For a while now I’ve been reflecting on my decades-long questions of “what is the prognosis for the future of our planet” and “who/what are we being called to be/do in response?”
Suffice it to say that my first question doesn’t move me (much) anymore. I’m ready to (mostly) let go of outcomes. But the second question very much moves me albeit with a little tweak, shifting from “we” to “me.” Who am I being called to be? What is mine to do?
Anything you do from the soulful self will help lighten the burdens of the world. Anything.
You have no idea what the smallest word, the tiniest generosity,
can cause to be set in motion…
Mend the part of the world that is within your reach.
Clarissa Pinkola Estes
It’s easy to imagine what the world would be like if everyone lived from their soulful self. For me it’s both a remembering and a pilgrimage, a deeply spiritual journey. It’s what gives my life meaning in this confusing, chaotic world. And I truly believe that the sharing of our soulful stories is what will empower our healing and our creative envisioning. Here’s a beautiful example:
I found myself sitting next to a Mayan grandmother from Peru at a women’s conference.
After a few minutes of conversation she asked, ‘Who are you?’
I began to tell her that I founded a nonprofit, and about my work with women.
‘No,’ she said quietly. ‘Who are you?’
I looked past her at the round tables where women
from different spiritual traditions were joining each other for breakfast.
This is what I said. The words came not from my mind.
‘I am a woman who suffered earlier in life, and in the darkness found a light.’
She said, ‘You cannot be shy, you cannot be quiet.
You must stand up with this knowledge.’
At that moment, my heart, as one of many… hearts, said Yes.
Anne Scott: Dream Weather – Women Restoring the Sacred to Life
If someone asked “who are you,” what words would come not from my mind? To what would I say “yes?” One answer is “I am Wild Woman Wandering in the Wilderness.”
What about you?
