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Serving Those Who Walk Between the Worlds

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My Edgewalker Adventure Continues #5 – Evolutionary Leaps of Faith

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The continuation of my Edgewalker Journey on the Big Island of Hawaii was at a cross roads. I was not expecting the invitation to house sit at the beautiful sanctuary of my new Hawaii friends Joel and Michele and extend my trip for the Summer months. I was conflicted about what to do next and whether or not to accept their offer. So I decided to stay on course and follow the next step in my plan which was to fly to Kauai, the Garden Isle in the Hawaiian chain. I wanted to explore the beauty and experience the energy there. Each Hawaiian Island has it’s own energy, gifts and lessons. I was curious and open to what Kauai had to offer. I also gained distance and perspective so I could get clear about my decision.

Upon arriving I immediately felt that Kauai was a true tropical paradise, heaven on earth! The depth and beauty of nature was unlike anything I had experienced before. The colors, flowers, beaches, waterfalls, gardens and air touched my heart and senses. Unlike the beauty of the Big Island which is primal, raw and powerful, a Masculine energy, Kauai is softer, ethereal, a feminine Energy. As I was exploring the natural and spiritual sites that included a breathtaking helicopter ride, I also met Ohana, my spiritual family on Kauai. My Hawaiian tribe was growing, as I connected with community and friends who I instantly felt at home with. Little did I know that in the years to come, the island of Kauai would bring my most challenging lessons, emotional healing and spiritual growth.

In spite of the magical moments in the paradise of Kauai, the nagging feeling that I had to go back to the Big Island of Hawaii and extend my trip would not leave me. I could not ignore the signs and the Divine Synchronicity of my Edgewalker journey thus far. My Edgewalker Skills of Manifesting and Risk-taking, the ability to try what hasn’t been tried before, trust my instincts and break new ground supported me in taking another leap and making a conscious decision. My friend Jim and future neighbor on the Big Island, encouraged me to fly back to the Big Island and spend the Summer house sitting which made Joel and Michele happy. I chose yes, a conscious choice that to this day sparked a series of events and opened a path that would change my life, from the inside out and outside in. I fastened my “seatbelt” and flew back to my future….!

Lessons:

*Making a conscious choice sometimes requires stepping away and creating time and distance to gain perspective and clarity. When in doubt, don’t (Oprah)!

*We have free will. We can choose from our ego with fear or choose from Divine Will with Love!

*The Universe Handles the Details. Observe, Trust, Allow, Act. Leap, Let Go and Let God!

The Edgewalker Journey Continues #4 – Evolutionary Leaps of Faith

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In the Hawaiian culture ‘ohana means family, including blood relatives, extended family and intentional community. The concept of ohana emphasizes that families are bound together and members must cooperate and remember one another. I was about to connect with and learn from my Hawaiian spiritual family in magical, synchronistic ways!

After my dolphin swim I did not feel the same. My energy was expansive, open, willing. I was calm and more aware of my self and surroundings in a way I had never experienced before. In my curiosity and vulnerability I asked Life, The Universe, for a sign to guide and direct me to what, who, where was next.
I intentionally chose to cultivate my Edgewalker Skill of Sensing the Future, staying open and expectant to the CEO (Clear, Easy, Obvious) response.

I randomly opened a book on Hawaiian health, healers and retreats. A photo of a man named Jim, looking very familiar, stared back at me. He was living on the northern side of the Big Island in a town called Hawi. As I read about his work as a global consultant speaker and retreat leader I realized I met him at a World Business Academy in Santa Barbara many years before. Coincidence? No, a Divine sign. I decided to contact him and he suggested we meet in Hawi.

