As neat as that scenario sounded, it never really happened as I pictured it.  It wasn't long before my husband was deeply involved in making a more cemented career in art and music, while also spending his free time doing both.  Those were his dreams.  I found myself gardening and tending animals mostly alone.  We never got to the point where grocery and department store trips were only a few times monthly.  Then, it became difficult to travel with small children.  Sleeping in a truck bed for days at a time makes for irritable babies and mothers.  John started travelling alone.  After awhile, he opened his tattoo shop in effort to create a more steady income, and we all know that having a business requires an incredible amount of time.  Homesteading alone while mothering three little girls and homeschooling them as well was just too much.  It wasn't at all what I had dreamed.

There isn't a place beautiful enough to trump the necessity to create a day to day life that works for you and brings you joy.  When I chose to live in this lonely holler, I didn't think I'd actually be alone most of the time, meaning away from other adults.  I didn't know that often I'd be literally trapped behind a swollen or frozen creek, unable to get out with my children without much difficulty.  I expected a shared experience.  A dream built by two.  Through no fault of either of us, it just didn't come to be.  The idea was great, but the application wasn't for us to do together.  I realized this year, in part due to the severity with which the Hashimoto's had changed my ability to cope with the emotions and stress I was experiencing, that it was time to make adjustments.  For my well being and vicariously for that of my daughters, we had to change what this dream had actually become.  I've written quite a bit about my inner process on this path here.
  

This summer was spent drawing up a plan for the girls and I.  How could I give them a kind mommy who felt joy, a rich and stable childhood experience, prepare them for independent womanhood, and also give myself a fulfilled life?  I knew it was going to be tricky and look nothing like I had planned our life to be for so long.  This past week, the oldest two of my girls began going to school away from home for the first time.  They are attending a small cottage school on a family farm.  This idea had only been a few months old, but it fell together with ease, and they both enjoyed their first week immensely.  They are very happy about going to school.  Over the last few weeks I have completed freelance writing work, began teaching yoga at Evolation Yoga in Pikeville, and applied for a couple of other interesting work opportunities.  My plan is coming together.  It is intimidating and freeing all at the same time, but it seems to be affirmed by the Universe, and that is all I need to move forward.

Someone who advises me spiritually told me this spring that my spirit is like a penned up wild horse.  I had a hard time believing that at first.  I felt so dull and uninspired.  Once I picked back up the dreams that were personal to me, just as my husband had always pursued his own independent of our marriage, I realized how much I had become stifled by limitations I had put on myself regarding what I thought I had to be as a wife and mother.  I didn't want to fail at homesteading and homeschooling.  I had thought it would be such a joyful life for all of us.  I still think it would have been.  This isn't a grass is greener thing.  As nothing happens in a vaccum, I had to adjust what I allowed for myself to be in order to see my spirit freed.  It has been imperative that I change my definition of what it means for me to be a good mother and drop any guilt associated with what I had always thought it should look like for me.  

Honestly, this whole time, even as I was making these changes, I had felt as if I was failing as a mother.  Not failing or neglecting my daughters, but failing to find everything I needed to be fulfilled by being a mother.  It was as if I was somehow defunct in comparison to women around me who seemed so satisfied in the role.  I've learned motherhood is so very different for all of us.  There isn't one of us doing it - right.  In loving and providing for our children, putting their needs first, and considering our own well being and fulfillment as an essential part of giving them the childhood they deserve, we are each doing it very well.  I read an article on the Brain Child Magazine website that helped me put what I am trying to do for my daughters in perspective, the way I am choosing to do it now.

I'm still okay.  I'm still a loving mother.  I am also working very hard at making myself a more emotionally available and present mother.  A mother that is alive and not simply going through the motions.  A mother that has dreams and acknowledges their validity.  I'm a mother who doesn't need permission or approval to seek a varied and colorful life for myself or my daughters.  If we believe we have one go around in this world, then right now is the time to be alive.  I can't wait any longer to grow if I am going to raise bold women capable of growing as individuals and nurturing a planet of sacred situations and souls.  That takes a goddess in the flesh.  That is what we are.  I am a warrior mama.  I'm fighting for my free and wild spirit.  I'm fighting this disease for my health.  I'm fighting the fight for the full expression of all women for the sake of my daughters.  And... I got a faux hawk today in order to mark my realization that I'm a warrior and a rebel at heart... always.

