I was asked this question yesterday. Today, as I took a lovely walk in the rain,I found myself stating out loud the answer to the question.
I answered, "I weave women's pelvic/belly wisdom into sacred circle, sacred pilgrimage and sacred commerce. I co-create with women in sacred circles to embrace our worth. I walk with women in sacred pilgrimage to embelly our wisdom. I work with women in sacred commerce to own our wealth.
Together, we embody the divine Feminine, become WEALTHY* women, and transform ourselves and heal the world.
*
Wise
Evolutionary
Abundant and authentic
Loving
Truthful, team player
Heart-centered and healthy
Yourself
Monday, May 7, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
Pilgrim of the Sacred and the Wealth Path...part 2.
And then, of course, there is also the other journey, that of the WEALTHY** Woman Enterprises and in particular, the WEALTHY Woman Pilgrimage. This is the WEALTH path. This is the journey I have embarked on to on to claim, cultivate, and embody my relationship with wealth, finances, and money. This is the path where I have to deal with the mundane, the practical, the financial, money - this is the path I had avoided, and had hoped that I could continue to avoid for as long as possible.
Yet, as much as I have tried to avoid, my soul pulls be back to this path. I am called to claim and embody my WEALTHY woman with the same force and intensity as I am called to the Camino. The path to claim WEALTH is actually as deeply a spiritual path, if not more so, than the Celtic Camino. Even as I type that, I know that truthfully, actually, for me, they cannot be separated. They are reflections of each other, and cannot exist without the other. As I walk one, I walk the other...they work in tandem, each reinforcing and informing the other. They are like two sides of the same coin...it is not even an issue of either/or...it only can be both/and.
In fact, I was invited into WOW ~ Women Owning Wealth, as I was preparing to leave on the first leg of the Celtic Camino. Synchronicity?! Of course. While I walked, I questioned Spirit every day about why this path, why this vehicle, why me? And every day, I worked to understand, to surrender to this path. I drank Body Balance, the product I would be sharing every day, and as I shook it in my water bottle, I demanded big answers. All I got was "Drink your Body Balance." It wasn't until I returned home, and realized how great I felt that I was willing to dive into my business. And even then it took me a little while to get why this business, this model of doing business, this community, this company - are the sides of the river, the structures and the support for my pilgrimage. (Truthfully, I am still "getting it"!)
My business, exists within this collective called WOW - Women Owning Wealth. My success and growth, both personally and professionally, is really because I am an intricate part of this amazing community of vibrant, lit up, pleasure-loving beings who believe that a planet full of healthy, alive, nutritionally sourced, and spiritually supported human beings is what we all need!
In WOW, we practice Sacred Commerce. In other words, we work together as a community, with our businesses supporting and contributing to each other in powerful ways. We work inside of a common agreement that everything we do is sacred, an offering to ourselves and each other, and in deep service of the awakening of the planet. We are partnered with Life Force International, an impeccable, family-owned company that was born out of love, integrity, and a commitment to service.
Life Force manufactures Body Balance, a 100% raw, organic, whole food liquid product made of a blend of 9 seaweeds and aloe vera juice. Body Balance is ecstasy for the cells, an elixir for the spirit, and an activator of the body’s natural, healthy state. It is like drinking chi every morning by giving your body the most potent nutritional support there is! And the most beautiful thing about it is that it is just FOOD. So we source the body the way it was designed to be sourced--with highly absorbable, nutrient dense food. In WOW, we also claim that Body Balance is "nourishment for spiritual transformation."
So how is my journey with WOW and Life Force related to the Celtic Camino pilgrimage?
This company chose to market their products using the direct (or network) marketing model, so that people could be generously compensated for sharing a product that they love. Out of the Life Force compensation plan emerges the rank attainments, or milestones that reflect the destinations of the WEALTHY Woman Pilgrimage. They are labeled with names of the precious metals - Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, and then as one progresses along the journey, one steps into Diamond, 1-Star Diamond, 2-Star Diamond, 3-Star Diamond, Crown Diamond, and ultimately, Royal Crown Diamond.
