Journey For Purpose

25/07/2024

My amazing friend Johanna Munson Peace of Mind Guide has her book launching today. "Live responsibly, Die Thoughtfully."

I am so proud of her and so inspired. Please join me in helping this book get off to a roaring start and supporting her to get it in as many hands as possible. Buy it today! Link in comments. It is super discounted today- both hard copy and ebook.

Let's help her to the incredible needed work she is here to do- helping people with her knowledge, sensitivity, and experience to live life more peacefully by preparing for the end of life thoughtfully.

24/04/2024

Happy Mother Earth Day!

Dear Mother,

I know I have neglected to write, and never seem to find a way to tell you how I really feel, so I thought I would just take some time and let you know how grateful I am. Thank you for everything.

You have given of yourself so generously, asking for so little in return. In fact you really ask for nothing, and I kind of wish you would speak up and let me know what you want and need because, boy, is it easy to just take you for granted! I guess I would just like more hints about what to do for you, what would you like from me?

I try to keep you in mind all the time, but is it enough?

I am hoping that you enjoyed the to***co I sprinkled on the four corners of the altar during that last ceremony. And the way I poured water onto your bare back like a gift. That was good, right? Also we had that song circle where we sang to you around the fire which kind of scorched your skin, just a tiny bit, but the songs were really sweet, the way they wafted out into the clean air and floated through the trees.

I thought you might have liked how we all went hiking in a group and sang your praises, drinking in the views that you created as if it were nothing.

And you know how we relish all your creatures. And all that you do in the spring time. Oh my gosh, it is incredible and we are all truly blown away with your beauty! The creativity! I mean rhododendrons! Wow! Where did you ever get the idea?

And all the colors. It is just so cool to have this slow parade of blossoms, everything growing into itself at different times, with such diversity. I have no idea how you manage it all. I just am super grateful that I get to be here now, a part of everything.

I know you do different things in different places and at different times. The whole tilt thing and the seasons is really epoch and makes for such interesting possibilities. And what really blows me away is to ponder on how long you have been doing all this. So much for so long. Wow!

The dinosaur thing was amazing and I am super proud of how you did whatever you did to have so many different kinds of children do so well for so long and then just make way for others.

You are really a great mother, and I know I should say that more. Sometimes we want someone to just solve everything for us and take care of it all but you wisely set us free to find our own path, to make what we will of our time together, and to learn from our mistakes.

That is something I wanted to talk to you about. I do worry at times that we are not really learning. I see us making the same mistakes over and over. Do you notice that? I get concerned that it isn’t even about writing to you enough, or telling you how we feel, but that we actually are making things super hard for you just by not noticing or caring about how you feel or what you need.

I see how you act sometimes, those forest fires and the hurricanes and everything. I get it, you have every right to be super pi**ed. I feel like you are trying to warn us, by just gradually and occasionally letting loose your fury about having been so ignored.

I really want to do better, many of us do. I just seem to be kind of addicted to a few things like driving around and using the internet, and flying off to visit my family. I seems so innocuous, but I know that it adds up when we all do it. We just don’t give back enough to make up for all the resources that we take from you.

I was talking to one of your trees today. Oh my god, he is just so beautiful, tall, strong, straight and with huge spreading limbs that create a magic nurturing space beneath, really just stunning. I was trying to see if he was really ok with how things were going in his patch. He was reaching up to the sky and transforming all the sunshine into life and he just seemed fine, but who really knows. Lots of folks don’t want to share their troubles and they never ask for anything, we are just supposed to know what they are thinking somehow and figure out what they need. Well I gave him hugs and love, cuz everybody seems to like that pretty much, I also picked up some dog p**p so that he wouldn’t have to stand in it.

Is it enough to just feel grateful and to let you know? Can I just live my little life and do the best I can to appreciate this miracle. What can I sacrifice for you, Mother, who have given so much?

You have been a solid planet and a huge source of gravity, and that means the world to me. I really would do anything to express my gratitude, as long as I can keep driving around, using the internet, and flying off to be with my family. Anything! Just let me know. But if you tell me in the language of forest fires and hurricanes, I might not understand, just so you know.

Love always,
Maria

4/22/24
Maria Cook

20/04/2024

Happy Earth Day and here is a piece I wrote on April 8th for the Eclipse

When the vast plan and the incredible rhythm is revealed in a universal event, the world pauses in awe. People travel thousands of miles to witness the moment when the daily round of light and dark, day and night, sun and shadow, shifts and changes into something rare and magnificent, a moment of stillness.

The heavenly bodies conspire on spiraling paths that dance and merge, supporting this moment of passing which creates a deep shadow in the arc of totality. The shadow rolls over the landscape, unstoppable, and all things feel the reverberation of the universe in its enormity.

