Shadow Wisdom

Oops, I Forgot I Wasn’t Facilitating Anymore

Just boarded my flight home after an incredible weekend facilitating at the Women In Power initiation in Belgium.

Four days of raw truth, chasing shadows, fierce tears, and soul-deep laughter.
Four days of watching women peel back the layers and find the power they didn’t know they had.

Needless to say—I was still riding the empowerment-space-high.
So when I sat down on the plane next to a young woman gripping the armrest like it might fly off without her, my Facilitator Brain kicked in immediately.

I turned to her with full, heart-open energy and asked:
“Are you okay? How can I support you?”
(Like we were about to do Shadow Work at 30,000 feet :-P)
She gave me that startled - uh-oh, someone saw my fear - look.
You know the one. Equal parts “I’ve been exposed” and “Stranger danger!”

And just like that, I remembered… I wasn’t in a sacred circle anymore.
I was just a lady on a plane… offering unexpected emotional support to a total stranger.

So I backpedaled.
Apologized.
Told her she reminded me of my friend who’s terrified of flying (and who once said she’d rather give birth to a child on a bus than get on another plane).

We laughed. She relaxed. No shadow work required.
(Though a part of me really wanted to offer her a talking stick and some space to share her story.)

As the plane lifted off, I looked out the window, a tear in my eye.
Wishing this young woman a lifetime of not having to hide her fear.
Of knowing she doesn’t have to armor up to be respected.
Of feeling empowered enough to say, “Yep. I’m scared.”

It’s what I wish for all of us, really.
Even the younger me who used to white-knuckle her way through life, convinced she had to “keep it together” to be lovable.

Here’s to making the “real world” feel a little more like sacred space.
Even at cruising altitude.