Day 11: Self Centered

Today is the beginning of Week Two Sacred Circularities 2015. It was a pleasure and necessity for me to take some seriously playful time to myself today, to get centered for the upcoming workshops I will be sharing this week. I am teaching Sustained Spinning over the course of the next six days, and feel so grateful to be teaching in the company of Tiana Zoumer, Gail O’Brian, Tammy FireFly, Malaika Darville, Francie Fishman and Jaguar Mary X. Wow! What a powerhouse team. Today was a day for me to go inward, take some ME time, and prepare for the powerful week ahead.

I woke up this morning bright and early, got all dolled up and went out into the rising sun for a Selfie Photo Op, tutorial filming and simple admiration of a beautiful Bali Sunrise. I captured some great images of blossoming lotuses, the rice patties, and me with my hoop, all in the light of the rising sun. After a yummy breakfast with the new teachers and participants, I went to the pool for more Selfie time and some sun. A little too much sun, actually. After taking hundreds of photos (only of which a few a usable) and laying around like a little kitten I am looking like the Coppertone Baby! White Bum Red Cheeks ;) Tee hee! It was a very fun morning of creating self-portraits by the infinity pool. Afterwards I felt inspired to head to the wantilan for an in depth hoop practice. I danced and stretched and sang and hooped my heart out for what felt like hours! I am ready to begin practicing for hours and hours again everyday. I used to do that, and now with my travel schedule I have become a bit slack about it. I felt refreshed today to begin my practice anew again! It is a perfect week to recommit to my creativity. 

The Balinese people and all of us blessed to be on Bali at this time are preparing for Nypei. The locals are ceremonially cleansing their temples and creating huge demon puppets, preparing for the big Ogah-Ogah parade that scares off all of the evil spirits. Then, Nyepi is a Day of Complete Silence. No cooking, eating, talking, fires, lights, entertainment, travel or leaving the house. The airport is closed and the streets and beaches are deserted. Today as I awoke at sunrise and sat by the lotus pond for a while, I found myself looking forward to communing with these flowers and water on the Day of Silence. Today was such a lovely day self centering, and I am greatly looking forward to another day of reflection and experiencing.

The rice patties are barren now at much of Ananda. They harvested the rice, and now what was a lush green field is now a beautifully muddy terrace of lakes. A new type of beauty is there, now. Instead of green fields there are now wonderfully white birds, starkly contrasting the brown water. As the weeks come and go, and the view of the rice is ever changing, I hold on to the sweet smells in the air and the vivid colors in front of my eyes as long as I can in the moment before having to let it go. I am so grateful to be here, amongst these people, at this time, in this body, on this planet! Truly, every day I give thanks that the life I have co-created is so blessed. I must have done something right in a previous existence, as this bliss is beyond my wildest imagination.

The Opening Ceremony was tonight, and seeing the new faces was a delight! We had a very special visitor, a very kind and compassionate tabby cat graced us with it’s company and continued to hang out all night. I loved it up in the circle and carried it all around the jam later on. Putu, the Balinese Priest, was back again to perform the very sacred water and rice blessing for us for Week Two participants. It was profound to receive this amazing blessing a second time! I am honored to be able to sit in a circle and receive sacred ceremonial blessings from a traditional lineage. These types of rituals build so much power over time, and I could feel it. I feel that this place is changing me....mutating me....in a very good and gracious way!

After the ceremony with all of the flower tossing and cheering, hugging and ritual, we jammed and held space in the portal we are creating here together. I am looking forward to getting to know everyone better throughout the week, and so thankful to be in the midst of such awesome community! It is super amazing that hoop enthusiasts from ALL around the world (especially Alberta, Cananda) are inspired enough to gather together on tiny Bali. Smart folks! :)

The stars were shining as I walked back to my room. The stars were bright and the frogs and crickets were serenading my every step. In my heart a fire is kindled, warm and full of love for each woman and man here, not just at this gathering, but on this earth at this time. We are a part of something really special, and I can feel the shift culminating. This week is POWERFUL with Saturday being Nyepi, The New Moon, A Total Solar Eclipse plus Spring Equinox. Wow. That was my one word for the Opening Circle; WOW! Other participants shared their ‘one word’ for the week; words like Transmutation, Creation, Healing, Manifestation, Magic, etc. My word was simply ‘wow’, because that is exactly how I feel around all of this beauty and continual blessing. Week Two is already proving to be a climactic moment of dreams manifested, and I look forward to the string of moments that will stay in the center of my heart forever.

