“To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance.” — Oscar Wilde
If you’re like me, that life-long romance is only just getting started. Although I have met a few people who appear to accept and love themselves, I would guess that most people—deep down, usually unconsciously—believe that they aren’t good enough, that they’re unlovable, or that they are fundamentally flawed or broken.
It’s pretty easy to criticize ourselves, to find fault with ourselves—and hey—if we aren’t conscious enough to do it openly, we sometimes project it by criticizing and finding fault with others! I have been an “expert” at both of those unhealthy strategies and have spent most of my life seeking the love and approval of others, because I didn’t believe that I was intrinsically worthy and lovable. It is only recently, through some powerful NLP coaching that I have had the tools to help change those beliefs, begun to practice radical self-care and am able to start seeing more clearly the light I shine in this world.
When local floral designer, Danielle Ouimet and I talked about how we could combine her creative talents as a florist with my expertise in ritual and ceremony—a workshop on the theme of self-care and self-love seemed like the perfect place to start. It would be a night for those who are always giving to others, to take time to give back to themselves.
Our first workshop took place on February 10th in the cozy warmth of Gatherings Floral Studio on a cold and blustery evening. We set about a mindful spring bulb planting ritual that would symbolize our individual personal intentions to create more love for ourselves, and the ways that we would each engage in self-care practices and find more support for the journey. Every part of the planting symbolically represented a key step in creating more self-love: embedding rocks, transplanting the bulbs, nestling them into nourishing soil and adding moss and branches.
What was awesome was how get-your-hands-dirty it was—feeling the roots, smelling the soil and choosing and arranging different floral bulbs just the way we wanted them. As the evening drew to a close, I led the group through a guided visualization that tied the imagery of what we had created all together. My intention was that every time they looked at the growing and blossoming flowers, it would remind them of the positive beliefs and intentions they had chosen and anchor them back into the warmth and connection of that evening.
It was truly a privilege to co-host the workshop. It was loads of fun and everyone left feeling fantastic!
Are you in need of some TLC? Come join us.
Register for the February 10, 2017 workshop through Gatherings Floral Studio in Newmarket at 905-836-0808 or visit https://www.gatheringsfloralstudio.ca/workshop/self-care-self-love-planting-workshop/ This year’s workshop will have an even more beautiful container for planting the bulbs.
To be on my email list and receive my newsletter with inspiration for using symbols, intentional action and ceremony in our daily lives as well as notices of upcoming workshops and seminars, sign up here: