UNDILUTED #013

Hey Reader,

I invite you to reflect with me on conversations shaping energy work spaces this week - the stories we inherit, why questioning them can feel uncomfortable, and what it means to consider the perceived power we hold as practitioners.

Women who refused

I'm thinking about Nellie Bly.

Born in 1864, Nellie was a journalist who challenged the limited subjects women reporters were often expected to write about. In 1887, she joined the New York World and was given an assignment to investigate conditions inside the Women's Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell's Island.

To get inside, she feigned mental illness and was admitted as a patient, spending ten days experiencing and documenting the conditions firsthand. Her reporting exposed mistreatment and contributed to increased funding and improvements at the institution.

What strikes me is her willingness to go beyond the accepted way of finding something out. She didn't observe the story from a safe distance. She found a way to experience what couldn't otherwise be seen.

It makes me wonder where the truth we're looking for might require us to get a little closer, rather than relying on what we've been told.

Guidance without "power over" - how do we learn from someone without losing ourselves?

A conversation about the culture of power versus control, validation versus permission, guidance versus dependency. And why I find none of us want to inadvertently ask a client to hand us their power. Season 5, Episode 25

Join the conversation here

What happened when I questioned the ethics of spiritual authority..

Tracing the line between ethical power, spiritual hierarchy and learned deference.

Read the essay here

5 minute Spirit-led reconnection practises

No cost practises inviting you to something new each week
Designed to reignite the magic of tangible, practical Spirit-led connection, we have a bank of pre-existing practises to dive into whilst the community gives feedback on how useful these continue to be, how we might evolve them, or whether it’s time to do something entirely different.

Root into animistic connection here

STUDENTS - THIS WEEK IN THE PATHWAY:

You're arriving before next week's first class. For me, there's something hopeful, tender and really quite electric about this moment. We've all been brought together at this particular point in our journey, and while there is so much to discover within the space itself, I've found that some of what makes the Pathway so vibrant is witnessing what unfolds when those journeys meet. Previous experience tells me there are never any coincidences. There's time to find your way around, meet the people you'll be sharing this experience with, explore your free resources, and dip into your complimentary course Be an Empowered Empath. Nothing needs to be done in a particular order. Just begin where something draws you. Classes start on Sunday. I genuinely can't wait to experience what unfolds.

GRADUATES - FROM THE HEARTH:

A waterfall cascading down a dark rocky cliff surrounded by dense evergreen trees

Being paid for something that feels like a gift

Why can receiving money for spiritual work feel uncomfortable when the work itself feels like something we're here to give? Perhaps precisely because of that. No matter how consciously we try to step outside of it, I've noticed we're still living inside a culture carrying deeply ingrained stories about money: that it's hard to come by, that wanting it makes us greedy, that we have to earn our worth, or that giving freely is somehow more noble than receiving. But exchange has always been part of how humans sustain what matters. Our ancestors might have exchanged healing gifts for herbs, food or tobacco. Today, within the culture we've been born into, we exchange money. The currency has changed. The principle for our work hasn't. Perhaps receiving isn't about putting a price on the gift. Perhaps it's about allowing an exchange that supports both the person receiving the work and the person offering it.

Our first supervision

This week, we begin our first supervision - a dedicated space to bring the real questions that arise when you're working with others. Supervision isn't about being told whether we're doing something "right". It's a place to pause, reflect, and explore the places where your work might feel unclear, complex or simply worth another perspective. You might bring a question about a client relationship, a relational dynamic that's appearing for you, something you've noticed in yourself, an intuitive experience you're unsure how to hold, or a situation where you're wondering what the most ethical response might be. You don't need to arrive with a polished question. Sometimes the most useful place to begin is simply: "Something about this doesn't quite sit right with me. And from there, we explore.