What is Joan of Sparc?
Q: What is Joan of Sparc?
A: Joan of Sparc offers personal development and empowerment through tools and resources in the areas of self-awareness and wellbeing.
Q: What is it really?
A: A community of powerful women who through their own self-discovery and wisdom are gathering to make an impact on the world through the message of their hearts. It is a true labor of love that fully embodies “New Beginnings”. Through a dissolution of many layers of self and embarking upon even deeper “underworldian” journeys than I had been accustomed to, I could finally see some light. As I got closer to the vision, I viscerally felt a volcanic force so profound, so heated, so feminine arise from the center of my core. It was a mountain of energy that had a name and that name was Joan of Sparc.
Stay tuned for the continued unfolding of this offering from our hearts at JOS.
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Right now I feel a feverish high. So much is in the air. Like sparkles in a snow globe, my life is full of things to celebrate yet you can’t quite see what is happening, momentarily. My body is a vessel for process and goodness, a process I am in. Have you ever rebirthed yourself in every area of life all at once? I thought I did this already. 5 years ago I experienced such radical upheaval that it felt like a wildfire moved through my soul, but I missed some key pieces that were unconsciously lodged inside my mind…
I have a Dragon
inside of me,
Made from pain
and memories
Her fiery
dungeon breath,
My impending,
imminent death…
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On this New Moon in Aries, a day of initiation, growth, and blessings upon our courageous acts - I feel inspired to share with you a glimpse into an offering from cielawynter.com called Clarity Sessions. The following is an example of how one of these sessions would begin and a transcription of what is possible…
Today marks the spring equinox. This day is a living paradox of mystery and science, that which is enigmatic and yet clearly makes sense when studied through measure. The very practical notion of the sun crossing the celestial equator, as well as the vibrant metaphor of an expressive rebirth following a long internal winter season. The flowers bloom through the snow and our animal nature is stirred towards procreative efforts. While the energy is that of moving forward and rising up, we are simultaneously shedding layers of dead weight of what no longer serves us. What are you leaving behind?
I am. Deeply… are you? In constant awe of the range of emotions I can feel within an hour, I find a profound resonant beauty within this kaleidoscopic existence. As a human, our capacity to feel is so relevant and also proportional to our level of being. Imagine with me the felt sense of every aspect of every emotion, the shape-shifting perseverance of what it is to be human, as well as the need to discern throughout the entire range of what is possible and ask, is this real? Is what I am feeling true...or false?
I cried tonight, I laughed out loud, I sat and stared into the flame. There are so many moments in a moment and right now the full spectrum of aliveness calls me within. I wanted to share with you a letter I wrote to our Joan of Sparc community that encapsulates this moment for me. Not all sides of it, not the intrinsic transformative fluid nature of what occurs inside the chrysalis walls… yet, there is a hint of what is to be.
Inside of each one of us is a vision of life. It is unique, it is bold, and it is empowered by the grace that beats our hearts. Your particular vision is one for the ages, the essence of which has been touched by every molecule that you are. All the blood, sweat, and tears you have experienced as a human being brushes its DNA upon the effervescent and indescribable nature of your embryonic light of mind. It is both a duty and a service to live this into reality. Where are you in the journey of your becoming? This moment feels weighted with divine fire. The energy is pressing each one of us to the edge of our discomfort. This is growth. This is right now…
In this moment, anticipation runs hot...like a fever. The temperature rises as Mars and Uranus come together in exact conjunction with today’s moon in the realm of Taurus. The United States is inaugurating a new president and the world is on the edge of their seats. Some are waiting to exhale, others’ to see if their conspiracy trip manifests at last. Today is a day to remember, and much like every other day in this fearless decade, it is a day of powerful change.
As 2021 is now upon us, it’s obvious that some of the astrological forecasts are on point. I feel the electric surge only gearing up as one consistent shock after another sparks new layers of release. Perhaps I didn’t fully let-it-all-go at the end of 2020 since I’ve been busy digging deep, excavating my startup in preparation for rebirth. Instead, I’m innovating in the resolution sphere as my whole life consists of everyday resolve. Streamline is my word for this year...what is yours?
