July 2013

Welcome to the Dare to Blossom newsletter


In this issue:

Reflections: Listening
Rediscovery Process offer for you
Books: Summer reading with a difference
Inspiring links and events

Reflections: Listening

I started writing a piece about listening in my notebook a while ago. I was thinking about defining the core, the crux, of what I 'do' as a life coach. More relevant to you is what I am - someone who listens, really listens. And more important still is what that means for you - what being listened to, actively but with sensitive detachment - gives you.

The intention is to allow you to be heard. To provide a safe place for you to voice your thoughts and feelings to yourself; a non-judgmental place of unconditional positive regard. Those are terms used in counselling, and coaching is not counselling, it is not a therapy (though it can have a therapeutic effect). The reason for using those counselling phrases is that a starting point is for you to witness to yourself, (with outside help if you wish), where you have come from and where you are now. Not to agonise over, or try to explain or fix, the past. Simply to witness and move on, move forward into what lies next for you.

So, having someone holding that space for you, being there to witness, to mirror and to ask questions; taking part in that process means that you are able to truly hear your own voice. To hear your true self speaking for what may feel like the first time in your life. Sometimes the witnessing is simply being there while you are thinking: you may not be saying anything, simply having a place to think deeply before you move on can be an aide to letting go of matters you don't want or need to talk about or dwell on. Then, when you do want to 'think aloud' the way is clear for you to do that.

The reason I feel this is so important is rooted in my own experience. For many years I felt invisible, unheard, not allowed to speak up: "children should be seen and not heard", "good girls don't make a fuss", "men don't like clever girls"....... And after a while I wonder if I would even have recognised my own voice if I had heard it. (I am not 'blaming' anyone for this, it is simply the way it was then).

I think I first really became aware of the importance of being heard when I was diagnosed with cancer.
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And here I took a break from writing this for you. I realised that one of the key lessons about listening and being heard that I have (finally, I hope) absorbed is to listen to myself, to my body and those little voices within that I so often ignore. So , while writing this one evening I realised that my body was telling me to stop, to put the laptop away, to go and rest, to come back refreshed another time.
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So here I am back with you. I began really listening to my body and to the whispers of my heart and inner knowing on that day of my diagnosis - almost the first thing I did was to buy a notebook to write my way through the experience. As some of you know, that journal grew into the books published to support other women. By sharing our stories we are not only heard ourselves, we help others going through similar experiences.

Nearly twenty years later I am still on the voyage of rediscovering my inner wisdom, and reconnecting with 'that which encompasses all' - whether we call that the Universe, Source, the Higher Self, God, or any other term. Listening whilst stilling the busy mind is a practice that provides a door to this. And called a 'practice' for good reason - it takes continual practice. Someone wise has said that prayer is asking, meditation is being open to hear the answers. 

Another saying that makes me smile (and I used to have on a card with a picture of a beautiful black cat): "Everyone needs a good listening to."

For you: some suggestions for your journal or meditation reflections:

• What do you need to listen to now?
• Is your heart trying to be heard?
• What can you do for yourself to allow that voice to be heard, firstly by yourself, and then - if you wish - by others?

Rediscovery Process Offer for You

As many of you know, I only work with a few private clients at the moment, in order to have time for my writing and other activities, plus my current contract with an organisation providing business coaching and training. However, I currently have an available slot for someone and I would like to offer you the opportunity to try out the Rediscovery Process for yourself.

I appreciate greatly the support you give me by opening and reading these emails, and sharing my weekly thoughts on the Rediscovery Cards. I would like to thank you by making a discount available for you. Full details of my regular service are on the Rediscovery Process website so I won't repeat them here.

The special offer for newsletter readers is a 20% discount when you book a series of six Rediscovery Process coaching sessions. A long term commitment - when people are ready to make it - always shows big leaps forward, and I would love to provide the listening space for you to achieve those leaps. If we haven't spoken before (and even if we have) - there is a free consultation call to establish if you feel this is the right step for you. And if you then still feel unsure, the offer also applies to a one-off Rediscovery Session.

Please email me if you would like to explore this offer and discover the way home to yourself. You will know if the time is right and if this approach is for you. I feel it is unlikely that many people will respond at one time, but if this is the case, a way can be found to move forward and support you in the best way for you. 

Books: Unusual summer reading

I've been reading two books recently, both about near death experiences, known as NDEs. This is why I titled this 'unusual summer reading' as they are certainly not the customary (for some) 'airport novel'. They are however, totally absorbing and hard to put down.

Although both are about the same sort of experience the totally different backgrounds and cultures of the authors made it even more fascinating. Each entered a coma through different causes and neither was expected to survive. 

Proof of Heaven by Dr Eban Alexander, a respected neurosurgeon who had previously dismissed accounts of near death experiences, even those told to him by his own patients, as illusions caused by the mind.

Dying to Be Me by Anita Moorjani, a young woman with a mixed cultural background, brought up in Hong Kong by traditional Indian Hindu parents. A quote from Anita really struck me: "..we already are what we spend out lives trying to attain, but we just don't realise it." Another affirmation of the rediscovery process of finding our way home to ourselves.

Note: I buy most of my books from Cygnus Books. Recently I had been investigating Amazon and the possibility of signing up to receive affiliate fees when people buy books via a link from my website. However, I paused to remember why I buy from Cygnus - because they are a small company with a clear ethos who share their own spiritual development (and the blips along the way too). In the words from their website:

"Our aim is to help you find the inspiration and guidance you are looking for, as you search for new ways to heal your body, nourish your soul and live in a way that reflects your own deepest values."

And their prices are very good too! So, I would rather recommend their service and expect nothing in return, than take the Amazon route. Even if you don't buy very often, Cygnus have a wonderful Review that you can receive free of charge (electronically or printed),

Inspiring links and events

Thank you to Soleira Green for this one - a short film of a wonderful nine-year-old philosopher.

Soleira has a number of events coming up around the world, I will be at the one in the UK on 13 July - would be lovely to meet you there if this appeals to you. 

Thank you for reading, please do visit leave any comments or feedback if you feel inspired. Or email me direct if you prefer your remarks to be private, either way it is so good to know that people to read my monthly musings.

all best wishes

Mary