 Fictional characters of many kinds can count as coaches-from-afar.
Obi Wan Kenobi is one such guide for me. December is Star Wars month in our house. Similar to Die Hard counting as a Christmas movie (it is in our house). Anywhoo … tonight is OG Star Wars …. Now aka as A New Hope. The above makes sense to me and I appreciate the reminder…. Which sometimes feels like a challenge. They do call it “The Resistance” for a reason, right? (Life Coaching, self development, & spiritual paths are everywhere.) That’s all for now, friends. Thinking of you and us and me too. Happy Almost 2024 to each and all of us! *** Private support starts with a call for just us. Pick a time and we'll talk about working together directly: https://calendly.com/wendy-sloneker/45minconnectioncall  It's totally possible to overthink this. And I don't recommend it. (ask me how I know)
Feel for resonance. Allow that to be enough. Even for a minute. Long enough to catch your breath. Feel a sense of peace in a truth that you now remember. So much of what we (I) squirm about is actually out of our control... and/or none of our business. Returning to the realness and reliability (is that a word?) of change... & how we flow with it, even when we don't like it or are weary, fragile, and scared... is part of how we move toward new freedom, and a new sense of aliveness. This is not about strength or a push to be strong. This is about being real, and present... and alive. Right now. *** Private support starts with a call for just us. Pick a time and we'll talk about working together directly: https://calendly.com/wendy-sloneker/45minconnectioncall  Hi. I wanted to talk with you this week about the concept of new life, as it pertains to feelings of fresh aliveness.
Context: A bit of chaos I, like many, have been in the swim, swirl, and (sometimes) drain of preparing for holiday and end-of-year visits, events, and gifting. Circumstances at play for me these days also include, an aging dog with new medications, lots of rain, gifts that needed shuttling or posting, etc, etc. It’s been hustley-shuffle-y for a few weeks. Busy, bustle-y, and it’s created some chaos in the house, the car, and my bag, which is usually close-by in the house and always on me when I’m out and about. Smoothing out and sifting through This morning I was able to give my bag (which I call a purse these days) a complete empty out & refill. I can’t remember the last time I did this. It took about 12 minutes. And what I literally found were:
What I emotionally and energetically found were:
Value in small steps and tasks - and the gifts that come with clearing All to say, that 12-minute bag-dump and clean out on the couch this morning gave me new and clear awareness for what:
What is already here for you? The above is a generalized kind of reflection of what I do with my private clients when they are navigating grief, loss, and shadow seasons. AND an actual corner, bag, drawer, or bin review & clear out can give you many of the same experiences and elements I received this morning. Including self-awareness, clarity, and choice about what it is you are willing to continue to carry… either literally or emotionally. You’ll have more and new space. And a new sense of more spaciousness with this new awareness… and the choice you have to continue or gently shift, as feels most comfortable and right to you. It counts as expansion, love. It counts when you count it. And I hope that you will. *** Ready for private support with me? Reclaim a sense of aliveness and a fresh sense of new life, hope, and energy. Step 1 is to schedule your free call so we can talk about it: https://calendly.com/wendy-sloneker/45minconnectioncall  I rarely coach groups.
