“Calling Burning Women: A Lost Archetype Of The Feminine
This is a call to the powerful woman. The crazy woman, the mad one, the witch, the hag.
The creative woman: the dancer, the poet, the artist. The sexual woman. The strident woman. The playful trickster. The passionate woman. The wild mother. She who follows her own spirit.
She who dares to put herself first, who shouts in the face of authority and follows her heart, not their god. She who dares to give voice to what is inside her, who shakes things up and burns them down.
She who quakes with rage and rolls with laughter, who moans with pleasure and wants more. She, for whom every piece of life needs to have the marrow of its bones sucked, who dances naked, and eats with her fingers.
She who stamps and says No. She who stands in the doorway and will not let them in. She who opens her legs and dives into her juices with delight. She who dares. She who does what they say cannot and must not be done.
She who tries and fails. She who does it her way. She who longs to walk topless in the sunshine and dance naked in the moonlight.
It is for her, and all of us, who long to be more like her, wherever on the path we may be.
We who have sniffed the smoke as she walked past our door one hot summer afternoon and thought, I long to burn, but I mustn’t, I’m too afraid, too old, too young, too busy. I don’t know how. I’d lose my job, my husband would divorce me, my mother would disown me, my friends would laugh.
Our time has come. After millennia of hiding in the shadows, afraid of the smoke. Afraid that our bodies and souls will be put on the pyre if we dare to show the glory within us.
Our time has come to embody our burning. To step out in our magnificence.
Burning Women, arise!
These are burning times. And they call for Burning Women. Women embodied in their passion. Women feeling in their bodies. Creative women. Courageous women. Gather the women. Gather the men.
Let Burning Women and Burning Men come together in ecstatic creative partnership.
Whether we are called to be mothers in this lifetime or not, all of us as Burning Women are being called to help birth a new world by birthing ourselves. We sense it in our bones, feel the contractions in our bellies. It is our time.
Our birth into our own power is moving apace with the planetary birthing. At times the sheer intensity of the process, inside and out, can feel deeply overwhelming.
There are massive energies pulsing through us all right now. Something big, unnameable is moving through us all. A new consciousness which is still nameless and formless.
Burning Women are the hearts and souls of revolution - inner and outer. We burn for change, we dance in the fire of the old, all the while visioning and weaving the new.
The time is now. The air is thick with change. A collective roar is rising internally, ready to break through the old shell.
Arise, Burning Woman... your time is now.””
The Times We're In
This poem is so fitting for this moment, especially how I'm feeling deep in my heart and soul after spending the weekend in DC for Sister Giant with Marianne Williamson and thousands of other conscious women and a handful of men too, not even a mile away from the White House. We all left lit up, on fire, burning for change.
For these times we’re in require strong women, burning women, women who are channeling their fierce feminine, women who are wild and aren't afraid to stand up and say no, not on my watch is this going to happen in my country, my hometown or in my community, to my brothers and sisters.
Women who are taking up positions of fierce power, running for political offices, taking on leadership roles, demanding equal pay and bridging the insane Inequality gap we still exist with.
Women who are untamed and tapped in wholly to their deepest passions, joy and heartbreaks.
Women who are living from the deep stirrings of their soul.
Women who are birthing their fierce LOVE into action in the world in service of the greater good.
Women who sparkle with the radiance of a life well-lived on terms terms.
In short...Women who are RISING and taking their power back.
We all yearn to be this kind of burning woman, sister. But the only way we can do that is if we're embodied and awake to our full potential. If we are at home in our own skin, in touch with our deepest truths - clearing away what no longer serves. If we’re brutally honest.
We must #staywoke as the popular hashtag reminds up and continue to take action from the heart. We must get to the rotting roots of the problems and pull them out for the health of the whole ecological system, for the web of all life.
Photo courtesy of Amy Jindra
The Sickness of Our Wildness
There is a sickness of our wildness today, a deep suppression of the Divine Feminine, with the powers that be continually trying to sterilize that which is primal, messy, wild or “bad” in us, from the birth process to our menstruation. They expect us to be buttoned-up, good girls instead. But I’m going to ask that you let that all of that go this year so you can step into the Fierce Feminine courage you have innately within you.
Our very lives and the wellbeing of humanity depend on it now.
Even with all that has transpired since the election, I still believe there is some truth to what the Dalai Lama said in 2009: “The world will be saved by the Western woman.” I feel it’s more like healing than saving, but it’s a powerful sentiment nonetheless and I want to help prove him right. Are you with me, sister?
Spiritual awakening and self-actualization are no longer a luxury, they are an imperative. Because of our collective level of access, privilege, and opportunity, we should be a moral force on this planet, continually birthing our love into action in the world.
