What Others Say About Personal Magic
Curl
up with PERSONAL MAGIC. Kate's easy 'down under' style combined with
her wisdom driven depth and breadth will bring you back to what
really counts in your world. Kate, in a most personal conversation,
gently companions you. Your life will become hand sculpted
by.....you.
Ellae
Elinwood,
Author
of
Earth
is Your Sweet Spot
http://earthisyoursweetspot.com
Personal Magic
Conscious Empowerment through Creativity & Spirit
by
Kate Hawkes
Copyright © 2011 Kate Hawkes All rights reserved.
Smashwords Edition
~~~
Illustrations
by Alexa Kate Soles
Personal Magic Images 7, 8, and the Chakra
image by Kate Hawkes
Cover Photos by Kate Hawkes. Cover Image by
Hidesy Images
Cover design by Allisone PrintGraphics,
Prescott, Arizona
Smashwords Edition License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Note: This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the Publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to Alexa who from the moment she arrived in my life has been a gift, a treasure, a challenge and a joy. The honor and responsibility of being her Mother impelled me to embrace my personal magic even before I knew that is what I was doing. Thank you.
Acknowledgments
This book has taken my entire life to come to fruition and there are many to recognize as teachers (often just through shared experiences) and supporters on that journey. Here is a partial list: the students over many years teaching at Linfield College and other workshops and schools; actors, directors, writers and producers in the live theatre world; the writers in the Performing Wellness Workshops; fellow teachers and passionate advocates for the arts; Bonnie Ross, Nurmi Hussa, Colleen Hawkes; and the horses, desert, hot-springs and mountains that sustain me beyond the words and thinking.
Table of Contents
Chapter Two – Awareness of Self
Chapter Four – Empowerment & Freedom
Chapter Five – Stepping Into Your Personal Magic
Chapter Six – Your Personal Magic Out In The World
You can be someone who is resilient, optimistic and kind while being realistic in the present world.
You can do this on your own. You don’t need a book of tricks,a religion, a guru or a formula. No one becomes a magician by watching magicians. No one can be another person. You can be who you are - and that is huge when you truly step right into it.
It is, however, helpful to have a book, a guide, the nudge that keeps saying, “You can do it.” No one can walk for you. Only you can walk for yourself, but at times it is helpful to have that hand that steadies your hips or holds onto you as your balance slips. Or is offered, as you start up a steep hill, to steady you until your legs are stronger and balance surer. The voice of experience that says, as you approach stairs for the first time, “Maybe try it this way.”
Most of all though, it is the cheer squad that encourages you to rise again when you fall, celebrates the small steps, and honestly admires your journey, that most sustains you.
This little book is that hand, voice and the cheer squad. Nothing is set in stone. Ultimately it is your walking that will take you on your journey.
At first glance this is very simply my story, a culmination of all that I have experienced, read and studied. However, as you read it, it will become your story. It must. Personal Magic is just that – personal - and as such unique to each individual. It is a mighty gift and a big responsibility. What if you were never to try it? What would be missed? What would the world not gain?
I read Viktor Frankel’s The Meaning of Life. He wrote, “The meaning of life is not in what you get out of it but of what it asks of you.” And what is asked of you is that you fulfill your greatest potential, that you experience and manifest your Personal Magic. In the giving is the receiving.
The book you are about to co-create works this way:
I write some ideas I have uncovered for myself, that work for me on the journey to my Personal Magic, and also for some others. I offer you the opportunity and space to try them out and uncover your story. I am a hand along the way and a cheer squad when you need it on your journey.
So, the first step on your journey:
* While much of the writing/art can be done in this book itself (yes WRITE IN YOUR BOOK!) you will need extra. Have at hand a sheaf of blank 8x11 paper and, of course, a writing implement. Please, please do this. Don’t say, “I’ll do it later.” (Okay, I know it is your journey, but I have been up and down these stairs myself a few times!) I recommend a pen rather than a pencil, so you are not tempted to erase anything. Whatever you write, however it comes out, spelling unusual or regular, non sequitur, unfinished thoughts, run on sentences, is right. There is no need to think about erasing anything! Maybe have two pens in case one runs out or you misplace one.
