Are We There Yet: Mindfulness & The Waning Months of 2020

Will this road trip of 2020 ever end? & what can we do during the wanting months? Watch this week's I&A vlog!

Are We There Yet?

Have you ever taken a longish journey with a child? Before setting out, you put stuff  every distraction imaginable into the backseat with them. Then, you cruise along dreading the inevitable. Waiting to hear those four words: “Are we there yet?” 

If you are like me at this point in 2020, you feel like that small child wondering if we will every put this year behind us and get to the destination — 2021. You may even be hopeful and excited about what the new year will bring. I know that I am. But, there have been silver linings in 2020. It has been filled with lots of intuitive messages and plenty of distractions. I still cannot wait to stretch my legs into the hope that 2021 brings. 

Again, if you are like me, that last stretch of the journey is what proves most daunting. I am fatigued. Most of my friends, colleagues, and clients are too. I find myself wondering if I can muster the strength, the energy, the hope to make it through these last waning weeks. Then I remind myself that the journey is undertaken mile ma
rker by mile marker. Mindfulness techniques, contemplative practice, and intuitive understanding pave the way through this waning year into the waxing next. The key? Living in awareness in order to recognize the impact of each moment.

How do we pave the path with mindfulness techniques, contemplative practice, and intuitive understanding? 

• Mindfulness techniques: my go-to technique is focusing on my breath. Through it, I settle into the moment thus increasing my awareness of this stretch of the road. I connect more fully to my body, hear my thoughts, attend to the impact of my emotions. My breath forges a path where my contemplative spirit flourishes.
• Contemplative practice: for me, there is a blurred area between mindfulness techniques and contemplative practice. When I am contemplative, I focus on the moment. I intentionally travel the final stretch of 2020 attuned to what is occurring. With this awareness, I use my energy wisely and respond. 
• Intuitive understanding: when I am contemplative, the world comes alive in extraordinary ways. I truly experience each step holistically — with my body, mind, spirit, and heart. My senses come alive with the voices of intuition. In the moment, I use these messages to navigate the gateway between now and then.

We need not trudge this last stretch of 2020 exhausted and fearful. Instead, we can mindfully, contemplatively, intuitively journey through our interactions with the internal and external worlds. With this triad of mindfulness, contemplation, and intuition we navigate through the uncertainty and respond to the world. While we might not be “there yet,” we are enjoying the journey through this waning year.

 

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. Her most recent book, As Natural As Breathing: Being Intuitive, is available on Amazon. Contact Vanessa for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

Website / LinkedIn Profile / Facebook / @fyrserpent / ©2020

A Day Unlike Any Other

As I look outside, I realize that soon all the leaves will  have transitioned to a carpet of detritus crackling as the squirrels dance through it. But, that is soon — not today. Today is a day unlike any other. It has never been before and shall never be repeated. In this knowing is a letting go. Today is a letting go that lays bare what was and invites us into deep contemplation of what truly is. 

What is true for you? Sometimes we spend so much time chasing the illusive that we lose sight of who we are in the moment on this unfolding journey. As a friend told me — we’ve got to stop chasing the next shiny thing and be who we are. In the chasing we fail to realize that shiny thing may be what we want but not what we need. It is not a reflection of who we are; it is an illusion of how we want things to be.

Letting go creates this wide, wondrous, expansive space of exploration. Within it we are free — that thing, that person, that situation no longer hauntingly clings to us. Breathing into this space stirs motes of possibility. In deep reflection we notice how our divine sparks glint off these motes. Through discernment, we choose which motes to make our own.

To separate the shiny things and the motes of possibility by letting go takes courage and resolve — both fuel discernment or decision making through deep contemplation. Discernment is a heart-head activity the integrates reflection with introspection. We dive deep into who we are — our beliefs, motives, judgments, agendas — and in this knowing, step more fully, more firmly into who we are. 

Letting go is an outward expression of non-attachment. But, we don’t stop there. In addition to being nonattached, we reflect without judging or defending. We recognize that life is not a rigid road that takes us from here to there. Life is organic and evolving. It grows even when we are not paying attention. Though discernment we trace its course and decide our next steps. We open to what is occurring.

We create a wonderland by letting go. Here we have the courage to face our fears and the resolve to discover our path step by step. That is what is important. There are so many possibilities out there. How many of them look great on paper but just don’t resonate with us? Unless we let go, we are unable to truly discern what is really possible and what is wishful thinking. 

