Wisdom Circle - Create a Pathway for Form and Flow

Every year in January, our Wisdom Circle creates intentions for the Circle as we look forward to the coming year.
In addition to the creation of intentions, is the important work of crafting a schedule or calendar to create a natural flow of focus areas.
So, we make a list of desired programs for the year, check it twice, and then commence to review the year and choose the perfect time and date in which to place each individual program.
We begin by posting on this calendar, those things that we have defined at important 'repeaters' thoughout the year.
For our group these 'repeaters' have been, walking the Labyrinth as a group at least twice a year, meditating and clearing our 'energy bodies' together at least quarterly, honoring the miracles of the four seasons of winter, spring, summer and fall, honoring holy days from other religious traditions, focused study on the Spiritual Laws.
We place these items on our calendar and then proceed to get a 'sense' of what is missing as we view the year.
Do we have enough scheduled time for prayer and meditation?
Do we have time for learning about new discoveries in science and spirituality?
Have we captured enough movement and creative expression?

As we consider 'what is missing', we open to the wisdom of the group as to how to incorporate balance.
We listen to innovative ideas, radical thinking, compassionate concern in order to make sure we are considering a wide spectrum of interests.
We also want to make sure that we open to the guidance of our Creator as we create sacred space for spirituality within our Circle.

Another important concept to create over the scope of the year is spontaneity.
We have found in past years that you can actually overschedule programs and create rigidity and inflexibility as to what wants to just 'show up'.
We have learned that it is important to create space for improvisation, for newness, for wild adventures and for peace.

By taking the time at the beginning of the year to create a pathway for form and flow, we also remove the 'stress' related to creating new programs each week.
This way, everyone knows who is responsible for each program and the Circle takes on the feel of a smooth flowing river with a clear destination...but also with plenty of variety and opportunity for adventure built in.

Since we meet weekly, it also has created an opportunity for many different members to 'lead' or 'call the Circle'.
Individuals have a wonderful opportunity to share their gifts of writing, singing, sharing, and creating with others and this also adds great diversity to the Circle.
We have sensed that this diversity is a powerful strength of our Circle.
The support we demonstrate to all 'brave souls' who are willing to get up and lead a group is also a strength.

There has been enormous growth in each individual 'pilgrim' over the years as well as growth and development in the Circle as a whole.
We, as a group, have chosen to share this part of the journey together and the richness of the experience has been invaluable.
We have come to cherish the 'family' of like-minded souls that come together opening their hearts to what the Creator would teach each week through the stories that are told.

Wisdom Circle - 2008 Intention Ceremony - Take a moment to contemplate what you want to create in your future...

Each year in January, our Wisdom Circle creates a space for an Intention Ceremony.
This gives each person in the group an opportunity to begin the process of active creation for the upcoming year.
Rather than have the new year 'happen to them', this supports the process of active creation.

For the weeks preceding our ceremony, each individual Circle member is asked to focus on all those things that they would like to release in anticipation of the upcoming year.
They are asked to give consideration to those practices or behaviors that contributed to their highest good and which did not.
What things do they want more of in 2008 and what is ready to be a part of the past?
By first taking the time to release and 'let go', more space is created for the 'new', the innovative and the creative to enter.

As we come together for our ceremony, we each write down those things that we wish to commit to making a part of our experience in the new year.
It may be that we will choose to focus on specific spiritual laws that inspire us such as the Law of Surrender, the Law of Peace, the Law of Honor, etc.
We might chose to focus on daily spiritual practices to bring ourselves into greater communion with the Creator.
Whatever is our individual choice for focus becomes the foundation for our intentions.
As we write our intentions, we place them in envelopes in our intention bowl and keep these in a central place in our space all year.
These intentions can be reviewed during the year to determine if we want to make course corrections or adjustments or to simply celebrate our successes.

Just as Tiger the cat is contemplating his prospects for the new year, we have an opportunity to wipe the slate clean and create a new beginning.
In every new beginning, comes an opportunity to honor the past and the teachers and experiences that have been part of our experience.
In every new beginning is an opportunity to stretch beyond our comfort zone as we plot our new course.
In every new beginning comes an opportunity to see, feel and touch in larger ways.
In every new beginning enters the possibilities of a whole new chapter in our lives, unlike any we have written before.
In every new beginning, comes the hope of seeing the face of God more clearly, more fully and in everything we experience.

In every new beginning, God is.

Wisdom Circle - Let There Be Light!

Light is such an amazing element of Nature.
It's ability to dissipate darkness is so powerful and absolute.
This is true of our own Light.
Staying connected to the Divine Light is what dissipates the darkness in our lives absolutely.

This past week, our Wisdom Circle celebrated the beauty, power and the wonder of the Light.
We learned about different traditions and how they celebrate this time of year.
We remembered the Christ and the new hope that was brought into the world.

We remembered also that within Mother Nature, our days will become longer now and the nights will become shorter.
More Light will infuse the world and all of us as well.