I deeply believe that each and every one of us matters and that we’re here to DO something that matters, now more than ever. We’re all artists in charge of the greatest masterpiece on earth, our LIVES. We all have a Divine Legacy that we’re co-creating each day, all in service to the Great Cosmic Masterpiece.
We must each add our unique stroke to this collective masterpiece, or else it will be forever lost.
But we currently have a massive problem on our hands: We have an epidemic of women today who are disconnected from their bodies and their truth, suppressed from reaching their full potential by patriarchal structures like the dieting industry, fashion magazine culture, and the media -- all of which serve to keep them weak and stuck in a feedback loop of I’m not good enough, pretty enough, thin enough, or strong enough to do x, y, z (insert here: start that business, find true love, write my book, follow my dreams).
I know because I was one of these women, constantly being told I was either too much (because of my wild creativity and obese body) or that I was not enough and just didn’t measure up. Over the course of my lifetime I gained and lost over 1300 pounds and internalized the violence of the world, turning against myself through disordered eating and self-hatred. Daring to live into the fullness of my Being while here has been my greatest challenge, and is now the gift in the medicine I bring. I know I’m not alone, sister.
I ask you: at what point have you suffered enough??
I believe in what the Dalai Lama said, but with an added caveat: The world will be saved by the Western woman ... but not if we’re too busy doubting ourselves and thinking about our cellulite.
We are living in a time of global crisis. It’s time we release what's no longer serving us and step up, my sisters.
“This is not a time for self doubt and playing small. It is time to get in touch with the courage, boldness, and dare-devil beckoning you forward. You have the wings to fly. Sometimes we don’t realize it until we leap over the edge of what we have known and begin to soar into a new life.”
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A (R)evolutionary Solution
To answer the call we are all facing now, we must come back home to ourselves and our bodies, as women. We are being invited to reawaken to the truth within and our soul’s purpose. To WAKE UP to our power and potential and wield it for the good of all. Women who are standing in their wholeness, who have come back to our innate wildness and primal instincts, who are FIERCE. Women who are embodied leaders.
It is time to awaken to our potential and ARISE into our full power. The only way we’ll have external change in our world is to change ourselves first. Personal (r)evolution = societal (r)evolution
We are here at the most powerful time in human history. We must ask WHY. There’s not a woman in the White House YET, but that doesn’t mean we each shouldn’t continue to do the work of clearing what no longer serves us so we can step up into our own full power and potential. Let us become the moral force we are capable of being!
Our days are numbered. We must suck the marrow out of life each day -- with ferocity. We must make each moment matter.
I’m here to remind you of your fierce feminine power and the fire within, to connect you to the sacredness of your being and presence on this earth, to remind you of the importance of sharing your deepest gifts now. I want to give you a taste of it in your bodies to awaken you. I am here to stand for the importance of our wildness and innate creativity and bringing that to the world in service to the greater good.
Our task is to create our lives as Sacred Art by developing our innate power, wisdom, and creative juices. I’m here to help you let out your Wild in service to the world. I also want to give you permission to be fully and unapologetically YOU, sister.
After all, you were wild once, so don't let them tame you. That’s an essential element of what Sparkling SHAMELESSLY is all about.
Here's a guide with 12 action steps you can take to activate your innate power & embodied leadership potential. These also happen to be some of the top values I hold dear, and that we will be exploring in depth in my upcoming spiritual immersion program: Wild Women ARISE - a 7 Month Initiation into the Fierce Feminine.
Enjoy the journey, sister!
12 Keys to Ignite Your Fierce Feminine in a World in Crisis
“Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.”
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We are at a crucial point in human history, and ALL of our deep gifts are needed to help gracefully usher humanity into the next century and beyond. The world truly is experiencing a global awakening, and more and more people, especially women, are choosing to participate in this renaissance of spirit and substance, eager to live into their full (r)evolutionary potential.
We are on a threshold now, going through a spiritual test that will help us bloom through into the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible: a kinder, braver and more just world where everyone’s basic human rights and dignity are respected and upheld.
Think of these times as an initiation into our full radiance for the journey of whole systems transformation before us now, that will help us to live our true creative calling and sacred activism in the world. May this time of darkness serve as a catalyst for each one of us to uncover our unique #SOULSPARKLE and offer it to the world for the good of all.
At this pivotal moment systems are crumbling, the levels of suffering are becoming nearly insurmountable, and we are deeply submerged in an age of separation. This age of separation is closely related to our alienation from nature, our own bodies, and the sacred Fierce Feminine.
