Feminine Power - ALANIS MORISSETTE

What a fabulous Sunday~@~

I had the pleasure of listening to Alanis Morissette talk about AUTHENTIC POWER.

Sister Goddess Alanis is OMazing.

Her powerful music (I'm a Bitch, I'm A Lover, I'm a Child, I'm a Mother)

among other OMazing lyrics and tunes -

the movies and TV roles she's chosen to play -

my SHERO!!!

A lovely program offered by Feminine Power and Women on the Edge of Evolution, Alanis was interviewed candidly and she shared some wonderful gems. What resonated for me:

1. She stayed true to her own authentic voice and integrity to her music

2. It is our response-ability to hold power in the world

3. She chronicles what is happening in her life - it takes commitment and courage

4. She follows her authenticity in the absence of role models

5. Time to STEP UP and STEP OUT to be Agents of Change

6. We Western women are single largest demographic with genuine interest in consciously

evolving holding the power to influence the World - woo hoo ~@~

7. I think of myself as an ANIMAL - sensitive nervous system

8. Authentic Power - ATTUNEMENT to SELF - soothe one's soul - raw creative EnerCHI

9. Being scared, heart palpitating - SHOWING UP and just saying YES

Hearing her speak and listening to her words, I am infused with faith and energy at all that we can create together in the World as we consciously evolve and claim our Power.

Alanis says: " Im still here - committed to our funny little journey

Sweetness of sharing my story and allowing it to be a collective experience

OFFERING it for the collective impersonal and allowing it to be their own"

She reminds us to stay connected to ourselves and listen to that tiny voice and express it.

She talks about having a circle of friends - girlfriends (Sister Goddesses, tee hee ) who support each other and listen. She says

- Our collective - all these little birdies - we're all flying -

- no final destination, no top and it's not lonely there

- creating a world, a community to land in when you are being a brave soul

She shared she'll be writing a book about all her practices. Some of the practices she mentioned: sitting in silence, having sacred altars, being in nature, and inner dialogue work 0 talking with all the different parts of ourselves that are terrified until it feels soothed or acknowledged.

Parting advice for other Shaky Poodles in the Movement - bravery is that quiet voice of courage - our job is to create muscle memory of just doing it anyways.

Thank you Sister Goddess Alanis for sharing and BEing - creating a role model for ME

Re-TREAT with Goddess Leslie

     

We gave ourselves permission.  We took the time to nurture our Inner Children.  We planned a 48 hour reTREAT.  We wrote down a list of things we wanted to accomplish, PLAY, do.  We put in some exercise, yummy food, and of course ART time.  No husbands, no response-abilities.  Just our list, ourselves and doggess-goddess Mandy.

Goddess Leslie picked me up from Laughter Yoga at the Senior Center on Tuesday and we headed for the BEACH.  We dipped and swam and detoxed from the top of our heads down to our feet.  And then we sat on the steps of a walkway and dried off.  We talked and then were silent.  Such a comfortable space to be together.

Goddess Leslie's husband is out of town - we have the house to ourselves - we opened up windows and turned the Air Conditioning off.    We prepped our space with candles & music. We made some Hibiscus Iced Tea a/k/a Karkade.  

We nurtured our bodies with some yummy food.  Using a base of lettuce, red cabbage and carrots, we added apples, lentil beans, cranberries and some walnuts for a delicious salad.  We also pulled out some recipe books and attempted some menu planning.    Another thing completed off our list.

We cleaned up.   And then we entered the garage - Goddess Leslie's ART Studio Extraordinaire. We pulled out paints and brushes.  And put on some smocks.  And then Goddess Leslie presented me with a full sheet of paper.

A little daunting and ominous.  I was up for the challenge.  This was the reason for our Re-TREAT in the first place.  BIG ART!!!  I started to paint - no thinking, just feeling  - colors and shapes and happy!!!  The painting below took me two days to complete.  It made my heart sing. It felt good looking at it and painting it.  No rules, no format - just pick a color and paint.  I even stayed up until 11:00 p.m. (way past my bedtime) to add detail and color and expression.

Completely euphoric from the creation that was occurring, we took out the bicycles at 11:00 p.m. and under a nearly full moon rode around with Doggess-Goddess Mandy in a backpack. With the beautiful evening breeze and the slight sensation of doing something "against the rules" we returned home full of energy.  Before retiring for the morning (12:35 a.m.) we decided what our priorities were for the next day and went to sleep.

The next morning, I sat on the patio and did a yoga routine and was rewarded by the pretty duck that came out to encourage and inspire me.  Goddess Leslie woke up and we took another bike ride right to the swimming pool for a morning swim.  When we returned, we made some yummy fruit shakes with berries and peanut butter and almond milk.  And then right into the Art studio we reTREATED.

This time our music selection had no words  - we chose classical music.  For me, I found that this helped me focus and really connect to that Source from above which flowed through me to the paper.

We set the table for lunch and were joined by Goddess Lisa for a most delicious lunch of another salad creation (this time, we added garbonzo beans and strawberries and pine nuts to our base) and leftover pasta from dinner which we converted into a pasta salad.

Goddess Lisa went to paint while Goddess Leslie and I went upstairs to the bedroom to tackle her closet.  Armed with my computer and list of things to be completed, she tried on clothes and cleaned out her closet while I went through the list and contacted, send emails and tied up a whole bunch of loose ends that were overwhelming Goddess Leslie.  And we got the closet tidied up and a huge pile of clothes ready for GoodWill.

What was truly amazing was the ease and peace between us - women being together, working and producing and sharing and collaborating  - no stress, no pressure, no RESISTANCE - just a spirit of cooperation and understanding that we were moving forward and making things happen.

And though we did not go anywhere, creating space for us to play and disconnect from the Outer World helped us completely replenish.  Spending time together, as women, friends and sisters and doing things that nourished our soul as well as our bodies, even for this brief period of time, was so lovely and beneficial. 

We were flowing so well, I wasn't ready to go home and Goddess Leslie wanted me to stay.  You know what happens when two powerful women put their heads together.  All sorts of havoc is created.

With these two little thoughts put out to the Universe,  the weather turned ferocious.  Massive thunderstorms and a heavy downpour.  Goddess Leslie's husband's flight was delayed.  Her car broke down.  And our play time was extended for another hour.  It gave us time to get an hour of Scrabble played.  And one last thing off our list.  Tee hee!!!