AWAKENING TO THE DANCE – THE BOOK IS HERE!

Design by Leslie Shaw Design

Is there some project you keep planning to do that will ignite your passion? Are you willing to share what you’ve learned in life with others? What has inspired you lately or who have you inspired? How are you part of the One?

As many of you know from reading this blog, I’ve been working on a spiritual memoir for ten years. Finally, I have completed it and it is available as an eBook on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. A paperback will be available in a few weeks.

What a journey this has been! I spent years going through the journals I’d kept since the 1960s. I cried, laughed, relived events, pondered how I had changed through the years, and healed in many ways. In addition to the personal healing that occurred, I started learning to write. I took classes, joined writer’s critique groups, and asked endless questions of every writer I met.

The Real Story

What is the content of the book? Basically, it’s about what it was like to be a woman trying to find an authentic identity in a time when women were narrowly defined by society’s stereotypes. It’s about the years when I was a dancer and taught dance. It’s about relationships and how the men I knew also struggled with society’s male stereotypes. It’s about trying to balance creativity and practicality. It’s about the challenges of working in school systems that were inadequate and the contrast between them and private schools. It’s about the spiritual journey at the core of all of this and all the spiritual practices that helped me become the person I wanted to be.

Why Me?

I never thought I would write a memoir. After all, I’m not a celebrity. I haven’t been addicted to drugs or alcohol or been a victim of abuse—the subject of so many memoirs. But at a very critical moment in my life, a woman suggested to me that there was value in sharing my journey—that other’s might benefit from it. At that moment, I needed to believe something positive would come from my suffering.

I’ve also experienced great joy in life, and I wanted to share that too. For me, there is nothing quite as transcendent as dance or love. I experienced healing and growth through my career and personal life. I accomplished my greatest dream. I found my way to a wonderful life in the mountains of western North Carolina. If sharing my journey with you will guide, entertain or enlighten you, then I know the years of work were worth it. I guess I won’t ever really give up being a teacher. Now, rather than being in a classroom, I teach through sharing my thoughts.

We Are All One

We’re all One, but each journey is unique. I’ve learned so much from every person who has ever been in my life, and I’m eternally grateful for the lessons I’ve learned. It is my greatest hope that this book will be inspiring or helpful to my readers in some way. May you be blessed.

For more information on the book, click here or visit Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

Next week, I will return to the theme of “Awakening to the World,” including some experiences from my trip to West Africa.