Issue #212 - February 2023 |
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Greetings, and welcome to Soul Songs, the official KaleidoSoul Newsletter, focusing on SoulCollage® ideas, resources and cards. Our intention is to fill each issue (and your life) with inspiration, soul-solace and delight. Whether you are new to SoulCollage®, or already immersed in the creation of your deck, Soul Songs is for you!
Please feel free to forward this newsletter to any friends, colleagues, or family members who will enjoy it.
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Hi! I'm Anne Marie, the creator of KaleidoSoul.com, and a SoulCollage® Facilitator in Massachusetts and worldwide online. This column is all about presenting ways to get your soul singing with the deep, wide, wonder-full process that is SoulCollage®. |
This is my archetypal Council suit card for the Asian goddess Kuan Yin. The image is a painting that I purchased on Etsy, by Sue Halstenberg.
The energy of this goddess has been in my awareness a few times over the last year.
Once was last summer when my 93-year-old mother-in-law was declining in health and approaching death. I happened to draw my Kuan Yin card in a reading and this is what she said to me:
I am the one who is peaceful and calm. I am the one whose eyes are closed. I am the one who is going within. I am the one who is the goddess of Compassion.
My message for you today is this… close your own eyes, rest within in your Inner Sanctuary where all is well. There, you can activate compassion for your family and the grief they are going through at this time, and most importantly, you can activate compassion for yourself. There are places in your life where you are being harsh toward yourself. Change those harsh words to compassionate ones and you will see many changes in your life.
The words she spoke to me were a gentle gift that helped me through the remaining weeks of Connie’s life.
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Another time when I learned something about compassion was when I was struggling with how to respond to my former yoga teacher after discovering that her political views were radically different from my own. I didn’t draw Kuan Yin’s card during that reading. Instead—surprisingly enough—I drew my Inner Judge card. As you can see from this card, this part of me is sometimes four-times-stronger than your average Neter! This part of me who judges others is related to—but holds different energy than—the Inner Critic part who criticizes ME.
Here is what my Inner Judge Neter said to me about how I’d been struggling with judgment toward my yoga teacher (and note the bits about compassion):
When I am in balance, I do a good job of letting you know who you can trust and who might bring up conflict, distress, or hurt.
When I am out of balance, I only see differences. When I am out of balance, I lack the ability to see the bigger picture of a person, only the parts that don’t fit with my values and needs.
You don’t need to take a class from her again if you don’t want to. What you can do is widen your perspective. Accept these judgmental thoughts and feelings about the teacher and then remind me to step back so you are better able to see ALL the parts of her, not just her political beliefs.
I want you to remember that you are not a bad person for falling into unbalanced judgment sometimes. I want you to remember that your yoga teacher is not a bad person because her political views are different from yours. I want you to open your heart to her.
When you start having judgmental feelings about your former yoga teacher, that is me being out of balance. You can bring me back to balance by activating compassion for her, by calling to mind the many memories you have of her goodness.
These are two strikingly different instances when my SoulCollage® Neters guided me through a challenging time on my journey. As I look back on these two card readings, I am reminded how powerful our cards are, if we allow their wisdom to speak to us on a regular basis.
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Anne Marie Bennett is a SoulCollage® Facilitator / Trainer, published author, website goddess, and two-time cancer survivor who was mentored directly by Seena Frost. In 2005, she fell in love with SoulCollage® and was inspired to use her professional experience along with web technology as a means to serve the world by putting SoulCollage® "out there" in a really big way with KaleidoSoul. Anne Marie lives in eastern Massachusetts with her middle-aged husband, one adolescent feline, and a treasury of birds, squirrels and chipmunks who keep them hopping. Her books about SoulCollage® are available here.
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90-minute SoulCollage® Zoom
with Facilitator
Marti Beddoe
from Illinois
Date: Wednesday, February 22, 2023
Time: 4 pm Eastern
FR*EE for our
Only $10 for non-members
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I am Cat Caracelo, M.A., a SoulCollage® Facilitator, artist, depth coach and guidess in Austin, Texas. As the founder of JourneyPath® Institute I am dedicated to journey work, psycho-spiritual depth and transformative arts as a catalyst for change. I offer my work to individuals and groups, in-person and in global teaching forums. This column is for all of you who are exploring your creative voice and are ready to discover more depth your SoulCollage® journey. |
Compassion is a Precious Resource |
Compassion is that which makes the heart of the good move at the pain of others. It crushes and destroys the pain of others; thus, it is called compassion. It is called compassion because it shelters and embraces the distressed. - The Buddha
Compassion is the deep caring for the pain of others, accompanied by a desire to help. It is most often expressed as an outpouring of emotional energy toward others, yet compassion is less understood in terms of oneself, especially at times when overshadowed by the harsh judgment and shame of our inner critic.
