Self-Care — The Ultimate Act

By Samantha Hart

You may have heard it before — that you are the most important person in your life, and the more selfish you are, the more selfless you can be. I know, it sounded like baloney to me at first too, but hear me out. The word “selfish” — defined as being concerned primarily with one’s own personal profit or pleasure — has a negative connotation, almost synonymous with “self-absorbed.” It is the opposite of “selfless.”  However, in life we are constantly striving for balance, whether it’s with work, relationships, food … so why should this be any different? The more we take care of ourselves, the more we are able to take care of others. So let’s take a moment to be selfish, because it is just as important to our health as eating our kale.  

There are ways to find time for self-care throughout your day. For many of us who have running, yoga, or other physical exercise on our daily to-do lists, a big act in self-care is actually taking these activities off the list. Yes, that’s right! Let it be what it is — an act of love to our bodies and beings rather than just another item to check off the to-do list. Whether you run, swim, practice Pilates or yoga, let it be a moment for you — for you to love the movement of your body, become one with the breath, and feel the beauty of your entire being. When we change our perception about an activity from it being something that we have to do, to it being something that we want to do, we allow ourselves to truly absorb the experience. If you practice alone, you may realize that this quality time with you is the biggest treat you can offer to yourself, and in turn, offer your loved ones.

Moments for the self can also be found in moments of stillness. We crave quiet in times of chaos, but it never seems to become a part our self-care regimen. To sit in awareness is to bring a bit of bliss, beauty, and harmony to the you, me, and we. We can find stillness (meditate) in the morning to set the tone for the rest of the day, or we can meditate after work or before bed to help clear and calm the mind from the day’s stresses. With practice, it will become part of our routine, but for a lot of us, there just isn’t enough time to sit when there are kids that need to get to school, bills to be paid, and dinner to be made. To find self-care in stillness, it once again becomes about a change in perception — rather than thinking of meditation as sitting in a lotus position, chanting, swaying, and burning a sage stick from side to side, let’s think of it as an offering to ourselves (and to others), and maybe in this mindset, we can discover a different route to enlightenment and self-love. It can be as simple as turning your morning coffee or an evening glass of wine into a meditative moment. Wherever you enjoy that coffee or wine, close your eyes for a few seconds to enjoy the stillness.  Here are some tips to find it: 

Lightly close your eyes and begin to focus your attention inward. Savor the moment. Keep breathing. Soften your face, relax your grip, relax your mouth, relax your tension. Be in present awareness with the activity. Dissect each flavor, taste, and texture. Track the liquid as it goes into your mouth, down your throat, and into your stomach. Follow your breath in, hold for a moment, and follow it back out. Enjoy, linger, and savor the stillness — it comes and goes so quickly.  

You could also take this meditation into the bath, if you try it in the evening, with wine or an herbal tea. Let yourself prepare a “selfish” bath, one that would normally take too much time to prepare for yourself but that you would gladly offer to someone you care about. Linger there in the stillness and afterward use scrubs and exfoliates (bought or homemade) to gently wash and massage the day away. Your body and loved ones will thank you for taking that 15 minutes to be with yourself, finding solitude and self-love. 

All of the above are simply suggestions. An act of self-care is really just taking a moment for you to do what you need to do in order to be the best you. You do so much for so many. Though the days go by quickly and we always feel there’s a shortage of time, we can take a few moments for ourselves. Even if only for 5 minutes, allow yourself that time to be fully “selfish” so you can be selfless throughout the remainder of your day. 

Samantha Hart is a wife, yoga teacher, and writer residing in Ann Arbor. She holds weekly yoga classes at Move Wellness and is available for private yoga instruction.  She has conducted workshops around Ann Arbor and is currently working on a body image workshop to be held in 2016 for teenagers and young women. Sammy came to yoga because of her own body-image issues, and she tries to help others through movement, breath, and cultivating compassion for one’s own body. To get in touch, email sammyhartyoga@gmail.com.

