Dear Fellow Adventurers
MOTHERING IS AN IMPORTANT ROLE and, as conscious as we may be, we are usually the ones responsible for the wounding of our children. Don’t fret! We all incarnate to have a ‘great wounding’ – something for us to butt up against so that we can learn and evolve – and it’s the parents who usually provide the wounding. In this issue we are talking about
pregnancy in a variety of ways because of Mothers Day, and we are also privileged to hear from eight women who don’t have children. It’s a powerful and personal exploration of a topic which has caused some women immense grief, while others have sailed through it. Almost all of them though have been bugged by other people’s opinions and judgements about them for not having children. I have to admit that I’ve been guilty of those judgements myself. It’s all too easy to slip into judging others without stopping to think about what it’s like to be in their shoes. I’ve been very cognisant of judgements
lately, following a couple of responses we had to the article about domestic violence in March issue. Then, when I tried to explain the situation in the April editorial, I got more flak from someone who thought I was condoning verbal abuse. The written word limits us so much,
doesn’t it? However, we might not have stopped to think that when we respond to someone in an angry way, we are ourselves perpetrating abuse.
In this issue we were to have Hong
Curley’s response about abuse. It’s a very beautiful piece of writing, done in a thoughtful and loving way. For several layout reasons, I’ve chosen to hold the article over. One of the items I chose for you to read
this month is a Mothers Day gift of sorts. Back when I was a kid we went to Sunday School on Mothers Day with a white flower pinned on our white dresses (or shirts for boys). Turn to page 10 and see the white flower (and so many other blooms too) for you in a striking article on Ikebana by Dr Shoso Shimbo. I’m sure everyone else will enjoy it as well, and hopefully relax into the flow and measured stateliness of the article. We have a stunning article by Marianne
Williamson on aligning ourselves with the energy of the goddess Aphrodite. I see it as such a panacea for today’s problems faced by strong post-feminism women who want a man in their lives and yet don’t have one. By the way, I like to mention this every
time I get the opportunity. Marianne Williamson is the author of this famous quote, which has been wrongly attributed to Nelson Mandela: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.” There’s another famous quote by a woman, Evelyn Beatrice Hall, which has
been wrongly attributed to Voltaire. She was his student. It’s “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it”. I have also used that for the preamble to our article on immunisation. I know many people are against the non-vaccinators, and now they are citing herd immunity, but herd immunity works in natural environments and has never been shown to work in an immunised society. I think that people are fearful about this and clutching at straws. The point is that we live in a free society. If we don’t allow freedom of thought and speech and action, we have crossed the line. Once we cross any line, it’s no longer obvious where it was. Do check out our free LivingNow app.
We have more and more interactivity each issue, and now we have videos and audios by quite a lot of the authors. Next issue we are covering time, and the
journey, and the goal – it’s already shaping up to be a valuable issue. June issue will also see our fabulous Courses & Workshops feature.
With love
Elizabeth Jewell Stephens
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MAKING A DIFFERENCE SACRED EARTH
Eight women who are not mothers tell their stories
MOTHERING
When a nutritionist craves Coco Pops
Supplements and hints for pregnancy
Electro-smog can affect your fertility
TOO OLD FOR THE NAUGHTY SPOT?
Ten virtues of Ikebana
1 DECEMBER 2014 MAY 2015/ISSUE 182
Health tips to improve your posture Immunisation – some big questions THE MOON AND YOUR MOOD
MAY 2015 3
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