The way we treat the body of our mother earth is reflected in the way we abuse and mistreat the women who live upon her. Fracking is essentially raping of the earth. It’s all a reflection. But oneness is our truth. We are all made of the same stuff. The crises of our time are all variations on this theme of separation. Until we awaken to our interconnectedness with all beings, until we honor the spirit and Divine spark in all things and act from this higher consciousness, we cannot heal.
The greatest result of this separation has been to sever us from our own souls & our innate power.
We are collectively starving for depth, meaning, and purpose. We have an innate yearning to give our gifts and to be of service to others -- to live into our soul’s purpose. Yet we have had our attention stolen by countless distractions from what matters most. We have had our power pushed down and our greatness suppressed. We want to help, but often fall into the trap of saying to ourselves, “what can I do? I’m just one person.” But as Margaret Mead has said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
It’s time that we tap into that urge and inner power to deliver our gifts, so we can rise and soar.
There is an uprising, a swelling, of all that we are and all that we’re meant to become in this lifetime. There’s a collective rising, facilitated by deep waves of healing, and a multitude of dances with the fire of transformation. We’re clearing away what no longer serves us so that the great bird of humanity can soar once again.
At this pivotal moment, we women are being called to stand in our full force and fiery feminine power to heal our individual hearts, as well as our collective global heart. Our wild, untamed nature and the wisdom of our bodies are calling us … calling us to step into our innate power and untapped potential so we can ARISE. Part of this task is embracing ALL aspects of ourselves. It's acknowledging and making space for all of our emotions and inner truths. It's reveling in the darkness of our shadow and dancing unabashed in our Divine Feminine light.
The overall health of our mind, body and soul depends on how free we are to express our Fierce Feminine essence -- which has been repressed for far too long.
Since the burning times, we have feared expressing our innate wildness and ferocity. We have tamed ourselves, kept ourselves small, not spoken up for fear of being burned. But the wild woman archetype is having a resurgence. She is here with us now and not willing to put up with this s%@! any longer. Like the volcano goddess Pele, she is erupting whether we’re ready or not, filled with fiery passion and righteous courage, seething with moral outrage, ready to make her mark on the world and play full out.
She is in you too, sister.
It’s time for us to stoke the Fierce Feminine Flame within to burn away all that no longer serves our world in crisis.
The pulse that I sense in and around me is that LOVE is yearning to be the new bottom line in our world. I sense that the Divine Feminine is ready and deeply yearning for an equal partnership with the Divine Masculine. I sense that the world is hungry for an embodied women’s leadership to heal our world in crisis. It’s our responsibility to the collective, for the good of all, to deliver our deepest gifts and become the people we’re capable of being.
Someone out there needs us. We must live our lives so they can find us.
We are being called to IGNITE our Fierce Feminine Flame and share our full light in service to the world -- for as Clarissa Pinkola Estes has so eloquently stated, struggling souls catch light from other souls that are fully lit up and willing to show it.
We have a Wild Divinity within us just waiting to be unleashed on the world. Sister, it’s time for a Sacred (R)evolution.
We must come home to ourselves and our bodies, as women. We are being invited to WAKE UP to the truth within and our soul’s purpose, wielding our power and potential for the good of all as women who are standing in their wholeness. Who have come back to their innate wildness and primal instincts. Who are fierce, embodied leaders. It is our time to awaken to our potential and ARISE into our full power.
Here's how sister...
1. FIERCE WILDNESS
“The doors to the world of the wild Self are few but precious.
If you have a deep scar, that is a door, if you have an old, old story, that is a door.
If you love the sky and the water so much you almost cannot bear it, that is a door.
If you yearn for a deeper life, a full life, a sane life, that is a door.”
There is a sickness of our wildness today, a deep suppression of the Divine Feminine, and the powers that be continually trying to sterilize that which is primal, messy, wild or “bad” in us -- from the birth process to our menstruation -- expecting us to be buttoned-up, good girls instead. But I’m going to ask that you let that all of that go as you read this guide, so you can step into the fierce Feminine courage you have innately within you.
Our very lives and the wellbeing of humanity depend on it now.
It's time to reconnect with the natural, the primal, the instinctual. It's time to untame and reclaim all the aspects of ourselves that have been shamed, hidden and tamped down so we can unleash our full soul expression & powerful medicine in the world, Sparkling SHAMELESSLY for the greater good.
Our world today is desperately calling out for a return of Wild Women:
Women who are untamed and wholly tapped into their deepest passions, joys, and heartbreaks.
Women who sparkle with the radiance of a life lived well on their own terms.
Women who are living from the deep stirrings of their souls.
Women who feel fully & allow that to inform each moment and choice they make in their lives.
Women who are no longer SILENT, but instead living from and speaking their raw, authentic truth (often and loudly).
