welcome to my blog ... it's a new thing for me

hi, i'm just discovering the joys of having a blog, somewhere to share my thoughts on the journey, a place to meet good folk of like-heart .. may your path be filled with joy and laughter, peace and harmony, discoveries and self-empowerment ... blessings

Monday, October 11, 2010

Seeing through the upside-down looking glass


Recently my journey has moved inwards and outwards along the spiraling path in often surprising ways. I am learning to tune in to the deeper wisdom of my body – to take time to be still, focus within, and ask my body what wisdom she has to teach me. When I take the time to be with me, the answers are incredible. I am learning to truly value myself and my time, to really listen and feel the responses. Sometimes this tuning within has taken the form of movement as my body guides me to follow the sounds of a newly favourite Cd or DVD. This given me new understandings about my changing self. And led me to taking the time to do an inner inventory of what feels right for me now in this season of my life, what no longer works and how that’s being externally and internally reflected as my values and insights into me and my life evolve. The deep yearning and sense of something missing is disappearing: I am finding myself and she’s far different than I anticipated.

This weekend just past, I found myself asking: ‘what if life & your soul is painting you beyond all the techniques, beyond all the knowingness, beyond the you of now .... What if ??’ I’ve let myself sit with that: Feeling my soul, allowing my life painting to unfold. Then seeing what my soul’s life looks like. I’ve found this childlike innocence and naivety that wants to play, that is curious like Alice in Wonderland. So I set myself a task:

Today: I’m going to try something different : I’m going to be like Alice in Wonderland & find 6 impossible things to believe in - then I’m going to see how they manifest. Today I’m experiencing my life through the upside-down looking glass with the intention of dissolving my doubts & moving forward into new [impossible] ways of beingness.’ I feel my inner girl child’s excitement and remember how much I love it when I allow myself to play, have fun & walk with new eyes & new heart awareness.

I am astounded at what I saw through my upside-down glasses. Where previously I had held arrogance and contempt for my husband’s ‘3 year old behaviour’ I now had the compassion to see a frightened little boy who smothers his feelings & past hurts with alcohol and unconsciously uses temper tantrums to entice himself to stop and be still with him.

I discovered that another person who’d previously described my energy as ‘too big’ and had who had physically pushed me away was now reaching out and asking me to hold them while they shared a deep heart truth with the others we were with.

I saw that the wounded me who hadn’t fully accepted her fatter imperfect body could now laugh at the wounded archetypes I have within & how my loved ones act these out for me til I ‘get it’. And I was astounded even more to realise that I was now brave enough to accept the challenge when my teacher encouraged me to ‘take this to the next level’. I had huge butterflies in my stomach and quite a bit of dread about what might come out as I nervously stepped forward.

Through the upside down looking glasses I was able to ‘see’ - as I danced myself into awareness with the support of a group of amazing soul friends - me. I found myself letting go my defenses and shields, letting myself sob without caring what they thought of me or how they might judge me. Instead I chose to melt into those buckets of tears as I sang ‘you are so beautiful’ about me, to me, to the group and not the illusion of me in the bathroom mirror. I felt the support and the nurturing of these beautiful people in my whole being. I deeply allowed myself to experience and see them reflecting ‘you are so beautiful’ back to me as they held me, or whispered in my ears, or looked me in the eyes. I was shattered. And in this shattering, I am reborn.

Some time later during this past weekend, I reclaimed my name. I am Lynnette and I honour and embrace this beautiful name which my father gave me in his love for me. What I once viewed and ‘heard’ as a name used to ‘pull me into line’ now became the full power of my essence and its vibration.

And I’ve come to recognize the resistance I’d been holding on to. The fear of … whatever … and how this looked really different when seen through Alice’s glasses. I am discovering that all the old ways of looking at and valuing myself and areas of my life are dropping away. The upside-down looking glasses are a key to a freedom within that I didn’t know was there til I took the time to cherish myself enough beyond my beliefs to allow and accept what was in front of me, what was within me and what no longer holds true.

