WEL-Mom's

I was really inspired and touched by Anne's blog today and Lucy's last entry on her blog. Perhaps I am even entrained into the energy flowing at the Institute this week as the conversations about family unfold through the Influencing With Intention program experience. All this coupled with the impending arrival of baby number 2 has got my creative juices flowing. As I listen to the thoughts circling my head today I notice that much of my inner conversation has to do with being a mother. "Mothering", as currently defined for us and by us up until now seems so limited in its scope.

For may of us, we are fierce protectors of our children. Not just their physical needs but by creating the space in which they can bloom. As I pay attention to the WEL-System mom's (WEL-mom's) I notice that as more and more younger women are seeking their own personal evolution and by extension, the children whose lives are affected are younger and younger too. By discovering and reclaiming aspects of ourselves that we lost touch with, by learning to trust ourselves again, healing our hurts and insecurities we have created more space for our children. Our legacies no longer colour our interactions with our children. We are awake and curious rather than parenting on auto pilot.

It doesn't end there, however. We have become women with children of all ages who are pioneers in how we interact with our children and grandchildren. Each of us finding ourselves constantly challenged to be awake to old habits that don't serve us. Each of us paying attention to who we are becoming in the process of our lives and holding open the space for our children to do the same. We are discovering how to be honest with ourselves and our children. How to honour our own needs while being resourceful in meeting the needs of those dependent on us. We are discovering our creativity and leadership ability as we shape our lives and pave the way for others, including our children, to emerge and discover their brilliance. When I use the term "emerge" I am writing of awakening curiosity and creativity; shrugging off the coma of habit and seeing things as they are.

A simple example that is close to home at the moment has been the incredible apathy my husband and I have been marvelling at when it comes to the City of Toronto. Toronto is facing serious economic problems in the wake of years of mis-management and alleged under-funding. Recently the City Council approved a very hefty pay increase for themselves along with a number of expensive perks and office renovations. Meanwhile, they have proposed a number of tax grabs on property tax, land transfer tax, fees for specific garbage and recycling containers and vehicle registration levies. This has been headline news for the past week, (ironically, last month's headlines related to the growing number of working poor in the city) and we simply can't believe that residents of the city are willing to roll over. Surprisingly, there has been very little public opposition with the exception of a show of solidarity at one council meeting. That, to me, is proof of a deep coma! I won't even begin to speak of our soldiers, of the famines, of ethnic cleansing. "Coma" seems insufficient for the blindness/paralysis we seem to be afflicted with in these situations.

But I will speak of our children because, I believe that our willingness to be awake will begin to shift the world by teaching a new generation how to live with open minds and hearts. As we discover how to really see the world around us, how to look squarely at our own pain, our own perceptions, how to revive our curiosity, how to tap into our innate brilliance and potential - we are teaching our children to do the same. They will not have to scrape off layer after layer of habituated thought and mindlessness - we will have given them the resources they need to move forward with even greater direction, intention and intensity.

I only hope there is enough time.

For all those conscious Mom's/Grandma's out there, I simply want to say thank you for honouring your own evolution, for remaining awake to things that are often hard to look at or navigate and for allowing yourself to emerge into new ways of living and being rather than operating from habit or expectation. Your visibility and leadership is the invitation to other women around you and you are holding the door wide open for our children to pass through as they shape their world.