Body Presencing™ - Healing the Root of the Matter

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”                                                                   - Leo Tolstoy We are forever connected to and with our families and caretakers. Often it takes years for us to learn who we are separate from our families. We are greatly influenced by their ideas, beliefs, ways of operating in the world, and it isn ’ t until teen years and older that we begin to see that their way may not be ours. In addition, we begin to discover that their way is not the only way or the normal way; it is their way. Their way is also influenced by their families. When we view a parent as being sad or depressed or abusive, as we grow older and do our inner work, we can begin to see that maybe they are sad or abusive as a repetitive pattern from their parents, and so on. These patterns are repeated by us in a compulsive way unless and until we can become conscious and we separate our true selves from theirs. Th

“A kind gesture can reach a wound that only compassion can heal.”                                                                                      - Steve Maraboli Most of us want to create a different life for our children than we have had. Even if we experienced a good childhood and life, there are things we would like to be different for our children; our future. December is a time when we also think about the New Year to come and we make resolutions. We prepare for what we would really like in our coming year and the lives of our future.  Our future; that is a big subject. Many of us plan ahead, and save money and pay off our loans and put things aside for our future. The trick here is in being able to live fully in the present and take care of us while also seeing how we can create a future filled with love, connection, hope, acceptance, inspiration and clarity. Recently I had an opportunity to work with a new mother. She was concerned because she was very awar

“Remember that the happiest people are not those getting more, but those giving more.”                                                                                 -H. Jackson Browne JR.                                                                                  It is December, the beginning of winter, and a month where most of us become consumed with the holidays of Christmas and Chanukah. These are holidays in which the custom is to give gifts to those who mean something to us in a symbol of love and of giving. In order for us to give fully, it is important for us to “ see ” clearly the other person and persons to whom we are giving. If it is truly a gift, then it is about the person to whom we are giving. When we live in a selfish manner by seeing others through the lens of our own personal, separate awareness, is it really about the other person? How do we know if something or some action or words are about us or not? Most of the time we go about our lives dis

“ Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you  need.”                                                                                    - Kahil Gibran       The daylight is shorter in duration and less intense. The days are becoming cold and we are bundling in our clothes. It is a time for more introspection and when we climb inside of our minds. In this time of year, many of us experience a SAD syndrome from not enough light. This can be a part of us becoming more sad and melancholy. For some of us who feel a need to be more active, this can also contribute to a feeling of being lost. December is the beginning of our winter. This month, as in October and November, I am taking us into our future in terms of living in a future we create from nurturing our past and present in a deep and profound way. As we learn to do so, our future can be filled with love, acceptance, connection, inspiration, hope and clarity. Many of us experience times in

“Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.”                                                                                          - Lao Tzu                               We have gone on a journey this past year, through Body Presencing ™ , learning what it is, seeing what keeps us stuck in the past, learning what it is to be in the present, and seeing what is in store for us in the future. Along with stories, cases, and philosophizing, I have included many exercises and meditations to help us along this path. Here we are at the end of the year, and I don ’ t know about you, but this year has gone by very fast. At times it felt slow, like through our cold, sludgy winter, but other times just zoomed past. This is life; sometimes we get stuck in something and time goes very slowly, our growth seems to slow down. At times, we pick up things very quickly and just roll with our learning. One of the bigge

“Piglet noticed that even though he had a very small heart, it could hold a rather large amount of gratitude.”                                                                                                A.A. Milne Cool grey days are upon us with the harbinger of winter. I don’t know about you, but I am an outdoor girl. I love being outside…when it isn’t too cold or wet. So as the days are shorter and cooler I tend to pull inward and to read more and write more. With this more sedentary and indoor lifestyle I also plan more and visualize what is to come and what I am working towards. As we do this there is a warning also. Visualizing and planning have their merits, and we need to be careful not to jump ahead and start going through elaborate and not so elaborate fantasies and imagining of how things are going to be. There is a fine and important line between imagining and brainstorming and visualizing and jumping into the future based more on dreams and the unconscious than o

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”                                                                                                   - Epicurus At this time of year our families become more fully on our minds. The days are shorter and cooler, we begin to spend more time in doors, and we begin to think of holidays coming up which have large family connotations like Thanksgiving, and then Chanukah and Christmas are on its heels. As I am greatly influenced and inspired by nature, I become fully aware of the smell of falling wet leaves and the silhouettes of trees making their reappearance.   When I was a child, I dreaded this time of year as I would be more engaged with my family and for me, this wasn’t a good feeling. I looked for ways to get out of the house and get involved in outside activities. Through my work of Body Presencing, I have learned to, and I help others