The wild intimidation of my first women’s circle.

The first women’s circle I ever went to was wildly intimidating. I was living in Santiago, Chile at the time, speaking virtually no Spanish.

My boyfriend’s older sister, a bruja in her own right, took me under her wing. I think she sensed this deep compulsion I had towards spirituality, perhaps even before I did.

We arrived to the house under a bright full moon, greeted with warm kisses in a dialect I couldn’t understand, by beautiful women in floor length skirts and dresses. I immediately felt underdressed.

As I sensed the intimacy and vulnerability that would take shape over the evening, it took all of my energy not to run right back out that door.

The ceremony began slowly and naturally as we gathered outside to share our names, and what I’m guessing was supposed to be our intentions for the evening.

The women made little attempt to include me any more than every other woman who was there. What I mean is, I wasn’t given special treatment for my lack of ability to speak their language. When it was my turn to share, I choked out a string of barely audible words through clenched fists and a pounding heart.

Surprisingly for me, I was met simply with presence. No doting, no trying to fix, just allowing me to express in whatever form came out. I felt both empowered and tiny at the same time.

The night drifted on as the facilitator shared more words who’s meaning I did not understand, but that held an underlying energy that could be felt more than heard. We ended with a song for the moon that the women’s voices danced in and out of while I listened in absolute awe and wonder.

Attending that first women’s circle was hugely transformational for me. Not only did I face so many of my own insecurities about being seen and heard, but also the gathering touched something deep inside of me. Something was sparked alive within my soul.

I felt the power of gathering with a group of people in order to feel spiritually connected to ourselves and the world around us and the sheer power of sharing our stories and being witnessed in a present and honest way.

If you feel called to join a women’s circle, I’d love to invite you to join us on Friday Nov. 22th or Friday Dec. 13th from 7-9pm in Yardley, PA. Here is all the info.