 A publication of the World Wide Essence Society |
 previous
page next page |
This page sponsored by:
|
A publication of the World Wide Essence Society |
previous
page next page |
This page sponsored by:
|
|
 (c)1999 by Donna Cunningham, MSW In mythology, Iris was the goddess of the rainbow. The iris is the part of the eye that opens and closes so we can see light--and thus colors. Iris, the flower essence, is held as an aid to creativity by the makers who provide it. For the nearly twenty years I have worked with flower essences, Iris has been my signature flower, for I consider myself a writer as much as an astrologer and healer. A stained glass iris hangs in my office window, and I turn to it when I need inspiration and when my own creativity lags. I have taken Iris essence often and also gave it to creative artists, writers, and musicians who were blocked.  I hadn't taken the remedy in a while, though I was going through a tough period in my writing career. I've published thirteen books and have standing columns in two prominent astrology magazines. However, I no longer took any joy in the creative process and felt burdened by the deadlines. I never wanted to write another word in my life--it was just a job, and a job I was heartily tired of. Just at that juncture, a fresh bottle of Iris flower essence arrived, the result of a chance encounter at an astrology conference months earlier. It was made by Dell Dorenbosch, who we hope will contribute to a future issue. Never one to resist an Iris, I took a dose of straight stock. It felt good, so I kept whacking away at the stock for several days. I was too busy to bother with a mixture--TWO writing deadlines loomed--but taking a single essence instead of a combination can be a strong catalyst. Immediately, fresh inspiration came in, and I began writing with the painstaking precision that characterized my work before I became so tired. I felt good about the article I was working on, and enthusiasm for the process began to build. More wonderfully, my muses were suddenly there again, feeding me insights of the sort that have always taken my breath away, for they truly don't come from me and yet have a ring of truth and wisdom. I always suspect they come from beloved astrological colleagues, my gifted brothers and sisters now gone on to the spirit world. These insights are typically there when I awake, so I spring from bed to get them down before they elude me. It had been a long time since I woke up with such whisperings to record, a year or more of leaden mornings. It wasn't all terrific, this rekindling. There was a reason I had stopped loving my work, and I had to face my feelings about it. It is quite typical, when you tackle a significant blockage, for the emotions and beliefs behind it to be stirred up. We're not talking magic potions here, no acadabra that makes an issue suddenly disappear. To get beyond a barrier, you generally have to confront it, in a process that is often referred to as a healing crisis. The issue was that I had been seriously ill several years before, and the bargain I had made about getting well was that I would become a mystery writer. In the year and a half convalescence, I wrote three mysteries and have never experienced more delight in writing. However, despite good and willing contacts high up in publishing, my repeated attempts to sell the books came to naught. I was heartbroken at this failure and never wanted to write again. Mired in despair, I went back to writing about astrology, but my heart no longer was in it. I made many attempts to heal myself and took many essences, but grim resignation was as good as it got. When I took Dell's Iris, I once again had to confront and deal with those issues, but the remedy seemed to dislodge and shift them so that I was relieved of them. I wouldn't say that her Iris is necessarily better than the famous maker's Iris I usually rely on. It is more likely that they come from different varieties and that the variety I usually took (a blue flag iris) had long since done all it could for me. (When I spoke to Dell later, she said it was the garden variety purple bearded iris. This made sense--purple is a color for healing resentments, and it was resentment that was blocking my creativity.) However, hers is excellent, and if you would like to order a bottle, call her at 1-770-993-5885. NOTE: For more remedies for creativity, read an excerpt from Donna's Flower Remedies Handbook. For dozens of lovely iris photos, visit Woodland Iris Gardens. BIO: DONNA CUNNINGHAM, one of the editors of this e-zine, has a master's degree in social work from Columbia University and is also
an internationally-respected astrologer, the author of twelve metaphysical books. Her FLOWER REMEDIES HANDBOOK can be ordered
on our book page. Click here to visit her web page
or to send her e-mail.
DESIGN CREDITS:The background came from a beautiful collection of
floral backgrounds at Bobbie's Bloomers. The iris came from Blue Valley Design Works.
|
