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Autumn/Winter 1997 The morning light on the hillsides of Tesserville Farm creates a blanket of illumination. Looking out on to the vista at this particular time of day, one can be filled with the enormous possibilities of being The Presence. Many participants have immersed themselves in this morning light at the IAM Center. This light helps to create an inner solitude that opens the person to an experience of deep awe. With that physical experience, the person is moved from the world of the emotional to that of the spiritual. With the circle of land around, and light from above cradling, it is easier to go forth with the difficult task of being Truth seekers. As Wilde speaks of that Truth "rarely pure and never simple," we are always humbled at the many people who work at the Center to searching for their own Truth answers - claiming their humanity - their right TO BE! This is our wonder-struggle, our God-wrestling. As we witness people connecting to their wholeness, becoming healthier and wiser, we witness that the Light is more powerful than the darkness.
I always look forward with great expectation and excitement to the final morning of a workshop here at the Center. By this time, the participants have worked from Friday evening to Sunday evening, having faced deep pain, worked it through and come to a positive view and experience of themselves. To come to closure, the group takes the Monday morning to bring their work into focus, reflecting on what each person needs to be in a place of reconciliation with their Self, the world around them and God. To do that, each person, in the spirit of the weekend, affirms in some form or other, i.e. drawing, sculpting, mini-play, poem, description, what that reconciliation is for them. What amazes me and, at times, takes my breath away is the wonderful uniqueness of expression that every one possesses in this moment. No other person in the group, or in any group for that matter, could express what they have to say in their own unique way, the utterance is that person. No matter how insecure, shame ridden, or whatever negative state that brought the person to the workshop, the uniquely creative way they express themselves cannot be hidden when they allow their own expressive language to be engaged. It clearly reveals the creative gifted-ness of God that is deeply rooted in their being waiting to be manifested. As I sit there, watching, hearing, absorbing, witnessing what each person is revealing of themselves in their own quintessential way, I am often moved to tears by that. If only we could appreciate the special-ness of creativity that God implanted uniquely in each one of us, how much more light there could be in our lives rather than the darkness of the nothing-ness, insecurity, worth-less-ness that often engulfs and permeates our awareness of the our Selves.
Many people have been experiencing the benefits of Rapid Eye Movement Technology. I witness people becoming more relaxed and calm in dealing with issues. I see people going to new levels of awareness. Through Rapid Eye Therapy, there seems to be an acceleration of movement in the therapeutic process. My own personal sessions with Rapid Eye has led me to create what I call a "foundation of peacefulness". Life keeps "life-ing", yet this strong foundation keeps me balanced. Below, are some comments by a few people who have given their experience of this new technique: "I truly like everything about REM--I love being able to talk about what's going on with me; feelings, thoughts, issues--and getting good feedback. I love letting go and releasing negative energy and thoughts knowing they are replaced with healing energy and positive God light. I love the various essential oils which enhance the experience making it very pleasant and delicious. Mostly I cherish the energy that I leave the session with." "I have been involved with REM for approximately three months now. Since that time, I am a much freer and relaxed person, and have found the procedure to be most helpful and rewarding. It has enabled me to deal with incidents from my life in a non-threatening positive environment. The REM procedure enables me to ‘go deeper' in addressing painful issues. That is, it helps to remove the ‘blocks' or ‘stuckness' that I was previously unable to move from. REM has led me to courage and given me the ability to move toward and accept the truth rather than be confined by my false and negative perceptions of the truth." "I recommend the Rapid Eye Therapy - it has ‘released' me from anxiety. I find it a great complement to the other programs at Tesserville." "The experience of feeling my feelings. I have discovered and now believe they are real and do happen. Feelings are just as real as this pen I'm writing with or the couch I'm sitting on. I see effects of Rapid Eye Movement in the same way. I can't taste it, touch it or see it but it is as real as anything that has physical substance."
Many times in this newsletter and, if you have been working in therapy with Fred or myself, you have read or heard the word - BREATHE. This summer, that word took on a much deeper meaning. During the two eight day retreats, we began each day in a formal prayer time. What was different about this form of prayer was it was a prayer through breathing. The starting point of this prayer is taken from Genesis2: "And God created the human person out of the mud of the Earth. Then God breathed into the human form and it came alive." So when we breath in and out we are: -affirming God's creation of our Selves Each morning the prayer time began with stretching to help us breathe
more deeply and to be acutely aware of the breath going in and out. Once
we were breathing fully and deeply, we lay down on the ground, in a circle,
with our heads to the center of the circle, close enough that our shoulders
were touching. Resting our hands on our mid-stomachs, we began to breath
in and out. If our hands rose and fell with each breath, then we were
breathing deeply from the diaphragm. If not, we were breathing shallowly
and needed to deepen our breath. When we finished praying, the pray-ers talked about how this form of prayer seemed to take away all the walls, constraints, lifted them into a wonderful, heightened sense of awareness of themselves in communication with the Divine Presence as well as profound sense of union with the community of pray-ers. In mid-September, Fred and I introduced this to a hundred and fifty Catholic hospital chaplains at the OUR SACRED HUMANITY conference we gave in Elmira, NY. Once again, throughout the conference, the participants talked about how powerful a prayer experience it was. So we offer it to you as a prayer option. |
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