Multi-Dimensional Mastery - January 2016 - Santa Fe

Messy Wholi-ness

Cultivating Presence no Matter What Life Brings

By Dr. Judy Scher

Life does not need to express itself perfectly to be a perfect expression. In fact, we can expect life to be imperfect, messy and unpredictable throughout our life. Allowing and not having resistance to ‘what is’ helps us cultivate choices that are empowering and creative.  Not having resistance to ‘what is’ is not about passivity, but rather seeing clearly for a proactive approach to each moment. 

 

What I am going to explore here is what I call Embodied Presence in relation to the seasons of Reorganizational Healing, developed by Donny Epstein. In the field of Reorganizational Healing, four different types of consciousness and corresponding energy states are available. These 4 types are called Seasons: Discover, Transform, Awaken and Integrate. In life there is a timing and authentic rhythm to how things are expressed (as how in the spring we plant seeds and in the fall we harvest.). When we are aligned in our actions, thoughts, and feelings with the Season we are truly in, there is congruence. Within congruence, Embodied Presence is possible. So, what does it mean to be present within each season?

 

In the season of Discover, we create pain or suffering to avoid other pain. In Discover, we start to see how we have adapted our lives to protect ourselves or to feel safe. The Season of Discover is the ultimate exploration into how we have disconnected with ourselves. This is a significant exploration, and Embodied Presence within this Season is about realness, rawness, and vulnerability; about being naked to our true experience. Embodied Presence within Discover requires us to be aware of our pain and/or suffering and have the willingness to feel what is there to be felt, no matter how difficult it may be.

 

The first step in Embodied Presence is not judging where we are. This is challenging, especially if our sense of self is dependent upon our life looking a certain way. For instance, “I am not an angry person” may be how you have been conditioned to view yourself. You may have learned from an early age within your family dynamic that expressing anger wasn’t tolerated or accepted. As a result, you may suppress, deny, or ignore any signs that you are angry. However, the body cannot be fooled. Often our body expresses what we repress. Symptoms such as migraines, sciatica, ulcers, cancer, and arthritis are the body’s way of letting us know how much we’ve been hurt. When we don’t connect to the anger, we may end up with a lack of appropriate boundaries and give our power away, all in the name of not seeing ourselves as an ‘angry’ person.

 

Embodied Presence says: ‘Let’s not judge this anger. Let’s not even connect a story to it for why it’s there.’ Embodied Presence says: ‘My feelings are valid in this moment. I have a right to feel them’. When we recognize this truth, we are being with ‘what is’ without a story, just the energy of the feeling. In the moment that we are truly present with ‘what is’, with what our body is telling us we are feeling (not what our head thinks), instantaneously the energy of the feeling moves and shifts into a place of acceptance, often accompanied by a feeling of space, a widening of our range of choices, and peace within our mind and body.

 

In the Season of Transform, our Embodied Presence becomes fortified. We feel the energy of empowerment, passion, and purpose, and are ready to move forward. In this season problems are converted organically into opportunities for growth and learning because we have more life energy available to us. Embodied Presence here means acknowledging and accepting that we are more than we ever thought we were and must now become accountable to that evolving wisdom. We feel this season in our body as an increased access to vitality and energy. We become willing participants in a complex world. 

 

In the Season of Awaken, we gain the desire to share our gifts from the deepest part of our Being. We acknowledge and accept the divine timing of things and dance with the grace of how life is unfolding. Embodied Presence here is inclusive of all life experiences and nothing is rejected consciously. Gratitude, grace, acceptance, and love permeate our behavior, thought, and feelings. Our body registers this Presence with openness, flexibility and peace.

 

In the Season of Integrate, we blend two different Seasons for new perspective and a deepening of insight and wisdom into who we are.

 

Embodied Presence, no matter what season we are in, carries with it the blessing of authentic wisdom. Wisdom is the currency of Spirit. When we are truly present with ‘what is’, no matter what is happening in our life, we recognize that it’s not our circumstance that challenges our life. It is the energy state we are coming from and the lens of the Season we are seeing life through. What is of utmost importance is to have the most efficient and adaptive listening platform to access what life brings. This means optimizing and evolving your physiological response through your brain and nervous system. Our ability to be present with what life brings and have the emotional range to respond appropriately, empowers us to accept the support of the Cosmos in awakening our ability to heal, grow, and accept who we truly are. 

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