If you have a problem to solve or a change to make: are you spending time with it every day?
Why or why not?
As a part of my year-long project of exploring my resistance this year, this is what I’ve been wondering.
There IS a thing I want to change.
And I keep thinking “Oh! I want to change this!”
But am I showing up and being in the process of change every day?
No.
Why?
So many reasons spring to mind but they’re all actually just excuses…
And then I found a new question:
Am I in resistance here, or do I just have a really critical inner voice that I am (rightfully!) avoiding?
My “YOU SHOULD HAVE ALREADY FIGURED THIS OUT” voice is very loud. And it makes me so uncomfortable, it’s throwing this sticky shame all over me.
So, yeah, that’s not really resistance that’s self preservation.
Because CONSCIOUSLY I wasn’t really aware of how much damage this voice was causing.
But sitting with questions-without-answers and staying with the uncomfortable feelings can shift perspective and I am starting to see it.
So now I can focus on this, as a way in to exploring the thing I want to explore.
The new Moon Intention Setting + Alchemy Meditation Call is tomorrow! This is open to all Dream Book members - get the call details here.
If you're not in Dream Book, you can get the New Moon Intention Setting Guided Journal here! This is the same process that we do on the calls, in a workbook format!
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
New Moon is this Sunday, March 10!
The new Moon Intention Setting + Alchemy Meditation Call is this Thursday, March 7. This is open to all Dream Book members - get the call details here.
If you're not in Dream Book, you can get the New Moon Intention Setting Guided Journal here! This is the same process that we do on the calls, in a workbook format!
Our last New Moon call was intense for me.
A new intention came out of that meditation: to go DEEP into inner CREATIVITY + EXPLORATION, not quite inner WORK. Of course it’s connected to inner work, it felt like bringing the joy of exploration and expression deeper into my inner landscape.
And, when this came to me, I had an idea of what it would look like - the kind of art I would make.
I was super wrong.
I haven’t made much art, but I have brought a new level of curiosity and non-judgement into how I engage with my inner world. Which has been so difficult AND rewarding.
Some months I know EXACTLY what intention I want to set.
Some months I have no clue.
But showing up and setting an intention every month, doing the meditation to really LISTEN to myself, always brings me something good. It keeps me moving along the path and not staying stagnant anywhere.
Again - the new Moon Intention Setting + Alchemy Meditation Call is this Thursday, March 7. This is open to all Dream Book members - get the call details here.
If you're not in Dream Book, you can get the New Moon Intention Setting Guided Journal here! This is the same process that we do on the calls, in a workbook format!
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
This is the mantra I got in this week’s Dream Book journaling + alchemy kit: I am ready.
This was perfect timing for last week, as I was getting ready to share my new 10 day Creative Dream Challenge.
This feels really meaningful as it’s a new way to invite people into my work with the Creative Dream Incubator. It’s a thing I can promote heavily and joyfully.
It feels like my next chapter and it feels REALLY GOOD to step into it...
AND it feels like I still need to grow into it.
And I FEEL READY for the "stepping".
We never have to FEEL ready though.
We always ARE ready for our next steps. But not FEELING ready is pretty common - it's just one of the things we need to work through.
But reflecting on this mantra today - this is what I see:
I’ve been focusing on getting ready IN OUTER WORK.
I’ve been doing whatever INNER WORK was needed to get the OUTER WORK done.
And DREAM WORK got lost in the shuffle.
This is good information, I want to make more space for Dream Work practices this week.
Dream Book members: The Library of Creative Dream Alchemy is here, with practices for Dream Work, Inner Work and Outer Work.
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
Note: This is a post about my daily practice with my Creative Dreams - I often link to the tools, courses and processes I use which are available to Dream Book members. If you're not a member, find out more + join us here.
On Fridays I do my Dream Status Report which is a series of prompts I use every week to help me have more clarity, momentum and groundedness on my path. You can do them with me (Dream Book members: come post yours in the forum!)!
My Dream Status Report for this week:
PART ONE:
My dream is: I want to get an RV or camper van and travel… WITH MY CAT BEAR!!!! Create a comfy cozy home on wheels, and write + make art on the road while we have adventures.
I want it because: It feels so sweet and makes me happy.
When I have it I will feel: I think I will feel so happy, free and thrilled with my life.
PART TWO:
Invite the soul of your dream in (using the Dream Lab practice) to help you with the rest of the prompts.
My dream shows up as a light in my heart that feels like a healing and a breakthrough.
