Mentoring

Devils and Doorways

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / Leave a comment


This morning in my meditation, I pulled the “Devil” card.  While some might cringe at the sight of the “devil,” this is actually one of my favorite cards (second only to Death), as it represents EMERGENCE. Specifically, emergence out of and from a time of difficulty, struggle, challenge, and yes, temptation. The Devil card represents the successful completion of a particular stage of initiation.  The Devil literally depicts the exiting through the narrow gate – as St. Margaret here is doing after vanquishing her own inner fears, obstacles, and hindrances to her Soul’s emergence. From this perspective, the Devil is not the enemy, but is instead the friend that provides the resistance we need to grow and to reach our Soul’s maturity. Hurray!  (thank you sir, may I have another?!)

The Devil’s emergence is not only for me, it is for all here who have been doing this deep work – tending to the voice of the Soul, moving through inner and outer obstacles to the Soul’s fulfillment, and doing it in the face of certain resistance from the material world, the expectations of others, and our own “status quo.”  Reports from this community are providing direct examples of our efforts making a difference, not only for ourselves, but for the world at large.  Examples from the world at large are perhaps the easiest to see as they are sooooooooo loud in their resistance! 

The empire (the world based in fear, power, oppression, and control) is collapsing and those who have benefitted from the (now) dying world, are crying out in terror.  The way I’m most frequently hearing it described is this:

People are losing their shit!

Those who are deeply mired in the status quo, who have benefitted from a system that privileges them and remain imprisoned by the toxic conditioning that has separated them from their own truth are losing their shit. These are the ones that have no idea what to do with the anxiety that arises in the face of a system that is destroying itself, so instead of acknowledging the anxiety and doing something about it, the anxiety comes out in disproportionate actions and behaviors – fear coming out sideways. Grasping for control. Making ridiculous requests. Having tempter tantrums. Acting like children. 

A New World is Being Born and Those Clinging to the Old are Freaking Out! 

It’s a normal reaction to change, albeit an unhealthy one. I take these increasing, and growing louder examples as signs of positive change and a growing collective that is by our actions, and intentions, hastening the death of the old while giving birth to the new. The empire is facing its own “Devil’s journey” and we get to be on the other side watching it and cheering them on. Hopefully with love!  

Need Help With Your “Devils?”

Lauri Ann Lumby, MATP, Has over twenty-five years of experience as a soul-tender, educator and guide. She has supported hundreds through her one-on-one guidance, books, workshops, retreats, over thirty online courses, and online community.

Email lauri@lauriannlumby.com to schedule a one-on-one session today!



Inside the Bone Cave

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The Bone Cave

At the mouth of the bone cave

I stood and wondered:

Is it here I’m doomed to remain?

Sitting on chicken feet.

Surrounded by the bones of my past.

Amid the haunting howls of soul’s suffering

and the impatient clacking of their stories wanting to be heard.

Their want is deafening:

See me.

Hear me.

Understand me.

Care for me.

How much more can I care for bones already dead?

Yet their wailing persists.

What more do they need?

What more can I give when I have nothing left to give?

Maybe if I just sit here

and try not to move

their clattering will be still.

There is peace in surrendering to the dying.

copyright Lauri Ann Lumby

Support for your dying times

Lauri Ann Lumby, MATP, provides one-on-one mentoring and support for people at all stages of their human development, most especially during times of transition – when we are dying to one way of being and waiting to be born into another. If you are facing a dying time and would like to work with Lauri, email lauri@lauriannlumby.com.

Learn more HERE

Falling in Love with Ourselves

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The Soul journey is ultimately about remembering WE ARE LOVE. We were created by Love, for Love, for the purpose of Love. In order to live that Love, however, we first have to heal the places within us where we have forgotten we were Love, or told we weren’t Love, loved, or lovable; or that love had to be earned. Remembering Love is a life-long journey, and each step brings us closer and closer to the FREEDOM we were meant to enjoy in the human experience.

Loving Myself

In becoming my Wild Divine

I have finally fallen in love with

Myself.

No more apologies or explanations.

I am the Wild Divine

Having left behind

Guilt

Shame

and encultured shoulds.

Walking my own path.

Living my own truth.

Uncompromisingly dedicated to ME.

I Am the Wild Divine.

Luscious in my fullness.

Softened by time.

Freed of rigid angles

The sharp edges of resentment’s scorn made soft.

Living beyond the fray.

Thriving outside the norm.

The world’s never seen a woman like me before.