“The Old Moon Holds the New Moon Within” ~ An Interview with Educator Carol Tice

By Karen Jones • Photo by Joni Strickfaden

In 1971, the results of desegregation in the Ann Arbor Public Schools moved and stirred the soul of forty-year-old art teacher Carol Tice. Carol keenly observed the African American children coming from Jones Elementary School, and as she did, recognized that these newly bused in children would need a great deal of support. The desire to help them filled her thoughts and weighted her heart, yet she felt limited in her role as a teacher. She found herself wishing that her retired parents, who lived out of state, would come, nourish, and share their unconditional love and guidance with these children, just as they had with her when she was a child. 

Carol began thinking about the displaced elderly living in nursing homes. Elders who had spent an entire lifetime learning to do the things that they were best at were now put on a shelf. She found herself inquiring at the Whitehall Nursing Center to see if they would bus a group of elderly persons to her art class. They would and they did. Somehow Carol knew it would turn out all right. Carol instructed the elderly to bring with them only what they loved to do. There was to be no tutoring and no assignments for the children. Carol knew benefits would be bestowed to all the children.

One elderly woman demonstrated the carding of wool while she spoke tenderly of raising sheep, sharing with the children the gifts the woolly animal imparts to all of us. A Native American elder brought forth from his culture the making of arrowheads. Some of the elders slept in wheelchairs, some drooled, but the children did not mind. Instead the children would compliment the grandpersons by telling them how soft their skin was and hugged them when they had to leave. Carol noticed elders who began arriving to class with combed hair and clean clothes. She noticed the children’s essence was changing, too, as a sense of common humanity began to bind the young and the old together in a most miraculous way.

During the inception of her volunteer program, called Teaching-Learning Communities (T-LC), Carol reached out to Dr. Margaret Mead, a famous anthropologist, for guidance. Dr. Mead immediately recognized the magnitude of the greater good of Carol’s work and shared its importance at speaking engagements across America. Dr. Mead would sometimes speak metaphorically about Carol’s work to her audience by saying: “The old moon holds the new moon within.” Both Dr. Mead and Carol believed that the light of our elders embraces and shines wisdom on our young, in the infancy of their emotional, intellectual, and spiritual growth.

Providence began to move. Carol’s intergenerational model spread into Ann Arbor’s 22 schools. This success led to Carol’s being appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1979 to serve on the U.S. Commission of the International Year of the Child. This honorary appointment assisted in spreading the intergenerational programs across our fifty states.

Two years ago the University of Michigan’s Bentley Historical Library on North Campus, which archives and documents the activities of people and voluntary associations in the State of Michigan, requested papers on Carol Tice and T-LC. There are ten boxes archived and shelved just waiting to be resurrected. The library also made materials available for download online, such as her interview with Dr. Mead when she visited Ann Arbor in 1976.

Today I sit across from Carol in her living room. She is 83 now. She has a round cherub face. The iris of her eyes is pristine blue like a brand new morning sky. Her eyes reflect the clarity she carries within. She is dressed in a pretty turquoise blouse and wears turquoise rings in honor of our Native American people whom she loves. I have a million questions to ask her but I have to settle for the following.

“Carol, did you ever run into problems with the Ann Arbor School District with your planning?” 

“Oh yes, I applied for a grant from the State of Michigan for $100,000 for my T-LC program and got it. The school district wanted to fire me because grant writing was an administrative duty not a teacher’s duty.” 

Carol chuckles, “The Native Americans got word of it and staged a sit-in on the steps of the school district’s building. The Native Americans loved what I was doing with the children. Then the union got involved and thought it would make good press. Needless to say I did not get fired!”

“Our young children are developing their worldview in schools today that are in lock down, trust is low, schools do not want people coming in from the outside.” Carol interrupts me and passionately says, “Even more reason to bring back T-LC. It is more necessary now than ever before.”

“What about pedophiles? How did you safeguard against those types of predators with the children?”

“We had middle-aged women as aides who oversaw the groups and were trained to intervene.”

