Untwisting
Blind Contour Drawing Collaboration; Barb Fries and Joanie Peters
"We are here to learn how to show up with each other."
This was the invitation I heard at a recent enneagram workshop and I have taken it to heart, my heart.Before I cross a threshold to engage with another, I ask myself; how am I showing up? Who of me is showing up? It is the wisdom of the enneagram that has taught the value of being self critical in a loving way. In this self observation, I am able to recognize when a contracted version of myself is showing up and I am able to make a conscious choice to bring an expanded version of myself to the exchange.
In this same workshop, it was suggested that our primary enneagram spaces are different ways of being twisted and compressed. This caught my attention, as this is how my chiropractor had recently described my body. My muscles are so much in the habit of holding the twists that the chiropractic adjustments are temporary. This enneagram teaching was saying that being untwisted will be uncomfortable and that our compulsion will always be to return to the comfort of our "twisted and compressed" ways.
A return to normal is a return to fixation. It has been helpful to recognize that just as my muscles are resistant to realignment, so am I. This work of becoming a fully aligned human is the work of constant adjustments.
Joanie Peters
Joanie Peters is one of the instructors in the upcoming Enntrain: Embodied and Inspired Enneagram Training Program that will now begin on January 13th, 2025.
Dale and Joanie are looking forward to working with an adventurous group of individuals who are looking to deepen their enneagram knowledge. We can refine our self-awareness and attend to the deeper parts of ourselves. Is it time for you to "untwist and decompress" your years of getting caught in anger, fear, and shame?
There are still spaces left for those who are interested in this in-person intensive that will take place at the Sandy Saulteaux Spiritual Centre.