* You will see at the end of each section is a line (for your name), an ‘s’, and the words ‘Personal Magic,’ so it would read ‘XXXX’s Personal Magic’ followed by numbers 1, 2, 3, etc.. Following that is a prompt. Simply pick up that pen and write, or draw, or whatever the prompt suggests directly onto the book.
* After each Personal Magic Activity, write a Note To Self. Something like: ‘This was interesting because....’ Or ‘I found out....’ Or simply ‘Right now I am feeling...’ It will be where you step back, comment on the activity and how you relate to it.
* Notice that there is a wide margin on the outside of each page. This is your place to doodle, write comments, drop crumbs, spill coffee or stick your gum. You might also be inspired to illustrate the book here as you read.
A couple more little goodies to have on hand:
* Small box of crayons and/or colored pencils with a sharpener.
* A CD mix of your favorite music as well as those I have suggested at the back of this book. (Prepare this before you start the book!)
* Finally, if possible, have a timer handy or at least a watch you can set to beep.
All of these things, this book included, are best kept together in one box or bag so that you pick up the book and everything else comes along as well. These things are your hands along the way and the cheer squad - dancers and all!
You will find out that you know much more than you think you do, and this knowledge is an articulation of your Personal Magic. As you take this journey, you will be accessing the wisdom and support you have within as well as my two cents worth.
And now we can begin.
Personal Magic offers a way of being in the world, a way to live your life with power, resilience, hopefulness and - ultimately - with joy.
Why do I offer it? Why do I think that we need yet another book
on self-improvement, empowerment or whatever it is? Because every time I look at the TV or read the paper, I see it plain as day. Because I meet people and hear their stories and know that for too many the loss of a job, a partner, a house, their health leaves them afraid, shattered and most of all, with no sense of who they are.
There are the ‘reality’ TV shows, widespread abuse of our bodies and nationwide denial of those things which are most difficult to contemplate (lack of clean air, water and food). At the least, there seems to be an inability to squarely face our lives and the world in which we live without dissolving into fear, intolerance and/or depression. It is symptomatic of a nation of people who have no center of true Self, no connection to something greater than their own apparently disintegrating universe. Call it no hope, no resilience, no soul even.
There are children so full of fear and rage that they intentionally create fights and video them; adults so lacking in confidence that they crave more and more material goods at the cost of almost everything else; people so empty of joy that they eat themselves into stupors. Others are seeking the quick fix - of their appearance, in their emotional life, for their future - through a diet, a holiday, a religion.
The way out of these dead ends, struggling through the maze of corruption, fear and ignorance and into a future that resounds with wellbeing at all levels, is really quite simple. Simple but not easy. It is not easy only because as a culture we are bereft of the skills to do what is natural for every living being on the planet. We are so separated from those skills that in fact the very thought (for many of us) of accessing what is readily available to each of us is terrifying. Others are willing to step into what they feel is there but often do so out of fear and with a grasping neediness that almost suffocates the access.
What is it that is there for each of us? The intangible but universal Spirit. Call it God, Creator, call it Power, Life itself, call it molecules from the Big Bang, it doesn’t matter. Throughout all cultures, in all times and in spite of many efforts to eradicate reference to Spirit, the human simpatico with Spirit persists. And has also done so in spite of the damage done by organized dogma and religion, which over many years has almost strangled the personal relationship between Individual and Spirit.
While a yearning for a connection to Spirit persists, many individuals regardless of their culture, belief system, education (or lack of), and/or socioeconomic status live separated from their own Soul. And when you don’t know your Soul you tend to miss out on the Spirit, and so live, lost and fearful, in a constant state of searching and dislocation.
I have wandered through those vast stretches of nowhere-ness a few times myself over the years. I have been afraid, angry, mis-trustful, terribly hurt and betrayed and graspingly needy. Somehow, luckily and by hard work and determination, often with the unwitting support and encouragement of people with whom I worked and played, I have evolved through those challenges. I am stronger, kinder, more generous, compassionate and more able to be wrong, to let go and to allow curiosity to overcome fear.
