Welcome to the Dare to
Blossom Newsletter
Reflections: Peace
Events, workshops, and
your individual Dare to Blossom Quest Experience
Reflections: Peace
Today, as I write a week before you will receive
this, I was able to get out for a walk for the first time for a while.
The weather has been - well, what you would expect in a Cornish winter - wet,
drizzly, windy, with hardly any sunshine. Today the forecast was at least
dry, and I wanted some time out in nature to reflect, to begin this piece for
you.
I chose the title 'Peace' as it fits with where I am in my cycle of the year.
Last Saturday was the first workshop of the six planned for this year at the
Blue Lotus Therapy Centre. A beautiful morning spent together exploring Peace.
Ending with an unexpected and delightful singsong!
So, a walk to reflect, on this very windy beach, at Constantine Bay, near
Padstow and St Merryn, here on the Atlantic coast. This was far from a peaceful
experience - the big ocean waves were crashing and the wind was blowing, and it
was wonderful. Full of the energy of nature - and that is one place I find my
peace, whatever the conditions are at the time.
So different from the same beach, also on a
winter's day:
Both days helped me connect with my inner peace,
in different ways. And so did being in the workshop, even though I was
responsible for making the experience a good one for everyone else, there was
peace for me there too.
For you, for your journal, meditations or
artwork:
What does peace mean for you?
Where do you find it?
How can you connect with your inner peace in the midst of noise and bustle and
busyness?
Events, workshops,
and your individual Dare to Blossom Quest Experience
You will find details of all the events by clicking here or on the
flower image below, all are on the theme of 'Stepping into Your Power'. All
will be looking at Peace, the centre of the Dare to Blossom Power Flower.
Here is a comment made on Facebook after the last workshop, in reply to someone
who said they had an amazing time:
"It was indeed amazing, wonderful,
inspirational, beautiful, supportive, relaxing and energising. Oh, great fun in
good company too. Thank you everyone for sharing, trusting and adding to
it and Mary for enabling it to happen. See you in two months. Let the Magic
continue."
In the Mastermind Circle
beginning on 5th February you can join us from anywhere in the world. Booking
at the introductory price closes on 1st February. I am sending this newsletter
early to give you a day or so to consider if you would like to join us.
In London, we will spend
a whole day, beginning with grounding in Peace and then unfurling each of the
petals through the day.
And, if you decide to join me here, on the beaches and cliffs of north Cornwall
on your own Dare to Blossom Quest -
I will be your guide and companion while you explore your Peace within and all
those other aspects: Purpose, Passion, Power, Progress - and returning back to
peace.
Finally, the next workshop here in
Cornwall, on 17th March, is building on Peace and expanding into the theme of
'Purpose - Reaching'. What do you want to achieve, what is your gift to share
with the world?
.
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 visiting with me again this month and sharing my
musings.
Until next time,
with love,
Mary
Happy
New Year - may 2018 be an amazing year for you.
Reflections: Simply
Reflections
2018 Dare to Blossom
Mastermind programme: Stepping into Your Power
Workshops in London and
Cornwall
New Year wishes to you
Reflections: Simply
Reflections
Usually, the 'Reflections' piece here has a
title, a subject, a theme. This time it is simply.... reflections.
One of the suggested 'words for the year' with the My Word Goddess Reading that
I receive from Amy Palko each year is
'Orientation'. I have been trying that on for size and it hasn't quite felt the
perfect fit.
Then my mind went to 'Flow' and someone in a group I belong to, where we were
discussing our words, said this: ""Mary, I have this picture of you
swimming in a vast ocean with goggles on and a compass in your hand trying to
orient yourself to land." and then asked me if I felt adrift.
My reply was, not so much adrift as sitting with the feeling that things are
about to become crystal clear next year, and maybe in unexpected ways. So, that
is where I am just now. And, then I was drawn to look back on the ten years of
writing these newsletters - I began in March 2007.
So, my first ever reflections for a New Year were in January 2008. Reading
again I see a snapshot of my life then, linking in with my memories of that
time. What was happening then? In my business I had workshops planned for 2008
in Cornwall, Covent Garden in London, and in York.
I did not know that the following year I was to be made redundant from the part
time job at a local college I had been in for six, nearly seven
years. But, that was all in the future when I wrote these words:
Reflections: Endings,
continuations and new beginnings
Reflecting on the end of 2007 and the New Year about to start is a time to
pause, take stock, and look forward to the coming twelve months.
I have just worked through the ‘New Inspiration’ sheet I sent to you all with
Christmas wishes. It is an interesting experience reflecting on a
whole year, such a lot has happened. Some things have changed
considerably over that time, some not at all. Some are still
significant, some I can hardly remember why they seemed such a ‘big thing’ at
the time.
I don’t feel it is just ‘hindsight’ – in other words being able to see what I
could have done differently after an event. I think it is also about
perspective, about being able to take a different view, perhaps a number of
views, by looking back at something instead of forwards. By
metaphorically walking all round it, considering various angles and viewpoints,
I am able to see things differently.
Overall, for me, it has been an immensely satisfying and fulfilling
year. I have met many wonderful people, in person and via online
networking sites. I have almost finished my latest book (‘Dare to
Blossom: Coaching and Creativity) and it will be available very soon. I
have two workshops coming up in February (and more planned later in
2008).
For you:
As well as using the ‘New Inspiration’ worksheet, you might like to reflect and
write about these questions:
What has ended over the last year?
Have I recognised and marked these endings? (There may be a
celebration, or a memorial ceremony that would feel appropriate to mark
them.) Are they happy or sad? Is there anything that
should have ended but is dragging on? Should it be ‘laid to rest’?