“When you reflect back on the groups, do you have a favorite memory between the children and the elderly that surfaces over and over again?”

“We had an elderly paraplegic man volunteering who had no family. When he died the retirement center went through the trunk at the end of his bed. On one side of the trunk were his clothes. On the other side were the pictures and letters the children had given him.”

“When did T-LC dissolve?”

“Two years after I retired. A new superintendent came in and, well, superintendents change things.”

“I would like to know more about what made you who you are. What is one of your fondest early childhood memories?”

“My family was on a mission endeavor from the Presbyterian Church. My father was an astronomer and the principal at the school for Native American children. My mom was an artist. At that time, I was three. The Native American mothers would walk through my yard to get their children from school and see that I had no one to play with. I was just sitting playing in the dirt, so they began to bring me clay pots that they had made. I still have some of them. My father left that job because he would not follow the Church’s instructions to punish the children if they spoke their native language.”

“What do you remember about yourself when you began to attend school?”
Carol chuckles, “I didn’t color between the lines. I always colored outside the lines and I was very messy. I shared a room with my sister and she made us draw an imaginary line down the middle. Her side was neat and tidy. Mine was a total mess, but I knew where everything was. Later I learned to color between the lines. And even later, when I colored between the lines, the lines were my lines.”
“Would your family make you clean your room? Abide by the rules of neat, tidy, and orderly?” 

“No, never, my mom accepted my differences.”

“How do you like to spend your time now that you are retired?”

“I am involved with Peace Neighborhood, which has programs for children and families affected by social and economic challenges. I volunteer teaching art to the children there. It is important for me to continue the work I did through the public school system bringing the young and old together. My early work with T-LC set me on a lifelong learning quest to find what we can do to help little children. Then later I tried to find ways to help teenagers, who in some ways are more difficult.”

“What was the work you did with teenagers?”

“I co-invented Peer Power Project with an African American social worker who had grown up in the African community, for a Chicago middle school. We worked with teenage girls whose mothers or sisters were 14 when they became pregnant. We worked with prevention. There was not a single pregnancy for three years. The girls I worked with would be seen drawing blood in gang fights at noon, then dramatically change and turn into children their own age when the elders from the community center were brought in. The girls were gentle with the frail elderly and kind, very kind.

I also am involved with Blue Lake Fine Arts camp. I started a philosophy there that was not academic but more student-centered. I teach visual arts to the children. Each child discovers that visual art resides within them. With positive reinforcement the visual arts within a child can spring forth on paper.” 

Emphatically Carol says, “The right side of the brain must be developed for creative problem solving. I cannot stress enough the importance of right brain development, using art with children. Even music does not affect the right side of the brain the same way as art does because the left brain is more involved with music.” 

“Is there anything else would you like us to know?”

“Yes, there is. I have healers in my life right now to help my body feel better because I have a lot more I want to do. I am now the old moon. I used to be the new moon absorbing the wonderful mentoring and receiving positive affirmations from the old moons close to me.” 

Carol smiles, “Now I am both the old moon carrying my younger new moon within.”

Interviewer Karen Jones is an occupational therapist, writer, and keen observer and lover of the holiness of nature. She has a strong admiration for powerful women enacting social change. Her email address is joneskg05@yahoo.com. Carol Tice can be contacted at chtice@aol.com. 

My Journey from Reiki to Usui Reiki Ryoho

By Andrew Anders • Photos by Joni Strickfaden

A motivation rooted in compassion
A journey born of determination
Discovery of the way of peace
in mind and body

Over a decade ago, I was presented with difficulty and blessed with the opportunity to learn about Reiki. What started out as a passing curiosity and sincere desire to help my ailing mother, turned into what is now a lifelong journey of healing and personal growth. 