In the past year, I walked quickly through Bronze, Silver, and Gold into Platinum. I compare these rank attainments to Santiago, Leon, Burgos, and Ste. Jean Pied de Port. Going Bronze felt similar to arriving in Santiago. This was my initial demonstration of getting on the path and committing to the Pilgrimage. Walking through Silver and Gold was like walking and arriving in Leon and Burgos, beautiful cities along the Camino with stunning cathedrals of their own. Wonderful places to visit, rest for a day or two and appreciate the beauty, but not a destination in and of themselves. Ste. Jean Pied de Port is a little town just inside of France in the foothills of the Pyrenees. For most pilgrims who walk to Santiago, this is where they embark on their 800 kilometer to Santiago. As I am walking "al contrairio" or the other way up through France to Scotland, this was a destination in the middle of the first leg. To walk to Ste. Jean, I had to walk up and over the Pyrenees. The day I walked over was a very windy, dark, and challenging day. The wind would literally blow me off the path, unless I anchored down and held my ground...just like going Platinum! And just like I have been hanging out at Platinum since last June, I feel like I have been hanging out between Santiago and Toulouse in Ste. Jean Pied de Port for the past 16 months, wanting to walk on, yet waiting to claim the next leg of the journey to Toulouse.
It is a journey for me, and I believe many of us, to truly claim and own our WEALTH. We have been taught to split our spirituality from money, wealth, the material. One aspect of this journey to heal the split between these two realms, and recognize that they too are two sides of the same coin. Also, I believe that most women have been taught to separate from their divine feminine strength, wisdom and power. This is a journey to reclaim all of this.
This is a journey of initiation and embodiment. I walk to initiate the lessons and healing of the particular chakra, and then I return home to live into those lessons and embody the transformation. As I heal, transform and grow, I then attract the lessons and experiences which reflect the next chakra. Sometimes the Camino comes first. Other times the WEALTHY Woman pilgrimage is first. Right now I am being called into the second chakra through my experiences of the WEALTHY Woman pilgrimage. I am also being called back to walk the comparable leg of the Celtic Camino, from Ste. Jean to Toulouse. Even this week as I have been writing this entry, I had a conversation with a fellow peregrina, or perhaps I should say "pelerina", to explore the possibility to walk together next fall!!
As I wrote above, I walk with one foot on each path, and I cannot walk one without the other. They are seemingly parallel, but at their core, they are deeply connected and intertwined rooted in the teaching that WE ARE ALL ONE.
Suseya,
Sarah
(**I capitalize WEALTH because I see WEALTH as an acronym. Wealth can trigger a lot of reactions in people, just like money can. From my core, I believe that wealth is a powerful concept that when we expand our understanding of what it truly is, it can become one of the cornerstones in our foundations.
Yet, as much as I have tried to avoid, my soul pulls be back to this path. I am called to claim and embody my WEALTHY woman with the same force and intensity as I am called to the Camino. The path to claim WEALTH is actually as deeply a spiritual path, if not more so, than the Celtic Camino. Even as I type that, I know that truthfully, actually, for me, they cannot be separated. They are reflections of each other, and cannot exist without the other. As I walk one, I walk the other...they work in tandem, each reinforcing and informing the other. They are like two sides of the same coin...it is not even an issue of either/or...it only can be both/and.
In fact, I was invited into WOW ~ Women Owning Wealth, as I was preparing to leave on the first leg of the Celtic Camino. Synchronicity?! Of course. While I walked, I questioned Spirit every day about why this path, why this vehicle, why me? And every day, I worked to understand, to surrender to this path. I drank Body Balance, the product I would be sharing every day, and as I shook it in my water bottle, I demanded big answers. All I got was "Drink your Body Balance." It wasn't until I returned home, and realized how great I felt that I was willing to dive into my business. And even then it took me a little while to get why this business, this model of doing business, this community, this company - are the sides of the river, the structures and the support for my pilgrimage. (Truthfully, I am still "getting it"!)
My business, exists within this collective called WOW - Women Owning Wealth. My success and growth, both personally and professionally, is really because I am an intricate part of this amazing community of vibrant, lit up, pleasure-loving beings who believe that a planet full of healthy, alive, nutritionally sourced, and spiritually supported human beings is what we all need!
In WOW, we practice Sacred Commerce. In other words, we work together as a community, with our businesses supporting and contributing to each other in powerful ways. We work inside of a common agreement that everything we do is sacred, an offering to ourselves and each other, and in deep service of the awakening of the planet. We are partnered with Life Force International, an impeccable, family-owned company that was born out of love, integrity, and a commitment to service.
Life Force manufactures Body Balance, a 100% raw, organic, whole food liquid product made of a blend of 9 seaweeds and aloe vera juice. Body Balance is ecstasy for the cells, an elixir for the spirit, and an activator of the body’s natural, healthy state. It is like drinking chi every morning by giving your body the most potent nutritional support there is! And the most beautiful thing about it is that it is just FOOD. So we source the body the way it was designed to be sourced--with highly absorbable, nutrient dense food. In WOW, we also claim that Body Balance is "nourishment for spiritual transformation."
