 The Love Dog News
A Holiday of the HeartAuthentic Holidays to You and Yours * * * * *
"I was crowned by my God, my crown is living... I received the face and the fashion of a new person... And the thought of truth led me on. I walked after it and did not wander." - Ruby Nelson - from The Door of Everything In this Issue of The Love Dog News:The Love Dog News is a free quarterly newsletter for those of us who long for love, authenticity, and truth. Issues contain messages from Patricia Flasch and Leading From the Heart, inspirational thoughts and stories, and tools to use in your life. Subscribe Now ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ Message from PatriciaDear People of the Heart,This would be the time of year that a newsletter might be full of holiday cheer. But, I have no mojo for the season this year. David and I will be traveling to Puerto Penasco, Mexico, on the Sea of Cortez, where I will be recovering from oral surgery. I thought I would just skip the tradition of Christmas almost entirely. I would, however, like to have an Inner Christmas. I'm not exactly sure what form that will take. I do love to create rituals and certainly the spa, sea and sky will create a glorious backdrop for an inner ceremony. Though December 25, in our culture, is a celebration of Christ's Birthday, I would also like to give birth to Buddha, Allah, Jehovah, Mohammad, the One, and all the other Holy Ones inside the Christmas light in my heart. I would like to invite each of you to consider that rather than expecting yourself to have a "Merry Christmas," perhaps you could have an "Authentic Christmas." For some, a "Merry Christmas" is hard to come by. Rather than expecting yourself to be happy, merry, jingly or jolly, perhaps you could just be however you are. This Christmas you could give yourself the gift of honoring a full range of expression: happy, jolly, peaceful, holy, sad, caught in the past, dark or despondent. "But wait," you might ask yourself, "what is she talking about? We should be happy. It's Christmas!" So the culture says ... It's just such a strain to be any other way than how I am. I do have fond memories of Christmases past, but I also have heartbreaking memories of earlier Christmases full of mourning for loved ones lost, loneliness, disconnection, and longing. I know that along with the sweetness of the Inner Christmas I celebrate, the old memories will knock on my door. I have a chance to make a place for them in my heart right along side the celebration. People of the Heart, perhaps you would like your Christmas to be however it is, and that could be enough this year. What a relief! What sweet relief... As we turn the corner into 2010, I'd like to offer some questions for introspection. Perhaps you would like to share these heart provoking questions with a friend or life partner. These could also be used as a wonderful way to deepen the conversation at a holiday gathering! If you are doing private sessions with me and want to bring them to the table for our early January session or email them, that would be great. Now, I'll share my answers with you after posing each question. Q. What was it that most touched your heart this year? Patricia's Answer: You all did. In our phone calls and in-person sessions, you always touch my heart, more than you could possibly know. Q. What or who most inspired you this year? Patricia's Answer: Kim Rosen's book, "Saved by a Poem." This lovely book put a spring in my step beyond my wildest dreams. I am learning by heart poems that have really meant something to me. (Perhaps I will do a poetry concert in the spring.) Q. What brought you to your knees this year? Patricia's Answer: Finding out I need to have extensive and expensive dental surgery. All my old memories of prior dental surgeries, issues about appearance, memories of not having the money to get them fixed when I was 18 years old flooded my consciousness. Q. Was there a moment that made you want to live forever? Patricia's Answer: Yes, when I realized I am a "spoken poet" already. That there are poems that live in my heart and it is easy to remember them because a part of me already KNOWS them. Q. Was there a moment that made you want to die sooner rather than later? Patricia's Answer: Yes, when I'm caught in the spell of my issues of body shame and unable to put the negative thinking down. Q. What core value have you deepened this year? Patricia's Answer: "Tenderness," and a new level of spiritual and emotional maturity. Q. What most tickled your funny bone ? Patricia's Answer: When a friend retold the story of carrying a baby and looking through the doorway of our house and seeing smoke. His thought was, "I'm going to be a hero for discovering this fire!" He then stepped into our house, right through the screen door. He had mistaken the grey screen for grey smoke so he busted through the screen and he still held the baby safely in his arms... Q. Any regrets? If you could have one "do over," what would it be? Patricia's Answer: I would not book myself so tightly the days before and after vacations. Q. What is the theme for 2010 for you? Patricia's Answer: Perhaps, something like, Taking my best loved poems deeper and letting them carry me through the year. All honor to you in wishing you the most authentic holiday season ever, Patricia ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ Coming AttractionsPatricia is available for book signings and workshops related to Becoming a Love Dog and Leaving Your Patterns Not Your Partners. If you want to partner with Patricia in terms of setting up an event, call her at 505-577-1444.
If you enjoy this newsletter, and would like to receive future issues, please go to the web site at www.becomingalovedog.com to sign up. When you subscribe, you will receive a FREE copy of a chapter in the book, The Vehicle of Self Compassion, on the dynamic system of self-management Patricia uses and teaches. ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ Bulletin Board
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Order Becoming a Love Dog: From Emptiness to Tenderness! This book is a map for all of us: Rumi lovers, spiritual seekers, and those simply desiring richer lives, to continue along the path of emotional maturity and spiritual integration. Patricia invites you, within the pages of this book, to become a love dog as you enter more deeply into the inner landscape of your own soul.
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Patricia has always been fascinated by the discovery of her own soul. In her career as counselor, mentor, and coach she has spent a lifetime passing on her
learning to countless students. It is Patricia's intention to be a hollow flute for Truth and Tenderness.
In other words, to allow Truth and Tenderness to whisper in her ear and for her to whisper, accordingly, in the student's ear. Patricia's realizes she can work with only a limited number of people through her private practice. Therefore, her new emphasis is to touch and inspire soul seekers through this newsletter, workshops and writing. Patricia lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico with her husband, David, and their new dog Rosie. |
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Patricia's purpose statement: To welcome the most willing souls on earth, the love dogs, into a partnership of truth and tenderness so they can leave their caves, stand in all their glory and celebrate with their tribe.
If You Love
You might quiet the whole world for a second
if you pray.
And, if you love, if you
really love,
our guns will
wilt.
- Hafiz -
Patrica's newsletter design, web site design and maintenance, and technical editing provided by David Chittak Caldwell, www.thevastweb.com. Please direct technical suggestions, problems and questions to dcald@patriciaflasch.com.