Stories of Rituals and Celebrations

Stephen and his soon-to-be adolescent daughter Katie were very close. They cherished their time with each other on alternating weekends. They shared a love of storytelling and a deep connection with Spirit.

A focus of Stephen’s was to connect Katie with role models of “vibrant, powerful women living in their strength and glory” and he had done so. During a personal ritual focus session he decided to write a story for Katie’s birthday of her becoming “a vibrant, powerful woman living in all her strength and glory.”

Upon receiving the gift Katie’s face was tearful and radiant. Stephen continued to empower Katie’s vision of herself and Katie continued to thrive.

Dana felt she had been living within a whirlwind of work and stress in the corporate world the past four years. She felt a strong need to assess where she was in her life. She had also stopped painting, something which she loved and which was also very centering for her.

During a personal ritual focus session, Dana decided she would create three paintings – one representing her past, one her present, and one her future. As she painted over the course of about six weeks, Dana felt more energized and at peace. The first painting called her attention to things that had fed her spirit in the past such as animals, water and flowers. She began taking steps to gather these into her present life by creating a water garden in her backyard and becoming a companion to a stray cat.

To Dana the second painting represented her love of her work and the venue it provided for her gifts as a mediator. It also represented her sense of beginning to spiral out of control and the call for her to put more of her energies into her own self care. Dana decided to designate a couple of hours each week to continue her painting.

The third painting held a message of tapping into an even richer life of both connection and solitude.

Dana hung the paintings in her bedroom as visual reminders of the movement in her life, of the fact that she had the ability to make choices about her life, and of her vision of a more balanced and nourishing life.

Marnie saw that the life she had been living was not one which matched her deepest truths. She tended to be very judgmental and often did not keep promises. Until now she had avoided looking at these behaviors. During her personal ritual focus session, as a way of preparing herself to begin making changes in her outside world, we planned a ritual to acknowledge on a deeper level the realizations and repercussions of her behaviors. She desired to be honest with herself without being so critical that she felt paralyzed to take action.

For several days Marnie journaled about her behaviors. She then carved out an afternoon for a walk of atonement. She chose to have an affirming witness during her walk and asked that I accompany her. We arrived at a favorite path in nature, one with a bench at the start. Marnie sat quietly for a few moments relaxing and clearing her mind, focusing upon her intent.

She began walking very mindfully. With each step she whispered an example of an action or a lack of action toward another or herself for which she felt remorse. At the end of the path she sat a few moments in reflection, taking several deep breaths to remain centered.

She began walking back, this time uttering words of appreciation for those in her life past and present and well as for her self. Back at the starting bench, Marnie gave herself time to be with her experience. Once home she continued her journaling. She felt the courage and inspiration to begin making amends to others and herself, step by step.

Lee’s 40th birthday was nearing. To her it represented a major turning point in her life. She realized how strongly she clung to grudges and the past. She had also gained an awareness of the ways she limited herself and her gifts. Lee felt the time had come for her to step into a place of greater personal power.

During Lee’s personal ritual sessions we planned a way to join the power of her upcoming birthday with her desire for a life lived from a space of deeper love for self and others. In the weeks before her birthday she listed the grudges and limits she held. Lee chose to create a bonfire on her birthday. She discerned which of her friends would be supportive and invited those to join her.

On the night of her birthday, Lee read aloud what she had written. As she finished reading each page she tossed the paper into the fire, symbolizing releasing her grudges and limits. Her friends served as witnesses. Lee then affirmed what she chose to gather and feed in her life – deeper friendships, more joy, a stronger belief in her innate goodness and her gifts. Her friends offered affirmations of her strength and of her journey.

Lee noted expanded feelings of well-being and compassion as well as a sense of greater closeness within her community of friends. Empowered to more fully honor her gifts, she realized she was ready to take her work in the healing field more seriously.
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