One in Self Love,

Shellie White Light

Day 2: Sacred Circularities Begins

Today is the day! The reason I am able to be here. Sacred Circularities Hoop Dance & Meditation Retreat begins tonight. I love this family so much. I am feeling grateful, blessed, blissed and surrounded by beauty! To be able to travel the world to do my ‘job’; to help others heal themselves and create a life that serves them higher, is literally my dreams come to life. I want to tell everyone reading this that your dreams, if you dare to really dream them, can truly come to be the reality that you wake up to each day. 

For real. I’m not just talking some foo foo new age nonsense on law of attraction or visualization, I’m being real with you when I say to you if you want something enough and take the action steps in the direction calling you, it will come to you. The timing is the Universes call, but the dream is yours. Live your dreams AWAKE. 

Bali is an amazing waking dream. At night when I walk along the path I smell jasmine flowers in bloom. I feel the earth alive and vibrant, lush and vivid, celebrating her existence with brilliant bursts of color. It has been surreal waking up to this reality. I breathe deep into the floral scented air all around me and just continue to give thanks!

As dinner began and everyone started to arrive in the dining hall, I could feel the energy building for the week. We all ate a delicious meal as we chatted with excitement, introducing ourselves to new friends and tightly embracing familiar ones. After dinner we gathered in the Wantilan for the Opening Ceremony. 

When I walked in, I noticed a native man sitting in front of the alter, deep in prayerful meditation. I knew Jaguar Mary had planned something special.

As the 40 of us sat around a circle of a perfectly placed flower mandala, the stage was set. The man was the master of traditional ceremony for our Opening Circle and gave each of us the most beautiful water blessing. We cleansed our crowns, drank of the sacred water he placed in our hands, and sat humbled as he placed the mana of this land, rice, onto our third eye centers. What a sweet site to see all of my sisters (and a couple of brothers) gazing at each other anointed with the staple seeds of this rich land right between the eyes. This moment coincided with us taking our special objects up to the alter as offerings. The offerings of this culture are amazing, actually. Everywhere I go I see leaves fashioned into little baskets with flowers, petals, rice and incense. There are altars everywhere, as well as deities, statues, chairs and all kinds of little spaces hidden away to place offerings. So, to make our own unique offering to the altar felt complete. After the water blessing we all stated our names and where we hail from and received a blessing of a flower shower! I love having fresh flower petals falling all around me, as I am honored by the community I love. What a Gift! 

We gathered close and stomped in celebration of this time together, the people and ways of this land, the spirits, the sisterhood, the surrender and the profound purpose of our theme for this year: Realization.

As we lovingly smashed the perfect petals underneath our dancing feet, and I felt the nectar of these flowers cool and damp beneath my soles, my ethereal soul was deeply nurtured. Looking into the eyes of my flow family, seeing how far we’ve all come and knowing how far we are about to go, is an inspiring image that will stay with me all of my days.

This is the stuff people often envy. Some will never dare to dream these dreams. For some, it will stay a fantasy in a far away land. But tonight, for us, for the family who made here to Sacred Circularities Week One 2015 in BALI, we know for ourselves that this paradise can be real life. It’s not like we don’t have problems and heartache still, because we do. All that stuff still exists, but we still made the choice to dream big and then show up to receive it. Tonight at Opening Ceremony, I saw the spark in everyones eyes. We are here for a reason. We are here to become more of ourselves. We are here to change the world! Thank you for bearing witness. Stay tuned to see how this ever flowing adventure unfolds....

Keep Shining,

Shellie White Light