Coming of age in the ’90s and early 2000s, I had unrestricted access to many unconventional ideas and perspectives, all via dial-up connection. This era of information introduced me to new age trends, Veritas communities, Eastern thought systems, Mayan prophecies, and so on. I read about all sorts of ideas, like healing with gemstones, guided meditation, visualization, and energy healing techniques. I was an open-minded kid with keys to a world much bigger than the south side of Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Meanwhile, back in the real world, my mother had been laid off again. She was a very sensitive, compassionate, and hard-working woman, proud to provide her fair share for the family. Apparently she was also quite stubborn, socially reserved, and set in her ways. Upon losing her second job after re-entering the workforce (she raised me and my siblings at home), she fell into a depression of the likes that I don’t believe she ever recovered from. 
Unable to provide and feeling the burden of a single-income household, my mother’s stress turned into a very real and very uncomfortable pain. Despite numerous visits to the doctor, no single cause was found. Eventually, she was offered medication for her pain with no permanent solution in sight. I later learned this is another way to understand the expression “practicing medicine” — there are no guarantees.

One night I was startled awake by my Dad’s voice, yelling for my older brother and looking for help. Mom was having a seizure and my father had no idea how to react. Unfortunately, this was the beginning of what would soon be an all-too-common occurrence. Calling the ambulance and rushing off to the hospital almost became routine after a few years.
Being young and naive, I decided the doctors knew nothing and that I would take matters into my own hands. Little did I know how literal that expression would come to be.

Discovering Reiki

My journey officially began upon seeing a co-worker waving his hands around a colleague. Upon further investigation, I learned he was “doing Reiki” to help her headache. No more than maybe a month later, he taught me his style and approach to Reiki.

Following this experience, I moved on with great interest, and pursued further education with the International Center for Reiki Training, earning certification in level 1 and level 2. The experience was life changing. I still had many questions, but that was for later. The top priority was to go home and hopefully heal my mother.

Thankfully, Mom was very open to my spiritual curiosity and studies. However, even with her support, in the many times I offered a healing session, Mom kindly declined, deciding she just wasn’t ready for Reiki healing right at that moment. In my mind, this was nothing to worry about. I’d be there for her when she was ready.

In the years following, I played with Reiki techniques, satisfied with my certification and warm healing hands. Eventually, I pursued Reiki mastership, looking for a chance to “increase my healing powers.” 

No more than two months after completing the master level, my Mom suddenly passed away. I’d lost my chance to fix things. In one of my last moments of seeing her, I made a vow to do my best and help as many people as possible in her memory.

Toward Usui Reiki Ryoho

The vow I made pushed me headfirst into the world of all things Reiki. Despite being a “master” at that point, I realized just how little I really knew. So I set out to find the answers to the questions I still had, in pursuit to be the best practitioner I could be. 

I traveled all over the U.S., beginning with an understanding of Reiki as a palm-healing “energy-medicine” technique. I eventually landed in Japan, the birth place of Usui Reiki Ryoho, with an understanding of Reiki as a deep inner practice for holistic healing in mind and body. 

Usui Reiki Ryoho is a traditional Japanese inward-contemplative practice, established by Mikao Usui for healing in mind and body. Usui Shiki Ryoho is a later development based on Mikao Usui’s method, generally emphasizing palm-healing techniques. The majority of modern “Reiki” traditions teach a variation of Usui Shiki Ryoho, highlighting palm-healing techniques for stress release and relaxation. Initially, I focused on this approach, and the motivation to trace it back to its origins pushed me to New England, in search of the early teachings of Hawayo Takata.  

Hawayo Takata is a very important person in the history of Reiki. She brought the practice from Japan to America in the early twentieth century, teaching the methods of Usui Shiki Ryoho. One of her earliest students, John Harvey Gray, was still living and teaching students in the New Hampshire area, so I traveled there to take classes at his healing center. As Mr. Gray was quite advanced in age, I ended up training with Dr. Lourdes Gray, the late Mr. Gray’s wife and now director of their Reiki center.

Dr. Gray stressed “Reiki with no short cuts,” and taught level 1 and level 2 separately (they are usually taught together in a one-weekend seminar). Her classes referenced Mrs. Takata’s teachings directly, while also introducing new age healing ideas, such as aura reading and chakra balancing. 

