The Guest House

This New Year has brought an unexpected challenge to me in the loss of a very close and dear friend, teacher, mentor and “adopted” Father, Dr. Ron Kurtz, the founder of Hakomi Therapy. He suddenly and unexpectedly passed from this Earthly existence on January 4, 2011. Ron taught me how to be a better “Human” in the highest sense of the word, more loving, compassionate and kind. He has been one of my most significant teachers and will live on through me in my thoughts and deeds.

Ron has passed down his Legacy of Hakomi training and teaching for me to carry forward by naming me in his Will as one of the, “True representatives and holders, legally and spiritually, of my Legacy.” I will do my best to honor his teachings and the spirit of his life’s work through all I interact with.

I have never cried so many tears and shown so much emotion and grief in public ever before in my life. It has challenged me and continues to challenge me to really be open to feel all my feelings and not to constrict, not to close down and continue to expand when my first impulse is to close myself off and not let the movement of energy that wants to move through me.

Somehow I have falsely learned that constricting will somehow “protect” me and keep me safe. A death of a close loved one gives the gift of bringing more awareness to my every waking moment. False beliefs and ways of being in the world that really do not serve me are suddenly made more conscious. Dramatic events have that ability to shake us up enough to allow us to “wake-up” and see more clearly. They help to bring our lives into sharper perspective and to focus on what is really important, possibly letting go of what no longer fits from a more clear and awakened viewpoint.

In an internal and eternal dance we are all continually dying and being reborn every day. This is our personal dance of letting go of what no longer serves us and awakening to that which does. When we do not let go and move forward we can become “stuck” and instead of expanding we contract. When we are contracted it becomes very difficult to live the life that we may have dreamed of having. Our timing and balance can become out of sync with the flow and current of life. We all came here to Earth to expand and grow, to be in the flow of life with joy, health, creativity, love and expansion into the new, into the unknown.

It is not necessary to experience dramatic events in your life to be a catalyst for awakening. We can live in such a way that we are gently and gracefully allowing ourselves to become more and more conscious and aware. Having a simple daily meditation practice gives many gifts that unfold slowly over time. Paying attention to how we are feeling and choosing to follow feelings that support and nurture ourselves over what other people may tell us and even demand of us prevents the constrictions that slow us down in our possible growth and living of a graceful life. Listening to our inner guidance offers us the wisest answers to life’s challenges and questions.

The sessions that I offer, the work that I do in its various formats all focus on allowing you to become more free, to wake-up, let go of unnecessary suffering, and become more connected to your higher sources of wisdom and knowing. As you become more connected to the larger aspects of yourself, your life naturally improves and becomes clearer, better, and more fulfilling. You find the love and connection that is all around you and then you can become a source of help and nourishment to others.

I would like to leave you with a poem by Rumi that speaks of one way to eloquently live each day.

In Light, Love & Service,
Adama

The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.

The Essential Rumi, versions by Coleman Barks