Crowds turn out, pleased with themselves and each other for bearing witness to the wonder, the birds quiet, the animals stop, the very ground quivers with the shift of energy as the sun’s light is blocked by the gentle small moon, and the earth is enveloped in darkness for a moment.

That it is predictable is amazing. The movements of the celestial spheres are embedded in the most ancient program and unfold without flaw, bringing a sense of harmony and balance to our small corner of chaos. We are part of this great unfolding and part of this eternal rhythm that creates and destroys all things in a measured flow.

The enormity of the event surpasses our petty disputes and polarized lives so that for one brief moment, one short day, we are all influenced and aware of a higher order. This order can bring meaning and purpose, it can be inspiring and awesome, and it is terrible in its gigantic power that has no mercy.

Like sailors in a sea, we are alive striving to make sense and to have control, but we can be tossed into darkness or baked in the bright heat of a sunlit day with no way to influence the greater movement that determines our life. Humbling and bonding, we can honor that which surpasses our ability to imagine and rejoice in our small lives lived by the grace of the larger world.

With all its challenges, it is a beautiful world, full of mystery and wonder. And we all feel that together, as one, from the smallest butterfly winging through the sunlit air and caught in a world of shadow in the next moment, to the people who celebrate with their glasses on and a day off, tracking the shadow across the ground, hoping that it will reveal the higher order and meaning in their own unique lives, the greatness in their moments here as part of some divine plan, the magnificence of their own being as some reflection of the vast unfolding.

Let’s hope this shared moment of awe can bring into perspective our drama and disorder, so that we can offer our dreams and hopes up to something bigger. Let’s hope the passing of the shadow can bring with it a renewed sense of our own ability to move through our shadow into the light of love, where we can really appreciate the magnificent wonder of this gift of being alive, alive on a day like this, where the world pauses in gratitude for the light and the darkness, the day and the night, the sun and the shadow, and the enormous, unstoppable order of things that includes us.
Maria Cook
April 8, 2024

20/03/2024

Tomorrow! See you there!

22/02/2024

I am super stoked to be sharing some awesome tools for living. Tomorrow's class is on the Wood Element, Liver/Gall Bladder, cultivating the creative spirit, transforming anger and irritation, and much more. Come if you can, Thurs 2/22 4:30 on Zoom. By donation.

08/02/2024

Wow! It is happening today! Acupressure Happy Hour! I am super excited!

Are you feeling overwhelmed by world events. So much grief!

We are going to explore the Metal Element and learn and practice tools to transform grief. We need this!

Acupressure, qi gong, affirmations, energy medicine. Good stuff!

Join us. 4:30PM PST. Free to register! By donation. Here is the link to register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrdOyprT8qGNxs_pQ4Ot0NJzx0zevu2uAY

06/02/2024

So stoked because I made a fat contribution to World Central Kitchen thanks to all the participants in last week's Acupressure Happy Hour.

It was a great class. Lots of info about the Earth Element and digesting life.

This Thursday is a Acupressure Happy Hour at 4:30 PST about the Metal Element, the lungs and large intestine, transforming grief, and issues around self worth. By donation

Big topics! There will be lots of interesting info and things you can do to shift towards greater well being. Join us!

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrdOyprT8qGNxs_pQ4Ot0NJzx0zevu2uAY

30/01/2024

I am super excited about my upcoming zoom offering, Acupressure Happy Hour. Starting Thursday Feb 1 at 4:30, I am going to offer it weekly with different themes and topics. I will be listening to what you want to learn.

It will be by donation, so don't let finances stop you.

This first one will be about The Earth Element, digestion, the stomach and spleen, worry and anxiety, giving and receiving, taking in abundance, pain, and much more.

We will learn some power acupressure points to use and certain combinations, some energy medicine exercises, qi gong, tapping and much more.

I will keep it to an hour or less but it will be packed with info and a good time will be had. Here is the invitation to register:

Hi there,

You are invited to a Zoom meeting.
When: Feb 1, 2024 04:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Register in advance for this meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrdOyprT8qGNxs_pQ4Ot0NJzx0zevu2uAY

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

See you there!

Learn and practice tools for living your best life including acupressure, qi gong, tapping, energy medicine, and more.

12/07/2022

A few months ago my friend lost her 41 year old son who inexplicably collapsed. We are all grief stricken.

Now another dear friend has had a stroke and is in the hospital. At 79 she has some work ahead of her to recover.

And my family faces challenges.

Life can turn on a dime. Things change suddenly and we can lose all the things that we have taken for granted. Life can be hard. Parts of it are just awful!

