My Soul Restoration experience has been a journey of remembrance. I have been reminded of and from who and where I came, who I am to my very core - good and bad, where I have always dreamed I'd go with my life, and the detours that altered my direction along the way. I found the Brave Girl site through a friend who suggested I sign up for the encouraging "Little Bird Told Me" emails. I liked what I saw, stayed to search the site, and I fell in love with the idea of taking this class when I read this simple post on the Brave Girls website:


After reading:

"This is where your soul lives. Things sometimes happen in life, sometimes quickly and sometimes over time, that kick our doors in, break our windows and destroy our walls….[during the course we will] restore our dreams, our favorite things, and make a beautiful place for our souls to live... all while having a blast making art to remind us.”

I was hooked. I KNEW this class was for me. I was at a place in my life where I was feeling a little beaten down and worse for the wear. I had just turned 40 and, to me, that's the first number that held grave meaning. I thought everything that I’d ever dreamed for my life was now unattainable... that the one dream I remembered all through my life, to be a mother, was hanging by the finest thread of hope possible. I was so focused on what I thought I couldn’t have that I was neglecting all the GREAT things I DO have. This realization was my major motivation to stop, take some time for myself, and take the course.


And so it began…and soon each Tuesday, when the new lessons were unveiled, I looked forward to opening each class document and watching the videos that guided me through my soul work. In the videos the brave and wonderful Melody Ross (who shares her own story) speaks to you as if you are sitting there with her. She is just having a conversation that draws you into this comfortable place where you know your thoughts and feelings are acknowledged and safe… and that feeling continues to the “Red Carpet.” The Red Carpet is our own private online forum on the Brave Girls site for classmates to interact, discuss, contemplate, support, and encourage each other through every step of the way. Each and every woman involved has had something they were dealing with - no matter the size or severity of the issue - and each found their way to this class at the right time. Having such a great mix of nurturing, straight talking, outgoing, timid, young, young at heart, creative, and BRAVE women made the Red Carpet a place many of us went to share and learn from each other.

Lesson after lesson posed a special hurdle to leap – something that challenged me to face and move past in order to reach my personal goal: to become the very best possible version of myself... to like myself again. I was coming to terms with issues that needed resolution, and finally able to see new possibilities that a simple change in my attitude allowed. Truthfully it hasn’t been easy to face some of the issues raised... knowing, now, that I have made choices in the past for the wrong reasons. One example of such a choice had me move three hours from my home town:

I was happy in my home town - the only one of my graduating class that never said "I can't wait to get out of here." But in the years right before my move I had so many people telling me that I should get out that I began to believe it WAS the right thing for me to do. I don't blame anyone for my choice to move. I made that choice. But this class brought to light the fact that it was not my dream to leave, it was not what would make ME happy. Happy to me was being close to family, being involved with community theater, spending time with good friends, working out at the local hospital to lose weight, and working at my family's business (so much so that I stayed in that line of work after I moved when everyone URGED me to choose something in the field of Art. Thank goodness I showed some willingness to listen to my own heart, on that front at least.)

That is only one in many many things I learned about myself during the six weeks (with bonus seventh week wrap-up.) Working through the lessons and coming out on the other side of each step in the process with greater insight and the tools to deal with future issues that life presents is well worth the work! You don’t HAVE to be an artist to complete the assignments – you just have to be willing to be open to the process and do whatever you can to express yourself (some simply wrote everything out in their journals and THAT'S OK!)


I am excited about the future. I am amazed and thankful for the wonderful gift this class has given me. I am thankful for the friendships formed - the camaraderie within our classroom community - that has been and will continue to be a blessing!
I’ve learned so many things… not necessarily all new concepts – but new perspectives on the concepts. Simply changing the way I look at a situation or an idea can completely shed light on it – which brings me to my favorite new phrase: “shine a light on it!” Posted on the Brave Girls page one day was, “Shine a light on it – whatever it is – if it’s scary…it’s not in the dark anymore and loses all it’s power.” And if it’s good – shining a light on it makes it easier for others to see and attracts others to it … just like I was attracted to the Brave Girls website…just like I hope this post reaches out and attracts others who might want or need to “shine a light on it!”

A very timely and encouraging fortune came to me in the fifth week...

If you want to know a little more about my experience, please feel free to view the other posts I have here. I blogged about a few of the lessons and have links to the Brave Girls site - but please don't forget to head back to the Brave Girls Facebook page and "like" my wall post that mentions this blog entry - I would love to win the opportunity to pay it forward and send another deserving soul the chance to attend this amazing course!

Although I didn't see the BLOG HOP information in time to officially sign up - I wanted to be part of spreading the word about the Brave Girls website and the Soul Restoration class that I've been lucky enough to take part in over the last several weeks!