Compassion is a precious gift we can give to ourselves, both as a means of authentic expression and guiding energy to act upon when called to respond.
In times like these, compassion is being experienced more and more. We’re in a culture where many of us experience being needed in ways that evoke desire to assist, and this can leave us feeling taken advantage of or overextended. In times like these, complex experiences of compassion fatigue are common.
Compassion fatigue can happen to any of us, when one is over-giving or overwrought. This often comes from a desire that is established for right reasons, but when we ignore our own needs too long, it takes a toll. In addition to exhaustion, lack of self-compassion can lead to feeling alone, burdened, and neglected.
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We move into compassion for ourselves when we become aware of, communicate with, and unravel the fears and false beliefs that we have absorbed from our past experiences. This is a powerful source of personal creative material when working with psycho-spiritual art forms such as SoulCollage®. Within creative process you will often seek clues and express lived experience, uncovering areas that need tending.
How much compassion do you reserve for, or offer to, yourself?
We all go through transitions and experiences where we need self-compassion. Each experience is significant, but many of us do not have the support to fully process the depths of our feelings. Art-making is a powerful tool that allows us to tell the deeper story and uncover new insights that expand our ability to cope and respond.
As humans, we can be so overwhelmed with change, especially at times when grief, loss, and fear are near. This critical judgment toward our own feelings can be an indication that moving into compassion is needed. These experiences include: relocating, job/career changes, life-stage shifts, changes in identity, illness, death, loss of mobility, aging, empty nest, life-style change, loss of desired outcomes, caregiving, loss of a pet, change in living situation, challenge with relationships, changes in the world, as well as societal, political and planetary shifts, and natural events that have the power to shock us.
We have the opportunity to explore the true nature of our experiences with compassion as a powerful and purposeful companion . . . using experiential, intuitive process to explore the nature and presence of compassion.
Try creating this month with some of these prompts and see what arises:
- If compassion is a part of Self, figurative, or animal imagery, who is compassion? What does it look like?
- If compassion is an object, what is its shape and size? How does it travel or where does it live?
- If compassion is a color, tone or shade, what is its expression?
- If compassion is a tree, how big does it grow and how deep are its roots?
- Is the compassion that you see in your art familiar and identifiable, or strange and unexpected?
- Is there a certain type of compassion that seems to be active and another that is missing or rare?
Working with compassion and its expression is both valuable and vulnerable. Using your SoulCollage® process offers a potent way to explore the layers where compassion is active. Transitions often expose tender places from our past; these can be unconscious connections that are triggered in times of instability. Having more access to compassion for self and others becomes a key element in understanding and claiming the deep and abiding resources of compassion that dwell within you.
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Cat Caracelo, M.A. is a SoulCollage® Facilitator since 2007. Working with Jungian Depth, archetypal awareness, expressive arts and transformative process she guides individual and group process internationally. Cat is the founder of JourneyPath® Institute where her dynamic eCourses, Trainings, Programs and Retreats offer art as process and mythic themes to enrich and expand experience. Please visit Cat’s website to find articles and information about programs and more.
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Here are some of our readers' cards on the theme of the Archetype of Compassion. |
Kuan Yin
Council Suit
Jennifer
Canada
I Am One who hears the cries of the world and offers compassionate mercy. I Am One Who assists those who pray to me. I watch over you like a mother cares for her child. Enlightenment was mine but I chose to stay and help all beings in need.
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Self-Compassion
Committee Suit
Dot
Pennsylvania
I am one wo is learning to extend to myself the same compassion I find easy to extend to others.
I am one who finds that placing my hands in blessing on my heart helps me to feel this deep within. I am one who is committed to continuing this practice until I “get it right.”
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Compassion
Council Suit
Cari
Tennessee
I am the one who guides your heart to show and feel compassion towards people and animals. I am here at all times to hold your heart in a state of compassion, and desire to see the softness that should be shown to all manner of creatures. I want you to know that your compassion is your greatest gift, along with related card Empathy. You have shown this time and again within your own life, and when you have met anger, confrontation, attacks and challenges with compassion, you have always felt no regrets afterward. I want you to know that your compassionate heart is precious, and not a liability or weakness.
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River of Compassion
Committee Suit
Anne Marie
Massachusetts
I am the one who dips into the River of Compassion. Sometimes I am taking the water of compassion for myself. Sometimes I am putting my compassion into the river for others to drink.
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Compassion
Council Suit
Lisa
California
I am one who offers the shelter of caring and comfort amidst the storm. I see you with compassionate eyes and hold you with my compassionate heart. In this moment of compassionate connection, I’ve got you. May you be soothed by tenderness and grace.