Accepting truth doesn't make it any easier to deal with, but it does bring a sincerity to every breath thereafter.  It seems to really live is to live your truth.  Sat Nam - Truth is my name.  Truth does not harm, no matter how uncomfortable.  Truth forces us to listen to ourselves and acknowledge where we are in this life. 

I'm in a transitional phase as those who have been reading here already know.  My world view is changing - expanding.  I've become more empathetic.  I'm accepting many truths without blaming myself for misunderstanding.  Guilt has no part in my process.  I'm unashamed.  So many things I've realized have been very difficult.  The way I am mothering needs to change in order to bring more joy to our days.  I've taken action on that.  How I am educating my children needs to be more fluid and I have begun to desire a broader experience for them.  Action has occurred there.  I want to release my creativity in a way that brings it outside of the hobby and into the professional.  I'm doing it!  I'm finding my voice, asking for what I need, and making new plans.  I'm hopeful despite the darkness.  I know there's a light.

The hard part about this new truth is that it may be for me only.  It's so brand new that I haven't been able to discern what lesson I am to take away from the knowing of it.  The fact that it might leave me very alone in the experiencing of it makes it that much more complex.   It's just the way it has to be.  We land in places in our own time and for our own reasons.  It's very much like many episodes of Dr. Who with Amy Pond.  Everyone has their own particulars and sometimes things become muddled as they try to glean where the particulars meet to form a clear idea where two or more experiences become singular.  
I had to find the courage to admit truth and yesterday as I stoked the fire in the belly, I found it.  I decided to lay consequences aside and use my voice.  Accepting things as they are is the first step to being able to make things better.  With acceptance comes understanding.  With understanding comes the ability to build upon what is and transform.

The kicker is that I don't know that I am brave enough to see this truth completely through.  As I said, it is one I'm most likely to experience alone.  Having been so lonely for so long, going back to that place is a scary proposition.  However, in typing that, I just realized, I haven't left that place.  I'm still utterly alone on the peer level.  I'm still there, grasping at the wind, hoping to catch a ride somewhere.  

As exciting as renewing old dreams, discovering independence, reclaiming my womanhood, demanding respect, and shouting victory over concepts that no longer serve me is, I have seen that it would be so easy to just box some of these things up, put them away, and continue in some improved form of the way things were.  This way I am not disruptive to others.  This way no feelings are hurt.  This way I'm not forcing my energies upon another's life inadvertently or otherwise.  That would be the easy way.  I know I can do that.  I have my daughters.  I'm writing again, and I have yoga.  Those things can be enough to bring me joy from time to time.  Yet, I know in my heart of hearts that the easy way is not acceptable if I want to provide the right example to my girls.  I don't want them to be ashamed or hide themselves from the world.  Therefore, I cannot consider that an option for myself.  I have to process this truth in a healthy way.  So, the new work begins.  

Like running downhill full force...

On Friday, I will be going to interview and tour a cottage school that I am hoping will be a fit for my daughters come August.  I'm relieved.  I'm nervous.  I'm hopeful.  This is a big move for me.  It means I am also looking for good full or part time employment outside of the home.  A few weeks ago, I wrote of my plan to expand my horizons in juggling motherhood, work, and homeschooling, but I soon realized that I was still stuffing myself inside a box of expectations.  I was continuing to hang on to these notions of what I should be doing as a person who chose motherhood and chose it completely.  I still feared letting people down.

I don't fit inside any boxes.  They cannot contain me.  I will not allow them to contain me.  

