Taking a Detour on the Road of Where You Are Going

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. These words of Thomas Merton resonate within me now more than ever. So much uncertainty in the past six months. What will the last half of 2020 hold for me, for you, for all of us? I think that we can all say, “I have no idea where I am going.” Because, really, what is next in this storm of uncertainty?

Taking steps into the dark while groping to find balance are scary. Our next step may be off a figurative ledge or tripping up a steep incline. The uncertainty is not going to go away, so we need to own our fear. Until we do, we stand paralyzed in the moment. To break free of our fear means to take chance after chance after chance until our eyes grow accustomed to the light that shines from within. That light, our divine spark, connects us to the sacred voice that leads us through the unknowing into soul purpose.

We do not have to know where we are going on this journey. All that is needed is a loose plan as we move step-by-step on this pathway of life. When we focus in the moment, we hear the whispers of our intuition. Responding to our intuition, we become the power that propels us down an uncertain path with surety. That power is fed by our courage, sustained by our humility, and manifested by our hope. This power wakes us to the realization that our life has meaning. We understand that we live with purpose for we have no choice but to be our true self.

I am amazed at the number of plans I have developed only to see them take a detour down a windy, muddy path. I have said, “I’ve never seen a detour I didn’t take.” But, those detours didn’t take me anywhere I didn’t need to be. The ultimate reframe: these paths are not detours but side roads overgrown with challenges and life lessons. On those paths I learned so much about myself and grew into the person that I am. I hope that you have found the same on your detours.

Do we know where we are going? Probably not. This unknowing opens us to the possibility of what might be. For within the uncertainty we find limitless potential and unwavering possibility. The uncertainty calls us to be curious and act with daring in our approach to life. Because, isn’t that what life is truly about? We are called to be curious, courageous, and daring as we experience life through the heights of joy and the depths of agony. 

So, how do we step down this path of uncertainty?

• Through mindfulness. What is your mindfulness practice? How aware does it make you of the opportunities in your life?
• Through self-compassion. How are you practicing self care in each moment? How do you forgive yourself for perceived missteps and detours along the way?
• Through response flexibility. How willing are you to change plans? What one thing can you do in this moment to be more flexible?

The answers to these questions may not create a path without detours. It takes us exactly where we need to be as we awaken to the necessity and potential of detours. Through these questions’ answers, we create a rich life full of challenges met and lessons learned and soul purpose realized.  

Vanessa F. Hurst, ms, is an Intuitive, Coach, Catalyst, who uses mindfulness practices and intuition tools to create strategies for personal and relationship transformation. She is a professional speaker & author who weaves inner wisdom into all she touches. Her books are available @ www.wildefyrpress.com. Contact Vanessa  (vanessa@intentandaction.com) for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

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Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020

Falling into New

Life changes in an instant, but mostly change happens bit by bit. The old erodes leaving us with potential for growing new. But, change is uncertain. We are not assured of the outcome of anything. We are only certain that things will not continue as they are as the capacity for change grows.

I have often said that it is not change that it hard but the thought of change. Years ago I rode the log ride at an amusement park. The log shaped canoe meandered around the water tube until it reached a conveyor belt. Inch by slow inch the best drew the boat nearer to the top of a great fall. The thought of change, for me, is like the tottering of that boat before it tipped into the plunge toward the water below. 

Those moments before the excitement of the plunge perfectly describe the anticipation of change. When the externals are shifting so rapidly, we may get stuck in what is happening instead of noticing how our life changes with each thought, each word, and each action. In fact, we may make choices not fully aware of their ramifications.

Sometimes I feel very small when I recognize all the change going on around me to other people — new jobs, new relationships, deaths, births. Then I examine what is happening on a communal level — locally, nationally, globally. The changes that impact me are staggering. What is even more staggering? The feelings of a lack of control over that impact.

Change marches on with or without our consent. So, what can I do? What can you do? The answer to both is found within our ability to be a change agent. When we are an entrepreneurial change discerner, we do not change for the sake of change; rather, we adapt and grow and become who we are meant to be because we cannot help but sing in harmony with the song of change. Singing our song forth we use the impetus of change to realize our soul purpose. In doing so, our thoughts, words, and actions resonate soul purpose.