As I was driving north to meet Jim I got a call on my cell phone from Bonnie, a good friend in Naples, Florida. She mentioned her dear friends Joel and Michele who lived part time on the Big Island and owned Kohala Sanctuary in Hawi. The Divine Timing of her call as I was driving to the same town to meet Jim was incredible. Jim and I met in a local coffee shop in Hawi and instantly connected, reflecting on the conference we both attended years ago. While at the coffee shop I also noticed a beautiful woman who I felt connected to yet did not have an opportunity to meet. Jim introduced me to Joel and Michele who were his neighbors at the Kohala Sanctuary. It was a magical moment, leading me to the next place on my journey.

Michele and Joel invited Jim and I to their 12 acre Kohala Sanctuary – paradise on earth! When I walked onto the deck of their home I noticed the beautiful woman Mayra from the coffee shop, my future soul sister from Austria, sitting there. It turns out she also knew them and was having a retreat on their land. As I stepped out to look at the breathtaking vista of the Pacific Ocean and acres of lush gardens of fruit, flowers and vegetables I remembered seeing this view in a vision months before I left Florida when I was on a labyrinth walk. At the time I set the intention to be guided on my Edgewalker Journey of the unknown to what is next in my life. This exact view was clearly shown to me at the time yet I had no way of knowing where it was or what it would mean to me in the future.

Tears were in my eyes and as I turned around to see the dear friends who were the beginning of my Hawaiian ohana, my heart and soul tribe – Jim, Joel, Michele, Mayra. “Welcome Home” they said. Michele and Joel shared they had been praying for someone to come and live in their house, dog sit and live on their property for the Summer months for free. “You are that person. Are you interested?”
This was not in my plan. My decision was unclear in that moment, however I was open, curious, excited and terrified! There is an expression “If you want to make God laugh, make plans.”

*Lessons:

*Set an intention and ask for what you want, even if you are not clear.
Say it out loud, write it down, act as if. Go for it and play big!

*Speak the Mantra – “THIS OR SOMETHING BETTER” after each prayer or intention. The Universe opens a bigger space and co-creates with you to fill in the blanks with creative solutions and abundant blessings.

*Prepare for the unexpected. Allow life to dazzle you with it’s magic and messages!

Walking on the Leading Edge 3 – My Edgewalker Journey Continues

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Sometimes the best mode of transportation is a “Leap of Faith”.  Mine continued on June 1, 2007 on a one way flight from Naples, Florida to Kona, Hawaii. When I landed at midnight I literally and figuratively felt like I was in the dark. I began to have second thoughts about my decision. What was I doing on the Big Island of Hawaii in the middle of the Pacific Ocean? I knew no one and had no future long term plan, no past possessions and no home to speak of. I was in the void,the unknown and at the same time felt empowered. I was curious, open to a new adventure and chapter in my life. Little did I know that my Hawaiian “ohana”, friends and community, were waiting for me with open arms and hearts to welcome me to the islands.

When I awoke the next morning in the beautiful home I rented I was surrounded by an abundance of nature I had never experienced before. Sounds of tropical birds and the smells and sights of exotic flora and fauna were a feast to my senses. Any uncertainty I had felt about my decision to come to Hawaii was dispelled. I intentionally rented a house near Kealakekua Bay, a favorite local spot to swim with the dolphins in the wild and one of the main reasons I was called to Hawaii. I have always loved and felt drawn to dolphins as I sensed they had a message for me.

I arranged a dolphin snorkeling swim on a small boat with my local guide Joan Ocean. To my amazement I had the opportunity to swim with about 30 spinner dolphins. As they were encircling me, looking me in the eye, I felt their energy, playfulness and magnificence envelop me. I was crying in my snorkel, overwhelmed by the feelings and love that I felt. As we connected I was also invited to swim and play with them. My “Edgewalker” qualities of playfulness and connection naturally expressed with the dolphins.

When I got back on the boat Joan shared that clearly I had been called to Hawaii which included connecting with the dolphins. She explained that dolphins, and the Hawaiian Islands, call to certain individuals when it is their time to change, shift, evolve. My “Edgewalker” quality of Self-Awareness allowed me to listen, hear, and act on that calling. The process of disengaging from my former life, persona and identity created a fertile environment for Hawaii and the dolphins to initiate me. Over the next 10 years I would transform spiritually, emotionally, and physically. The shift that began to occur from the dolphin exchange happened almost immediately. My entire body, my energy felt completely different after the dolphin swim. It was so intense that I had to take a few days off to relax and integrate.

