I’m obsessed with cults. It’s a running joke in my family – anything that faintly smells a little bit culty is something I will seek out, devour, consume. I think my fascination with cults mirrors some of my own disorienting experiences of having lost myself and needing to find my way back home to my true self.
I have read lo so many books about women who have rescued themselves from abusive polygamous families. Their courage, grit and fortitude is inspiring. These women were led into lions’ dens where their purity and preciousness were ripped to shreds. They had such wholesome hearts and were led straight into abuse by those who should have protected them and then they were surrounded by communities that supported it all. Eventually, miraculously, finally a light would go on in their hearts and once it did, they could do nothing but run for salvation.
These rescue stories always get me. One day, a knowing arrives that cannot be unknown. Once that bell rings, it cannot be unrung. Everything looks different and change must happen. I have had that kind of knowing. I have heard that kind of bell. In a season when holidays are upon us, it feels important to invite us all to come home to our sweet selves.
That kind of bell awakens something deep inside. A knowing that belongs to the youest, truest you. For so many of us, we have learned to live disconnected from our true selves. Whether from trauma or relational wounds, we learn to survive by detaching, denying, ignoring our bodies. We become accustomed to tuning out her voice, her deepest instincts, her inner truths.
The disconnect is subtle — but the effects are not. Many of us walk around in unbearable pain inside our beautiful bodies. The ways we’ve learned to adapt or contort ourselves emotionally are mirrored in the ways our bodies carry our burdens.
There is a wisdom living in our beautiful bodies that wants to be heard! When our body realizes we’re awake and paying attention, she will keep the awakening, the healing, the rescuing going. Here are some practices to awaken or enliven you on your journey to you. And as always, I am here to join you in your quest for your very sweet self:
COMING HOME PRACTICES
Do some Art: The Art Way, Nov. 14 at 10 am – 1 pm; or spend some time create something beautiful that reflects how you are now;
Embodied Agency: Take a moment to breathe. Scan your body. Note where there is discomfort. Adjust to create comfort;
Go Outside: Let yourself soak in the sights, smells, sounds and textures Mother Nature has present today just for your sweet self;
Read a Poem: Poetry can open inner doors that logic cannot. It may move you in mysterious ways, revealing something you didn’t know you knew;
Listen to a Song: Music magically moves our bodies, our souls and our true selves;
Write Something: Try free-writing without stopping. Or dialogue with your younger self, your future self or write a letter from the Divine to your present self.
