Carrie Link

"WHEN YOU ARE PAYING KIND ATTENTION TO RAGE, IT CEASES TO BE A PROBLEM." - Ruth King

Hmmm... today I land, gently and well from the high of the Rage Retreat in Calistoga Springs, California, with the formidable Ruth King. It feels necessary to put the word Reverend before Ruth's name, for that is what she teaches, reverence. There is a peace and stillness in Ruth that is undeniable, and she is here to spread the word that that peace and stillness is possible for all of us.

In a rustic spiritual retreat center surrounded by trees, birds, a cow, horse, goat and a dog, Ruth settles her tiny body and gigantic presence and gets to work. With a room of women representing all walks of life, four continents and thirteeen different stories, Ruth leads us all to the universal truths and messages we seek to integrate into our awareness.

We have come here as woman ready and willing to change. We are here to open our hearts to love. We are here to lay down our swords and pick up the olive branch of peace and extend it to ourselves.

Ruth leads us through the careful release of rage and the art of forgiveness, compassion, and empathy. She expertly moves us through the three and a half day retreat that begins at 7:00 AM each morning, and "ends" at 10:00 PM. Not a minute "wasted," not a second unintentional.

Cutting through all the pretense and BS, women introduce themselves and their struggles, and sleeves are rolled up. If you are not here to "deal" you are not here. The bravest, most honest, searching, open and at times desperate, these are the women that have gathered to do their work. We are women who are at crossroads. We are women contemplating motherhood, divorce, marriage, new careers, new callings. We are women who are killing ourselves with the toxicity of our inner rage. We are women who cry out in pain while simultaneously rejoicing with all that we know is good and true within us and the Universe.

With sensitivity, intuition, firmness and insistance, Ruth takes us each where we are on our paths, and moves us to where it is we seek to go. Where we each seek to go is deeper within ourselves, tapping into inner resources of calm, acceptance, resolution and forgiveness.

To share the particular process Ruth uses would not do it justice, and be confusing. It is best to say Ruth knows what she's doing. She's been doing this work with women for 13 years and has her "act" down. She does not miss a beat. She is fully in charge and commanding while remaining soft and open at all times. This is a woman doing what she has been called to do. That truth shines steadily and reassuringly, Ruth is a lighthouse to those of us in dark periods of our lives.

I invite you to check out Ruth's website, and attend one of her various workshops if you are the slightest bit "called" to do so. If you are called, Ruth will answer. I promise.

"You know you need help when...
1. Someone you care about won't forgive you.
2. Something or someone you love abuses you.
3. You have trouble following your own best judgment.
4. Your health is failing.
5. Someone you love leaves or dies.
6. You're not getting the recognition you feel you deserve.
7. You've out grown your job or your relationship but are having difficulty leaving.
8. Your aging parents who hurt you now need your help.
9. Someone steals your ideas or bad mouths you.
10. You are abusing others and feel ashamed.
11. You feel angry and helpless over the political situation in the US.
12. You stand aside, look away, or become indifferent when others are being harmed.
13. You resent that you put the needs of others before your own.
14. Someone confronts or attacks you.
15. A loved one has problems and you can't help them.
16. You're bored for no good reason.
17. You don't qualify for the job, the loan, shelter, or the next meal.
18. You betray yourself and those you care for again and again.
19. You don't feel worthy so you don't even try.
20. You are afraid to take action on your own behalf.
21. You're sick and tired of being sick and tired.
22. You feel like you are on the verge of a breakthrough and it frightens you.
23. Life is simply not enough.
24. You have difficulty telling the truth.
25. You feel alone and it frightens you.
26. You want your personal rage to work for, not against, you.
27. As smart as you are, you still keep doing the same darn things that you don't like.
28. Nothing in particular is wrong, you just wanna feel more alive, maybe even have a bit of fun."


Healing Rage