PART THREE:
Last week’s focus was: Do the work. And do all the things that help me be able to do the work.
What happened in the last week?
I really did DO THE WORK and also do the things that help me be able to do the work. Loads of self care and creative dream practicing and LOADS of outer work.
I launched the 10 day Creative Dream Journal Challenge! There is more I want to do with it but this is such a good step and I feel SO GOOD about it!
What am I learning/How do I feel about this?
I feel happy and proud and grateful I got this project done.
What do I need now?
To revel in it. I am taking this day off to relax. Journal, sew, rest and get connected to my Dream Self - the vision of me who is out there wildly promoting this creative dream challenge.
What does my dream need now?
The light in my heart glows. It's happy with what I am doing.
Taking all of this into account, my focus for the next week is:
Focus on my Dream Self who knows how to take these next steps.
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your Dream Status Report or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls.
Today my creative dream practice is too boring to write about. YAY! I did some journaling, have a list of things I want to do today, and am just... doing them!
So instead of sharing anything about that, I wanted to share a story from earlier in the month.
We had this "winter heat wave" in early February and I took the long way to the coffee shop - a 45 minute walk instead of 30. It felt magical to have such a warm morning walk.
This longer way also takes me down a much busier street. At one point, this man parked his car in the parking lot of a grocery store as I was walking past and RAN out of it down the sidewalk. I was watching him closely, wondering...
Is that grocery store open so early? I don't think so!
Is he watching for ice?! There are so many ice patches on the sidewalks, I hope he doesn't fall! (I'm walking so slow and careful)
Then, he ran right past the grocery store, now I'm wondering... Where is he going in such a rush?
I giggle to myself thinking maybe he is RUNNING SO FAST to get to the new cat cafe. He really needs to pet a cat. But no, the cat cafe doesn't open until later and he runs right past it.
I decide he must be going to the little cheque cashing/cash advance place on the corner. Maybe he needs quick cash and he's late for work.
He runs right past the cheque cashing place and now I am really invested. Like, how far is he going to run?
He goes into a building I thought was vacant and I when I get to it I see a sheet of paper taped to the door that says something like:
Universal Gathering of Faith and Miracles. Tuesday mornings.
I still had 15 minutes of my walk to think about this.
I was so invested in his journey, why?
Was it to show me - I should always RUN to get to a miracle?
Was it to remind me that the miracles are gathering?
I think they are.
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
The February Marketing as a Creative + Spiritual Practice call is today! Dream Book members - get the call details here. Everyone else - join us here!
These are the journal prompts I got in this week’s Journaling + Alchemy kit (from Dream Book):
What part of you feels too small for your dream?
What does this part of you need?
AHHHHH yes these are the questions I need right now.
In a practical sense, “my dream” is the dream I shared of getting a camper van or RV and traveling with Bear but that would mean a bunch of things sorted out in my life to make this happen including money.
(Dream Book members see the call: Having A Stable Relationship With Money While The World Is Unstable)
And, right now, my dreams include BEING IN the transformative healing vortex that is getting a divorce.
So… it’s all of this that I am thinking about as I ask this question. Which parts feel ready? Which parts don't? Why don't they?
We almost always have parts of us that feel too small for our dreams.
This is because our dreams are here to GROW us. Like an elm seed isn’t meant to stay an elm seed forever, it’s meant to become a seedling and then a tree.
But of course growth feels scary for so many reasons. So parts of us will resist growth even when we know for sure it’s leading to what we want!
For most people, all of this is unconscious.
For people who are deeply engaging with their dreams, it’s more conscious.
And it’s hard to engage with this fear because… fear is scary!
But. Sitting with it is SO GOOD because there ARE ways to take care of the parts of you that feel too small for your dream, and doing that will open up new possibilities for what you can do.
AND, more often than not, if you really sit with this part of you you'll find that they DO want what you want, they're just afraid of some part of it. And once you have all parts of you on board, it's so much easier to move forward.
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
I first did a Marketing as a Creative + Spiritual Practice call as an experiment in November 2022.
Now it's a call we do every month in Dream Book!
Since we have a call tomorrow, I'm trying to write a post about this and I can't.
So, in the spirit of Marketing as a Creative + Spiritual Practice, I will write (creative practice) about my truth (spiritual practice):
I'm super stuck today.
This is not the whole truth of who I am and where I am but it's where I am right in this moment.
I am excited about the work I have to do today!
But my heart is in KNOTS and I can't do the things I want to do.
