The After January Party

25 women had a fun and inspirational time together last Saturday at the Magic Party . We all felt supported by each other as we talked about faith, our topic for the afternoon. We came to the conclusion that mostly we are afraid to do the things we dream about. And that fear stops us. And wondered what does it mean to trust our journey completely even when it turns your life upside down and spins it out of control. We wondered about embracing the fear which would mean knowing we were scared to death and moving forward anyway. And wondered about refusing to allow the fear to grab us. And how our lives might change if we could deal better day to day in the face of fear. And if we had faith, what would we do? If you had faith, what would you do? And imagined our lives just a little bolder and ourselves just a bit braver. One guest called me today and said she was inspired to now start her work day by sitting down at her desk first thing in the morning, closing her eyes, and asking herself, "If I were brave, what would i do today?

This Weekend's Magic Party

The Magic Party this weekend is going to be great. The theme of the Party is faith. Faith as it refers to a deep knowing about something without being able to touch it, hear it or see it. Why are we talking about faith this Saturday? Well, because many of us are used to thinking with our minds and moving through our lives based on seeing, hearing and touching facts, evidents and data. For many of us if we don't have visible proof of something we might not feel comfortable in making important decisions. I think facts and visible proof lives in our heads and minds and faith lives in our hearts and souls. Faith lives in the place somewhere deep inside us that just believes that it will all turn out, without knowing how, when or why. If we are going to do the work we are meant to do in the world, impact the people we are meant to impact, and have the kind of contributions we are meant to make we might have to listen to our hearts and souls a bit more. And give the guy in our head, that seems to speak with such authority as to why we shouldn't do something our heart is yearning to do, the day off....a time out...a vacation.

Our Worth

A friend sent this to me and I loved it. It reminded me to remember that I am special, you are special, we are perfect even with all our flaws. Happy Friday.

One Flaw in Women

By the time the Lord made woman,
He was into his sixth day of working overtime.
An angel appeared and said,
"Why are you spending so much time on this one?"
And the Lord answered, "Have you seen my spec sheet on her?
She has to be completely washable, but not plastic,
Have over 200 movable parts, all replaceable
And able to run on diet coke and leftovers,
Have a lap that can hold four children at one time,
Have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken heart
-and she will do everything
With only two hands."

The angel was astounded at the requirements.
"Only two hands!? No way!
And that's just on the standard model ?
That's too much work for one day.
Wait until tomorrow to finish."

"But I won't," the Lord protested.
"I am so close to finishing this creation that is so close to my own heart.
She already heals herself when she is sick
AND can work 18 hour days."

The angel moved closer and touched the woman.
"But you have made her so soft, Lord."

"She is soft," the Lord agreed,
"but I have also made her tough.
You have no idea what she can endure or accomplish."

"Will she be able to think?", asked the angel.

The Lord replied,
"Not only will she be able to think,
She will be able to reason and negotiate."

The angel then noticed something,
And reaching out, touched the woman's cheek.
"Oops, it looks like you have a leak in this model.
I told you that you were trying to put too much into this one."

"That's not a leak,"
The Lord corrected, "that's a tear!"
"What's the tear for?" the angel asked.

The Lord said, "The tear is her way of express ing her joy,
Her sorrow, her pain, her disappointment, her love,
Her loneliness, her grief and her pride."
The angel was impressed.
"You are a genius, Lord.
You thought of everything!
Woman is truly amazing."

And she is!
Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,
But they hold happiness,
Love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy
And laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer
When they believe there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel
And cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about
A birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a fami ly member,
Yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss
Can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you
To show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have compassion and ideals.
They give moral support to their family and friends.
Women have vital things to say and everything to give .

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,
IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

Magic Branding

In the past, I have found it difficult to articulate the answer to the question, "What is a Magic Party?" Aside from saying, it's a community of women who meet for the purpose of supporting each other, which doesn't really describe what happens or sound all that powerful, my friend Mara encouraged me to write a branding statement and suggested it would help the website designer as we are re-doing our Magic Party website. Well, there's nothing like designing a new website to help one get clearer and clearer about their message. (Oh and by the way, if you know a web designer that has a good understanding of branding as it is applied to website design, who can build an e-store, blog and knows the publishing tools needed to build an e-community please have them contact me.)

So, I thought I'd try out my new Magic Party statement here in the blog.