I visited my grandparents in South Carolina this weekend.  My Papaw is very ill and so is my aunt.  My Mamaw is holding her own and trying to not lose her cool.  I can't imagine what she's feeling right now with a sick husband and daughter.  We just lost my uncle, her son, three years ago.  In the midst of all the emotion my family is processing, she sat me down to talk.  She always sits me down to talk, without fail.  I think this talk was the most powerful I have ever had with her.  She told me it was time to step out, take care of me, and show my daughters what I'm capable of.  In her nurturing sternness, she instructed me to not wait around another minute.  That I must do what it takes to be fulfilled, independent, and in the world.  She assured me that I am a good mother.  I have done an amazing job with my daughters, and will continue to do so in whatever construct my family takes.

My grandmother spoke to me like a pioneer of feminine empowerment.  She was a pioneer of feminine empowerment.  Once she completed her education, she worked as a paralegal.  Financial independence was always important to her.  She gave to those in need.  She fed and raised four children.  She gave in expansive ways to her community through managing an outdoor theater, writing and telling our stories, genealogy, community service, and diligent, honest work within our justice system.  If there is anyone to listen to at a time like this, it is her.  As she spoke to me, she revealed that she saw and concerned herself with my lonesomeness and needless self sacrifice.

It's time I allow myself to be wild, and FREE. 

This quote from the wise and infinitely old Yoda has always befuddled me.  It felt like a let down.  A jedi's life is anything but lacking adventure and excitement.  Why should not one seeking these things become a jedi?  It's only been the last couple of years that I really meditated on the meaning of these words.  (As if Star Wars is the undistinguished instruction manual for life compared to sacred scripture.)  I understand now.  They don't crave it because in their acceptance of who they are the adventure and excitement find them.  They don't have to seek it out, or make it for themselves.  They just have to be.  I am that I am.  There are no exceptions.  Acceptance is destiny.

I haven't failed because I'd like to send my children to school.  It doesn't mean that I am weak because at this point in time I seek outside employment and independence.  Changing plans and feelings is a healthy thing not to be feared, but embraced.  The ability to change our minds is an outgrowth of freedom.  

This is the current situation in the hen house.  Sitting hens and their guard sister.  Women folk getting about the business of doing what they do.  They depend on me.

These two girls do too.  They wait for me morning and evening for their attention and food.

I'm pretty sure that my efforts saved this girl's life.  She requires feedings, walks, grooming, and attention.

And... there's these three.  Building pirate ship bunk bed forts in the morning after plates of DQ gravy and biscuits, power outages, changed diapers, band aids, smiles, and tears.

These pictures were all taken today.  This is my day.  Most every day.  A constant giving of life needs and comforts that make living happily for these people and friends possible.  It's the hardest work I've ever known and yet it is the most important.

Sometimes I get in such a routine of day in and day out, I forget that my heart and mind are demanding more of me.  They are demanding I feel this life and live it with all I have.  That I, who is constantly apologizing, live it unapologetically.  It isn't any coincidence that the more you learn about yourself and the reality of life, the more life can ache.  Falling back on the routine, and going about it as you always have, can be a way to numb that ache.

Get your slop boots on.  

Shoulder 50 pound feed bags across the yard and pour two in the big barrel drum.

Get them fed and some good yard greens in their run.

Watering takes 3 gallon jugs filled by squatting over the creek - hands in cool water and minnows with their babies grazing your fingers.

Try to look not melancholic, or full of thoughts, or tired, but never can quite pull it off.  Wondering if I will always be that girl who feels, thinks, and worries about her impact on others just a little too much.  Hoping one day the fire in my heart will gleam in my eyes.

A moment down the path to my special place.  It kind of hurts to breathe.  To be alone.  To feel alone.

A reward from the kind Mother after a walk with my daughters and our dog through the fields.  You are ok.  You are supported.  Remind yourself.  She says.

Check on the garden.  The grass desperately needs mowed.

Yoga and breath.  Yoga and release.  Then, it comes.  The fire in my heart chakra and solar plexus.  It burns uncomfortably hot.  It has a wash of tears behind it, like a flood that wants to drench the flame, but the flame says absolutely NOT!  I'm here.  I'm... here.  I'm HERE!

