Look who I found!

This little fellow was waiting at the local junk shop for me.
he is 60 years old and can no longer drum.  I think he is precious.  he is sitting on my desk, reminding me that wear and tear can make us beautiful.  Love and peace. Sandy

Creative retreat: "A memorable journey"

I have just returned from a wonderful time on Waiheke Island. We laughed, we cried, we created and we shared a deep and wonderful two days together. The food cooked by Marianne was magnificent!! Hope you can join us next time. Peace Sandy

healing conversations

I have had some really wonderful moments of contact with people over the last week that have felt healing. Some of them have been intense requests for change in me, some have been encouragement and advice, some have been voices from my past who are wanting to re-connect. Whether my friends were angry, excited, happy, sad was not the healing componant. The healing was that they considered me worth having these conversations with. Worth encountering. The content wasn't so much the issue. It has been the quality of the conversations and the honest encounter of authentic selves who have been willing to risk that honesty. They have trusted me with their thoughts, their longings and their advice. On this life journey that I am on, I don't want 'yes' people around me...I would far rather have an honest friend than a fake persona that I cannot connect with. Today I intend to be real. I encourage you to try it. Intimacy is impossible without it. Love and peace. Sandy

Creative retreat

Another group of women are heading over to Waiheke Island again at the end of this month for a wonderful time of fun, exploration and creative expression. What a great way to spend a weekend. I wish you could come with us. If you live outside of New Zealand you may wish to do the program long-distance. Please contact me on: sandyf@insightcounselling.co.nz for more information. I accept this unfolding moment with kindness and gratitude. Blessings. Sandy

treasure is everywhere

Hello Readers Recently some friends of mine were ripping up the old floor boards from their boat. They merrily set about putting the old boards into the trash. I studied the boards and found that where the glue had been spread to stick the boards onto the floor of the boat some amazing graphic designs had emerged. The photo you can see is the edge of one of those boards on the gravel driveway. The textures and patterns are quite exquisite! Needless to say, I managed to rescue some pieces and christmas presents are being created out of rubbish!! People are often discarded by society in a similar way. We need to take time to really appreciate the beauty of old age, of difference, of the worn and torn, being open to the fact that treasure is right in front of us. Blessings to you and yours in this holiday season. may the hope of the bright morning star shine brightly in your hearts. Sandy

falling back into trust

Once upon a time there was a little person...a child. The child learned that the world was not a safe place. When she grew to adulthood she thought that she needed to control everyone and everything around her to make sure that her world was ok. She held the reins. She was hypervigilent looking to see where the next threat would come from. Then she met kindness. Kindness came and stood right in front of her and said that it was ok to let go. She didn't believe kindness and tried to control kindness so that it could be dealt out to her in exact measures at the prescribed times. A knowable resource, to help her get through life. Kindness said, "Thats not how it works. Kindness is a gift. I am here for you but you can't ever know the extent of that, unless you let go of control and choose to trust." Trust feels like a risk. I am choosing to take that risk. I am falling back into the arms of kindness today. When you hold anything too tightly it will be squashed and limited in what it can give you. In relationships, the rich and wonderful opportunity to receive from another person is lost if we attempt to control the journey. I hope that this is food for thought and that you can mindfully sooth yourself enough to let go of those you are controlling. I am letting go and falling back into the arms of kindness today. Blessings Sandy

Restoration

Hello Readers 'Restoration' is such a beautiful word. Is has implications of mending that which is broken, healing hurts, bringing the beauty back to something/some-one who has become hidden behind the wears and tears of life. For the last month or two I have been working on a restoration project on the villa where I work. It has involved a process of bringing the front of the house back to the bare wood, filling the holes and gaps, sanding off the bumps and rough edges. One day as I was working I found underneath the paint the number 20, in large numerals, stamped onto the wood. It had been hidden under there for many many years. The house had been moved from elsewhere onto this spot. I was intregued about the origin of that number. My work as a therapist is very similar to this process at times. Often as people use the creative process in therapy, it helps them to expose the 'bare wood', the essence, the deeply known insights that are usually hidden underneath the grind of daily life, uncovering the beauty and the reality of what is there. Sometimes surprising gaps are discovered and how these have affected the person over the years begins to make sense. Nothing is judged. It just is. Some people decide not to 're-paint'. This enables them to start a life that is more authentic and honest. The wonderful outcome of this is that their connections with others are no longer based on a persona and at last intimacy is possible. Go well with these thoughts. Peace Sandy