[Ash Tallmadge]

Hi All!
Liz, I live in Tucson and was really wanting to go to the Summit in Phoenix too but was unable to get out of work! I hope you had a wonderful time. I love that feeling of “knowing” something so strongly that it is unavoidable, and usually then things come together in just the right way for it to happen for us. This kind of synchronicity is what I think makes life worth living sometimes. It is an incredible, inspiring and elated feeling.
On the topic of Vision, I will say that I have come a long way since the start of this course in learning to see my own Vision in new and deeper ways. I don’t know if I actually even used that word or concept before, because it feels kind of amorphous and I tend to want to pull things down into clear and defined concepts. I’m learning to let that go. I have started thinking of my own Vision as something like a “Genius”, which is not really the societal concept of being “extremely intelligent”, but more like a wonderful gift, and presence, which is completely unique and personal for each of us. It is within us but also more than us. The Romans coined this word and believed each person to have a benevolent guiding “spirit” that tends to us and leads us. This is what Vision feels like to me. A guiding presence that directs thoughts internally, and action externally, with the purpose of bringing my unique contributions to my community and the world. I can’t imaging where else this impetus and impulse would come from. I like thinking of Vision this way.
I feel my vision is to nurture with nature. I feel compelled to share plant medicine and teach others how to build relationship to Nature, because it is integral to our caring for it, and ourselves. My vision is to lead others to feel what I have felt in connection with “other”; the elements, and all living things surrounding us. I started a business called “Hearts&Bones” when I first connected to my Vision while on a hike years ago, and have never felt more inspired. Tending to this, what I now recognize as Vision, turned out to be more challenging. But having learned new tools, I feel reinvigorated on the importance of doing so.

[Ash Tallmadge]

Hi All,
I spent time reading all of your words here and was impressed and touched by the honesty and deep work it seems everyone is really stepping into! I have not been able to attend the webinars because of work, which really bums me out, but at least I get to listen and share a little here.
I relate a lot to what is being said here throughout, challenges and growth and curiosity and confusion, all of it! My coach and I have talked several times about what kinds of things arise when you start to really practice awareness, and sometimes it is not easy to see. For me, the sit spot routine has been an awesome daily practice. I’ve used it as a sort of supplication, a greeting of the day and a time of gratitude. As I open my awareness in this time I am inevitably filled with awe and joy at the possibility of being alive and being capable of sensing so much with my physical, emotional and spiritual bodies. What an amazing gift.
Working with my parts has been a journey in evolution. As I have gotten more familiar with them, it has felt easier to speak through many voices without so much tension and conflict. I recognize that when I didn’t acknowledge my parts, they had to speak with much more energy to be heard, and this created a lot of internal discord that I brought into the world. This is easing rapidly now. It’s a much more friendly and compassionate space in my head.
I’ve used my partner as a guinea pig for my practice of tuning into anothers vision council, and what I’ll say is what another of you said, that I can’t seem to distinguish what I think of as the “vision council” from what I’m more sure are the other’s “parts”. I’d appreciate recommendations for this. I’ve tried to really stretch awareness here but I can’t seem to get there. I find myself focusing so hard I stop paying attention to what she’s saying at all. 😊

[Ash Tallmadge]

This is the first time I have practiced active Programming. Having been aware of “Law of Attraction” idea in the past (and not always connecting to it), I was hesitant to try. I began by approaching it with a lighthearted and easy attitude, so that it wouldn’t feel heavy, or say, the stakes wouldn’t be too high. I wanted to play with it by focusing my conscious thoughts, feelings and body on allowing myself to have something I want. In this case, a new truck. I just sold a suburban connected with my business, and had a really hard time letting it go. I took the opportunity to practice programming myself to look for something new and let go of the old. It wasn’t really about finding a “new” truck so much as changing my behavior in allowing myself to look for one. I am prone to deny myself most anything I desire, and when something desirable arises, many of parts speak up quickly and loudly. Without focus or intention, the parts fight for attention, power and control with my decision making. One says, “Go for it, you will have so much fun with it” another say “It’s so impractical, your partner will chide you, you don’t know what you are doing” and yet another says “You don’t deserve it”. There are surely others as well. So, taking an active role with programming my intention, and consciously stepping into my soul part every time I start to hear the other parts call out, has been really interesting. After only three days of playing with it, not only did I feel much more assured, but I also settled into a sense of ease and peace between my parts. The soul part watched them and heard them compete, and then they quieted, just like that. The soul part felt at ease with focus and intention on the idea of a new truck and let the rest of it slip away. The frantic nervousness of the past was morphed into sureness and steadiness, and most importantly Patience. And wouldn’t you know it, the perfect truck appeared for me and the money to buy it also. In three days. It felt pretty magic.