When the passages of fear, paralysis and neediness arrive in my doorstep, I recognize them more immediately, sweep them away more vigorously and let the experience of that passage inform my knowledge as I move forward. What I have come to know is that I am not here alone and the nowhere-ness is actually a vast ocean of everything-ness when I can connect with its depths openly and consciously. What I always have at my disposal is my Soul and my creative drive.
I offer this little book to you as a means by which you can strengthen your connection to your innermost self, or Soul, and be free of fear. The time IS now. Change is underway, economically, environmentally, and with all that, socially, whether we like it or not.
Of course you are anxious. Old rules are evaporating before your eyes, and the structures and institutions that have supported them are crumbling with widespread ramifications. Do you grab for all you can now? Do you hunt around for a lifeboat on which you can climb aboard and play by those rules? Do you shut the door and medicate yourself out of the picture?
When your life changes in ways that you did not plan or ever dream of, when you are face to face with just your self, when you seem to be all that is left - are you frozen with grief? blinded by blame? panicked into a frenzy of counterproductive action?
Or do you eyeball the opportunity and rise to the challenge to make the Apocalypse before you into what it can truly be. Apocalypse - not just the end, but the necessary cleansing for beginning. We in the West forget that second bit. Forget or have been taught that it is the end of the world - period. We are told that if you wish to be saved then you must believe this, do that, follow these rules. Actually, life goes on regardless of what you do or don’t do. The only choice is how YOU go on in the midst of change. Things must be shed, burned and lost before the new can grow. Look at the forest after the bushfire, out of the black earth come those amazing flowers. Remember too that fish emerge out of long-dry lake beds. Returning into life can be gentle, reassuring, powerful and joyful.
This book, Personal Magic, is a key to rising from the ashes, to being your own Phoenix. I will not say ‘simply rising’ because you may have to learn to walk again and then to fly. However, it is a natural way of being through natural means - creating, breathing, taking personal responsibility for your Self and for others. Maybe you have not reached the melting point, in which case this book may help you avoid it altogether. Think of Personal Magic as providing tools of prevention as well as of regeneration.
The greater the challenges, the greater the potential for real change into good health and wellbeing at many levels. The Personal Magic way of Being will impact your relationship with the following areas:
* your own lifestyle, personal relationships and work you do
* illness, death and dying (and thus the healthcare system)
* your ability to handle stress and cope with the changes ahead
Some of the areas this book explores include:
* the spiritual domain
* the arts and creativity
* the arts and healthcare
I write more about this in the first chapter but the spiritual approach that currently works best for myself is the Shamanic paradigm, and the main form of my expression has been through the arts, and theatre in particular. This book has grown out of what I learned through my work in education, theatre, and the arts in healthcare, with the current place in my spiritual journey.
Magic is something you can only practice by doing. You do not become magic by watching a magician. Everyone has their own expression of magic in the world, and you will only experience your true power and joy when you find and live that uniquely you magic.
So, this book will offer time and activities for you to begin to know your Personal Magic. It can be two books, mine and yours. You may read the book and ignore the participatory activities, or you might just do the activities. I think that doing the activities without reading the stories behind them will mean that your magic may likely be more rote as you simply follow directions without context. If you read the stories and don’t do the exercises then you miss an opportunity to uncover and strengthen your Personal Magic, or it will be of a weaker more imitative kind.
Real magic means being able to transform what you hear, read, see, into your own voice and path. Ultimately this book is about finding your path, your Spirit’s quest if you like. You will have purpose, know why you are here, and uncover the magic that is yours, and only yours, to do and bring into the world.
If we are to not just survive but thrive in the years ahead, we will all need to be aware of and have the courage to manifest our Personal Magic in the world.
I offer this book in the belief that it will assist you in fulfilling your greatest potential - to be a powerful, kind, resilient and confident individual with unique magic to share with the world.
As much as I want to just set off on the trail and up the mountain, I also think a few definitions will be useful. Kind of like checking that you have the necessary items for a hiking trip - backpack, good boots, a hat. So, let’s look briefly at the following:
* Spirit/Soul
* Creativity as a Way into Spirit
* Where this Interacts with our Health
These are my definitions, how I understand these concepts and will refer to them in this book. You can write in your ‘understandings’ as well at the end of each section.