Women who are birthing their fierce LOVE into action in service of the greater good.
Women who are connected to their instinctive selves & the natural world through their cycles & rhythms.
Women who have returned to the Earth and her wild ways.
Women who have soulfully reclaimed their true nature and wish to share it.
Women who are no longer playing by society’s rules or the limitations of the patriarchy.
Women who are redefining what it means to be strong, Feminine and FREE.
Women who resist, who stand up, who stand out, who say NO to injustice.
Women who continually show up with ferocity & protect what they love most, especially their own time.
Women who speak truth to power and don't back down to those who try to tame them.
Women who are wildly liberated from the habits and expectations of life, & the status quo.
Women pulsing with aliveness and pure life force creative energy.
Women who are not holding back any longer for fear of being shamed, bullied, or even burned.
Women who are tapped into their Fierce Feminine Fire within and not afraid to show it.
Do you feel the call too, sister?
Try this: Roar like a Lioness - take a moment to Imagine you're a lioness protecting her cubs from an attack. Embody her in her fierceness. Put your paws up and growl like you mean it. Stick out your tongue and RAWRRR at those that try to tame you with guilt, shame and fear. Fiercely protect what you love most. How does that feel in your body?
2. FIERCE WISDOM
There is such great wisdom in nature, in our own bodies, if we choose to pay attention and listen. We can look to nature as well as our spiritual heritage for wise role models to help come back to the body and our true nature.
There are fierce Goddesses throughout the ages & traditions, courageous and fiery animals that roam the planet, and crystal energies from the earth. All of these and more can inform our journey to remember & re-activate our Power. Who wouldn’t want to tap into this wellspring of ancient earth-based wisdom?
We are in the body of the world. The body of the world is in us.
The way we treat our great Mother Earth is the way we treat our women. We disrespect, rape, and pillage her with fracking and industrial practices that are disastrous to her spirit and integrity. We ignore her power and beauty. We disregard her and forget the profound nourishment she brings. We pass over the fact that she gives birth to all of life: without her and her crystalline waters, we wouldn’t exist.
This disconnection from the earth, our Great Mother, has led to deep disconnection from our bodies as women, and that (in turn) has severed the connection to our pure power. We all contain a fierce and fiery nature, primal instincts and wildness, just like our great Mother. We are a reflection of her. All the teachings we need to thrive can be found in the natural world. But we have forgotten our own power.
Like the ancient forests, spectacular galaxies, and the acorn that becomes the oak, we all possess a natural intelligence for growth.
Therefore, this is really just a process of remembering! We are that too!
Make yourself available to the power that lives within you. We are like elaborate lamps that have not plugged ourselves in in a universe that's alive with electricity.
Try this: Choose something in nature that draws your attention. It could be an animal, the sun, the moon, the stars, the tree behind your house, the weed that grows up through the crack in the city sidewalk. The key is to study it. Observe it. Notice its qualities. Investigate its inherent medicine. It holds gifts and deep wisdom to share with you if you allow it in.
3. FIERCE EMBODIMENT
I was always involved in leadership, helping people to Sparkle SHAMELESSLY, but what was missing was being embodied in that leadership. I wasn’t grounded. I didn’t feel safe in my own skin. I didn’t feel safe being here … so I ate, I drank, I distracted myself.
I was channeling all these powerful spiritual energies and creative downloads and it was blowing out my system. So often when we’re spiritually sensitive it is difficult to be here. We feel alien, like we don’t belong. Like we’re misfits.
But we can’t shine our full light if we’re not fully inhabiting our own skin. Embodiment is essential for our Fierce Feminine Flame to burn bright. We need a fierce container for the awakening that is upon us so our nervous systems don't go into overload. To show up in sour sacred work and deliver our Divine Legacy.
We can’t ARISE until we’re grounded and rooted in the Great Mother. We need a sturdy foundation to be able to move forward into our full potential. We have to be fully in our bodies. We have to be at home in ourselves and our own skin to soar. We have to ROOT to RISE.
Coming back to my body, coming back to the earth, coming back to my true nature and wildness has been the most profound and deeply nourishing part of my journey so far. That’s why I want to share it with you, sister.
The body is a bridge to communion, it is our direct connection with the Web of life, our vehicle to oneness.
We are being asked to forge a deep & lasting connection with our sacred vessel and her innate rhythms & cycles. We must learn how to nourish her holistically on the journey to become a pure instrument & channel of Wild Divinity in this world.
Let us be chalices for love in the world. Let us be hands, feet, and mouthpieces for the Divine. The body is holy when it's given to the Goddess for Her purposes.
