News & Updates

Before and After…

As part of our program design, I was invited to sit in on a session with our partner, The IF Project, for their Intensive Writing Workshop with individuals at the Helen B. Ratcliff House, a work release facility in Seattle. On that snowy Saturday, the weather was a brief distraction but the facilitators skillfully kept focus. Midway through the four-hour session participants were asked the question that was the origin of the nonprofit’s work: “If there was something someone could have said or done to change the path that led you here, what would it have been?” Whether it was a decision to start using heroin or the loss of a parent or the courage to leave an abusive spouse, they reflected on turning points — not wistfully but with pragmatism. There was no sense that they felt their paths were irreversible. They talked about taking responsibility and about looking ahead, not back … wanting to do things differently when released – creating lives where they savor homemade meals, shop for clothes, and hug their kids.

In working with the Pierce County Community Engagement Task Force Speakers’ Bureau, I had a similar conversation with a man who had been homeless for many years. Two devastating heartbreaks in rapid succession – his older brother being jailed and the sudden death of his mother – sent his life into a “serious downward spiral when I just didn’t care about anything.” Now, almost two years clean he sees the possibilities in his life.

In a recent conversation with friends, we discussed the “before and after” moments in our lives. What were the inflection points in our friendships or relationships or in our careers? Did we immediately know a turning point? Or did it come upon reflection years later? And did the lessons lift us up? Or did they erect barriers to avoid conceivable pain, disappointment, or embarrassment? We can succumb to those societal patterns that limit us, but we can also set them aside.

Dr. Michael Beckwith encourages us to do just that. “Your life began in the heart and mind of the Infinite. Mentally relive the days when as a child you ran free, when there were infinite possibilities of what you could feel, accomplish, and see in the world. Allow for the energy of your remembered freedom to thunder through you, and you will free yourself from the false obstacles of your adult mind.”

What can happen when we free ourselves of self-imposed restraints? How does that energy show up? What magic can it bring to us personally and to the people around us? The idea of connecting with the possibilities – looking forward with anticipation — can activate our imaginations and our spiritual expressions.

The work of Soul Seeds will help participants become more centered and grounded, helping them release anxiety or fear in order to embrace the beautiful essence of who they are and what they can be. I am grateful to have been reminded that circumstances can hurt and change us but as we live into the wondrous possibility of each day there is an opportunity to heal, to love, to forgive, and to live with intention.

Melanie Davis-Jones (she/her/hers)
Executive Director

In Case You Missed It:

Top 10 Physical Symptoms of the Ascension Process | Blog by Nancy Rebecca

Meditations Dedicated to Caregivers | Five brief meditations led by Soul Seeds board members to help you feel more grounded and centered.

Welcome to our new board member, Cameron Jones. “I’m proud to join the Soul Seeds Board to help make positive, definitive, and tangible impacts in people’s lives so that they may reach their greatest potential.”

Resources:

The IF Project documentary features scenes from their Intensive Writing Workshop. View the trailer; documentary is available for rent or purchase if you’d like to learn more about their work.

10 Signs You’ve Developed Depression Even If You Don’t Feel Sad | Huffington Post article, includes links to inexpensive resources.

February is Black History Month. The Northwest African American Museum has a range of educational and interactive resources.

The Actions Of Our Lives

Well, 2021 has come roaring in like a lion … and the winds of change feel more tornadic than the gentle breezes we wished for in the new year. Through it all, we know that the more practiced we are in not getting attached to outcomes and not reacting to every turn of events, the more we can stay centered and balanced. Some days that’s easier said than done.

Ram Dass counseled, “Remember, we are all affecting the world every moment, whether we mean to or not. Our actions and states of mind matter because we’re so deeply interconnected with one another. Working on our own consciousness is the most important thing that we are doing at any moment, and being love is the supreme creative act.”

To shift our state of mind, perhaps it would help to set aside labels and begin to truly see one another as the spiritual beings we are. This is a path to find commonality. As a black woman and the mother of two incredible black men, I live the prejudices, the stresses, and the fears of what those labels denote. I also recognize pain is unique and pervasive. I appreciate when people take time to grasp the truth of my experiences; likewise, I want to comprehend the intricacies of theirs. Understanding individual experiences is a starting point to acknowledge our interconnectedness.

