One of Psyche's Last Lessons
Even though we're half a moon late in getting this newsletter out
to you, you have never been far from our minds.
The big "news" is that we've moved . . . a disruptive undertaking
made even more traumatic by my doing a "Humpty Dumpty" by taking a
great fall just as we began the process. Lifting, bending, reaching
out, and twisting became quite difficult (ouch!). Couldn't have made
it without my
White Buffalo Woman Bliss Meditation Mist and the help of my
family, friends, and a divine osteopath who the goddesses have
blessed with healing hands.
The good news is that we are now happily ensconced in our new
home...a place of spiritual energy and peace. We look forward to a
great future here.
The lesson I gleaned from all this is how easy it is to take for
granted the truly important things in our lives, to become
distracted by all the clutter that surrounds us... the
ever-expanding "lists of to-do's" and meeting the excessive
expectations we place upon our selves.
One way or another, your goddess within will be there to insist
that you take the time to look after yourself regardless of how
chaotic or frantic your days have become. She will not hesitate to
throw you to the ground if that's what it takes to get your
attention and force you to take care of what really matters.
And that was the first of the valuable lessons that the goddess
Aphrodite taught to the young Psyche.
Sorting the Seeds
Recall that
Psyche had to humble
herself and ask the help of the Goddess of Love (and her new
mother-in-law) in order to regain the love of her husband,
Eros.
Aphrodite demanded that Psyche
complete four tasks, each of them more frightening and
difficult than the previous, if Psyche were to prove herself
worthy of marriage to her son.
The first task was that Psyche was to spend the
night in a room filled with assorted grains and to have them
all sorted and bagged by daybreak. Realizing the enormity of
the task, Psyche huddled in the corner weeping. But an army
of ants took pity on her and came to her aid, getting the
job done for her well in advance of the deadline.
There are two important lessons embedded in
this task of sorting the seeds, a task that represents separating
what is truly valuable to us from all the debris and clutter in our
lives.
Pay attention to what really matters. Don't
get distracted by all the other "stuff". Hold the important things
in consciousness.
The other lesson (a very difficult one for
some of us who have "issues" with control) is to give up the
"superwoman" mask and learn to delegate or even to accept the help
of others.
Just as these were valuable lessons for the
young Psyche on her path to becoming a goddess, they are of equal
importance to contemporary women. We do to tend to take on much more
than any mortal could ever hope to handle with grace!
Use this link to read the complete
story of
Psyche, the Greek Goddess of the Soul.
The Gift of Gratitude
And while we’re contemplating all the blessings we have in our
lives, let’s not forget about our friends. They are a constant reminder of the Goddess’ devotion to our well-being. The Goddess speaks to us in all those intimate chats and confessions we have with our girlfriends.
And the Goddess often sends us her energy through our friends. With a friend we are in a constant state of grace, loved unconditionally and always understood.
This was beautifully expressed in the following email that I received. Unfortunately, as is too often the case, the author was not identified. Here is what she said:
Here is what I know about girlfriends:
--girlfriends bring casseroles and scrub your bathroom when you need help.
--girlfriends keep your children and your secrets.
--girlfriends give you advice when you ask, though sometimes you keep it and sometimes you don’t.
--girlfriends don’t always tell you you’re right, but they usually tell you the truth.
--girlfriends still love you even when they don’t approve of your choices.
--girlfriends laugh with you and don’t need canned jokes to start the laughter.
--girlfriends pull you out of jams.
--girlfriends will celebrate for your son or daughter when they get married or have a baby, in whichever order that happens.
--girlfriends are there for you in an instant when hard times come.
--girlfriends listen when you lose a job or a friend.
--girlfriends listen when you children break your heart.
--girlfriends listen when your parents’ minds and bodies fail.Our mothers, daughters, sisters, and girlfriends bless our lives. Tell them how much you treasure the gift of their friendship, and tell them often. Pass this on. I just did!