When Gail Brenner at A Flourishing Life invited me to take part in her collaborative blog project I felt honored and thrilled to accept.
The result is four women bloggers – three in the US and myself in Japan – each sharing our thoughts today on “Getting Unstuck.”
Working with one another has been a joy of united effort and interwoven connections.
Just as we are all sustained by the greater web of life, this project has affirmed the power of mutual support that can enlighten the worldwide web.
Moving clockwise from the bottom left of the photo the bloggers are:
Tara Sophia Mohr – Wise Living
Gail Brenner – A Flourishing Life
Robin Easton – Naked in Eden Blog
Catrien Ross – Energy Doorways
To read more about “Getting Unstuck” please click on the above links.
Letting Go of Loss
Someone you loved is gone.
Something you needed is no longer there.
Your heroic commitment has faded into failure.
The foundations of your existence lie crumpled beneath you.
You surrendered solutions long ago and your answer ahead seems impossible to fathom.
What remains?
Today, there is nothing and no-one.
There is only you.
Out of pain and disillusionment you admit all you once cherished is indeed lost.
Faced with emptiness, you breathe into your untapped courage.
You discover that in grasping nothing you are now free to embrace everything.
You are getting unstuck.
Letting Go of Masks
So you peel off your myriad masks to reveal the face you knew before your outer world was made.
For the first time in years you understand who looks back at you in the mirror.
You are this one genuine face.
Yet what your features reflect may be too much for those you meet.
Some will gasp, dismayed.
Others will shrink back, embarrassed by what you now expose.
Even your closest family and friends might retreat.
In your clarity of recognition you observe yourself fronting this face, no matter how discomforting.
You are compelled above all else to be the face of what you truly are.
You are getting unstuck.
Letting Go of Maps
You step around a sudden curve and the contours of your inner life open into unfamiliar territory.
You realize the poles have shifted and your compass no longer points your true direction.
Your former maps are useless.
Disoriented in place and time you can confirm only uncertain and difficult terrain around you.
What happened to the paths you once traveled?
Where do you go from here?
Mapless, you have only your intuition to guide you.
Now you must trust the honesty of your own emerging senses.
The way the land lies: how the sun falls; where the water flows.
Now you must deepen awareness of what is real in yourself and what you love.
You test your footing on fresh ground that has never been walked before.
You expand into the unknown, an authentic explorer at last.
You are getting unstuck.
Letting Go of Limits
You long to cry rivers, but your eyes burn parched as desert sands.
Your heart extends in natural connection, but your rhythms are stifled.
You yearn to share your essence with others, but you dim your response.
Your mouth fills with the truth of what you are, but you silence your song.
And then your energy shifts.
You find yourself letting go, little by little, of limits that define and constrain you.
You are getting unstuck.
Letting Go of Aloneness
Your lone voice echoes in the mountains.
A wind, too, blows through the canyon.
Birds together sing the oneness of spring.
Rain lifts in singular purpose from the Earth’s living waters.
You accept your own reconnection as a journey of transformation and compassionate wisdom.
Year after year, you have tuned and repaired this instrument you are.
Now you are become the music of your life.
And your true melody is thrumming.
So you play and you sing and you leap and you laugh and you touch and you cry and you sense and you know and you thrill with delight and you nurture with joy and you dance with inspired abandon in the landscapes of your soul’s desire.
You are getting unstuck.
Are you getting unstuck by gently letting go?
Please share your thoughts and experiences.
—
© 2009-2010 by Catrien Ross, founder and president of Energy Doorways, a Japanese registered publisher and godo kaisha at the foot of Mount Fuji. Catrien Ross teaches and writes about spirituality, personal growth, Japanese society, and lifestyle healing through energy medicine and reconnecting with natural energy wisdom. www.energydoorways.com
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If you quote this article in part or whole, please provide a link back to the author at www.energydoorways.com
Catrien: Honestly…that is one of the best posts I have ever read. You captured so vividly the journey of getting unstuck and transforming that it just hit me at my core. You know things are really special when they speak to your soul. Thanks for the experience.