We began our Circle this night by sitting in a darkened room, with only one candle lit in the center.
Each of us chose a colored candle and lit our individual candle from the one at the center, the Source.
We sat silently in the Circle, in gratitude for the Light in the world and within each of us.
Then we were asked to remember a loss, something that connected us with an aspect of ourselves we needed to let go.
We went around the Circle and spoke of our loss...for some it was 'loss of control', for others it was about loss of a job or loss of health.
As we finished our description of the 'loss' and its 'gift' to us in wisdom, we blew out our candles one by one and sat in the quiet of the darkness.
The darkness cradled us in her peacefulness and in her depth of acceptance.
We honored all of the experiences that were shared.

We then went around the Circle again, this time sharing a gift or a blessing that had been received.
As we spoke of the gift, we re - lit our candle.
For some, the 'gift' was found in the loss that had been shared earlier.
For others, the 'gift' was an opportunity that had been offered, a friendship, a surprise...
When we completed a 'round', we found ourselves in a lighted room.
The Spirit of gratitude filled our space as we remembered the gift of challenges, losses, blessings equally.
We remembered those experiences and people that had been our greatest teachers.
We remembered how fortunate we are to be gifted with Life and the opportunity to serve.

May we never forget that which has been so freely given to us...the gift of Love from our Creator and the invitation to full partnership in the re - creation of the world into a space of peace, light, love, wisdom and beauty.

Wisdom Circle - Teaching Each Other

“Let me see the world through your eyes, hear the world as you hear it.

Let us teach each other, support each other, inspire each other, and heal each other.

Let us make visible to ourselves, and then to the world, how much we care.”

Charles Garfield

Cindy Spring

Sedonia Cahil

One of my favorite books on Wisdom Circles was written by Charles Garfield,

Cindy Spring, and Sedonna Cahil.

They have captured the heart of 'how to' create and maintain a Circle.

Their vision seems to have been to write a book that serves as a guide to anyone interested in learning how to develop a Wisdom Circle of their own.

They speak about 'teaching each other' by sharing how we each see the world, hear the world and feel the world.

It is by sharing our unique experiences that we broaden our world view.

By opening ourselves to the way others view life, work, fun, adventure, we come to a larger sense of what is possible.

We may also sense a deeper meaning to life, an alternate pathway of thinking, a new approach to dealing with challenges.

We can increase our learning from others' experiences rather than having to experience everything ourselves.

There are some real advantages to this.

Inspiring each other is another natural outgrowth of a Wisdom Circle.

It is our experience that you cannot share a Circle with other folk week after week, month after month, year after year, without finding great inspiration from other lives well lived.

When someone goes through a traumatic event and shares their story, all are blessed from the experience of sensing and learning from the events second hand.

When someone shares their joy, fear, 'leaps of faith', we can 'live it' through them.

We can capture the emotion of joy or peace or hope.

We can remember what it 'feels' like and then make the transfer into our own lives.

We have also found that the lessons we each learn within the Wisdom Circle we are able to 'bridge' into our daily lives.

We can carry forward wisdom from the Circle, and make applications to our work, to our families, to our personal spiritual journeys.

The Circle serves as a microcosm of the world.

As we learn to love more deeply within the Circle, we can love more deeply anywhere.

As we learn to live more fully within the Circle, we can live more fully anywhere.

As we learn to trust more completely within the Circle, we can trust more completely anywhere.

As we learn to surrender the total essence of who we are within the Circle, we can experience the freedom of full surrender anywhere.

Wisdom Circle - Ruffle Your Feathers and Take Flight

Feathers are considered sacred in many religious traditions.
In the Native American tradition, the feather can be a gift from Spirit.
A feather can be used to clear the aura, the energy body surrounding a person.
Feathers are used in ceremony and in honoring the 'wing-ed ones' that fly in the sky.
Meditating on the inherent beauty of a feather can bring deep appreciation for the wonders of Mother Nature and also the miracle of flight.

This morning on my walk in the hills, I came upon a beautiful hawk.
I was reminded that in Native American tradition, the hawk is considered the 'messenger'.
It is recommended that when the hawk appears to you, it is a good idea to pay attention because a special message is on the way.
As I stood watching the hawk, I opened to the Creator to hear the 'message'.
I saw the hawk 'ruffle her feathers' and then leap boldly in the air and launch herself into flight.
At the same moment, I heard overhead the sound of a helicopter on the way to a nearby trauma center.
It was a 'LifeFlight' helicopter and I found myself remembering watching many of them fly overhead over the years as they brought patients to the medical center for care.

After a bit I continued walking up the trail.
I continued to remember the hawk take flight and move forward into the mystery of where she would land next.
It brought be back to remembering the initial 'launch' of our Wisdom Circle.
At the beginning, several years ago, we had a desire to create a community of 'heart-based' souls that could share their stories and support each other's spiritual growth.
We did not know exactly how to create this, or what it would eventually look like, but our hearts told us that it was time and it would become clear as we took a 'leap of faith'.
As time moved on, we had wonderful resources come to us that led us in the creation of the Wisdom Circle of Grace.
These resources came as a direct result of our hearts' desire to build this community.
The answers to our prayers came in many different forms and shapes, all rich in wisdom and grace.