And this cool-aboration (!) with Sarah of The Juicy Good Life is the exception. This is a 3-part short day & an ideal-steal for those feeling restless or overwhelmed in life and business. Here's how the day goes: 1. We create space: A Grief Shifting Session with me - unstick and gently encourage what's no longer working or serving to lift out and away... and it does. (we break for lunch) 2. We reset: Identify and receive new energy & direction with Sarah. Guided coaching, safe sharing, and support are right here. This is another way to practice receiving. (short break) 3. We ground, anchor, and integrate: Allow the final powerful sound experience with Rachelle of The Eclectic Spark LLC. Melt into this restorative & healing session to integrate the shift and new space and new energy... body, mind, & spirit. Separately these sessions would be hundreds of dollars each... or they wouldn't exist. This happens during the imminent change of season. Right on time. Feel drawn to this event experience but aren't sure why? You are not alone. We've welcomed more than one person in each event this year who has felt this way and has absolutely felt held and supported by the group, yes... But more by themselves who opted in and registered without "a reason"... they trusted themselves to show up and get what was needed... And they each received it. They found out why they registered during the event... and they received what they intuitively knew they needed. Feel like you "just can't take the time *because* of overwhelm"? That sounds like the EXACT reason to join us. You may need a break and a rest even more, due to overwhelm. It may seem and feel so backwards. You may also feel defensive or even disgusted. Me too, when I am in overwhelm… and entertaining new options. The compulsion to puuuuuush, defend, and even fight is real and painful and… scary. AND. This is also precisely how you know you’re ONTO SOMETHING (new). Disengage from overwhelm. The Solstice Shift is all about care, support, and receiving. You’ll disengage experientially during our time together. Receive new space, energy, and peace… from the inside, where you can begin to create it for yourself. On demand. Register. Then reset & restore. With us. You already belong. Register here, love. Get yourself some breaktime and breathing room.  This week’s visit mentions the death by murder of Michael Jordan’s father and how grief can shift, influence, or downright pivot decisions, choices, and directions.
I was watching The Last Dance series on Netflix last week. Before you marvel at my interest in the NBA, allow me to assure you I have none. The series was suggested by my coach as a way to study Michael Jordan’s mindset and focus across the span of his career. I got much more than what I thought I’d get. A lot more. James Raymond Jordan Sr died by murder July 23, 1993 at 56 years old. October 6, 1993, Michael Jordan retired from the Chicago Bulls team (for the first time). In under 3 months, Jordan experienced more than one radical shift, the first, his father’s murder was incredible and tragic. The second, retirement and a shift to a totally different focus… baseball. Was it the death of his father that “made him retire”? No. I don’t think so. But I do think his dad’s death brought new insight and helped him bring about his own change in making a radical choice to retire from basketball at 30. Context Basketball was less inspiring and less a pleasure for him in those days. He’d been thinking about making some kind of change prior to his dad’s death. In my understanding, moving to baseball was something that Michael and his dad had talked about together… and his father encouraged him and supported that desire. Baseball provided new challenges and whole new, literal and proverbial, fields of opportunity. In this new focus and new direction, baseball also provided a distraction that could create new time and space to heal from tremendous emotional pain due to the loss of his father. I wonder if immersing himself in baseball might have given him moments of feeling closer to his dad… I hope so. I think that this change, in his decision to retire from what wasn’t working for him, was the healthiest move he could have given himself. Giving himself time, space, and an environment in which he could immerse himself in something he was interested in as a means of support. He retired from basketball in ‘93 and came back to basketball in ‘95. Two-ish years. New awareness can be part of the pain of loss. I work with people who have wanted to go out on their own to build new businesses after tremendous losses. We work together for a year at a time… and it’s something that is new for just about everybody: having support for a whole year. Sometimes the prospect of having a grief coach for a year can be daunting. Most people are a little bit shocked by the idea of having a year together… but here’s the thing… Most people think of our time together as “work” - as in, “grief work”... instead of support. Support, not work It’s not their fault. Not many people know what moving through life with support really looks or feels like. Once some of the wins and shifts come in, it feels better. And support gets more normalized as we move through a year together. Many do allow themselves to go for what they really want… especially since a sudden change or tragedy instantly clarifies how they are choosing to spend their time, money, feelings, and energy. There’s new awareness… new awake-ness. New drive Inside the pain of loss, new drive can be harnessed toward more LIVING. Healing doesn’t just happen via distraction though. Navigating loss consciously and directly is still part of healing. And so is rest. They don’t have to be equal parts at all times… but each of those 3 elements bring about healing. Thinking of you. Is it time for you to give yourself more support? I’d love to be a part of your support team and journey toward more meaningful living, and more aliveness. It’s your move. And you’re the only one who can decide and choose more support for your own dear self. Connect with me here and let’s have a call together. We can talk about what working together looks like. |
