This period, from the end of October into November, is known cross-culturally as a time when the veil between the physical world and the nonphysical is thin. For thousands of years, humans have used this time to connect with ancestors and the spirit realm. Perhaps you already celebrate Samhain or Día de los Muertos, and know the significance and balm of reconnecting with our loved ones lost. Given the year we have all had, where we have been tested on numerous levels, and so many have passed, the healing potential of these practices seem as poignant as ever.

My invitation to you, over the next couple weeks, set aside some time when you can be in intentional reverence or contemplation. Think of the ancestors you would like to recognize. These may be cherished ones you have known who have passed, others who were estranged, or family further back on your ancestral line. How would you like to acknowledge and honor these souls? Perhaps you pull out some photographs, and light a candle, make a family recipe, watch a movie you loved to share, or engage in an activity this person enjoyed. If you did not have closure with this person, you may be called to write a letter to them, expressing how you feel. Seal it up in an envelop, leave it out on an altar, and then bury or burn it after a short time. You'll know when. If you had a particularly challenging relationship with one of these individuals, honor your experience by allowing your feelings to flow. Are there any lessons you learned as a result of your relationship with them? If you haven't already, are you ready to forgive them? If not, what to you need to move closer to forgiveness, so you can heal? No matter who you choose to acknowledge, you may find expressing yourself with a poem, drawing, or song cathartic. Trust what feels appropriate, reverent, and healing for you.

Even if the details of the stories may have been lost to time, we all have had ancestors that survived pandemics as well as times of uncertainty, and unrest. Their strength, wisdom, love, and resilience still lives on in your bones, your DNA. You can call on these compassionate ancestors and ask them to guide you, be with you, and offer you strength to continue on during these times. As you invite these energies, focus on the blessings. If you notice any of their unresolved pain or struggles activating within you, witness it with compassion, and remember it is not yours, and therefore not your job to carry it on. Breathe these burdens down into the Earth with love, freeing yourself and your family line from these energies. As you connect with these ancestors, who knows what kind of insight and healing may emerge for you.

Finally, you may feel called to incorporate a ritual in remembrance of the many who lost their lives this year due to COVID-19, violence, or other causes. Create space for mourning within your personal world and communities. We have been through a lot, and though you have survived if you are reading this, many have not. Let us offer them peace on their soul's journey, and healing and comfort for their loved ones (which may include you). If you are in the thick of grief, remember to lean on the support of those around you. The Reiki and I are here for you too, if you need it. 

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As you take this time to honor the departed, please share with us in the comments how you celebrated them, and what the experience was like for you.

Lastly, with the election just around the corner, I ask you all to join me in holding intentions for peace, fairness, integrity, safety, and compassion for all Americans as we exercise our right to vote, determine the results of the election, and await the next term.

Take good care,
Sarah

Over the last few months, as we all have been adjusting moment by moment to navigate the coronavirus pandemic, we've been provided with a unique opportunity. Such dramatic shifts in our daily routines, and oscillating in and out of the old ways of operating offers us new perspective. Some may have had more chances to pause amidst the uncertainty. Though even for those who have had to rush around to ensure survival, this experience has offered us all the chance to reassess.

In sessions, I've heard some of you sharing how much calmer and more supported you feel working from home, and having less pressure to rush off to so many activities. I've heard others sharing excitement about how the Earth gave a sigh of relief with less pollution, but not with how we are all using so much more disposable PPE materials which are inundating our landfills. Others have been grappling with the blatant disparities of class, and color have come to the forefront as we see how socioeconomics and race have played out in one's increasing exposure to the coronavirus. Those are just a few observations I've heard from clients over the last few months.

So, let's pause for a moment, and contemplate these questions:

• From our former ways of operating, what was life-affirming, supportive, nurturing, connective, and sustainable?
• What was running us to the ground, debilitating, destructive, isolating, or overwhelming?
• Then ask the same questions about the new adaptations we've made in the process.
• Once you've had a chance to explore these questions related to your personal world, zoom out, and with curiosity examine how they might be answered by people who identify differently than you. This is a great opportunity to seek out others voices to hear their experiences.

From this clarity comes the opportunity to forge a path that is deeply infused with our values, and leave behind those structures that no longer serve the greater good. Dream with me for a moment, holding the inner critic and pragmatist aside, just for now. If anything were possible, what kind of world would you want to live in (knowing that so much of what is familiar is man-made, and thus can change)? What is essential, and what is superfluous? Focus on the values you want to bring forth. Imagine how you want your relationship with yourself, your family, community, and the Earth to be. Tune in to as many layers as possible: what you would feel, how it would look, sound, taste, smell, and what it would be like to move through your life. Feel free to express this vision perhaps through a drawing, writing, song, dance. Begin to give it life, give it shape.

While the vision may feel distant or removed from the current reality, know that things are shifting. Many of you have told me you can feel it. I can too. If we hold to our dream, and let it guide our choices, it will support us in cultivating this new world.

Though I have been dreaming this for a while, it wasn't until the last few months that I felt that I might see aspects of this transpire in my lifetime. My longing has been for us to come into right relationship with ourselves, humanity, and the planet. A world where we live with reverence, and respect for all of the beings that share this floating rock in space. That we remember to consider how our actions will affect seven generations in the future, as so many indigenous cultures have practiced. A world where we remember what is important: we take care of each other, forgive each other, hold each other with compassion, and laugh and play together. That we witness and embrace those who are hurting, and/or lashing out without judgement rather than ostracizing them. I imagine that if enough of us live by similar ideals, that if/when the old, unsustainable structures crumble, we will have woven a safety net that will cushion the landing for those who have lost the only thing they've known. We will help them back to their feet, and we will move forward grounded, grateful, and healing together. 

