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Reflective
Life- Review is a
process of looking at your overall life and taking an accounting of what you
have done, what you have experienced, what you have learned. It is an
opportunity to come to closure about certain past hurts and to open yourself up
to forgiveness- which is vital for your well-being. It is a process in which a
person looks back with the intention of integrating the events of his/her life
into a coherent, personally acceptable whole; opening the possibilities for
tikkun (repair), forgiveness, gratitude and acceptance. As we witness our
lives, we become more objective and gain perspective.
This is a time for reflection: to relive in memory and reevaluate in mind, the
events and experiences you have lived. House Cleaning is a meaningful metaphor
for this work. Like cleaning out a basement filled with a lifetime of
memorabilia, family heirlooms, saved school work and art projects and photo
albums. Life review is a cleaning out of our stories from the river of our
lives.
How -
*Journaling is a tool for self-reflection. We can record our joys and our
sorrows. We can have a relationship with past circumstances.
*Looking through old photographs, we visit “memory lane” in our minds and
hearts.
*Reading old letters, we reconnect with our thoughts and feelings, and the thoughts
and feelings of those whom we’ve corresponded with over time.
In the
process of this explorations, we move from the chronological to the
qualitative, exploring the most meaningful events and stories of our lives.
Storytelling –
*A gift to others is sharing the stories of life as sacred autobiography.
*Finding and exploring the patterns of our lives, our stories take on a sense
of meaning and purpose.
*In many cultures and traditions, oral tradition has been an important mode of
passing down stories. Stories create tradition and forge a common foundation
for our lives. Sharing our own stories creates this very same cultural mystique
within families.
Why-
“Reviewing one’s life story with an intention to both honor and heal the past
can bring one “an increased appreciation of life, a diminished fear of death,
and a new sense of purpose” (Stephen Levine)
*For the intention of integrating the events of our lives into a coherent,
personally acceptable whole.
*To open the possibilities for tikkun- repair/putting back into balance,
forgiveness, gratitude and acceptance.
*Utter enjoyment of visiting your younger self from a place of wisdom and
compassion
*As Dr. Raymond
Moody has been writing about and teaching for over 30 years,
parapsychologically speaking, when we die we undergo a life review of the life
our spirits are passing from. Isn’t it
more fruitful to undergo such a process while there is still the opportunity for
healing?
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About my practice-
For people in transition, this is
a powerful process for taking an accounting of who you are, and what your
contribution has been. For people in their senior years- this is the
appropriate time to mine your stories and wisdom.
Any person at various junctures in
his/her life, would benefit from this reflective process. It is a time for
recognizing one’s gifts and successes in life, as well as furnishing a way to
understand more painful or difficult experiences from a wizened perspective.
In engaging in Reflective
Life-Review, one has the possibility of opening oneself up to experiencing deep
gratitude for this gift of his/her unique life.
Private sessions are 1 hour in
length and cost $50-$80 sliding scale, I offer a special seniors rate, which is
$36 for the one hour session. I also do group life review work. This is a
wonderful way to build community- so people can hear each others' stories, and
offer of their own wisdom. There are 4 people per group (not including myself).
We meet for 1 1/2 hours and the cost is $20 per participant. For an additional
$50, I will make a "Legends of your Life" CD recording for
participants to share as a legacy for family and friends. Life review
becomes a gift not only for a person who undertakes it, but also for future
generations.
I am also available to give talks
to groups of people in retirement communities, on college campuses, at a gathering
in your home- in and around New York State.
“Harvesting (our lives) shows us
that we have made a difference in the world. We sense that our lives have
meaning; that we have contributed to others; that we are worthwhile human
beings.” (Zalman Schacter-Shalomi)
Do you keep a journal? Here is an invitation to explore
significant aspects of your life journey. I have compiled a list of Life Review
Writing Topics. If you are so moved, please take the opportunity to delve more
deeply into your own biography.
1) Who were/are the influential
people in your life?
2) Life philosophy: what is the
most important thing in living a good life?
3) What are your gifts and talents
in this life?
4) What are/were your greatest
challenges? How did those challenges offer you gifts too?
5) When did you feel called to do
something different from was the community around you was doing?
6) How did you respond to the
call?
7) What are the recurring themes
in your life?
8) How do you feel about growing
older?
9) Where has the Holy been present
and/or absent from your life?
10) What is the unfinished work of
your life?
11) What is the greatest
accomplishment of your life?
12) Who were/are your heroes? Why?
Do you share any of the same attributes?
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