Try this: Do practices to get you in your body. Dance to my Love (R)evolution Playlist. Go for a barefoot walk in the park, hug a tree, lay down on the floor and do a body scan. There are countless options. Just choose something that lights you up and do it regularly to keep you grounded.
4. FIERCE HEALING
These days most of us are in survival mode, our nervous systems continually activated by the horrors being inflicted on our brothers and sisters across the globe. This is unsustainable, so we have to find ways to nurture and take care of ourselves. We must begin to move towards healing within ourselves, so we can help heal our ailing world.
The crises of our time are all variations on the theme of separation. Until we awaken to our interconnectedness with all beings, until we honor the spirit and Divine spark in all things and act from this higher consciousness, we cannot heal.
We are being asked to release all behaviors and thought patterns that no longer serve us or the highest good so we can return to wholeness. Be brutally honest with yourself about what’s not working in your life and what’s holding you back from sharing your gifts. Are you addicted to watching the TV or listening to the news? Are you addicted to sugar? Are you addicted to sex? Go on a detox and start to purify the vessel so that the Divine, the Muse, the Goddess can come through.
We are being asked to shed what no longer supports us, especially the outdated patriarchal programming and patterning that keeps us small.
As I said earlier, I believe in what the Dalai Lama said, but with an added caveat: The world will be saved by the Western woman ... but not if we’re too busy doubting ourselves, being distracted or thinking about our cellulite.
We are being asked to shift on all levels, from the spiritual to the emotional, physical, and energetic. The bottom line: it's time to THRIVE, sister!
Try this: Do a healing release ritual. Release rituals have been one of my most powerful channels for healing and transformation over the last 7 years. All you have to do is decide what is no longer serving you and what you are going to commit to let go of. Doing this on a Full Moon enhances the energy of the release as well. Write everything you’re ready to release on a piece of paper (or several if you need!) and then consciously release it, either by tearing it up into little pieces and throwing it in the toilet or by burning it (safely). As you are destroying the old beliefs, ways of being, and things that are no longer serving you, loudly proclaim “BE GONE!” Repeat any time you are feeling stuck or blocked.
5. FIERCE ALCHEMY
According to natural law, alchemy is the transformation of a dense or base substance into something more refined and pure. It’s a similar process when we shine the light of awareness into realms that are dark.
We must be the CHANGE we wish to see in the world by doing the necessary inner work on ourselves. We must bring this light of awareness to the forefront. Like the symbol of the cross, there is the vertical mark that symbolizes the spiritual plane and the horizontal mark that symbolizes the material plane out in the world. We must deep dive into the vertical now and get to know ourselves intimately so we understand and can deliver our unique #SOULSPARKLE for the good of all.
The only way we’ll have external change in our world is to change ourselves first. Personal (r)evolution = societal revolution.
As Osho said, There can be no political revolution, no social revolution, no economic revolution. The only revolution is that of the spirit; it is individual. And if millions of individuals change, then society will change as a consequence, not vice versa. You cannot change the society first and hope that individuals will change later on.
Our journey here is all about finding the inner gold. Getting to know ourselves more intimately each day, growing, expanding, stepping into the fullness of who we are with each move. And the challenge is having the integrity to stay in alignment with the truest version of our authentic selves along the way, even when it's not what everyone around you desires. Love yourself enough to drop the 'shoulds' of others today and live to deliver your own inner gold.
Try This: Turn towards the darkness and embrace all of you...there lies a path. Know that your greatest wound has a gem in it. Go there, to your deepest wound, and know that as you begin to heal, your gifts will start to emerge for you. Find safe spaces where you can go into and explore the dark through shadow work (Qoya movement is one of my favorite ways to do so. Dive into shadow work and more in our upcoming Fierce Feminine Qoya retreat in Costa Rica)
6. FIERCE NOURISHMENT
What we eat, what we drink, what we think, who we surround ourselves with, and how we treat our bodies & spirits MATTERS. How we spend our vital life force energy MATTERS. Self-care becomes essential in our journey to shine radiantly with our full power & step into our Fierce Feminine. We live in an increasingly chaotic world filled with genetically modified foods and overworked individuals walking around with burnt-out adrenals. We have to make a conscious effort to take care of ourselves so we can show up fully in the world, moving towards our wholeness and what matters most to us.
As you continue to heal and release all that no longer serves you, you make space for that which is more deeply nourishing to take its place.
My journey with illness over the last two years led me to deep nourishment and it has been an essential remedy in coming home to my body fully. It requires knowing what nourishes us deeply, from the vital life force energies of food that most serve us, to the loving and supportive people we need to surround ourselves within like-minded community, to following the call of our sacred work that feeds us on a soul level.