Today is a day unlike any other. In this moment what do you choose to let go? How is that letting  go instrumental to moving forward? 

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 for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

Website / LinkedIn Profile / Facebook / @fyrserpent / ©2020

 

Real Beliefs, Shadow Beliefs: Growing In the Garden of You

Beliefs are curious things. They speak to us from the depths of our being . Each whispering is a reflection of who we are. They provide limitless opportunities to share the truth within. Each belief is a stone in the foundation of how we engage others.

I don’t know about you, but these past several years have given me ample opportunities to survey my foundation. To name what I believe — to rejoice in what is truly me and confront those shadows that tangle deep inside me. I recognize that these tangles are not who I am. Instead, they provide the arena to unravel the shadows. Once free of the tangles I can truly live my true story.

Once in a class longer ago than I like to admit, I told the participants that only when I am embarrassed by an action stemming from a shadow belief, do I have the energy and courage to change. The response was a tittering of unease. But, think about it. What happens when you really own the truth? Who we are is birthed by being uncomfortable enough to change. 

Let that sink into the depth of your core. Then ask yourself, “When was I so uncomfortable that change was inevitable?” Name the shadow belief that was too tight, too raw, so totally not you that it left you gasping for breath. What did you do? Invite change or hide within its shadows?

Now, I am not a proponent of running through the streets shouting my sins — I mean fallibilities. I am not that public. No, I am the quiet sort who turns within and experiences the stuff seeping from my core. Through reflection and introspection, I listen to the lessons of the seepage. Then I use the resulting compost to nourish my truth. The rest of the compost I toss into a communal bin to be used at later time. 

The benefit of the last four years, and I am all about the reframe, is the number of opportunities I have had to dig up the ground of me, to pull up those invasive shadow beliefs, and plant seeds of who I am. I hope you have had the opportunities to do the same. 

What have I discovered in this process? The work is not in the harvest but in the nurturing of these seed beliefs. So, in this moment I ask, “What invasive beliefs am I ready to pull out? What do I truly believe?” Within those  answers is found the stuff — the compost and the seeds to grow the garden of you. 

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 for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

Website / LinkedIn Profile / Facebook / Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020

Who is the Enemy?

I admit that the word enemy makes me really nervous. Sure I have people in my life that I have perceived to be antagonistic and seeking to cause me harm (the definition of an enemy). But, can we really know the motives of another? I wonder if those people were truly an enemy or if there was something deeper, something more insidious festering within them that caused their reactions. It was probably the latter.

A comment said to me this morning triggered a re-awakening in me. I was reminded that our actions are based upon our beliefs, assumptions, and judgments. Unaware, we get tangled in them. We react. Then someone we have labeled as an enemy reacts to our reaction. Or vice versa. The tangle gets tighter, more knotted. We are no longer seeing the other person as a person. Instead we other them. It is easier to see an “other” as the enemy.

For me, the enemy is not the other person but ignorance — I am sure we can all admit to being ignorant a time or two. Ignorance manifests in reactions that come from a lack of knowledge, education, or awareness. And, honestly? We all find our self there at some point. But, that is an intellectualization. Let’s dive into the reality — the lived experience of the enemy called ignorance.

Recall a time when someone disagreed with you. A time when their views and beliefs resulted in actions that were harmful or hurtful to you. Let’s reframe the situation: they are not the enemy. The actions that stem from their ignorance are. And, the root cause of that behavior is the enemy, too.

Being proactive, you may give them a whole barrage of information in an effort to change their mind. You give them facts about why you are right and they are wrong. Does it work? Maybe. Probably not. By the way: I’ve also tried to point out inconsistencies in the belief of another. Not sure that I’d recommend it. The conversation either devolves or ends abruptly. 

So, what do you do? How do you approach the so-called enemy? You turn within. One of the best questions that I have ever asked myself is, “Why do I believe what I believe?” I really dig into the answer. I suggest that you do, too. When I am actively engaged in uncovering the answer,  I find a belief that is part of the solid foundation that my life sits upon. 

Other times, when I am knee deep in “I don’t know that I don’t know,” I discover the belief is one of the minute cracks in my foundation. This recognition presents opportunity. We can evaluate the belief to reform it or even toss it out. During this process we remember that the purpose of this life is to gain wisdom while evolving into our truest self. We can’t do that without going down a rabbit hole or two.