So how is my journey with WOW and Life Force related to the Celtic Camino pilgrimage?
This company chose to market their products using the direct (or network) marketing model, so that people could be generously compensated for sharing a product that they love. Out of the Life Force compensation plan emerges the rank attainments, or milestones that reflect the destinations of the WEALTHY Woman Pilgrimage. They are labeled with names of the precious metals - Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, and then as one progresses along the journey, one steps into Diamond, 1-Star Diamond, 2-Star Diamond, 3-Star Diamond, Crown Diamond, and ultimately, Royal Crown Diamond.
In the past year, I walked quickly through Bronze, Silver, and Gold into Platinum. I compare these rank attainments to Santiago, Leon, Burgos, and Ste. Jean Pied de Port. Going Bronze felt similar to arriving in Santiago. This was my initial demonstration of getting on the path and committing to the Pilgrimage. Walking through Silver and Gold was like walking and arriving in Leon and Burgos, beautiful cities along the Camino with stunning cathedrals of their own. Wonderful places to visit, rest for a day or two and appreciate the beauty, but not a destination in and of themselves. Ste. Jean Pied de Port is a little town just inside of France in the foothills of the Pyrenees. For most pilgrims who walk to Santiago, this is where they embark on their 800 kilometer to Santiago. As I am walking "al contrairio" or the other way up through France to Scotland, this was a destination in the middle of the first leg. To walk to Ste. Jean, I had to walk up and over the Pyrenees. The day I walked over was a very windy, dark, and challenging day. The wind would literally blow me off the path, unless I anchored down and held my ground...just like going Platinum! And just like I have been hanging out at Platinum since last June, I feel like I have been hanging out between Santiago and Toulouse in Ste. Jean Pied de Port for the past 16 months, wanting to walk on, yet waiting to claim the next leg of the journey to Toulouse.
It is a journey for me, and I believe many of us, to truly claim and own our WEALTH. We have been taught to split our spirituality from money, wealth, the material. One aspect of this journey to heal the split between these two realms, and recognize that they too are two sides of the same coin. Also, I believe that most women have been taught to separate from their divine feminine strength, wisdom and power. This is a journey to reclaim all of this.
This is a journey of initiation and embodiment. I walk to initiate the lessons and healing of the particular chakra, and then I return home to live into those lessons and embody the transformation. As I heal, transform and grow, I then attract the lessons and experiences which reflect the next chakra. Sometimes the Camino comes first. Other times the WEALTHY Woman pilgrimage is first. Right now I am being called into the second chakra through my experiences of the WEALTHY Woman pilgrimage. I am also being called back to walk the comparable leg of the Celtic Camino, from Ste. Jean to Toulouse. Even this week as I have been writing this entry, I had a conversation with a fellow peregrina, or perhaps I should say "pelerina", to explore the possibility to walk together next fall!!
As I wrote above, I walk with one foot on each path, and I cannot walk one without the other. They are seemingly parallel, but at their core, they are deeply connected and intertwined rooted in the teaching that WE ARE ALL ONE.
Suseya,
Sarah
(**I capitalize WEALTH because I see WEALTH as an acronym. Wealth can trigger a lot of reactions in people, just like money can. From my core, I believe that wealth is a powerful concept that when we expand our understanding of what it truly is, it can become one of the cornerstones in our foundations.
A WEALTHY Woman is:
Wise and intuitive
Evolutionary, Embodied
Abundant and Authentic
Loving and Luminous Leader
Trusting and Truthful; Team player
Healthy and Heart-Centered
YourSelf with outrageous and total acceptance.)
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Pilgrim of the Sacred and the Wealth Path...part 1.
I am on a journey, one foot is in the sacred world on the path of the Celtic Camino, a sacred pilgrimage from Santiago up through France to Rosslyn, Scotland; the other foot is in the practical world of the WEALTHY Woman Pilgrimage to claim, cultivate, and own my wealth.
I used to think that they were parallel paths, but have now realized that they are intricately interwoven, like the strands of DNA. These paths embrace and entwine each other to create a beautiful chord that connect us from our root to our divinity, and serves as the bridge between the spiritual and material worlds.
Each of these pilgrimages is a path, with a destination, goals and layovers along the way, as well as a road map with guides, arrows, directions and support along the way. Just like on the Camino, everything you need is on the path. You just need to ask, be open and receptive, and allow yourself to receive the guidance, direction and support.