Remember: if you’re not deeply nourished yourself, you can’t go out into the world and nourish others who are suffering.
When we are fed and nourished deeply on every level, we can show up fully in service to those who need us most. We ache to tap into the sacred pulse of life’s mystery as well as the ancient wisdom of our bodies. There is a blueprint deep within us that we can access when we tap back into our feminine cycles and the magic of our moon time for healing and harmony.
Try this (women): One of my favorite practices to support my nourishment is cycle syncing: eating foods that support and deeply nourish the body during different phases of our moon cycle. I first learned about this from my soul sister Alisa Vitti, the author of WomanCode and founder of Flo Living.
7. FIERCE ALIVENESS
“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.””
We will never get another chance at this life. We must live it to the fullest now, sucking the marrow out and making it a priority to feel fully alive each day! We're in a cultural hypnosis about how we're supposed to live, what we should do rather than what makes us feel most alive and lights us up with bright joy. Do you want to be dead broke or dead by 65? That's the majority of our world today.
Instead, we need to get LIT UP with our Fierce Feminine Flame & willing to show it! We need to burn, to BE THE FIRE in the world to help transmute all that is no longer serving the world. What brings your soul to the edge of rapture? What delights you endlessly and gets your life force energy pulsing through you?
Allow your soul to throb with aliveness by enhancing your creative capacities, sexual energy, connection with your body, knowledge of ancient women’s ways, and ability to show up for your sacred work in the world.
Stepping into the messy magnificence of truly living means feeling intensely into the depth of our being. When we're totally open to the present moment, we take in the fullness and bounty of all that is. Experiencing life at such full-throttle intensity isn't always easy, but it is profoundly moving and deeply meaningful.
So next time you feel your heart closing, open it just a bit further instead. Let it crack open till it hurts, and then bask in the beauty of what it is to be a human Being, lit up and loving fiercely. A true gift.
Try this: Create your aliveness accelerators, or long term aliveness goals. To simplify, there are the short-term ego goals -- goals that lead to a momentary pleasure or ego high, but don’t last in the long run -- and long-term Aliveness goals: goals that will help you to achieve an overall feeling of aliveness in the long run, even if it means giving up a temporary pleasure. Create a list of 3 main ALIVENESS ACCELERATORS to move towards and list how you will take action to bring them into reality, starting today.
8. FIERCE CONVICTION
A little “choose your own adventure” story for you: It’s a sunny afternoon in June and you’re in the woods. You know you need to stay warm for the night, but all you have is a letter that a friend sent you, a tin of tuna, and a small magnifying glass. Luckily you’re able to find some firewood, but you have no matches. How are you going to light the fire?
It’s simple: place the letter over the wood and hold the magnifying glass over it. The rays of the sun will be focused so as to ignite the fire within seconds. When you concentrate the scattered rays of sun onto the letter it will ignite. This analogy holds true for you! When you concentrate your energy and efforts on what matters most, you will ignite the Fierce Feminine Flames of your personal power and potential within.
It’s time to take a stand and come from a place of inner CONVICTION and validation about what matters most to you. What do you most love and want to protect? Like cells in the body, we each have a divine assignment for the good of the whole.
Step into a sense of clarity and conviction around your sacred work in the world, fueled by power, fire, ferocity and direction. Finally step into your deepest gifts and authentic soul expression in service to those who need you most.
Don’t wait for someone else to pick you. Take a stand and choose to protect what you love most. Be fierce like the lioness with her cubs.
Try this: Know what you stand for. Take a piece of paper and allow your stream of consciousness to flow out as you claim what you stand for. Here’s an example: I stand for our wholeness, our innate brilliance and our unique #SOULSPARKLE in the world. I stand for the preciousness of all life on this planet. Every single one of us is valuable. We all matter and we’re here to DO something that matters. I stand for everyone in our global village to be treated with dignity, respect and having their basic human needs met. I stand for our connectedness as one human family, and it’s time that we act like it and step up to serve our brothers, sisters and non binary individuals. I stand for radical acceptance (of self and others) and standing bravely in our authenticity. I stand for the advancement of women, girls, and the LGBTQ community in all I do. I stand for the rise of the Divine Feminine, coming into equal partnership with the Divine Masculine to help heal our ailing world. I stand for LOVE as the new bottom line.
9. FIERCE PRACTICE
We have a radical responsibility now to wholeness. We cannot fall back asleep: we must stay engaged at all levels, making our voices heard in protest, staying involved, and keeping on the path to self-actualization now more fiercely than ever. We must stay on purpose. We must #staywoke to what matters most.
