Video Summary:

About 30 years ago we gathered to do ceremony during the Summer Solstice. We often begin such retreats sitting around the fire doing a sharing circle pondering such questions as, What's in your heart? What have you been experiencing? Or, What are you hoping to awaken during this retreat?

At this gathering, however, our teacher just looked at us and said, "This year I want to know something different. What do you bring to ceremony this year?" We were a bit taken aback as it was a perspective that we weren't used to.

We were in the habit of going to these gatherings to receive something. We wanted to receive our vision, insight, or connection with spirit. And these are all good things, but I think he was showing us that this was a little unbalanced, that was there more to ceremony than just receiving and being fed.

Now that I'm in the role of the facilitator of such ceremonies, sharing circles, and sessions, I'm realizing it's the energy that the participants bring that vitalizes these events. The magic and richness happen when we're all bringing the sincere emotional and spiritual energy that’s in our hearts.

Perhaps someone brought sadness and someone else brought joy. Another may be celebrating getting married or having a child while someone else is grieving someone that's passed away. Someone may be having a rough time in a relationship, someone else got a new job, and another just received their first vision.

So there are all these different energies that we bring depending on what's going on with us. When we got to the point where were we able to offer what was in our hearts, those solstice ceremonies dropped down to a new level of being that was vital and alive.

I remember that at first, I didn't really feel like I had something of value to give. I was with sitting with this enlightened teacher, calling in spirits, and in my mind, communing with God. We were doing this high-level spiritual work, so I didn't even consider that my offering would be of much value to the ceremony.

I learned that my offering brought immense value. In a sense, it gives Spirit and the facilitating teacher something to work with. The energy's in the space and now it can be directed. And that's when the magic really happens because there's more than one person that's bringing life energy to the ceremony.

So I invite you to consider the inquiry of “What do you bring?” You can think about it in the sense of what you bring in general, which is more like what your purpose and gifts are. And that's a great inquiry. But it’s also great to ask what you bring to the day-to-day, moment-to-moment experiences of your life.

Some days maybe I'm a little sad and I bring sadness, and other days I bring joy. Some days I bring energy, some clarity, and others confusion. I’m simply offering the humble gift of what's in my heart at the moment and trusting that my community, friends, and family will benefit from what I'm offering.