An archive of Women's Quest newsletters for information and inspiration.

Volume 2: Receiving During the Holidays

HELLO WILDWOMEN

Welcome to WOMENS WEAVE, the bi-monthly MUSELETTER from the Women’s Quest staff. Our passion in creating this newsletter is to keep in touch with the AMAZING women we meet all around the world, and to provide you with tips and motivation to continue on your quest. This is no ORDINARY newsletter (our QUEST is to arouse the EXTRAORDINARY potential that is within EACH AND EVERY WOMAN!) The Museletter will provide practical suggestions and inspiration for the body, mind and spirit. The theme for the winter Women’s Weave is RECEIVING. Often women have difficulty receiving (we are generally more familiar with giving.) Receiving means taking something in with gratefulness, allowing yourself to be NOURISHED and APPRECIATED. The holiday season is a wonderful time to allow yourself to receive gifts of love from others, and from the deepest part of yourself.

This Museletter is written for women, by women. It is sent to WQ campers, their friends, and any woman on a quest to strengthen their mind, body, and spirit. We hope you enjoy our offerings, and that you will keep in touch. Pass the MUSELETTER on to other women: spread the word!

WOMEN’S WEAVE: vol. 2 - RECEIVE!

Contents
1) Body: HOW TO STAY HEALTHY AND SANE DURING THE “HOLIDAZE” by
Colleen
2) Mind: PRACTICING SURRENDER by Lorraine
3) Spirit: SOLSTICE & LIGHT by Colleen
4) Nutrition: STAYING HEALTHY THROUGH THE WINTER by Jen
5) Nourishing with YOGA by Gretchen (alligator twist)
6) Soul Spark: by Gretchen (a Mary Oliver Poem)
7) WQ Picks (Christmas Box Miracle & Dagoba Organic Chocolate)
8) Featured Camp: Winter Wonderfest!

1) Body: HOW TO STAY HEALTHY AND SANE DURING THE “HOLIDAZE” by Colleen

Yes, this is the season where frequent parties, gatherings, and shopping may leave
your mind and body in a “Daze.” Here are some tips to help you “Snap out of the
Daze:”

Sing! Hum your favorite carol. If you can’t remember the words it ‘s fun to make up your
own words.

Boil some rosemary, or cinnamon and cloves in a pot for soothing aromas.

Light candles around the house.

Go for a walk with friends and family to look at Christmas lights.

Have a tea party with yourself and serve yourself treats.

BREATHE! At every stoplight instead of trying to rush and get mad, think of Rudolph’s
nose and take a deep breath.

Keep your body MOVING! Try to get outside or take some time for yourself at the gym
to move out all the toxins.

Drink lots of WATER. I like to drink warm water this time of year.

Laugh and celebrate! Find time each day to receive the beauty of this miraculous
season and make these “HOLY Days” instead of “HoliDAZE.”

2) Mind: PRACTICING SURRENDER by Lorraine

Athletes know how to push but have a hard time knowing when to let go. A Zen master
once said that the door to your dreams opens towards you. The last few steps are a
matter of letting go so the door can open. If you keep pushing it will remain closed and
the realization of your dreams will elude you.

The pulse of life is a marriage between action and surrender, inhalation and exhalation,
positive and negative, yin and yang. Too much of any one side and you are working
against yourself. Being in the flow of life, living magically is about recognizing this pulse
and incorporating it into every aspect of living.

EXERCISE
Practice surrendering daily with yoga and meditation. RECEIVE THE GIFT OF EACH
DAY!

When working-out, blend surrender into your actions; surrender all tensions, worries,
negative thoughts, free-loading tight muscles that cause friction in your body and use up
valuable energy. By letting go you actually go faster.

Cultivate an attitude of trust. Trusting yourself and the universe is the ultimate surrender
to higher forces and will free up a lot of personal energy to direct into your
accomplishments.

3) Spirit: SOLSTICE & LIGHT by Colleen

The Winter Solstice is December 21. This is the first day of winter and the day of the
longest night. There will be and increase of light from this date forward. To celebrate
the Solstice, take a walk outside and honor the dark night and the darkness within you,
then come inside and light a candle and meditate on the flame bringing light and love
into your life. It may be a good evening to turn off the lights and have a candlelight
dinner.

4) RECEIVE! Nourishing with YOGA by Gretchen

The last line of a Wendell Berry poem reads:
”...and I rest in the grace of the word, and am free.”

