This Too Shall Pass

What a full month April has been! Our first in-person training for Personal Renewal Group (PRG) Facilitators at the Crossings here in Austin, was incredibly inspiring and moving. And, we’re getting emails weekly from women around the U.S., Canada and beyond who are getting trained online and starting their own PRGs---their excitement and passion has been contagious!

I really believe as Jean Shinoda Bolen, M.D. shares in “The Millionth Circle: How to Change Ourselves and the World” that intentional, sacred “women’s circles” have the power to change the world as women play such a huge—and key—role in their families, communities and our larger interdependent communities and networks (picture the powerful “pebble creating waves of change” image).

I also experienced a couple of weeks at the end of April that were probably in all honesty, one of the hardest periods I’ve had in about ten years. Much of it was due to what I call the “convergence factor” (we can usually handle dealing with a relationship that’s out of whack OR a family of origin issue OR work/office challenges OR upheaval in our child’s life, but when they all converge and hit us at the same time, it can bring on a lot of uncomfortable feelings, to say the least!).

Interestingly, I noticed that when I shared my feelings of sadness, hurt or despair with friends, most wanted to rush in and “fix me,” offering a list of activities or distractions to (very lovingly) help pull me out of feeling what I was feeling. (And, we all do this. We care deeply about our friends and don’t like to see them in pain.)

At the tail end of this emotional wave, I had the pleasure and honor of attending a workshop on the marriage of the masculine/feminine archetypes or qualities (exploring how we balance traditionally male characteristics like “taking action” with traditionally feminine elements like “listening to our gut”), lead by author/speaker Anita Johnston, Ph.D., who wrote “Eating in the Light of the Moon.”

On the topic of being with our feelings, she shares (from her book):
”So, when a feeling comes knocking on your door, don’t run and hide and pretend no one is home. Don’t slam the door in her face and say ‘Get lost! I’m busy and don’t want to be bothered.” Invite her in. Ask her, ‘what brings you here?’ Get to know her. Go with her. Thank her for her gifts. Treat her presence with honor and respect. For she is truly your friend and is there to help. Feelings are like fluid waves of energy. Like the waves we see in the ocean, they come in, peak, and pass, come in, peak, and pass. They have a natural cyclical rhythm like the ebb and flow of tides, the waning and waxing of the moon. The flow of feeling is as natural as the flow of life itself.”

And there it is. It seems there really is a lot of wisdom in the words “this too shall pass.”

Looking forward to riding the next wave :).

P.S. Hope to see any of you in Texas at our national launch party May 9th at Mercury Hall. Will be a magical, inspiring evening of music, storytelling and great food and wine! You can register via www.reneetrudeau.com. Hurry though, looks like we'll sell out!