My inner vision through the upside-down looking glasses reminded me that rituals & ceremonies honour our achievements & milestones as they are a rich source of juicy deliciousness to nourish our lives. Which led me to accept the next phase of my journey by having a ceremony that honours these wiser years that I am stepping into .. the third or autumnal stage of the Moon as it were – not yet Crone/Elder, but yes, a somewhat wiser self.  Now I’m ready .. with a bit of nervousness and apprehension, but kind of excited too.

I recalled the joy when our wylde women’s circle recently ‘acknowledged’ and celebrated Grandmother Rhonda Wandering Wind Whisperer and Grandmother Traute Crystal Star Dreamer. We worked together in a spirit of anticipation, wondering at the power of ceremony to unite as we came together to honour and celebrate our Elder Wyse Women. It was a time out of time experience, sharing a wonderful day of laughter, tears of joy, celebration, irreverence with respect, and a great sense of connectedness to all. We did this out of love for our Grandmothers and I can accept my Wyse Woman Ceremony out of love for myself and gratitude for the community of sacred sisters I sit in circle with.

And now my inner wyse woman invites you and I to BE barefoot in Spring & stay that way til Autumn … dance more .. ride merry-go-rounds .. smell wildflowers ... walk softly on Mother Earth and - be respectful enough of ourselves to pick up Alice’s upside-down looking glasses for a closer peek at what we really cherish within ourselves and our lives. Remember Sacred rituals and ceremony are amazing ways to honour new ways of BEing.

I thank the Grandmothers of the Sacred Directions who watch over us all - I am deeply grateful for the guidance you give me.

Namaste, Lynnette Rainbow Starfire / Dream Dancer


Thursday, September 23, 2010

You are so beautiful .... can't you see ...

Full Moon blessings and Equinox mystical balancing to you ... whomever you are, wherever you are 

... at this most wonderful time of sacredness when we celebrate equal day/night, inner/outer wisdom, a time of great connectivity to all may your path be one of love, peace, joy, gratitude and harmony ... walking in balance along the Beauty Way of Mother Earth ...

as i stood in the shower this morning i found myself spontaneously singing to myself ... from my deepest soul to my outer self: 

'you are so beautiful to me .. can't you see ... you're everything i hoped for, you're everything i dreamed'  

.. and i started to cry from deep within my heart because for the first time ever, i truly sang to me .. to myself .. and to my beautiful woman's body in all her majesty, complete with her middle-aged woman's extra weight, rolls and soft spots .. and i could see that she is, i am, beautiful ... even so ... i had tears rolling down my face and i felt very humbly grateful inside as i realised that i have finally accepted myself just as i am now and i am beautiful and i am woman and i am shining just as i am now: 

i am the good, the bad, the ugly and yes .. that which is hardest of all to own: beautiful!!

why does it take so long for us to honour this deep deep beauty this light within us??? why is it so hard at times to remember that we are so much more than that outer 'vision' or aspect of our true selves?

for me it was because i wasn't honouring loving and accepting every little particle of me, i was too scared to allow my inner divine lovelight to shine .. and i am only now in the past few years truly deeply honouring and recognising this and therefore honouring and recognising all of me

which has included owning all .. every little last bit .. that is human - and knowing that it's okay to be human, to be 'real' and not run from this

as i am allowing my lovelight to shine, i am enJOYing my life more and more as i am doing what i love best, and what the universe has been nudging me into: sharing from my heart, teaching and healing from my heart, following my own inner guidance and radar alert system, honouring Mother Earth and walking the path of Star-Shaman-Priestess

and as i look out my window now, look out to this brand new day out there .. this beautiful Spring Equinox and Full Moon day i can see and experience that i have created and am living my dream NOW ... and it is beautiful and a reflection of me and i am worthy of this

so i invite you now to get up and go look at yourself in the mirror .... really look at YOU .. and see what i see as i look at you ...


YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL ... CAN'T YOU SEE .. 

YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL TO ME !


go on, take a look  

... SEE ... 

you are a most beautiful child of the Universe 

namaste, Lynn ~ Rainbow Starfire/Dream Dancer

Saturday, September 11, 2010

shamanic dreaming ... pathwork to self-empowerment & understanding

for me, one of the most wonderful things, the greatest joys, of walking the shamanic pathways is this huge inner knowing that finally, finally, i am reconnecting to my 'tribe' - my 'indigenous heritage' where i can follow spiritual heart truths that resonate with me and which i find are so uplifting & so enriching that they enable me to be at peace and one with Goddess/Spirit, all beings and myself without all the  judgement, rules and go-betweens of who's right/might and all that blah blah of mainstream religions or socio-political systems. 

the shamanic path keeps me grounded and in touch with the everyday, yet it also allows me to go deep within to access the sacred spaces where the dreaming of this world can truly enhance our experience of life... the more grounded i am, the more aware i become of the myriad forms of consciousness around me: trees, rocks, clouds, birds, animals, plants, trees ... and the elements of earth, air, fire and water ... the more i understand that we humans are just one of the many children of the Earth and that we have so much to learn from these other beings

as i consciously walk my shamanic path [which for me is star-shaman-priestess], the more accessible & deeply experienced are my connections with my beloved Mother Earth, power animals, spiritual helpers, and plants, stones and crystals - this isn't new agey 'airy fairy' stuff .. this is REAL and other Indigenous folk around the world have known this for 1,000's of years .. they have wisely continued to uphold the living and unlimited potential of shamanic experience to protect, heal, guide and teach their communities .. to maintain their inherent & immediate connection to Creator anytime anywhere in loving, respectful, humble and joyful ways.

alas, for many of us in western culture our indigenous shamanic traditions were stolen from us 2000 years agoe, we lost so much a particularly with the coming of religious/political structures & doctrines that were not our own, consequently the associated rules and regulations of these invasions increasingly alienated us from the conscious/living connections we had with Earth and other beings, with our divinity and ultimately with our true selves 

thankfully, many of us are now rediscovering our shamanic core - with the very welcomed help of traditonal peoples who are reaching out to help us remember how to connect to the helper beings that are all around us, and reclaim our right to work directly with the divine which is present in all things since we are all related ... 

to all you Elders and others who are there guiding our steps, supporting our reclaiming of our shamanic selves my heart felt thanks and gratitude for your patience and wisdom, i am honoured to walk the Beauty Way with you as my teachers and guides ...

personally, i've found myself becoming liberated in ways i could never have imagined through my shamanic experiences with these amazing beings of the other realms [angels, faeries, goddesses and star elders, and power/medicine animals] - i know that they are present right now to enhance and enrich every moment of our lives if we will just take the time to get to know them and encourage their presence. with their help we can heal ourselves, we can envisage and manifest a world of peace and harmony where we live in gratitude for this amazing planet we call Earth .... and home

i love the freedom and 'ah ha' ness of exploring the paths of the shamanic dream in deeper and deeper ways .. here is the space to be able to reconnect to experiences of power animals and other spiritual friends first encountered in early childhood and my teens ... to finally come to understand experiences that were 'scary' at the time because no one in my family knew that if a great big shark was swimming around my bed [when i was 3 years old] that it wasn't there to terrify me as a 'nightmare' rather my shark friend was there as a very powerful helper spirit to protect, guide and watch over me. similarly, in recent years the presence of the 'big cats' & bear who prowl around me, and walk beside me are 'confirmed' by folk who don't know me well yet can see these animals with me and perhaps even within me .. because i can and do shapeshift ....

shamanic work is a wonderful way to be of service to this great planet and all who live here ... its the way of directly experiencing the divine and offers us this huge potential to work together to heal and protect this Mother Earth in  trust for those who follow on after we have gone to the other side. blessings

Thursday, September 9, 2010

beginning steps

another step on the journey .. discovering what it means to have a blog and how to make it work well for me ... another way to meet and share with good folk ... a place to reflect, a place to let you know what i've been up to .. for instance, i'm just opening up my meditation circles and establishing my holistic counselling practice and beginning to work more closely with essential oils as i've become a distributor for 'young living essential oils' .. so the dance begins, and only Goddess knows where i'll end up ...