Searching For Truth: A Blog by Sherri Smith
We are in a time where information is more than abundant, but in my mind, the experience is often lacking. Words are tossed around without a deeper consideration of the impact or impression they leave and sit at a knowledge level of the mind. Judgement becomes a quick response to a word or words that have been expressed and the war has begun.
Although I have trained for several years at very accredited facilities, and I will always honour those teachings, the greatest of teachers has been in my experiences. The experience that comes from witnessing within my own life the impact of imbalance, the experience of witnessing the elements of nature and how they, through contemplation, are within me, and the impact of being in their presence can bring about a sense of healing to a level of self. The experience of hands on application of these teachings to the clients that come for some form of therapy I can provide. As I am working with a client, I am not looking at their tan, but I am looking at how nourished the tissue is. I am not looking at the external beauty of that person, but of their internal harmony or how I can assist in bringing back a greater balance to it with nourishment to the tissues, calming to the mind or support to the heart.
When we suffer a state of imbalance we first will experience an accumulation of excess; be it weight, thought, acidity, inflammation, dryness, etc. This then becomes more deeply imbued or embedded allowing for a stagnation, impenetrable or stubborn quality to arise and then the manifestation of something greater that requires deep, immediate and intense intervention. The practice of ‘doing the next right thing’ and also the commitment to a level of awareness that is tuned into ourselves and our environments provides a heightened state of acuity through the potency of our detective sensory systems. When we begin to burp excessively, it is a message. Heartburn? Listen to what your body is saying. Can’t sleep? Sit quietly and ask why. Then do the next right thing.
I do believe we all have within us the knowledge, but have become so disconnected from it that we need to relearn or re-experience it to gain the confidence again. I recall being at an incredibly intense medicine immersion in the mountains and the instructor/mentor turned to me and asked me to create a medicine wash for the skin. I was gobsmacked and numb. It wasn’t a request, it was a challenge and he knew this would push me to open my inner senses. I was given a knife for cutting and some tobacco as an offering and sent off for this immense project. I walked along in absolute self doubt for several minutes and then a sense of surrender came over me. I just got out of my head and onto my knees and started to open to something greater. I held, smelt, touched and rubbed these plants in the forest, taking in the qualities of each and realized some were quite bitter but stood beside some that were quite aromatic and combined made a beautiful synergy. The plants derived from deeper within the forest held a richness and density that needed to be experienced because my words can’t truly describe…everything I was doing was at a felt level. I eventually returned with my arms full of herbs that we cooked into this beautiful medicine wash and to this day I will be able to smell it. That gave me the courage to practice more and create sometimes simpler washes or steams, sometimes more complex ones. I recognize that there are of course very toxic plants as well and was only taking the more familiar varieties but with experience we can relearn this to awaken ourselves to the macrocosm and our own microcosm.
Sherri Smith from A State of Bliss has trained extensively and globally with ancient modalities and traditions to combine the wisdom these teachings into her own unique therapies. We are deeply connected to the natural world and many of the ills of society today are a result of our separation from this. Sherri's commitment to her own journey keep her immersed in teachings, experiences and advancement, in turn providing rich and rare content to her offerings. There is a yearning within each of us to live a greater life. Discover your power, your gifts and your truths.