She Dropped All Resistance
Hello Creators of Wonder and Magic,
Facebook can be a dangerously time sucking form of kryptonite (I try to limit my self to 5 minute sessions:) but, more often than not, I find inspiration. This time it was, The IRON nun! She demonstrates extraordinary stamina and resilience. She didn’t start running until she was 48 years old and at 86 is doing Iron Man triathlons. WHAAAA???
She got me to thinking about the resistance I’d been experiencing lately.
Have you ever wondered why you go through periods where you felt sort of stuck, flummoxed or in a deep rut you can’t seem to break free from? This is RESISTANCE and it will keep you from love and creating what you want.
This summer, through the magic of spirit, I became conscious of JUST HOW MUCH RESISTANCE** was in me.
It wasn’t pretty—you could say I spent a few dark, icky hours investigating the unpleasant sewers of my unconscious..the stuck…sludgy..I don’t want to get out of bed…why bother….I’m too busy….ughhh…nap please????…… I feel heavy..this is too hard…..you get the picture.
**Resistance looks different for everyone: grouchiness, NOT creating/writing, headaches, stomach aches, throwing your back out, rage, jealousy, complaining, self medicating, allergies, gossiping, picking fights, drinking/eating too much/too little, sleeping in when you’re not tired, hiding under the covers!
This RESISTANT part of me wasn’t exactly RULING my world–(I was still heating the spaghettios up on the stove for the kids and all) but some things were really hard- like dealing with ALL of the needs of my family, loving my man fully and figuring out what I was supposed to be doing creatively.
It was putting a kink in my FEEL GOOD.
So that semi-awful ceremony was a blessing- why?
First, it made me suddenly aware of my RESISTANCE (I sort of knew it was there but suddenly it was very, very clear)
Second, it made me realize– I had a choice.
I could continue to resist (and be schlumped in a very ughhh place)
OR—-
I could sit up, breathe, pay attention and treat this life like a precious ceremony-–with all the sacredness I could muster.
All of this got me to thinking about what it would look like if I wasn’t RESISTING my life ( format inspired by the wonderful poem- she let go.) Here’s what bubbled up.
{She dropped all resistance.}
It was all quiet in the house when she decided.
She dropped all resistance, and began to FEAST on her life.
She did it with everything she had.
She rose early so she could watch the sun rise.
She began saying “yes” more often … trusting she’d be given the how to’s.
She started running again at after years of believing she couldn’t.
She joined the club (her Mother had been asking her for years) and recognized it was a sacred sisterhood.
She turned a blind eye to the dog hair and called her sister instead.
She dropped all resistance.
She bought the tickets to Peru and put a dream into motion, not knowing if she’d ever reach the summit.
She noticed how beautiful the sun was when it lit the trees from behind.
She baked bread from an old recipe and served it with raspberry jam she made from bushes in the yard.
She learned a few songs by heart that made her feel like she was home and sang them to friends.
She dropped all resistance.
She read books slowly over lunch…tasting every word.
She listened carefully to the flowers, birds, animals, mushrooms and bees.
She looked into her children’s eyes and could see that they were really ok.
She cried at the drop of a hat for joy and for deep sadness and sometimes because she remembered something very sweet.
She traded her 1.3 carat diamond for a gold band and a BIG adventure.
She dropped all her resistance.
She swapped wine for a fully alive Kombucha sweetened by bees.
She offered tobacco each time she harvested something from the earth.
She cut out big fat sections of her treasured manuscript making it leaner and richer.
She stopped reacting to the mercurial moods of others and honored them with peace.
She emptied the dishwasher with quiet purposefulness and joy.
She dropped all resistance.
She saw light workers EVERYWHERE … Donald Trump was one too — she gasped at the realization!).
She looked into the eyes of the convenience store clerk and smiled at him.
She felt a strong kinship with trees and took time, especially with the oldest ones to converse and learn a bit each day.
She whispered THANK YOU each time she drew water from the tap.
She envisioned feathered comfort surrounding all those who were suffering.
She dropped all resistance.
She caught her own eyes in the mirror and saw the light in them and smiled.
She shared everything she had with those around her because it felt like dancing.
She wrapped up things in brown paper and mailed them with love.
She blocked off time to write.
She noticed her palms stopped sweating.
She fell into a luxurious cadence with the earth.
All because she simply dropped all resistance.
I don’t even pretend to imagine that I can be HER each and every second of the day but just to have this vision gives me such inspiration.
What would it look like in YOUR LIFE if you dropped all resistance?
SHAMANIC Tip: For those of you who know how to journey to a Beastie or other spirit helper- try journeying for 25 minutes and ask for them to “please dismember with compassion all of my resistance”- and see what happens:)
I actually did sell THAT RING (ahhh so much lighter!) and I started running again (VERRRRRY slowly) because of that wonderful kickass nun. I found that this app made it FUN- the music and handsome sounding dude voice (You make it look good!) helped tremendously!
Another way to drop resistance is to ask for help- the spirits love it when we do that:)
With love and the courage of 16 honey badgers, Sarah
P.S. As always, I am here to serve with Alice the Elephant by my side! My schedule is a little tighter these days but Monday, Weds and Friday are still open! as I’m working on polishing “Swimming with Elephants” my new book- coming out in 2017 with RedWheel Press! Find out more here.
If you have trouble finding a time- just shoot me an email (or hit reply to this email) and we will find a way:)
P.S. A great quote about resistance:
“Are you a born writer? Were you put on earth to be a painter, a scientist, an apostle of peace? In the end the question can only be answered by action.
Do it or don’t do it.
It may help to think of it this way. If you were meant to cure cancer or write a symphony or crack cold fusion and you don’t do it, you not only hurt yourself, even destroy yourself,. You hurt your children. You hurt me. You hurt the planet.
You shame the angels who watch over you and you spite the Almighty, who created you and only you with your unique gifts, for the sole purpose of nudging the human race one millimeter farther along its path back to God.
Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor. It’s a gift to the world and every being in it. Don’t cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you’ve got.”
Steven Pressfield, War of Art
I just loved this! Your email subject asked “What will it look like when you drop all resistance,” and I felt it like a wave going through my body! I cried reading it, so beautiful. Couldn’t have come at a more perfect time, thank you!
xo,
Mary Ellen
Oh Mary Ellen I am so thrilled to hear this!! Bliss is on the other side isn’t it?:) Love to you!
A great reminder of how we can weigh ourselves down without realizing the buoyancy that is so readily available. Thank you! xo
Thank you Laura- I’m a huge fan of your Instagram feed and the beauty you broadcast!