Be Vividly Yourself - the season of deepening and return

'Be Vividly Yourself' The Season of Deepening and Return -Rachael Feather-

Jungian Analytic Psychotherapist and Archetypal Astrologer - Auckland New Zealand www.rachaelfeather.vpweb.co.nz

From an archetypal cycles perspective, the human life-cycle unfolds through a series of stages in much the same way as the annual seasonal cycle. Each of the four 'seasons' or stages of life – pre-adulthood, early adulthood, midlife, and late adulthood - has its own evolutionary emphasis and each is 'bridged' by a period of transition which extends over several years, a 'betwixt and between' phase characterized by change and reorganisation. In this liminal zone of 'seasonal change' we can expect to find ourselves less secured or constrained by our former realities and sense of identity, with the freedom (and frequently the necessity) to heed the dictates of our own individual but archetypally informed evolutionary process. At each of these major thresholds - early adult transition (17 – 23 years), midlife transition (36 - 45 years) and late adult transition (59 - 65 years) - we are challenged to undergo a symbolic death and transformation, prompted yet again to depart the enclosure of life's harbours and to embark on a journey into the unknown to rediscover ourselves anew.

On arrival at the cusp of late-adult transition, around the age of 59, we find ourselves once again at the frontier, facing into the unknown with the necessity to step forth and to seek new ways of being in relation to ourselves, to others and to life itself. This is the threshold leading into life's Winter and it is here that Chronos, Greek God of Time, reminds us that time is passing, that losses must be borne and mourned, and regrets reconciled. We are progressively approaching the completion of the 'seasonal' cycle: our mortal limits. However each season has its own unique purpose and a vital role to play in the circle of life, and Winter is no exception. This is the season of deepening and return, of soil enrichment and the expansion of the root systems. We too find ourselves drawn inwards, seeking reconnection with our interiority and depth and with our soul needs and values. Time away, with or without others, may be what we need. During the Winter season life needs to be inner-directed if it is to be about the evolution of the wisewoman in ourselves. Jungian Analyst Jean Shinoda Bolen, author of Goddesses in Older Women, suggests that we take time for recreation and relaxation, or rest and recuperation, through which we can re-establish our centre, tap into sources of spirituality and vision, and recollect ourselves:

'Many women have regular pauses in their day or week for soul-satisfying experiences... nourishing experiences, such as regular times to meditate, to be in a women's circle, attend a yoga class, take a walk, or spend time in a studio, garden or kitchen being creative or being with people who bring us joy... This stage may require that you also actively resist the plans others make for you, and instead of fading away or being cast in the supporting role or as a minor character in others' lives, be vividly yourself'.

Once upon a time, it was customary for cultures to provide models that marked the different stages of the life-cycle, offering rites or ceremonies that formally closed one life phase and opened the gates to the next. In Western society however, and in the long absence of meaningful Rites of Passage, countless generations have been denied the ritual experience of symbolic death, reorganisation and rebirth that would have served as preparation for the crossing into each new stage of life. Without these collective 'maps' to guide us over each major threshold and to assist us navigate our way through unknown territory, change has tended to come upon us without warning and without informed social support. Thus, upon arrival at each developmental threshold we have tended to find ourselves unexpectedly disoriented, overwhelmed, and ill-equipped to take an active role in the unfolding of our destiny. Furthermore these less than optimal threshold conditions have all too frequently resulted in compromised individual potential, dis-ease and depression, and in lives devoid of imagination or meaning.

However the life-cycle of a culture is also an unfolding universal pattern and, like the human life-cycle, features extended periods of transitional reorganisation. Over recent decades it has become increasingly evident in Western culture that a time of 'seasonal change' is upon us. The long established cultural emphasis on the values of heroic striving and progress, independence and autonomy, has begun to shift as another archetypal impulse continues to stir. Women have played a primary role in the process of reintegrating the Feminine, which, waiting to be brought back into collective consciousness, has seen women's wisdom being gradually rechanelled back into the culture. Since the mid 1960's the movement to form connective circles, to re-value the role of community, has proliferated in Western society - in consciousness raising groups, recovery groups, support groups and women's spirituality groups. The recent development of the world-wide-web has provided yet another way for women to respond to their need for community. Says Bolen (2001), 'It is like uncovering a blocked spring that was once a holy well'. Although this cultural transition is in its very early stages, for the generation of women approaching or already in their Winter season, the implications are enormous. Unlike previous generations, contemporary women at this life juncture have the advantage of being able to draw from this 'holy well', to look to each other for community and support, to engage in rites of meaning-making, to embrace the stirrings of soul, and to celebrate their season of soul-fullness. Describing this re-emerging social phenomena Jean Shinoda Bolen writes:

'Members of wisewomen circles have qualities we associate with the crone goddesses – wisdom, compassion, humor, outrage, decisive action, maturity ... A wisewoman circle may be comprised of women with something in common; they may be activists, grandmothers, corporate women, psychotherapists, craftswomen, writers or musicians, alumnae of the same institution, cancer survivors, or residents of the same retirement community or neighbourhood; they may be of similar class, background or race. Or, on the surface, they may appear to have nothing in common. In either case, what shows doesn't matter – for what is valued is the essence of each woman herself, her soul qualities and psychological maturity' (p.180).
Ref: Shinoda Bolen, Jean. Goddesses in Older Women: Archetypes in Women over Fifty. Harper Collins NY 2001