"You should write a book" my partner often said to me. "You've got a book in you" a woman mentor once told me. "What you have to say can make a difference" friends and family told me on numerous occasions.
I heard them all, I sometimes agreed, sometimes thought about putting my thoughts and experiences down but the time never felt 'right'. Or to be more precise, I was not yet ready. I was still too angry, still too hurt, still too fearful.
And then I crossed the threshold into my initiation of the death and rebirth that is our menopause journey! I was called to look at my pain and my wounding. Menopause demanded of me to confront my Shadow pieces, to step outside of my comfort zone, to wake up and shed my false beliefs. I was offered the opportunity to re-claim and re-wild the true nature of who I am through my courage to seek out what I needed in order to heal, to be ready to step into being Crone.........
It was the alchemy of menopause which eventually brought me to a place of knowing I could write the book I was called to birth into the world.
The process of looking back, of re-calling the most difficult times and re-membering the parts of me that had been wounded was a deeply healing experience. I was able to connect to my rage and pain without falling into despair or depletion; I delighted in re-kindling my passion and determination to make a difference, to share what I had learnt in the hope of supporting other women by letting them know they are not alone and that there are many practical, spiritual and emotional resources available to them.
I could not have written 'Take off Your Armour and Have a Cup of Tea' without being held in a strong container of love and sisterhood, I knew this from the moment I decided to go ahead and commit to writing the book. Synchronicity and perfect soul alignment brought Nicola Humber's 'Unbound Writing Mastermind' programme to drop into my FB page. Her programme offered me exactly the support I needed and 'whoosh', I was off, excited, focused and ready to put it all down on paper.
It was a roller coaster, at times deeply challenging, but, I was held, I was connected to my Crone wisdom and I knew the process was an important piece in my healing pathway.
So, what I have come to truly embody is the knowledge and experience of writing as a powerful and potent practice, whether it is through writing a book, keeping a journal or Blogging and Posting.
It is time, now is the time to get your message out into the world, to have your voice heard, to call your story forth, to be courageous in your vulnerability and stir the cauldron of change.