When I worked in disaster philanthropy, I was in a small North Carolina town that was recovering from its third major hurricane in four years.  A volunteer pointed across the road and said, “See that house? We gave it a new roof and shingles. It all looks perfect, right? Well, inside it’s a muddy mess. Sometimes folks are like that too.” People can seem like they’re coping perfectly well on the outside but inside, much is hidden. The creation of Soul Seeds was a response to that reality.

We cannot ignore the fact that BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) have been disproportionately impacted by COVID or that women veterans are more likely to be isolated, not seeking care for physical and mental health issues or that abuse, hunger, and homelessness are steadily on the rise. These are factors that have called us to bring our meditative techniques to underrepresented communities, to begin to help heal those hidden wounds. We will be working to build our cultural awareness and our connections with people who have lived experiences – listening well and raising our consciousness. Our states of mind matter, as do our actions.

So, I leave you with this Sanskrit prayer, an invocation for harmony and blessings for all of creation. Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu, often translated as, “May all beings everywhere be happy and free, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.”

Melanie Davis-Jones (she/her/hers)
Executive Director

In Case You Missed It:

Let’s Talk About the Energy of 2021! | Facebook video by Nancy Rebecca

A New Surge of Dignity and Respect | Blog by Nancy Rebecca

Resources:

January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Learn more.

StoryCorps | Listen. Honor. Share.

Hear Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu | Performed by Deva Premal

Light Amid the Darkness

As we approach the Winter Solstice, the shortest and darkest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, in 2020 it feels as though we’ve been in dark days for far too many months now. Solstice festivals, like Dōngzhì, Yule, and Yalda, as well as the holidays of Diwali, Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa, are celebrated with candles and lights, for with the darkness comes the promise of more light ahead.

This season of light can also be an opportunity to become more attuned to the power of hope and the wonder of each new day we are given. I like the quote from St. Francis of Assisi, “All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.” It is unquestionably true from a practical sense – lighting a candle suddenly brings a warm glow, even in the darkest room. It is true too, that when we radiate positive energy – of respect, of empathy, of beauty – we ourselves can become that warm glow others see, even when times seem so terribly dark. We can hold space for how extraordinarily bright the future can be.

And, when we seek the light, we discover the bright spots in each day — and celebrate the small triumphs or sweet moments. At Soul Seeds, we are celebrating our first official partnership! The IF Project is a nonprofit “collaboration of law enforcement, current and previously incarcerated adults and community partners focused on intervention, prevention and reduction in incarceration and recidivism … built upon – and inspired by – people sharing their personal experiences surrounding the issues of incarceration.” We will be working with them on programming that supports their Health & Wellness curriculum. We are thrilled that when they experienced our meditation technique, they immediately saw how it could be beneficial to their participants. We’re looking forward to our work together.

We are also delighted that our first series of short (~10 minute) meditations will be going out each day leading up to the Solstice (beginning December 16). Many thanks to our board members who have stepped up (and are braving the video camera) to share meditations dedicated to caregivers of all kinds. We will post the videos on our Facebook page. We hope you will watch and share. The meditations are another way to connect with your inner light and practice self-care.

Gratitude to each of you for helping us hold the light of Soul Seeds. We wish you a holiday season warmed by love and a new year bright with promise.

Melanie Davis-Jones (she/her/hers)
Executive Director

In Case You Missed It:

The Initiate, Ceremony, and Closing! | Blog by Nancy Rebecca – “…2020 was a year of being initiated into a new way of life, by beginning a process of spiritual expansion.”

Resources:

How to Help During the Coronavirus Pandemic | The Washington Post – includes a list of nonprofits and support for restaurant workers.

2-1-1 is a free, confidential connection to local services, including utility assistance, food, housing, health, child care, elder care, crisis intervention, and more.

10 Common Warning Signs of Mental Health Conditions from the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI).

NAMI Crisis Text Line – Text NAMI to 741-741. Free, 24/7 crisis support via text message from a trained crisis counselor.

(For)giving Tuesday

As we approach the holiday season, we are all facing the reality that our celebrations will be different. A year that has been like no other now presents us with holidays like no other. And it feels stressful, sad, and even unkind. As we assess the requisite adjustments, perhaps these final weeks of 2020 — simpler and quieter than years past — can be a time for reflection and forgiveness. Forgiving ourselves for being annoyed or downright mad that the holidays will be atypical. Forgiving the circumstances that have brought us here. Forgiving people who disappointed or hurt us the most. For in the act of forgiving, we open up a space for healing and compassion.

