Topic: The Power of Storytelling
Guest Guide: Cali Veilleux
What an enchanting evening! We were all energized by a lovely altar made by our guide, Cali. It featured a host of interesting treasures from semi-precious stone carved creatures to handmade dolls to Native American baskets.
We enjoyed and joined with the modern chants of Karen Drucker from her Songs of the Spirit II CD for the entrainment, silent meditation and closing.
Cali, a trained storyteller, presented an expanded view of storytelling as a way to teach larger concepts and reach people on a more inner level. She wove her own personal story with that of her formal rendition of The Lost Mother Moon. A dramatic portraial of a myriad of spiritual concepts, this story touched us all deeply.
Cheryl then led us through a journey which invited each participant to extract the 3-4 concepts or gifts the story had given them. A gentle and lovely sharing followed where many people offered an array of specific jewels they had pulled from the material.
Our thanks go out to Cali for sharing with us and we all asked her to join us again.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
The Gathering for April, 2009
Topic: Iona – Sacred Place and the Importance of Place
Guest Guide: Diana Baillie
Diana Baillie, our lovely winter visitor from the UK, talked about how she got to Iona, which is an island off of the coast of Scotland that attracts many spiritual seekers. Her journey there was purely intuition led, and expanded into a stay of many years. She shared an array of Iona stones, which are very special, and everyone chose one. All got to sit quietly with a stone, tune in to it and then share what they got from their choice.
What a lovely gift it has been to have Diana with us this winter. We wish her all the best as she returns to her homeland and continues her adventure of life.
Carol Daigneault
Guest Guide: Diana Baillie
Diana Baillie, our lovely winter visitor from the UK, talked about how she got to Iona, which is an island off of the coast of Scotland that attracts many spiritual seekers. Her journey there was purely intuition led, and expanded into a stay of many years. She shared an array of Iona stones, which are very special, and everyone chose one. All got to sit quietly with a stone, tune in to it and then share what they got from their choice.
What a lovely gift it has been to have Diana with us this winter. We wish her all the best as she returns to her homeland and continues her adventure of life.
Carol Daigneault
The Gathering for March, 2009
Topic: Energy Awareness through Feng Shui
Energy Awareness is a vast, almost endless topic. Carol Daigneault, our guide, steered the discussion to an area in which she is very comfortable, Feng Shui, and the connection between environment and consciousness. The three foundation principles of Essential Feng Shui were presented:
Everything is alive with vital energy or Ch’i
Everything is connected
Everything is always changing
An easy way to key into the energy in a space is to look for areas that may have an imbalance of Ch’i. Participants drew a quick floor plan of their homes and were led through a process of identifying places that might be out of balance due to stuck or depleted Ch’i as well as situations that might show rushing or overactive Ch’i. It was an eye-opening exercise for many!
Carol then led us through a journey in which we connected with the energy of our homes and participants were invited to receive a message from their homes. Many did share that they were able to receive some valuable information.
As always, we closed with a healing meditation.
Carol Daigneault
Energy Awareness is a vast, almost endless topic. Carol Daigneault, our guide, steered the discussion to an area in which she is very comfortable, Feng Shui, and the connection between environment and consciousness. The three foundation principles of Essential Feng Shui were presented:
Everything is alive with vital energy or Ch’i
Everything is connected
Everything is always changing
An easy way to key into the energy in a space is to look for areas that may have an imbalance of Ch’i. Participants drew a quick floor plan of their homes and were led through a process of identifying places that might be out of balance due to stuck or depleted Ch’i as well as situations that might show rushing or overactive Ch’i. It was an eye-opening exercise for many!
Carol then led us through a journey in which we connected with the energy of our homes and participants were invited to receive a message from their homes. Many did share that they were able to receive some valuable information.
As always, we closed with a healing meditation.
Carol Daigneault
The Gathering for February, 2009
Topic: The Power Contained in the Spoken, Written and Thought Word
Guest Guide: Mia Mantello
We were absolutely delighted to have our first guest guide, fellow-participant Mia Mantello, share her expertise and experience in a discussion about The Power Contained in the Spoken, Written and Thought Word.
The understanding of the power of the word is ancient, sacred and has been taught, studied and written about since the time language has been used. Observing and consciously changing your words over time changes your thoughts. Changing your thoughts changes your mind and thus your expectations and outward experiences.
Affirmations are intentional, deliberate, repetitive choices of words and phrases. They may be lines from scripture, poems, songs, books, highly personal and individually created, or a mixture of any and all these things. Affirmations can heal past hurts and pave the way for your highest and best desires to manifest.
Mia lead us through several revealing word exercises that allowed participants to unearth additional awareness of how the language they embrace is intertwined with their thoughts and actions. Lively discussion and deep realizations were shared by many.
Thank you Mia for a fabulous evening!
Carol Daigneault
Guest Guide: Mia Mantello
We were absolutely delighted to have our first guest guide, fellow-participant Mia Mantello, share her expertise and experience in a discussion about The Power Contained in the Spoken, Written and Thought Word.
The understanding of the power of the word is ancient, sacred and has been taught, studied and written about since the time language has been used. Observing and consciously changing your words over time changes your thoughts. Changing your thoughts changes your mind and thus your expectations and outward experiences.
Affirmations are intentional, deliberate, repetitive choices of words and phrases. They may be lines from scripture, poems, songs, books, highly personal and individually created, or a mixture of any and all these things. Affirmations can heal past hurts and pave the way for your highest and best desires to manifest.
Mia lead us through several revealing word exercises that allowed participants to unearth additional awareness of how the language they embrace is intertwined with their thoughts and actions. Lively discussion and deep realizations were shared by many.
