Chapter 3

Honouring the Calling: Qigong

Qigong and Taoist philosophy allowed me to awaken and fully experience surrender and flow. Through qigong practice, I recognized myself as an energetic being and learnt the importance of energy regulation, movement, and stillness. Movement had been missing from my life since my dancing and sporting days at school. Although my health was 90 percent improved, when I found qigong the missing piece of the puzzle restored me to full health.

On a visit to my grandmother’s house, I noticed a 1986 Readers’ Digest on her shelf entitled “The Complete System of Self-Healing, Internal Exercises” by Dr S. T. Chang. Drawn to this old book, I discovered the ancient Chinese wisdom and art of qigong, which was to change my life. After a week of devouring the book, I was sure that this form of exercise was exactly what I needed to do to fully restore my health and nurture me as my boys got older and my practice began to grow.

Not long afterwards, while I was running a stall at a Mind Body Spirit fair, I met a qigong teacher who was to become a dear friend, Clara Apollo, who had travelled from the New Forest recruiting students for her qigong teacher training course. I tried her workshop and found myself settling happily in my body and enjoying the gentle movements. I trusted that the universe had brought this to me and signed up to train one weekend a month over the year.

I felt nervous on my way to the first day of training, having never practised qigong before, and filled with doubt about the commitment I had made for the next year. I stopped off at the service station to use the bathroom, grabbed a cup of tea, and returned to my car to find that I had forgotten my car keys. I darted back, remembering I had put them on the toilet roll holder. As I hesitated, looking at the long line of identical toilet doors in front of me, I heard my keys suddenly fall on the floor in one of the stalls. I knew then that I was on the right path. This was a sign that my guides, or angels, were with me and I was doing the right thing by embarking upon this course. Indeed, that day, my life was to change forever.

I was greeted by Clara and several other smiling faces, one being the reiki master and author Richard Ellis. As we began our practice, my nerves disappeared, and I found myself experiencing a truly deep connection to myself and the earth. The work was profound, instinctual, and my body bathed in the qi (chi), or energy, as though drinking nectar from a universal well. Having danced so much throughout my childhood, my body had missed the focused awareness and movement that qigong now offered.

Qigong’s predominant teachings involve learning to let go and become empty. It is from emptiness that qi is born and can begin to flow. In qigong (as explained in Chapter 7) we become an empty vessel between Heaven and Earth and move universal qi through the main energy channels of the body, clearing, gathering, and distributing qi to the energy reservoirs, and through the meridians to the organs. It is a wonderful practice, which I highly recommend, connecting us more deeply with our physical and energy bodies, quieting our minds, and connecting us to the universal qi field that extends beyond us.

A friend and student of Richard’s, Dave, was also taking the training course, and during a break the two men gave each other what I can only describe as a heart-centred hug. It lasted several moments, and from my understanding now, I imagine that their heart resonances had expanded so greatly that I became part of their qi field. I connected with their open-hearted expression of love and, in the next breath, became filled with an unbearable sadness; my mind loudly saying, “I don’t have that”. It was a daunting realization, and the underlying sadness I had been pushing away bubbled up like a fountain. I found myself witnessing this truth like a cymbal clashing in my head and feared for my marriage.

Lesson no. 11

Open-hearted love exists at our core—love is our foundational truth.

Divorce

My husband and I loved each other dearly, but his inability to express to me the kind of love I had witnessed on the qigong course shook me. I recalled noticing this lack of heartfelt affection at the end of our first date, through our early relationship and marriage—seeing it as an opportunity to be more sovereign. Now, it was like a dagger in my heart, which I could withstand no longer. The more I came into my truth, light, and awareness, the more distant and problematic our relationship became. I knew that I wanted heartfelt love in my life and to develop as an open-hearted intuitive and healer. It was painful and difficult, but my wings were clipped and that felt unbearable.

Distance grew between us. I allowed my intuition and truth to move me along, and we eventually divorced. The sadness and desperation I felt were overwhelming. Apart from my mother and one or two close friends, no one seemed to understand what I was doing leaving a beautiful home and a man who seemed to love me, in full knowledge of the devastation it could cause to my two children.

We managed the separation as consciously as possible, but the divorce served as a catalyst for the anger that had been suppressed over the years. My youngest child, who is psychically gifted, was always one step ahead of what was happening, and my eldest, an empath, unknowingly picked up on all the sadness and anger around him. There was plenty of heartache involved, but there was also much love, and we navigated our pathways forward.