In these chaotic times we need spiritual practices to ground us so we can stay centered in our sacred work & do what matters each day. We need to lean into the spiritual technology of rituals and cerEmonies from the world’s wisdom traditions to enhance our personal practice.
We need to polish the inner diamond of the heart so we can continue to live from a place of truth and inner radiance. There are so many factors that can knock us off course if we aren't truly grounded in who we are and what we stand for. Today, be the presence of love itself and shine your light wherever you go. Send your love before you. When something threatens to knock you off, come back to your diamond core and your true home within.
To continue to take a stand we must practice daily and stay committed to the path, bringing our love to all we do. We have incredible power & possibility as Western women. Let’s tap into it and become the people we’re meant to be by showing up each day to the fullest. Let us keep our inner Fierce Feminine Flame LIT UP with the fire of devotion by serving the greater good.
Try this: Do a daily spiritual practice to keep you grounded, clear, and in your body. Prayer and meditation are actual forces that enter the cells of the body. Just as you take a shower to clear off the dirt and grime each day, you also need a daily practice to clear your inner world. If you find it difficult to practice on your own, then find a group to join for practice with others. My spiritual immersions are a great place to start. Congregating creates a field of resonance - a deepening and grounding of the ideas and teachings that are shared.
10. FIERCE BOUNDARIES
It’s time to apply the Fierce Feminine to the realm of boundaries, standing up and saying NO to the energetic drains, the distractions and the constant onslaught of social media. When you say NO it makes room for a bigger YES. It allows more time and energy to put towards the things that truly light you up.
This is a pregnant moment, so we want to keep our eyes on the prize of what’s possible. We must face the urgency of the times in which we live. Whole system transformation is here. Tap into the energy of rebellion and the sacred rebel within you. Be the re-sister.
We need women who are willing to stand up and say NO: not on my watch am I going to let you take away the basic human rights and dignity of my brothers, sisters and non binary beloveds. Like a mother keeping her child safe, the most loving response can mean saying NO.
As our sister Elizabeth Gilbert stated so eloquently on her Facebook page recently, “Peace will come to the world only when women say to men, "NO, you don't get to do this shit anymore. NO, you don't get to take everything you want, just because you want it. NO, you don't get to exclude, degrade, or disenfranchise any of us anymore, just because you have the power to do so. NO, you don't get to exploit the poor and the vulnerable, just because you can profit from it. NO, you don't get to live above the law. NO, you don't get to grab at money, land, power, or my body — just because you want it. NO, you don't get to teach bigotry, or encourage hatred and division. NO, you don't get to trample over justice. NO, you don't get to hurt my children — or anyone's children. NO, you don't get to violate my sisters. NO, you don't get to make up your own truth, just because you don't like the real truth. NO, you don't get to be greedy and inhumane anymore. NO, you don't get to incite violence anymore. NO, you don't get to mock minorities, the disabled, or the poor anymore. NO, you don't get to take advantage of women's kindness and forgiveness and softness anymore, by expecting us to forgive all your ugliest behaviors just because you're a man. NO, you don't get everything you want, just because you want it. No, No, NO. It all ends today, BECAUSE I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS SHIT.
“Honestly? I think the sentence, "I've had enough of this shit" is the last thing every woman on earth has ever said before she finally liberated herself from stupidity, violence, and oppression. You KNOW it was the last thing Rosa Parks said, right before she sat down on that bus and refused to move. And this is true on the personal level just as much as on the global level. "I've had enough of this shit" is the last thing every abused woman has ever said, right before she finally walked away from her abuser. Until we women say in holy unison, "WE'VE ALL HAD ENOUGH OF THIS SHIT", nothing will ever change.
“In other words: It is not enough to ask men to become more peaceful; women must become MORE FIRM.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Try this: Create a stop doing list - Get clear about what's draining your energy and keeping you from showing up fully for what matters most. You want a miraculously fueled YES. Find out what’s draining you, put it on your stop doing list and just say NO (firmly!) the next time it comes up. After you stop doing it, see what opens up in your life in it’s place.
11. FIERCE SISTERHOOD
Connecting deeply with other women in sisterhood has been an essential part of my own healing journey and stepping into my Fierce Feminine. There’s an “i” in “illness” and a “we” in “wellness,” after all.
Coming together with other like-minded and soulful women has helped lift me up on my journey and brought me endless support and comfort. My sisters have created a space for me to lean into when I feel weak, where I know I can show up just as I am in the moment, no matter how messy. And with them, I know it will be not only okay, but WELCOMED, celebrated, honored and revered.
Sisterhood is essential medicine for these times we’re in. It is a non-negotiable now. We need consistent, foundational support for the long game ahead.
