Category: newsletter intro

I received a profound gift yesterday, and it came via Zoom from three humble wise-women from a small village in Peru. My monthly Qoya teacher continuing education class was a virtual meeting with three Q’ero Nusta Pacos, or female elders, who provided this simple insight for our chaotic times—listen. The Q’ero people are direct descendants of the Inka and have lived for the last 500 years at 14,000 feet in the Andes Mountains. Many have recently relocated to the city of Cusco in order to bring their teaching and healing to a wider audience. The Q’ero people believe in the […]

Many years ago, on a tour of the old federal penitentiary on Alcatraz Island, I got locked in solitary confinement. Well, me and about 30 other people. At that time, part of the visit included herding an entire group of tourists into a pitch-dark solitary confinement cell and bolting the door. We probably only stayed there for a couple of minutes, but it felt like an eternity. I remember holding my hand up in front of my face and not being able to see it. I also remember thinking, “What if a stranger grabs me, or worse, has a knife?” […]

I’ve been waking up lately to the smell of smoke. I’m sure you have too if you live in the West, as it’s wildfire season. This one has been heartbreaking. Because I live in the forest, I’m terrified of wildfire, even though, gratefully, I’ve never been through one. Still, I feel so vulnerable! Vulnerability is a place of discomfort for most of us. It’s typically viewed as weakness. The word literally means capable of being physically or emotionally wounded, or open to attack or damage. There are many things to fear about vulnerability: loss of livelihood, physical injury, illness, even death. And that […]

My friend got married Sunday, outdoors in front of a happy gathering of masked, socially distanced friends and family. As part of the ceremony, the couple released butterflies from a beautifully decorated box. At first the butterflies clung to the inside of the box, not willing to be set free. Then slowly, gingerly one flew out, then another and another, until all were ready to escape their temporary prison to embrace the next part of their journey. Sort of like people. There has been a common theme in my healing practice over the last several weeks: I keep seeing squashed, […]

Meet Nalu the Border Collie, my manifestation teacher. I spent some quality time with her last week while visiting my oldest daughter and her fiancé in Montana. While everyone else was doing other things, Nalu and I went for a hike. For the entire 5-1/2 miles on the trail, she waited expectantly for me to throw her a stick, she retrieved it, she laid it down in front of me and then waited expectantly again. When we stopped, she jumped into the river and waited expectantly for me to play “the splash game” where I kick up water and she […]

Last week, my granddaughter turned two, and her grandfather and I bought her a purple drum set. On her big day, I watched her (via Zoom) banging on the drums, then the cymbals, then back to the drums again with every ounce of concentration and joy she possesses. It set my heart on fire… and also got me thinking about play. We are living in a heavy time. Daily life has changed. Tensions are high. Ugliness is being revealed. Fear wants to rule. What might happen if we all took some time to play? When I was a public relations […]

If our collective COVID experience is like a marathon, as far as social isolation goes, I think I’ve hit the wall. Apparently, it is common after mile 18 or so for many marathoners to deplete their glycogen or carbohydrate stores and experience fatigue so extreme they literally feel like they’ve run into a stack of bricks. Hitting the wall, or bonking, is described as a time when both body and mind are challenged—a time when one’s pre-race plans go out the window. Sound familiar? Remedies are physical (consume small amounts of carbohydrates) and also mental (positive self-talk, visualization, keeping your […]

When I meditate, I often see spirit animals, and yesterday it was the sea turtle. The vision I had of her was the slow crawl from sea to sand to lay her eggs.  I’ve had the privilege to witness this in real life, and it felt both excruciating and exhilarating. Turtle Mama’s arduous journey up the beach was unbearably slow, then she’d get knocked back by a wave and have to begin again almost from where she started. Finally, she made it to the spot where she’d dig a nest and lay her eggs, and I felt like cheering! So, […]

All is peaceful at my house after last week’s COVID scare. My youngest daughter—the one I birthed who still lives at home—was exposed June 19 and began exhibiting some strange symptoms by the 21st. She tested negative, as did her father and I, yet symptoms have persisted on and off since then. Even if she does have COVID, she has not been terribly sick, yet fear in its many forms got the best of me last week. It first showed up as anger because I made a judgement that the people who exposed her acted carelessly. I was also angry […]

Many years ago while living in L.A., I experienced a fairly significant earthquake. Imagine being in the shower doing your thing and out of nowhere, the shower starts rocking back and forth. Unnerving to say the least!  I made it out of the shower to safety, turned on the TV news, and then the aftershocks started. Unexpected, unpredictable and unsettling. The ground, which I took for granted as being solid and dependable, shifted. It was out of my control, and the sensation kept repeating itself.  That’s sort of the way things are feeling now. Nearly every one of my energy healing […]