The four universal healing salves.
In many shamanic societies, if you came to a shaman or medicine person complaining of being disheartened,
dispirited, or depressed, they would ask one of four questions.
When did you stop dancing?
When did you stop singing?
When did you stop being enchanted by stories?
When did you stop finding comfort in the sweet territory of silence?
Where we have stopped dancing, singing, being enchanted by stories, or finding comfort in silence is where we have experienced the loss of soul.
Dancing, singing, storytelling, and silence are the four universal healing salves.
~ The Four-Fold Way: Walking the Paths of the Warrior, Healer, Teacher and Visionary by Angeles Arrien
Today is a day that will go down in history. At 7:00 pm, the cast of 2016 Listen to Your Mother Southwest Michigan will take to the stage. LTYM is an amazing event, conjured up in the creative genius of Ann Imig, a Stay-At-Home Humorist.
(from the website) Listen to Your Mother is features live readings by local writers on the beauty, the beast, and the barely-rested of motherhood, in staged community shows celebrating Mother’s Day. All shows are recorded and shared on our LTYMShow YouTube channel, boasting a catalog of nearly 1500 diverse stories of motherhood (daughter/son/father/Grandparent, etc).
In 2016, LTYM is happening in 41 cities in North America! Please go to the website to find nearest show, and if one is not close enough, get a plan and bring it to your community next year! Why? Because LTYM changes lives…
These are the 12 absolutely amazing women and one man who make up the Southwest Michigan 2016 cast.
Our stories may well make you cry, cause you to belly laugh, and change your heart forever. Why? Because the sacred art of storytelling is healing…
I found this amazing line in a blog about ancient theater, and I could not have said it better: “To the ancient Greeks, the theatre was a divine place of transformation. It was a place of ritual, of entertainment, and of medicine, for it had the power to bring about an emotional catharsis of joy, sorrow, rage, and awe.”
You will be able to see all of the stories from each of the venues on YouTube later this year. You might enjoy a sneak preview of some of what happens inside cast members, as well as behind the scenes.
I had not known how affected I would be. You might not know you would cry when hearing of a child’s having had 20 (this is not a typo) foster mothers before coming of age. You might be surprised how hearing about the lives of perfect strangers touches you so deeply.
I wrestled with disappointment when many I love were unable to be here for the live show.
I faced the inner demon of the “Imposter” comparing my story to others and fearing mine fell short.
Just when I assumed I had no SHOW TIME nerves, my quivering legs gave me away.
A friend stopped to pick up tickets a bit ago. She asked what the goal of the show is. Obviously, giving a voice to writers is part of it. And bringing together a community. But something bigger takes place as we remember our shared humanity.
Something about LTYM speaks to a hungry space within each of us that is only open for meaning. Telling our stories is one of the four healing salves. Thankfully, Listen to Your Mother offers our world again the sacred art of storytelling so rich in our roots.
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