The OFFICIAL hop begins on Judy's page if you haven't been there yet (after you've had a chance to look around here) head over for a look and continue your journey from there!

From heartfelt lessons to inspiring art techniques... from art journaling to crafting projects that remind us what we've learned along the way - this class is absolutely life changing. It is everything that you make of it and, the more you open yourself to the lessons and exercises, the more you will grow to see and feel the changes in yourself.

I think the thing that really hit home with me after applying the first three weeks of lessons and realizing I choose how I respond to any and all life situations that come my way... and in TURN...I have no control over how OTHERS respond or react. I have internalized so many issues that were not mine to bear. I have gained the wisdom to let go of guilt, shame, and blame that I took on unnecessarily. What a weight that lifted. What a relief to finally be able to say, "That is your load to carry - not mine."





Melody Ross and her crew have put together a wonderful curriculum that offers a new perspective, a new avenue for you to explore, take stock of your life, and assess relationships - most importantly your relationship with yourself. (Please feel free to read back through my posts, where I touch on several of the class lessons.) It's not just the lessons that make me thankful for this class...it's the other wonderful Brave women with whom I've had the opportunity to build an amazing, caring, supportive bond. This is a really great class and I highly encourage you to be a part of the next one!


DON'T WAIT UNTIL TOMORROW!

You can join Melody for the powerful and fun online workshops that are being enjoyed and loved by women all over the world! Soul Restoration on-line classes - Now expanded to TWO sessions: Soul Restoration Part 1 – Finding Your Truth (6 weeks) April 5, 2011 Session: $99 – Register HERE and Soul Restoration Part 2 – Living Your Truth (6 weeks) For graduates of Soul Restoration 1 only June 7, 2011 Session: $99 – Register HERE

Thanks for visiting and, again, to start at the beginning of the "official" hop go to Judy's page "Be Present Be Real" OR stop and visit the other Brave Girls that missed the deadline but LOVE our Soul Restoration class: Joanne,September, Leanne, and Stephanie. There are over 30 blogs you can visit - but you've got all weekend as the hop is going until Midnight PST on Sunday! Leave some love on each page and THANK YOU FOR STOPPING BY!!

This lesson was about examining the two sides within: weak vs. strong (id vs. ego)

I have to say that this was not an easy lesson for me to complete. I was worried that the assignment of simply putting together a two page spread was letting my weak-self off the hook just a little too easily. After all....my weak-self has been bullying me for 40 years! As many bullies that I have encountered - none of them was as mean to me, as I am to myself. Let me convey by telling the story of what happened to me on a very special cruise I went on when I was 25:

I used to make fun of myself before others had the chance to. I used to try to beat them to the punch....thinking it might hurt a little less if the words were never able to come from another persons mouth if I trumped their chance. The last time I CONSCIOUSLY did that was in the lounge just outside the theater for Cruise To Lose participants.... I had responded to a new friend (making fun of the fact that I was from Iowa) by saying, "Oh sure - pick on the FAT kid!" (which we all laughed at ....cause...well...we were all fat.) Then I saw my reflection in the glass across the way and said, "Oh crap - I don't know if I can take a week of seeing myself everywhere I am - this entire ship is a gigantic mirror!" It was then that Richard was walking by and he got all up in our little group, stood in front of me and said, "Ok, Lady - I want 5 things you love about yourself RIGHT NOW!"

I don't remember what I said about myself 15 years ago - I could go digging for my journal from the trip and tell you EXACTLY what happened next...but that's not the point. He told me before he walked off that he would be watching and listening for me to say anything bad about myself...and if I did the next time he'd ask for 10 good things...etc etc. When we got some one on one time - he brought up that discussion and asked me to think of everyone who'd ever made fun of me. He asked me to think about how they made me feel. He asked me if I trusted them. He asked me to think of them all in one room....would I enter that room? Then he turned it on me and said - now YOU are in that room of mirrors you were talking about. Sixty YOU's staring back at you. Tell me - who is the biggest bully you know?


When you belittle yourself or your hearts work.....you are bullying yourself. In terms of this class - you are the weak-self mocking the strong-self. So many of us are on auto pilot verbally or mentally and let ourselves preemptively striking down our own ideas, creations, or life situations without even realizing we are doing it or the damage it's causing.


But that 25 yr old in me who learned a valuable lesson WANTS to come out and feels the need to step in and say "Hey, Hey now!!! Stop being so hard on yourself and enjoy the BEAUTY, the GRACE, the LIGHT, the PASSION, the CREATIVITY that only YOU can bring to the world!!!"

Now give me FIVE things you love about yourself!!! *smiles*

When you think of your life do you actually sit and think of everywhere you've been and everything you've done? Or do a select few incidents seem to overpower and over shadow the rest of your memories? What if you had it all laid out before you so you could see it all? The story of your life laid out on a time-line.