Soul Tending with Lauri

Lauri Ann Lumby has over twenty-five years of experience as a soul-tender, educator and guide. She has supported hundreds through her one-on-one guidance, books, workshops, retreats, over thirty online courses, and online community.

Learn more HERE

Now Accepting Applications

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The Eternal Flame Program is offered once every thirteen months and is accomplished within a cohort model with a limited number of accepted participants (application required).

Our next program will begin October 1, 2022.

The Eternal Flame Package is our most comprehensive offering, providing more support and guidance than you will receive through individual sessions or courses alone.

Upon acceptance you will embark on a thirteen-month journey, where you will be guided through the labyrinth of soul-discovery, transformation, and empowerment, using Lauri’s tried and tested model for the fulfillment of the soul. 

Monthly educational, self-discovery, and Soul-practice assignments.

13 one-on-one sessions with Lauri Ann Lumby scheduled monthly.

Monthly cohort ZOOM gatherings.

Cohort participation and discussion.

Limited to 13 participants per annual term.

Training includes, but is not limited to:

  • Personality, Temperament, and Gifts Assessments.
  • Exploration of the Soul’s calling.
  • Uncovering and transforming the obstacles to living out that calling through a variety of mindfulness, creativity, and shamanic practices including Lauri’s trademarked Authentic Freedom™ protocol.
  • Depth work – identifying ungrieved losses, unhealed wounds, past traumas, ancestral trauma, and learning shamanic practices for transforming and releasing them.
  • Shadow work – uncovering the unintegrated and often rejected parts of self and bringing them into wholeness.
  • Ongoing support.
Email lauri@lauriannlumby.com for orientation packet and application

Longing to Be Seen

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Some have suggested that one of the greatest longings of the human soul is to be seen – to be really and truly seen for who we are.

As one who has the ability to see, I have found the opposite to be true.  Many (if not most) humans don’t really want to be seen because either a) they hate who they are, or b) they have something to hide. These are the folks who either run from my gaze or turn the shame of being seen back at me by making me their enemy.  I become sad when people do this because while I can see deception, I also see potential.  I see who people are as their most authentic selves if they would only allow themselves to be that.  My purpose is only to support people in becoming their most authentic selves. Sadly, some simply don’t want this – as much as they might argue otherwise.

art by Catherine E. Case used with permission

Those who are comfortable enough with themselves such that they don’t mind being seen; or who have been chomping at the bit to be seen for who they truly are so they might be that more fully, are those who thrive in my presence. I see them and encourage them in their gifts while supporting them in identifying and healing those things that are preventing them from living those gifts more fully. When the going gets rough (which it will – all work of true transformation does) I am there simultaneously holding their feet to the fire while soothing the anxiety and terror that comes when we are allowing ourselves to break free of the chrysalis that formerly imprisoned us.

As the poet Rilke said:

My looking ripens things

and they come toward me, to meet, and be met.

(Book of Hours, I, 1)

Longing to be seen may indeed be one of our greatest desires, but few have the courage to truly be seen, and even fewer have the endurance to allow the seeing to ripen into being. 

Learn more HERE

Lauri Ann Lumby

Lauri’s gifts as a mentor are centered in her ability to see. She sees your truth along with what might be hindering your ability to live that truth fully. By seeing clearly, Lauri can help guide you through the process of identifying, healing and transforming the wounds, fears, traumas and conditioning that keep you from living a life in which your purpose is fully embodied and your mission fulfilled.

Lauri provides this mentoring one-on-one and through her classes and training programs.

Healing the Father Wound

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / 2 Comments

No matter how perfect and loving our parents might have been, no matter how well they provided for our well-being and supported us in our dreams, each one of us will experience woundedness from our parents. This woundedness may be no direct fault of their own, but simply comes forth because of what they were shown by their parents, the culture in which they were conditioned, what remains unhealed within them, and/or simply because they are human.

As we are human, so too are our parents. There is no shame in that. And yet, for many, the parental wounds become a significant obstacle to both their inner and outer freedom, as well as their ability to enter into healthy relationships and enact their own parenting. Unhealed parental wounds become stumbling blocks to our ability to become happy, healthy, and content in our lives and to find that which will provide meaning and purpose in our lives.

While reflecting specifically on the Father wound, I was provided with the following image of what the Father wound looks like (to me anyway):

Photo by Anni Roenkae on Pexels.com

As you gaze upon this image, what comes forward as your image of the Father wound? 

