Conner - Writing down your soul: how to activate and listen to the extraordinary voice within

First published in 2008 by Conari Press,

an imprint of Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC

With offices at:

500 Third Street, Suite 230

San Francisco, CA 94107

www.redwheelweiser.com

Copyright 2008 by Janet Conner. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC. Reviewers may quote brief passages.

ISBN: 978-1-57324-356-8

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request.

Cover and text design by Donna Linden

Typeset in Garamond and Art Craft

Cover photograph Nic Taylor/iStockphoto

Printed in Canada

TCP

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

www.redwheelweiser.com/newsletter

The Spirit's Hands

They

can be a great helpwords.

They can become the spirit's hands

and lift and

caress

you.

MEISTER ECKHART

THERE IS A VOICE INSIDE YOU. There is a Voice inside everyone. Whether you hear it or not, the Voice is there. Whether you acknowledge it or not, the Voice is there. Whether you ask it for help or ignore its guidance, the Voice is still there. Waiting. It is waiting for you to stop, if just for a moment, and listen. The Voice is always there, guiding you, encouraging you, loving you. This book is about connecting with that Voice.

I'll let you in on a sweet little secret right here on the very first page: connecting with that Voice is easy. And why shouldn't it be? The Voice isn't trying to hide from youit is seeking you. It knows the rich conversation that awaits you both. It knows what you need and longs to give it to you. So it stays close at hand, in your heart, your mind, your soul. The Voice is right there, barely below the surface, waiting for you to pick up your pen and penetrate the thin wall of consciousness that keeps you apart.

But why the pen? Why writing? After all, there are other ways to connect. There are powerful spiritual and religious traditions like meditation, prayer, and ritual. There are rich body-mind-spirit practices such as massage, Reiki, yoga, and tai chi. For some, long-distance swimming or running are transcendental experiences. My son swears he finds the greatest peace and does his best thinking riding his motorcycle late at night when he's the only one on the road. All these things are good. And all of them work.

Nothing in Writing Down Your Soul is intended to supplant or alter the practices you use or the beliefs you hold. Deep soul writing doesn't replace anything; it enriches everything. Writing focuses your attention so clearly on the wisdom within that you cannot help but feel guided and loved. A young woman in a Writing Down Your Soul workshop expressed her surprise when she discovered how little effort was required to make that connection. This is so easy, she said. You don't have to listen to a CD or buy a program, or change your beliefs, or fix your diet, or anything. Just show up. Really that's it, just show up.

She's right. This kind of writing is easy. There's no one standing over your shoulder judging your grammar or punctuation or determining if anything you've said makes a lick of sense. But make no mistake, the practice of pouring your soul onto paper is profound, and, in the way of all things profound, it canand willchange your life. Before you turn another page, consider this carefully: if you like your world the way it is, if you don't want to (or need to) improve your emotional, spiritual, or financial life, if you are content with your relationships, your family, your work, and your home, put this book down! Don't read another word. I mean it.

Because once you open that door in your soul, you can't quite close it again. You can't pretend that you don't know where the door is or how easy it is to walk through. Once you start engaging in rich, deep conversation with something higher, bigger, deeper, and wiser than yourself, you'll find yourself contemplating ideas you've never considered, saying things you've never said, and asking questions you've never asked. Once you open yourself to divine direction, you will receive guidance, butfair warningit may not be the guidance you expect. Once you start asking for more, you will start receiving more: more ideas, more intuition, more inspiration, more wisdom, more opportunities, more challenges, and more questions. Always, there are more questions. Because the answers, as you are about to discover, live deep inside the questions.

And let's not forget miracles. Ask and you shall receive. Every spiritual tradition tells us that asking and receiving is the law of the universe, and the Voice is happy to comply. Pick up a pen with the intention of connecting with that extraordinary Voice within, and your life will start rumbling, shifting, and moving. Awakening, as if from a long sleep, you will see your world differently, and you'll find yourself changing, subtly at first. Then, as your trust in the wisdom of the Voice expands, you'll find you have the inner strength and confidence to create your own brave new world.

Sound a bit scary? Well, the best ideas are. We all want safety, but safety, it turns out, is a paradox. To feel really safe, you first have to step out into the unknown, experience the fear, and discover that all is well. I can tell you for ten pages or ten hours that you are safe and loved, but until you feel itfeel it in the deepest place in your soulyou don't know it and certainly don't believe it. You have to step out into that space between here and there, between who I am and who I could be, between what I have and what I want. Nothing new can happen until you step into that empty space. Like Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark, you have to thrust one foot forward into empty air and put it down firmly trusting that something somehow will prevent you from falling. And something will. Something will remind you to be not afraid. Something will encourage you to explore the possibilities. Something will talk you through the scary parts, and something will definitely celebrate your joys. From here on, the Voice will guide you. It will let you know that you are safe and loved.

Are you ready to begin? Then, by virtue of intention, you are now officially the writer of your soul. Welcome to the profound practice of entering your soul and recording the messages you find there. Let the conversation begin.

IT'S A SURPRISE TO ME and everyone I know that I'm the author of a book on deep soul writing. The truth is, I was never much of a journaler. Sure, when I was upset, I'd grab a notebook and write furiously for a day or two, but never consistently and never long enough to resolve anything. Mind you, I loved the idea of having a rich spiritual life. I loved to imagine myself sipping tea and writing profound thoughts in a tooled leather journal with morning sun dappling the pages. To bring this fantasy to life, I bought The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron, but it sat on a shelf alongside all the other great spiritual books I would read as soon as I had the time. Meanwhile, I had a consulting career. I had clients and projects and reports. I had appointments and lunch dates and speaking engagements. I was a busy womana woman with no time to journal.