Walking Between the Worlds: Samhain, Spirit and Sacred Story

This is a mystical time of year, when the veils between worlds are whisper thin. Secularly called Hallowe'en, in Earth-based traditions the turning of the wheel is known as Samhain (pronounced 'sow-in'), a powerful time to manifest intent.

In the U.S., Hallowe'en is about costumes, trick-or-treating, and occasionally, mischief. On the Celtic calendar, Samhain ushers in winter and the mysteries of the dark. October 31^st precedes Day of the Dead/All Soul's Day on November 1^st, a paean to the ancestors. The dark side — that which is hidden from our view — calls us to remember our transpersonal soulscape.

I've experienced a lot of death in 2014, including my Mom, my literal and actual oldest friend at 101, one of my greatest spiritual teachers, Angeles Arrien, and several acquaintances. This season of dying and release is an excellent moment to explore what is ending or "dying" within our own beings. What do you need to let go of in your life in order to move forward? Samhain and All Soul's Day is an invitation for each of us to embrace personal and planetary transformation.

Visionary activist astrologer Caroline Casey says, "We cannot live through the dead, but we can invite the dead to live through us." What gifts are asking, aching to be brought forth through you, when the entire world is awash in liminal rebirth?

The real treat of Samhain is the opportunity for quantum growth. The trick, perhaps, would be turning our backs on these inner voices beseeching us to shine our brilliance and step fully into our aliveness, passion, purpose and service.

It's time to remove your mask, and become who you came here to be.

How to Leap from "To Do" to "Ta Da!"

It's the perennial first question in Western culture: "What do you do?" In an earlier era, I had a straightforward answer: "Marketing communications." (This was when "content" was plural, and referred to what you'd find in a book.) When my former life dissolved, so did easy categorizations. Later, when pressed for a sound bite, what ushered from my mouth depended on the moment — and the audience. I might say, "I facilitate conscious evolution," or, "I'm a life coach." The first was a truer reply in the fullness it conferred; yet often, the recipient's eyes would glaze over in confusion. If I answered, "I'm a midwife for the soul," the person might exclaim, "Oh, you're a midwife!"

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