It sometimes is challenging to understand the beauty of getting unstuck because it really is new terrain. From time to time we need to be reminded that our journey is one that should be cherished and valued. We may have times where we feel a little out of our comfort zone and realize that we have progressed so far that there is no turning back. This of course is a great thing…it is our way of getting unstuck. Thanks for confirming the path and that it is all perfectly unfolding.
Sibyl, it is so wonderful to have you commenting here.
Thank you again for your lovely words and insightful wisdom, especially, “and realize that we have progressed so far that there is no turning back. This of course is a great thing … it is our way of getting unstuck.”
Hope your week perfectly unfolds, Sibyl.
Warm greetings to you from the mountains of Japan.
Catrien –
Gentle, eloquent and beautiful words. Letting go is never easy and you’ve made it into an art form. Thanks for sharing – and keep up the amazing work.
Phil
Phil, almost midnight greetings from Japan. Thank you for visiting again and sharing such a glowing comment – and for your reminder that we can choose less ordinary living.
Have a wonderful day!
Hi Catrien, this is stop #3 for me in this series. I am so thrilled for what you ladies have done with this subject.
Letting go is a sorting process that covers a lot of ground. The pain of loss moves us to examine our deepest thoughts and feelings. This whole article felt very personal to me. These did not feel like the observations of a casual observer, it felt very firsthand.
I thought you were both gentle and reassuring. It was beautiful, thank you!
Jonathan, thank you so much again, especially for taking time for the tour around our blogs! Yes, as you say, “letting go is a sorting process that covers a lot of ground.”
Your comment about sensing personal story is very perceptive and welcome. Thank you for your gentle insight. Always we can be reassured that examining our deepest thoughts and feelings leads us to the next chapter in our unfolding journey.
I very much value encountering you along the way.
Sheer poetry, Catrien. So gentle and so true. You have captured the essence of getting unstuck with such beauty.
When we let go in the face of everything – loss, aloneness, masks – we are getting unstuck.
I love how you speak the truth with such eloquence. Others might not like what we do, we may be faced with giving up ways of being that are familiar to us. All part of the process of getting unstuck.
Your work is so inspirational; I am honored to know you and call you a friend.
Love, Gail
Gail, such deep thanks for the inspiration you share and for embracing me in your friendship.
Thank you for your warm comment, and for the warmth of your vision that opened such a sharing channel for all our words today.
I feel honored to know you and call you a friend.
Dear elegant Catrien, This is so grace filled. Each poem a soothing and compassionate touch from a deeply loving and wise soul. I found this very moving and intimate, and recognized stages of my own life here. I love how you went right to core of who we all are, and you did it with so few words and yet so much feeling.
I treasured many lines here but this one went deep:
“Now you must deepen awareness of what is real in yourself and what you love. You test your footing on fresh ground that has never been walked before. You expand into the unknown, an authentic explorer at last.”
This is EXTREMELY beautiful, intimately moving, and touches the very essence of who we REALLY are. I resonate powerfully with this and even write about it some in my book. I felt VERY kindred with you the first time I connected with you, but this brought tears to my eyes and I felt I was looking at myself in you. Or you in me.
So much grace in YOU.
I am very blessed to have our souls meet.
Much love,
Robin
Robin, you breathe authentic expression and your words vibrate here in the mountain air this morning.
Thank you so much for the loving wisdom you share so openly and generously, and for your gargantuan love of life. You inspire each of us in our own authenticity and connection.
I know your new book will share so much more of the insights that will continue to move us – I look forward to it very much.
I sense a kindred spirit in you, too. What an honor to know you – to walk with you a little way along the journey and to glow in the genuine light you emanate.
In gratitude for the grace of your presence today – love and a big hug – Catrien.
This is a truly wonderful piece…so filled with wisdom for all dreamers to enter the stream of life once again.
When I let go, I notice that which speaks to me. It is a moment of wish fulfillment where answers to questions can be found or an energy exchange is being conducted that I have either consciously or unconsciously requested. I am invisible to many, but those that perk up at my presence becomes a sign for synchronistic engagement. A mariage of the moment is proposed to fulfill my intentions so that my dream may come true when my heart is fully opened.
Greetings from Damascus, Virginia ~ about 800 miles into our Appalachian adventure. We have a goal to reach Maine, but have surrendered to each step that takes us to many realms upon unique paths where many people are walking the same physical trail, but are finding life on seperate paths that are leading to a similar conclusion. The prize or the shrine or the temple that one walks towards can only be found outside of time and space that has always been Here and can be found in Nothing or in All things.
Bernie, welcome again from your great Appalachian adventure – 800 miles of surrendering to your steps.
Thank you very much for your beautiful words and your inspirational message this morning, especially, “When I let go, I notice that which speaks to me.” This is profound insight, a reminder that letting go creates a space that can be infilled with what is most meaningful for us in that aware moment.
I also loved, “I am invisible to many, but those that perk up at my presence becomes a sign for synchronistic engagement.” So perceptive and deeply encouraging – a way of dancing with the energy exchanges we experience and encounter as we walk our separate paths.
May the trail you are walking bring you the joyful synchronicity you walk towards.
Greetings from the mountains here in Japan.
Catrien,
When I read your beautiful words – I’m right there with you feeling what you feel. As I read your words I realized how important it is to let go. To let go of your story is to let go of pain. The more we hold onto our story the more scarred we become and harder it is to heal. It’s not easy to get unstuck, but as you so eloquently wrote:
You find yourself letting go, little by little, of limits that define and constrain you.
You are getting unstuck.
You’re a marvelous writer – a poet. Thank you for this wonderful reading.
Angela, thank you again for stopping by. What a heartfelt comment you share today – your words are beautiful and your insight so welcome.
Thank you especially for, “The more we hold onto our story the more scarred we become and harder it is to heal.”
Letting go can be so healing, and little by little we can begin to live a different story.
Have a wonderful evening!
You words have touched my soul.
How wonderful the web is that it has created a space where I can connect with amazing women who are so freely and generously sharing their truth and wisdom.
Namaste
Deborah
Deborah, thank you so much for connecting from your part of the web – welcome to my blog.
I am delighted to meet you and appreciate your warm comment. Please stop by often to share.
Dearest Catrien,
They beauty of this post is so astounding I am nearly speechless. I want to print it out and carry it with me as a roadmap to guide and light my path. May I?
It is beautiful, as are all four of the women pictured above. The spirit really does come through in a photo.
I have had the privilege and pleasure of finding Robin’s blog and she is an incredible human being. I am so happy that you have introduced me to the other 2 women.
My post for tomorrow is about not putting on a happy face. It is about authenticity. I don’t believe it gets more authentic than this post – and I love it!
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this beautiful post.
Warmest regards,
Lauren
Lauren, thank you so much for your generous comment.
I am glad you described yourself as “nearly speechless.” You are one of the most articulate women I am privileged to know through the web, and your own posts are filled with compassionate wisdom. Your voice speaks powerfully.
It delights me to imagine my words being carried around with you as you journey along. What a beautiful thought, Lauren – thank you.
Not only are you articulate and wise, you are a prolific blogger. I will be visiting to read your latest post. Sometimes my visits are catch-up – you write so often and so well!
A warm thank you to you for your big thank you to me today.
a breath of fresh air just blew in from the Japanese mountains
thankyou Catrien for capturing so eloquently in words the concept of letting go as a means to getting unstuck
Kel, artist and poet, thank you for dropping by again, carried here on this little wind from Japan. I appreciate your warm comment – hope you are creating another wonderful day!
Catrien,
The beauty and peacefulness of your words are touching to my soul. As I think about my own journey, and especially the last couple of years – and the new directions this has brought – your words have an even more special meaning. And truthfully, it reminds me that this journey I’m on is the right one for me, and that I am getting unstuck from old habits and ways of being. And in that – is where I feel a great deal of peacefulness right now….thank you…
Lance, so lovely to see you here again. Thank you for sharing thoughts from your own journey – peacefulness is a gift you often present on your own blog. It is good to hear that your journey is one of your choosing, and that it is taking you in directions you desire.
May peacefulness unfold for you again today.