As I've written before, the Celtic Camino follows a sacred configuration 0f seven pre-Christian sites from Santiago de Compostela, Spain, up through France to Rosslyn, Scotland. This sacred configuration forms the route of a “pilgrimage of initiation” used by the Druids and Christian mystics in their search for true knowledge and enlightenment. These 7 sacred sites actually correspond to the 7 chakras of the human body, the first or root chakra being Santiago and the 7th crown chakra being Rosslyn.
It seems that I live into the issues of the chakra before going on the related leg of the journey. When I return home, I simultaneously complete and heal the chakra, as I move into the issues of the next chakra.
So, I walked from Santiago to Ste. Jean Pied de Port in the autumn of 2010. In essence, I have walked from the first chakra part of the way to the second chakra, located in Toulouse, France. Since returning home in November 2010, I have been completing the issues, challenges and lessons of first chakra issues, and in turn, living into the issues of the second chakra.
In Carolyn Myss's words,
Next time...my WEALTHY Woman Pilgrimage as the other reflection of the "pilgrimage of initiation"...
I used to think that they were parallel paths, but have now realized that they are intricately interwoven, like the strands of DNA. These paths embrace and entwine each other to create a beautiful chord that connect us from our root to our divinity, and serves as the bridge between the spiritual and material worlds.
Each of these pilgrimages is a path, with a destination, goals and layovers along the way, as well as a road map with guides, arrows, directions and support along the way. Just like on the Camino, everything you need is on the path. You just need to ask, be open and receptive, and allow yourself to receive the guidance, direction and support.
As I've written before, the Celtic Camino follows a sacred configuration 0f seven pre-Christian sites from Santiago de Compostela, Spain, up through France to Rosslyn, Scotland. This sacred configuration forms the route of a “pilgrimage of initiation” used by the Druids and Christian mystics in their search for true knowledge and enlightenment. These 7 sacred sites actually correspond to the 7 chakras of the human body, the first or root chakra being Santiago and the 7th crown chakra being Rosslyn.
It seems that I live into the issues of the chakra before going on the related leg of the journey. When I return home, I simultaneously complete and heal the chakra, as I move into the issues of the next chakra.
So, I walked from Santiago to Ste. Jean Pied de Port in the autumn of 2010. In essence, I have walked from the first chakra part of the way to the second chakra, located in Toulouse, France. Since returning home in November 2010, I have been completing the issues, challenges and lessons of first chakra issues, and in turn, living into the issues of the second chakra.
In Carolyn Myss's words,
The second chakra is your center of personal power, creativity, sexuality, and finances. Issues of physical survival, control, and one-on-one relationships are at the core of this energy center...The Sacred Truth (of the second chakra is) "Honor One Another." Every relationship you develop, from casual to intimate, helps you become more conscious. No union is without spiritual value."So what I have been doing these past 16 months? I have started my own business, WEALTHY Woman Enterprises, and have been growing it steadily over the past year. I have surrendered to my marriage. I have been doing deep pelvic floor and bowl massage and healing, both physically and emotionally. I am part of a beautiful circle of women who are exploring our "wild feminine" together through the book of the same name. These are the big reflections of the past year. There are many small reflections of the second chakra journey as well. Together, they are a profound reflection of my issues and challenges with my personal power, creativity, sexuality and finances, and how I show up in my relationships, whether with my husband, Steve, my mother, my finances and business, and most importantly, with myself.
Next time...my WEALTHY Woman Pilgrimage as the other reflection of the "pilgrimage of initiation"...
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
I Claim my Sovereignty...and my Wild Feminine!
This is my 40 day daily practice - to walk our labyrinth and with my staff (that I am borrowing from my son who at 15 years old no longer uses this gorgeous carved wooden staff he bought at the Renaissance Festival years ago), I declare "I claim my Sovereignty." As I plant the staff three times on the stone in the center, I can feel my declaration ripple out in the cosmos, rearranging not only my cellular structure, but also the energy patterns of the universe. My world and myself are being profoundly rearranged, realigned, and reorganized.
I visited Portland, Oregon, back in October as part of a northwest college tour with my daughter. We spent a couple of hours at Powell's, the famous bookstore that takes up a whole city block in downtown Portland. We set our timers and agreed to meet back in an hour. We both wanted to just wander and get lost in all of these beautiful books!
Wild Feminine by Tami Lynn Kent fell off the top shelf and into my hands just as I started to wander...the title immediately grabbed my attention, but the subtitle,"Finding Power, Spirit, & Joy in the Root of the Female Body" sealed the deal. I knew I had to buy it, and while I had many books in my growing pile, I knew that I was not going to deliberate about this one.
The premise of this book is simple, and yet so profound.
