February 14… Love Grows Here
…in vulnerability
…in genuine connection
…in letting go of ego
…in kindness
…in honest words always
…in shared free spirit
…in self-awareness
…in sanctuary
…in sweet affection
…in holding space open for one another
…in loving lightly
…in Nature’s nurturing energy
…in our Wild Hearts
…in finding Home in each other
It is the soul language of Anam Ċara
Evermore…. Fire & Rain
It is a poem. A poem about Loving Lightly. With his permission, we are sharing a little of how this connection is playing out for us 🖤
Category Archives: Joy
Light
My Word for the Year is Light
Me
Last year my Word for Year was Trust. As I reflect back on the year just gone, I am grateful to my dear friend, Erin, for introducing me to this concept of a Word for the Year. It was like carrying a talisman in my pocket all year long reminding me of the intentions I had set at the start of the year and to remain courageous on the journey. And what a year it turned out to be…
Now it is time for a new word, to set fresh intentions and continue to dream big.
This is not the first time Light has resonated with me as a significant word. Quite a while back now while grieving the loss of broken dreams and at a very low point in my life, in a moment of stillness in my grief, I had a vision of sorts that part of my life’s purpose was to Be Light, to Be Sunshine. Sounds odd, I know, which is why I dismissed it as a crazy thought in the midst of my brokenness. Now, I am beginning to see this vision of sorts playing out in my life anyway.
Last year the incredible Shan came into my life. The concept of Light came back to me in a big way then as I wrote her story. Especially in the context of the Viktor E. Frankl quote:
What is to give light must first endure burning.
Viktor E. Frankl
The healing journey of my heart has been a long one and there was much to relearn. I say relearn because I believe our hearts and souls understand a lot of the world as children but somehow growing to adulthood means we lose that intuitive knowledge. I had to relearn to Trust my connection to the Universe. I had to relearn how to Dream big again. I had to relearn that Hope floats.
I had to understand that for every Big Dream there is also the bitter and the shadow. That is the trick of life’s journey. To live Wholeheartedly you have to embrace the sadness, the loss, the pain as well as the joy, the abundance and the freedom. Life brings both. To learn to sit with shadow without it swallowing you whole is the key. To learn the infinite Joy that comes from Gratitude….. this is the Light that shines the way when you are in shadow, guiding you as you navigate life’s journey.
So now I need to be Light. I need to be Sunshine. I need to be Light for all mine, for all who cross my path…. this is my purpose….. a guiding Light, working with the Universe, shining light into dark corners even if just to bring a moment of comfort.
To continue to find those Pure Spaces and hold them open for my heart to find rest and all those who are with me, those I carry close in my heart.
So my Word for the Year is Light.
Me
Light is sunshine, starlight, moonlight…. all that connects me to the Cosmos.
Light is connected to fire, connected with cleansing, honing and purifying that happens with burning…. somehow I find comfort in this idea.
Light is about colour. The rainbow of colours through the prism. This year is about living life in full colour just like the colours of my art…. the creative process that sparks pure joy for me.
Light is also the absence of heavy. This year is about embracing all that is light and bright, spontaneous moments of joy…. truly living wild-hearted.
Light is connected to Love. I will love wholeheartedly but lightly…. a free-spirited love that is about holding unconditional love space loosely. Ready to hold it tightly when needed. Ready to let it go if or when its season has ended.
Light is connected to Being, to spirit and soul. This year is about being in the moment, about being fully present to shine all the more brightly.
Light is about the positive energy of a bright aura…. the energy of hope, love and gratitude…..
Wishing you all Love and Light
✨
New Beginnings
Your soul knows the geography of your destiny. Your soul alone has the map of your future, therefore you can trust this indirect, oblique side of yourself. If you do, it will take you where you need to go, but more important it will teach you a kindness of rhythm in your journey.
John O’Donohue (exerpt from ANAM CARA)
Self-care September is nearly done. As I reflect back on these past weeks, I realise the Universe gave me a gift in this month’s focus on self-care. The Action for Happiness Self-care September calendar has been a wonderful companion this month.
This has been a whirlwind month or two dealing with the fall-out of the Covid-19 impact on my professional life. This rollercoaster of emotion has left me feeling quite depleted, hence the life-line of Self-care September. I have needed to tap into that trust of my soul that Irish poet, John O’Donohue, so wisely speaks of…. I even sent myself flowers 💛
I am over the worst of it …. Now the word that resonates is bittersweet.
Bitter – grieving the loss of not working, collaborating, learning and laughing with team of incredible individuals I consider my tribe.
Sweet – the anticipation, excitement and freedom that comes with being pushed to spread my wings.
Grounded in the understanding that I am only ready for this next adventure now because of what has come before, including the past four years teaching and learning along side this same incredible team – what a joy!
I feel a great sense of significance in the timing of this new beginning. That these last days as this chapter closed also held World Rhino Day and the Spring Equinox.
Rhinos are my spirit animal. They are a symbol of assurance, confidence and steadiness – all traits I have needed in this time of increasing uncertainty.
A change of season heralds new things and spring particularly is about growth, renewal, new beginnings.
I opened with words from John O’Donohue… I am going to conclude this post with more Celtic wisdom from this great soul… this time from To Bless the Space Between Us…
For A New Beginning
In out-of-the-way places of the heart,
Where your thoughts never think to wander,
This beginning has been quietly forming,
Waiting until you were ready to emerge.
For a long time it has watched your desire,
Feeling the emptiness growing inside you,
Noticing how you willed yourself on,
Still unable to leave what you had outgrown.
It watched you play with the seduction of safety,
And the gray promises that sameness whispered,
Heard the waves of turmoil rise and relent,
Wondered would you always live like this.
Then the delight, when your courage kindled,
And out you stepped onto new ground,
Your eyes young again with energy and dream,
A path of plenitude opening before you.
Though your destination is not yet clear,
You can trust the promise of this opening,
Unfurl yourself into the grace of beginning,
That is at one with your life’s desire.
Awaken your spirit to adventure,
Hold nothing back, learn to find ease in risk,
Soon you will be home in a new rhythm,
For your soul senses the world that awaits you.
John O’Donohue, from To Bless the Space Between Us
And so my next adventure begins… Pure Spaces Education…. coming soon!
Joyful June
A new month, a new Action For Happiness calendar.
I am starting with Day 10 – take a photo of something that brings you joy and share it🧡 New books to read spark so much joy for me And I have so enjoyed rediscovering my love of sketching in recent weeks.
