What do I wish for? People in my life who thrive with transforming Stories. That’s my projection, my vision for myself. Oh sure, my community has its STORYs. We also get right to work on the steps of transforming them – feeling, flipping the switch, reframing, integrating. We laugh together at how good we are at creating situations for noticing our victim stories, then flow right into the 13 steps.
Nice vision, Regina!
Healing Dance with a Piano
I’m sitting at a piano feeling anxious, immobilized, indecisive and deeply sad. Why? What could a piano be doing that has me stopped in my tracks? Haven’t I been writing about how wonderful it is to be out hiking, even in deep snow at low temperatures. Haven’t I been making presentations about what I’m willing to do to be in the presence of overwhelming beauty? Didn’t I declare 10 months ago today that I was now a nomad?
It’s just a piano! I don’t have a house, I can’t have a piano, right? Well, that’s just it! This isn’t just any old piano, it’s the piano that I bought 30 years ago to lighten my heart. It’s where sang songs with my children. It’s the instrument that freed my inner musician while I mastered the first two books in the Suzuki School. It bonded me with my son as he blossomed as a cellist, giving voice to the duets we played together. It was an instrument of healing in the community Shepherd’s Play that softened my heart to forgiving the Waldorf Community for dashing my dream of taking a class through their 8-year schooling journey.
Well, we did it! Walked in the mountains of Pennsylvania for six days in snow, with temps down near zero a couple of nights. It’s strange how significant this rather short walk seems, even though I’ve walked so many other long walks in the past six years.
Why is that, I wondered.
Is it because the wintry conditions were challenging and this was a new trail for me?
Is it because walking is my new lifestyle and that perhaps my walking has value not just for myself but for others too? Is it because now, as I walk, I’m more keenly aware of the transformational qualities of the journey and I’m flooded with the metaphorical qualities of my walking for other aspects of my life – my general way of being, my business?
This will be a short note while I take a break in Shawnee State Park Lodge. That’s in Ohio on the Buckeye Trail, which I’ve been “hiking” for the past month. I put that in quotes because my partner, John, and I have been engaging with this trail in a unique combination of walking, riding bikes, and driving. A lot of the route follows roads, so we’ve been relieving sore feet from many miles of roadwalking by driving them.
After a full week of walking along the Miami-Erie Canal Towpath, along country roads, and through small towns in rural Ohio along the Buckeye Trail, I’m convinced that walking is my calling.
Meeting people used to be scary for me, but now that I am living my own favorite expression, meeting people is a delightful stream of magical encounters. This week, my hiking partner, John, and I have met over a dozen generous people just by doing our walk!
Here are the stories of a few of them:
Minnie walks for exercise regularly in St. John the Evangelist Church in Delphos, OH. “I walk for 30 minutes a few times a week. While I walk I say my rosary. If I get finished with one rosary, I just start over and say another one. “
Reframe The Story: A New Chapter
My Dad the Healing Angel
Today is the start of my new way of being with my dad.
Here’s the old story:
I’m 24. I’m the program director at Woodland Altars Outdoor Education Center. I love my job! Every day I walk the trails. I’m connecting children and teachers with nature, helping them experience Nature as a nourishing and vibrant sensory exploration. I’m recruiting a record number of schools, welcoming teachers and chaperones, and training my own staff of teacher-naturalists. I love my job!
As our journey begins, here’s a blessing I’m singing, thanks to my friend, Sara and generations before her!
“May troubles be less and blessings be more
May nothing but happiness come to your door
And may you have luck wherever you go
And blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow.
May winds be at your back and sun be overhead
May friends be at your side wherever you are led”.
Winds at your back, Sun overhead
As a traveler, when I go into town with gratitude, I leave with blessings bestowed and friends everywhere.
I sold my house yesterday.
My nomadic lifestyle has now begun in earnest.
I have the urge to enclose myself, to delve deep inside to discover my new self.
One safe and at home wherever I am in the World.
For tonight, though, I am grateful for the luscious bed at my friend’s B&B near the Appalachian Trail. I lean into the familiar lifestyle of a carefully furnished and decorated home. (Not like my own home ever was!)
Tomorrow, or maybe the next day
My roaming can begin.
Tonight
Homelife grounds me, assuring me that someone is home.