Letting go of Chaos
Hannah Green
Sending love to all this full moon February. I hope your year is off to a good start. I am feeling very alive and switched on after participating in some great workshops and tarot trainings this year already ~ What a way to begin! Feeling grateful for my community and the growth, inspiration and guidance I enjoy as a therapist. The learning never ends. Thank you for being a part of it!
RECIPE FOR THIS MONTH
Letting go of chaos...
"If you grew up in a home where Chaos was present or it's what got you attention, look to see the ways in which you may be drawn into, create, or crave chaos now. It may be one of the only ways your system knows how to be because of familiarity, and it may be the only way your system is convinced it can get connection or love."
~Vienna Pharaon MFT
Peace can feel unfamiliar as those in recovery know. When our path unfolds into a secure-functioning relationship, addiction recovery or emotional stability, we begin to experience a strange phenomenon - a distinct absence of chaos. Initially we may confuse this serenity with boredom or even depression. If we go deeper we may observe ourselves unconsciously gravitating away from the unfamiliar calm and back to the chaotic familiar. This is a natural part of the process. It may look like picking a fight with our partner, engaging in gossip, trying to "save" someone, way over-scheduling ourselves or worst case, relapsing in an addiction. None of us lives a fantasy life completely free of drama and drama is an exciting and essential part of the human experience. However, with awareness, support and practice we start to enjoy peace more and crave chaos less. We start to feel invigorated, healed and inspired by the space peace creates. When we inevitably feel the pull to chaos we start to let go of the rope. Imagine a muddy game of tug or war in which you let go of the rope, walk off the field and slip into a hot bath. Letting go of the rope is a choice and a powerful practice in self compassion and staying centered. It is practicing the art of staying centered called boundaries. Letting go of the rope may look like not responding to an inflammatory text message, choosing to talk with a good listener instead of fighting to be heard, choosing self care over people pleasing, not overbooking ourselves or taking space from a toxic relationship.
What does letting go of chaos and inviting more peace look like for you today?
If you feel moved, make a list of old beliefs, behaviors, relationships or obligations that create more chaos than peace. As you look at this list imagine compassionately letting these elements go. What do you feel inside? Without judgement ask yourself, am I willing to let go? Where do you feel that willingness in your body?
Fun option: Burn the list over a bowl of water and pour onto the earth or down the drain.....
FAVORITE FEBRUARY BOOKS
Wyrd sisters Oracle Deckby Casey Zabala
Book of Tokens Tarot meditations by Paul Case
We Do: Saying Yes to a Relationship of Depth, True Connection, and Enduring Love by Stan Tatkin
If you are a student of the Tarot or are interested in the Tarot, Maria Ellen Chiaia PhD MFT is teaching this wonderful class at the San Francisco Jung Institute:
LIVING SYMBOLS OF THE TAROT: A JOURNEY THROUGH ARCHETYPAL PATTERNS OF SOUL
FEBRUARY TAROT CARD:
THE STAR
Our Deepest Fear
By Marianne Williamson
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness
That most frightens us.
We ask ourselves
Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small
Does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking
So that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine,
As children do.
We were born to make manifest
The glory of God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us;
It's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine,
We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we're liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.
How are you letting your gifts be seen?
How are you stepping into the power of vulnerability?
What old beliefs and ways of being are you dissolving as you let your light shine?