#TBT
This was our very own graduation day. It was not the school’s graduation, but ours. It was our creative way of honouring the passage from grad school to “real life” and honouring how important we were for each other’s journey.
We did not have a cohort. We had a co-heart, as we used to say. Masters of Art in Counseling Psychology, class of 2013, proudly Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, our dear ITP.
This particular grad school was definitely more than “just” a school for a diploma. It felt more like years of deep group therapy and an invaluable transformation. Absolutely nobody ended school in the same way we started it. The process of growth was unleashed in ways that nobody could anticipated. And so was the depth of our connections.
We shared years of deep learning, personal transformation and deep connections. More than simply learning from the books, we learned from each other. We learn from each other’s challenges, vulnerabilities and strengths. We learned from each other’s openness to share our minds and hearts. We learned from each other’s cultural lens, which was enriched by the luxury of great diversity. We had at least 9 different countries represented in our co-heart. Any topic could be discussed from a very different lens, depending on the background of the speaker. The cultural richness of our co-heart was especially invaluable!
And, of course, the graduation was bittersweet. At the same time we were happy to complete this major stepstone, we were saddened to know that our journeys would be apart. And all aspects of our journey deserved to be celebrated.
Our celebration was beautiful! We had food (of course!), music, dance, shamanic ceremony that I was honored to lead, laughter, tears of joy and also tears of sadness. We co-created a series of rites symbolizing our connection and the impact we had in each other’s lives, as well our passage from Grad school to “real life”. We had exchanges of words, gifts and blessings. We built bracelets with beads brought by each person, blessed with an intention. We passed through the “magical portal” that we decorated with meaningful objects. And more.
After passing the graduation’s “magical portal,” we got a special “diploma” held by the children. The diploma was the poem that we co-create in the very first week, when we became co-heart in 2010. The poem was read as a group once again, closing the cycle started earlier.
Celebrations and rites of passage are more important than we can grasp. They are not mere social gatherings to show off a diploma or a new social status. Graduations, weddings, baptisms, and any other rite of passage hold deep symbolic meaning. They honor our journey and they honor the encounters we have along the way. They enrich our life, our memories and the meaning of each person in our path.
Today, I came across these pictures with nostalgia and I felt my heart warm, wondering what each one of these people is doing. Some of them remain very close friends to me. Others are a little more distant, and others took paths that I don’t know. In any case, every single person in the picture (and others that are not in the picture) has a special place in my heart and in my memories. Each of them was and has been a valuable teacher to me.
In the Lakota tradition, there is no expression to say “goodbye.” Because they know that there is no goodbye because there is no separation. Instead, Lakota speakers express “farewells” in different ways. One common way is Tókša akhé (later, again). And that is it: see you later.
My dear forever co-heart, in whatever place you are, Aho metakiase!
The poem from our first co-heart’s encounter
Quiet, meditate, pray, shout, cry, laugh.
There’s so much to grasp.
And so many interesting people to grow along with
Some kindred, some complimentary…like elements of nature.
A crisp clear sky today?
Yes, the sun bursts forth in welcome
Radiating its energy through us and connecting us.
With the darkest of the dark and the lightest of the light.
Emerging from what I once was
Pushing me back through the colors that rainbow my mind
And propelling me forward to discover my true self
To be able to expand my heart’s capacity to love
And attain better understanding of others
And then awaken their inner peace, compassion and love
We realized there must be more to life then negativity
Which for some reason we are so drawn to but I am certain we all have the same desire…
…And this is me. The path is given and I can walk it in different ways.
With patience and trust. Spiraling ever inward.
Am I coming or going?
The essence of being is God.
So lay all your beautiful pieces on the altar of consciousness.
Shine without apologizing.
Find out who you are, by loving who you are.
-MACP, Evening Cohort, Fall 2010
