What a joy it was to see Kamala Harris sworn in as the vice president of the USA! Truly a historic moment.
The little girl in me was singing with joy. I think of how inspiring it is to have other girls in the United States see that their dreams could become a reality in the future too. As Kamala Harris said after the election results were announced, “I may be the first woman to hold this office, but I won’t be the last.”
Oh, how I would have loved to have been witness to such a moment when I was a little girl!
I remember dreaming of being on a stage one day and singing, allowing the power of my voice to reach and inspire others. This idea terrified me, but I still would dream about it!
As I grew older, I held on to my dreams, and I looked out into the world, searching for ways that a young woman could enter, with the strength and power as a woman, and realize her dreams.
I soon discovered that there weren’t very many avenues for women to pursue their dreams. Door after door seemed to be shut. As a young woman in my 20’s, I remember my passion for life and how disappointed I was at this realization.
One particular moment was very dark. So dark that I even wondered if I should go on living.
I’d just returned to New York City after a year of living with the Otomi Indians in Mexico where I had been an active part of a Catholic community. I was completely horrified at what I experienced in the nuns’ attitudes toward the Otomi beliefs. I was enraged at the Catholic Church. How could they be so destructive in the world??
I longed for a place where the role of women and even the divine feminine could be expressed fully in the world. I couldn’t find this or even support for it in the Catholic church. My heart was broken.
It happened to be that just a short time after my return from Mexico, I attended a workshop led by Matthew Fox at the Marble Collegiate Church on 5th Avenue in New York City. He was a Catholic priest and had just written the bestseller book, Original Blessing.
I approached him with demanding questions, fueled with the passion and anger of being a young woman in the world, “What is the deal with the Catholic Church? Why do they teach us to shut down our bodies? To shut down indigenous people? To shut down women? And men also, for that matter? To shut down our creativity?”
Surprisingly, Matthew asked me a question: How do you connect with the Divine?”
“Well,” I said very timidly, “I sing.”
He replied, “Jeannine, you should check out Hildegard of Bingen.”
And so that was the day that my journey with St. Hildegard began. I never would’ve dreamed at that moment in time how important she, as a 12th century woman, would become in my life! My connection to her and all that she manifested in the world has brought such strength and joy in my life over the years. It truly has transformed my life!
I soon learned that St. Hildegard, as a woman in the 12th century, was incredibly courageous as she persevered in sharing her visions with the world. This was unheard of at the time! Women weren’t part of the clergy. Women didn’t preach, speak publicly, or write. Certainly not on topics such as visions from God! And yet, she persevered, mustering her courage, guided by the Divine.
In the following years of my life, inspired by what I learned of St. Hildegard, there was a title wave of creativity that flowed, bringing strength, healing, and joy into my life.
Today, I’m not shy about the fact that I’m a singer. And yes, I have even sung on stage many times! I also have expressed my creativity in many other ways – tap dancing, writing, painting and teaching. All of this has been a vital and beautiful part of my spiritual path and life.
That’s why I’m passionate about sharing with others about the life of St. Hildegard and her teachings of wisdom that can bring inspiration and direction into our lives today.
I’ve gathered some of her most brilliant golden nuggets of wisdom that can help us today and created a course that I’ll be offering in May online, Master Your Creativity. In this 5-module course, inspired by the work of St. Hildegard, we’ll explore the following:
- How to be inspired by life
- That you are a creative being with a purpose
- How to access your inner strength and trust in the Divine.
- That you can heal and transform on your life’s journey
- That it’s possible to manifest your soul’s creative purpose even through obstacles