For each individual, the Father wound will have its own color, size, shape, etc.  It will also have its own unique make up.  Of what is your Father wound made?

  • Fear?
  • Rejection?
  • Condemnation?
  • Criticism?
  • Expectations?
  • Avoidance?
  • Abandonment?
  • Cruelty?
  • Rage?
  • Co-Dependency (the need to seek his approval)?
  • Impatience?
  • Frustration?
  • Inaccessibility?
  • Disappointment?
  • Threats of violence?
  • Violence?
  • Abuse?
  • Jealousy?
  • Molestation?
  • Inappropriate or lack of boundaries?
  • Feeling unsafe?

Every individual carries their own unique experience of the Father wound which might be related to one, several, or all of the above. The first step in healing the Father wound is identifying of what that wound is made.

The second step is to enter into a transformational practice for healing and releasing that wound. Two practices I have found to be especially helpful in transforming parental wounds are Tonglen and the Ho’oponopono prayer.

Tonglen

is a Tibetan Buddhist mindfulness practice founded on the understanding that in order to heal our wounds, we need to move toward them.  Instead of resisting, ignoring, or running away from our wounds, we allow ourselves to feel them.  In allowing the feeling, we can transform the wound and release it from our bodies and our consciousness. 

To heal the Father wound using Tonglen:

  1. Identify the wound along with its feeling (what does rejection feel like?).
  2. Allow yourself to feel the wound.
  3. Identify where in your body you are feeling it. 
  4. While feeling the wound, breathe into the place in your body where you are feeling it.
  5. Breathe out love.  Give a visual image to that love if you find that helpful (bubbles, flowers, hearts).
  6. Breathe into the wound while feeling it.
  7. Breathe out love.
  8. Continue with the breathing into the wound and breathing out love until you feel a shift.  Perhaps you are feeling more peaceful, or the practice brings forth tears.
  9. After the shift, you have completed the practice.
  10. Return to the practice when you feel that wound triggered again, or set aside a daily practice to continue healing that experience of the Father wound.

Ho’oponopono

Ho’oponopono is a traditional Hawaiian prayer/ritual which is used to heal wounds within us that we may have experienced at another’s hand. The practice is simple and yet profoundly powerful. I have witnessed true miracles in the use of this practice.

  1. Identify the wound.
  2. Give it an image,
  3. Become aware of where this wound is held in your body (where do you feel abandonment?)
  4. Repeat the Ho’oponopono formula over and over and over to the place in your body where you feel that wound. 
  5. This is the formula:

I’m sorry.

Please forgive me.

I love you.

Thank you.

The key to Ho’oponopono is that you are saying the formula TO YOURSELF not to the one who caused the wound.  You say it to yourself, and to the part of you that experienced the wound.

Both Tonglen and Ho’oponopono are powerful tools for healing our parental wounds. Admittedly, these practices may not be enough for many to fully heal from these wounds.  It is for this reason that I also encourage additional support through a trained spiritual director (which I am) and/or a professional therapist, or better yet, a combination of the two.  If you are finding yourself hindered by a parental wound, and are seeking for additional support, please see my information below.

Lauri provides sessions locally in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and remotely via ZOOM.

Lauri Ann Lumby, OM, OPM, OSF, MATS

is a trained Spiritual Director with a master’s degree in Transpersonal Psychology. She integrates sound psychological knowledge with proven spiritual and transformational practices to support you in being free of that which might otherwise hinder your longing for peace, contentment, meaning and fulfillment in your life.

To learn more or schedule an appointment, email lauri@lauriannlumby.com.

Being Your Own Sanctuary

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We live in a world of distractions.  Sooooooo many things vying for our time and attention.  Work. Family. Friends. Money. Possessions. The News. World Events. Social Media. Church. Responsibilities and conditioned obligations pulling at us and our heartstrings.

With every new distraction, responsibility, and perceived obligation, our anxiety rises, and our worries increase. Our energies, it seems, getting pulled in every direction except in the direction of that which gives us peace.

With so many distractions, do we even know what gives us peace?

Likely not. And yet, while the distractions are vying for our attention, our truest and deepest yearning is whispering from within the center of our being.  It is the yearning for peace.

Peace is our natural and original state.

Peace is not what the world wants us to know. The world in which we are currently living wants our anxiety and our stress.  It wants us to feel anxious and afraid. It wants us to be deprived of our peace so that we remained imprisoned by the fears that keep us working for that world. It further keeps us imprisoned with its false promises of wealth, status, fame, and success as that world has defined it. We have become the prisoners of and slaves to that world and we are imprisoned further by the time and attention we give to the distractions, perceived responsibilities, and conditioned obligations of that world. 