We live with many judgements that cause us pain and distress. Many come from religious doctrines, parents, grandparents, and so on, while others come from self-judgement. My husband judged that I was mentally unstable, rather than awake to my truth, and, as happens to a lot of people who separate, many of my friendships also disappeared. It was a blessing to escape once a month to my qigong training course, connect with the Tao, the universal qi field, and be around other like-minded beings, and just “be”, without judgement and with my truth. It was around this time that I had my most profound spiritual experience.

Lesson no. 12

Facing our deepest truths and our deepest hurts, although not easy, brings transformational healing.

Enlightenment

It began with a trip to Glastonbury in the summer of 2013. I did my usual trek up the Tor with my diary, met a good friend, and visited the Chalice Well, a world peace garden. We paddled in the freezing red well, thought to be the yin, or divine feminine, waters, and to possess healing qualities. Within moments, I had slipped and fallen over, fully clothed. Submerged in the water, my baptism into the healing energy of the divine feminine took place. We laughed about it, as I stood there freezing and without a change of clothes, but it was a perfect “now” moment in which to accept myself as a woman, empowered, and able to be with what was.

In Glastonbury, I was drawn to the work of artist Ioanis Antoniadis, and in particular, a painting of a woman with a dove entering the crown of her head. The artist approached me as I was viewing the painting and told me that it represented the Holy Spirit and that this would happen to me as part of my own journey, then left. I bought several prints, inspired by the high vibration of these paintings.

I knew the importance of clearing emotion, so I decided to release my emotions the following morning using the Geneline Therapy technique whilst taking a bath. I focused on my heart and, like the story of the Glastonbury Thorn, which is said to have taken root from Joseph of Arimathea’s staff in the earth in Glastonbury’s Wearyall Hill, I released all resistance, quietly observing as I allowed intense pain to pierce my heart.

As I experienced this, with eyes closed, I suddenly became flooded with a pink-and-white light that was brighter and warmer than anything I had ever experienced before. It was the energy of pure love, of ecstasy penetrating my heart and entire being. Tears of joy streamed down my face, and I felt awe. I had a vision of being carried beyond the sky by two doves on a silvery-golden thread in the bright light, and I stayed there in this almost orgasmic state of bliss for what turned out to be three hours!

I was conscious of what was happening and reminded of the artwork and message that had been conveyed to me. I perceived this experience as the Holy Spirit or Great Spirit entering my entire being and healing my broken heart. I became unstuck, unbroken, and brightly filled with wondrous light.

This was my own deep awakening and experience of enlightenment. I declared myself to be of service during that process. I was humbled and felt myself to be God’s servant; I now knew that I was not, and could never again, feel alone. I was a part of, and connected to, this great consciousness, and I knew in that moment that there is more to our universe than what we can see, understand, or explain.

I had always believed that there was more to life than we generally experienced, a greater good and an unquantifiable magic to the universe. When I was a teenager, I remember telling my dad that I was eternal and could not die. This incredible experience was my confirmation that there was a beautiful, strong, all-encompassing love available to us all—a divine love so powerful that it heals all in its path. This energy stayed with me for weeks, and I re-experienced glimpses of divine love in my healing sessions with clients, for by then, I had become a clear channel, trusting Spirit to guide me in my life and work.

Lesson no. 13

There is a universal divine love whose immense power can transform pain and suffering.

One message came to me in a dream before I woke up. I was sitting with a Native American woman in circle, and was shown myself as a man transmitting intelligence in Morse code during wartime. After being discovered, I then experienced my life ending violently, even as I frantically radioed for help, with the words “There is no help” echoing in my soul.

I had lived most of my life believing that I must go it alone and that “there was no help for me”. After this re-connection, or healing from Spirit, I woke up and within the space of five minutes had received two texts and a telephone call, all offering help. So I wish to convey that, yes, there is help! The universe wants and needs us to evolve, to come into our greatest expressions of love and trust, and when we pledge to do so, we will be guided and supported. The question is whether we can allow our mind to quieten enough, stop the stories, and allow the help and love through? Will we choose to do what it takes to transform the suffering into forgiveness and joy?

There is much suffering in this universe of limitless possibility, but there is also love and joy, and my experience tells me that we can choose which we align with, once we learn how to clear the old vibrations and align with something new.