That's the moment that you realize the routine is a cloud.  It can completely blur the feeling that comes from wanting to know what all is possible for me.  What all I can really offer others who want to be there with me.  What example I can be for the women I am raising.  Being in the cloud deadens the ache, the burning, the churning stomach.  The release is when I know there is so much more to be done.  So far to go.  It's the moment I want someone with heavy arms to hold me so I can just be and feel, and figure this all out.  I'm ready to grow.  The energy is there.  So much energy.  It really is the hardest feeling I have ever had to feel.  Deep fears of my entire life made into a truth holding the answer to who I really am.  And, I lay in savasana trying not to think my way out of feeling it.  Knowing it is there and meaningful, and longing to share itself. 

Yesterday, I told a friend that I felt like I was about to be shot off in a rocket to the moon.  I had just finished my yoga practice trying to ground myself, but at this point in time, that might be impossible.  I alternate between wanting to cry really hard, laugh and be light, have very serious conversations with people I like about life, and punching a wall.  It feels very discombobulated.  

I've often wondered when I'd feel truly grown up.  Lately, I feel more of that girl I was at 15, who I did like a whole lot.  I feel her wanting to come out and be the adult that she so longed to be all those years ago.  I'm doing my best to get to know her again, but I suppose part of being an adult is doing that kind of thing on limited time.  Responsibilities have to be considered and the love I have for the lives I've created will forever influence my next movements.

When you've been shot off in a rocket to the moon, there's falling involved.  For the first time, I'm reading the novel written by Gurney Norman - Divine Right's Trip.  He's a Kentucky author and former poet laureate whom I've taken some writing workshops with.  Back when I taught public school, I thoroughly enjoyed sharing his story "Fat Monroe" from his collection Kinfolks with my seventh graders.  (Dang, I'm old enough to have taught school and that be 10 years ago!  My students are now getting married and having their own babies.)  There's a segment I read a few days ago that made my heart ache tremendously.

I identify with both characters here, but I do feel like I'm doing my best to climb out of the hole.  It is strange that I so want company in the climbing.  I'm used to dealing with personal conflicts almost completely on my own.  This time, I don't want to.  

I also wouldn't have thought that at nearly 40 years old, I'd be blogging about personal growth.  I know one day I'll get back to posting more about my interests and my daughters.  I'm simply thankful this point in my life is happening in summer as I am nearly totally consumed by experiencing it.  I can feel all this while my girls play outside at dusk.  I can take long walks with my Gwen on my back and the dog on the leash.  I can have conversations without worrying about the time even though I will always worry that my desire to have people I appreciate along for this ride will be a bother to them.  Historically, that has been true.  I'm trying to let go and know that those who want to be with me, will be there for me.  I will return the favor.  I truly always do.

I keep trying to ground this rocket because I don't want to end up alone on the moon.  I do yoga.  I write.  I say sappy things to friends who I'm convinced I aggravate like the plague.  Despite all this effort to stay on my own two feet, it only takes minutes for the fires to burn again.  I get the jittery feeling around my heart, the butterflies in my stomach, and the ache to cry and laugh while someone holds me and I actually do take off to the moon - alone or otherwise.  

Last month’s post was about how our menstrual cycle actually carries a valuable rhythm that we can use to our advantage, to stay in balance, anticipate our needs, and take valuable time for self-care, in order to be at our best. Our cycle can actually become a tool for success when used wisely!  Today, I’d like to go into more specifics as to how you can discover your own personal rhythm and its value for you.

We were talking before about the phases or “seasons” of our own month, and how they resemble the phases of the moon or seasons of the year. We have all four phases, or all four seasons, each month during our own cycle.  This is such a great model to follow, because we can see how these different aspects of the month compliment each other and keep us in balance.  Our “outer” time of social focus and busy accomplishment is balanced by a time to turn inward for reflection, creativity and renewal.

Let’s take a closer look at the phase of the month that tends to give us the most challenges - the premenstrual time. What if we knew how to approach this time in a positive way that supports our needs, instead of just trying to plow through it, acting like it’s not happening, and assuming there was something wrong with us?  When we realize that our premenstrual time is at the end of our cycle, and is our own "autumn” season, we can being to approach it in a very different way. Autumn is the season of harvest, of completion and review. It is a time when the leaves fall, letting go of that which is no longer needed; getting ready for winter.