We are all dealing with the terrible decisions of our Supreme Court, all the mindless violence, the polarity, and the corruption – it is very easy to get mired in negativity, anxiety, and despair.

Our poor planet is suffering and, because of greed and disparity, her resources are being wasted and we face shortages of what matters most.

At the same time, it’s a beautiful summer day. We have golden light late into the evening, color is everywhere, the beach beckons, and I have a loving family and wonderful friends.

How to balance all this?

I need my supportive community reminding me to focus on what is good and where we can go from here.

I need to get out into the natural world and feel life bursting at the seams, reminding me that somehow there is some natural order, and that there are miracles everywhere waiting to be noticed.

I need intention.

I started leading retreats because I could see the need for intentional connection. We need each other’s support. And we need to connect to nature. We need to feed our spirits in a most intentional way.

We all need time to cultivate peaceful empowerment so that we choose what we focus on. We need a pause from the chatter and demands of daily life where so much comes at us. We need to expand our container to have the capacity to hold everything without denial or despair.

I believe we all have a purpose, and it is to be here now, as ourselves, fully. We are here to be present to what is, and to learn to hold it all with compassion. Especially ourselves.

When there is so much that is challenging, we can internalize the negativity so that we find ourselves listening to an inner critic. We can feel powerless. We forget to notice the miracles.

If you are like me, to plan something that frees the spirit and brings me home to my intuition, where I once again remember that all is well and that I am enough.

There is still room on the July kayak trip. Please join us. Our long weekend will be filled with miracles! It will be a great reset to build positive mindset. From there, anything is possible.

15/06/2022

Women’s Transformational Kayak Journeys. Yes! July 21 and Aug 18. 4 days of bliss. Link in bio

23/05/2022

My desk in paradise

15/04/2022

Tomorrow morning, Sat, at 11:15 AM. PDT, the amazing Kyle Hollingsworth of Kyle-Creative will be interviewing me on her IG. Join us!

15/04/2022

Tomorrow, Sat, 11:15 AM. PDT. The amazing Kyle Hollingsworth is going to interview me live on IG. https://instagram.com/kylecreative?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= Join us!

13/04/2022

Join us live on Sat 11:15am PDT.
I can’t wait to join Kyle of Kyle-Creative. She is the bomb and I want to learn more. Courageous AF!

08/04/2022

19/03/2022

Lighten up! Enjoy a free gift! - https://mailchi.mp/340422323c5b/lighten-up-less-is-more

21/02/2022

30/01/2022

You can get my newsletter at www.journeyforpurpose.com. Lots of things coming up, so stay in touch!

09/12/2021

Oh yes, it is happening, and I am over the top with excitement.

We have been able to create the most amazing, transformational adventure!

This is not for everyone! If you want umbrella drinks and brochure excursions offered by the front desk, seek elsewhere. This is meaningful, deep, and truly transformative. Experience the power of nature, really remote places, but visited in the most comfortable way. You get to relax in a way that you just can't do by the pool at that resort.

Visiting an offshore coral atoll, learning how to snorkel, being guided to glide a kayak over a coral reef, sunset on the beach with a fire while you sit in a circle of women and open your heart to what you are capable of.... It is going to be better than you imagine, better than I can describe.

We are going to visit the Mayan people who will take us on a journey into the jungle and deep inside ourselves where we can cleanse and let go of the stories that have held us back and bring in some of the energy we need for this coming time.

This combination of indigenous wisdom and stunning natural beauty, combined with facilitated empowerment will be just the ticket for you to move beyond what has been holding you back, towards your dreams.

This trip will become a touchstone moment that will live inside you in your most precious place of treasures. A memory of something rare and beautiful that you created for yourself, that you allowed yourself to experience, that you risked opening to.

Something that will remind you that yes you can! Your life is beautiful and so are you!

Join us now! Belize- Coral Atoll, Mayan Magic, Remote Splendor- Adventure 2022

https://www.journeyforpurpose.com/kayak-trips/womens-kayaking-adventure-in-belize/

08/12/2021

Check out our new logo! Thanks Maytrelli Diaz!

18/08/2021

I am still so amazed at how fantastic it can be to hang with a group of amazing women in a beautiful spot and just let spirits soar!

16/08/2021

Dinner on the beach! We bring folding table, chairs, tablecloth, napkins, and a fabulous feast for our own private waterfront dining experience! So much fun!

02/08/2021

Thinking of you, Amazing Friends!

The power of love is here nowThe power of now is here nowThe power of you and me is here To create magic on earthLet the water wash away your tearsLet the fi...

29/05/2021

Getting buried alive made me want to live fully! - https://mailchi.mp/1cd7b1b40512/getting-buried-alive-made-me-want-to-live-fully