SPIRIT
A little bit of my ‘spiritual journey’ story may be useful here. I grew up in Australia, attended a Church of England girls boarding school where every school day began with a short service and each evening closed with evening prayers. Sundays we had the full communion service and sometimes I even played the organ for the sung service. Loved that music!
Somehow I never managed to make the commitment to Confirmation in spite of two attempts. It was, even then, too important to me to stand up and publicly announce a faith I did not feel in something as central to the tenet that Jesus Christ rose again on the third day.
Later in the USA I read books by Mathew Fox (Original Blessing) and attended a workshop where I learned about ‘heretical breathing’. I explored Creation Spirituality and read Charlene Spretnak’s States of Grace. I wrote a play for children (Singing Our Way Home) about the Indigenous Australian people’s dreamtime and notion of singing the landscape into being. Delving into that beautiful vision articulating our place on this earth as human beings resonated with me.
I spent a number of years with Buddhism - a gentle, wise and for me very healing way of being. Indeed in many ways, I am still comfortable in that zone, incorporating it casually into my life. I think it is not too far from the Shamanic practice.
Four years ago I landed by roundabout means on the Shamanic paradigm. That view and articulation of how power works, the relationship between soul and body and mind came easily and in many ways is inclusive of what has gone before.
So as I define Spirit here it is rooted in the shamanic understanding but in no way precludes any of the great traditions where human beings attempt to bring to a conscious level their innate and deeply felt connection to something far larger than the human form. Language - words and concepts - are simply ways of trying to bring something intangible to the mind’s surface, transforming it into something tangible by which we can understand our path in this life.
~~
Spirit is invisible, intangible and all around. Think of a sound wave without the sound. Spirit is a frequency that when in contact with a specific kind of power will resonate in such a way that its presence (sound) is fully available to the conscious mind. That Power is held in the Soul.
The Soul contains the Life Force or Power necessary for Spirit to transform from that soundless frequency into something that can manifest into tangible everyday reality.
And the instrument that provides the means by which the Frequency (Spirit) and the Power (Soul) can together be seen, heard and felt, is the body/mind consciousness.
Spirit has a path to follow; each Soul with which it comes in contact energizes an aspect of that path, and therefore each instrument has a particular expression of that path to put into the world.
In short, each of us has a part to play in this orchestra of the universe - our own unique melody within the greater symphony. When we play that which is ours to play, we are embraced and enlarged by the whole of which we are part.
If we don’t have the music, or don’t hear the melody or resist the rhythm, then we have an experience of being outside of ourselves, at odds with the world. How do we hear the melody? Where is the music? It is in Awareness….simply being in the present moment. The rhythm is played out when the Soul interprets the Spirit to us, into our body/mind consciousness.
We are at our most powerful and effective in this life when we are in Awareness of our Soul’s connection to Spirit, when we are in tune with the music. And through this awareness we come to know what is our expression in the world (aka Spirit’s Path, Heart’s Desire or Personal Magic). And that is not found in a book but through personal felt experience.
For now, suffice to say the degree to which we manifest in the world depends on our degree of Awareness of Spirit. And here is the tricky thing: Awareness, although it requires Consciousness in order for us as human Beings to recognize it as such, is not the same as ego consciousness. The ego exists through analysis and judgment, is emotionally involved and, as such, is reactive.
True, pure Spirit Awareness is simply aware. You can observe, know and be in the is-ness without comment. All that you need is Now. That is, when you are in Awareness you can be Conscious of Spirit as it pertains directly and only to you.
Each of us is an instrument for manifestation or expression. And magically enough, each of us has our own particular shape, or Soul, through which Spirit wishes to express itself. This is not invasion of the body snatchers! Just as the Life Force/Soul contains Power for Spirit’s transmutation to ‘sound,’ so our Soul will only function at its most efficient when aligned with the Spirit. Together this creates a frequency resonant only in that Being. Therefore each human being carries within the urge to live according to Spirit, and each vessel (Soul) is unique. Thus each of us has our own unique magic to perform - our personal Spirit Path in expression of the Great Spirit.
If you can open yourself to the path that is yours, coordinating the Power so freely available within you, with the Frequency all around, you will indeed come into your Personal Magic.
