I’ve had a longing to travel to sacred places. Several of my friends have done many of them. At the top of my list is Peru. I’m sure I will get to Peru and many other places someday. I’ve realized recently that I can start now. Right from where I am. That’s really the only place we ever can start.

My little realization came a few days ago when I returned my Mother’s car to her. I decided to take my camera and walk home. It’s only a couple miles. I’ve been walking more lately. I’ve been walking for hours in the woods with friends.

It’s funny how easy it is to think nothing of walking for hours in the woods, then get home and think walking a few miles around town is crazy. It just seems too far. I declined the offer of a ride home and after a visit with my folks I set out for home.

I had no motive other than to walk and take pictures along the way of whatever struck my fancy. I soon found my mind was giving me some grief reviewing some recently relationship issues I really didn’t want to think about.
I have practiced meditation for many years and decided to apply some meditation tools to the pesky mind issue. I played with matching the rhythm of my breath, with my steps and the Sanskrit mantra Sat Nam. Sat Nam means identifying the truth within. I found a rhythm that felt pretty good and went with it. As happens in meditation sometimes it doesn’t always go smoothly. That’s ok. When I found myself out of sync I brought it all back together. I also observed my surroundings and stopped to take photos.

In the process I opened myself up and found myself on a sacred journey in my own town. It’s funny sometimes when we forget the most obvious. Over the years I’ve had sacred experiences without going any place “special.” I was forgetting to appreciate what I already had.

I decided to share my journey with you in the hopes of inspiring others to appreciate what they have and to hear about your sacred journeys. In this process I hope to expand my own experience of sacred moments through my days of “ordinary life.” Let make each day a sacred journey and see what spirit reveals.

Sometimes it’s good to fall apart.
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I embrace my passion and I imagine and feel my passion embracing me. We dance, sing and create the life we love. My passion is in partnership with my heart. Together they are powerful. Beauty springs up before us as we share what we love with the world. All aspects of myself come into harmony.

I would imagine the word responsibility invokes different images for people. We’ve all had a variety of experiences around responsibility. Most often responsibility makes me think of things I need to do or things outside of myself that I need to take care of. To act responsible.

We can use responsibility as a defense. To be overly responsible. Take on responsibility that isn’t healthy. As in trying to be responsible for other people’s reactions. Modifying your behavior so that other people won’t feel uncomfortable or angry. Your defense in response to trying to avoid someone else’s defense.

When things aren’t working out so well with all this defense going on we generally start the problem solving by pointing the finger outside ourselves. They ……, we can fill in the blanks with so many things. They just don’t get it. Ahem, ok go ahead get it out of your system. Unless you’re a saint we both know we are both going to travel down that blame path a bit. Sometimes a lot. We’ll rally our friends around us and they will conspire with us about how wonderful we are and how pathetic or awful “the other” is behaving. We are licking our wounds in hopes of healing them. In reality we are keeping them open and festered. Get the picture?

Let’s go back to responsibility. Responsibility to self. That’s right, point those fingers at yourself. This doesn’t have to be punishing. I know you wanted to punish the other. So now you might think you need to punish yourself. NO! Don’t go there. Take a deep breath and let it out. Do that several times and as you release your breath allow the tension to melt away as much as you can.

This isn’t about punishment. It isn’t about being bad. It’s about learned responses. Oh now isn’t that better. Learned responses. Kinda ties into responsibility pretty nice.

I’m not done with this topic, but right now I’m going to shift the laundry around and go out an enjoy this beautiful day a bit. I deserve it. I am responsible for my own joy. Yep, no one can take it away but me. See you soon.

If you need to talk to someone about your own responsibility issues feel free to call me for an appointment.

In Love,
Susan
717-503-0574