All the World’s a Stage – what happened

Yes, All the World's a Stage lived up to its reputation. We laughed, we cried, we had shaky knees … and we got Free! We got free of the self-imposed behaviors that bind our spirits.

It's advertised as a weekend course, but truthfully, the course begins weeks before

the start time, when we sort through our automatic reactions to Life As It IS and design two costumes for the weekend -  a costume that represents how we want to be seen, and a costume that represents what we are afraid we really are.

In looking at my recent automatic behavior, I could see that there was a lot on my plate, put there by my own demand that it can all happen – and happen easily – with panache, of course. So I went as The Harbinger of Hope – dressed in my butterfly caftan, and under it, a pillow strapped to my belly to represent being pregnant with possibility. Golden strings looped around my neck, attaching 13 signs of all my areas of interest/projects/responsibilities. (And I forgot some of the places where I also invest my time and energy.)

Later in the weekend, we played out our most feared dramas – mine being The Voice of Doom. And I went around to everyone, making dire predictions, nay-saying everything, dousing all dreams, spreading gloom wherever I went. I had those pink, spongy rollers in my hair, sloppy house shoes, the tackiest house coat I could find at Walmart – trust me, I got the tackiest one. Everyone avoided me, but then, "what else could I expect?"

What was most relieving was being in control of the drama, instead of vice versa. Nailing down the behaviors and beliefs, then getting the price we pay for playing a role, instead of being ourselves – amazing. But Most Amazing was getting back in touch with our essence, being just ourselves, with no add-on and no take-away.

So simple, so real, so free.

Pics – top left – Glenda the Good Witch (Valerie Burson) and The Harbinger of Hope; middle left – Sylvia Hebert with all her ducks in a row (on her head – you might have to click the pic to see it more clearly); Cruella Deville (aka Valerie Burson) mid-right; lower left- Jenny Meadows, co-TS with her new hubby, Ian Huddleston, as The Answer Lady (for which we were all grateful over the weekend), and bottom right – the Invisible Nobody (aka Pari Kordari).

BTW – Cruella Deville told me, "Anybody wearing Those Shoes should die."

PS  Since the weekend, I have exercised every day – and my mind has switched from "I have to exercise" to "I am honoring my body's need to move and to do work."