Thank you Mia for a fabulous evening!
Carol Daigneault
The Gathering for January, 2009
Topic: Rhythm and Internal Timing
Starting our meeting with a focus on the steady beat of Cheryl’s drum, we easily transitioned into our discussion of Rhythm and Internal Timing. At a time when many are feeling scattered and unsure, Cheryl reminded us of the power and stability we can draw from consciously connecting with the wisdom of the Earth. Her lovely journey led us to a place where we could connect with the heartbeat of the Earth and more strongly align ourselves with the rhythm of the Earth.
Starting our meeting with a focus on the steady beat of Cheryl’s drum, we easily transitioned into our discussion of Rhythm and Internal Timing. At a time when many are feeling scattered and unsure, Cheryl reminded us of the power and stability we can draw from consciously connecting with the wisdom of the Earth. Her lovely journey led us to a place where we could connect with the heartbeat of the Earth and more strongly align ourselves with the rhythm of the Earth.
The Gathering for December, 2008
December 10, 2008: Being Centered in a Global Village
After the historic election of Barak Obama the month before, we extended our discussion of Being Centered to include a look at our place in the global landscape and how we could individually and collectively contribute to a more positive outlook. Thanks to a participant’s suggestion, we expanded our topic to focus our individual attention to radiate a collective energy of peace and goodwill. One suggested recipient of this energy included the President Elect and his new administration.
Our journey, led by Carol, started by offering direction to personally center ourselves. We then joined our individual energies to create a cohesive group energy, expanding from there to send this strong, clear vibration further and further out from our Circle to eventually encompass the globe. Love energy was projected to all worldwide.
Discussion following the meditation expressed an overwhelming sentiment of feeling connected to each other in our Circle as well as to people everywhere. One person shared the observation, and many agreed, that we could all tap into this feeling of our group energy throughout the month, regardless of where we were. This is one way that our work together can continue to support one another even when we aren’t meeting.
After the historic election of Barak Obama the month before, we extended our discussion of Being Centered to include a look at our place in the global landscape and how we could individually and collectively contribute to a more positive outlook. Thanks to a participant’s suggestion, we expanded our topic to focus our individual attention to radiate a collective energy of peace and goodwill. One suggested recipient of this energy included the President Elect and his new administration.
Our journey, led by Carol, started by offering direction to personally center ourselves. We then joined our individual energies to create a cohesive group energy, expanding from there to send this strong, clear vibration further and further out from our Circle to eventually encompass the globe. Love energy was projected to all worldwide.
Discussion following the meditation expressed an overwhelming sentiment of feeling connected to each other in our Circle as well as to people everywhere. One person shared the observation, and many agreed, that we could all tap into this feeling of our group energy throughout the month, regardless of where we were. This is one way that our work together can continue to support one another even when we aren’t meeting.
November 12, 2008: Being Centered
Carol Daigneault began our discussion of Being Centered by defining how people perceive what it feels like to be centered. Grounded, focused, balanced and connected are a few of the phrases used. How can we tell we’re centered? Emotions are key. The gift of emotions is that they give us a clear gauge that points to where we are on the balanced scale. Happy, peaceful emotions inform us that we are centered, anything less signals a call to make adjustments.
What can we do when we’re not feeling centered?
Carol shared the Institute of Heart Math’s Heart Lock In method. It is a simple five step technique:
1. With eyes closed, release tension by tuning into the breath
2. Gently turn your attention to your heart area
3. Bring to mind a memory of feeling extremely loved, of loving someone else,
of deeply appreciating yourself or another. Make up an imaginary story
if you wish, as long as it gives you this deep feeling
4. Connect your breath with these feelings of love or appreciation
5. Imagine the energy of this feeling flowing out through your heart area.
Try to keep this feeling as long as you can, returning to it if you lose your
focus.
Participants also shared a wealth of very simple yet profound techniques that they use for centering themselves. Some mentioned were:
Imagine a beautiful green light coming to you to surround you with love
The Huna method of gently repeating a five phrase blessing that returns you to center
Cheryl led us through a journey where we connected with the seven directions and used them to balance ourselves.
We closed with our healing circle. Thanks to all for attending.
Carol Daigneault
Carol Daigneault began our discussion of Being Centered by defining how people perceive what it feels like to be centered. Grounded, focused, balanced and connected are a few of the phrases used. How can we tell we’re centered? Emotions are key. The gift of emotions is that they give us a clear gauge that points to where we are on the balanced scale. Happy, peaceful emotions inform us that we are centered, anything less signals a call to make adjustments.
What can we do when we’re not feeling centered?
Carol shared the Institute of Heart Math’s Heart Lock In method. It is a simple five step technique:
1. With eyes closed, release tension by tuning into the breath
2. Gently turn your attention to your heart area
3. Bring to mind a memory of feeling extremely loved, of loving someone else,
of deeply appreciating yourself or another. Make up an imaginary story
if you wish, as long as it gives you this deep feeling
4. Connect your breath with these feelings of love or appreciation
5. Imagine the energy of this feeling flowing out through your heart area.
Try to keep this feeling as long as you can, returning to it if you lose your
focus.
Participants also shared a wealth of very simple yet profound techniques that they use for centering themselves. Some mentioned were:
Imagine a beautiful green light coming to you to surround you with love
The Huna method of gently repeating a five phrase blessing that returns you to center
Cheryl led us through a journey where we connected with the seven directions and used them to balance ourselves.
We closed with our healing circle. Thanks to all for attending.
Carol Daigneault
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)