Pink Gazelle Productions: Authentic Lives…Authentic Works

Archive for Intuition Posts

published in Achieving Your Dreams, Dreams/Goals, Inspiration, Intuition, Spirituality by Maryanne | August 14, 2018 | 4 Comments

Awakening the Divine Feminine – Villa Eyrie Photo Shoot

Women in white, taking a break between events

“It’s a perfect moment to quietly meditate on the cosmic Great Mother who can inspire us all; the divine feminine Spirit of nurturance, known as The Goddess, so revered in ancient times and being rediscovered by women today.”

– Sarah Ban Breathnach

You just never know where you’re going to end up on a Friday afternoon

A couple of weeks ago, I received an e-mail from Barbara Edie (I have blogged about Barb before). She was wondering if I would be interested in participating in an afternoon photo shoot at the oh-so-lovely Villa Eyrie Resort (near Mill Bay) where she and her colleague, Mischelle vanTheil, would be hosting an afternoon workshop – prior to their upcoming 4-day retreat, Awakening Your Feminine Divine (Aug 27 to 30).

The purpose of the afternoon would be to lead the participants in several mini-workshops (a sampling of the retreat) – and while we were partaking in these activities, professional photographers would be snapping photos, to use for promoting the retreat.

I e-mailed Barb back immediately with a resounding, “Yes!”

The afternoon was a delight. I had the opportunity to reconnect with some friends I hadn’t seen in awhile, as well as to get to know a few new fabulous women – all the while participating in some very creative workshops that really got me thinking about what it means to ‘awaken one’s Divine Feminine.’

I suspect this means different things to to different people but I must say the timing of the photo shoot – a month before the release of my book, A Widow’s Awakening, as a novel by BHC Press – was interesting. As you may know, my story is very much about the spiritual awakening I experienced after John’s sudden death, including strong links to the Divine Feminine.

I would love to hear what ‘awakening the Divine Feminine’ means to you.

At the end of the photo shoot, we were all treated to an exquisite dinner at the hotel. The view was stunning!

Here are a few more photos from our delightfully Divine afternoon:

Splash of colour with Juan de Fuca strait in background

Maryanne & Jantina

Maryanne & Susan

The stunning view from the dining room, of the Juan de Fuca strait

About the Retreat

If you are interested in learning more about the Awakening Your Divine Feminine Retreat at Villa Eyrie, from Aug 27th to Aug 30th, 2018, here is the link for further information. I wish I could attend myself but I have previous commitments.

“Here’s to strong women. May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.”

– Anon

Other blogs by Maryanne about Barb Edie

Teaching Kids & Touching Lives – Mothering in the Broader Perspective

Impossible Dreams – Bringing Your Vision to Life

Maryanne Pope is the author of A Widow’s Awakening, the playwright of Saviour and the screenwriter of God’s Country. Maryanne is CEO of Pink Gazelle Productions and Chair of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund. If you would like to receive her regular weekly blog, please sign up here. As a thank you, you’ll receive a short but saucy e-book entitled, Dive into this Chicago Deep Dish – Ten Bite-Sized Steps for a Yummier Slice of Life.

A Widow’s Awakening Novel Coming Sept 13th…pre-order at BHC Press

Dipstick Theme Continues – Don’t Get Excited

published in Boundaries, Inspiration, Intuition, Travel by Maryanne | February 7, 2018 | 14 Comments

Dipstick Theme Continues – Don’t Get Excited

MA & Sadie on the beach at Florence, OR

“We find after years of struggle that we don’t take a trip; a trip takes us.”

– John Steinbeck, Travels with Charley; In Search of America

Well…here it is another week later and we’re all another week older and wiser, myself included.

I think.

Have you ever been in the middle of an experience and something didn’t feel quite right?

I had a sports massage by a male massage therapist last week and although nothing went particularly wrong, the experience didn’t feel entirely right either. Too many grunts and groans (from him) perhaps…or maybe it was the way his face (and other body parts – but NOT the dipstick, thank goodness!) just seemed to be closer to me than necessary. Or maybe it was the way he said my name…multiple times?

Or a combination of all of the above.

As a woman traveling alone, I am adamant about personal safety. I do everything in my power to ensure I don’t put myself or Sadie in potentially unsafe situations. So when I booked that massage, I did my best to choose a seemingly reputable place. And to be honest, I think it was a reputable place. I just think my massage therapist was trying to let me know that, if I was interested (I wasn’t), he was open to the possibility of…a little post-massage activity.

Or maybe I read the whole thing wrong?

But I don’t think so. And the relief I felt when I got back to my car told me I was probably right.

Other than that odd and rather uncomfortable experience, Sadie and I had an awesome week!

As promised, here are a few photos of my beautiful little (and oh-so-quiet) bungalow by the sea VRBO in Florence:

The lived-in look 🙂

The 10-minute trek to the beach was quite something, though. It’s called the hobbit trail – for good reason!

My pink gazelle Adidas in action!

And then voila! The beach:

We also climbed some HUGE dunes…and then ran down them!

I have fond memories of traipsing the dunes of Florence from past trips. John and I were there on our honeymoon in 1996. It was so windy at the very top of one of the dunes, we opened up our arms and leaned right into the wind without falling over! Then in 2010, my friend, Terri, and I stopped in Florence on a big road trip with Sable and Soda (my old Shepherds). Sable was 13 at that point and blind, so she stayed in the car. Soda, Terri and I huffed and puffed our way to the top of a massive dune. Soda was 10 and rather hefty but she made it!