Soulmate Uniting

Nine months after this experience, I met my soulmate, Rob. I was told that I was going to meet him during an intuitive reading practice group several months beforehand, that he was in France and making his way to me. One week after this reading, my dear qigong teacher and friend, Clara Apollo, told me she had met somebody interested in qigong training who she thought I should meet, even though he was living in France at the time! A little flabbergasted, I waited patiently, curious of course, but very grateful that I had been given the messages. Although I was willing to live a purposeful life alone, I wanted reciprocal love in my life.

When I first met my dear Rob, I would never have put two and two together. He was very attractive, but six and a half years younger than me and without a home or penny to his name. He travelled extensively, helping others with their business ventures, had no commitments, and was content to not know where his next meal was coming from. He lived in the world of exchanging the gift of time and experience for a meal or temporary home. I was working hard for a living, figuring out how I would pay my mortgage and look after my children. I was both confused and intrigued!

After our second meeting, that was it. We were inextricably bound. He was and still is the kindest, most gentle soul, and has loved and nourished me in a way I never dreamed possible. Things were challenging in the first few years, mainly due to our differences, but we know how to come back to love when our egos, fears, and beliefs take over. He moved in with me and my children fairly quickly. They loved his lightness, and our house again filled with love and laughter.

Lesson no. 14

Love is important. We can find love in strange places. Believe in good things coming!

The Healing Voice Mandala Ceremony

Another universal alignment led to the birth of our baby boy, Phoenix. As a Christmas gift, I bought tickets for Rob and myself to Jill Purce’s Healing Voice Mandala Ceremony in May 2016. The mandala is a spiritual symbolic representation of the circular nature of the universe, and the gift was to help Rob to find his voice and confidence instead of the conditioned programmes of unworthiness he had been running internally for many years. This was a retreat I had wanted to attend for years. My parents babysat for the week, and we went off with our tent to Glastonbury.

The mandala was an amazing experience—an energy and momentum of vibrational healing incorporating Tibetan overtone chanting, song, and Family Constellation therapy. Rob and I were welcomed into a beautiful tribe of about 80 people that week. We chanted for seven days, turning around the human mandala, clearing our attachments to fears and hurt, honouring and embodying the light deity Green Tara, mother of the Buddhas, who embodies fearless action.

Kundalini Rising

I had another profound spiritual experience during the mandala ceremony, as my kundalini (universal life energy) rose. The energy of the mandala was so high, I started to feel overwhelmed. During one of our short breaks, I felt that I needed to place my forehead on the earth to help ground myself. As people moved back inside, Rob came over to me, but I was barely capable of words. I knew from my reading that kundalini was rising and that I should allow it. I was vaguely able to mutter “kundalini” to him, half-conscious, before the energy took hold.

I writhed on the grass for a while, toning vocally as the energy birthed through me. I saw beautiful deities around me, and Jill standing among this circle (although she was actually inside the building facilitating the mandala), and a crooked man with a staff merging with the image I had of Jill from time to time. My mouth repeated the words “Rinpoche, Rinpoche”, not knowing much about Tibetan Buddhist practices or the significance of Guru Rinpoche, but I was aware that this god-like figure or deity was overseeing this experience.

Although kundalini is a feminine universal energy, this felt like an intense masculine rush up my spine, to which I had no choice but to surrender. In hindsight, it was a purge or cleanse, readying me for the conception of my third child the following day.

Rob and I had spoken of consummating our love with a child, and indeed, it was something we both wanted and felt called to do, but with our current financial situation, my need to work and parent my boys, it made no sense.

We were invited to represent the May King and Queen for the group’s Beltane ceremony the following and final day and, delighted to do so, were adorned with earthly spiritual May Day dress and floral crowns. On what felt like our wedding day, with dew collected to the sound of the harp at sunrise from the Glastonbury hills, we ceremonially led a cauldron of fire to the maypole, where we sang and danced, before returning to the final day of the mandala. At the end of the day under the full moon—with me ovulating, of course—exhausted and elated by the week’s happenings, we were carried by the momentum of Spirit and universal love; the peacock in the field sang, the sheep chanted, and we lovingly allowed the conception of our magical child.

Lesson no. 15

Surrender to the flow of energy. There is a higher consciousness inside us and a universal benevolent consciousness that knows exactly what it is doing. We just need to get our protective ego minds and fears out of the way, and allow.