What began afresh this year?
Where have/are these new beginnings taking me? Are they continuing
into 2008? Do I want them to continue?
What new beginnings to you want to make happen for yourself? What
actions can you take to achieve this?
So, you may like to sit with these questions,
with your journal or in meditation. I have checked that I still have the
"New Inspirations" worksheet - if you would like a copy please
contact me and I will send it over to you.
My personal thoughts now are that I am in the perfect place to begin a new
'trip around the sun', a new cycle, a new turn of the spiral of my life. I have
some plans, dates for workshops and events, as you will see below. And, I love
that I have lots of space for the new to arrive without me placing too many
expections just now on what that 'new' might look like.
As some of you may know, I am, as I was in 2007, working on a book. It is not
as far advanced as that title was - and that is fine too. I know it will emerge
and evolve as the year continues on, as the seasons turn, as my work takes me
to new places and ideas.
2018 Dare to Blossom
Mastermind Circle programme
What does this bring for you? The thought of
stepping into your power? All this last twelve months I have been exploring the
concept of 'power'. Seeing where I, and others, resist the thought of the sort
of power that controls, dominates, has 'power over' others. I have spoken to so
many people, men as well as women, who feel strongly in their hearts that there
is another way. A way of bringing forward gentle power, maybe a feminine power
to balance the masculine within each of us.
You may like to watch this TED Talk where a man,
Justin Baldoni, gives his perspective on this. This reminds me to mention that
men are welcome in my groups as well as women - I know a number of men who
would fit in perfectly to our circles, whether in person or online. As Justin
Baldoni says in his TED talk, we need to get everyone involved, men and women,
in order for society to change.
During 2017 the workshops and groups I have led have explored the unfurling of
this power, using the format of the 'Dare to Blossom Power Flower' with which
many of you are familiar. Now it is time for me, and for you if you care to
join me, to step firmly into our power.
In November, four people joined me to work through a trial run of a Dare to
Blossom Mastermind Circle. The five of us worked together on weekly prompts and
topics, shared in a private Facebook group and met once a week for a live
meeting on Zoom video-conferencing. As it was a small group, I was able to take
part in the same way as everyone else, as well as holding a quiet safe space
for everyone to be heard and witnessed, and to hear themselves think.
The others present will be sharing some thoughts when the festive season is
over and they have had time to reflect. In the mean time I think I can speak
for all of us when I say that none of us had imagined how powerful the
Circle would be. Usiing my tried and tested processes, working with the
Rediscovery Cards and the Magic Carpet Ride Guided Visualisations, brought
forth inspiration, insights, new ideas, realisations. Each person was supported
by the others in the group in a non-judgemental, peaceful way. And the laughter
was often full-bellied and boisterous; the occasional tears were healing and
honoured by us all.
We followed the ups and downs of each other's lives and the most common comment
at the end of the month was 'I don't want this to end!' And it hasn't, we are
meeting again for a reuniion call soon, and maybe some of those people wll join
one or more of the new Circles in 2018. Each will be different, with a mix of
people, backgrounds and locations. (In November we circled the globe with three
of us at different spots in the UK, one in the USA, and one in Australia.)
The groups will be kept small as I know that is how the trust is built and the
strength of the group lies in that firm grounding. If you are a Point of Focus Membership
subscriber, you will be eligible for a 10% discount, make sure you contact me
as soon as possible to secure your place.
There is an outline of the whole programme, which begins in February on the
website under 'Workshops and Events.' Along with full details of the February
Circle 'Peace'. We are following the flow that has worked so well through the
year in 2017 in the workshops at the Blue Lotus at Scorrier, (see below for the
2018 proramme there), using the unfurling of the Dare to Blossom Power
Flower.
As you will see on the website, there are two free Zoom video-conferencing
calls scheduled for you to experience a little of the process for yourself and
to ask any questions you may have before deciding if the Mastermind programme
is for you. You do not need to be on Facebook to attend these, nor to take part
in the Mastermind Circles - though you would miss much of the interaction that
takes place there. If you would like to discuss with me in private, just book a complimentary twenty
minute consultation. If you don't like on line groups you may find that one to
one coaching suits you, all those details are here on the Rediscovery Coaching pages.
Workshops
Stepping into
Your Power 2018 Programme Scorrier Cornwall The first workshop is on 20th January, at the
usual time 10-1, with a big discount (one third reduction) for 'frequent
flyers' who would like to book the year-long programme of six.
London 24th
February Stepping into Your Power Following on
the success of the event last August, another full day to dive in and explore
together in a small group.
I am still looking out for other venues in Cornwall and Devon, so if you know
anywhere or would like to host a workshop in your home or invite me to speak to
a group you are involved with, please do get in touch.
New Year wishes to
you
Finally, thank you so much to
each of you reading this, I am so grateful for your support, often over many
years. If you feel you no longer wish to receive these emails, please feel free
to unsubscribe using the link at the bottom of the page, although I would be
sad to see you go, you won't offend me - I know very well the need to
'declutter' my in-box at regular intervals.
I hope this won't be the case though, and that we'll be in touch throughout the
new year ahead. Who knows where the year wiill take us? Maybe I will meet more
of you in person, that is such a joy when itis possible. Coffee, cake and
conversation; walk and talk - is always such a deep pleasure. Each of you feels
like an old friend even though we may not yet have met in person.
Here is a photo I took a while ago at the Eden Project here in Cornwall, with
love and gratitude from me to you - oh, and a Happy New Year too.
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 visiting with me again this month and sharing my
musings.
Until next time,
with love,
Mary