Magic Parties™ is an ever expanding community of women reaching around the globe who inspire and support each other to dream, grow and leave their own unique imprint on the universe for all time. One girlfriend at a time. Each vision magnified by the others. And of course, a little bit of chocolate makes the journey just a bit sweeter and a lot more fun!

I like it. What do you think?

Head and Heart at Work

Yesterday I flew to Chicago to deliver a leadership workshop for my Vision Quest Consulting (VQC) business. Today I find myself mixing my day with VQC business and Magic Party business. This afternoon we have our first Magic Faculty conference call where 6 faculty (individual healers and teachers who have or will work with our community by presenting a piece of work that furthers the hearts and soul work of our members) I will discuss what's happening at Magic Parties and create together what's next regarding faculty participation.

What's interesting is that my head is full with growing my consulting business as I am very much engaged in developing new VQC clients, delivering to current clients and even looking to expand further and bring on a second lieutenant, (do you know someone who might be interested?) to help me grow the VQC business and run a piece of it. And at the same time, my heart is full with the work required to grow and expand Magic Parties. What I notice today is that my head and heart are engaged fully with my two work venues. And I am grateful to have all of me show up at my work and that I do not have to leave a part of me on hold while I go to work everyday. In David Whyte's book, "Crossing the Unknown Sea; Work as a Pilgrimage of Identity", he talks about leaving our soul at the door everyday we go to work. I have not wanted a work life that feels like I am leaving my soul at the door. And am glad I am finding a way to speak to my head and my heart through and with my work. "The day may be full, we may be incredibly busy, but we have forgotten who is busy and why we are busy. We lose the conversation, we lose our calling....we have to realize that our lives are at stake, the one unique life, entirely our own, it is possible for each of us to live."

Are your days too busy that you also feel like you have lost your calling? And if so, if David Whyte is right and your life is at stake, what will you do about it?

The After November 10th Party

The Party this past Saturday was amazing. Our theme was "our journeys". We started the after noon talking about how each woman's journey is unique....all her own....designed just for her... Here is the bottom line or focus about walking on our journey.....on our path in this world. No woman travels the same path as another. We stand alone, making our way in the world the best we know how. As alone as we are, we can walk together, holding hands and holding each other's hearts; walking alone on our own journey, yet together with the sisters of our hears, our girlfriends!

Jen Cohen, our presenter, did an amazing job helping us to explore our paths, our stories, our journeys through poetry. We read poetry and then we talked about it's meaning in our lives by either writing our own poem or just writing what came to our heart and mind. It was an inspiring afternoon. Here is a poem she shared with us that really inspired me.

When death comes

(by Mary Oliver)

When death comes

like the hungry bear in autumn;

when death comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse

to buy me, and snaps the purse shut;

when death comes like the measle-pox;

when death comes

like an iceberg between the shoulder blades,

I want to step through the door full of curiosity, wondering;

what is it going to be like, that cottage of darkness?

And therefore I look upon everything

as a brotherhood and sisterhood,

and I look upon time as no more than an idea,

and I consider eternity as another possibility,

and I think of each life as a flower, as common

as the field daisy, and as singular,

and each name a comfortable music in the mouth,

tending, as all music does, toward silence,

and each body a lion of courage, and something

precious to the earth.

When it's over, I want to say: all my life

I was a bride married to amazement.

I was the bridegroom taking the world into my arms.

When it's over, I don't want to wonder

if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don't want to find myself sighing and frightened

or full of argument.

I don't want to end up simply having visited this world.

Getting Ready for the Magic Party

The next Magic Party is just days away. There is something magical stirring in the air as each Magic Party approaches. I have started to feel the excitement building the last few days and this excitement helps to guide me towards creating just the right party. This particular Magic Party has a theme of women's journeys...women's stories. I believe that women are meant to share their stories to inspire and heal other women. A sisterhood of support throughout the world.

Over the last few months I have been writing the stories from my life that frame my own individual journey. My stories that have created the woman I am today. I imagine these stories will be part of a book I am writing called "The Magic Party Manual...For the Everyday Woman Who Wants a Little Magic in her Life". I will read one of these stories at this next Magic Party. And my friend Jen Cohen who is a teacher, healer, and spirit guide will be our guest presenter who will also do work with us on our stories and what stops us from being brave and courageous in life.

I know I'm not objective, but this should be an amazing, life changing (in a good way) Magic Party.