Dare to Blossom Newsletter February 2014

February 2014

Welcome to the Dare to Blossom Newsletter
 

Reflections: Return of the Light

This has been an interesting time. many people find January a testing month for all sorts of reasons. Once we get to February I feel as if something shifts: the evenings are slightly lighter, the mornings a little less dark. This year I have noticed the birds singing at dawn even though it is still quite cold (and could still get colder again). 

This photo was taken, on my phone through a rain-smeared windscreen, at Widemouth Bay, one of my favourite spots. I usually stop there for my sandwich lunch in my car. On this day I'd been in near-by Bude most of the day and paused in the cliff-top car park for a moment to take in the view. The stormy sky and wild sea was a dramatic sight, then, as I watched, a shaft of sunlight broke through the clouds and shone down onto the sea. This picture cannot really do the scene justice as the brightness of the sun has dazzled the lens - I hope you can visualise how impressive it was at the time.



It felt to me like a wonderful illustration of the returning light after winter. If you not in the northern hemisphere this may be more relevant at a different time of the year (or not at all if you live in the tropics or on the equator). However, at times in my life I have experienced what some call a 'dark night of the soul', have you? This can be most debilitating when it occurs at a time of year when we feel we 'should' be 'full of the joys of spring' or luxuriating in the summer sun. I have felt the return of the light in these circumstances too - and it can be as sudden and as striking as this view of the shaft of sunlight breaking through the clouds.

When I am in those dark moments I find comfort in remembering that the sun is always there, always shining, above the clouds, and if it is night time where I am, it is shining somewhere in the world. Developing internal resilience has, for me, been about finding the light in the darkness, reaching within and knowing, without any 'proof' that the light is there, I am connected, as we all are if we wish, to something that transcends earthly problems.

For you: some suggestions for your journal or meditation reflections:
- Where have you felt the darkness recently?
- Are you able to shine a bright light to illuminate this?
- What does it show you?

You might like to spend a little time doing some flow-writing to explore what is coming up for you. 

An example of this is something I took part in at the the recent Lapidus (Cornwall) annual general meeting. As well as the business part of the meeting (more on that another time), we were given the chance to spend seven minutes flow writing about 'A Message'. here is what I wrote:

"A Message: the words come from nowhere -'write, write, to save your life.' They came then, twenty years ago, and still, today. Or was it from nowhere? Or was it that word trick: NOWHERE = NOW HERE? Now i am here, in the present, appreciating, valuing, LIVING my life, however short or long that is. Words help my soul to speak - as do images, art, doodles, photographs. The colours and patterns, words, and - oh, and music - all touching the core, the heart of the message. "Words for well-being" how true that is. Along the road to well-being the words express: despair, sorrow, frustration, hope, joy, love..... The message spins out at me when I disconnect my worry-brain, ignore the critic, allow myself to be. Be silly, be serious, be awkward, be banal, be boring, be creative, be me - in all the messy human-ness of real life. Along the way maybe I have offered a way to others in a tiny example of how your message can emerge without being polished and honed, without being 'professional' or crafted. Just what it is, just "The Message".

As you can see this is messy and nonsensical in places, if I wanted to I could take parts of it and polish it up, make it more coherent, or I can just let it sit, as I have, as something that happened in a quiet moment in a room of seven or eight people, sharing and supporting each other to 'just be me'.

Please note: these sort of exercises can often bring up deep feelings, you will know what is right for you to try, and where and when. It is good to be in a place where you feel comfortable and safe and will not be disturbed, where you can allow yourself to feel those feelings that do arise, acknowledge them, and let them pass. This may be by yourself, with a supportive group, or with a health professional.
 

Links to inspire and amuse: 

This video from Soleira Green puts over so succinctly how we can 'flip problems into potential'.

For some feel good dancing-round-the-kitchen moments, try this -  'Happy' from Pharrell Williams..

As always, please feel free to comment below with your thoughts and comments. 

If you would like to own a set of Dare to Blossom Rediscovery Cards to explore their power for yourself please visit the dedicated page.

Thank you dear friends for sharing time with me here.

Until next time,

with love,
Mary

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