But our first step was truly 'ruffling our feathers', so that we could 'spread our wings'.
By surrendering to Spirit and Divine Wisdom, all that was needed was provided to us just at the perfect moment.
Also surrendering our need to know exactly how to 'do it' and choosing to trust that we would be led and guided were the ingredients we needed to 'allow' it into creation.

The Hawk reminds us that we can 'know' that the abundance of all that we need will be provided for us at just the moment it is required.

Wisdom Circle - Take Time to Smell the Roses

This phrase, 'take time to smell the roses', has been around a long time.
And for a good reason...
As our lives appear to quicken and our 'to do' lists get longer, taking time to be quiet within becomes even more critical.

In our Wisdom Circle, that is just what we do...we take time to smell the roses, lillies, petunias, honeysuckle and allow space to quiet down.
Within the Circle is created a container to experience true stillness.
It is that stillness that exists in nature so often...a quiet pond, an open meadow...
This stillness has the capacity to support our healing.
This stillness is a 'sabbath' for our souls.
This stillness holds our Spirits and cradles our hearts.
The Spirit within us craves this stillness, so why is it that we so rarely visit this space?

When our Wisdom Circle pondered that question, some of the responses centered around our need to be 'doing' all the time.
We have lists upon lists of things that must be attended to.
We have appointments and schedules and all manner of agendas to address.
These are all part of living in the third dimensional space of our world.

But when our Circle considered the true richness of the experience of stillness, we agreed that when we do 'go there', 'it is well worth the price of admission'.
Some choose to find stillness in nature; some in the quiet of their own home.
Others have come to find stillness through meditation and prayer.
Stillness is a space that God creates for us when we show up with an open heart and 'no mind'.
We leave the lists and agendas behind and we surrender ourselves fully to the Creator.
It is in full surrender and openness that we find what has been there all along, waiting for us to remember 'it'.

Each week in our Wisdom Circle, we make room for stillness to enter.
We welcome the Divine to fill our hearts and be present among us.
We make a 'date' to honor the Spirit within and take time to dance with the mystery inside.
We smell a rose and deepen our appreciation of the beauty of the Earth we have been given to care for.
We cherish the rose and the strength that it holds.
We notice how each rosebud transforms into its full potential bursting forth in color and smell.
The rose knows that after it completes its gift-giving, it will surrender itself and again reconnect with the Earth that gave it life.
So it is with us.

Let us open ourselves and offer our gifts to the world.
Let us honor the service that we are here to give.
Let us fully express who we are and Whom we are here to serve.

Wisdom Circle - Creative Expression

Over the years, our Wisdom Circle has created lots of different kinds of programs.
Sometimes the focus is music, sometimes different religious traditions, sometimes spiritual laws.
But one of the things that we have committed to regularly incorporating into our Wisdom Circle is time and space for creative expression.
Most of the members of the Circle work in 'left - brained' professions and spend most of their days using logic and reason.
Much less frequently does the 'right - brain' get exercised and have an opportunity to express itself.
So our commitment has been to spend time with creative expression using the arts.
This may take the form of creating with clay, playing with playdo, coloring mandalas, making collages.

The pictures above are from a session we had using stones.
The content of our discussion was all about what gives us foundation, strength, courage, meaning, fortitude in our lives.
It was an opportunity for us to wonder about our Source.
We first chose stones that we felt connected to and 'grounded' us to the concept of 'Source'.
Stones are the great 'space holders' of the Earth.
They were a perfect element to use since we were exploring connection to the foundation of our lives.
Next, we did a guided imagery remembering those things in our lives that brought us these things or reminded us of these things.
At the conclusion of the meditation, in silence, we each began to draw an image that came to our awareness.

The drawings above represented some of the beautiful images of Source and foundation to our Circle members.
One shared that it was family that brought him a sense of foundation and wholeness.
Another had experienced the image of a spiral during the guided imagery meditation.
To her, the spiral represented the continuous, ever changing circle and spiral of life.
Another shared that the tree of life had always been a powerful image that connected the two worlds that we live in, Heaven and Earth, Above and Below.

We spent time with our images, individually and collectively.
We honored the wisdom of each member as they shared from their heart that which gave them hope, strength and support and meaning.
As each member shares their story, it becomes a blessing and a remembrance for all.
As each member acknowledged their own journey, we all were blessed by acknowledging our own journeys and the things that had carried us through.

Blessings come from simply witnessing the beauty in the story of another.
Being willing to show up, being vulnerable and sharing from the heart all came together to create a magical healing experience.

As Rainer Maria Rilke said many many years ago, 'the Circle heals'.