Do you have time to fret, waste, or to be distracted? No, we don’t have time for this. To numb out, escape, or fall prey to conspiracy? No, definitely not. To complain, point fingers, name call, or blame? Nope, not that either. How about to wallow in self-pity, luxuriate in self-importance, or sit back and watch while the fabric of the world as we know it comes undone? Even if it is time for a bit of undoing, still the answer is no.
What about time to be distraught? Unsettled? Or challenged? Yes, yes we do have time for this. We don’t want to remain here forever, however, we can accept that this is a natural state of internal affairs to meet the unsettling challenges externally.
With the intensity of the cosmic play by play of this Capricorn season, who needs Netflix? Throughout time we have sought actors to reflect the emotions we desire to access within our own hearts. Theater can bring us into these depths we haven’t known or perhaps have hidden far away. In this moment now, our personal truth is on center stage, asking for our attention and to stay tuned for what it has to say.
We are one family. Yes, presently that is smoke from Australia burning up in flames, bringing tears to our eyes. Past: It is the residue of our beloved rainforest in ash form. Future: that scorched earth over there…we used to call that California.
There is something extraordinary in that we can literally change, transform, and shed psychological skins to be renewed incessantly throughout a lifetime. How many lives have you lived until now? When you reflect on your recent past, do you relate to yourself? As you were a few months ago? What has changed inside of you?
Inward bound. I am feeling the gravitational pull into the cocoon of solstice days ahead. For the last three deep winters, I’ve found myself drawn into the Northwest Isles of Canada. It is a land and sea governed by eagles, whales, and mossy mounts of rugged terrain. There is a sweetness, as well as a majesty that has seeped into my soul, is relentless with my heart, and calls me back as if a siren’s song. The allure is profound and it is there that I find myself burrowing into my own unfathomable inner sunlit landscapes beyond time and space.
Everything in its right place… water in the bathtub not flooding the floor, fire cooking the food not burning down the house. There is a time to wait, to sit and be still, to meditate and go in. And there are other times when we dare not wait because if we do, we miss the mark completely…or rather set ourselves up for near disaster.
Everything. From our inner peace to a piece of land, what was once fertile ground is now in a state of desertification. I just finished watching my brother Ryland and the crew of Kiss The Ground’s long-awaited and perfectly timed documentary*. Following the pre-screen viewing, I am left with a sensation of possibility and rebirth amidst the dire straits of these times we barely know we are inherently facing.
When asked this question by a dear friend in her effort to lend support at a moment of crossroads, I immediately went to the page. What is my true north? As an astrologer, I tend to think of the nodes, north, and south. Our lunar nodes in our birth chart reach to the furthest ends of the spectrum, stretching from who and where we have been into who we are becoming and to where we shall go. They bookend a life of purpose, indicating a hero’s/heroine’s journey of deep inner learning, full of trials, cyclops, sirens, and detours along the way.
In moments of challenge, when what seemed like a yes is then presented as no or when the rug gets pulled from underneath me, I go inward seeking resolve. Often, I first encounter the fleeting ‘ok, I’m alright, stay optimistic…this too shall pass’. I venture deeper and a flurry of emotions resembling a thousand bees buzz through me, disorient me momentarily and bring forth subtle anxiety that increasingly builds. Chocolate? A friend’s voice? ‘God, are you there? It’s me, Ciela.’
Everything that we see, breathe, eat, experience, run through, put on, listen to and feel is created from nothingness. Perhaps my definition of “nothing” is slightly paradoxical as it also contains everything, but that is another conversation…
It is through the illuminating sun in Capricorn, glowing in full glory upon the canvas of the Cancer moon, that I am able to look back in review with the clarity and discernment of a Saturnian gaze. This year has taught me that: love does exist and even thrives despite hatred, betrayal is inevitable medicine, boundaries are a virtue, speaking up and silence are both strengths, patience is still a virtue, the choices we make are ours alone and, if we choose wisely, they are gold within our hearts. I learned that amidst chaos I can lean into my values and thrive while undergoing immense internal stresses in the face of temptation. And perhaps the greatest gift has been collaboration as an artform.