Author: Sherry Boatright

Women and Men in a World of Growing Conflict

by Sherry Boatright, Sacred Fire Carrollton, Georgia (USA)

Over the last two years, I’ve been glued to online news media. It has become altogether a questionable habit as I find myself moving from one unsettling story to the next. I’m working to get a grip. The upside, though, is that I’ve also discovered great writers and compelling studies about what’s going on in the world, from climate change to local and global politics, from women’s and men’s issues to health and family life.

Take kids for instance. Years ago, Carol Gilligan showed that girls up until age 9 or 10 are confident and expressive of their feelings. But as they move into adolescence, they begin to hide their feelings for fear of not fitting in.

Now my newsfeed tells me that boys are also born with a great talent for emotional openness, but that in adolescence they begin developing their manhood and differentiate themselves from girls.

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Life Cycle Living: Bringing forth the gifts of a life aligned with Nature

On a crisp, sunny, late Winter day, a circle of men and women gathered together in Greensboro, NC (USA) to explore Life Cycle Living, a model for the human journey from birth to death.  Facilitated by Sherry Boatright and Larry Messerman, the 1-1/2 day discovery process allowed those present to share yearnings, revelations, questions and concerns toward achieving fulfillment in each stage of life, with the good of community and culture as the ultimate goal. What are the different stages of a human life?  What is the work of each stage?  What is the gift? And what does it feel like when a group of humans – a family, a village, a People – helps to create the container within which each individual is supported through the many seasons of his or her life?

What does it feel like when a group of humans – a family, a village, a People – helps to create the container within which each individual is supported through the many seasons of his or her life?

The Life Cycle Living model describes predictable stages of a human life, each building on those that come before.  Not so long ago, people were supported by the traditions, ceremonies and rituals of their community in order to successfully navigate life.  It was recognized that the successful completion of any given phase of a human life would provide the foundation for the next, and that a community was enriched when each man, woman and child could learn, grow and manifest the gifts inherent in each.  For instance, the toddler offers his innocent joy and the young child her wonder at the natural world.  In the presence of children, adults can remember these same capacities even as they move into the more “serious” work that is part of later stages in life.  Ultimately, the accomplished elder embodies gifts of wholeness and grace for the benefit of community as well as of the world.  It is not surprising that in many indigenous cultures, one of the most important tasks was to create a strong connection between the youngest and the oldest members of the community.  This was seen as vital to creating a strong container for all other human endeavors.

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Living in the World the Way the World is Made: A Call to Action

What is a true adult?

Bill Plotkin, who has worked with the transition of youth into adulthood for many years, says that a true adult is someone who understands themselves as a member of the earth community; has had a revelatory experience of her/his place in this world; and embodies their unique place as a gift to their people.

One of the crises of the times we are living through is that true adulthood, what has been called “soulful psychological maturity,” is actually uncommon. Too often, people reach their adult years having missed the development into a fully human adult as nature has designed it. As a result, they may end up arrested adolescents at fifty, never maturing into the elders they were meant to become. They find themselves hindered in their contribution to their families and society. Relationships, child-rearing, education, business, politics, and even spiritual connection suffer the consequences.

We all know we are in a time of great transformation on this earth, a time of danger and opportunity.

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Sparks: Coming Soon

Around the Fire

Around the Fire is the newsletter of Sacred Fire and is published monthly.

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Around the Fire is published by the Sacred Fire Outreach team:

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Karen Fernandez
Lawrence Messerman
Sharon Brown

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Erin Everett
Christine Staub
Linda Azar

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Sally Casper
Britt Espinosa

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Leticia Gamboa
Sylvia Law

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Living Magic LLP

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