Through Adversity Be in the Now

I was the main earner, and all-day morning sickness made work difficult. I loved being pregnant and knew that this was the right thing for us, trusting in Spirit’s calling, but it was a challenging pregnancy, which put strain on our relationship.

I became resentful that I had to work, throwing up during and between client sessions for most of the pregnancy. I lay awake most nights, wondering how we were going to make this work. It took a toll on Rob, too, as he cared for and fed me and my older boys and tried to make his new business work financially.

Love and faith got us through, and exactly to the day, nine months later, we had a wonderful hypno-birthing experience. At 9.09 pm on the 1st February 2016, whilst holding open the blue portal as I had been told to do by both my guides and my dear friend Louisa, our son Phoenix was born. My older children were now 10 and 12 years old, respectively, so this really was a new beginning. We all welcomed this being of pure joy and light into our life and hearts.

The day after Phoenix was born, Rob went to see the doctor about a growth in his testicle. Soon after, amid the fullness of baby-dom, we discovered that his lump was cancer, which had vigorously spread to around 40 tumours in his lungs. Here was another ride to endure.

Had we not heard the call of Spirit to bring Phoenix into the world, it is possible that Rob would never have become a father, and without our joyous babe, the world would certainly not be the same.

We researched and did what was needed to heal Rob of his old psychological and emotional patterns of unworthiness, passivity, and insufficiency. Rob had chemotherapy, took herbs, juiced, cut out sugar and the usual suspects, and ate organic foods, whenever possible. Almost three years on, we believe that he is out of the woods. Lessons are still being learnt, fears and insecurities being released, but life has gained momentum. I am optimistic for our future together. No matter what happens, I have no regrets and will always be grateful for each exchange of love we share.

Lesson no. 16

Always be in the “now”. When in adversity, we can usually handle the current moment and, if not, we have the power to change this perception.

Like most of us, I have spent far too much time fearing unwanted circumstances. CBT defines this as “Having a bad case of the what-ifs”. When I was pregnant, I spent a lot of time fearing how I would cope with a new baby—how I would be able to take enough time away from work to nurture and breastfeed him, give enough time and attention to my older boys, and earn enough to pay my mortgage, alongside everything else that having a house, car, pets, and career demands. But I found that when I stayed in the “now”, everything was okay.

If we can cope with the demands in the “now”, minute by minute, hour by hour, we can cope with the future as we experience it unfold. In this intensely demanding time, I remained physically and mentally well and optimistic, with no signs of the return of autoimmune disease. For this, I give thanks to the work I did on myself and to my connection with a universal supreme energy. I recognize my own light, and trust my ability to manage my emotional and physical health, taking responsibility for creating a reality I am happy to experience.

Two years on, I have a fully booked full-time practice and have developed this healing system, which I teach alongside qigong and reiki. I am building the foundations of a tribe and therapeutic healing and creative centre—Heaven On Mother Earth (HOME)—to help liberate and empower others into awakening, healing, and love. I look forward to sharing with you the principles by which I have come to find health, joy, trust, and love, and the amazing healing system that will enable you, too, to lift your own vibration to that of love, empowerment, and ease. With gratitude to all of those mentioned and unmentioned along my path, thank you for journeying alongside me.

The Healing InSight Belief Realignment Method

What follows are the golden keys to harmony and healing, which have informed the development of the Healing InSight belief change system.

1. Choose Love

Love is the fundamental energy of the universe. It exists at our core; we all desire to return to love. The journey of love begins with kindness to self and others. Be kind above all else. True love is safe, and it is kind. It needs no introduction and adds meaning and riches to our lives.

So many of my clients ask how they can begin to love themselves. I suggest that it begins with kindness. This means moving away from self-deprecation and anything that constricts or limits your identity or possibilities. It means listening to yourself and your needs, developing a caring and understanding relationship with yourself, and stepping into action to support and honour your needs. We all are worthy of love. You must recognize and align with this. Love breeds love; following your joy and desire attracts more of the same into your life. Love and compassion heal, and when we offer that gift to ourselves, we develop a healthy inner relationship, which strengthens and supports us to become independent, interconnected beings. When we have a loving, supportive relationship with ourselves, we move away from loneliness and are happy in our own company and free to give love to others.