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Helping Hand
Committee Suit
Paula
Delaware
I am the one who extends a helping hand to others when life is coming to a close and a helping hand is needed most. I hold the hands of those who are alone and often afraid. I am one who knows the ripple effect of grief and loss but who holds on despite the weight. But I am also the one who needs a helping hand to hold on to.
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Compassion
Council Suit
Michele
California
I am one who watches closely and cares deeply. Tears flow as I witness the suffering of Mother Earth and her inhabitants.
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Tara Brach
Community Suit
Anne Marie
Massachusetts
I am the one who first brought to your attention the concept of radical self-compassion. I am the one who reminds you that meditation and mindfulness are the best tools you have to activate compassion toward yourself and others.
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Please feel free to submit one of your cards for a future issue by sending a reply email to this newsletter.
Future themes include:
March: Goddesses
April: Relationships
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Noteworthy resources for anyone interested in SoulCollage®
KaleidoSoul - Spinning the fragments of your world into wholeness and beauty through SoulCollage®.
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Goddesses of Self-Care Course
Early Spring Session
with Stephanie Anderson Ladd
Starts March 3, 2023
Could you use guidance when it comes to . . . Depression & Grief, Healthy Relationships, Body & Sexuality? If so, join Stephanie and other creatives as they explore these topics through the wisdom of nine different goddesses from her book Goddesses of Self-Care: 30 Divine Feminine Archetypes to Guide You. In this 6-week, self-paced, online course you will learn strategies for when you're having an underworld experience—depressed or grieving, as well as how to set boundaries and use good communication skills in relationships, plus what it means to love your body. Includes creative exercises (including SoulCollage®) and three zoom gatherings.
Use your special coupon code to save 15%
Come join the fun with a group of like-minded SoulCollagers & creatives!
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March 23 – June 9, 2023
Align with your own Cosmic Creatrix
and archetypal energies
(Possibility, Potential, Purpose, Power, and Passion)
to make a change or start something new in your life
wherever you’ve been feeling blocked or stuck.
In this 3-month journey, Kata brings together SoulCollage®, art making, journaling, prompted inquiry, guided visualization, mindfulness exercises, and group coaching to support you wherever you are on your life's journey.
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ONTARIO, CANADA
SoulCollage® Facilitator Training
Ontario, Canada
August 9-13, 2023
Facilitator: Jennifer Boire, Kellie McComb
Do you love SoulCollage® and want to learn how to share it with others? Do you enjoy exploring your creative self with intuition, images and imagination? Then come train as a SoulCollage® Facilitator this summer at the Galilee Center, in Arnprior, Ontario, on the banks of the Ottawa River, west of Ottawa. The prerequisites are listed on my website. See www.jenniferboire.com for details. All costs are in Canadian dollars. EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION DISCOUNT ENDS APRIL 30, 2023.
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MASSACHUSETTS
Surfing the Waves of Life with SoulCollage®
Genesis Spiritual Life Center- Westfield, MA
June 15-18, 2023
Facilitator: Anne Marie Bennett, Anne Boedecker,
and Rita Benson
* Only TWO spaces left * Please join a Circle of creative, compassionate, spiritually-oriented women for a peaceful, fun weekend of community, SoulCollage® card making, readings, and divine inner discoveries.
We will use SoulCollage®, journaling, small group sharing, ceremony, and card readings in order to explore the theme of resilience as we surf the waves that life sometimes throws at us. The card making tables are open ‘round the clock, and all breakout workshops are optional. You have the freedom to make this weekend whatever you need it to be!
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Just look for whatever SoulCollage® topic you are interested in,
and read to your heart's content!
SoulCollage® is a trademarked process created by Seena B. Frost.
For more information about Seena and the origins of SoulCollage®,
SoulCollage® cards are made either from one's own art or from images found in materials which have been bought by or given to the SoulCollage® card maker. These collaged cards are used only for the cardmaker's own inner exploration. SoulCollage® cards are not sold, traded, bartered, or copied (except as a back-up for the cardmakers own use) as is stated in the "Principles of SoulCollage®."
Where SoulCollage® cards are available to be seen by others, it is for the purposes either of demonstrating the SoulCollage® process or of sharing the cardmakers' inner process in the context of community. SoulCollage® is grateful to the artists and photographers who make this deep awakening process possible and in all ways SoulCollage® seeks to be respectful of their rights.
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All articles in SOUL SONGS are copyrighted 2023,
by Anne Marie Bennett, Cat Caracelo, Linda Woolfson,
Michaela Daystar, or Michele Manos.
Articles may be reprinted by permission only.
Image of singing birds Copyright: Kudryashka from Deposit Photos.
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