This year, Giving Tuesday falls on December 1. Created in 2012 as a counterpoint to the hyper commercialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday is based on a simple premise: “a day that encourages people to do good.” Now some might argue that Giving Tuesday has spun into its own avalanche of hype, but here’s my point. Encouraging people to do good is admirable. Alright, I can hear you saying we really shouldn’t need a day to remind people of it, but let’s stay with the idea. As much as all nonprofits need financial contributions (particularly in these trying times as we work to support those most in need), this year, working from that premise of Giving Tuesday as a day for doing good, then the response needn’t be only in dollars. It can be a day of finding the compassion that allows us to see, hear, and understand one another. Then acting on it.

So, in preparation for Giving Tuesday, I am proposing “(For)giving Tuesday” or any day you choose; it is in the act of forgiving that we set up the conditions for giving. (Yes, I like that word play.) When we are kind and compassionate to ourselves, we can be kinder and more compassionate to others. And isn’t that a nice way to go into the holiday season?

“Forgiveness is not forgetting or walking away from accountability or condoning a hurtful act; it is the process of taking back and healing our lives so we can truly live.” Brené Brown in Rising Strong.

To do good, it helps to look beyond our current situation and consider how we might be of service. At Soul Seeds, we’re in the process of building partnerships with organizations in our area that work with women veterans and women who have formerly been incarcerated. Both groups give their participants tools to help with their well-being and enrich their outlook for the future. Stay tuned for more details as our partnerships progress.

The beautiful act of self-healing through forgiveness and compassion is a gift you can give yourself this season. And it is a gift you will give to others when you share yourself. As His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama said, “The planet does not need more successful people. The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds.” What will you bring to the planet? Compassion for yourself and others is splendid place to start.

Melanie Davis-Jones (she/her/hers)
Executive Director

In Case You Missed It:

How Do We Open Our Hearts in Heart Closing Times? | Blog by Nancy Rebecca

Resources:

November is National Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month, “a time to celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native people,” National Congress of American Indians.

Ho’oponopono Meditation: an ancient Hawaiian practice of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Stress, Depression and the Holidays: Tips for Coping.

The Conditions of Possibility for Change

In such transformational times, we often ponder how to get through this period when things feel like they’re spinning out of control. Amid so much turmoil, seeing to the other side – to recovery, to healing – feels unimaginable. Insurmountable. Nancy and I were having a conversation about the late Congressman John Lewis. Although Rep. Lewis lived to see the societal shifts that were only in a dream world in his youth, how did he, and the brave others like him, envision a nation that was profoundly different than their current circumstances?

A recent profile of long-time activist Angela Davis gives us a clue of how to see beyond the present. She said it is about our role in “helping to create conditions of possibility for change.” In so many ways, we as individuals – each in our own unique way – can actively create those conditions by bringing our own power and our own perspectives, for we are part of the whole. Our thoughts, like magical tiny bubbles, can create a brighter future for us personally and for the broader community. This blog from Uplift reinforces what we fundamentally know – that the power of imagination can change current circumstances.

Conditions of possibility for change reverberate in the mission of Soul Seeds… “bringing healing support to individuals, to their communities, and to our world.” Our commitment to working with underserved communities requires an ability to help people see beyond their current circumstances – to feel into the energy of their own soul’s innate wisdom – to feel hope, and love, and peace of mind.

The tumultuous year of 2020 has forced us all to reevaluate priorities and find new approaches to everything from work and grocery shopping to classroom learning and doctor’s appointments. Here at Soul Seeds we recently made the difficult decision to suspend our signature program, Free Healing Friday until 2021. Looking from an energetic perspective, we are being pushed to reimagine what it could be: how can we continue to be of service to clients and to the essential workers who support them? That is what we’re working on now. Community partnerships are a critical part of expanding our network so if you have contacts (e.g. healthcare, veterans’ services and/or youth organizations) that might be interested in our work, please email and let me know.

Let’s hold a vision that sees the phenomenal possibility for change, envisioning the world we want for ourselves, our families, and our communities that will be a foundation for generations to come.

Melanie Davis-Jones (she/her/hers)
Executive Director

In Case You Missed It:

Chemotherapy and the Human Energy Field | Nancy Rebecca

Resources:

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month | Listing of places that provide low-cost or free mammograms.

COVID-19 and Your Brain: 6 Ways to Control the Damage to Your Mental Health | World Economic Forum

How to Build Rapport While Wearing a Mask | Harvard Business Review