It's A Woman Thing: What I Learned in my Book Club

This past January I had the great fortune to gather with an amazing group of seven strong and spiritually powerful women as part of a book club.

This book club is not your traditional book club. There was no reading before-hand and no gathering with wine and snacks. The book that we studied was the Law of Attraction Life and Success planner. In essence, it is a 12-month Personal Journal to help you create your dream life. It is weekly planner, a goal planner, and an organizer, complete with a bookmark and stickers!  And, this book is bound in a beautiful leather binder, so it’s perfect and inspiring.

Prior to our first meeting, we were all tasked with buying the journal and starting to browse through it. On a cold morning in January, I sat down with my beautiful planner and started my journey. 

We were tasked with getting familiar with the planner and how it was organized and to start setting some “life goals” using the planner as a guide.  Inside the planner there was the Law of Attraction Roadmap: 8 steps to design your dream life. I was excited! 

I had read the Law of Attraction many years ago and I am a believer in that power.  I have witnessed and experienced the principles myself. This was going to be fun! 

The first weekly goal I set was to hug my children every day. I realized that with the demands of life and the constant beat-the-clock existence that we have, hugs can get missed!  I wanted to be more mindful of this and I wanted to change it. This was the perfect task, small and achievable. 

It was great to sit down with the journal at the end of the week and see what had been accomplished.  I was used to a weekly calendar at work, but this was different. It was for me and about me and I was only accountable to myself to meet my goals.

We were also tasked with choosing a “theme song” prior to our first club meeting.  This was not as easy as it sounds! I started to look through my iTunes library to try and find the right song.  As I scrolled through my mile long list, it was right there. ‘These are the days’ by the 10,000 Maniacs. I decided years ago that this was my song! As I listened to the song, I was reminded why and when I chose this song, a flood of memories, some good some not so good. The lyrics are full of messages and insights that have guided me over two decades. One lyric that continues to speak to me: “It’s true, that you, are blessed and lucky,” is a gentle reminder that, yes, in fact even though there are obstacles in life, stop in this moment and find all the good. I have been blessed and lucky. I loved listening to this and thinking back on all I have accomplished with this guiding principle still leading me.

At our first meeting, we gathered at our facilitator’s space, fire roaring in the fireplace, bottles of water in hand. We would go around the room and introduce ourselves: I knew several fellow group members. I am blessed to now know the others! Our hostess proceeded to play her theme song and talk about its significance. We all wrote down our theme songs on a slip of paper and decided that each week we would randomly select another song and that person would explain its significance. This alone was a powerful practice as you become a witness to another person’s success, struggles, or vulnerabilities that can be revealed through music.  We then discussed how we would proceed each meeting. We shared, we laughed, we cried as we connected with each other. Each meeting ended in a meditation:  What a gift to be surrounded with like-minded strangers and feel such an energetic connection.

One exercise that we participated in as part of our group was the creation of a vision board. The journal has a guide to follow. I have done this before and I believe that what you focus on is what you manifest. This one was slightly different in that we basically divided our board into categories and used those as the focus. The divisions were:  Wealth and Abundance, Health, Love, Spirituality, Reputation, Professional & Education, Relationship, Hobbies, and Travel & Fulfillment. I loved this exercise! 

We spent one session just talking and sharing as we cut pictures and images out of the most amazing and creative magazines.  When we finally gathered to share our vision boards, it was empowering to hear each person’s story and vision and what spoke to them and why. I learned that I needed to get clear on a few of the messages that I was putting into the universe. As a student of the Law of Attraction, I knew that unless I am crystal clear about the messaging:  I will not manifest what it is that I desire. And, GOD knows I do not want to put out the wrong message! Lesson learned.

Our last session was particularly enlightening for me as it was for everyone else. Our facilitator had us write down the answers to these two questions:

1. “ I love to….”  

2. “I feel silly when I…” 

I know it may seem easy but to stop and think about these seemingly simple questions, I struggled.  Especially with the “silly” question. I really had to pause and think. Once we started to reveal our answers, we all realized that this question was tough for all of us. I learned that I do not have a lot of “silly” moments in my crazy, over-scheduled, demanding life!  My lesson and the lesson for all of us is that we need to take the time to be silly, have fun, and loosen up! More dancing with my daughters! 

The ‘I love to’ question was easier and a much longer list.

I challenge others to do the same thing, ask yourself what you love and when do you feel silly? Sit with those thoughts and write them down. You will be amazed at what that list has to offer or what it says about you.

Our group unanimously concluded that our lives are about the singular moments, the little things in life that bring us joy, and about the lesson or lessons we learn along the way. Finally, we ended with another meditation about fun. It was the perfect conclusion to a powerful gathering. I have learned a lot about myself these past months. I am on a journey and grateful for all I encounter on the way.  I am grateful to these seven strong women who I get to share with who are teaching me. I am grateful for the lessons learned at “Book Club.” 

It’s true, I am Blessed and Lucky.