To
Recap:
Spirit is invisible and forever and can be manifest
through all natural things.
* We all have a container of Life Force, a Soul, through which Spirit can manifest.
* Each of us is a unique instrument and therefore each of us has a Personal Magic.
* When you manifest that magic, you feel joy and the world around you benefits as well.
___________’s Personal Magic 1
Take a breath, close your eyes, feel and hear your heart beating.
Listen for about a minute. What is your tune?
Write or draw whatever comes to you. Resist thinking or understanding, expanding or explaining, just scribble with words or shapes and lines for 5 minutes (set the timer).
(Note To Self...)
CREATIVITY AS A WAY INTO SPIRIT
Have you ever watched a small child engrossed in painting? Have you suddenly written a poem? Found yourself humming a melody you have never heard before? Free-danced on your own? When you are in those states, unconscious of the physical world around you, letting intuition and the power of the moment guide you, not planning an outcome, nor criticizing the creation as it unfolds, you are functioning in Spirit. You are in Awareness and of that moment, not in the past or the future but Now.
‘The Spirit of creativity,’ ‘the creative Spirit,’ ‘a free Spirit.’ It is no accident that these phrases abound. When you are in that creative inner world, you are indeed at your most free because that is where we make contact with the Spirit that moves through us. It is where you are free of the rules, expectations, inhibitions, and anxieties of being ‘right’ and ‘successful.’ It is where you will truly create and clearly develop awareness of something you did not know.
People who create great art, those who invent things, and those who ‘see’ solutions to impossible problems with leaps of understanding that open up an entirely new field of knowing (such as quantum physics) have not opened those doors by sitting down and working it out. They may have started there - think of that as ‘technique’ - but the aha!, the magic, happened when they relaxed into the moment of discovery, putting aside rational rules and expectations. This makes room for that unknown way of KNOW-ing (or Awareness) to move into the void. The Void is that space between the vast inadequacy of what we know consciously and the effort to force an outcome.
There is so much more than we know beneath the layer of everyday consciousness by which we usually operate in the world. The creative Spirit frees us to access the deeper, richer KNOW-ledge beyond mere rational, learned thought and knowledge. In short, we are simply and purely in Awareness. We are not thinking.
Mindfulness, meditation, in the flow… It is not so much about changing what is as it is about adjusting how we perceive it, understand it, experience it. It is a transmutation of experience from one level to another. It is magic.
The ancient practice of Shamanism takes us, with intention, into that inner world. For as long as human beings have been on earth, shamanic practices to maximize human abilities of mind and spirit for healing have been practiced. Essentially, the shamanic approach uses breathing techniques, combined with a willingness to draw on the natural power sources around you, dream-time and letting go of outcome. Choosing to enter into this other way of KNOW-ing, this Awareness, is not a prayer for an answer to some problem, but more like opening a door and seeing what is there without judgment or even expectation.
The creative endeavor of making art, expressing yourself artistically, or simply listening and paying attention to another’s expression of art so much so that you become drawn into that sphere of consciousness, also takes you beyond the rational mind. It takes you through the doorway of your Soul into Spirit, and the visions, ideas, sudden ‘ahas!’ that emerge are not from your mind, but your Spirit. It is also from there you can create art. The very same way you entered is also the way to give expression to that experience.
Yes, it is circular. You put yourself into a creative state to create. You put yourself into a state that opens you to Spirit to encounter Spirit. You have to use magic to find magic. The physical expression of that encounter in the visible world is your Personal Magic made manifest. And that is what this book will help you to do.
To Recap:
* The mental/emotional state we are in when engaged in creative endeavor opens up access to a different level of Awareness and understanding than the usual rational daily consciousness.
* It is possible to choose to enter that state through a range of activities.
* In Shamanic terms, we have conscious access to our Soul and Spirit that flows through our Being.
__________’s Personal Magic 2
Have one of those blank pieces of paper handy. Name it (your name) Personal Magic #2.
Put in your CD, selecting a track that has no words.
Take a couple of deep breaths, relax your shoulders, listen to the music.
When the track ends, put it on again.
This time while the music plays, with the crayons/pencils draw, color, noodle in on the entire blank page - just shapes, line and color. (You want to add a few single words as well.)
