“Touch the stones to center yourself.
It is time to learn the Laws of the Universe.
If you will do this, you can become a touchstone for others.“
— Cynthia F. Davidson
Wisdom Wheel
What touchstones are guiding you as this New Year dawns? Over twenty years ago that motto arrived to guide me, coming the way dreams do, from beyond my petty ego mind. I took it to heart. And so far it has steered me through two decades of work with the Wisdom Wheel. I hope your dreams come to steer you through this and every year.
This is the Renewal time of year on the Wheel. And Renewal is being demanded of us. We will each undergo some type(s) of Initiation. On this New Year, I recall what has worked during my prior crises, like the one that brought me to Rhode Island in 1999. Hindsight is 2020 as some say… After each crisis it is easier to appreciate what got us through.
Back in 1999, there was no way I could know how things would turn out when I took the risk and left my corporate career, my former marriage, and my commuter life behind. Off into the wilderness I went, with my little bag of touchstones. Only later can anyone clearly see what worked when facing so much doubt and ambiguity, and so I share what worked for me and hope you’ll share what works for you.
Our country is facing transformative challenges. Between the pandemic and the politics, all semblance of normalcy has been removed for so many. We need trustworthy guidance. When facing my personal crisis in my early forties, all I consciously knew was my crying need for sanctuary and certainty.
“The peace which passeth all understanding,” was my desire. To stop the demands upon me long enough to figure myself — and everything else — out sufficiently. This is familiar to anyone who has been in survival mode. You feel propelled to take action but unsure which choice to take. I wanted Mother Nature to instruct me. So I departed the cacophony and confusion of city and suburbs and returned to the wisdom of bedrock principles, the Universal Laws of existence. And I used them to rebuild my life, more solidly and surely.
Spirit guided me to Rhode Island, a state not previously on my radar. I settled on a small island, six miles long and two miles wide, in Narragansett Bay. Reachable only by ferry, this place became my crucible. The island’s old timers considered me crazy. “You’re moving here with three young children, when you know no one and have not a single relative?”
Yet I stayed, creating a modest spiritual retreat center, to share my need for sanctuary with others. I named my little wooden home Touch Stone Center. And I taught those who wanted to learn about the Wheel. For the next fifteen years many others gravitated to the island, by word of mouth, for vision quests and ceremonies. I remained there the longest of any place I have lived in my sixty six years. In 2014 we relocated to the mainland, but the Wheel, the ceremonies, and the teaching and writing have continued, in our new home, Hope House. Thanks to each of you who have come here.
News & Reviews
And a big shout out to all those who ordered our 2021 Return to Wisdom journal planners! We have increased our donations to healthcare workers and teachers. Your payments allow us to mail theirs free of charge.
This year you will learn more about these touchstones by being “on the same page” literally, with me. If you haven’t received the introduction items emailed to those on that list, contact me right away. And we apologize if your planner journal is stuck in the mail backlog. You are not alone. As we discovered after mailing them, many postal workers have the coronavirus, or need to quarantine. I resorted to hand delivering the local ones in Rhode Island.
Our twice monthly Zoom sessions start this January, on the Wednesday evenings 6:30 PM EST, on the 13th and 27th. Contact me for more info. We still have some planners and places left. CLICK HERE to purchase the 2021 planner.
The other big news is my volunteer job on the board at Story Circle Network which officially begins today! Please visit their newly revamped website to learn more. A wonderful group, I will say more about all this in next newsletter. In mid-March 2021 I’ll be offering my memoir writing course via SCN. So be on the lookout for more info in mid January edition.
Email me if you are interested in any of our ongoing Zoom groups:
• Every Saturday morning 10:30 am Westerly Writing group
• Every other Wednesday evening 6pm Book Writers group
• Every Monday evening 7pm Zoom Lodge
The next issue is my 50th . We are going to celebrate by sprucing things up a bit. Starting with the next newsletter, the contents will be slightly altered. They are becoming a bit too long. You won’t have to do anything about your subscription, but from now on the Full Moon editions will be mostly about the Wheel, like this one.
And the New Moon (mid-month) editions will focus upon the writing work. This helps us divide the contents between the two websites: www.thewisdomwheel.com and author site cynthiafdavidson.com. Hope your New Year holds some happiness! Please write to tell me what you’re up to.