The local Hawaiians say the islands either “chew you up and spit you out, or embrace you.” Little did I know that I was being embraced and supported to grow and evolve in ways I could have never imagined. This also included the difficult process of letting go of the parts of me that no longer served my life. Over time they got “chewed up and spit out”. I surrendered to the unknown, scary and full of possibility, one magical day and one precious moment at a time.

Lessons:

*When we are aligned with our true path, our authentic calling, LIFE supports us.

*Learn to listen to and hear your intuitive voice, trust it and act on it’s wisdom. It is never wrong.

*Letting go of the old is necessary to create space for the new.

Patricia Varley : My “Edgewalker Journey Continues: Walking on the Leading Edge 2

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During the first 6 months of 2007 I was living in a temporary home with a girlfriend in Naples, Florida. After the fire which destroyed all my possessions, I was able to get out of my annual lease and I was free to move forward onto what was next in my life. I found out the hard way the importance of asking for signs that were CEO (Clear, Easy and Obvious). I was now exercising a daily practice of patience, faith and trust. I asked the Universe, my Higher Self, Infinite Intelligence and the Powers that Be to: “Show me the way!”

I know from life experience and being an “Edgewalker” that I could not figure this out on my own. Our conscious minds have a limited frame of reference (as much as the ego thought it had it all under control!). I was waiting for clarity, an answer, a direction. I was feeling both anxious and excited.

Living my life as an “Edgewalker” assisted me on this uncertain journey. When I first heard the word “Edgewalker” from my dear friend of 20 + years Dr. Judi Neal I exclaimed, ” This is me!” Judi’s inspiration and intuition connected her to the term that describes her and so many of us on the planet at this time. In Dr.Judi Neal’s book ” Edgewalkers: People and Organizations that Take Risks, Build Bridges and Break New Ground”, Edgewalkers are defined as “People who walk between worlds and have the ability to build bridges between different worlds. They have a strong inner life and are very grounded and effective in the everyday external world. This orientation looks to the future and is focused on openness to possibilities.” Edgewalkers also “Serve Those Who Walk Between Worlds”.

I had no clarity about where or what was next in my life. I had to surrender. By tapping into my “Edgewalker” essence, I patiently watched, waited, allowed as the right timing and opportunities presented themselves. As the observer of my life, I noticed what was naturally coming to me without effort and what was falling away. The main theme was Hawaii. This was curious to me as Hawaii was never on my radar as it is too far away and isolated. I visited on vacation a few times throughout my life yet never felt I would live or move there. However, much to my confusion and resistance at times, everywhere I went I was met with the message of the Hawaiian Islands – books, bumper stickers, TV ads, friends mentioning it, making contacts, etc. In addition, my lifelong wish and desire to swim in the wild with dolphins had been answered. The synchronicity of a friend introducing me to a woman on the Big Island of Hawaii in Kona who brings people to swim with the dolphins. There were so many signs over a 6 month period that there was no question that Hawaii was calling me.

So, with a leap of faith and excitement I parked my car in a friend’s driveway, packed 2 suitcases, and on June 1, 2007 I left Florida. When I boarded the plane with a one way ticket to the Big Island of Hawaii, little did I know that my life, my very being, would be changed forever. I would never be the same and I never looked back…

Lessons:

*Let the Universe “Fill in the blanks”.

*Stay open to possibilities and options you never considered.

*We are not in control, however if we surrender and get out of the way we can co-create with the Universe/our Higher Self.