2. Personal Responsibility – Self-Help

We cannot wait for the world to change, for our circumstances to change, or for someone to come and fix us. Our realities are largely shaped by our own beliefs, expectations, focus of attention, and behaviours. If something is not working, we have to take responsibility for changing it ourselves. There is help. We are affected by the physical and emotional toxicity in our environment, and must clean it up. We do not have to be victims of our past or expect our future to be dictated by our past. Start a little at a time, but just start and continue to take responsibility (without any blame or shame) for your own thoughts, beliefs, behaviours, and experiences. It is both empowering and rewarding, and you will be supported in your endeavours.

3. Understanding the Mind-Body-Spirit Connection

Our bodies do not exist separately from our mental processes or spiritual selves. The mind, body, and spirit affect one another and are best considered as a whole. I have never met a well-rounded, happy, healthy, balanced person who does not tend to the mind, body, and spiritual self. Visualization is a powerful way to harness the mind-body-spirit connection. As we visualize with intention, our imagination can fill us with good or bad scenarios. Corresponding beliefs and emotions (inner-sights) can come into our awareness. We feel in our bodies, we hear stories in our minds, and we receive guidance in the form of thoughts, impulses, and imagination from our higher self. When these are experienced as a whole, we can become aware of our subconscious patterns and programmes and our deeper truth, which may otherwise have been hidden from us.

4. Opening Up to Spirituality

We are spiritual beings in a human body having a human experience. There may be things we do not fully understand spiritually, but there is much we can learn from others who have experienced something greater than themselves. We once believed that the world was flat, but that did not make it true. Germs cannot be seen by the naked eye, but that does not mean they do not exist. The same goes for spiritual energies or beings in contact with us on this earthly plane. Quantum physics demonstrates that subtle energy does exist and can be both measured and, to some extent, explained.

We have been taught by religion to mistrust or fear spirituality without a religious basis, but to embrace spirituality is to embrace a desire for reconnection to love, meaning, and purpose. Without it, we are adrift. I have seen many depressed or anxious people recover quickly once reconnected to their true self and soul’s purpose. Many of us have questioned our faith and moved away from religious institutions, but when we deny our spirituality we deny our essence, and this can lead to pain and disease. All you need is curiosity, openness, and desire, and the universe will do the rest—if you ask and allow it to be so. As a healer, I see and experience the love that Spirit has for everyone. There is no judgement from Spirit, no withholding of love or healing. Spirit can be found anywhere, but especially in nature, in sacred sites, in one’s heart, in quietening, and through music and creativity.

5. Releasing Judgement

Judgement of ourselves, others, and the world around us causes separation and pain. There is judgement everywhere in our world. Even some of the most popular spiritual teachers and authors tell us that certain ideas are wrong and deny the multifaceted truths that exist on this polarized Earth. I am concerned when I find this duality and ideas of right or wrong, which focuses on dividing us into separate camps rather that searching for the universal truth that unites us. It is only when we connect to the whole and practise acceptance of what is, right now, that we can pour love into every corner and create the magic of oneness.

I talk about this with clients as needing to find the “and” rather than the “or”. When we judge or deny another’s truth or perspective, we create separation. Even judging someone to have more knowledge, skill, or ability than us encourages us to see them as separate. Real empowerment comes when we accept that we are all different, we are all unique: no one is better or less than us. Life is our greatest teacher and will always bring experiences to facilitate our expanding consciousness.

Accepting our own behaviours and emotions without judgement, simply as expression and experience, allows the lightness needed for our state of mind and energetic resonance to be altered. This practice of non-judgement and non-attachment—being with what is, in the now. This is freedom.

6. Mindful Movement

It is no coincidence that the year after I stopped dancing regularly, I developed lupus. I think that the regular dancing kept it at bay by clearing my body of stuck energy and emotion. For me, qigong is the most powerful form of mindful movement; as I can attest, practising regularly offers multiple health benefits. Like yoga, qigong helps clear stagnant energy, strengthen mind and body, and utilize the power of the breath and intention for health and healing. For people who struggle with mobility, the benefits of qigong can be experienced even when it is performed whilst seated.

7. Energy Clearing and Maintenance

We must first acknowledge and accept that we are energetic beings, with electrical activity along circuits throughout our bodies. These energy pathways can become disrupted or stagnant, and if we don’t clear these old blockages, our physical bodies begin to suffer, underperform, or become prone to disease. Many energy-clearing modalities are available, including reiki, EFT, Zero Balancing, the Bowen Technique, massage, yoga, qigong, acupuncture—and I know many people who swear by a good run. Paying attention to the body’s energy system and clearing the body of stagnant energy and stress-holding patterns is essential for physical health. An energetically free-running body is a healthy body.

