I couldn’t breathe. I swallowed swimming pool water. My 10-year-old brother kept his feet on top of me. I was 6 years old and terrified.
What could a 10-year-old boy feel that he wanted to terrorize his little sister?
Recently, I realized that the people I grew up around used judgments like knives to cut me. You get cut enough, and you bleed out. Also, you get cut enough—you internalize those shards of glass made of judgments against yourself.
Some people talk about a committee of voices in your head. Many of the voices hate you. What happens? Much of that can turn into self-hatred.
I have three insights for you.
1. Survive when you compartmentalize.
Sometimes, to function, I need to put certain thoughts off to the side. For example, I’ll recall something I said that embarrassed me. If I allow this one negative thought to overrun my life, I won’t get to the facility where my parents live. And I won’t get my mom to her doctor appointment on time.
I will not let that happen. I do what I must.
Do you find yourself doing that, too? Do you compartmentalize sometimes?
Compartmentalizing is only a temporary tactic. I find that I must talk through what bothers me with someone I trust. … when appropriate.
2. Proclaim: “I interrupt this broadcast” and stamp your foot.
Recently, a friend told me about a method that works for several people. When you think of a disempowering thought, you stamp your foot and say, “I interrupt this broadcast.” You are interrupting the thought that showed up in your brain.
You do a physical action to disrupt the trance of negative thinking. Dealing with my depression symptoms, I realize that using a positive disruptive pattern helps me shift my focus.
Here is an example. I think, “Damn. I shouldn’t have said, ‘I can’t do that.’” Then I say, “I interrupt this broadcast.” I stamp my foot on the ground. (This shifts my focus.)
Do you need to shift your focus from habitual negative thinking?
3. Ask the Goddess to help you shift your focus.
Here is a prayer you can use.
Goddess, Help me shift my focus From helpless to helpful, From self-anger to self-love. From fearful to fearless! So Mote It Be.
Would you like to feel free? Moonwater reveals the Secret to Free Yourself. She demonstrates powerful ways to release yourself from suffering. Many of us are angry with ourselves. It is possible to free yourself and forgive yourself. Learn how—when you listen to this episode.
When I first felt the presence of the God, time stopped. I felt different. Empowered. With a whole new peaceful experience.
I was grateful.
As we get near the time of Mabon, it’s valuable to talk about gratitude.
Here are three insights.
1. Set a Morning Intention of Gratitude
My friend, Stephanie, sets an intention at night. “I am grateful, full of energy, and filled with peace.”
Then, when she wakes up, her first thought is her intention. After months of practice, this uplifting intention is a morning “reflex” for her.
What intention would empower you in the morning?
2. Transform your suffering into a gift.
At one point, my spleen was destroying my platelets. (In your blood, the platelet creates blood clots so you do not bleed out.) I found myself truly miserable for 30 days in a hospital. The solution? They removed my spleen. I’m grateful to be alive.
My husband was terrified. He did not want to show any uncertainty on his face. He wanted it to look like he had full confidence in the anesthesiologist and the surgeon. He wanted me to be in a strong, positive mental mindset of certainty. So, I would be sure to come out of surgery well and strong.
Yeah. Well. I thought it looked like he did not care. (That was such a wrong assumption!) He had so much fear in him. But I couldn’t see any concern on his face. I felt sad.
My husband said, “As soon as the doors closed, tears ran down my face. I was terrified.”
I later said to my husband, “Show me your tears!”
So, I suffered. My husband suffered. How the heck is there a gift in any of this? I am alive. I am healthy. My husband and I are still on this planet together. 25 years. I am very grateful.
Also, he has learned an important lesson. “Show me your tears!”
Has a moment of suffering later helped you learn a valuable lesson?
3. Ask the Goddess for help to shift to gratitude.
Here is a prayer you can use.
O Lord and Lady, Help me see my gifts and blessings. Shift my thoughts from fear To gratitude. So Mote It Be.
Moonwater reveals secrets of Self-Initiation into a new chapter of life. You can find meaning and hope when life suddenly goes upside-down. Even when you endure a terrible loss, like the passing of a loved one. Self-Initiation helps you elevate your experience and even brings you rest and renewal.
“When have you felt happy?” “I don’t like that question,” I thought. Why do I have a problem with that question? Let’s pause. Do you clearly know what makes you happy? Are you getting it? Have you settled? Or given up? Maybe, you’re similar to me. You just feel tired. My cat just leaped into my lap. I’m hugging him. Okay, I’m feeling happy. But that’s not the whole story. For one thing, he just shoved his tail into my face. I sneeze.
I have three insights for you.
1. Shift from What can I get? to Why am I here?
“What can I get?” is often connected to survival mode. Have you noticed that kids sense the competition that’s going on?
You have to push to get what you want. It can feel exhausting.
In 2012, I received from the God and Goddess the directive “start a blog.” What? With my dyslexia? I started the blog anyway. I get a lot of help. But at the beginning, I did not know how things would go. Recently, I’m thinking about “Why am I here?” My thoughts include: “I’m here to support others in their learning and their individual path.” Some of my favorite moments with my blog posts and podcast episodes include:
I appreciate hearing from readers.
I like discovering new topics and ways to synergize ideas and learnings.
I like editing my podcast episodes. I like the moments when an interesting assembly happens. For example, I’ll assemble the first part of one sentence and then use part of my second take to make things sound right.
When I’m doing my blog posts and podcast episodes, I feel connected to “Why am I here?” How about you? When do you feel on purpose? This is part of your Soulful Need.