"When a woman found the wild feminine in her core, she was radiant and wise in her own unique way." (p.9)
It actually made so much intuitive sense that my world opened just in reading the first few pages, much less the first chapter! In fact, I have only read the first chapter!
But, since early December (so for over the past 2 months) I have actually been seeing a physical therapist who specializes in the pelvic floor, and I also invited my dearest friends to join me in a Wild Feminine book group!
We met for the first time last night and we have scheduled 7 more gatherings over the next 2 or so months, including a full moon overnight celebration in early May up in the mountains. It came together so beautifully and gracefully, as though She had a hand in it Herself. I am so honored to be in this beautiful circle with women in their 50s who all felt as though serendipity brought them to this book and this circle as the container to return them to their core, and to their pelvic bowl.
And then there is the profound growth, transformation and coming into my womanness that is all apart of the inner pelvic floor work. I will share more about this tomorrow.
Suseya!
I visited Portland, Oregon, back in October as part of a northwest college tour with my daughter. We spent a couple of hours at Powell's, the famous bookstore that takes up a whole city block in downtown Portland. We set our timers and agreed to meet back in an hour. We both wanted to just wander and get lost in all of these beautiful books!
Wild Feminine by Tami Lynn Kent fell off the top shelf and into my hands just as I started to wander...the title immediately grabbed my attention, but the subtitle,"Finding Power, Spirit, & Joy in the Root of the Female Body" sealed the deal. I knew I had to buy it, and while I had many books in my growing pile, I knew that I was not going to deliberate about this one.
The premise of this book is simple, and yet so profound.
"When a woman found the wild feminine in her core, she was radiant and wise in her own unique way." (p.9)
When we restore the internal pelvic landscape, the capacity within our female bodies that supports the presence of the feminine, we witness a return of the feminine to our lives. When we recognize her essence in teh root of our bodies, the feminine will no longer be invisible and endangered...Recovering her full range in our feminine core, we receive sustenance from the wild feminine at last. (p.11)As I began reading the book, I realized that the author, a physical therapist who developed "Holistic Pelvic Care, was sharing her approach to the wild feminine through our pelvic bowl, and that much of her work and healing was through an inner physical exploration. She was actually talking about going into our pelvic bowls from the inside, through our yonis.
It actually made so much intuitive sense that my world opened just in reading the first few pages, much less the first chapter! In fact, I have only read the first chapter!
But, since early December (so for over the past 2 months) I have actually been seeing a physical therapist who specializes in the pelvic floor, and I also invited my dearest friends to join me in a Wild Feminine book group!
We met for the first time last night and we have scheduled 7 more gatherings over the next 2 or so months, including a full moon overnight celebration in early May up in the mountains. It came together so beautifully and gracefully, as though She had a hand in it Herself. I am so honored to be in this beautiful circle with women in their 50s who all felt as though serendipity brought them to this book and this circle as the container to return them to their core, and to their pelvic bowl.
And then there is the profound growth, transformation and coming into my womanness that is all apart of the inner pelvic floor work. I will share more about this tomorrow.
Suseya!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
I am a Writer
It has been a long while since I have written in this blog. I have been writing - every day, but I have been writing on the iPad that I received for Christmas last year and using a wonderful app called My Writing Spot. I promised to write every day, no matter what. So that is what I have done for the past year.
A year ago, I attended a writer's workshop with Kathleen MacGowan, author of The Expected One and several other beautiful, amazing books. I have connected with Kathleen over Facebook and appreciate her work and her presence. The nugget that I received from The Writer's Grail workshop was that to be a writer, one has to write. Period. Kathleen and Philip's suggestion was to write, even for 5 minutes, every day. EVERY day. So I made that commitment, and for the past year (the workshop was a year ago this past weekend and when I received the book, The Source of Miracles, also by Kathleen and mentioned in my blog from last December) I have written. Every day I write. It is just what I do. No matter what. It is my sacred daily practice.
I am a writer. I write...therefore, I am a writer.
I am also in the midst of a very profound journey with my business and partnership with Life Force, and WOW- Wo/men Owning Wealth. I have stepped into leadership, residual income, and wealth in a way that I have not done before. It feels like a journey very similar to that of the Camino...they actually reflect one another beautifully.
I saw that my last blog was written in February and I shared about my decision to become a conscious network marketer. It has actually expanded greatly from that - I actually practice Sacred Commerce in partnership with an amazing community of women and men, WOW, and Life Force. I experience the structure of this business of network marketing more as a collaborative business model that is an infinite series of connected and interrelated concentric circles. Core to these concentric circles is a profound spiritual and evolutionary path that we each step on to when we step into this business. To grow and expand in this business is to be on a sacred path that ultimately brings us home to ourselves - to the highest, biggest, brightest, best version of who we each truly are.