8. Emotional Understanding and Expression

Unexpressed emotional upset and turmoil are held in the body by the breath and can tighten and constrict the muscles and mind. If emotion is left to express itself freely, it will happily do so until the process is complete.

Understanding that emotions are a normal, healthy, natural, and useful feedback system is a necessary component of healing the mind and body. Trapped and unexpressed emotion causes us disease and actual physical inflammation and pain over time. It helps to simply be curious as an observer when we feel emotional.

What is the feeling? Name it, and understand why you’re feeling it through taking responsibility for how you are judging and perceiving the unfolding event. When we look with curiosity, we see things that help us to make sense of events differently. We do actually have a choice in how we feel about something. Most of our current emotional responses were created from early-life, ancestral, or soul experiences. We can witness the bigger picture by inviting in our non-judgemental observer self.

9. Using the Earth’s Medicine – Plants, Herbs, and Nutrition

We are what we eat, and our food sources are being poisoned with hormones, insecticides, chemicals, and toxins. We must not only think consciously but act and choose consciously when it comes to food and drink. This is particularly important if you are in recovery from ill health. Nature gave us powerful food and herbs to help the body heal; slowly, these are disappearing from our shelves in favour of pharmaceutical drugs, which are reported by many eminent alternative health care physicians to be the biggest killer in the Western world.

I am not a nutritionist, herbalist, or homeopath, but my personal experience has been that replacing daily doses of steroids and anti-malarial drugs with natural remedies healed my body without the side effects I experienced with pharmaceuticals. In addition, cutting out chemical-containing cosmetics, cleaning agents, and foods lessens the toxic load for our bodies and saves our environment. Natural products are excellent today. Always discuss with your healthcare practitioner if you wish to make changes to your regular regime, and seek personalized guidance from a qualified holistic practitioner to manage your medical needs.

10. Aligning with Universally Sound Beliefs

Belief change is what this book and the healing system are all about. Without belief realignment, it is very difficult—if not impossible—to make lasting changes to our wellbeing. We hold many beliefs about ourselves, our lives, and others, which influence our behaviours, thoughts, and emotions. Some beliefs help us to grow, stay safe, explore, innovate, and relate; others keep us stuck and unable to move forward. We must notice our inner critic and locate unhelpful beliefs if we wish to change them. We tell ourselves all kinds of stories of inadequacy, fear, unworthiness, and lack. What might it be like to be a cheerleader for yourself, believing in yourself, your gifts, skills, and sincerity? What might it be like to love and support yourself as you might your friend, partner, or child? Kindness counts, and putting yourself first is both okay and important. Belief change is the catalyst for a new vibration and a new reality.

11. Finding Connection with Our Soul‘s Desires and Life Path

We birth into life and spend many years behaving in ways we believe we should in order to be loved, successful, or accepted. We meet (or not) the expectations of our parents, our siblings, our teachers, and our employers. I frequently see clients wondering, “How did I get here?”—not knowing who they are, what they like, what their gifts are, what their passion or interests are. The need for acceptance and belonging can drive us in a particular direction, one that may actually be far removed from our true soul’s path and purpose.

In order to reconnect, we must recognize our drives, likes, and desires. We must get to know and fall in love with ourselves. At the end of the day we always have ourselves, and developing a loving relationship with oneself is the greatest gift of all. It enables us to have a loving relationship with life, others, and All That Is. When we walk our own path we gather momentum and, in my experience, the magic of life begins to flow.

12. Finding Connection with Our Tribe

As a consequence of the above, we gather with like-minded individuals into a collective. Tribe always was and always will be important, but we cannot find our tribe if we are not intent upon being our true selves and walking our own path. Like attracts like, so being the best you that you can be puts you in a vibrational match with others doing the same. Difference is good; we do not need to be the same in order to get on. We must be willing to be ourselves regardless of our differences and allow others to be and do the same. It is our individuality that creates the expanse, and without us each being our unique true selves, we cannot create the whole.

There is enough for everyone (remember the “and” rather than the “or”). Let us celebrate each other and find the gift in what our tribes teach us, as we teach them, too.