Tag: daniellelaporte

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It’s an Honor to Help You

(Originally posted in Facebook on June 14, 2019)

I saw from the local news that the Guilford County animal shelter is almost at capacity and is offering free animal adoptions today. M pointed out that we don’t NEED another dog. (Why is that part of his brain still sharp as a tack?) I told him that the dogs at the shelter NEED us. No decision has been made yet – I’m still waffling.

Yesterday, I got one of the weekly emails from Danielle LaPorte . . . you may have already seen this. But it spoke to me and if you haven’t seen it, I wanted to share it with you.

She was going through a tough time and reached out to her closest friends to ask them to pray for her. Here’s what she said:

“With IMMEDIATE enthusiasm, every friend texted back to say, Done! Doing it! Holding you in the Light! I love you! You got this!

And one friend sent me a photo of the candle she lit and the sacred object she placed on her altar for me. And she said something that made me stop and inhale the heat of my tears:

It’s an honor to help you.

Stopped me.

It’s an honor to help you.

Melted me.

It’s an honor to help you.

Had never occurred to me.

This declaration made poetry out of what I knew to be true: that most people want to help out, but more than that, they cherish the opportunity.

We all have a deep need to be helpful, it’s how the Soul gets its exercise.

So please remember this when YOU need help. When you need back-up on your divine petitions, give someone the honor of lending you their faith.”

Every single one of you honors me, by reading about my struggles every day, by offering your love, support and advice and by holding M and me in your prayers. Those prayers mean more to me than anything in the world. I can’t thank you enough for being there for me and reminding me I’m not alone.

I hope you will honor me with the opportunity to help you in the future.

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A Credo for Making it Happen

(Originally posted in Facebook on April 26, 2019)

You can do this.

You got this.

You can make it happen.

This video is only 1:47 minutes long, but so worth it. I wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve watched it . . . I’d be rich! It brings tears to my eyes, and it’s so powerful.

Hopefully, it will bring some power to your Friday, too.

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The Goddess of Grief

(Originally posted in Facebook on April 12, 2019)

Today, I’d like to share a message I received from Danielle LaPorte. If you don’t follow her, on her various social media platforms, I encourage you to do so. She writes amazingly insightful commentary on all sorts of topics. But this one is about grief. And when I read it, it made me realize that I am and I have been grieving . . . not only for what M is going through and how it is affecting me, but for the life that I (we) had all planned out for us in my mind. And that life is not going to be.

I hope you’ll find this as meaningful and helpful as I do.

the goddess of grief: getting to the other side. (and there is always another side.)

Grief is one of the most powerful Goddesses. She swallows your agony and lets it tear her apart. Beautiful birds fly from her belly—each one an insight into life and your power. Grief brings the whole flock to your window, and she waits and waits to reveal universal truths to you. She goes to the depths with you. She rises with you.

Grief won’t rest until you swallow the medicine she made especially for you, and tell her your story of death… and life.

HOW TO ABSORB THE MEDICINE OF GRIEF

1. Grief messes with your focus. When she’s tap-tap-tapping on the door of your consciousness, it becomes difficult to concentrate. You’re not sure what the priorities are, not sure where to put your attention, and when you do put it somewhere, it slips off easily. Time does not feel fresh, it feels a bit stale. Launching new things feels awkward, subtly inappropriate.

2. Give your self space to meander, aimlessly. Aim less. Under achieve. Be confused. As Nietzsche said, “You must have confusion in your heart to give birth to stars.” You are giving birth to a new reality. It takes tremendous resources. Healing hurts before it feels right.

3. Grief is patient. Grief may operate on a time-release capsule system. She’ll let you be busy and distracted for a long period of time before she descends. She respects survival mechanisms and the necessities. So go ahead and throw yourself into work or hobbies. Just know that…

4. Denying grief her power squelches your vitality. You can dream and laugh and march on, but until you swallow the bitter tea that Grief has brewed, things won’t be as vibrant or grounded as they could be. And that’s half dead.

5. Recognize where you are numb. Notice the memories that ouch the most. This is the beginning of response-ability.

6. Grief crystallizes in your body. The medicine will get stuck in your muscle memory and joints. It needs to circulate and be digested. You have to dance grief to the surface. Stomp. Rock. Stretch. Move without your intellect getting in the way. Keep moving.

7. Grief thinks scars make for great tattoos. Accept that you’ll never be the same. Trauma marks you. Embrace how much more dimensional you’ve become.

8. Someone just reminded me, “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” (Maya Angelou). Grief needs to hear your story told. Speak it out to a sacred listener. Be witnessed. And then…

9. Tell a new story—one that includes the description of how you healed.

All love,