SoulCollage® Committee Suit: The Vulnerable One

I am one who is powerless, for whom the world is hard and cold. I am one who feels hunted, and I hide to remain undetected. Being invisible is my survival.

What is your gift or message for me?

Invisibility was a valuable strategy when you were a child. The world was frightening and you were not in control. You survived by disappearing but at some point you also hid yourself from your own self.

What do you want me to do?

Remember me and let this part of you be a source for compassion. Yet make room for other parts of yourself.

Why did you show up today?

You are in a place of experiencing a lot of "young stuff" emerging from your soul. It's part of healing.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The light is compassion.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: The Pursuer

 

I am one who, though small, takes risks. I brave challenges of cold and dark to reach a distant goal. I am unfettered by trappings. I am fresh and curious. I will find a way.

What is your gift or message for me?

This baby is doing the improbable, using intelligence to find solutions to get closer to her goal. Even though you feel small and vulnerable like an infant, you have the ingenuity to design options.

What do you want me to do?

Use what is at hand to solve challenges. Use tools that may be unusual choices.

Why did you show up today?

I felt you needed a visual reminder of how brave and intrepid you are.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is recklessness.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: The Practice

I am one who practices non-distracted awareness when life storms around me. I am one who sometimes manages to release her head in order to be in big mind. I am one who breathes Presence. I am one who needs a teacher. 

What is your gift or message for me?

The connection is within you. Practice opens the path. There is more to you than mind. Pay attention and wake up! 

What do you want me to do?

Sit regularly. Sit some more. Sit, sit, sit. Just sit.

Why did you show up today?

Because you showed up.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is being seduced by ego into thinking about what my practice is doing, focusing on measuring, comparing, projecting progress. Light: the secret is within you and is always present and accessible.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Small and Mighty

I am one who is stronger than I appear. I am one who labors through time and perseveres. I am one who likes to be seen and feels seen for enduring, and who stands in light.

What is your gift or message for me?

There is power in small things and incremental movement.

What do you want me to do?

Do what needs doing that is in front of you, and remain open.

Why did you show up today?

As you listen to intuition, you are moving mountains of energy.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

My shadow is hubris.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Seeing Possibilities

I am one who likes form. I am one who looks into nothing and sees structures and creative possibilities. 

What is your gift or message for me?

The spark lives within you.

What do you want me to do?

Stoke the spark, brainstorm, tend the flame.

Why did you show up today?

Because I'm taking greater prominence in life.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is flightiness. 

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Reluctant Homemaker

I am one who would rather be reading than cleaning. I am one who is comfortable living with a certain level of dust and grime in order to attend to what interests me. I am one who would rather be somewhere else when cleaning.

What is your gift or message for me?

It's all right to ask for help at home from other family members. It's okay to let chores slide.

What do you want me to do?

Let go of guilt. Be present when you do these mundane chores. Teach Claire good habits.

Why did you show up today?

Because you are here at a SoulCollage® session instead of doing chores.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is slovenliness.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Relentless Investigator

I am one who is intensely focused. I seek clues and meaning. I persevere. I am one who practices attention through my eyes and through my mind.

What is your gift or message for me?

That being a seeker is only one part of who you are.

What do you want me to do?

Live in your body and all your senses.

Why did you show up today?

I have shown up today because you have noticed concerning lapses in memory. So this is a worry. I want to remind you that attention and retention aren't the same. 

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is the addiction to pursuit and perceiving with the eye to the exclusion of the other senses.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Presence, Patience, and Time

I am one who waits with dignity, with the composure of the Buddha. I am one who understands the difference between psychological time and the eternal present. I understand how to use psychological time in my life situations, yet I remain aware of my connection to timeless Presence, from which I come and which embodies me.

What is your gift or message for me?

I am subtle, and the world's noise can be distracting.

What do you want me to do?

Identify what makes you feel most alive and practice it daily, even if for a few moments.

Why did you show up today?

Because you were ready.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

Both light and shadow are needed.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Our Lady of Coffee

I am one who requires coffee. I am one who appreciates the daily ritual. I am one whose mind cannot function without a dose. I am one who is a mother and whose work is without end.

What is your gift or message for me?

That I am bottomless and endless and full of energy. 

What do you want me to do?

Enjoy imbibing without guilt or concern. Go out more to coffee shops. I am not meant to be drunk alone all the time. Life is messy and it's ok to spill, and sometimes art arises from what feels like a mistake.

Why did you show up today?

Because I'm ordinary and deeply integral to your life. And because you are feeling like hibernating and more tired because of the season.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is that drinking more coffee will not resolve your exhaustion if it is coming from other sources. The light is the pleasure of the ritual.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: One Who Hides

I am one who feels very small and wants to be invisible. I protect myself and want to remain hidden. I have survived because I am skilled at being elusive, furtive, and alert. I don't want connection; I don't want to be tamed. I mind my own business and remain wild, untouchable.

What is your gift or message for me?

Just because I move through the world unnoticed does not mean my life is pointless. 

What do you want me to do?

Create and distribute your art, your words and thoughts, without concern if it will be seen by others. 

Why did you show up today?

You are worthy of existing in your own eyes alone. 

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The light is you do not need external validation. 

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Needy Glutton

I am one who overeats sweet, salty, fatty foods because they taste delicious. I eat mindlessly and compulsively. I am one who uses food to manage my emotions and distract myself. I am one who does this despite knowing that overconsumption is like playing with a loaded gun. 

What is your gift or message for me?

This is a real part of you. It is possible you have an actual addiction to sugar, refined flour, and fat.

What do you want me to do?

Knowing, owning, and accepting this part of yourself will be part of your journey.

Why did you show up today?

Because you pretend I don't exist... and I insist on being acknowledged.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The light is gusto.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Miracle Worker

I am one who, in the season of scarcity, was able to produce new life. I am one who creates and who is rich deep inside. I received a gift from the universe. I am one whose body is luscious and full and vibrant.

What is your gift or message for me?

That the universe is full of marvelous surprises, and you're on a journey of creating life, even as you gain years of age. 

What do you want me to do?

Trust life, trust your intuition, continue delving in.

Why did you show up today?

I want you to celebrate your body and your life in all its power.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is forgetting that there is more than meets the senses... forgetting that this body is just a temporary vehicle.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Tender Protection

                                    

I am one who is small and frightened, who needs protection. I am one who wanted protection. I am one who wants an all-present Mother, who wants tenderness.

What is your gift or message for me?

That in mothering Bean the way I wanted to be mothered I am being healed.

What do you want me to do?

Hold yourself tenderly. Remember fear is an idea and love heals. So take time to love when you feel fear.

Why did you show up today?

Because you were ready to pay attention to me at last.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is abandonment, feelings of abandonment. The light is that attention is love.

SoulCollage® Committee Suit: Hot Tomato

I am one who is juicy and curvy and full of life. I am sweet and tangy. I am tempting. I am the dame they call a Hot Tomato.

What is your gift or message for me?

Be in the fullness of your body. Take up space. Tomatoes go with everything.

What do you want me to do?

Show yourself off to the world. Be proud of your abundance.

Why did you show up today?

Because you're ripe.

If you have a shadow, what would it be? Or, what light do you offer?

The shadow is over-ripeness, fruit rotting on the vine. The light is celebration.