the shape of things to come

Yogis,

Many years ago I participated in a 2 day sales manager training where we were given one of those personality tests which provides you with a synopsis of your management style, how you approach tasks, your challenges and opportunities – all centered around what “shape” you were.  I was a circle.  I was the only circle.

It seems silly but I remember being slightly embarrassed that I was a circle.   Almost everyone else on the team was  a triangle.  Certainly a stronger more fitting shape for leading a sales organization.  The description of a triangle manager was one of forward motion, leading the troops, thriving on conflict and driving toward results.   A circle was more about inclusiveness, harmony and helping others feel good.   Hhhhhmmmmm……. At the time I felt exposed.  The truth was coming out.

We were each given a small wooden block in our shape to keep.  Mine was blue and sat on my desk as a reminder. 

I spent my years in direct sales and management trying to figure out where the circle fit in.  I remember when the movie “Babe” came out, about the pig (wonderful movie if you haven’t seen it) and thinking – YES!  That is my management style!  But did the ability of a pig to herd sheep simply by being nice translate into hitting a 30 day sales outlook?

Fast forward 17 years and the circle is my symbol for life.  I always was a circle but now I am clear enough on who I am to thrive in its power without trying to shape shift.  Who was I kidding?  I could never fit my circle shape into a triangle…nor does my life purpose fit there.  Thank goodness there are all of the other shapes who can take on those vital roles. 

The circle is a spiritual shape depicting the cycles of life.  No beginning and no end.  No leader and no hierarchy.  Whole.  Unity.  No corners in which to hide.  The circle has incredible potential, and I got to experience it three times in the last couple of weeks. 

First with my Goddess campout.  After sunset we all made our way out to the firepit.  As we sat in a circle together late into the night I noticed that although we are all equal in the circle, we each have a role that we naturally gravitate to– the fire starter, the fire tender, the story teller, the listener and the one who questions.  Each unique, each a different shape, but weaving together to create a whole.  Unity.

Our meditation group held our latest gathering around the fire.  We always meet in the shape of a circle but when you place the shape out under the night sky it begins to glow.  A container for all that we open to give. Everything staying within.  Safe.

And finally this past week a good friend invited 10 women over on the night before her surgery.  Many of us didn’t know each other but within moments of sitting together in a circle around a fire the sharing became intimate. Laughter and sorrow.   We had all been drawn there, not by something that needed to get done nor to show others who we were, but solely by love.  Love for our friend was the glue that drew our circle. Every heart facing inward.

The womb.  The sun.  My medicine wheel garden. The earth.  The seasons.  Life.

The circle.

Round and round I go,

SARAH