Upon returning home from New England, I entered the Reiki therapy program at Beaumont Health System in Michigan. Their therapy program de-emphasized the origins and history of Reiki and helped me to understand it from an integrative medicine paradigm. Whereas Dr. Gray’s method focused more on tradition, the Beaumont program emphasized research and statistical evidence. 

After the Beaumont program, I went on to New York to study further, but eventually, I realized that despite all of my training, I still felt unclear about something — how Reiki “works.” Although the word “Reiki” translates directly to “spiritual essence,” it is often understood to be an almost magical hands-on, palm healing technique. None of my teachers offered a direct explanation for how it works and why, and instead focused on traditions and applications.

A Deeper Understanding

Later, I found the deeper understanding I was looking for in the traditional Japanese approach to Reiki, originally called Usui Reiki Ryoho (臼井靈氣療法). In this tradition, meditation is emphasized. Daily meditation with Usui’s methods (precepts, breathing, symbols, etc.) allows a deeper embodiment of Reiki and promotes the body’s natural healing potential. This holistic approach to Reiki changed my life. I realized that only by my own effort would I understand Reiki. Fewer teachings — more practice. With this, healing was much deeper and more effective, both personally and for others, allowing me a conscious way to be the best practitioner I could be.

After years of daily practice, I learned that Reiki is nothing esoteric or mystical. It’s actually one of the most natural things we all have. A peaceful mind and healthy body doesn’t require “magic,” when we allow ourselves to be grateful for and compassionate to what’s already inside and around us. 

It is in the spirit of this understanding that I offer this writing and sincerely wish that all beings heal, be free, and be at peace in mind and body.

Andrew Anders is a professional Reiki teacher and Reiki practitioner trained in Usui Reiki Ryoho, Usui Shiki Ryoho, and Usui/Tibetan Reiki. He is also a 4th degree master instructor in two Korean martial art systems: Kukki Taekwondo and Hoijeon Moosool. He is the principal Reiki instructor at Washtenaw Community College, and conducts Reiki healing sessions and monthly practice circles out of the Lotus Center. Lastly, he pays the bills as a full time university programmer/analyst. He can be contacted at http://michiganreiki.org; aanders@michiganreiki.org; or (734) 480-8107.

---

Garnet ~ The Conquerors’ Stone

By Carol Clarke-Tiseo

Conquerors throughout time have been known as natural-born leaders, taking what they want and acting swiftly and effectively. It is no wonder then that garnet, which helps to gain control or to overcome, is called the “conquerors’ stone.” It’s even believed that the legendary Don Juan had a garnet in his ring.

Garnet is the traditional birthstone of January and the stone of the Aquarius zodiac sign. In history and folklore, it has a place as a powerful talisman. It is said to have been one of the 12 stones in the Breastplate of the High Priest, and it has been used as a sacred stone by the Native American Indians, the South American Indians, the Aztecs, the African tribal elders, and the Mayans. Some tribes in Asia used red garnets as bullets for sling bows because the stones pierced victims quickly and were hidden when mixed with blood. Garnet was also used in wounds to encourage clotting.

Calling upon garnet for its warrior qualities can be helpful in many ways. Elevating your professional or personal life is not always an easy task. Bringing in new sales for your business, for instance, or committing to a change in diet or lifestyle can prove quite challenging. Placing three or more garnets on your desk or in your home will help you channel the stone’s warrior qualities and achieve your goals. The fortifying nature of garnet also makes it a useful stone to have in times of crisis, particularly in situations where there seems to be no way out. It activates and strengthens the survival instinct, bringing courage and hope into these situations. The crisis is turned into a challenge under garnet’s influence.