“Should” is one of the fiercest weapons used by that world.

We should work hard to make money. We should spend time with family. We should want a bigger house, nicer car, designer clothes, etc. We should “dress for success.” We should look professional. We should be nice. We should go to church. We should attend that event. We should be networking. We should put up with workplace abuse.  We should respect our elders. We should give our authority away. We should….we should…..we should……

It’s exhausting. And completely unnecessary. Our original nature is peace, and we were meant to experience that peace in our lived human experience. Yes, there are the natural constrictions that provide opportunities for learning and growth in our lives, but we were not meant to live in total and complete unrest, every minute of every day. Neither were we made to relentlessly seek outside of us for that which we cannot name – namely the peace and joy for which our hearts yearn.

The peace we are seeking cannot be found outside of us. It can only be found within.

We are the peace we are seeking. That peace dwells within us.  That peace is infinite and ever-present.  We just need to pull our attention away from the distractions long enough to discover that what we have been seeking, has been within us all along.  In discovering and nurturing that peace, we become the sanctuary promised by the ancients.  We discover that we are enlightenment. We are the promised land. We are the peaceable kingdom. We are the kingdom of God. We are nirvana. We are Presence. We are peace.

Who are you choosing to be?  Stress and anxiety or Peace?

Lauri Ann Lumby

Provides resources and tools to assist you in finding and anchoring the peace that you seek and in becoming your own sanctuary. She does this through one-on-one mentoring, Reiki, online courses, her writings and books.

Learn more HERE.

Not from Here

/ Lauri Ann Lumby / 2 Comments

I am writing this missive for all my sisters and brothers who like me, feel like an alien in this world. There are many (if not most) days where I am truly certain that:

I AM NOT FROM HERE!

What’s funny about this is that I’ve never really been “from” anywhere. Having moved around a lot as a child – a trend that continued into adulthood, I’ve always been starting over – trying to make new friends, find a way to fit in (or not), etc.  Geographically I’ve always felt like

a stranger in a strange land.

Beyond the geography of things, I have never felt like I fit in or that I belonged. For one thing, I was way too smart!  From a very early age I saw through people, places, practices, teachings, rituals, and things. I questioned anything and everything that didn’t make logical sense or that struck me as just plain wrong. I saw through people’s lies. I knew when someone was phony. I understood (even without the language to describe it) that certain conditioning was just plain wrong. I had a very strong sense of right and wrong and others knew it.  As you can imagine, this got me into a fair bit of trouble – the straight A student with unsatisfactory conduct grades because I couldn’t help but challenge something when I knew it to be wrong.

I wasn’t trying to be an asshole.  I just knew in my heart that human beings were capable of so much more.  They could be honest, authentic, kind, gentle, generous, non-violent, loving, accepting, and peaceful. I knew this because

Where I come from people are kind and want to do good.

On this planet, however, it seems this is not always (rarely?) the case.  When I experience cruelty, violence, hatred, deception, betrayal, it breaks my heart.  When I see others being treated cruelly or unfairly judged because of the color of their skin or who they chose to love, my heart is crushed.  When I see people struggle with poverty, hunger, homelessness, joblessness, I feel the needlessness of this in a world that is abundant with everything people need to survive and to have a rich and meaningful life.

More troubling than this is it seems like nobody cares.  Very few are willing to take a stand for the real potential of human beings to create a kind and loving world where everyone’s needs are met and where we can all live in peace. When human beings are not willing to do the simple work of creating a loving world, I am even more certain that

I’m not from here.

It’s really quite simple. We live on an abundant planet and we have the resources, ingenuity, and technology to ensure the life of every species on this planet. We have the capacity within us to stop all wars and to redirect those funds to saving our planet, educating our children, providing meaningful work, and adequate healthcare to every single human being. The potential is within us and I know this to be true because it was true on whatever world I really came from. 

Jesus said it really well:

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” John 15: 18-19

More proof that I’m really not from this world!

One-on-One Mentoring

Lauri has been called “one of the world’s best kept secrets.” Her work in supporting you in your journey of self-actualization is like nothing you’ve ever experienced.

No shiny objects! No gimmicks. No B.S.

Lauri supports you in getting straight to the heart of what is preventing you from living as your most authentic self and from experiencing enduring contentment in your life; helping you to identify and then heal and transform the wounds, past traumas, and societal conditioning that is keeping you from being free.

