~ On This Holy Ground ~ – Sharon Mauldin

Ponderings, Poems & Practices
for Living Your Brilliance!

Hello Dear Ones,

I realize how incredibly fortunate I am right now. I’ve been given sanctuary on lovely Ecuadorian land dedicated to ceremony, healing and awakening.

Each morning I come to the maloca (ceremonial lodge) to practice.

I breathe here. I shake here. I dance here. I sit here. I pray here. I chant here. I Be here.

A few days after I arrived to this place, I felt my ripe need to bring grief here, too. Raw, vulnerable, wild, true.

In the maloca I step into sacred space and unleash the grief that arises in this unknown.

I invite my lungs, the organ of grief, to have their voice.

I invite grief, herself, to break me open and un-defend my heart.

I invite my practice to clear the trauma of these times from my body-temple.

I pray that the grief that moves through me also serve those who aren’t able to be present to their own grief.

I pray that grief will open me to deeper compassion. And that maybe, by grace, it would even open me to gratitude.

I open my arms wide, turn my face to the heavens, and like an animal howling at the moon, I unleash my wild, deep, belly-heart sounds.

I wail the piercing fears I have for my family and friends and for the heartache of being miles and borders away from my beloved husband.

I wail for the immense fear, sorrow and overwhelm Health Care Heroes and their families are living in.

I wail the heartbreak and anguish felt when a loved one dies with no one there to hold their hand or witness their last breath.

I wail for the ones who are frozen in terror and for the ones who don’t have the resources or support to navigate the challenges of this time.

I wail in sorrow for the most vulnerable of us: impoverished, homeless, refugees are just part of a way-too-long list.

I wail into the separation and divisiveness that we’ve created in our global family.

I wail my sorrow at how we humans have been a virus on this precious planet. I wail at how I have lived as a virus on this precious planet.

I wail for the unspoken and for the unknowable. I wail for that which is too deep for words.

I wail for hope. I wail to make room for new possibilities. I wail because I am alive. I wail for my freedom. I wail for love.

My tears are cleansing. My sounds are birth sounds. Connecting with the heart of grief opens me. And I know that I am, indeed, living in Holy days.

With love to you,
Sharon

Here’s What My Grief Practice Is Like
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I have woven my wailing into a tapestry of practices that are powerful and wonder-full medicine for me.

Here is the form my practice has taken. Be mindful; this serves me, but it might not serve you. If these practices speak to you, listen deeply to that voice of your own inner wisdom and find the practice or form that is true to you. Your body knows what will serve it. Listen.

For those who might be feeling overwhelmed, I believe the breath, dance, shaking, singing, sitting practices may serve you; but, moving grief the I do way can be intense and possibly even more triggering. Be gentle. Ask someone to hold space for your grief. Find support from those with knowledge and experience working with trauma.

Things I’m mindful of when I move into this practice:
~ Staying connected to my body sensations and not go into the mental loop of grief-filled stories.
~ Keep my breathing deep.
~ Open my throat, heart and belly and let all manner of sounds come through. Keep my body moving.

Finally, here are the practices I weave together. I spend anywhere between 15 – 90 minutes. (Coming to this every day, even if only for a short practice, has richer value for me than a long practice once a week.)

1 ~ I vibrate and shake my whole body for 2-10 minutes. That warms me up. It releases stress and shock from the body. It feels great.

2 ~ With a closed fist I tap my body along the meridians and massage a few potent acupressure points, including ears, fingertips, palm of hands and bottom of feet massage (from the Oriental system of medicine) 5-15 minutes. This is to say “hello”, tune-up and enliven my whole body.

3 ~ I dance a short TaiJi meditation, then move to primal drumming or music with an intense beat.

4 ~ I feel and release grief … arms wide, head back, throat open… I wail, cry, sob … I release energy from the belly and chest with sound…. I keep movement in the body: quiver and shake. I keep bringing aware to my body sensations. I do this for 3-6 minutes. I put on a piece of music or a timer and go full-on during those minutes. When the time is up, I go into shaking and dance.
(I watch myself that I do not indulge or mentally loop any story of why the grief is here or what it is about. I keep coming back to feel what is present in the body. When a frequency of energy is actually felt in the body, instead of being judged, resisted, covered-up or mind-fucked, it moves and creates space for something new to flow in.)

5 ~ I shake and dance 5-30 minutes … wild, sensual, primal, gentle, devotional fun or exotic … I dance to music that tickles me in the moment and brings me deeper into my body.

6 ~ To close, I sit in a nurturing place and sing chants, listen to lovely music or sit in silent stillness. Sometimes I’ll read poetry or write in my journal. 5-30 minutes. This is a time for me to rest in the sweetness of gratitude.

Sharing from my grieving heart to yours,
Sharon

~ An Offer For You ~

I have the heart and energy to offer you support in this uncertain time by way of guided meditation, gentle practices or simply with time to chat about what’s moving for you. It’s my way of supporting the field of healing while I’m tucked away. There is no charge for this.

If you’d like to meet with me via phone or zoom please contact me with two or three times that would be good for you. Also let me know where you are located so I can make the time-zone conversion.

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