RBA Newsletter 2020
December 2020
Newsletter 2020 – from Valerie and Judy with love
I begin this on the 31st December 2020. The calendar points us forward…. into our next year on earth. We are delighted, relieved, saddened, gladdened to see the back of this one… to say goodbye to an annus horribilis… our experiences so hard, so awakening, depressing, frightening, transforming; deeply unfamiliar. Humanity needs a New Year… now!
Time to switch our diaries (those of us who still use paper ones) to 2021 and give thanks for the calendar; our marking of time and date so decidedly human; our way of saying after a year such as this: “We are still here! And let’s begin again!”
Yesterday, today, tomorrow… I love how it is all the same to the seagulls, that rose bush and the consistent ocean swishing the sands on the deserted beach beyond our door.
Covid is still here too, turning plans into dreams and bringing families and friends closer together in heart ways, whilst physically separating us.
Both Valerie and I know how our work will continue and we are thankful for livelihood and the opportunity to support, share and contribute. For Valerie, the solar business grows and for Judy mentoring, circle work, small team supervision on zoom goes forward, as does the book, Calling the Daughters.
2021 is its year!
And so, to some of what we have learned this past year from and with others:
- Community spirit keeps the heart open and gets the job done (friends and family and beyond)
- Being curious, playing, singing and reading all help to stay present and remembering to laugh and have fun (grandchildren Aerin and Neve and some grown-ups too)
- Keeping dreams and the spirit of adventure alive (Tamryn, as she sails across the Atlantic for the first time)
- Beloved friends in the USA who survived fire and smoke-filled air (even when the house didn’t) and who showed what it means to let go of things material and let in all else that matters more.
- Experiencing grief and gratitude side by side every day.
- Meditation, Poetry and Prayer bring sanity and sanctuary (individuals and groups that have been consistently practising.)
- Blessing the living and the dying of those we know who have left. (Lighting a candle on N Year’s Eve as invited by our President)
- Social media and television media fasts are do-able and extremely beneficial.
- The miracle and beauty of the natural world, where all feels well. (September’s solo fast with five amazing women …. Listen to us weaving our story here. Time about 1 ¼ hours https://youtu.be/SAe0IY0iTrY
Thanks to Tamryn Bekker and Leigh Wood for putting the video together.
The calendar for 2021 waits in the wings; there will be Vision Quests we hope guided by Lucille Greeff and partners in March and November and Judy and Kerry are offering a journey with The Nine Muses.
Keep faith and health uppermost and if you find that hard, then eat dessert first, as life is uncertain!
Email: jbekker@rbanet.co.za; vmorris@rbanet.co.za
Mobile 083 661 2903