Learn more HERE

Not a Life Coach

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It is easy for many to assume that the mentoring work I do is a sort of life coaching.  It is not.

There is an appropriate time and place for the kind of behavioral change and strategic planning favored in life coaching, cognitive behavioral therapy, and recovery programs. There are times in all our lives where we must make a concerted effort to change certain behavior or thought patterns, for our own wellbeing and the wellbeing of others. There are also times when it is helpful to have a strategy and accountability in making that change.  

Whereas Life coaching, cognitive behavioral therapy (without process work) and recovery programs tend to place their focus on the externals, the services, and programs I provide focus on the internals.

The work that I support clients and students in accomplishing focuses its attention and work on the internal wounds, false perceptions and conditioning that created the unhealthy thoughts and external behaviors in the first place. When we heal these wounds, the unhealthy thoughts and behaviors simply become no longer necessary. The transformational work in which I support my clients and students creates enduring, long-term healing, thereby eliminating the effort required when we are otherwise trying to change.  

Here we no longer need to try because our being itself has changed.

That does not mean that the support I offer doesn’t require work.  In fact, it might be the most difficult work one might accomplish in one’s life. It is for this reason that few find themselves drawn into this work and fewer remain.  To stare down the barrel of our deepest wounds, past traumas, false perceptions, and patriarchal/hierarchical conditioning requires an enormous amount of courage. It then takes persistence, tenacity, discipline, and support to stay with the deep process work that liberates us from these wounds so that we can really and truly be free.

This work might be compared to the fire of a forge that releases metal of its impurities while bringing forth what is precious within.  Through my support, those who do this work discover the truth of who they have always been – beautifully unique and precious in their own way, and confidently empowered to be their truest self in the world for the sake of their own fulfillment and in service to the betterment of the world.  

While the work requires effort, the outcome proves to be effortless.

Lauri Ann Lumby is a trained Spiritual Director with a Master’s Degree in Transpersonal Psychology who has been mentoring individuals in their journey of self-actualization for over 25 years. Lauri further supports self-actualization as a Reiki Master Practitioner and through ancestral shamanic practices.

Lauri primarily works remotely over the phone or via ZOOM.

Schedule your appointment by emailing:

lauri@lauriannlumby.com

or calling:

(920) 230-1313

Freedom from Longing

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It could be said that longing is the bane of human existence, but it would be more accurate to say:

Misdirected Longing is the Bane of Human Existence

Longing is the natural consequence of choosing the human condition.  Longing arises out of our false perception of separation from Source.  Longing is the calling of the Soul to return to Union, drawing us home to ourselves. The destination of longing rightly directed is an embodied experience of peace, contentment, and joy.  Here we feel safe and secure in all that we are and with all we are experiencing because through deep inner work, we have freed ourselves from longing by coming home to ourselves.

Misdirected longing, in contrast, provides no fulfillment because instead of turning our longing inward we have projected it outward. Misdirected longing is rooted in the belief that our longing will be satisfied by something outside of us.  We believe, and have been led to believe, that the fulfillment of our longing will come when we make enough money, find the right job, achieve the next promotion, find the next true love, move to a new location, find a new home, buy that new car, etc. etc. etc.  We are also told that longing will be fulfilled when we lose weight, achieve a certain dress size, find a remedy to the signs of our aging bodies, buy a new wardrobe, etc. etc. etc.

Longing projected outward will always leave us dissatisfied, unfulfilled, anxious, and insecure.

We are freed of longing when we turn that longing inward – directing it toward all the parts of ourselves that feel unloved, unacceptable, imperfect, and flawed. In freeing ourselves of longing we are also invited to direct that longing inward toward every experience of our lives that we have judged as wrong, shameful, mistaken, or misguided.  Longing arises when we have forgotten that we are LOVE and that everything happening in our lives has come about for the purpose of that LOVE. Longing finds its fulfillment when we remember that LOVE – this alone is the purpose of the human experience.

Become FREE of Longing:

Mary Magdalene and the Path of Beloved Partnership Live/online course

Starting January 17, 2022

Beloved Partnership is a term that has been alternatively associated with concepts such as soulmate or twin flame.  Beloved Partnership is neither of these.  Beloved Partnership has nothing to do with the human pursuit of external love. 

Instead, the longing for Beloved Partnership and its resulting pursuit can only be satisfied from within.

Learn more and register HERE