What does this mean for us? Our premenstrual time is our own time for rebalancing.  It is the time when things that want our attention will come to the surface, and we’ll be drawn to finish projects and review aspects of our lives in a more critical way.  We can begin to see our annoying “symptoms” as signals instead, alerting us to what may be out of balance, and not healthy for us in the long term. We tend to think of these imbalances in terms of nutrition or hormones, but it goes much deeper than that. What about our emotional lives? Are we finding avenues for expression for our creativity, for our feelings, for our dreams and plans? Are we doing things that are fulfilling for us?

We may need rest, or exercise, or just need to get out of our normal routine and do something different for awhile! The menstrual time brings us back to the body and is a time when our Wild Woman wants to come out and prowl a little, so finding a way to loosen into some of those creative urges can be wonderfully freeing and healing.  Another thing you may be craving is time alone. This is a powerful and unrecognized need for most women, and ignoring it is what causes a lot of the irritability and overwhelm in the first place! You may actually be feeling less social premenstrually, and needing to carve some “time out” space into your calendar.

This brings us to the topic of calendars, which are an essential way to begin to keep track of your month and anticipate your times for optimal self care. Here is a good way to begin: You will find a monthly calendar page that you can print out on my website, www.womenswaymooncycles.com, when you enter your email address.  A sample of the page is also in my book, The Moon and You, on page 64.  This is a very simple calendar that just shows all the days of one month, and allows you to mark the days of your most recent period. Then, the trick is, to look ahead to next month and use another calendar page to mark the days that you anticipate your next period, as well!  Now you can plan ahead! 

So, using two identical pages, with the dates filled in for two months, you will mark the days that you had your last period, and then mark when you anticipate the next one. Draw a red line, for example, through the days that you expect will be premenstrual and menstrual days in the coming month.  Then - do not plan any optional activities during these days. No dentist appointments or get-togethers with friends.  No big trips or big meetings, if you can avoid it.  Give yourself the gift of this free time, and then when the time comes you can decide what you want to do and what you don’t.  Uninterrupted time to just do nothing is valuable, and essential for deep creativity and a different kind of intelligence to emerge. In my book and classes, I go much more deeply into what kinds of things can emerge during this time, and some ways to support yourself and do some personal healing.

Once your period starts, you have another opportunity to make some small changes and plans for this part of your month, that will make a huge difference in the quality of your experience. For example: You can plan special things for yourself to make your period a special time - even something to look forward to!

• Begin to gather pretty things that are special and meaningful to you, such as objects from nature, things that remind you of the moon, or of the Feminine. These are things you will only bring out when you begin to bleed each month, as a reminder to treat this time differently. 

• Think in terms of pampering items such as towels or pillows, soft socks and scarves, or teas and a special mug. Think of adornment, such as shawls, bracelets, necklaces or fiery red underwear! Include creativity too - a journal and pen, a small set of paints, a tiny flute. 

• Gather red things, in honor of the power that has always been associated with that color! You could create your own Red Tent retreat space - start with just a red pillow or candle if you need to, and build from there!

• Look for a decorative basket or box that will contain these items. This is a box that you will only open when your period begins! Imagine having something pleasant to look forward to!  You can transform your “personal time” into something you treasure, a retreat into a different quality of time and space, even in small ways.

Believe it or not, I have heard time and again from women that simply beginning some of these self-care practices, thinking of their month in terms of seasons or phases, and paying attention to the moon, has transformed their cycles! Difficult cramps have gone away, and women actually look forward to this time of the month as a time to settle in and slow down a bit.

One of the key insights to help you “allow yourself” to shift gears at this time of month, is that you will make up for it during the following phase, when the renewed energy of the next cycle begins to assert itself.  More physical energy and greater mental clarity are often noticeable in the weeks after your period; especially if you have taken the time to recharge during the time when your body and mind were requesting it! 

Remember the example of trees from last month’s post: They retreat into their roots in winter in order to rest and recharge for the coming year. If they didn’t, they would not have the energy they need for the coming bright season of productivity!  Your own month follows a similar rhythm, and when you surround yourself with nourishing experiences during your most feminine phase, you will have that inner resource to draw from, and be able to give the best of yourself during the rest of the month!  I wish you the very best, and would love to hear your thoughts or questions as you try some of these approaches to your cycle.