I am totally committed to this path of Sacred Commerce, and right now, it demands most of my attention and time. I am committed to creating financial freedom for myself and my family while supporting others to have the same opportunity for health and wealth as I do, and it is my focus and highest priority commitment right now. Why do I even need to write this right now?
Because I had made a commitment to write my book on the first leg of my journey with the Celtic Camino this winter, and as I began to really settle into that task, I realized that my focus is on building a business, not writing a book. I can write every day, but can I write an indepth book and build a rapidly transforming business at the same time? Do I really want to?
My commitment is to write. I am a writer. But is my commitment right now to write a book?
Out of this question, I realized that I wanted to return to this blog. I like writing here. I feel as though I am writing to someone. When I write to "write a book", I write differently. I feel like I am not so much in a relationship, and so I become more concerned about the wording, how I say it, does it sound right? Here, I write, and know that if I need to fill in some details with research, etc., I can and I will and I will come back to it. When I write a book, I feel like I have to have it all right there the first time. Here, it feels intimate and more like a sharing and connecting from the heart.
So, today I return to this blog and share my ongoing Camino journey, and how my life and work at home reflect each other. It comes down to this for me, and in Sue Kenney's words: When the Camino ends, the journey begins.''
My life, all of our lives, are a sacred and profound journey. This is my invitation to you - to live your life as a sacred journey, woven together by your sacred dreams, sacred partnerships, sacred sexuality, sacred commerce, and sacred purpose.
Buen Camino!
A year ago, I attended a writer's workshop with Kathleen MacGowan, author of The Expected One and several other beautiful, amazing books. I have connected with Kathleen over Facebook and appreciate her work and her presence. The nugget that I received from The Writer's Grail workshop was that to be a writer, one has to write. Period. Kathleen and Philip's suggestion was to write, even for 5 minutes, every day. EVERY day. So I made that commitment, and for the past year (the workshop was a year ago this past weekend and when I received the book, The Source of Miracles, also by Kathleen and mentioned in my blog from last December) I have written. Every day I write. It is just what I do. No matter what. It is my sacred daily practice.
I am a writer. I write...therefore, I am a writer.
I am also in the midst of a very profound journey with my business and partnership with Life Force, and WOW- Wo/men Owning Wealth. I have stepped into leadership, residual income, and wealth in a way that I have not done before. It feels like a journey very similar to that of the Camino...they actually reflect one another beautifully.
I saw that my last blog was written in February and I shared about my decision to become a conscious network marketer. It has actually expanded greatly from that - I actually practice Sacred Commerce in partnership with an amazing community of women and men, WOW, and Life Force. I experience the structure of this business of network marketing more as a collaborative business model that is an infinite series of connected and interrelated concentric circles. Core to these concentric circles is a profound spiritual and evolutionary path that we each step on to when we step into this business. To grow and expand in this business is to be on a sacred path that ultimately brings us home to ourselves - to the highest, biggest, brightest, best version of who we each truly are.
I am totally committed to this path of Sacred Commerce, and right now, it demands most of my attention and time. I am committed to creating financial freedom for myself and my family while supporting others to have the same opportunity for health and wealth as I do, and it is my focus and highest priority commitment right now. Why do I even need to write this right now?
Because I had made a commitment to write my book on the first leg of my journey with the Celtic Camino this winter, and as I began to really settle into that task, I realized that my focus is on building a business, not writing a book. I can write every day, but can I write an indepth book and build a rapidly transforming business at the same time? Do I really want to?
My commitment is to write. I am a writer. But is my commitment right now to write a book?
Out of this question, I realized that I wanted to return to this blog. I like writing here. I feel as though I am writing to someone. When I write to "write a book", I write differently. I feel like I am not so much in a relationship, and so I become more concerned about the wording, how I say it, does it sound right? Here, I write, and know that if I need to fill in some details with research, etc., I can and I will and I will come back to it. When I write a book, I feel like I have to have it all right there the first time. Here, it feels intimate and more like a sharing and connecting from the heart.
So, today I return to this blog and share my ongoing Camino journey, and how my life and work at home reflect each other. It comes down to this for me, and in Sue Kenney's words: When the Camino ends, the journey begins.''
My life, all of our lives, are a sacred and profound journey. This is my invitation to you - to live your life as a sacred journey, woven together by your sacred dreams, sacred partnerships, sacred sexuality, sacred commerce, and sacred purpose.
