�Take this book,� said Toni as she handed me a copy of Women�s Reality by Anne Wilson Schaef. Toni had a box full of the books. Toni was always teaching me new things and I was grateful for the book; however, I did not have time to read it just then. I gave it to my friend Pam.
Pam called me nearly every day to read parts of the book to me. The work explained so much that we�d found puzzling in our lives and confirmed so much of what we were learning in our anti-racism community work. Things about time, money, space, and power. I think she read nearly the entire book to me.
After that I continually looked for books by Anne Wilson Schaef. When Society Becomes An Addict fit right in once again with the anti-racism work I was doing and I used pieces of both books often when I made various presentations.
Then I almost moved to Boulder Colorado and was excited that maybe I�d live in the same town as Anne Wilson Schaef and get to meet her and learn more. I hadn�t realized that Anne Wilson Schaef had moved the work to Boulder Hot Springs, Boulder, Montana.
In 1995, while waiting for a mechanic to fix my son�s car so we could go to the shore, I was browsing in a small card shop/book store. There I discovered Beyond Therapy, Beyond Science by Anne Wilson Schaef. I immediately bought it and just couldn�t put it down. I had started a program to earn my Master of Social Work degree and found the book challenging how therapy was done. I loved the book. It spoke to me. I wondered about getting my Master�s degree. The Living in Process and deep work she spoke about made more sense than the clinical training and DSM-IV diagnosing I was learning.
I wrote and got information about how to connect to the work. I learned there were weekend intensives and training. I wondered if I would ever be able to do the training and believed I�d at least be able to go to an intensive.
Just from reading the book, I started doing some of my deep work. Eventually, I got to an intensive. I was newly divorced, in a new community, in a lot of emotional pain. I was looking for anything that would relieve my pain. What I found at my first intensive was an incredible community where I was encouraged to be in touch with my self. What was I feeling? What did I need to do to take care of my self? What was I available to participate in? I was encouraged to stay with my feelings and in a safe way with people around me, to allow my feelings to take me wherever they needed. That the process would produce healing. I was encouraged to say where I was in my life and what was happening in my life and others in the group gave feedback, but only if I wanted to hear it . . . only if I was available. I was so struck by the love and honesty.
Upon returning home, I found my self doing the deep process work of staying with my feelings. I had some tremendous learning and healing in doing that. I did not always want to do the work and always found healing when I was willing to do the work.
For 6 years, I went to 1-2 intensives each year and stayed in touch with the people I met. I am clear that I could not work the way I work nor be in relationships the way I can today without this work.
In July 2002, I realized my long-held dream of joining the Living In Process training community in Boulder Montana. I felt like I�d given my self a huge gift! The interesting thing was that Anne Wilson Schaef was on sabbatical and I didn�t think I�d get to meet her, but by that time I knew that while she is a woman of great wisdom and the guide for the work, that many others also participated. And lo and behold, she did come for part of the time I was there and I did get to meet her. To me, she is an amazing, wise woman.
Living in Process to me is living in a way that is authentic to my soul and respectful of others. I am so grateful to have this work in my life.
e-mail me if you�d like to know more: [email protected] or visit the Living in Process link.
testimonial