There can be simple ease in letting go into a twist. Try what I call the “alligator twist”
(why I call it this I can’t remember!) Lie on your back, draw one knee to your chest, and
cross the bent knee over your body. Open your arms to the sides to open your chest &
shoulder muscles. Your back receives a twist, which is good for spinal health.
Additionally, your kidneys and other organs receive stimulation—aiding circulation and
improving the tone of your organs (healthy organs are vital for health!) In traditional
yoga texts, twists are purported to be beneficial for “reducing excess fat around the
abdomen”. This makes sense, as twists are tone muscles and organs, and increase
circulation. Most of all, it feels good.

5) STAYING HEALTHY THROUGH THE WINTER by Jen
Jenny Collins is an acupuncturist who specializes in Chinese Medicine]
Attuning our bodies and activities has long been a health maintenance strategy in
Chinese medicine. Winter is the end of all the seasons, and the most “YIN” time of the
year. The days are shorter, colder, and quieter. The rivers freeze, plants whither, and
animals store food for the slow months ahead. It is a time for humans also to enter a
period of rest, storage, and meditation. During the season of winter we should retire
earlier and rise with the sun. Subdue mental activities and learn to RECEIVE. Stay
warm; avoid getting chilled.

The winter months are correlated with the element of water and the kidney organ in
Chinese medicine. The kidneys reside deep in the core of our bodies. They govern our
water metabolism and storage, and represent the root and foundation of the body. The
key to health in the winter season is to find the right balance of activity and rest so that
we maintain a warm inner core, while not overexerting our energy and depleting our
stores.

HEALTH TIPS FOR THE WINTER SEASON
- Cook foods longer at lower temperatures (a crock pot is great for this).
- Make warm and healthy soups, whole grains, roasted nuts, small dark beans,
seaweeds, and steamed winter greens.
- Make sure that you are drinking enough water (8-10 glasses per day).
- Do exercises that help the functioning of the kidneys (yoga is good, especially twisting
poses, and restorative postures).

6) SOUL SPARK: by Gretchen
Oh how I love poetry. (There’s something more “substantial” in poems, for me, than in
an “inspiring quote.”) A poem is a rejoicing of the spirit – an expression of being
nourished by an image, a thought, an insight. Here is one by Mary Oliver:
ROW
You are young. So you know everything. You leap in to the boat and begin rowing.
But, listen to me. Without fanfare, without embarrassment, without any doubt, I talk
directly to your soul. Listen to me. Lift the oars from the water, let your arms rest, and
your heart, and heart’s little intelligence, and listen to me. There is life without love. It’s
not worth a bent penny, or a scuffed shoe. It is not worth the body of a dead dog nine
days buried. Whey you hear, a mile away and still out of sight, the churn of water as it
begins to swirl and roil, fretting around the sharp rocks—when you hear that
unmistakable pounding-when you feel the mist on your mouth and sense ahead the
embattlement, the long falls plunging and steaming—then row, row for your life toward
it.

7) WQ PICKS
A group of spirited Women’s Quest campers from a summer 2001 camp has formed a
book club (via email!). They are reading THE CHRISTMAS BOX MIRACLE by Richard
Paul Evans, and declare that it is inspiring and wonderful.

Yuuum- The Women’s Quest staff has a strength (not a weakness, for goodness sakes)
for enjoying great chocolate. Our recommendation: www.dagobachocolate.com (check
out this fun website!)
Dagoba organic chocolate is AWESOME. The company believes in providing a
“premium chocolate experience.” Flavor landscapes from around the world are carefully
selected to DELIGHT the chocolate connoisseur. You can deprive the body but the soul
needs chocolate!
A quote from Marquise de Sevigne, February 11, 1677:
"If you are not feeling well, if you have not slept, chocolate will revive you. But you have
no chocolate! I think of that again and again! My dear, how will you ever manage?"

8) NOURISH YOUR BODY, MIND, AND SPIRIT!
If you have not yet attended a Women’s Quest adventure...you have something to look
forward to! Check out http://www.womensquest.com/ for an explanation of how our
programs inspire women of all ages to manifest vitality and balance in their lives. Each
program is unique and empowering. We vary the theme and activities of each camp to
inspire and challenge the women who are “alumni.” Consider a 2002 camp for a re-
infusion of “SOUL SPARKS” and the rejuvenation and transformation at the heart of
every Women’s Quest program.

Featured Camp: WINTER WONDERFEST: 1/30-2/3
Click on this link to find out more information
http://www.womensquest.com/winter.htm. This could be a gift you give yourself!
See the website for details of this camp, and schedule of other 2002 adventures.

We welcome comments and suggestions for WOMENS WEAVE MUSELETTER!
Contact gretchen@womensquest.com.