Our practice HAVE TO include these days, too.
Remember the compass of Creative Dream Alchemy.
If you can't do Outer Work, you can do Dream Work or Inner Work.
And I feel too tangled up for Dream Work, I know Inner Work is what is needed.
So I am taking my knotted up heart into the Un-Sticking Station practice:
Oh, it's so sad. A floating, disembodied heart that's crying.
I notice we're in a room with a fireplace, so I light a fire and make my heart a cup of tea and sit it down on a soft couch.
I wrap a blanket around it. I want to offer it ALL the nurturing.
"Do you want a cookie?"
I would LOVE a cookie.
I bring my heart a cookie.
"So tell me what's going on"
Oh! (Heart starts crying again) It's all too much!
"Oh you are so right! It's ALL too much." And I get the sense that we shouldn't write about all the things in the world that are TOO MUCH we should just take a minute a FEEL it.
We take a few deep breaths together.
The knots slip out of my heart.
We can't solve anything. We can show up as best we can to create the world we want to see, but we, alone, cannot solve anything. But taking a minute to have a cookie, breath deep, and acknowledge how terrifying the world is to be in right now does help.
"OK so, now that I have given you space to un-knot, the day I had planned feels inappropriate for the space you are in"
Oh yeah for sure. I mean - I don't want to sabotage your goals and plans! AND I am where I am.
This has been a BIG topic on our group calls lately.
How to find a balance between all the inner work we need to do in order to be able to do the outer work we want to do.
And how it can feel like if we gave our inner worlds all the care and attention they need, then we literally wouldn't have the time or energy left to take care of anything in the outer world.
And how our inner worlds really do need us to have some stability and order in our outer worlds!
And this has always been true in a sense. It takes A LOT of inner work grow beyond where you, to grow towards where you want to be. But the impact of the current state of the world, on top of that, has really shifted the balance.
So. Back to me and my heart.
I want to do what you want to do. I am 100% on board.
"That is a relief to know you are on board with my plan. But I sense a but..."
But right now, today, I need the gentlest possible day. Can we remember that we ARE in a peri-menopausal situation where we should be getting our period but instead we are getting anxiety attacks?
"I want to just "deep breath" the anxiety away."
And if you could do that, it would be gone by now. This is not in your head. This is not a small problem. You know damn well peri-menopase is the time when women are the most likely to commit suicide and this is largely driven by how fucking un-supportive the whole world is about what we go through at this time. So it is IMPERATIVE that you be ultra-supportive of yourself.
(Not that I am having suicidal thoughts, my heart is just driving home a point, that this isn't some small inconvenience)
"OK I am hearing that you don't want to do what I had planned to do today. What, exactly, do you want to do today?"
Mediate + maybe nap if you fall asleep. Journal.
Oh wow that reminds me that I put into my journal from this week's journaling kit: What part of you feels too small for your dream? What does this part of you need?
I will work on those prompts. I will LIGHTLY hold onto what I wanted to do today while honouring the actual state of my heart. Take care of myself first, and then see what feels possible.
[Update: YES! After a long meditation thinking about what I want to accomplish with this project, I did start VERY gently and without any pressure did get a bunch of things done]
Our next Marketing as a Creative + Spiritual Practice call is tomorrow.
Dream Book members - get the call details here. Everyone else - join us here!
Topic: Drawing out a "dream map" of how you would love marketing to work in your business (continued from our last call where we first made a map)
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
This is the mantra I got in this week’s Dream Book journaling + alchemy kit: I have everything I need to do anything I want
OK wow as I am writing this, I am listening to this song. So perfect! (Success, expanded version, by Beautiful Chorus)
This is another one of the mantras that I believe is usually true.
Often we’re looking at what we wish we had, in terms of supports for our dreams, instead of using what we DO have.
I wrote this mantra in my journal with my weekly business check-in and my list of things I want to do. And it all felt so good when I wrote it. This mantra is such a healing balm for me... and yet...
I had not had a week go this OFF in a while, lol.
Like, none of the things I planned ended up being what happened.
And when I look at my list, and read this mantra, it’s like WTF?
And it feels like… trust the process.
Weekly planning is so good! (Dream Book members check out the: Creative Genius Planning Sessions and Dream Plan Kit)
AND forcing ourselves to follow through on every plan is not good.
So some weeks turn out like this.
I think it’s important to notice - are there particular tasks that ALWAYS end up undone? What’s going on there? (Take it into the Un-Sticking Station to explore it.)
