Leaping into the New Year – My Edgewalker Journey #12 – Patricia Campanile

“Leap & the net will appear!”

Developing the courage and trust “muscles” to follow the signs and listen to your instincts is necessary, yet not always easy, as you leap into the unknown. I often hesitated and questioned with doubt and fear whether my choices were crazy, or Divinely guided as my Edgewalker journey magically unfolded.  What if I made a mistake? Could I ever go back? What was on the other side of my decision? Would I be OK?

I recalled a scene from one of the Indiana Jones movies where actor Harrison Ford is running on a path through the jungle being chased by angry and frightening natives. As he reaches the ledge on the end of the cliff he looks down and sees a deep, dark chasm. He has a choice to either turn back and be ravaged by the natives who are determined to kill him, or take a leap of faith into the unknown, trusting that the he will be miraculously saved by some unseen force. Being the brave warrior that he is, Indiana Jones chooses the scary unknown, takes a step, and magically a path appears under his feet. He safely walks over the abyss to the other side, to his future. The path then disappears before the angry “natives” arrive so they cannot chase him. He is saved!

I am so inspired by the symbolism of this scene (thank you Steven Spielberg!) My take away is that BECAUSE he took a leap of faith and chose the path unknown, life, the Universe responded and provided a new path, guiding him to safety, to his future, to himself.  If we choose we can co-create with the Divine, our Higher Selves & listen to our deep intuitive wisdom.  We can leave behind what is scary and sometimes familiar. My Edgewalker Journey to my authentic Self, to my future and new life, often involved blindly stepping into places, relationships and situations where my rational, resistant and intellectual mind thought I was crazy.

However, since I was and continue to be committed to cultivating and practicing with patience and awareness the Edgewalker qualities, my courage and trust “muscles” have strengthened over time. Most of us have the seeds of these ‘qualities’  in us, but some people more naturally have been able to develop and integrate them.

As we approach the New Year 2018 I invite you to commit to your personal evolution, take a leap of faith and step into your new year and the new you, waiting to be birthed and expressed. Because YOU matter, the “net” will appear to support you.  You are worth it!

Here are the Edgewalker Qualities to support your magical journey in 2018 and beyond!

My Edgewalker Journey #10 – Walking Between Worlds

Living in Hawi on the northern most point of the Big Island of Hawaii was beautiful and isolated. House sitting for friends on their 12 acre sanctuary was heaven on earth. I was deeply grateful to be surrounded by tropical fruit orchards and abundant flowering plants and trees, coy ponds with crystals and lotus flowers, egrets flying, cows and horses in the fields, and breathtaking views of Maui and the Pacific Ocean in the distance. My favorite thing was gazing at the infinite stars in the dark night sky. I felt at one and connected to the Universe as if I were walking between the worlds. At times I also experienced isolation, aloneness and felt small.  My so called problems and life seemed insignificant in the grand scheme of things, like I was an ant invisible in an ant hill. It was a valuable yet often uncomfortable perspective that threatens the ego and invites the spirit at the same time.

The Hawaiian Islands are the most isolated place on Earth. The closest land is about 2500 miles in any direction. It can feel like heaven or hell on earth, depending on your perspective. I loved the peace and quiet, beautiful nature, expansive, nurturing energy of the land and fresh air, and being away from my life on the mainland. However, the longer I was there the more I was BEING in the quiet and not DOING and staying busy. I was reminded of how much I was driven to distraction my entire life. My New York, type A personality and east coast upbringing was still running me even though I was thousands of miles away in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The expression, “You can take the girl out of NY but you cannot take the NY out of the girl” applied here. You can be in the most beautiful, peaceful and remote place in the world, yet the peace and quiet becomes deafening and uncomfortable when the voices of self-judgement, doubt, old stories and the ego mind start to chatter. The “monkey mind” as they call it in Buddhism,  become very loud. All the issues, fears, limitations and insecurities I was running away from caught up with me on that beautiful sanctuary on the Big Island. I was faced with myself, the self I did not like to BE with, feel, acknowledge.