“When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened” ~Churchill

When I thought about it, before this amazing project, I used to concentrate on a select few memories... both good and bad...but only a few. I would think of these long periods of time when EVERYTHING went wrong and maybe one or two small good things "kept me going".... but this project completely blew that introspection out of the water!


The best things about this lesson wasn't even what I discovered... it was watching OTHERS discover the same and more! Having a friend go from not being able to figure out what she was going to do for her time-line because "she couldn't remember her past" - to seeing her get excited and listening to stories of her childhood brought to mind while working on the project! One of the greatest things about this experience is getting to know the other women involved. I've been overwhelmed at times by the love and support within the community of this class... so many people reaching out to others with thoughts, feelings, ideas, tips, stories, suggestions and love. We are all making a NEW entry on our time-lines with this class - a bright and shining moment where, in the course of our busy schedules, we took six weeks for ourselves.

“Live your life from your heart. Share from your heart. And your story will touch and heal people's souls.” ~Beattie

How often do you hear your little inner voice? How often do you pay attention and do what it's urging you to do? How often do you think negatively of yourself? How often do you think negatively of others? Our second lesson for the first week of Soul Restoration had me thinking about how often I pay attention to that little voice. That little inner voice is there for a reason - it's telling you the basic truth. It's urging you to do what is right. It's trying to help you.


I DO listen....when the voice is talking about other people. But my little voice...my Truthteller needs a megaphone when it comes to dealing with my personal truths.


One of the ongoing assignments for class is to make these wonderful tools called a Truth Card. Taking an idea - something with which we take issue - and get down to the TRUTH about the situation. This is a really fun and eye opening exercise! Taking the lies we tell ourselves daily (I'm ugly, I'm not good at anything, I am a place holder) and using the proper truths to negate them. To be able to make and display something so simple and beautiful around the house is wonderful.... but that they all have such a deep and personal meaning to the maker is doubly good. Fun meets function!

“You can bend it and twist it... You can misuse and abuse it... But even God cannot change the Truth.” ~Levy

Ok....so...it's like this: you are renovating your home. You have a list of things you need to do to get from point A to point B, but the very first thing you need to do it study the plans. Analyze what you have to work with right now, before you begin bringing in all new items for your space. Clear out all the junk and take a look at your foundation before you try to build over the top.... because those cracks that have appeared over the years need to be addressed before you can do anything else.

That is the basic opening idea for Soul Restoration. Taking a look at who you are and what you've carried with you through life that sets the tone for who you are today... deciding what parts of that journey are worth while and what needs to be left in the rubbish heap before moving into the future with a greater respect for yourself and your inner space....your Soul House.



The first week of our class really took me by surprise. I was confronted with an amazing idea - something I already knew - something I thought I employed but I couldn't have been more wrong! Boundaries are good and respectful (of yourself) to maintain. Melody said something to us that could have very well come from my very own mouth, "I thought - if you're a nice person & you're a good person - then you let everybody into your life." That was me. People pleaser/nice gal. Then Melody went on, "...and the problem with that is that not everybody has the best intentions..." "...so you need boundaries."

So there I sat, thinking about what making this one change, alone, could mean to my life. Time for me to grab a stick and draw a line in the sand....but I'll have to hang on to that stick...because I KNOW that time will blow that line in the sand all but away and I will need to reassess and draw another.

"The process of defining ourselves and what is acceptable to us. It is a major step in taking control of how we allow others (including ourselves)to treat us. The difference between setting a boundary in a healthy way and manipulating or controlling is: when we set a boundary we let go of the outcome." ~Unknown

....here's to letting go!

Most people know right from wrong. We know that the little voice in the back of our mind is there for a reason. We all have that same internal conflicts from time to time and we don't always make the right choices...but we ARE the ones making the choices. Sometimes seeing things from a new perspective can give us just the boost we need to pick ourselves up, get moving again, and making the best choices for our health, our happiness, and our lives.

In January I made the best choice for my continued growth and happiness. I signed up with a group of women from all over the world in the first ever online Brave Girls Club Soul Restoration class:



Within the first two days of the first week of class - I already knew I had made the right choice. I have explained to others that the cost to take the SIX WEEK course (with full access to forums where you can share your experiences, thoughts and feelings with the other ladies and the creators of the program) is less than the co-payment for two one hour one-on-one therapy sessions. And the return on this investment in YOURSELF... is not only the new perspective...but the possibility of making some wonderful new Brave Girl friends! The relationships I've made are priceless, and I am thankful to have met such wonderful women! We just finished the course (after a bonus seventh week was added) and I have already signed up for the second class being held in June. For the next few days I will be posting snippets of projects and lessons that have changed the way I look at my past, present, and how I will interact with people and life situations in the future.


Read more and should the message speak to you register here.

Trust me. You deserve this.