Buen Camino!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
The Camino Continues to Guide and Provide
Back on 9/9, September 9th, before I left for the Camino, I asked "I wonder what the Camino will provide today." I was working with my mantra, "The Camino guides and provides (for me) every step of the way." I knew in my heart the truth of this statement, even as I questioned and doubted whether or not it was "okay" for me to affirm this. Was I somehow using the Camino, relying on it in an inappropriate way? Was I being selfish? Self-centered?
Even with these doubts and self-concerns, I knew that this mantra was a profound reflection of my relationship with the Camino. After being on the Camino for the month of October, I actually love the Camino more deeply than ever, and I also know and accept this truth, the Camino does guide and provide every step of the way.
After I wrote that blog, I let the question go and got on with my day. A few hours later, a dear friend and former coaching client, called me to see if I was interested in finding out more about something she was doing. Hmmm....my first question was "Is it network marketing?" I could feel my resistance rush to the surface. Yes, of course, it was. Damn. I love Kate, I love what she's up to in life, and I knew that I wanted to explore being a part of it. But, I did not want to do network marketing. I had vowed ten years earlier to never do network marketing again.
And then I remembered my question that morning. "I wonder what the Camino will provide today."
In that moment, I knew that I had to be open. What if the Camino knew something that I didn't know? What if this was my opportunity to receive something that was actually what I had been looking for all along but didn't know it? What if I didn't know it all?
I could feel both dread and excitement when I went to meet with Kate a few days later.
As much as I felt concern and reluctance, I also felt an opening and a receiving. I had decided to trust and allow the Camino to provide for me. I couldn't dictate what form the support would come in. One never knows. What I did know then, and know even more deeply now after another month on the Camino, is that the Camino always provides what you need, not what you want.
Something felt right from the very beginning about this opportunity, yet to hedge my diving in, I knew I needed to experience the products. Fortunately, the flagship product of Life Force International, the company with whom Kate was partnering, also comes in a little packets, so I took 45 or so little packets of Body Balance with me to drink while I was walking the Camino. They weighed next to nothing (very important to a pilgrim!) and they were so easy. Every afternoon, when I had been walking for 4 or 5 hours, I poured a packet of Body Balance into my water bottle and as I drank it, I would ask the Camino, "Is this business opportunity with Kate and Life Force in my highest good? Am I to do this business? And if so, at what level?"
Every day this was my afternoon ritual and request, and every day I felt a quiet, warm yes. I really liked the product and how it made me feel. Everyday I felt stronger and more nourished, and while I couldn't distinguish that feeling from what I was receiving directly from walking on the Camino, I knew that something in my body was being deeply nourished. I never saw or felt loud, bright neon billboards proclaiming that "YES, DO THE BUSINESS!" and truthfully, thank goodness. I am sure that this kind of response from the Camino would have raised every resistant hair on my body! Instead, it was a gentle and warm feeling that stayed with me and grew with each day that I walked.
When I came home from the Camino, one of the first calls I made was to Kate. Even in the midst of re-entry, I knew that I wanted to do this. I saw that in building a business that provides residual income, I could fulfill my dreams to walk the Camino every year , I could lead groups of women to walk the Camino and not have it be about the money and be the make or break about whether or not I got to go, I could travel, I could pay off debt, I could contribute to my childrens' college educations, and I could live in England part time. I could make my dreams real, and not have to depend on anyone else to make them happen. I could become 100% responsible for living and manifesting my dreams to the fullest, and in doing so, I could provide others with the same opportunity for making their dreams real as well.
Also, I loved the products and the company and knew that if I was to do this, this was the company that I wanted to partner with. I had several crucial must have's to ever consider network marketing again.
Even with these doubts and self-concerns, I knew that this mantra was a profound reflection of my relationship with the Camino. After being on the Camino for the month of October, I actually love the Camino more deeply than ever, and I also know and accept this truth, the Camino does guide and provide every step of the way.
After I wrote that blog, I let the question go and got on with my day. A few hours later, a dear friend and former coaching client, called me to see if I was interested in finding out more about something she was doing. Hmmm....my first question was "Is it network marketing?" I could feel my resistance rush to the surface. Yes, of course, it was. Damn. I love Kate, I love what she's up to in life, and I knew that I wanted to explore being a part of it. But, I did not want to do network marketing. I had vowed ten years earlier to never do network marketing again.
And then I remembered my question that morning. "I wonder what the Camino will provide today."
In that moment, I knew that I had to be open. What if the Camino knew something that I didn't know? What if this was my opportunity to receive something that was actually what I had been looking for all along but didn't know it? What if I didn't know it all?