So, dear one, I would love to hear your dream, and answers to those questions. Please share with us in the comments below, so we can inspire each other, and remember we are not dreaming up these new ways alone.

Finally, an announcement: For those of you who are feelers, sensitives, or empaths who have been hoping and wishing to find a way to surrender overwhelm, confusion, improve boundaries, self-care, and embrace your gifts, you will want to join us for this upcoming virtual series. The Empowered Empath begins Tues July 21 and runs for five weeks on Zoom. Because this is a virtual class you can tune into the live class (or recordings) from anywhere around the globe. I can also accommodate a larger group so feel free to share with your empathic friends! I'm offering this on a sliding scale to help out during these trying times. See full class details here.

If you feel inspired to jump in, I look forward to working with you!


Much love,
Sarah

As we honor Thanksgiving this year, whether gathered with loved ones or resting in solitude....

May we feel safe to be as we are, in our bodies, minds, and souls.

May we acknowledge the provision that life has offered us, and allow ourselves to fully receive that which nourishes and feeds our spirits and flesh.

May we shrug off with grace that which would diminish our light. Allowing it to roll off us, untarnished, and view it through the eyes of compassion and a desire to understand.

May we be fully grounded in our hearts and feel this capacity grow.

May we honor our roots, our personal ancestry, and that of our communities, country, and planet. May we remember that we wouldn't be here without those who came before.

May we honor their love, courage, and hope. The beauty they planted that has flourished through time and strengthened through adversity.

May we also acknowledge their shortcomings. The moments of misstep, and misalignment with deep Truth and Love. The old wounds, personal, and collective, that have yet to heal. 

May we recognize this humanness within ourselves too. That we all have these capacities for love, fear, connection, and confusion.

May we find tenderness as we see these places where our souls and communities still ache. May we witness the pain and not turn away. May we say, "I am here with you, brother, sister, friend. We will heal this together."

May we be willing to forgive, and to practice it until we feel it in our bones.

May we have the courage to move into inspired action. Led by the heart, to offer greater healing to ourselves, our families, and the world.

May we trust that our love and joy ripples out into the universe, and serves those who need our gifts the most. May we remember that the choice to live from this place elevates us all.

We Are One.

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Thank you for existing. We need you.

With so much love,

Sarah


P.S. Have a blessing you would like to share with our community? Post it in the comments below.

Hello Friends!

I hope life is finding you well as fall rolls on, and the winter and holiday season approaches for those of you celebrating. Now is a time we can take a deep breath before it all unfolds, and perhaps prepare to dive a little deeper, and turn inward in harmony with the seasons. So as we settle into a steady rhythm again, and take a nice exhale with relief and joy, I would like to pick up where we left off, and explore the nature of forgiveness.

What does it mean to forgive? Many have heard the saying that we forgive, not to excuse the behavior that initiated our grievance, but to free ourselves from the pain. The process of forgiving brings about healing. But how do you do it? Is it enough to think "I forgive you," or to say it?

Healing through forgiveness begins with the desire to find peace, and also claim your power in the situation. This may seem obvious, but I feel it is important to mention, because there may be times that we are still hooked on making someone else (or ourselves) the perpetrator and blaming them. In such a case we aren't even ready to consider viewing the circumstance in another way. A part of us may be juicing the effect of being a victim (we actually feed off of the biochemical response in our body).

When we are ready to find peace, and step into this power, it may not necessarily look like what you would expect at first. The first step in taking this responsibility is to tend to your feelings. What emotions does the said situation elicit, and how do you experience these feelings in your body? Perhaps you feel anger, sadness, despair, rage, powerless, or indignant. How is that emotion currently "living" in your body? Meaning, as you experience the emotion do you feel a flush of warmth in your face and torso, and weakness or emptiness in your chest, heaviness in your head, etc? Once you become aware of what sensations are associated with your emotions and this event, the practice is in allowing yourself to fully feel it exactly as it is in your body, without trying to push it away, or change it into something else. This may take some time. Be patient with yourself. Breathe.

After several minutes, a few hours, or maybe even days (there is no set timeline) of allowing yourself to be with how you feel, eventually the charge of the emotion will start to dissipate. It is possible that you may need to repeat this step several times. There may be more layers of the emotion, or the sensation might morph into something else. Just continue the practice of being with whatever it is, and breathe. If you have been carrying this resentment or guilt around for a while, may take some time.

Once the smoke clears, it is likely you will be able to access a deeper understanding of yourself, what was going on for you at the time, and if there is a nugget of wisdom there for you. You may also be able to see any other individuals involved, or the situation itself from another perspective. There may be lessons here to integrate regarding having healthy boundaries, or self-care. Make note of what you notice.

This is the space where true forgiveness is possible. A state of being where we offer ourselves the attention and compassion we've needed, and a willingness to see and understand the situation from a lens of a broader truth. From here, peace can grow.

So, what has been your experience with forgiveness?  Have you been able to find peace with situations which once upset you? If so, what has supported you in doing so? If you apply the above process to cultivate forgiveness, and are willing to share your experience, I'd love to hear from you. Please comment below or send me an email.

Wishing you all deep peace, and a beautiful Thanksgiving.

Sarah