[Ash Tallmadge]

The answer for this question came to me when asking my Vision Council for guidance before my first coaching session. A great level of information and awareness regarding this question came up, more than I expected. The simple act of asking for clarity about my vision was powerful and long. It was a really positive experience for me to do because it helped direct my focus on where I really (honestly) sit with my Vision.
I asked my Council to reflect to me what my Vision really was in this moment. The answer came; to become a guide. I thought about this, having been a guide for the last 7 years. So I asked, what do I need to become a guide. The answer came; to let go of action. I had to spend some time reflecting on this, because it seemed really counter-intuitive. But, as I did, a moment came to me when I felt first connected to Vision. I didn’t call it that at the time, but I recognize now that’s what it was. I was hiking by myself, on a beautiful spring day, and I was suddenly filled with inspiration to share wilderness with others. It’s hard to describe the excitement and desire that I felt. It was overwhelming and I was able to see it all unfolding before me with form and clarity. So, when I returned home that day I immediately began outlining what “to do” to bring the vision into the world. I thought this was the appropriate response. It felt right. But as I continued moving forward and taking action, the feeling faded away, and I lost my excitement first, and then even hope. My vision council helped me realize that I fell away from my Vision by taking too much action to control it and manifest it. I took control of what I believed to be the “right way” of constructing reality from my Vision. But the grip I had on the particularities, the details of it, killed it. Or dissolved it. I fell into quite a state of depression over time. I became very focused on achieving the dream, and very distracted from the experience of my own true vision, and the role that it could play in serving my needs and my communities. This practice of getting to the heart and truth of that experience has been extremely revealing for me. I look forward to rediscovering my vision as being a guide with new knowledge and awareness to fully embrace it. I recognize that Vision actually will change with each step you take, that it is elastic and dynamic. It is not fixed. Therefore I cannot be fixed. I need to practice fluidity in order to allow resonance from Vision. I need to be like a bird in the wind, accepting that sometimes you get blown into unknown territory.

[Ash Tallmadge]

Thank you Daniel for sharing about the uses of the Sit Spot and Vision Council several times and ways in this forum. Nature connection and mindfulness practice are something I am familiar with and have a practice with, but I feel like you Tamara that the Vision Council is a very new practice for me. I have to say its been an interesting and revelatory one. I realized as I was seeking members for mine, that I do not often do this in the daily life; seek council. Without going to deep into why, the sum is that it is probably a protective measure, an long-ago learned behavior based on trust, and most likely, vulnerability. So I like this idea so much; being able to sit with people in total ease and freedom of expression and having a dialogue with them in that place. It has made me appreciate also the many “parts” of myself who need different council embodied by different “people”. For example, I was surprised to find a few men in my council, but clearly there are a few parts of me who really need that particular connection and wisdom. So humbling and fascinating! I am looking forward to hearing more about how others encounter this and what it feels like for them.
Happy New Year!!!

[Ash Tallmadge]

Hi everyone, I missed the first session online but am here now and look forward to meeting you all. I’ve already enjoyed listening to the session recording and to reading your thoughts on this forum.

What does it mean to be soul-directed and nature-connected?
For me the answer to this question came in a simple statement: to be nature-connected is to live from a soul-directed place. I believe our soul is the part of us that wants to know nature the most, possibly because it is the ethereal, esoteric, non-tangible part of us that stretches far beyond the material world. The soul connects us to all manners of energy and consciousness that may exist. That can feel huge, and overwhelming, and sometimes we experience confusing feelings and questions and impulses. Often we don’t understand why we think or feel a certain way. When I allow my soul-part to have what it desires, or what I feel it is desiring, this is when I seem to always put my hand on a tree, or balance stones, or lay my bare feet in running water. It’s when I pay attention to the simplest reality. It’s when I use all my senses to completely experience the present. Nature-connection is a deep listening to what is present and true around me. It is the absolute acknowledgement of the moment. And for me, it is my soul-part that directs me to do this. The challenge I think is to integrate this mindfulness with daily experiences that vary immensely. In the forest or fields, it can be easy to allow for this interplay, but in an office, or school or even in partnership at home, it can be complicated. Being human is far from simple!

[Ash Tallmadge]

I saw Tracy’s introduction to herself so I thought I would offer a quick one as well;

I am a naturalist who has worked as a professional guide in a few different aspects for many years. I’ve guided educational, experiential tours in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, and then started my own outdoor company in New Mexico called “Hearts & Bones Hiking” where I focused on helping clients to connect to nature and to themselves on day hikes. I would share ecology as well as bring in the spiritual/soul experience. I felt very strongly about this work and sharing with others. However, it was big learning lesson for me to start a business, and it ended up taking more effort than I anticipated. It also took me away from the vision I had, which was to help people to experience the world in a deeper, more meaningful way. I had many happy experiences with clients and loved the work, but I felt it wasn’t as full as it could be. I think all the busy-work of the business distracted me too much, so I eventually decided to take a break from and spend some more time on myself. My intention for this course is to step outside of my identity for a while and be open to receiving of new perspective. I am excited to speak with like-minded people as you all seem to be! And I’m really encouraged that I made a good choice at the spur of the moment when I decided to join! Yes for those moments!