True Grit

As I sit down at this computer, my mind is pondering what in the world it should offer on this important last day of this year and in fact, of this decade.  What is rolling around inside this head of mine that is important enough to bring forth, to share with others?  As I looked around for the myriad of notes I stash in no one particular place, I find one sheet of paper with only a few words on it.  One word stands out:  Grit.

Immediately I knew this was the topic for this post.  Grit.  Many folks may remember the movie with John Wayne, True Grit.  That's the first thing I usually think of when I hear this word.  Funny though, I really didn't remember what the movie is about.  So, I googled it.  Do you remember?  It's about a 14 year old girl who wants to bring the man who killed her father to justice and she engages John Wayne's character to help her.  He, of course, doesn't want her to come along, but she will not stand down.  She goes along, determined to achieve her goal.  She displays true grit.

Moving into this new year, I think about the past year.  So many of us experienced deep challenges that required true grit to get through.  And, we were able to make it through the tough times.  My question is:  At what cost to our health, our well-being, our stamina, our spirit, our very soul?  This leads me to consider another possibility, one I learned about from a mentor,  Mike Jay  He taught me CPR.  Not the kind you are probably used to though.  This CPR stands for Creating Personal Resilience.  And I think we should all learn this type of CPR.

So, that is what I wish for each of you today.  I imagine each of you with enough knowledge and expertise to not only white knuckle through life's slings and arrows, but to rise above and to soar with grace and confidence to face whatever this life challenges us with.  Integrative Wisdom says it's not enough to "get through" the pain and suffering and sorrow.  We must somehow also come out of these moments able to shake off the dust and emerge, not diminished by the experience, but rather enhanced by it all.

Many of you may scoff at the idea of being able to create a practice that is able to accomplish this.  I agree that it will not happen simply by wishing it so.  I have learned by personal experience that it is only through dedicated effort one is able to move beyond habit and personality to arrive at the doorstep of conscious choice.  We can choose our responses and we can honor our experiences without being permanently harmed.  We, however, must create our unique personal plan to tap into the true grit, the resilience we deserve.

Science has proven that our bodies and our minds work in tandem.  Our bodies will react to our thoughts.  To keep our bodies from taking on the effects of those "true grit" moments, we must be sure to release and let go of the energy that our emotions and thoughts create in our bodies.  Be sure to debrief, or take time to shake it out, or process without the emotional attachment.  Take time to go into the quiet, to breathe, to let go of shoulds and judgments.  Let your body know that, no matter how things turned out, you are ok and you did your best.  

I hope this will help you consider creating your CPR training so you will be prepared for whatever 2020 brings.  My wish is that you will not ever get stuck in the quicksand of life's yuck, but that you will be able to move through it with, yes, true grit, but also a resilience that offers to erase any negative effects from the encounter.

A lofty goal perhaps, but Integrative Wisdom believes it's possible.  And your Soul Catalyst wishes it for you.

Here's to 2020 and CPR for your Soul!

Life's Magical Moments

What Magic is Brewing in Your Life?

Happy Brand New Month!  OMG a few of us might exclaim.  How in the world did we get here already?  Where did this year go?  I'm not ready... (Just a few other exclamations we might be making!)

And yet, we are here.  Right here at the end of a whole year.  AND to make it even more surreal, we have arrived at the end of a decade and are facing a brand spanking new one.   Usually just the coming of a new year sends out the call to make those resolutions but the coming of a new decade?  What might that milestone trigger within us?

Maybe you have been so busy you haven't even thought about the new decade.  Maybe you are so busy with the Christmas season, you haven't even thought about the New Year.  If not, I'm here to put a bee in your bonnet and set your mind to conjuring.

What better time than the magical season of Christmas to envision our future?  One question I have been pondering for a few years now is this:  As an adult, what would I ask Santa for?  For some reason this question has not been easy for me to answer.  I think back to my childhood and the joy I felt when I realized that Santa had listened to me and thought enough of me to fulfill my heart's desire.  I truly loved the gift, whatever it was, and skipped and jumped around for days, while reveling in my prize.

But, now as an adult, the magic has shifted slightly.  Now I am more inclined to believe the gift will come due to my actions, not Santa's.  But...if I returned to those days of blind faith in a bringer of my deepest held desire, what would I ask for?

I have considered those beauty contest answers like "world peace" and "justice for all".  Maybe I don't even think those are possible and I don't want to waste a wish. Or maybe I'm just selfish and want the gift to only benefit me and my life.  As I have said, I am still in the middle of discernment.

I will pause here and let you ponder what you might ask Santa for...

Dear Santa,

So, what is your wish to Santa?  Was it easier for you than it has been for me?  I hope so.  Here's to that magical moment when Santa grants your deepest desire.

But...if you were more like me and found it hard to know what to ask for, why do you think that is?  I'm really curious.  I think part of it for me is the understanding I now have about the fragility of life and the knowledge that, all too soon, life comes to an end.  I find there isn't any one thing I can ask for that will live up to the enormity of this fact.

Instead, I find myself simply wanting to show up to each day.  I find I want to show up, more to the process of asking rather than the end result of receiving.  I revel in the magic that I am here at all and in the magic that one day, a day I have no knowledge of, that it will all be over.  I want to revel in this moment, this magic that is simply being able to ask the question.

So, back to this, end of the year-last month of 2019, moment.  Back to this end of a decade moment.  I am choosing to be held in this magic by consciously marking my days, by listening with my inner ear and discerning what to do, not what to get.  I find have goals, milestones I want to achieve that stand for the idea I was given a responsibility in this being born, a mandate to listen to an inner call and somehow manifest this out into the world. 

I am excited that I am achieving all three of the goals I set for myself back in May.  These will be the gifts I give to myself I suppose.  These coming to fruition is the magic I will cherish.  And, as I finish out these last 30 days of this decade I will give thanks for the gift of life, for the gift of magic, and for the gift of believing.  And I extend my belief that you, too, will be able to discern your end of the year, end of the decade magical moments and revel in them.


Lastly, Integrative Wisdom will be offering an envisionment gathering in January 2020.  Yep, I just made up that word.  It works for what I am envisioning... If you have any desire to partake in the magic, stay tuned.  The date will be set one day soon.  I hope to see you here.

Your Soul Catalyst,
Verna