Hi Catrien,
I will echo the others: lovely, lovely, lovely. Especially enjoyed “Letting Go of Masks.” That’s the hardest one in this world of ours. All you read on-line is how everyone wants to become authentic. As you point out, all folks need to do is let go to find his or her real self. Why is that so hard when we enter the world authentic? Why are we putting masks on each other beginning in childhood?
Much thanks, Giulietta
Giulietta, thank you again for dropping by with some important questions. Precisely because of our cultural and social conditioning, starting at birth, putting on masks is an act we learn to do easily and early. As adults, letting go of masks becomes so difficult and even terrifies. Yet it is so necessary if we want to step honestly and fully into our lives. As you say, “That’s the hardest one in this world of ours.”
Catrien,
Thank you for speaking to our souls.
Thank you for allowing such beautiful imagery and metaphor to mix with your wisdom.
Thank you for going to the core.
I’m so moved by this. Its already changed my day, and my writing this morning, and brought tears to my eyes.
But mostly it communicated directly with that space right the center of my chest – and that place said, yes, yes, more of this.
Lots of love, Tara
Tara, thank you so much for sharing your generous appreciation. It is wonderful to see your beautiful and wise presence here. That space at the center of your chest is so open to connection and so ready to share your own insights, I feel grateful to know you. Yes to you, Tara – thank you.
The birth of each new moment requires the death of the one before. Life, real life, is only possible in the present. So joy, as you so magnificently state throughout this eloquent prose-poem, is a constant process of letting go.
Nothing Profound, thank you so much for visiting – welcome to my blog. Your perceptive insight is a gentle reminder in the wee hours of this new morning in Japan. Thank you for sharing, “Life, real life, is only possible in the present.” I hope you will drop by again.
hi catrien,
how are you?
hope you are feeling much better and still smiling.
you’ve got a strong collaboration going here. it’s really remarkable.
while reading your post i kept imagining those documentaries on tv showing different lanscapes, birds, nature etc with a voice in the background reading out each line of your post.
each line was DEEP and carried a certain amount of weight but this just stood out for me ‘You accept your own reconnection as a journey of transformation and compassionate wisdom’This communicated a path filled with purpose.
How long did it take you to write this? Forgive me for rambling, I’m just intrigued.
Enjoy the rest of the day
Ayo, good morning – I just returned from commenting on your blog. Hope you can see the skies of London today through the ash clouds.
Thank you for your supportive comment – I very much appreciate your taking time with my words. I don’t feel you are rambling at all.
The actual time I take for writing the words down is not long at all. My creative process is within and as my inspiration flows through me, the words and lines take their place as I sit and type them out from me. The poetry and power of words is a wonder I have tapped since early childhood. I am especially astonished and grateful to discover now that blogging is an amazing way of sharing what is in me with the world, while at the same time accepting the sharing of others.
I am deeply grateful for your sharing, Ayo. Have a wonderful, volcano-inspired day!
Dear Catrien,
I had to come back one more time to this post! It has lived in my heart since reading it last night. I can only imagine it came from that special place within where we are connected to source.
I am excited that you are fine with me printing it out. I shall carry it with me for some time. I simply love it beyond words!
Thank you for you kind words to me. It is truly a gift to have found you – and Robin!
Warmest regards,
Lauren
Lauren, what a light of generosity and joy you are! How splendid of you to return with such enthusiasm for the words I shared. It is our mutual sharing that connects and reconnects the words within with the greater heart of this amazing world through which we all are journeying. I feel grateful to have encountered your existence in this web of life. Thank you again.
Beautiful words to read today – the reader being profoundly stuck and sorting out what is real about letting go for her and re affirming her own power…
Yesterday was all anger…journaling and journaling.
Acupuncture needles in ear today to relieve the pain of the liver illness and working on scars across the body stopping the flow of energy…
I just keep trying to cross the mountain crest…one step at a time…I will go to read the other story tellers now
Thank you for this chapter.
Patricia, beautiful ladybird of the web, thank you for dropping by again with the honesty of your comment.
We can only ever cross mountains one step at a time, and our steps tell our story.
I sense that journaling for you is one way of affirming your steps. From your words here today it seems you face considerable challenges. May your energy flow in you, through you, around you, connecting you always with what is best in yourself and others.
