What is a guide?

Door to endless possibilities…

The word ‘guide’ is commonly defined as a ‘way shower’ — an individual who supports you physically and emotionally to move through an experience.

They open the door to the realm of possibility and help you see what is possible for you.

Guides are also teachers; depending on what you are seeking guidance for, you may need to learn a specific skill or skill set. For example, if you were going to participate in an adventure weekend for beginner level kayakers, your guide would teach you things like how to get in and out of your kayak, how to use the rudder to steer, how to fasten the skirt to keep you dry, and how to use the paddle.

Guides watch over you with an awareness of your skill level and advise you accordingly. When you go beyond your comfort zone and experience fear they will talk you through it to help you increase your confidence, which will in turn enable you to meet greater challenges. As you learn, you grow and your comfort zone expands. It is about taking one step at a time and you discern your next best step with the support of your guide as they hold that safe space for you grow. You have the power to do what feels right for you while having endless opportunities to experience possibilities that you may have not previously considered.

There is another type of guide that is not often talked about: the archetypal guide. They are the bridge between the outer tangible seen world and the inner intangible unseen world.

They themselves have crossed the bridge, have learned the ways of the inner world and have developed the trust, courage, confidence and grace to dance with what is. This is a very different skill set to the one we use to navigate the outer world. The outer world is about the known, where we plan, set goals and expect certain outcomes if we do it right. The inner world is about being in the unknown, and embracing and working with what is unfolding in the present moment. At this present time, we are two months into the Covid-19 experience, and individuals who are familiar with the unknown of the inner world are not experiencing fear.

They know how to dance with the unknown and are very comfortable in both worlds as their relationship with the inner world determines how they engage with their outer world. 

The archetypal guide is often referred to as a crone, a wise woman or a sage. They take the role of teacher to a spiritual level. They represent the natural ripening of insight and the acceptance of what is, while seeing the Divine presence in every aspect of life. They are wisdom-keepers and share that wisdom from a place of wholeness, also known as coherence. They don’t see you as you see yourself rather they see you as being whole. In their wisdom they hold space for you in your wholeness until you claim it. In the inner world, not being enough does not exist.

It is the connection to this inner world, the mystical, the oneness that all humans, on some level, seek.

The desire to belong, or the feeling of never being/having enough are patterns that stem from feeling disconnected from the inner world.  This manifests in a person, when you don’t feel whole or complete, and turn to the physical world in an attempt to address this. Ultimately, people discover that material things, the perfect career, money, having the perfect body, gaining approval, feeling special, or even finding love do not —and cannot — fill this void in its entirety. It is not common knowledge that the outer world is only half of the whole. We live in the realm of duality. Up/down, back/front and light/dark are common examples of duality. With that in mind, it is logical that there is an outer world and an inner world and when you resist one you resist both. If you embrace both, you live in wholeness.

To feel comfortable in this unknown world is a process, and your archetypal guide can shine the light to show you the possibilities as you traverse your path.

This part of the process is akin to the guided kayak adventure. You have the power to do what feels right for you, while having endless opportunities to experience possibilities that you may have not previously considered. With the support of your guide, you discern the next best step for you. One step at a time and your guide walks with you until you have the confidence to continue the journey on your own in the realm of possibility. 

I have had many guides and some of the most empowering moments of my life have been those where I released my guide’s hand and said thank you, I’ve got this now. Then when the time is right the perfect guide shows up to shine the light for me to take my next steps.

In the next blog, I will expand on what this process may potentially look like for you. I will draw on my journey with my guides and I will show you how I use the wisdom I gleaned from my journey, to guide women who are seeking connection, to embrace both worlds by unsticking from their stories.