Dear Friends,
It's been way more difficult than usual for me to write a thoughtful newsletter related to this Thanksgiving holiday season. I certainly have more than enough reasons to be grateful, starting with healthy children and grandchildren and moving out from there. We are particularly blessed to be taking an actual vacation, complete with the warm, silky weather that enfolds us like the fresh whipped cream that covers our pumpkin pie. Add a dose of tropical beauty, functional family laughter and joy, and here we are, bathed in the miracles of love and gratitude. It doesn't get any better, and I wish the same for all of you. Yet I know that we are all connected, and the natural state of joy in the face of love is counteracted by pain and suffering on much of our planet, way too much.

So before we get into the serious business of what to do? What to do? Let's take a moment to find that place of natural joy that lives in each of our hearts and give thanks for all the blessings and all the miracles that are happening around us, all the time. Here are two examples from my world: I spent most of Thanksgiving day playing with my grandchildren Blue (5 ½) and Wiley (20 months), and found myself in constant awe at the beauty and brilliance they expressed. Blue at five is already showing her theatrical side as you can see in this 33 second completely spontaneous video, which popped out when I asked her to sing me a song. Wiley is hard to keep up with at 20 months, and his intellect can be summed up in his response to a tradition that Blue reminds us of every Thanksgiving (whether I am with this family or not). At the dinner table Blue starts by stating what she is thankful for, and she made two important and relevant points, including being thankful for the cookers of our feast. With only two predecessors, it was Wiley's turn. We all looked at him and with no expectation or coaching he said loudly and clearly, "Thank you! Thank you!"

In the spirit of gratitude as a practice that would improve everyone of our lives, I suggest the following: Every morning on awakening, think of five new things to be grateful for that you know is in progress, and every evening on retiring, think of (and write down if possible) five things for which you are grateful that happened during the day. You can have a special gratitude journal, or add it to one you are already keeping. May your days be brightened by the love that is enhanced by gratitude…

Whereas we all have things we can complain or whine about, and many for good reason, the key I am looking for is the one that lights the fires of passion and kicks our butts into action. After all, our world is truly hanging in the balance, and it often appears that the scales are rigged. If you are so called here are a few things that you can do:

Join our Personal and Planetary Healing Call to Action and become part of a large and growing community of seekers of solutions:

Michael Stone and Nicki ScullyFree Personal and Planetary Healing Call to Action

Saturday, December 10, 9am Pacific (noon Eastern) with Michael Stone and Nicki Scully

I have been doing Planetary Healing Calls to Action since 2003, when my book Planetary Healing, Spirit Medicine for Global Transformation, was first released. Coming right up on December 10, my friend Michael Stone and I are collaborating on a free virtual event that we feel is particularly important right now. While we count our blessings and realize how much we have to be grateful for, it is also imperative that we recognize the greater context within which we will find solutions to the many challenges facing our selves and our world. It's time to get to work and create the changes that are needed— our survival depends on it! We know the answers are accessible to us, and that the exponential power in our numbers, especially when combined with the intelligence of nature and the universe, can be utilized when we are in communion with each other, our Higher Selves, and the intelligence that is beyond our imagining.

It is our intention for this Call to create a sacred space outside of time so that we can draw from the entirety of creation, including guides from this and parallel universes, ancestors from the recent and ancient past, and those future descendants from this and other realities that may have been through similar or other relevant experiences. It is time to ignite the fires of passion within, roll up our sleeves, and get the job done. Email us to receive more information!

Michael Stone is the host of KVMR's award winning show, Conversations: Possibilities and Perspectives on Local and Global Issues. His show focuses on Environmental Restoration, Spiritual Fulfillment, Evolutionary Cosmology, Community Building, Wellness and Social Justice Issues. He is also a journalist who contributes to numerous publications, including his own e-newsletter, The Well of Light. Michael and I met when he interviewed Bruce Lipton and me for a weekend we did together last June in Seattle, and when he stopped by for a visit we realized we resonated spiritually, shamanistically, and motivationally, and that a magical collaboration would be our first step working together. Please join us for this free Personal and Planetary Healing Call to Action. Click Here for registration information. For more about Michael, see www.welloflight.com

Sacred Stone Camp by Tony Webster

Standing Rock Reservation Pipeline Protest

If you wish to get involved with one of the most important issues in our country, please research the pipeline protest at Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota, where, according to NPR, "Citizens of the Standing Rock Sioux Nation set up the Sacred Stone Camp in April to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline, which they say would threaten nearby burial sites and the Sioux water supply." There are some good photos here…. Sadly, the most recent article from the New York Times tells us that the Army Corps will be closing access to the camp because they feel that it is too dangerous for the protestors to face the fierce and frigid winter. Please follow the news, and if there is a way you can support the efforts of those willing to continue to stand up to the pipeline company, please do what you can and share the information.

New Tele-Class with Nicki— Making Spirit Medicine

January 17, 24, 31, and Feb 7, 2017

I am offering a new four session Tele-Skype-Web-class, Making Spirit Medicine, Tuesdays from 5:30-7:30pm Pacific, January 17, 24, 31, February 7. This class will include many aspects of my work that have not been published, although they are part of the healing arts based in the four principles of Alchemical Healing. We will learn things that need to be passed orally, rather than be put in writing, including the alchemical use of certain elements from the periodic table of elements for healing. We will work with our ancestors and descendents to strengthen the lines between our past and our future, and especially to inform our present. Medicine Buddha has come forward to offer an initiation that gives access to one of the most powerful allies for healing and for making our pharmacopeia more potent. (Danger—not to be taken lightly) And of course, there are mystery teachings that have not yet been revealed. Save the dates, and please email us to request registration info when it becomes available.