I can attest to the efficacy of acupuncture for even the most difficult challenges in the body and mind – it is one of the pillars upholding our treatment center here at the foot of Mount Fuji.
Thank you so much for sharing your feelings today, Patricia. The ladybirds in my very wild garden have awakened from their winter hibernation, sharing their spotted beauty with the blossoming world. Warm rain greetings to you from the mountains in Japan.
Hi Catrien, this is the last stop for me on this great project of 4 great writers.
This is a wonderfully poetic piece of writing. Your words flow so well. The process of getting unstuck can be a tricky one. I loved your ‘letting go of maps’ and how we can learn to trust our intuition again.
Thank you Catrien
Steven, thank you for making this stop on your grand tour of our blogs. Your appreciative comment warms on this cold, rainy day – the temperature here has dropped again. But then, April weather can be so changeable. Trusting our intuition is a much-needed skill – both in gauging the weather and in navigating our lives.
Have a richly intuitive day in Scotland!
Another beautifully written piece here! I particuarly like this line here: You discover that in grasping nothing you are now free to embrace everything.
I have found those that are not attatched to anything gain everything. Some may find the detatchement a scary thing but following our own inner guidance and knowing when to let go is key to begin the process of inner peace for oneself. Thank you for this.
Baker, thank you for visiting again – good morning to you. It is the stillness after heavy rain here.
Thank you for your comment and especially for sharing your perceptive insight, “Some may find the detachment a scary thing but following our own inner guidance and knowing when to let go is key to begin the process of inner peace for oneself.”
Hope your day is filled with that inner peace you so generously share.
Dear Catrien
Gentle stripping off all that covers our inner beauty, your words describe that so lovingly and so moving. You so touchingly describe our misconceptions and what there is to do to let those go to come again back to what lies underneath.
I hear you and I am inspired. Love Wilma
Wilma, good morning to you, too – so lovely to see your smiling presence here again.
Thank you for the warmth of your comment. I especially appreciate the wisdom in your words, “let those go to come back again to what lies underneath.” As you say, with our misconceptions gently removed, we can return to our inner beauty. Your own words inspire so many.
Have another inspired and inspiring day!
I love the archetypal energy of letting go, Catrien, and I don’t think I’ve ever read a more beautiful expression of it. As I read through it, several times, I imagined it as a group poem. A room of people standing together in a circle, holding hands, each speaking a line of the poem. As the last person uttered the final word, it had come full circle. Just like the cycle of letting go and renewal. I just love thinking about that! I don’t know why, but that’s where you took me today with this. And I’m very grateful for that image I’m leaving with today.
Patty, thank you so much for dropping by again, and for your appreciation.
Your idea is intriguing – I think the circle and the words would indeed work very well together – a powerful expression. Thank you for this image – perhaps it can be enacted someday soon – I would love to work together with you on this if ever your creative urge beckons you into actual production. It would be quite wonderful.
Hi Catrien .. that was amazing .. and I’ll definitely have to come back and have another read .. I have loads going on and my brain is not completely here .. but I loved the way you wrote the post and the different sections leading us on .. I’ll definitely be back.
Thanks .. now I can see why you called the blog “energy doorways” – lovely .. bye for now – Hilary
Hilary, good to see you here again this morning. Thank you for your lovely comment.
I am so glad you like the name. Energy Doorways is both my blog here, and also the name of the independent publishing company I established at the foot of Mount Fuji. Accessing energy doorways at various levels in Japan is an intriguing process, and a journey I will write about more and more.
Please drop by again after fortifying your brain with tea and scones!
Hello Catrien,
How are you? I hope things are better for you these days.
Thank you for such a powerful post. I was moved to tears and needed to revisit your words for a third time today. You are truly gifted at conveying emotion. I have dimmed my response and silenced my song — once and then again. ‘Others have retreated and my old maps are useless.’ It’s as if you are at my side. My heart is full… and I’m getting unstuck.
Much Love,
Kim
Kim, thank you so much for bringing your lovely smile here again. And thank you for your caring concern about me.
You shared such appreciation in your comment – your warm words are welcome this morning – the sun, too, is warming the mountain air after the cold rains. The hills beyond my window are a billowing burst of spring hues.