When the track ends, if you need to, play it one more time and keep drawing/writing.
When the track ends this time, stop. You are done.
Take a moment to really look at your creation with open eyes and heart, as if you have never seen it before!
(Note To Self...)
__________’s Personal Magic 3
Now, without thinking too hard, in the space below, write quickly and simply your understanding of Spirit and Soul. You may want to write a short spiritual journey narrative, or you may simply want to draw images and/or just color and shapes.
(Note To Self...) (remember this is an opportunity to comment on the exercise form the ‘outside’ as it were.)
WHERE THIS INTERACTS WITH OUR HEALTH
And what has this to do with health?
Shamanism is a cultural practice that engages us in Spirit. Traditionally the Shaman was a healer and also a specialist in the soul, that intermediary between our Body/Mind Consciousness and Spirit. Early cultures believed that illness was closely related to Spiritual causes and a powerful way to understand that relationship was through artistic expression or storytelling. Telling the story gave it expression, and in doing so transformed the experience. (Magic….)
Some examples of how the arts and healing interacted are found in Egyptian and Sumerian art, sacred art and sacred healing in the Judaic, Christian and Buddhist traditions, Tibetan Buddhist art, Native American and Celtic cultures, the Australian Aboriginal Dreamtime, and Aztec and Toltec traditions. (It is both ancient and pervasive through all indigenous cultures and times.)
As human culture evolved and changed, so specialists became more specialized. There were artists and there were healers, and the people went to those specialists to have their needs met in those areas. Often they were included very directly in ceremonies to effect their healing, and there were festivals and opportunities for the entire community to participate in group activities addressing sudden events, specific needs and long-term plans for the ‘health’ of the society.
These were generally led by the Shaman, were public and everyone had a role. The Shaman was also, if not the Spiritual leader, still working closely to bring into being a Spiritual life for the community. The Shaman was also often the ‘medicine man/woman’ and recognized healer who actively engaged the person seeking healing in a personal and individual process.
Over time, further separation occurred and there were fewer opportunities for participatory public ritual (large crowds watched the specialists!); arts became something most of us didn’t make/create but bought from the specialist; and the healer became the doctor. He didn’t ask us to participate so much as gave us things to take (note ‘to take’ not ‘to do’) and did things to us. And the Spirituality of the community became an organized religion and was also administered by those who knew and interpreted those laws. The majority of us became passive recipients, not creators or doers, of the care and knowledge concerning our physical and Spiritual health.
Most recently on this continuum of ‘development,’ as knowledge of the physical dimensions of the body grew and healing became affiliated with science, so the arts somehow had nothing at all to do with health any more. The exception was that in times of natural disasters or traumatic events, the community would come together to share the experience through music and art. It was a spontaneous convergence, a primal urge to connect, to somehow converse about the trauma through a form that was not intellectual or through everyday consciousness, but through that place within, beyond the rational.
The good news is that the ‘development’ continuum is not a straight line heading nowhere. It is actually circular or maybe spiral, like a staircase rising up and circling through phases that we can recognize when we look back. And, like a spiral staircase heading upwards, one we can build upon. So it is not surprising to me that it is now common for the medical world to speak of the body/mind connection and even, sometimes, the body/mind/spirit connection. There is Patient Centered Medicine where the person with the illness or trauma is invited to tell the story of that illness, and their participation is considered essential to healing and wellness. Participation is also recognized as essential for a peaceful death.
In these times of great change with inevitable loss, fear and simply not ‘knowing’ what to do next, the body/mind/spirit connection is a useful means of engaging in your healing. When you are your own healer, not only do you access your power, you are also contributing to the community, the nation and the world. Bring your Personal Magic to the table, be at the center of your story, as a creator, not a victim, and connect with the Shaman within.
After so many generations of cultural disconnect from your own sense of power and from your Awareness of Self - from, in short, your Spirit - it is hardly surprising that the thought of becoming central to your story is often overwhelming. “How do I do it? What if I screw it up?”
It is also, though, alluring, and you lean into the possibility of once again being whole and powerful. Sometimes you say to yourself or to your doctor, “I KNOW this is what is happening.’ You can’t say where that came from, but it feels right.