Listen to the Elders

Many respected elders are showing up with messages of wisdom and hope, and new ways of thinking and being. Hank Wesselman and Stan Grof have free calls introducing what I think are important classes coming up in the next few weeks.

Hank Wesselman's virtual class, Shamanic Path of Re-enchantment

In the times ahead, shamanic wisdom will be essential for all us, for it roots us in the earth and in the higher dimensions of our consciousness, giving us a calm center and the capacity for clear, steady action in times of crisis. It also gives us specific skills and tools to foster individual and collective healing.

By walking the shamanic path of re-enchantment, you reiterate your commitment to the ONENESS of humanity, healing ancient rifts and restoring wholeness within yourself, in others and the planet.

The rediscovery of shamanism has emerged as a major thrust of the spiritual awakening that is taking place today in the Western World.

While modern spiritual traditions each have their wisdom and beauty, ancient shamanic traditions have withstood the tests of millennia. They provide us with access to the mystical dimensions of life to live more harmoniously with ourselves and our relations. These traditions speak a language of wise guidance, harmony and heart that is a balm for our souls, too often caught up in the relentless activity and technological buzz of modernity. These shamanic lineages carry essential medicine for the 21st century, a time in which we are now called to form a global community of peace and shared understanding.

Traditional peoples know that the world presents itself to us in two halves — a world of things seen and a world of things hidden.

The techniques of traditional shamans for expanding our awareness provide inner explorers with an easily learned method for accessing the hidden dimensions of reality and connecting with sources of wisdom and power for healing and problem solving.

In the Shamanic Path of Re-enchantment virtual program, you have the opportunity to journey live into the frontiers of shamanism with beloved pioneer Hank Wesselman and a committed global community of spiritual explorers.

Hank writes: “We will rediscover our indigenous heart through narrative stories and through the classic shamanic journey method, the ancestral form of meditation, allowing us to re-establish connections with our helping spirits, our spirit teachers, our ancestors and possibly our Spirit Guide (our Higher Self's teacher). We will engage in visionary fieldwork, examine the nature of our personal soul cluster and explore the nature of health, illness and healing from the perspective of spirit medicine.”

Hank Wesselman has worked for more than forty-five years with scientists investigating the mystery of human origins in the fossil beds of eastern Africa's Great Rift Valley and has spent much of his life living with indigenous tribal people.

Hank has spent much of his professional life working with these peoples and learning their culture, cosmology and spiritual practices. For 28 years, he's studied shamanic practices, melding shamanic principles with his anthropological insights to provide us with unique avenues for exploring the further reaches of human potential.

To register for this seven week class, go to https://shiftnetwork.isrefer.com/go/sprNS/shamanicjourneys/

Stan Grof is offering a recording of his FREE online event: Discovering the Way of the Psychonaut: How to Access the Power of Non-ordinary States of Consciousness.

Register For This Event

During this unique hour, you'll discover:

• How accessing the power of non-ordinary states allows you to move beyond talk therapy into life-changing experiences
• An expanded map of psyche and cosmos, including the nature and role of transpersonal experiences
• Why these more advanced experiences in consciousness can build a new foundation for your growth and development
• Key principles for safely navigating these new realms

Re: Stan Grof's work: A “psychonaut” is someone who embodies the same spirit of adventure as an astronaut, eager to discover advanced psycho-spiritual practices that enable you to embark on a life-altering journey into inner realms.

Western psychology has for too long reduced us to our lowest-common denominators.

Fortunately, research at the leading edge of psychology has opened a portal into an exciting new realm of possibilities that validates many of the insights of history's great spiritual teachers—and leads us into a deeper, more accurate and empowering view of ourselves.

This is the starting point for his six-month class, the Way of the Psychonaut. Like the adventurers of old who fearlessly journeyed beyond the boundaries of the physical map, these modern explorers are venturing beyond the map of psychology into new realms of human evolution. These explorers are discovering new and ancient methods that grant us access to a more multidimensional consciousness and fascinating new worlds. By resurrecting shamanic technologies from our ancient ancestors, marrying them with the latest neuroscience, and integrating holistic ways of working with breath, music and movement, today's psychonauts are pioneering a new understanding of life, one more deeply connected to the cosmos.

As you navigate this exciting new path, you discover you're not limited to your body or even to your singular life. You can expand your identity to a cosmic scale, explore other dimensions, and even access information from what appear to be past lives.

You can choose between the recording of his free introductory call at https://shiftnetwork.isrefer.com/go/wp/shamanicjourneys/, or you can sign up for his on line class at https://shiftnetwork.isrefer.com/go/wpcNS/shamanicjourneys/

I will be recommending other trustworthy teachers that are offering free virtual events and worthwhile classes as their events come to my attention.

Egypt Tours—We have a tour currently traveling through Egypt and the report is that the participants are enchanted with every magical moment. I would be remiss if I did not remind you that there is another tour coming up in March. Learn more about this trip here…

Meanwhile, please look for and find those issues that touch your heart and move you to action.

With love and gratitude,
Nicki Scully