Energetically, garnet acts as a cleaner and a reboot for the chakra system. It purifies and balances energy, sparking passion where appropriate. Red garnet in particular rekindles the electric kundalini energy, allowing light to flow freely up the spinal column and distribute appropriate amounts of energy to each area of the body. Lying down on the floor with small pieces of garnet placed on and around the body can encourage a strong feeling of letting go what doesn’t serve. Garnet is also a sensual stone. It represents the creation of the world out of chaos, and carries qualities of divine purification and love. It can spark love, create devotion in your relationships, and balance your sex drive.

Physically, garnet has been used to reduce body toxins, purify vital organs and blood, and assist in the assimilation of vitamins and minerals, such as iodine, calcium, magnesium, and vitamins A, D, and E. It is also very effective in stimulating sluggish metabolisms and charging the DNA. Garnet can help alleviate acne, low libido, and disturbances in the cardiac rhythm (except for arterial hypertension, which garnet may aggravate). It is believed that placing garnet under your pillow may help with depression. 

The Many Varieties of Garnet

Commonly known to be red, garnets actually come in many varieties, and each type has unique characteristics. Almandine appears as red to violet-red; spessartite appears as yellow, rose, or orange to reddish-brown; pyrope is deep red; grossular occurs in quite a few colors, including white, yellow, yellow-green, brownish-red, orange, and black; andradite can appear colorless, yellow-green, brown, or black. The most prized garnet in the world is demantoid, which is deep emerald green in color and is part of the andradite group.

Almandine garnet is deeply tied with earth energy, and has qualities of incredible strength, willpower, and resistance to all things negative. It aids in blood-related disorders and assists in circulation.

Andradite garnet is a stone of self-empowerment and safety. Its energy aligns with the sacral, heart, and solar plexus chakras, attracting relationships and dissolving isolation.

Grossular garnet brings hope and empowerment, and encourages service to others. Grossular connects us to the “I AM” energy binding all of humanity together.

Pyrope garnet is a stone of inspiration, vitality, and charisma. It encourages you to own and embrace your unique gifts and abilities, and also provides the support and encouragement you may need to share these gifts with others. Spiritually, it offers grounding as you realize more of your spiritual gifts throughout the infinite.

Spessartite garnet is very rare. It is almost always mixed with almandine. Spessartite activates the analytical processes of the mind, removing fear, giving strength of will, and providing confidence to change one’s life.

Uvarovite garnet promotes abundance and wealth, assisting one in accepting what is offered by the Universe. It stimulates the heart chakra and enhances spiritual relationships.

Carol Clarke-Tiseo is a Melody Master Crystologist, Reiki Master, and Licensed Massage Therapist. She is a member of the Association of Melody Crystal Healers International™. Carol has ten years of experience in energy healing, and eleven years of experience in doing therapeutic massage and bodywork. She recently relocated to South Lyon, Michigan, offering healing work and classes. She can be contacted at cclarke2005@hotmail.com.

---

Growing My Inner Essence with Flower Remedies

By Carol Bennington

Are you a lover of Nature too? As long as I can remember, I have loved trees and flowers. Over time, this has grown into a passion for flower essences.

What Are Flower Remedies?

Flower essences, aka flower remedies, are liquid, pattern-infused solutions made from flowers and tree blossoms. The purpose of flower essences is to enhance emotional and spiritual well-being. Each particular flower corresponds to an emotional range; by using these essences, one can help balance emotions and create greater harmony. Unlike essential oils that use fragrances of the plant’s oil, flower essences have no floral fragrance.

Flower essences are made by placing flower blossoms on the surface of spring water in a glass bowl, which is placed outside in the sun. The sunlight transfers the vibrational pattern of the flowers into the water. When the process is complete, the solution is filtered, removing the flowers, and Brandy is added as a preservative.

Dr. Edward Bach, an English physician, created his first flower remedy in 1928. He was a scientific researcher and a highly sensitive person, who was very in-tune with Nature. His plant knowledge and intuition led him to determine which attributes matched specific flowers. Dr. Bach’s remedies were distinctive because he correlated them with emotional well-being. He believed that emotional harmony would lead to physical well-being.

