing it and sharing it with others, wounds are healed. She is a woman who has come to know that her partner is as tender, lost, and frightened as she has been at times. She has come to understand the scars of the boy in him and knows that together, love can be the relief, the healing of their wounds. She is a woman who can accept herself as she is. She can accept another as they are. She is able to forgive her mistakes and not feel threatened by another’s even when attacked. She is a woman who can ask for help when she needs it or give help when asked. She respects boundaries, hers and another’s. She can see God in another’s eyes. She can see God in her own. She can see God in every life situation. She is woman who takes responsibility for everything she creates in her life. She is a woman who is totally supportive and giving. She is a Goddess." ~ Artist Rafael Espitia Perea