I sought heaven, yet was still living on Earth. As an Edgewalker I understand that life has many dimensions and WALKING BETWEEN WORLDS integrates body, mind and spirit. My sense of belonging and interconnectedness with nature, the stars and greater Universe felt easy. However I also was living in a physical body with it’s challenges, human experiences and emotions, fears and concerns.  Looking back the support I had from friends and neighbors including Jim Channon, and so much time alone provided me the much needed perspective to stop, get grounded, listen, feel and heal.  It was as if I was having an identity crises, letting go of my old world and paradigm, yet not yet knowing where my new life and Source of Self would come from. Little did I know that my authentic self was within me waiting to be revealed. I had been searching all my life for the very thing that had been within me from birth and beyond, my Divinity, my spiritual heart, my soul. I began peeling away the layers as the journey of transformation continued.

**Lessons:

*No matter where you go there you are. You cannot run from yourself.

*Give space and time to the parts of you that want to be seen, heard, expressed.  You are worthy and deserving of your love, compassion, patience and nurturing. Watch, observe, breathe and allow. As you reclaim your wholeness you reclaim your life.

*Paradise is an inside job. We can create heaven on earth when we find peace and acceptance within ourselves first.

Walking on the Leading Edge #8- A Journey of Power, Passion & Peace

The Big Island of Hawaii is one of the few places in the world where I want to kiss the ground when I get off the airplane. I feel at home there. I am embraced, welcomed and resonate with the energy. I love the wild and diverse beauty and how big it is! All of the other Hawaiians islands can fit into the Big Island.  Though I have never lived there full time the weeks and months I did spend in the Summer and Fall of 2007 changed my life. My focus, direction and path shifted dramatically due to events and the deeper healing and revelations that occurred on the Big Island.

I was first called to the Big Island. I had to swim with the dolphins. Little did I know the call was more about dying to my old life and identity to uncover, discover and connect more with my authentic self.  The locals say that “Hawaii either embraces you or chews you up and spits you out.” The Hawaiian islands have embraced me since the first day of my arrival. Some of  this embrace had to do with my willingness to transform, release my old limiting beliefs, conditioned behaviors and worn out relationship patterns. The new space created a greater opening for my long buried Divine Essence to express. I have known many individuals who could not stay on Hawaii for more than a couple of weeks as it was too difficult and intense emotionally resulting in broken relationships, financial troubles, etc. I ended up staying for a couple of months and then kept coming back again and again over the next decade.  My intense Scorpio nature, commitment to my spiritual growth and desire to be free from my story and ego persona gave me the courage and stickability to stay in this raw and beautiful paradise. Being a runner all my life I finally stopped and faced myself. Over time like a ball of twine unravelling I discovered my deeper Truth & Integrity.

The Hawaiian legend of Pele, the Goddess of Fire, is alive on the Big Island of Hawaii and supported this transformational shift as did the powerful energy of Kilauea volcano that is active at Volcano National Park.  Pele’s story explains that “Like a volcano’s lava that creates new land, the goddess Pele reminds us that, even fiery eruptions and emotional upheavals are followed by new life and change. As an archetype Pele is a passionate and creative force that transforms and rebuilds the landscapes of our lives.”

A perfect explanation and metaphor for my life. In addition my Edgewalker qualities of passion & playfulness were essential as I navigated through this adventurous time of fiery, passionate transformation, powerful change and experiencing a more centered and peaceful existence. House and dog sitting by myself at my friend’s beautiful 12 acre Kohala Sanctuary in Hawi, the northern most point of the Big Island, was the perfect setting for this chapter in the school called my life!

**Lesson from Pele, Hawaiian Goddess of Fire (worth repeating):

“Like a volcano’s lava that creates new land, the goddess Pele reminds us that, even fiery eruptions and emotional upheavals are followed by new life and change. As an archetype Pele is a passionate and creative force that transforms and rebuilds the landscapes of our lives.”