According to Dr. Bach, flower remedies work to “raise our vibrations and open our channels for the reception of the Spiritual Self…. They are able, like beautiful music or any glorious uplifting thing which gives us inspiration, to raise our very natures, and bring us nearer to our souls,” which then brings peace and relief from suffering (The Original Writings of Edward Bach: Compiled from the Archives of the Dr. Edward Bach Healing Trust). Because of Dr. Bach’s work, thousands of different flower essences are now made across the globe.

Resonance

One current hypothesis for how these remedies work is that each flower’s energetic blueprint holds the energy pattern of a balanced state for a specific emotion or range of emotions. This balanced energetic pattern gets transferred into what becomes the flower essence. Flower essences are selected so that an imbalanced emotional state can tune in to the higher balance state of the flower essence and resonate to it.

Use

In the Bach Flower Remedy system, the suggested use is two drops of a single essence or four drops for a combination of essences. If more is needed, increasing the frequency of use rather than the amount taken is recommended. For an ongoing concern, it is advised to use them at least four times a day.

Flower essences are typically ingested. Customarily, drops are taken with water or tea. They can also be taken directly from the stock bottle with care not to touch the dropper to your mouth. (If you do, be sure to rinse it off before returning it to the bottle.) Other methods of application include using them topically or spraying the room.

Beginning My Journey

During my herbal apprenticeship, the instructor created a personalized flower essence formula for me containing Cherry Plum. I was very skeptical but decided to give it a try. The Bach Cherry Plum flower remedy is indicated for individuals afraid of losing their minds or losing control. At the time, a personal situation had left me feeling like I was in a pressure cooker with the steam valve locked shut. When I used Cherry Plum, I experienced the pressure cooker valve opening and the steam beginning to escape. The external situation had not changed; however, now I could respond rather than react.

After this experience, I vowed to learn more about flower essences. I attended the Bach International Education Program to become a Bach Foundation Registered Practitioner and later studied at the Bach Centre in England. I was invited to become one of a dozen U.S. instructors for this program. I took the practitioner courses of several North American flower essence systems. My immersion in flower essences continued with my doctoral dissertation, which explored the personal relationship with Nature of persons using flower essences from 40 countries.

Allies

Flower essences are my allies; they “always have my back.” Like a best friend, they are there when I need them, and are willing to journey with me.

Flower remedies are not a panacea that magically makes everything better. Life still happens, but they can help us access our strengths. I am certain my divorce was a kinder experience for both of us because of flower essences. I was able to address my fears, despair, uncertainty, anger, grief, and the myriad of emotions as they surfaced. The flowers helped me call upon my courage, patience, confidence, direction, hope, and encouragement. I saw things from a different perspective. While I might normally reframe a situation, the flowers remind me to look again in the midst of such stressors. They nudge me to do what I need to do, and assist me in navigating through the chaos.

Empowerment

My passion is to empower people with ways they can de-stress their lives and live more fully. I love teaching others about flower essences through classes, presentations, private consultations, and mentoring. Sometimes it’s harder to pinpoint your own needs, and this is where an experienced practitioner can help. A flower remedy consultation assists you in distinguishing which remedies are appropriate for your circumstances. This is a time to be heard; there are no judgments, labels, diagnosing or prescribing, as this is an educational process of self-discovery.

“If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.” — Jack Kornfield, Buddha’s Little Instruction Book

My experiences with flowers did change the direction of my life. Using that flower remedy two decades ago I began my extraordinary journey of self-discovery, transformation, empowerment, and a deepening of my relationship with Nature and myself.

Ready to Bloom?

The next time you are feeling emotionally out of kilter, consider trying flower essences. I invite you to explore the world of flower remedies to align yourself with your authentic nature.   

Carol Bennington, Ph.D., is a Bach Foundation Registered Practitioner (B.F.R.P.), Bach International Education Program Instructor, and author. She also offers mentoring, life coaching, and nature-based approaches. Visit www.Awakening-Hearts.com for more information. Carol can be reached at (734) 726-4303 or Journey@Awakening-Hearts.com.

---