Receptive and Reflective

The turning of the month and the approach of spring symbolize a new beginning. The approach of spring nestles it’s earthy scent in the chilly winter wind, if you breathe in deeply enough you can catch a hint of spring.  

As winter turns into spring pagans celebrate Imbolc (Christians, see Candlemas), a holiday celebrating and ushering forward the early signs of spring with a feast and festival all for the goddess Brigid. It celebrates the Sun’s rebirth and the lengthening of days as well as the goddess energies turning back into the Maiden from the Crone, the beginning of the seasons. The growth of spring vegetation. A restart of everything.

I’ve spent the past few months wastefully spending my efforts and energies (and money!) on unimportant side projects. Mainly, drinking and dating. While I love a few beers and socializing with friends, it’s sometimes better to spend quality time doing a healthier or cheaper activity. For example, last weekend I met a close friend at her house, we opened a bottle of wine and chatted for hours about life-changing books, dating disasters, and swapped travel stories. It was much cheaper than the ubers and beers and cover charges we would’ve accrued at several trendy bars. Plus, we had more meaningful conversation and I realized how much I missed just talking with her.

Then there’s dating. Dating is always ebbing and flowing, especially in the day and age of the dating app. With dating apps it’s so easy to get caught up in the swipe. After a short-lived affair with a man who couldn’t see me, then more first dates than I can count, I realized I needed to re-evaluate what I wanted. And after much diliberation… I’m still not sure what I want but I’m pretty sure I won’t find it on Tinder or Hinge.

So here and now is the season for purging and readjustment so that I can continue on a path that directly reflects what I want my future to look like.

In order to figure out what my next steps are I need to reach out and start talking to that wild woman inside of me again. With the help of the fertility goddess Brigid, I feel ready to pursue my inner desires and take actionable steps to achieving them. But first, before I can do anything, I must be receptive to the messages my true self is sending me and then reflect on the best way to manifest those messages.

6 Ways to be More Receptive and Reflective:

Purge

Delete dating apps from your phone. Or purge whatever else is clogging up unecessary mind space for you. Maybe it’s too many clothes or things, maybe it’s spending time with friends who aren’t kind to you, or maybe it’s spending too much time binging on Netflix. If you’re not sure what that might be for you (everyone has something) think about what easily distracts you from the important things and brings little benefit to your life. For me, when I could barely sit still at a stoplight without the ADD need to swipe, I knew it was time to delete. And just in case you were worried: you don’t have to delete your account, just delete the app from your phone and when you’re ready to date again you can just download the app to your phone and pick up where you left off.

Read 

Reading non-fiction books like Melody Beattie’s Daily Meditations and Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic are always going to top my list for these moments of self-inquiry. But often a bit of inspiration is needed too, and for that sometimes it’s best to look outside of what you already know. Isabel Allende’s The House of The Spirits and Eva Luna or Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude will take your mind just far enough away from reality to excite the senses and reignite your imagination.

Yoga

For me, yoga is always on the path. In my humble opinion, it is the ultimate healer. Heart openers, or backbends, are the key to unlocking your heart chakra, the energentic space in the center of your chest, the location of your true self. Heart openers do just that, they open up the space in your heart charka so that you are better able to hear and follow your heart’s directions. The more you heart openers you do the more open your heart will be to receive those intuiative messages.

Journal

The action of writing or journaling is always at the top of any self-actualization list. Daily journaling about feelings, events, people, gratitude, or even simply key words that correspond to that moment. Looking back on old entries can be a great joy to remember all you have learned and where you’re still feeling stuck. Writing has a way of bringing you back to the moment and reminding you of where you are and where you aspire to be; especially during those most challenging moments or the seemingly mundane periods in life. The more you write, the more you can get to the center of where you want to be.

Meditate 

This is not an easy thing to remember especially in a world that is so focused on the end-product and getting as much done in as little time as possible. Meditation loves the process, not the result. Sometimes simply enjoying the journey, the process, the path, is the best possible way to figure out if that journey/process/path is truly where you want to be. Taking small moments to actively listen to your true self, to your heart, makes it all the easier to honestly align your actions with what your true self wants and needs. 

Ask

Asking for advice and sharing your dreams is an invaluable part of relationships. People love sharing their experiences and how it’s shaped them, deep-down people love helping others along their journeys. So ask your friends, parents, siblings, and colleagues about their experiences in whatever area of yourself you’re currently delving into. You often never know who will have some of the best advice, for me, it has come from very unexpected sources and I couldn’t be happier with what I learned from them.

So during this season of rebirth, celebrate and reconnect with you inner feminine, nurturing your soul and grow where your true self is meant to grow.

Let your inner creator be free.