Change asks each of us to be flexible, find ways to live with purpose no matter however, wherever, whenever, and whoever we find our self. Change reminds us that while life is not always easy, it provides challenges and lessons for us to live with soul purpose.

Vanessa F. Hurst, ms, is an Intuitive, Coach, Catalyst, who uses mindfulness practices and intuition tools to create strategies for personal and relationship transformation. She is a professional speaker & author who weaves inner wisdom into all she touches. Her books are available @ www.wildefyrpress.com. Contact Vanessa  (vanessa@intentandaction.com) for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

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Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020 

Navigating through the Transition Time: Imperfect in an Uncertain World

As the world slowly settles into this new normal, have you asked yourself about the impact on yourself of this transition time? How is your body, mind, spirit, and heart (emotions) managing all the uncertainty? Maybe things have shifted so subtly that you haven’t notices or perhaps there have been symptoms and signs you can no longer ignore. 

No matter what, this transition time has left a mark on each of us. They may manifest in our body, our mind, our heart (emotions), or our spirit. The symptoms and signs present themselves uniquely in each of us. What have you noticed? 

Mentally: Has your Ladder of Inference got a workout? (The Ladder of Inference is how our beliefs power our assumptions and judgments. The result is our responses and reactions.) Mine has. I have noticed more and more how my beliefs inform my judgments and assumptions and the ways that they manifest in my actions. I have had some uncomfortable but enlightening conversations with myself. My beliefs have shifted as I open myself to the views and beliefs of others.

Emotionally: During this time of transition what is your emotional state? Mine seems to have been scattered to the four corners of my being. This uncertainty is hard on the emotional life. For with uncertainty comes fears. Identify the fears is necessary to release paralysis. Reframing is vital to navigating the uncertainty. To reframe: Find the good, the beneficial, in any situation. Doing this gives each of us the power to try anew again and again and again until the fear no longer paralyzes us.

Spiritually: How do we make sense of what is happening? So much raw emotions is percolating and often boils over. I wonder how we can find our way into a world where the Golden Rule is the only response. To create a world that is governed by the Golden Rule, we return to our self. Internal transformation is the only birther of external change. This is a time for us to live from our beliefs — share our core message and invite others to share theirs. 

Physically: If we have ignored the messages from our first three aspects, they converge and speak from the physical. It is difficult to ignore the mental, emotional, and spiritual murmurs that become physical shouts. There is a lot of heavy weight in this world that targets the physical. That realization came when little aches became big, and I admitted that I was not handling the uncertainty as well as I thought. 

I dialogued with the first three aspects to identify what was happening. Only when I had this open, honest conversation with myself, could I consciously and intentionally name the fears and reframe where I am. This gave me the power to navigate through this time of transition. I didn’t have to know where I was going; I needed to be aware of what was unsettling me along the path and be open to the next step.

We are holistic beings. Our body, mind, spirit, and heart speak to us in every moment. They alert us to the potential of imbalance. By living with awareness, we acknowledge the little and big ways that we are impacted. Each aspect empowers us to minimize anything detrimental and accentuate the best in each of us. Because #inthistogether begins by keeping one’s self together. 

 Vanessa F. Hurst, ms, is an Intuitive, Coach, Catalyst, who uses mindfulness practices and intuition tools to create strategies for personal and relationship transformation. She is a professional speaker & author who weaves inner wisdom into all she touches. Her books are available @ www.wildefyrpress.com. Contact Vanessa  (vanessa@intentandaction.com) for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

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Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020

Blossoming Hope in a Desolate Land

I have a good feeling; no, I have a great feeling. Things are changing. With courage, we are shining our lights on our individual and collective imperfections. Naming them, we find ways to heal. Through these actions we, individually and collectively, are growing and transforming into who we are meant to be. 

We cannot stop at the realization that as we change, the world changes. We’ve only taken a few steps out of an arid field filled attitudes, beliefs, and judgments that have caused this drought. Some are nuisances while others are barriers that prevent us from living from the fierceness of our heart. No matter how small or great, those attitudes, beliefs, and judgments stop us from living authentically. 

From the recognition of the unsustainability of an antiquated system grows the delicate, fragile sprouts of a movement. We have the momentum. To transition from a movement into a way of life, we must grow the roots of this movement deeply in our collective garden. It is through our awareness that the roots of a nonviolent, equitable way of life grow.

