From My Thoughts About The Connecting Group

Some of you are curious about the women's groups I lead, and I find it difficult to always explain what goes on, as I think the women I work with do also. From time to time, without any names, or exact situations I will share a little piece of how this work takes place. From my thoughts about the Connecting Groups.

(Artist Chloe, 7 years)

I served them strawberries with chocolate dip (International Chocolate Day) and asked them to think of one thing they loved about themselves. Not all were able to connect to this part of themselves. Some were quite confident in the thing they chose.

I can see into the distance, I can see because I know that this work brings about changes and results. I can see into the distance when they can all go around the room, over and over, allowing the things they love about themselves to be stated matter factly, even joyously.

I can hear it... I love my nose, I love my laugh, I love my attention to detail, I love my belly, I love how I know when my child needs to be hugged or left to deal with something alone, I love that when my husband comes home I can bring a smile to his face by just smiling at him, I love that I can heal people with my hands, I love that I am a great listener, I love that I am aware of when my friends need to talk.... I know this because we are the only ones who control this part of us, this love we have for ourselves, this ability to fall in love with something that has always brought us pain. When we decide to move away from the stories we have lived with for so long, the story that tells us our nose is too big, that we are too short to wear that, the chapters where we learn that anything isn't possible because we aren't good enough.

By writing a new story all of a sudden our nose is kind of cute and we can have a nose ring in it, that outfit does look good on us and we suddenly see that all is possible (and wow, that is so much).

As we dip strawberries into chocolate and laugh about the things women laugh about when in a room together, with chocolate, there is a joy in the air. A feeling that we will get there, we are on the journey, we just have to get past the past.

Tonight I will talk with my other group, TeleConnecting. They won't see that my eyebrows are overgrown and awaiting a waxing, or that I haven't taken a shower or even that my house is a bit on the messy side. You won't tell them. I won't be able to feed them chocolate tonight. We will hear each others voices and stories and connect because that is what women need, that is what we must do to continue to write our amazing stories.

And from time to time dip strawberries, or spoons as the case may be at the moment, into some gorgeous homemade chocolate.

Chocolate Coconut Cream Dip

1 cup coconut milk 1 cup dark chocolate chips 2 T agave nectar 2T coconut oil pinch of salt

Warm the coconut milk in a saucepan over gentle heat. Once steam rises, remove from heat and stir in chips. Whisk until mixed together, add agave and oil and just a pinch of salt. Allow to cool and then refrigerate. Before serving allow to sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes to soften slightly. Can use as a spread, a dip, a spoonful of joy, on a banana, a cracker or anywhere else chocolate is accepted.