That is the internal. Let’s go to the external where we identify and respond to the so-called enemy. In what ways did you identify with the enemy? Did you get into a heated discussion about who was right…and who was wrong? If you did, you might have slipped into down the rabbit hole into the land of futility. Instead of seeing the person as the enemy, look at the ignorance or conditioning that created their belief system. That is truly the enemy. 

How might you raise awareness of how these beliefs and a lack of awareness and understanding, are suffering producers? Reframing the enemy to a producer of suffering is huge. It is the initial phase of a response that countermands ignorance. How do we continue to respond to ignorance with wisdom?

• When someone calls you a name, do not react. Take action in ways that are not violent. For example, I once had someone call me a name when I was working. Instead of addressing the slur, I called security.
• Practice nonviolence. Become what I call a blank wall when being insulted. Take yourself out of the situation. Remove yourself physically if necessary.
• Find ways to subtly educate. Take opportunities, use examples that makes real the suffering inherent in a belief. 
• Repair the fissures in any social control systems or work to create new systems. Be a part of community.
• Vote. ‘nough said.
• No matter what, do not let yourself be gaslighted. Reflect upon the words and actions of another. You do not have to accept another’s view as your own. 

Know that whatever you do, when you look past the superficiality of naming a person or a group as an enemy and dig deeper into the ignorance that is the enemy, you will be given the strength, the energy, the determination to battle the enemy with awareness. Through your awareness you change the world by changing yourself.  

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 for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

Website / LinkedIn Profile / Facebook / @fyrserpent / ©2020 

The Key that Unlocks the Door to Yourself: The Video

Be the Key that Unlocks the Door to Yourself

What if I told you that all your answers are within you? What if you had the power to access those answers and harness their power to create a wave of transformation? What would you do? Would you rise to the challenge of self discovery or say tomorrow is soon enough knowing that tomorrow may never come?

Well you do have the answers inside of you but there is one big catch. You have to become the key that unlocks those answers. Seldom does the key we become unlock every door without a bit a jiggling! And, sometimes those doors don’t stay open. Unlocking the door and keeping it open takes practice. We are not aiming for a practice that makes perfect; rather, we practice in ways that create a permanent connection to our inner wisdom.

Inner wisdom. Intuition. That is the key we hold. Our ability to unlock those messages is strengthened by self compassion. Both self compassion and accessing our intuition are possible through mindfulness and living contemplatively. Let’s look at each of these four aspects to being that key that turns the lock of the door of transformation.

Let’s break it down. 

• Mindfulness is being in the moment. 
• Being contemplative is focusing our attention on the many ways the extraordinary manifests in our life.
• Self compassion manifests in conscious acts that alleviate our personal suffering. 
• Intuition is our internal guidance system.

The four combined create a powerful synchronicity in our life. Through them we sustain an inner calm where the bubbles of intuition float to the surface.  We gain clarity to hear the message and have the courage to act upon it. 

What stops us from connecting to our life guide? Fatigue is our greatest foe. It is almost impossible to stay in the moment when we are exhausted. Through self compassion we engage in activities that re-energize us. Energized we return to our core. At the core, we begin anew. Refreshed, it is easier to slip into the moment and stay there. Our senses come alive; we align with the extraordinary. Instead of being bombarded by the constant chaos, our attention seemingly self-focuses.

So, what act of self compassion can you do? Whatever you choose, take a moment to acknowledge your suffering. Be objective about the messiness you are experiencing. Be in a place of no attachment, no judgment, no defending, no violence. Acknowledge how you are being impacted as the messiness rolls over you again and again. Be gentle with yourself — that is the foundation of any self compassionate act.

Next, ask yourself, what can I do in this moment to care for me? Maybe it is going for a walk. Reading. Journaling. Creating art. Taking a long bath. Reaching out to a friend. Self compassion is anything that alleviates even a bit of your exhaustion and gives you the strength to try one more time. 

Within moments of compassionate respite, you rest in the eye of the storm and begin to notice those bubbles of intuition rising to the surface of your consciousness. As they pop, their messages splatter you with particles of possibility. Message received and decoded, you act upon intuition’s voice. This is the cycle of increasing our intuition with self compassion. The more you listen, the more you recognize how you are depleted. The more acts of self compassion, the greater you energy to connect to your intuition.

Continuing this cycle of self compassion and intuitively listening, the spiral of clarity tightens until you are consistently living contemplatively in the moment as a self compassionate intuitive being. 

Ready. Set. Manifest! Contact me for intuitive mentoring. 

 

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 for life coaching, intuitive consultations, keynotes, and programs.

Website / LinkedIn Profile / Facebook /

Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2020