My Journey of the Heart

As I look back over my life, I see how the experiences I have had significantly changed my path and led me to my ‘journey of the heart’. One of the memories that catapulted my growth was the death of my sister, nineteen years ago. After watching her challenges with cancer for a year and witnessing her taking her last breath, something shifted inside me. This loss took me into deep contemplation and I realized how lonely and unhappy I felt. I knew I had to make some changes in my life.

I started by going back to work, I began working with children who had learning disabilities. It was a very rewarding and satisfying experience for me.

Shortly after this, I found myself questioning my relationship and after much contemplation I realized it was not a healthy environment for me to be in; I left my seventeen year marriage. I had a deep knowing that if I stayed in the marriage something, I now know as ‘my light’, was going to extinguish completely. Deep grief set in as I had not dealt with my mother’s, father’s and sister’s deaths and now I had the added loss of my marriage and the responsibility of two teenage children. I remember how overwhelmed I was and there was a feeling that I was going in and out of ‘valleys of darkness’.

Several years later, just when I thought I was getting things back on track, I had flash-backs of childhood abuse. This realization brought up a huge amount of fear for me and and because it was bringing up some very deep, core issues, it felt like the ground had been taken out from underneath me. I was finding it difficult to deal with the flood of emotions, so when a good  friend mentioned that she had heard of a six week healing treatment, dealing with childhood trauma, I enrolled. The counseling helped me feel grounded and I was able to to see how these events had negatively affected my self esteem, body esteem and had also instilled alot of fear, particularly around my personal safety and the trusting of others. The fact that I was connecting with men and women who had been through similar situations was great support and fostered a sense of community. The well trained staff taught us some valuable tools to deal with the past memories; most of which we had chosen to block out.

When I came out of the treatment centre two things helped me through this deeply painful period. One was continued counseling and the other was Yoga. As I look back over my yoga practice I can remember the nights I had tears of grief pouring down my face and I was beginning to realize the beautiful gift Yoga was to my whole ‘being’- body, mind and soul. It was safe to listen to and connect to my body, for the first time; my mind was relaxing and accepting what was; my soul was opening to and releasing the deep pain within. I was so grateful to have Yoga in my life and when the opportunity came along for me to train to be a Yoga instructor, I enrolled wholeheartedly. I have been teaching yoga since 2000 and it is one of the great loves of my life.

I soon had a longing to learn more healing modalities. Before I finished my Reflexology training I began learning the intuitive healing art of Reiki. There was great comfort in knowing I could call on this Universal life force energy, anytime, to heal myself and others. The symbols I learned were a powerful tool and I continue to use them each day. During my year-long Reiki Mastery training, I was able to recognize patterns of behavior that were not working for me and to make significant changes that improved my quality of life. Teaching Reiki has brought me to a whole new level of my own intuition and has deepened my spirituality.
I have visited many sacred sites throughout North America and other continents that have enriched my life. My week long retreat in Temagami, Ontario was the beginning of a new spiritual chapter in my life. From there I went to Sedona, Arizona and Mount Shasta, California. Setting off to Australia for a two month solo back-packing excursion took lots of courage and was the trip of a lifetime. Having no formal itinerary before I went I soon realized how divinely guided each step was.

In November of 2005, I was introduced to a life transforming technique called The Journey and this took me into a deep self discovery. I started to uncover core emotional blocks, forgive the past and release my issues on a cellular level. The process was amazing because I wasn’t even aware of these memories. It gave me a new sense of confidence and freedom. The Journey work resonated with my soul. As I recapped my past I was reminded of my sister. I feel she had no way to access the deep grief in her heart and this emotional pain eventually consumed her body in disease [dis-ease]. I believe this work can literally save us from an emotional death.

I also realized how beneficial this information would have been for me when I was dealing with my loss and abuse issues and it was then that I decided to take The Journey[TM] Practitioner course. I knew the greatest gift I could offer was to be there for others who needed guidance with letting go of pain, grief and limiting beliefs.

To complete my Journey accreditation I flew five times to the United States for the seven modules. In 2007, I toured India with 125 Journey Practitioners from all over the world. This pilgrimage was the most fascinating and spiritual travel experience of my life, there was a continual letting go of who I thought I was and then an anchoring of a deeper sense of self; a knowing of who I really am.
I am grateful for my past experiences-however painful they were at the time-because they are the reason I have deepened my own sense of self. My experiences have given me the insight and the ability to understand others who have similar issues.

I have had knowledgeable, insightful teachers and the training from each one of them will be combined to help you on your path. Two of my greatest teachers have been my children. I have learned to love, let go and love some more. It was after my daughter’s birth and my mothers pre-mature death I made a commitment to myself I was going to be alive and well to play with my grandchildren. When my sister died at the age of 36, I realized ‘NOW’ was the time to take a serious look at my life and make the changes that were necessary to be healthy and happy.

I have stayed committed to my own health, well-being and spiritual growth. As I look back and remember my low self esteem, self loathing and unhappiness, it’s hard to imagine who I once was. Now I feel confident, alive and joyful and I know there is true magic in my life. It feels like I have finally found Home… little did I know, it was with me all the time. Home is within-it is a place of peace, safety and stillness.

My desire is to share the wisdom and skills I have learned to help others find their way home.  I now know, from experience, once you’ve found that place anything and everything is possible.

I believe life is a journey not a destination. As you find yourself opening to your ‘journey of the heart’ rest assured there are others willing to walk beside you to lend a helping hand. Happy travels!!!

Namaste, Marg

I look forward to meeting you. I can be reached at 905-985-1655, email marg@journeyoftheheart.ca. or we can communicate through Skype. My home is located in Port Perry-on Lake Scugog, Ontario, Canada.