Friday, June 24, 2011

Look who came Knocking at my Door!





"Hello" I said as Creativity walked through my door. "I'm so happy to see you!"

Creativity is such a treat. She giggles and runs and sits down at the oddest times to play with thoughts and ideas others would simply ignore. Sometimes she behaves like she's seven, filled with amazing ideas and excitement that infectiously opens you up, bringing out your best qualities of innocence, curiosity and "let's try this and see what happens" attitude!

Knowing her is to love her, and sharing her with others is an experience of humility and excitement. She has got to be one of the most interesting individuals I know . . . and one of the most joyfully deep. Her expressions never leave me unsatisfied once complete, although I have to admit, when she's deep inside a process with a particular project, she's a bit like being around an orgasm just about to happen!  But hey, ya gotta love it!  It's that kind of joy and anticipation she brings to a room. And that kind of complete bliss, peace and contentment she has when she's puts the last line, or last piece of glue, or last item on her table, is divinity in action. And the smile on her face when she finishes makes you smile yourself. She does gets a little nutty just before the end as she integrates it all, sometimes almost downright obsessed with her project leaving all else behind and often flurries of papers and buttons and all sorts of unexpected things all over the floor. 

But she knows what she's doing. If you just allow her to take you into her world, you will experience a place that is akin to the great Creator her self. The place where yin and yang meet and duality becomes one. The fusion of the two can be like a tiny big bang in your world! 

Allowing her is to be present and letting her take over is like making love. What she wants the most for you is to help you shine from within your soul and glow from the depths of your be-ingness. She feels contentment when she sees your expression of yourself in what ever form you choose and she jumps up and down in joy when she watches you participate in your own joy and utterance of yourself in any way, shape or form. She doesn't care what it is, she just loves to see you emerge immersed in it and come out smiling! She's one of those friends who cares deeply about your happiness, deeply, and can be pretty ornery when she sees you forgetting her and pushing her aside. She doesn't do that well and her mood is ever present when you won't open the door and let her in. But the thing with her is that it's you that looses out when you don't. She will never give up on you, and at the same time, with you or not, her expressions of herself are endless so you will find her doing something somewhere and making things beautiful with oodles of love and commitment pouring into everything she does.

I have to admit, when she's not around, things can be pretty quiet and mundane. I find I miss her, even her messy ways, when she's not around, even though a little break watching TV is good! If I watch TV with her, you can pretty well bet something she watches will become an idea that she will need to implement in some way, so resting is not really part of her reality. She's excited about life. She needs to be guided a little with that and really appreciates it when I tell her, "hey, how about taking a break or a little nap to re-charge." She's always surprised by how much MORE energy that gives her.

Her favorite colour is orange, so don't be surprised if you see her with orange toenails or orange feathers in her hair no matter where she is.

She is an honour to know and an intimate experience with her can change your whole life, never mind just a day!  Now that's someone that's worth knowing and allowing into your home with open arms I'd say!


The picture of the card above is the Creativity card from the Wild Woman Mystery Cards - An enchanting journey to your true self. For more about them, go here.

www.wildwomanenchanted.com                     Copyright Elizabeth MacLeod 2011


If you want to read previous posts, just click on 'Home' or "Older post'  just below this post in the pink part and it will take you there!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

How to Talk to the Wild


I wonder about the world, about my life, about those around me. The other day at the naturopath, she told me that she had someone come to her that could barely make it 3 blocks, and would get there and have a 15 minute appointment and would be wiped out. She couldn't even eat solid food.

I can't help but thank my lucky stars. I felt such compassion for this woman I don't even know and expressed my wildness by sending an internal prayer her way. I didn't need to see her or even know her, I could still speak to her.

There is so much happening in the world, so much that we could be afraid of, and so much we could be thankful for and so many ways to be present in the world. I remember sitting with Susan Weed, many years ago now, learning the wise woman ways. She taught us how to talk to plants. The concept seemed so foreign to me. But really, it was all about noticing and being aware and deeply listening.

We all gathered after class, and sat in the field surrounded by all the wild ones, and there she talked of how dandelions grew close to your house because they were so good for you. She talked of how the roots were great for your liver as a tea and how the leaves were wonderful in a salad containing many vitamins. They wanted to be close to you because they could help. They were there in service to you. And dedicated to their path. They were pure love for your health. To me, they are also a thing of beauty and I wonder why we don't think so. I call them my urban sunflowers filled with the joy of being with me right there in my yard always reminding me of their goodness. I get to see her everyday and am reminded that she is here for me. Her relentless ways, are always present. She is really so loveable.