Thank you for expressing the fullness of your heart.
dear Catrien – not only did the tears come, but the connection from your spirit – I was silenced – not my song, I hope, but days have mirrored yours and I feel close. Thank you for the beauty you share and for introductions to friends on the path – what a miracle. And to renew our intuitive knowing – I had to go back to re-read. You are right – the words are your allies, your expression; your deep wisdom touches me. I am grateful. I found the others’ blogs also so meaningful – time to get unstuck and move on – how right you are.
And now I also have a new picture of you. As one of the bloggers said, until we see such faces in our leaders, politicians, world speakers, we have miles to go. Thank you for your beauty, your connection your support and your love.
Marian, late night greetings to you. Thank you so much, I am deeply touched by your comment. I feel especially close to you at this moment and very grateful to know you – your own deep wisdom is a connection and support I treasure.
Your song is not silenced – you sing too true. It has been a long, hard winter in Scotland, and although spring has come, the inner notes may remain a little muffled as they reach from under snow cover, up towards the sun again, to sound clear and bright in a new season.
Thank you, Marian. I sense that your intuitive knowing has its own way of getting unstuck by gently letting go.
Good night from the mountains of Japan.
Catrien, what poetry! My heart just melted as I sank into your words. I’m going to print this out and take more time to be with it. Thank you for taking me/us into the depths.
And so glad that we are connected via Gail! I’m looking forward to exploring your site more fully.
Smiling…
Tori, thank you for visiting – welcome to my blog. It’s lovely that we connected via Gail – web connections are indeed flourishing!
Your heartfelt comment is so warm – thank you for your kind words.
I look forward to seeing you here again – please drop by when you can.
Hello Catrien
A great friend, Bernie introduced me to you and your site recently and I have been enjoying myself immensely getting to know your work, and now I ventured over from Robin’s site to hear what you had to say about this beautiful project you four took part it.
The words of wisdom you share here fill my heart and soul. Your energy imprint was felt within me as I read through the words.
Getting unstuck…. I don’t know if I have ever used any technique or have any special advice to give myself. I just flow with the river of life these days, and this alone keeps me moving humbly, gently, without any resisting, without any limits of where the river takes me. I love change, and while it may not always be easy, it is a part of me that I embrace and somehow, someway, everything always works out, and perhaps at the end of it all, it is my faith in that, that gets me through anything that may come my way.
Evita, good morning to you – welcome to my blog. Thank you for the bright sharing of your comment – I deeply appreciate Bernie’s introduction and am so glad you journeyed here.
Your own insights are so wise and beautifully expressed, especially, “I just flow with the river of life these days, and this alone keeps me moving humbly, gently, without any resisting, without any limits of where the river takes me.”
It is also encouraging to hear you express your love of change – one of the deepest lessons I have received here in the mountains in Japan is that there is indeed, ever and always, change. And as you so wisely and gratefully say, “somehow, someway, everything always works out.”
Evita, thank you – please drop by often on your blog travels – you are welcome here.
Brilliant thoughts Catrien, you just tackled a very important point. lots of people remain stuck because of their lack of ability to let go. i also love the idea of writing about the same topic along with other bloggers. keep it up
Farouk, how lovely to see you here today – thank you for visiting again.
How are you – brilliantly handling your own website, as usual? I appreciate your encouraging comment, and yes, I will keep it up.
Early evening greetings from the rainy mountains to you.
Catrien — I couldn’t resist this post. I thought the way you talked about letting go of loss, masks, maps, limits and aloneness was a perfect way to approach this. To me, each of these mini-topics seem like the stepping stones that I must find in order to cross the river of “letting go.”
I was particularly taken with what you wrote about letting go of maps. This line jumped out at me and said LISTEN: “Mapless, you have only your intuition to guide you.”
Thank you for this post. I will visit the others:~)
Sara, it is so lovely to see you here again. Thank you so much for your warm words.
I especially liked your image of letting go as a river we cross, with the actions we take as the “stepping stones.” Thank you for enriching the discussion with your poetic insight.
Have a wonderful week being guided by your intuition!