Graduation

On Sunday, August 24, 2014, I partook in the proudest moment of my life thus far when I graduated with a Master’s in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica.  The actual act of graduating wasn’t what made me proud – it is who I have become over the past two years that makes me proud.

Right after my graduation ceremony!

 When I first started USM in October of 2012, I was somewhat of a mess.  I was depressed, heartbroken and living with a victim mentality.  I wasn’t quite sure that I loved myself, or that I was even worthy of being loved, I didn’t know how to truly listen, I hid my true self from others for fear of being judged by them and because of that I judged the shit out of myself and everyone else because I was so unhappy. 

Now fast-forward two years, and after a tremendous amount of deep, transformational work, I can finally say that I feel good.  Words don’t suffice what my experience was like, however I can say that I have had a radical shift from October 2012 to Now.  I can say clearly now without any hesitation that I have fallen in love with myself and that I know that I am so worthy of giving and receiving love – no matter what.  I’ve learned about the tremendous value of compassionate self-forgiveness and what unconditional love truly looks like.  I’ve learned how to look at different situations and not judge them, but instead to see past what I use to judge as “right doing” or “wrong doing” and just see it for what it is – as part of someone’s spiritual curriculum and ways for them to learn and grow – and from that space of neutrality I can then send loving and compassion to them no matter what.  I no longer say that I believe in God, because I don’t believe, I know.  And I feel the sacredness of that knowing, deep within my heart. 

I’ve also received tremendous blessings.  Blessings such as being back in a relationship with Jonny again, and having it be better than I could have ever dreamed of.  Blessings of creating the most amazing friendships with my classmates.  Blessings of tapping into my intuition.  Blessings of deepening my relationships with my family.  Blessings of becoming a coach and doing heartfelt work that I love.  And the list of blessings goes on and on…..

Feeling happy and blessed to be with my sweet boys again...

 Finally, I see the astonishing light within myself and within all of you.  My new favorite quote by Hafiz is: "I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being".  If only I could have remembered this during my bouts of darkness – but I couldn’t – and that is ok, for I see it now.  It never left; I just lost sight of it for a while.  And if you feel like you have also lost sight of your light, contact me, let’s talk, I would love to help coach you so that you can re-discover your own astonishing light again as well. 

And if you want more information on USM you can visit their website here, or read this amazing article written by one of my classmates Elaine – she describes our experience better than I could ever dream of.  And if you have questions about what my experience was like, contact me, or post them in the comments and I would love to discuss it more with you. 

In loving,

Elsie