About 3 1/2 years ago I began to use #inthistogether and #compassioninaction in my social media posts. These times call for us to embrace both. Awareness of the uncertainty and the malice that threatens to topple this fledgling movement is necessary to turn from a self focused life to one of community. The next step is to form a response that binds us to one another through acts of compassion. 

How de we shift from a movement into a way of life? We begin with our self. We reflect upon how the external world resonates in our internal world. While external events may in no way mirror our internal life, we notice what the vibration is breaking free within us. We identify the cracks and plastering raining down upon us. We create a compassionate response to the resonance. 

Next introspect. We become aware of how we are uncomfortable with prior reactions and/or responses. We name how we react to the external world. We develop strategies to shift from reactions to response. There is no method or one way to respond. Each of us chooses a response that draws us out of our comfort zone while growing our sphere of influence. 

Finally, we integrate what we have learned in reflection and introspection into the way that we live our life. We live knowing that each #compassioninaction reflects that we are truly #inthistogether. Perhaps, if you do not have that great feeling in this moment, you will in time as you live a life of response..  

Vanessa F. Hurst, ms, is an Intuitive, Coach, Catalyst, who uses mindfulness practices and intuition tools to create strategies for personal and relationship transformation. She is a professional speaker & author who weaves inner wisdom into all she touches. Her books are available @ www.wildefyrpress.com. Contact Vanessa  (vanessa@intentandaction.com) for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

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Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020

The Light that Bears Witness in the Dark

2020 seems decades old instead of a mere five months. So much has happened. Events continue to spiral out of control. As I remind myself that out of chaos comes new, I wonder what that new will be. Then, I realize that within whatever the collective is birthing, I am called to be an active participant-witness in a world increasingly uncertain. 

I know that I must be a light that bears witness in the dark. Some will tell you that I have an exaggerated sense of right and wrong. In certain circumstances, for me, there is little or no gray between the two. I used to feel shame, guilt, over how I was wired. I am gradually letting those emotions go as I answer the question, “How can I bear witness if I do not have the courage to stand in my power?” Perhaps you can ask this question of yourself.

Because, really, no matter where we find our self, it is time to survey the land. Now is the time to bear witness on our own imperfections  — to stand witness to the collective imperfections that drag us into the abyss of hatred, isolation, and suffering. This witnessing begins by owning our own dark not to excuse our behavior or to justify the behavior of others because, well, we are dark, too. We change our self and demand that others change themselves. Through this transformation we become a welcoming community that stands against the uncertainty of the world. 

In my better moments, I own my bodhichitta heart. As a bodhisattva, I share the compassion flowing from that heart. In those moments of compassion, I aspire to alleviate suffering. In other moments, no matter how I react, I find a way back to my bodhichitta heart. I do not give up for I believe the path through this darkness is littered with morsels of compassion. These lure me to a place where my humanity shines anew.

How do I, do you, do we act from a compassionate heart?

Stand up: be compassion — act from not only her soft side but be the sharp edge of her sword that cuts through the illusion and holds bringers of suffering accountable for actions that cause hurt and harm. Love gently. Live fiercely.

Speak out: let compassion flow from your thoughts, your words, your actions. Share your compassionate heart with all. Be the unwavering light that shines so brightly that the suffering explodes into starbursts of healing. Be the spirit wind that heals a suffering world. 

Leave your comfort zone: bear witness, dance on the edge of chaos while vowing to be courageously true to who you are. Be compassion no matter how the chaos presents. This is it. No matter what your soul purpose, bearing witness in this time is integral to being exactly who you are meant to be.  

*bodhichitta: the desire to be awakened to the suffering of the work and to have empathy and compassion for all sentient beings.

** bodhisattva: a person who desires to share compassion with the world. 

Vanessa F. Hurst, ms, is an Intuitive, Coach, Catalyst, who uses mindfulness practices and intuition tools to create strategies for personal and relationship transformation. She is a professional speaker & author who weaves inner wisdom into all she touches. Her books are available @ www.wildefyrpress.com. Contact Vanessa  (vanessa@intentandaction.com) for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

Website / LinkedIn Profile / Facebook / 

Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020