July/August - 2010

Dear Friend,

We are in the midst of a record heat wave here in New England, so I’m wishing you all refreshing breezes along with sunshine today!

I’m excited to let you know of a daylong workshop I’ll be facilitating on Creating a Path with Purpose at Sticks and Stones Farm in Connecticut on August 7^th.  We’ll even be able to do some reflective work in their brand new stone and moss labyrinth! Find out more at http://www.actiononpurpose.com/.  I’ll be offering a similar workshop in Western Massachusetts this fall, so stay tuned for details.

Welcome to new subscribers from the Jean Baker Miller Advanced Training Institute in June. I hope your experience was as rich and valuable as mine was!

 I’ve just returned from a wonderful vacation in Canada,which included some time at Niagara Falls - what a powerful place! Appreciating the awe-inspiring views while learning how various cultures have valued this particular wonder got me thinking about the power of special places in our lives. So the theme of this newsletter is about external locations that reflect the important, valued, or sacred aspects of our lives.

The purpose of this newsletter is to share with you simple and effective tools for personal, spiritual and professional growth.  I have used these tools in my own life, so I know their power as well as their challenges. I have also utilized them in more than thirty years of professional work with others as a life coach, educator and psychotherapist.  I offer them to you to try, adapt, and practice as methods to nurture your own growth.

Please send this issue to any friends who might be interested.  Also, I would welcome your thoughts or comments on this newsletter. Have a great month!

Warmly,

Natalie

Natalie@EldridgeWorks.com

P.S.  Interested in some support in clarifying your purpose or taking action on your purpose?  Contact me for a complimentary coaching call to explore whether coaching could help you reach your goals! 

“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread,

places to play in and pray in,

where nature may heal and give strength

to body and soul.”

~ John Muir

Discovering Places of Power

Have you ever entered a space and had an immediate sense of the energy or power there?  Perhaps it was the power of a rushing waterfall or the crash of the ocean surf, the intensity of a courtroom drama, the transformative power of live music, or the awe of a beautiful landscape or artistic masterpiece.  I am referring especially to sacred power, the capacity of a place to open our hearts and support a transcendent experience beyond our everyday consciousness.

Reflecting on my own unique experiences, the places I have discovered to be sacred fall loosely into three categories:  the natural world, spaces created by humans in harmony with nature, and relational spaces. Here are a few examples which may prompt your own reflections:

• Natural World

Many aspects of nature are powerful sacred places for me. I often come across landscape views while walking in natural areas that simply take my breath away. Certain old-growth forests, like the ancient hemlock stand near my home, call to me to downshift into walking meditation mode whenever I enter them. I have also been melted into rapturous tears of joy by Chinese and Japanese gardens I have visited in the US and abroad.

• Human-made Wonders

I find myself opened with awe and wonder when I enter certain old cathedrals or temples. Whether it is the mastery of the human vision and fortitude that created these spaces, the years of worship and reverence they contain, or their sheer vastness I cannot say. Many years ago, I visited the Great Pyramid of Giza, and had the opportunity to sit with just my fellow seekers in the great Kings Chamber.  We chanted together until I experienced the stones themselves beginning to sing.This has forever been a sacred space for me in memory, although I have not returned to Egypt.

• Relational Spaces

Relational spaces are not so much bound in physical space, but in the human connection of many intentions bent in the same direction, in a moment in time. Certainly the transformative experience of moments of intimacy between two individuals – whether parent/child, lovers, friends or even strangers – is the focus of much poetry and art. Many forms of worship would be included in this kind of sacred space. For me, experiences of group meditation or prayer hold this kind of sacred power, as does joining with others in song or listening to great choral works. A particular experience of transient, yet sacred relational space for me was the moment at the Woodstock Festival when we all paused to look skyward as millions of flowers floated down toward us.

X Marks the Spot:  Creating Your Sacred Place

After reflecting on the serendipity of discovering places of sacred power in your own life, let’s consider the process of creating your own sacred places. Just as a pirate’s map marked the place of a buried treasure with an X, so too can you create a physical marker for where the treasure of your wholeness can be “dug up” or reclaimed. 

Want to create a special place in your living environment? Here are a few simple steps that are adaptable for various creations and belief systems.

You may have already designated “sacred space” somewhere in your daily life, whether you think of it that way or not.  Is there a place in your home, your yard, your office, or your car that helps you remember who you are and what really matters to you? If so, explore the following to see if there are any changes you’d like to make in the place or how you use it. 

1. Choose a Place – This can be the most difficult step.  If you have a spare room or closet you can designate as sacred space, you might seek agreement from other residents that this room is to be used as: a meditation room, or a technology-free space, or should be entered without shoes, etc.  Without the luxury of a whole room, however, you could designate a surface, or a corner, or a wall, or a window as sacred.  Try to find a place where you can sit quietly and allow your eyes to gaze on things that are sacred to you.

 Some may travel often and find they need to create their sacred space on the go. If this is you, then focus on what you want to put in your “to go temple,” what you will use to transport it, and where in your home this bag or container will live when you are not traveling.

2. Clear / Clean the Space – The act of clearing a space is, in itself, a form of worship. Clearing out and cleaning a forgotten corner can be very rewarding. In addition, you gain the foundation on which to create something new.

3. Mindfully gather and place a few personal items in your space that represent or call to mind other sacred places and relationships. You might bring objects from nature – perhaps changing this element regularly to represent the changing seasons.  You might put photos of spiritual teachers, loved ones, or places of meaning to you.  Artwork, books, or quotes might also be meaningful. A clear, clean, empty space can also hold enormous power and healing. Listen to your heart.

4. Spend time in this space every day, if only to pause and take a deep breath there. When possible, spend longer times nurturing your highest intentions, and gently looking within to accept whatever is there. Over time and repetition, your sacred space will grow in power to calm, nourish, and heal you.

~ Action On Purpose Challenge  ~

1. Identify or create your own Sacred Space – carefully arranging items that have meaning for you and will remind you of what you already know.

2. Visit often, and tarry when you can.

“Your sacred space

is where you can find yourself

again and again.”

~ Joseph Campbell

~ In the News  ~

Creating a Path With Purpose: A Day of Personal Reflection and Mindful Exploration– I will be facilitating this day-long workshop at Sticks and Stones Farm in Connecticut on August 7^th.  Click here for more information.

I will be leading a similar workshop in Western Massachusetts this fall.  Details of the date and location will be available soon.

Next Steps - Want to get going on a plan for the kind of life you want to lead in the future? Contact me for a complimentary coaching call to explore whether coaching could help you reach your goals!  Natalie@EldridgeWorks.com  For a great list of readings and resources,go to http://www.lifeplanningnetwork.org/index.cfm?action=main.resources

Care to Comment? Have a comment about Natalie's coaching, facilitating, speaking or writings?  If so, please send them to Testimonials@EldridgeWorks.com.  We gratefully welcome your comments.

At www.EldridgeWorks.com, my virtual professional home, you will find information about coaching and psychotherapy services, as well as more about me.  I would love to hear from you about the website, or the Action on Purpose newsletter.  Contact me at Natalie@EldridgeWorks.com.