We cannot do this journey alone. We must uphold one another in times of deep need, great celebration, and everything in between. We must draw from our collective well of wisdom and strength to help each other grow and heal and soar.
Find spaces to be embraced by a close-knit group of sacred sisters who will champion you, cheer you on, support you and be a reflection and constant reminder of the blazing bright Divine light within you. Find a home with other like-minded women to be seen, loved unconditionally, known, accepted, and celebrated for the truth of who you are.
Together, we truly can help heal the world. And as Margaret Mead has said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
Try This: Show up in sacred spaces and containers of transformation, like my upcoming Wild Women ARISE Experience or Fierce Feminine Qoya Retreat in Costa Rica. Let’s support each other in stepping into our highest potential for the good of all. As the young women chanted all around me at the epic and historic Women’s March in January, “Women united will never be divided.” Let’s come together to help heal our individual and global hearts. Let’s create Beloved community together, igniting the fire in our bellies and remembering why we’re here at this most powerful time in human history. Let’s prove the Dalai Lama right! I’d love to connect one on one with you if you feel called to know more. You can choose a time on my calendar HERE.
12. FIERCE SERVICE
As Martha Graham so eloquently stated, “There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost.”
My invitation to you is to become the person you're capable of being this year. Continue to stoke the Fierce Feminine Flame within you for the good of all. Allow yourself to be used by love and spread light in the world through your deepest gifts. We have incredible power as women in the West. Let’s tap into it and become the people we’re meant to be. Only through us is God/Goddess going to fix this mess we’re in.
Focus on the work of serving others from a place of heart & authenticity. The quality of your life will come down to the quality of your contribution.
Open and surrender, then surrender some more, then surrender some more. There is a Divine plan that is unfolding and often we get in our own way, or we want to rush things, or we want to “top down” the situation. Allow Divine Will to take the lead instead of your own will.
One of my favorite inquiries to ask in meditation comes from the metaphysical text, A Course in Miracles, “What would you have me do, where would you have me go, what would you have me say, and to whom.”
Be humble, do the work, stay in your spiritual practice, drop down to your knees, continually surrender and open yourself to be of service, again and again, asking for guidance along the way.
Try this: Take 1 hour per week and 5 minutes a day to let out your Fierce Feminine in service to something that deeply matters. Put the number for Congress on speed dial in your phone, volunteer to help at a local NFP, or get involved with a project or organization working on something that you’re deeply passionate about -- whether it's helping to get money out of politics with Wolfpac, or ending factory farming with Food Democracy Now, or leaning into the climate change conversation with the Center for Earth Ethics, or even learning to run for office with Vote, Run, Lead. Find lots more resources here at Sister Giant if you’re interested in engaging spirituality with politics.
Gratitude & Blessings for the Journey
Thank you, sister, for taking this journey with me. I am bowing to you in deep gratitude. Thank you for standing in your truth and stoking your fierce feminine flame! I am in awe of your radiance and moral courage.
If you’d like to explore these values more deeply, surrounded by a group of like-minded women, I invite you to join the Wild Women ARISE Experience: a 7 month initiation into the Fierce Feminine. It’s a container of emergence and transformation for up to 13 women -- part high priestess healing temple, part deep dive into wild and ancient wisdom, and part sacred mastermind to activate your innate power and embodied leadership potential.
Through 1-on-1 spiritual direction, monthly urban sisterhood retreats here in NYC, virtual full moon circles, and a handful of incredible guest healers we’ll be going on a journey to help you shed all that no longer serves you so that you can unleash your Wild in service to the world.
It’s time to open to the full power and radiance that live within each of us so we can birth our love into action in the world.
Commit to becoming the change you want to see in the world and being the person you’re capable of being. Show up and do the right thing. Do all you can do and be all you can be. Get the support you need to step into your potential.
Remember, the spiritual journey is a practice that requires continued vigilance and work. It would be an honor to continue to support you as you unleash your inner wild and live into your full potential. I’m here to remind you of your Fierce Feminine power and fire within. To Connect you to the sacredness of your being and presence on this earth, to remind you of the importance of sharing your deepest gifts now. I want to give you a taste of it in your bodies to awaken you. I am here to stand for the importance of our wildness and innate creativity and bringing that to the world in service to the greater good.
I wanted to leave you with a blessing:
May you remember that YOU matter. You are a brilliant love beam and unique expression of wild divinity.
May you know that you are precious and powerful, possessing a unique medicine that is needed now.
May you choose to be a woman who dares to wield her Fierce Feminine power in a patriarchal and ailing world.
May you rise to the occasion of these troubling times and take responsibility for what matters most.
I’m here cheering you on sister!! Get more spiritual & leadership development tips below!