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My Foundation Class, Welcome Your Rhythm, begins on June 22, for 5 weeks, by phone. If you and a friend wish to enroll together, you may each receive a $30 discount.  Please let me know your names and I’ll send you each a discount code to use when you enroll! This is a great way to take the class, since you’ll be able to compare notes about your experiences. www.WelcomeRhythm.eventbrite.com

The first four women to enroll will also receive a complimentary Cycle Comfort Coaching Session with me, which can be used either before or during our 5-week course! You can discuss any aspect of your cycle, or work on creating more healthy habits in general.

No, I'm talking my basic personhood.  I've taken detours and received certifications, a Master's Degree, and pursued side interests in hopes of making money that would allow my husband to not have to work so hard and free him to be with us more, but nothing that I felt spoke to the real me or allowed me to be fully myself in this world.  When the girls were born, I took their education upon my shoulders because I felt there was no other good option here at home.  To provide them with what I felt they deserved and to fulfill my responsibility to them in bringing them into the world, I gladly took on the traditional role of wife, mother, and homeschooler.  While my husband took on the pressure of providing for us solely on his income, he was still free to pursue his goals in art and music.  

Is being an adult claiming responsibility?  As a kid, I had always been told this.  Adulthood is about sacrifice and responsibility.  I don't know though.  It may just be my family's makeup, but I can't remember many adults around me that would have said they were leading a life that made them happy or that made them feel fulfilled.  I saw sorrow, depression, heartache, and anger written on the faces of many of the adults who loved me so very much.  It covered my world.  Am I selfish in thinking it doesn't have to be that way?      

My main goal is to show my daughters that the world is wide open for us.  There is no role we can't accept or value we have to feel pressured to espouse.  It is about following our heart and going forward from a place of love and respect for others.  All else is a coin toss, and the odds of us winning are perfect as we are infinitely supported by the very stardust we were created from.

An independent, strong minded woman makes people nervous.  A woman that seeks her own fulfillment so that her light can shine as brightly as possible in this world, can expect to be seen as scandalous.  She may not fit in any box set out by society.  She may take risks others see as unnecessary.  It may be hard for those who feel the need to fit her into a category to be with her as she steps into this empowered place.  The fact is, she isn't going to care.  What she knows is that if you love her and want her, you will walk by her through all of it.  If you cannot, it is okay.  Both you and she will be okay.

It isn't about living in the shadows of another.  In this mountain culture I've grown up in, the matriarchy is a hidden power.  There isn't a person on this planet any stronger than an Appalachian woman.  They've held families together for generations of rises and falls.  Through all of this, she quietly worried that her best wasn't enough and it would all fall through her fingers.  While all of her family knew it was really her that bound them all together, her effort wasn't pronounced except maybe at her funeral.

I pray that my daughters don't take a lifetime to learn that they can speak up about what they need and not feel guilty for needing it.  I want them to know that if their current situation is not making their heart sing that patience, a fearless heart, hard work, and their empowered voice will change that.  They aren't obligated to anyone but those who they choose to be obligated to and those who call them mother.  I want them to be brave.  I want them to know they are worthy of the type of love that wants the essence of them so hard, their every breath is like a song, and that when they give that kind of love, they should expect it returned to them.

Our lives matter right now.  I've decided for the sake of myself and my daughters not to wait for mine to begin anymore.  I'm surrounding myself with the people who feed my spirit and want to know me for me.  I'm talking consistently with those who already have shown me that they do.  I've went out on a limb and decided to return to the game plan of my youth modified for what I know now.  I'm excited.  One day, I will be able to type here that I am healthy, happy, and fulfilled most every day.  It's coming.  

There, at the top of the world, as I took deep breaths crouched over that ageless rock, the coin was tossed.  The butterflies in my stomach set free for a time and I felt whole again in the silence.  One day, my Ivy will know what she's capable of because her mother did her best to show her.  It might not come easy to either of us, but she will know.