Vanessa Halloum - The 5 Feminine Power Virtues: A Womans Spiritual Roadmap to Love, Joy & Fulfillment

THE 5 FEMININE POWER VIRTUES

A Womans Spiritual Roadmap to Love, Joy & Fulfillment

Copyright 2012 by Vanessa Halloum. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author.

Published by: Empowered Life Productions

( http://empoweredlifeproductions.com )

P.O. Box 670513, Coral Springs, FL 33067

954.543.0434

ISBN 978-0-9854983-1-3 (digital)

Cover Artwork by Mihaela Grozdanova

Author Photograph: Marilyn Garcia

Dedication

To 5 Feminine Souls who Changed My Life:

My motherSolange

My sisterAline

My goddaughterPriscilla

My nieceErika

My grandmotherV Maria

You have all touched me deeply and inspired me to follow my path.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Shes a powerful woman.

What comes to mind when you read those words? Do you envision a wealthy, well-dressed woman who commands attention? Does she run a highly successful company and maintain a perfect home life? Maybe she is physically capable and strong?

For me, a powerful woman possesses emotional strength and has the courage to be herself, no matter what the circumstance. I envision a deeply feminine woman who lives life on her own terms. She creates her life, like an artist painting a masterpiece. This woman has internal powerthe most priceless kind of all.

But its not always easy to tap into our natural, feminine strength. As women, weve been trained to give our power away in this world dominated by masculinity. We quiet ourselves when we want to shout. We apologize instead of express. We adhere to social rules that stifle and mute our true selves. When we do reach for power, we often model our pursuit after men and their approach. And while we may obtain success by using this masculine model, its not sustainable because it doesnt provide us with what we really need. The truth is, we dont have to fight and compete like men to be empowered. We are the most powerful when we step fully into our feminine selves

The Power of Doing and Being

There are two kinds of power: doing and being. Most of us relate power with action (doing). This is the domain we often associate with men. Its a hierarchical type of command weve seen repeatedly in society.

This is not the type of power we will be talking about in this book. We will address the being kind of power, more closely associated with women. We will rediscover the unbridled strength of feminine essence once againfull, passionate, and authenticbecause deep inside we know that true power transcends the external world.

This book will take you on a highly personal journey where you will reacquaint yourself with The 5 Feminine Power Virtues: Presence, Authenticity, Sensuality, Spirituality and Gratitude. Of course, the virtues discussed in this book are no secret; they are ideals that form our daily existence to some degree. But the secret lies in the strength behind these virtues, which is often left untapped and ignored.

Each short chapter will explain the relevance of these virtues in your life and how they can shape a new way of existing in todays world. I will also offer exercises so you can hone and practice these virtues in your own time.

Youll notice a certain simplicity in approach to these virtues; this is not some complicated, heady philosophy. As women, we inherently know the benefits of feminine ideals, but weve lost touch with them. They are waiting to offer us guidance, strength, passion of purpose and a better overall sense of well-being.

You are sitting on a gold mineand that gold mine is you.

For Women Only

This book is specifically for women because we operate differently. We cant expect to live a fulfilling life by following in the footsteps of men and using the same tools they do. Thats like giving an electrician the tools a carpenter uses to do his (or her) job.

The virtues examined in this book are dedicated to women. Of course, men can cultivate these virtues as well. Men have a feminine side, just as women possess masculine traits. Unfortunately, for both women and men, that feminine side has gone underground. Its time to revive those aspects of ourselves and come back to life again, on our terms.

As women, we are leading much more stressful lives and have a wide array of personal and professional demands pressing upon us. Its easy to get overwhelmed and burned out. The dangers of our on the go lifestyle are obvious: health problems, addiction issues, eating disordersthe list goes on. Yet we still trudge forward, like dutiful zombies, living a seemingly full life that secretly tires and depletes us.

This book serves as a gentle guide, intended to reconnect you with your deepest feminine essence. You will learn to draw from that essence like an ever-flowing fountain. You will feel whole again. Many of us, at one time or another, have abandoned these potent aspects of our womanhoodmyself includedthinking that it was a sign of weakness. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our power lies dormant within our femininity. If we have the courage to dig deep inside and experience our feminine essence in an authentic way, we will discover a power we never imagined.

Theres a spiritual imperative at hand. We need to find that balance between our masculine and feminine energies now. By reconnecting with these key virtues, you will choose life, health and wholeness once again. Youll begin to feel a vibrancy long forgotten.

The best part? These virtues require less doing and more being.

And youve already taken the first step.

Enjoy the journey!

CHAPTER 1

Living in Presence

The miracle of love comes to you in the presence of the uninterrupted moment. If you are mentally somewhere else, you miss real life.

Byron Katie

What Is Presence?

Presence is awareness. Presence is being here now. Presence is living fully in the moment, without being distracted by nagging thoughts ricocheting inside your head.

Presence has become an overlooked state of mind in the last few decades. In our society, we pride ourselves in our ability to multi-task. Hundreds of things compete for our attention: emails, deadlines, appointments, phone calls, text messagesthe list goes on. Often, were in the middle of one task and already planning for the next. Weve become so accustomed to this frenetic lifestyle that distraction is considered normal. Peace of mind is pass.

But whenever we have the rare opportunity to meet someone who truly embodies the quality of presence, they stand out completely. We can feel the difference tangibly, and secretly, we breathe a sigh of relief. Ahthis is what it feels like to be living life, not racing through it. This is what it feels like to live, rather than worry about life.

Perhaps youve had the good fortune to meet this type of person. When he or she walks into a room, everyone notices. Something within them calls our attention. Its palpable and we are immediately attracted to it. It awakens something in all of us. This is the outward manifestation of presence.

People living in the present are totally conscious of the here and now with no judgments or preconceived notions of the way things should be. They are not thinking about the errands they need to run, what theyre going to make for dinner or what people might be saying about them. These people seem unique but the truth is that presence is our natural state of being. We just lose our way when we get caught up in busyness, doing and preoccupation.

When we become too anxious, self-conscious or busy orchestrating every detail of our life, we are no longer present. Compare it to a first date, where were so focused on saying and doing just the right thing that we lose the ability to simply enjoy meeting a new person. We become stuck in our heads.