Love in the Workplace

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With Valentine’s Day just past, I am working hard to turn my attention from the chaotic and polarizing events in our country to something more positive. While Valentine’s Day focuses on romantic or “eros” love, our faith and spiritual traditions teach us that there are other forms of love, sometime called agape love, defined by Wikipedia as “the highest form of love, charity; the love of God for man and of man for God.” There is also philia love, which is translated as “brotherly love” and defined as friendship and affection. So I would like to write about agape and philia love in the workplace.

It’s rare to hear conversations about love in the workplace these days. Work is seen more as a source of stress, burnout, and soul-damaging interactions. But there has been a quiet conversation about love in the workplace taking place for more than a decade. In 2002, Tim Sanders, a Yahoo executive, wrote an article for Fast Company Magazine titled “Love is the Killer App,” later published as a book by the same title. He wrote, “The most powerful force in business isn’t greed, fear, or even the raw energy of unbridled competition. The most powerful force in business is love. It’s what will help your company grow and become stronger. It’s what will propel your career forward. It’s what will give you a sense of meaning and satisfaction in your work, which will help you do your best work.”

Steve Jobs, founder of Apple, said in a 2005 commencement speech, “The only way to do great work is to love the work you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know it when you find it.”

These leaders spoke about love as giving individuals and organizations a competitive edge while at the same time providing meaning and purpose, which are the highest enduring motivators of quality work. High pay and benefits can be motivating in the short term, but lose their allure when the price is your soul. It might be easy for very successful leaders to talk about love in the workplace, but do their claims stand up in the focused light of academic research. It turns out that they do.

Raj Sisodia, David Wolfe and Jag Sheath, all respected marketing professors, conducted research on companies they call “Firms of Endearment.” They looked for companies that customers loved. They looked for companies where employees love to work. They define a Firm of Endearment as “a company that endears itself to stakeholders by bringing the interests of all stakeholders groups into strategic alignment….These companies meet the tangible and intangible needs of their stakeholders in ways that delight them and engender affection for and loyalty to the company.” The way they found companies to study was to ask people, “Tell us about companies you love. Not just like, but love.”

The research team identified 30 organizations that met the final cut based on humanistic criteria and then completed an investor analysis to find out how they performed on the stock market. They were actually very surprised to find that the Firms of Endearment returned 1,092 percent for investors over a 10 year period ending June 30, 2006, compared to 122 percent for the S&P 500. That was more than an 8-to-1 ratio. Some of the organizations included were Amazon, CarMax, Google, Honda, IKEA, Patagonia, Timberland, and Whole Foods. They found common themes among the leaders of these firms who shaped their cultures around the idea that they “are here to help others live their lives with greater satisfaction, to spread joy and well-being, to elevate and educate, to help employees and customers fulfill their natural potential.”

I had a class team of MBA students create case studies of organizations they admired, and one of the teams reported on Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream. They interviewed leaders and employees in the company, and the company actually sent a case of ice cream cups to the class for their team presentation! The most memorable part of their presentation was the description of the Joy Squad. A team of employees volunteer to serve for a few hours each month on the Joy Squad where they create ways to bring more joy into the workplace. The focus of their events and actions was on creativity and playfulness, not on productivity. And the result was employees who loved to work for Ben & Jerry’s.

In the 1970s, I was an internal consultant to a Honeywell Circuit Board plant in Arizona. The plant manager, Chet Kendrich, loved his employees and talked about them as family, and they would do anything for him. A very large order came in for circuit boards, larger than anything they had ever filled, and Chet asked them to be creative and to work as hard as they could to produce this large order in record time. He promised that once the order was filled with high quality circuit boards that passed inspection, they could have the rest of their 40 hours off. He expected that they might be able to make it by 3pm on Friday, but they actually discovered new ways of improving processes, and were done by 3pm on Thursday. After a brief celebration with pizza and balloons, he let the employees go home. From that point on, the plant broke production and quality records almost every week, and other employees from the Honeywell system put in transfer requests to work at this plant.

