My Blessingway

Photo Credit: Nicki Lemon Photography

On Sunday, I had my first Mother’s blessingway.  The last few days I’ve been a bit shell shocked. Unable to find the words to express the whole experience or the gratitude to sum up the magnitude of Love I received.

Photo Credit: Allison Foley Photography

The unexpected way my chest split open, as my heart fell into the hands of the women in my circle. And then, the way it beat calmly as it was cradled.

In every woman there, and every woman from afar, I felt the same thing. She was Intentional, raw and open. She had a mother or she was a mother.

Such an understated parallel in day to day life, but so relevant, so porous a subject.

What it is to be a woman. What “mother” means for each of us.  And to be truly celebrated within that, was hugely empowering.

In circle, these women gave me all the love I could swallow, and they followed it up by holding space for me to express my fears. Witnessing them and taking an unplanned turn in passing the burnt remnants.

The tears fell. Hard. A crisp breeze wove between us, braided us together. A lot of friends from different circles, and yet tied together in these few hours. From where I sat I was overwhelmed by the beauty of these women.

There are tears that cleanse wounds, that welcome new light as the whites of the eyes eliminate all that was stale. What is left, is a softening. A release of holding. Some kind of divine weightlessness. An exhausting peace.

And as opposite as it may seem, the same effects trickle across a freely moving body. A gathering of dance.

Just pure, sober, childlike expression. Limbs abandoned to the sunlight and unbridled release.

Nothing left but to connect and be free. To be joy. To BE that. 

I’m entirely blown away by the expansive Love in my community of women. I’m still digesting all the talent and heart every woman gave. 

To all of you, I can’t thank you enough. For seeing me, hearing me and loving me.  I’m ready. 

Photo Credit: Allison Foley Photography

I will forever hold this ceremony as a monumental celebration in my life, a huge stepping stone in my growth and an iconic reminder to the power of love, Missy Elliott, and Kings of Leon.

“Trauma is not what happens to us, but what we hold inside in the absence of an empathetic witness.”-Peter Levine