That is your Spirit whispering, “Yes, me.” And when you Pay Attention, when you Act on that whisper, you will feel a surge of power and joy.
This is not to say you should rush about telling everyone what to do, and just pleasing yourself. In fact, if you were to do that it would indicate that you had quite lost touch with Spirit and were simply letting your ego run rampant with some new gizmo. The practice of real Personal Magic requires responsibility, courage and discipline.
To Recap:
* When we participate in the story of our life we become healers in our personal world.
* Healing is related to Spirit. It is possible to transmute that experience of illness into something life-affirming, and the arts are a means by which we can accomplish that.
Transformation is magical and that power carries with it responsibility and has capacity to positively affect the world around us.
__________’s Personal Magic 4
On one of the blank pieces of paper, write (your name) Personal Magic 4.
Draw a simple stick figure, in the middle of the page with about 2 inches above and below.
Breathe deeply, relax your body and mind.
Recall a time when you were helpless, either sick or unable to physically achieve something you wanted to do, or when someone was particularly unkind to you and you took it with no response.
(Keep it short: one interaction or attempt, 30 minutes span in real time max.)
Where were you?
Who was there?
What colors, sounds, shapes, smells, textures?
Replay the event to the moment when you realized that you could not effect the change/impact that you wanted.
Now, stop the ‘tape’ right there….
Get out the pen, and on the back of the drawing page, write a version where you say what you wanted to say, find that extra inch, strength, or the illness evaporates.
In short, you are as powerful as you wish you had been.
See yourself as this powerful person. HOWEVER, the power is not emanating from the outside, but from the inside.
Return to the stick figure you drew earlier. Using the colors you have, draw/indicate the magic exuding from that stick figure, the power radiating out to all around.
Add smaller stick figures of others (people or objects) in your story. Put them on the outer edges of the page - you are in the center.
Add more colors, lines and circles, emanating from the central stick figures’ heart (yours) to touch all others around.
With more colors, expand the outline and shape of that central stick figure, by tracing it just beyond it current lines, and then again and again, until it becomes big and colorful. It will be less a stick figure, with more layers and layers, until it is almost 3-D.
See the transformation from thin stick figure to colorful layered work of art in the center of the page touching all around you. In this picture, what you didn’t do or say, couldn’t do or make happen is no longer material. That figure at the center radiates beauty and power regardless of the story.
Write your name above that Being, and breathe into being the healer at the center of the page.
(Note To Self...)
This book will assist you to both find your real magic and to develop the skills and understanding to respect that magic. You can then choose to use it wisely and for the good of your Spirit, those around you and all living beings that you have never met. In this way, the principals of the Shamanic arts (Spirit), the creative arts, and healing in everyday life will positively contribute to your health and wellbeing. It will also radiate out to other individuals, communities and environments as well as The Planet and her Universe.
A Word on Magic
Real magic is not illusion. That is sleight of hand. I am talking about actually transmuting something, changing it from one ‘thing’ to another - alchemy.
Shamanism is an earth-based wisdom rooted in the concept that we are all a part of the power-full forces of nature. Magic is not an invisible intangible, but the observable outcomes of your behavior. When you reach into your Soul, through the Heart, and listen to your Spirit’s truth, you are indeed magic and powerful. There are physical ‘things you can do’ to open up that space, but there is no one way and no one can do it for you. Your magic and your power are not handed to you, and do not depend on a guru or priest to manifest. It is solely your creation.
Investigate and experience a range of opportunities to open up your heart, blend the intellect with intuition, create ritual and rhythm in your life. Ultimately, how that is for you, how that magic works for you, is yours. There is the power, arising within your Being, expressed in the world.
A Word about Joy
This is a word used in Christian, Sufi and Shamanic circles. It is really a very straightforward experience due to simple direct causes. It is that directly FELT experience, when you have forgotten your emotional, physical self, and are fully involved in the moment, whatever it is. It is not about comfort or safety or even peace. It is being absolutely with/in where you are. In short, those moments when you are directly in tune with your Spirit, with God, with Creator.Gratitude, oneness, purpose, power, and meaning. Joy.