As Valentine’s Day approaches, I encourage us to think beyond the eros – romantic love of St. Valentine, and to explore other ways to express agape – universal love, and philia – brotherly love, in our workplaces. In what ways could you bring more love into your work? What could your organization do to be more like a “Firm of Endearment,” and how might you make that happen? In honor of Black History month, I want to end with a quote from Maya Angelou:

“You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off you.”

Walking on the Leading Edge: My “Edgewalker Journey”

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by Patricia Varley, M.H.S.A.

Hello Fellow Edgewalkers!

I am excited and inspired to share my 10 year “Edgewalker” journey from 2007-2017, where I took a leap of faith, stepped into the unknown and rode the global magic carpet ride, learning to trust myself and the Universe.

“Facilitating Evolutionary Leaps of Faith” defined my path, led me back to my authentic self, and a way of being and living that I could have never imagined.

Please join me in my weekly blog as I share the lessons, inspiration and messages from this transformational period of my life. They are also relevant and important to the current times of change and uncertainty, possibility and opportunity we find ourselves in.

As a certified Edgewalker coach, facilitator and Senior Associate, my  commitment is to support you in making the shift in perspective necessary to expand your consciousness, courage and invaluable contribution to the planet at this time!   Thank you for being who you are! Patricia Varley

Here we go….

“I was standing on the moonlit beach in Naples, Florida where I live in January 2007, witnessing a full moon eclipse in my birth sign of Scorpio. Eclipses are powerful at releasing and letting go of what no longer serves us. “Show me a sign!” I yelled to the transformational moon. I felt called to make a change. I was ready yet I felt stuck, unclear, lost, unsure of where, how, when.

As I went to sleep that night, tired and confused, I dreamt that the fire alarm in my rented townhouse was going off. I was between worlds, not sure if I was awake or dreaming. However I was too tired and chose to “stay asleep” and ignore the alarm. The next morning when I awoke all was well and no alarm had rung in the night. I went into my day.

My business as a speaker, trainer, workshop and retreat leader, executive, life and business coach often took me away for a day or longer. As fate would have it that day I was giving an all day training in nearby Fort Myers. When arriving back home after dinner I opened the door, turned on the light and noticed black soot covering my entire townhouse and all the possessions in it. I realized there was a fire that started in the kitchen in the ice maker making the smoke toxic and my home unlivable.”Next time can you show me a sign more clearly, easily and obviously (CEO)!”as I yelled to Universe and powers that be. Scorpio is about death and rebirth, the phoenix rising from the ashes. Talk about a literal sign! I got the message. I couldn’t not pay attention and stay asleep anymore to the signs of my life that were not working.

After moving into a friend’s house during the transition I had the unfortunate task of going through my possessions. Since the smoke was toxic I was forced to review all that was toxic in my life and really got clear where I was stuck. Attachment and identification with my possessions, titles, outworn relationships,money, behavior patterns and old beliefs that were no longer serving me were now obvious. Little did I know that 10 years later as I write this blog in January 2017 on Maui, Hawaii my entire life would change. The next days 10 years would be transformational, liberating, a magic carpet ride. It was the beginning of my “Edgewalker Journey” as I took the leap and began “Walking on the Leading Edge”.

LESSONS:

Pay attention to the signs in your life.

Be careful what you ask for and how you ask.

Focus on CEO – Clear, Easy Obvious

Choose Love Not Fear

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I want to share an article I wrote for our local newspaper recently, in response to the multiple terror attacks.

Choose Love Not Fear

How do people of faith make sense of the horror of terrorism attacks in Paris, Lebanon, Syria, Russia and so many places around the world? These are questions I am dealing with right now, especially because I have friends in Paris, and because I had a wonderful trip there a year ago, where my only concern was pickpockets.  The spiritual principle for me in this context is “Choose love, not fear.”  For me, God is love, and fear is an expression of not trusting God’s greater good.