But if once in a while your whole list is just a disaster? Maybe just accept that this is a part of the process? And ask:
Am I sure these are the right tasks?
Where/why am I resisting doing these things?
What would help make it easier to get this stuff done next week?
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.
Note: This is a post about my daily practice with my Creative Dreams - I often link to the tools, courses and processes I use which are available to Dream Book members. If you're not a member, find out more + join us here.
On Fridays I do my Dream Status Report which is a series of prompts I use every week to help me have more clarity, momentum and groundedness on my path. You can do them with me (Dream Book members: come post yours in the forum!)!
My Dream Status Report for this week:
PART ONE:
My dream is: I want to get an RV or camper van and travel… WITH MY CAT BEAR!!!! Create a comfy cozy home on wheels, and write + make art on the road while we have adventures.
I want it because: It feels so sweet and makes me happy.
When I have it I will feel: I think I will feel so happy, free and thrilled with my life.
PART TWO:
Invite the soul of your dream in (using the Dream Lab practice) to help you with the rest of the prompts.
My dream shows up as a tree on a warm day. The leaves are sparkling where the sun hits.
PART THREE:
Last week’s focus was: Give myself space to feel and process and heal and trust in the magic of my dreams and the beauty of my future.
What happened in the last week?
This was another rough week on the divorce front. And a lot of resistance about that. My new life is taking shape in front of me, I am happy and excited about this so I'd like to not have any thoughts or feelings about the divorce, lol.
But, again, I remind myself - I want to BE WITH all parts of me, all the thoughts and feelings, give them space to process and release and be able to move into my future not holding onto anything from this, except the growth and learning.
I remembered how my husband and I knew our relationship was sacred, and talked about the ways it was healing us. I want to believe in this - how if the marriage was sacred then the divorce must be too. That changes my whole experience of this time - it's like a vortex of healing and transformation. When I can hold onto that perspective, everything shifts. So I want to keep learning how to hold onto it WITHOUT denying or pushing away my actual feelings in the moment. It's this constant tightrope walk.
BUT IN THE REST OF MY LIFE THINGS ARE SO GOOOOOD!!!
I'm working on a new free class - it's a creative dream challenge. I feel SO excited about it as a way of introducing people to my work and I LOVE that feeling of LOVING the ways my ideas are coming together.
I am co-working with a new friend who is a huge inspiration to me. I joined a craftivism group and am meeting them this weekend. The days are getting so much longer and our winter was frighteningly short and warm (the river I usually skate on barely froze over - the slate paths were only open for a few days this year!!!) and it feels like spring now.
What am I learning/How do I feel about this?
I have been giving myself SO MUCH MORE SPACE to process and feel and think and this has been so good. I am filling journal pages and just, not learning anything really but appreciating the magic of feeling more connected to all parts of me.
What do I need now?
As I sit with this question I just feel so grateful that I have been so good at figuring out what I need, and giving it to myself.
What does my dream need now?
I check in with the tree. It needs water, and a little fertilizer. It's already got plenty of sunshine.
This feels like it's asking me to "do the work". Like - the tree can't water itself. I get it.
Taking all of this into account, my focus for the next week is:
Do the work. And do all the things that help me be able to do the work.
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your Dream Status Report or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls.
And if you are reading this - you are too.
Do you know how many people read what I write can’t make any sense it?
You get it because you are a visionary, healer + witch too.
I want to acknowledge how powerful it is that you keep showing up.
The path to a dream is LONG. And you are doing it!
I share my daily steps here, sometimes I go in circles, sometimes I am stuck, sometimes I have brilliant insights, sometimes it’s incredibly boring, sometimes just really weird.
And we all know - this is what it’s like.
But somehow we all have the idea that… it’s easier for other people and it should be easier for us. The path should be linear. Every step we take should make sense. We should be more productive and cheerful. We should be moving faster.
None of that is true.
You’re still here.
You are doing amazing.
I’m cheering for you.
If you need help figuring out your next steps - let me know! Tell me what’s going on and I can suggests tools + classes from Dream Book to work with. Or if you’re not in Dream Book, join us here!
Dream Book members:
Come to the forum to share your thoughts or start a conversation about whatever you're working with.
Get your next Dream Book lesson or get a weekly journaling + alchemy kit.
Go the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find a practice that fits for where you are or use the Dream Lab if you're not sure where to start.
Check out the calendar of upcoming calls. Make a plan to join us live or catch a replay.