I could feel both dread and excitement when I went to meet with Kate a few days later.
As much as I felt concern and reluctance, I also felt an opening and a receiving. I had decided to trust and allow the Camino to provide for me. I couldn't dictate what form the support would come in. One never knows. What I did know then, and know even more deeply now after another month on the Camino, is that the Camino always provides what you need, not what you want.
Something felt right from the very beginning about this opportunity, yet to hedge my diving in, I knew I needed to experience the products. Fortunately, the flagship product of Life Force International, the company with whom Kate was partnering, also comes in a little packets, so I took 45 or so little packets of Body Balance with me to drink while I was walking the Camino. They weighed next to nothing (very important to a pilgrim!) and they were so easy. Every afternoon, when I had been walking for 4 or 5 hours, I poured a packet of Body Balance into my water bottle and as I drank it, I would ask the Camino, "Is this business opportunity with Kate and Life Force in my highest good? Am I to do this business? And if so, at what level?"
Every day this was my afternoon ritual and request, and every day I felt a quiet, warm yes. I really liked the product and how it made me feel. Everyday I felt stronger and more nourished, and while I couldn't distinguish that feeling from what I was receiving directly from walking on the Camino, I knew that something in my body was being deeply nourished. I never saw or felt loud, bright neon billboards proclaiming that "YES, DO THE BUSINESS!" and truthfully, thank goodness. I am sure that this kind of response from the Camino would have raised every resistant hair on my body! Instead, it was a gentle and warm feeling that stayed with me and grew with each day that I walked.
When I came home from the Camino, one of the first calls I made was to Kate. Even in the midst of re-entry, I knew that I wanted to do this. I saw that in building a business that provides residual income, I could fulfill my dreams to walk the Camino every year , I could lead groups of women to walk the Camino and not have it be about the money and be the make or break about whether or not I got to go, I could travel, I could pay off debt, I could contribute to my childrens' college educations, and I could live in England part time. I could make my dreams real, and not have to depend on anyone else to make them happen. I could become 100% responsible for living and manifesting my dreams to the fullest, and in doing so, I could provide others with the same opportunity for making their dreams real as well.
Also, I loved the products and the company and knew that if I was to do this, this was the company that I wanted to partner with. I had several crucial must have's to ever consider network marketing again.
- I had to love the products, it had to be a simple, straightforward product line that could appeal to anyone.
- I had to respect the founders of the company and their leadership style. No "messiah" worship culture.
- The company needed to be solid financially, founded on a product that provided great results and grew into network marketing, rather than a company that wanted to be a network marketing company that then found a product to sell.
- I wanted to love my upline, and not be put under anyone else.
- I wanted a generous and supportive payout plan where I could start making money right away.
- I did not want any hidden, upfront investment costs. I wanted straightforward and above board.
I got all of this with Life Force and Kate.
Thank you, Camino.
I have now been actively doing the business since the beginning of the new year, and getting my feet wet in December. I achieved the first level of accomplishment in January, and with bonuses, I may receive a check for over $500. I have quite a few friends who are using the product and experiencing great results. I am excited.
I get the vision of what a network marketing business can provide. To not only imagine that I can walk the Camino annually and make the pilgrimage from Santiago to Rosslyn one stage at a time, but to also have the means to financially support my dreams, is a dream come true in and of itself.
I have big dreams. Big dreams require me to be willing to take courageous action and to be open to more than what I know to be true or possible. I get to - have to - be open to what the Camino provides. I know that the Camino wants me to walk it. The Celtic Camino needs me to walk it, and to heal the split and create heaven on earth. This is my contribution, my soul's purpose. And so, I get to receive the support and guidance to fulfill my soul's journey. My purpose happens to be a journey, a sacred pilgrim of initiation that requires that I am in the world and integrating the lessons of initiation in my life. I am a modern mystic, a modern pilgrim, who receives the challenges, lessons, initiations, and support from the Camino that are also reflected and experienced in my life. As on the Camino, so in life. As above, so below. As in Heaven, so upon Earth. I walk the Camino, and then return to my life, my world, and to society. There is no split between the Camino and my life. I live and walk them both, fully engaged.
And so it is that I have become a network marketer with Life Force and my dear sister, Kate. Together, we are co-creating Women Owning Wealth (WOW), a powerful new culture within the network marketing world, where women get to re-claim this powerful feminine way of doing business. Within a circle, we create and manifest out of relationship, a community of women co-creating abundant health and wealth for themselves and the planet.
Thank you, Camino.
Suseya!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Walking in the cold wind this morning but it felt so good! Using my walking sticks brought me right back to the Camino.
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