Ben Jezierski
While she would never have described herself in such terms, my mother was what some might traditionally have referred to as a Prairie Dog. Almost every day she made the rounds, running errands for the Elders on our block...generally with me in tow. Her regular visits with the Grandmothers and Grandfathers of our community provided me with a constant example of a life lived in the service of others - often to the point of self-deprivation- and fostered within me a desire to walk that same path.
The lessons I learned from these experiences, coupled with a deep love of nature and a budding search to heal the wounds I'd received as the parentalized only child of an alcoholic father and severely codependent mother eventually led me to the work of Shamanic Healing.
In the years that have since followed, I've discovered that in order to help others heal themselves, we must first step diligently onto the path of our own recovery. This is the central idea in the Myth of the Wounded Healer. Here our afflictions become our teachers; our actions become an example; and the scars we carry speak less of the times we've fallen, and more so of the gifts we've recognized within ourselves while getting back to our feet.
If you'd like to talk, you can reach me by phone at 856-577-2126 or by e-mail at Bjezierski1@yahoo.com. I look forward to hearing from you.