When I find myself fearful, which happens more than I would like to admit, I try to remember to choose love, and not give into fear. The descriptions in the news of the actions of the terrorists in Paris did evoke fear in me.  It made me wonder if I would ever want to go to Paris again. Or New York.  Or London.  Or any other place that I imagine a terrorist might want to attack.  And I can easily slip into thinking of the shootings in theaters, churches, schools, and the Oklahoma City bombing.  Or closer to home, I think about the student who killed a professor in his office in the building next to where I used to work at the University of Arkansas.  It’s so easy to be afraid.  But that is not what spiritual traditions teach us.

In the Bible, every time an angel appears to a prophet or to someone like Mary, the angel says “fear not.”  Melinda Martin, a minister’s wife in Texas, went through her concordance and found that “fear not” is listed 80+ times, and other similar phrases such as “be not afraid” are used 30+ times. Some examples are:

“And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified (Matthew 28:5).”
“But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John (Luke 1:13).”

 

The Hebrew Bible offers this spiritual guidance:  “Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh (Proverbs 3:25).”  What an interesting phrase “Desolation of the wicked.”  A definition of desolation is “a state of complete emptiness or destruction.”  The etomology of the word is from Latin, desolare, ‘to abandon.’ But who or what is abandoned when a person or group willingly causes desolation?  Perhaps they have abandoned God, or feel abandoned by a materialistic society, or perhaps they have abandoned their own soul. I can read it this word as ‘de-soul-ation,’ even though this is incorrect etomologically.  It might be correct theologically.  Somehow these individuals have lost their own soul in the willingness to create terror and havoc among their human brothers and sisters.

Can my understanding from this perspective lead me to more compassion for people who commit heinous acts?  I wish I could say I was there, and I hope to get there someday.  I still find myself in grief and feeling empathy for the innocent victims of these acts.  Perhaps over time, or as I evolve on my spiritual path, compassion for terrorists and other perpetrators of violence will come to me more naturally and more quickly.

After 9/11, the Dalai Lama said, “Terrorism cannot be overcome by the use of force because it does not address the complex underlying problems. In fact the use of force may not only fail to solve the problems, it may exacerbate them and frequently leaves destruction and suffering in its wake. Human conflicts should be resolved with compassion.  The key is non-violence…I would also like to point out that talk of nonviolence when things are going smoothly is not of much relevance.  It is precisely when things become really difficult, urgent and critical that we should think and act nonviolently.”

In response to questions about the Paris attacks, the Dalai Lama has a very interesting perspective on how to take spiritual action.  He said during an interview, “We cannot solve this problem only through prayers. I am a Buddhist and I believe in praying. But humans have created this problem, and now we are asking God to solve it. It is illogical. God would say, solve it yourself because you created it in the first place.”

I am not an expert on international relations or on Middle East history or in any other field that would allow me to offer suggestions to leaders about how to solve this problem.  I don’t have the answers.  What I hold onto is the belief that humanity is evolving, as Teilhard de Chardin explains so eloquently, and that there is a very large body of evidence that we collectively are getting less violent each century, decade and year.  Steven Pinker, a professor at Harvard University, has documented the decline of violence from Biblical times to the present and says, “we are living in the most peaceful time in our species’ existence.”  It’s difficult to believe this if you spend a lot of time reading the news, but the fact is – violence sells.  However, it is not the way most humans conduct themselves in the world.

The news is not likely to guide us in seeing acts of kindness and compassion in the world, so its up to us individually and collectively to see and foster compassion where ever we can – to choose love, not fear.  Fayetteville has been designated as a Compassionate City by the International Campaign for Compassionate Communities. Compassion Fayetteville focuses on documenting daily acts of kindness.  “Seek and ye shall find (Matthew 7:7).”  “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).”  There are many opportunities every day to choose love not fear.  By paying attention to this choice, we can move towards more love in the world. That is the best way I know of, in this moment, to combat terrorism.  It’s not much, but it’s all I’ve got.

Dr. Judi Neal is the Chairman and CEO of Edgewalkers International, a consulting firm focused on workplace spirituality.  She is the author of four books, including Edgewalkers, and Creating Enlightened Organizations.