2. Sometimes, your Soulful Need is connected to release from something that shackles you.
At times, fear shackles me. I find that I feel free of fear when I am doing my blog and podcast work, and I have a team member supporting me. So, my experience of freedom from fear is connected to “taking action while receiving support.” That’s a true revelation for me.
What do you need a release from?
Old ideas? Thoughts of limitation? An old identity? (For example, family members can try to hold someone as cemented to an old role of “the shy one.” … The truth is: You can be shy and still be an actor. I know someone like that.)
3. Have you given up a “positive expectation”?
I went to college because I wanted to be an animator using a computer. You know, someone who works at Pixar. I am working with someone now so I can do some animated characters. (Groundwork is happening for that.)
I have not given up on the possibilities of animating material. Have you become so tired that you have given up on having any “positive expectations”? Your Soulful Need can arise as you answer questions like:
What would feel delightful?
What might cause me to stretch and grow?
What could be a positive possibility for me?
Your Soulful Need is connected to the divinity the God and Goddess placed within you.
Here is a prayer you can use:
God and Goddess, Lead me to delightful discoveries. Help me fulfill my Soulful Need with ease. Show me the way to untold possibilities. So Mote It Be.
Moonwater reveals an extraordinary process to shift out of daily concerns and pain—into an elevated level of true self-knowledge. You are one with the God and Goddess. Learn how to release yourself from the daily space of pain, anger, and emptiness. Rise to the level of your true magick. Additionally, hear the wisdom of Doreen Valiente and Scott Cunningham.
“She just wouldn’t listen to me,” my friend, Angie, said, of her coven member, Nancy.
I reflected on this. In a coven, both a leader and a member need listening skills. But more than that, they need something that reveals authentic care and concern.
Here are three insights.
1. Focus on Genuine Curiosity not only “Listening Skills.”
Have you heard this? “You need to nod, be quiet, and ask follow-up questions.”
Okay. That is helpful. But people can see past empty gestures.
Here is the Missing Piece to elevating coven members: Go to the place in yourself of Genuine Curiosity.
My friend, Stephen, deals with his father, who has no curiosity about Stephen’s life. His father asks no questions. His father does not know anything important to Stephen. Stephen grieves over the empty space between his father and himself.
On the other hand, you can go beyond “shallow listening skills.” You can choose to truly care about the other person. How? You nurture a curiosity about that person’s experience on their life path.
Do you focus on the wants and needs of the other person? Do you have genuine curiosity about that person’s experience in life?
2. Ask yourself questions.
Research reveals that we can guide our thoughts by asking a few powerful questions.
If you lead a coven, you need the skills of a good leader. A good leader stays strong and focused. How? Good leaders ask themselves questions to change their personal state of being.
Here’s a useful question: How can I quiet myself and turn the spotlight onto their feelings?
Often, many of us cannot get past the distraction of our own unmet needs. First, you can ask: “How can I quiet myself?”
Here is something that is connected to this process: “How can I take care of myself so I’m not distracted by pain, anger, or emptiness?”
Are you taking good care of yourself? Do you have space for the concerns and feelings of another person?
3. Ask the Gods “How can I take better care of myself.”
Many times, to take care of others we need to first take care of ourselves.
If your needs are met, you can be free of distraction. Then you can truly listen to another person.
Here is a prayer you can use.
Great Lord and Gracious Lady, Help me experience my calm self. Guide me to nurture that self for my benefit and the benefit of all involved. Soothe me in this calm place within. Give me the key to go there whenever I have need. So Mote It Be.
Moonwater reveals the hidden reality of Your Divine Self. Unfortunately, many of us get stuck in our “human story.” This is when we feel broken and stuck. Moonwater reveals how she gets unstuck. She provides a powerful prayer you can use to invite the Goddess to help you know Your Divine Self.
“I don’t understand prayer. With some people I know, it sounds like they’re trying to use God as an Amazon products order form,” my friend, Amanda, said.
“I hear you,” I replied. “I think of it as a dialogue. I know that God and Goddess want me to blossom into my full destiny.”
“But I don’t get it. Why does God allow us to suffer so much?” Amanda continued.
That’s a big question.
Here are three insights.
1. Acknowledge that something has arrived as a problem that you did NOT want.
Some people try to put a smiley face on a problem. They call it a challenge. It works better for me to acknowledge that it really is a problem.
How about you? Do you feel irritated about putting the “nice” label of “challenge” upon something that bothers you?
2. Make the shift from wanting something just for you to seeing a different kind of opportunity.
Let’s go back to Amanda’s comment about wanting Deity to merely give us what we want.
Sometimes, what we get is something we would NOT have asked for. Migraine headaches? No! I don’t want that.
But I get something else. I have compassion for anyone facing health troubles.
Sometimes, we have experiences that feel like suffering, but they give us opportunities … – to expand our understanding, our compassion, our empathy. – to perhaps, serve and support others who experience the suffering we have endured.
Here’s another thought. What do we want? To feel “alive!” For many of us, feeling connected and having a purpose can provide a truly good feeling. For example, when I did volunteer work at The Peninsula Humane Society, I felt part of a team that was helping animals. I could make a difference. For the first few months, I felt on purpose.
Have you experienced something difficult, and later you could support someone facing something similar?
3. Ask Goddess for the Shift and the Strength.
Here’s a prayer you can use.
Goddess, Bless me to shift out of self-focus. Guide me to know that my suffering can serve To help me grow in strength, compassion, and empathy. Empower me on my path. So Mote It Be.
GoddessHasYourBack.com 