The Art of Listening
“Listening is the oldest and perhaps most powerful tool of healing. It is often through the quality of our listening and not the wisdom of our words that we are able to effect the most profound changes in the people around us. When we listen, we offer with our attention an opportunity for wholeness. Our listening creates sanctuary for the homeless parts within the other person. That which has been denied, unloved, devalued by themselves and others, that which is hidden.”
~ Rachel Naomi Remen
Greetings Dear Ones,
I hope this finds you well and developing inner light during the holy days of darkness.
The quote above was shared with me by a friend and colleague who works with Veterans who deal with post traumatic stress through plant medicines and sacred ceremony. He shared the quote in a workshop on addiction which I recently attended. Ever since then I have been thinking about sharing it in a newsletter in relation to the work I do in my ministry, Anahata Healing Arts.
In case you don't already know this about me, I love to listen. When I heard the quote above, it resonated so deeply with me.
According to Wings of Hope Hospice; "Healing listening supports those who choose to express their pain by talking about it. It is a way to help another carry the burden of their grief for a short time so they can rest. Healing listening validates the other person and acknowledges their pain."
Long before I became a massage therapist, Integrative Holistic Health Counselor, and ordained minister, in my late teens/early twenties I volunteered for a suicide hotline in Silverdale, Washington where I grew up. I was so grateful for the opportunity to listen to folks who were suffering and in need. Later in my twenties, I listened through letters, by joining the Death Row Support Project and volunteering for Books to Prisoners during college. In both of these situations I listened to people in prison share their experiences and sufferings, without judgement, and shared letters and books back with them to help support them in their pain and isolation.
When I attended the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, I studied peer counseling, active listening, and coaching as part of my curriculum there.
I also believe that my 30+ years of contemplative practice, through yoga, meditation, mindfulness, and somatic awareness, have cultivated a capacity for presence that is palpable with my clients. In addition, I am also an ordained minister through The Universal Life Church.
On top of all that, I've done some 'professional research' (ha ha), and dived deep into my own experience with suffering and grief so that I could be empathetic and compassionate with those I serve. I am grateful for all the suffering I have experienced in this life and the way it has cracked my heart open to let the light in.
I have been blessed to work with many of my clients consistently over the past seven years. Some of them I've worked with even longer, for up to 12, 13, even 16 years, as ongoing yoga students who became massage clients, and folks I used to do outcalls with back in the early days before I set up my office. With many of my clients, I've worked with their families; siblings, nieces and nephews, sisters, husbands, etc. With one client, I've worked on her husband, son, daughter, mother, and father over the years.
I love the depth of relationship I weave with the people I work with, the ways I am able to support them, and the profound ways I learn from and am nourished by our exchanges.
The opportunity to listen deeply allows me to understand so much more about myself and about the nature of what is means to be human, in all its diversity. It also allows me, for a brief time, to help carry the burdens of those I support so that they can rest, and come back to the challenging (yet rewarding) work of being human, with renewed strength and joy.
The combination of heartfelt listening with therapeutic bodywork is deeply healing and helps clients to reset on many levels; body, mind, and spirit.
If you are looking for some support in the dark days, and need someone to listen, please don't hesitate to reach out.
As a reminder, I am available on Zoom and through phone calls for Integrative Holistic Health Counseling, as well as in person.
I look forward to seeing you soon.
With Love and Gratitude,
~Liz
Vata Season
Fall and early winter are Vata season, the time where air and ether (space) prevail. It is said to be a time when the 'veil is thin' because in the progression of the five maha bhutas, primal elements, air and ether are closest to the world of formlessness. Vata dosha is comprised of air and ether.
Vata is cold, light, dry, rough, and variable. Opposites balance, so this is the season for warm, grounding, oily, smooth, and stable to bring ourselves into harmony.
This means warm soups to eat, hot teas to drink with warming herbs, healthy oils in our food and on our skin, warm clothing and cozy homes, and rhythmic daily rituals to help us during this season of change.
It is the perfect time to receive Abhyanga, an Ayurvedic body therapy that supports healthy lymph, delivers herbal intelligence in warm herb infused oils, and addresses marma points (energy centers) throughout the body to balance and support the nervous system, which is ruled by Vata dosha.
It is also a great time for daily self massage with warm herb infused oils, which you can purchase at my Etsy shop, Baba Yaga Botanicals,or purchase directly from me the next time you come in to see me in Carpinteria for Bodywork, Integrative Holistic Health Counseling, Ayurvedic lifestyle counseling, or private yoga.
