Guru Girl Weekend Training

I just completed the first of nine weekend retreat training experiences and it was wonderful, as were all the women to whom I opened my heart. The two women who led our experience and will be our teachers created a warm, welcoming, beautiful space for us to bond and begin our journey.

And Sinsinawa Mound, where I stayed, was equally beautiful and a quiet, soul-nurturing space, as well!

I have experienced some shifts already and I'm really looking forward to every part of the rest of this journey!

Here are a few highlights...

1) Walking the labyrinth and offering every concern to God

2) Seeing the "Christmas trees" and making friends with some of the other trees in the area

3) Eating some of the wonderful meals

4) Telling one of the leaders that I was amazed that there were people like her and the other leader, and having her say, "you're people like us!"

5) Finding that a few of the women, one in particular, are willing to give themselves over to laughter just like me. I had some wonderful laughs!

6) Getting here early and finishing the story I was writing

7) Getting to re-live the emergence of spring.

It's just beginning here so there was a touch of winter still and I got to enjoy drinking hot tea and wearing long sleeves and wrapping the prayer shawl around me given by one of the other women

8) Watching Mary Poppins with one of the Sisters who lives here in the Dominican Community and getting to meet and talk to some of the others.

9) Creating and having my very own medicine drum. The creating part was less-than-thrilling, to say the least!!! But now that it's all done, I'm glad to have it. I have named it Laughing Brook.

10) Singing Trish's song, "Namaste, namaste. I greet you with my heart wide open..." to the other women.

There were many other wonderful moments, including watching "Grey's Anatomy" with the first few wonderful people who arrived and "August Rush" on the last night we were here.

In case I haven't yet made it clear, I had a fantastic time!!

It's Official!

"With wide-open hearts and joyful smiles, we delightfully welcome you to the class of 2008-2010. The gifts you offer the Circle bring a depth of goodness for us all. The wealth of life experience and the diversity of the wider group promise us opening, deepening, and an exciting journey together."

I'm going to train to be a spiritual director!!

And it starts next weekend!

There are nine weekend retreat trainings in all in addition to everything we do in between. I'm excited!

Jonathan is a little less than excited :). When I first told him, he said several times that he didn't want me to do it.

But guess what! I had told him about the weekends, but then, realized that because of kooky flight schedules, I'm actually going to have to get there a couple of days early this first time. So before I told him that, I made him hold an amethyst crystal in one hand and a rose quartz crystal in the other for 10 minutes or more.

He was SO calm when I told him! I mean, he hugged me and made a few quiet murmurings about not wanting me to go so soon, but he kept holding the crystals and basically, was fine. And has been all day.

Now I just need to figure out what I'm going to pack!

I know it will be cold there (retreat center near Iowa), but should I take my boots? *Ponders*

So that's what God meant!

I think I've posted here before that I've heard whisperings and felt nudges from God about ministry.

Which puzzled me because I don't think of myself as the type who would ever want to be a pastor, and that's what comes to mind. The words "healing minister" have always appealed to me but I just didn't know how healing would be a part of a pastorship.

So I decided to just let it hang in the air and wait for more information. I figured whatever I needed to know would present itself one way or the other!

And now, I think that has happened. I had never heard of being a spiritual director before! Even when I saw the blog page of one of the RevGalBlogPals, I thought it seemed like a neat idea and even something I'd enjoy doing but I thought it must be a Catholic thing since I'd never heard of it.

But recently, I found out that people from any faith tradition can learn to be spiritual directors and it looks like it would fit together well with my healing practice. I even found a training program that seems perfect.

So I am definitely going to look into this and see what happens...