Then she talked of Golden Seal, a plant you only need when you are really sick. This beautiful wild beauty is a natural antibiotic and you may only need to take it 2ce in your life. It grows far away and you have to go and find it in order to pick it to use. It's interesting to think about listening without words. Did you know, that if you feel like you might need Golden Seal, and you build your house around a big field of it, that within a few years it will die and it will all be gone?  I find that amazing. We don't need it in the same way and the universe is innate in this path. Such wisdom all around us when we stop to listen. It talks to us, just by where it grows.

I wonder about what I need close to me. I pick a Wild Woman Mystery Card and ask. I choose the card Wild Woman Power. At first I am surprised. But then I begin to see. It begins with "You are realizing or have realized your place in the world . . . Take a stand with yourself and acknowledge your power, not power over another but power within."

I think about my Urban Sunflowers and the infinite wisdom of nature. I think about how it knows to be itself no matter what. I think about how precious Golden Seal, will not compromise for us, even if we try to make it do so. Even if we exert an external power over it by building a house in it's field. It's not that it was inaccessible before, but we don't need it all the time, so it grows away from people. I think about how it will not loose its power to become something we think we want it to be. She will remain who she is.

As I listen and get to know my wild side, I see how we communicate all the time, we just are not always accustomed to thinking we are.

Sitting there with Susan Weed, many many years ago, I remember my excitement. Really she was teaching us to listen and with that, we could know so much.

As I sit here with my Wild Woman Power card, I can feel the power of listening bubbling inside. I can feel the stirring of knowing myself making it's way to the top. I can hear the teachings of long ago making their roots for me to move from. And, I remember, how it feels to allow what is right in front of me to be seen, heard and loved.

As that's all we all really want isn't it?  To be seen, heard and loved . . .


To find out more about Wild Woman readings with me and the Wild Woman Mystery Cards, go here.
                                                                                     
www.wildwomanenchanted.com                                                Copyright Elizabeth MacLeod 2011


If you want to read previous posts, just click on 'Home' or "Older post'  just below this post and it will take you there!

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

How to Giggle in your Discomfort


Time and time again, we struggle through something that just takes us to an edge and we can't seem to find a smile if we were paid a million dollars because we get caught in our discomfort!  Life came and shook us up and we suddenly take ourselves so seriously, we forget that at the end of the day, we are still breathing, still eating, still watching TV, still petting the cat and talking to our children.

Life is short. As I grow older, days seem to get shorter too! When I was 12, I remember days sometimes seemed so long and Christmas just seemed like it would never come! Now, a new wisdom has embraced my days. I can sometimes find myself experiencing the 'not so pretty' side of myself when I am running out of time, or I can't get something the way I want it or things just don't seem to be lining up in an easy way. And then, bang... I'm  frustrated or overwhelmed or just  in plain ol' discomfort.

And then yesterday, while fully-whelmed with so much to do I stopped, shook my head and smiled at what was before me. I sat down . . . and noticed my body change it's feeling and I began to giggle...and I thought,  "Why not smile?"  Why take the familiar route of discomfort when there is lots to do? What would happen if I changed my mind?  . . . You know, when you just think you are never going to get through it and never feel calm again!?  And then, instead of your eyebrows turning down, your lips pursing, your body tightening as you watch your thoughts of negativity take over, and your surroundings are slowly becoming very inconvenient, that you turn the corners of your lips up towards the sky and allow the universe to help you through? Do it now. See what happens. What did your body do?

Suddenly, the stress finds a way to slide off my body. My thoughts are unable to hang onto the grid of unhappiness, and my body drops its tension. It is impossible to frown. And I started to laugh at the absurdity!

All I did was raise the corners of my lips!  And that took me to a giggle . . . and I reclaimed that being wild sometimes means taking a different approach to the same ol' same ol.  Sometimes, instead of responding in the usual way and following yourself down into the trenches . . . sometimes... it's really fun and a wee bit wild to take the lead to somewhere new in the landscape of yourself. And sometimes it comes in the tiniest form of turning the corners of your lips up to the sky and finding your self in a little giggle for no apparent reason at a time when you least expect it. I caught myself!

I am amazed by how simple it can be to change your path . . . and how complicated we sometimes make it.

How do you do it? How do you giggle in your discomfort?

1. Notice what you are doing that is making you uncomfortable
2. Name your feeling. (I am sad, overwhelmed, worried or . . . ? )
3. Make a decision to have a different response.
4. Smile. And if you can't, just begin by turning the corners of your lips up to the sky!
5. Let your self follow your body prompts as it shifts gears into a new wild rhythm.
6.  Surrender ...
7. Let your Self giggle!

If you found this little wild tidbit of thought useful, share it with your friends and family.

copyright 2011 Elizabeth MacLeod