lara simmons

Wednesday night we ended this session of WRITE YOUR YEAR. I am so grateful for the group of writers who joined me for this session to do their inner work and write their year for themselves. Here's what we did in the last session: WHITE STONE MEDITATION This meditation is based on the White Stone Ceremony which is held every year at Seattle Unity and other Unity churches in the United States. In Jesus' time a white stone was given to prisoners when they were to be released. It was a "get out of jail free" card, a new start, a clean slate. In the same way, every new year is a clean slate for each of us. A chance to create a new life for ourselves. We each chose a white stone, then moved into meditation, asking Spirit to give us a word that defined our purpose for this year. As we sat and breathed into our hearts, we were given our word for the year, which we then wrote on our white stone. WRITE YOUR YEAR " Happiness is the consequence of personal e...

In session three, we worked on bringing more presence into our lives. We began with a forty five-minute full body meditation . Taking a few deep breaths and then bringing awareness to each part of our body, starting with our toes. Feeling into each part of our bodies, feeling its structures, its movements, its energy. After the meditation we began to explore the concept of small stones. This exercise was created by Fiona Robyn a writer in England whose website is called Writing Our Way Home .  A small stone is "a very short piece of writing that precisely captures a fully-engaged moment." Writing small stones can help us be more present to our lives and to our writing. We read some examples of small stones from Writing Our Way Home, then we went out and wrote small stones of our own for 15-20 minutes before coming back together to share our experiences and our small stones. HOMEWORK: Write at least one small stone every day. It can be short or long, perfec...

In this session, we started off with the idea that we all have a "story" about who we are. This is not necessarily a bad thing - it is part of being human - but sometimes our "story" no longer fits and we need to let go of it in order to write a new one. So ask yourself this question: WHAT IS MY "STORY?" and WHAT PART OF IT AM I READY TO LET IT GO THIS YEAR? (Some examples might be, "I am the 'good girl,'" or "I am the 'black sheep of the family.'") As a way to let go of the part of the story that no longer fits, we did an exercise from the book, Radical Forgiveness by Colin Tipping called The Three Letters Process . In this exercise you write three letters (that you DO NOT send) to someone who you feel has wronged you or in some way treated you badly. Choose someone who has been significant in your life and whom you feel forgiving might help to release you from your old story. Afterwards we all came ba...

Thanks to all of you who joined me for Session 1 of WRITE YOUR YEAR last night. While cold winds blew and snow threatened to fall, a diverse and committed group of writers came together in a cozy little nook at East West Bookshop to focus their intentions and write their year. Here's what we did: After introductions, I read the poem, " New Year's Day ," for a bit of inspiration.  Then we got down to the business of writing. The first exercise: to write a letter to an advice columnist about the biggest challenge or problem you are facing this year.  Taking this column from Carolyn Hax as an example, we wrote for twenty minutes.  After a short break we came back together and shared our experience; then spent a few minutes in head-clearing meditation before tackling part two of the exercise. Next it was time to turn the tables on our ego and write some "advice to myself." Striving to be as objective, kind and compassionate as possible - while keeping ...

"I cannot think of a better portent than this day for you... A clean slate A fresh canvas A pristine and absolutely cloudless dawn Nothing to intervene between you and those potent rays Of the dawn of a new day. It bodes well... May you travel smoothly across these waters through the unerring Guidance from on High, and may all that was best in the year gone by be preserved and all the rest be eclipsed by the best that is to come!" -JM My dear friend Jonathan shared these beautiful words with me in his New Year's Day email. I cannot think of a better way to start the year. If you are ready to start the year right and to make this your best year yet, join me tonight at East West Bookshop in Seattle and WRITE YOUR YEAR! Based on my manifestation writing class WRITE YOUR LIFE , this class is designed to help you create the life you desire, using writing as a tool for manifestation and change. You do not need to be a “writer” to benefit fro...

Are you ready to make 2013 your best year yet? Join me next week (and the following three Wednesdays) at East West Bookshop in Seattle and WRITE YOUR YEAR! Based on my manifestation writing class WRITE YOUR LIFE , this class is designed to help you create the life you desire this year, using writing as a tool for manifestation and change. You do not need to be a “writer” to benefit from this class, but you do need a willingness to look openly and honestly at your life, to forgive and let go, and to put words into action and to take the next step with courage. If you are ready, go here to register. Hope to see you there!

"There's only one very good life. The one you know you want and you make yourself. " -- Diana Vreeland Are you ready to live a very good life? Are you ready to make 2013 your best year yet? Then join me in January at East West Bookshop in Seattle and WRITE YOUR YEAR! Based on my manifestation writing class WRITE YOUR LIFE , this class is designed to help you create the life you desire this year, using writing as a tool for manifestation and change. You do not need to be a “writer” to benefit from this class, but you do need a willingness to look openly and honestly at your life, to forgive and let go, and to put words into action and to take the next step with courage. If you are ready, go here to register. Hope to see you there!

I am pleased to announce that I will be teaching another class in January of this year. My sister will be in town for the holidays are we are going to be co-presenting: Get GLOWING for 2012 and WRITE YOUR YEAR! An Experiential Empowerment & Intention-Setting Workshop Follow YOUR Passions! Find YOUR Purpose! Love YOUR Life! Write YOUR Year! The Den @ Mosaic Coffeehouse 4401 2nd Ave NE Seattle, WA 98105 Tuesday, January 3, 2012 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Love ♥ Offering   Email to: dearsoulsisters@gmail.com to register I hope you will plan to join us! I wish you all the JOY of the season and nothing but the best for 2012!