in
this issue
Your Monthly Money Journey
This month, you write your money
autobiography.
Telling the story of your experiences and
relationships with money can reveal many secrets about how you
relate to money. The time you invest in this process will pay big
dividends in self-knowledge and potential for
change.
Respond in your journal to these open-ended
questions:
What were the economic conditions in which you
were born and grew up?
What are your early memories of your
family home? Holidays? Shopping trips?
What are your memories
about your first job, first bank account, first home as an
adult?
How have your contributions of money or time to
charitable causes changed over the years?
Your money timeline
Draw a horizontal timeline in your
journal, marking each decade of your life. Above the line, write
your pleasant or satisfying experiences about money. Below the line,
write your unpleasant or unsatisfying experiences about
money.
Sacred space
You've worked hard! It's time
to give yourself sacred space. That's interior space, a place where
you can rest and accept the person that you are and the gifts you
have been given.
Your sacred space may be a physical
location, a time of day, or a symbol like a lighted candle. Make it
your own, whatever that looks or feels like for you.
Next month:
Uncover your "money facts and
feelings." You will identify the specifics about your financial
resources.
Can't wait till next month?
Speed ahead
on your Money Journey using A Woman's Book of Money &
Spiritual Vision. The book is featured on our
website, with links to booksellers and the publisher.
Want to share your money journey with others?
We
recommend forming a group of 12 to 15 members, and meeting for 6 or
7 sessions. To help you create a productive and enjoyable
experience, we're creating materials to assist group leaders.
Email us for study group details
Quick Links...
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| A few spaces are still available on the June 26 - July 3
Women's Perspective retreat at Findhorn,
Scotland. We've extended the registration deadline to
April 30, so call 203-336-2238 or click
here for details right away!
Coming May 1: Register now for our workshop in White
Plains, NY, Money & Spirituality: A Woman's
Perspective. Click
here for details.
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International Women's Day Event Opens
Eyes & Minds to Global Issues
 Our first-ever International
Women's Day celebration in Connecticut drew more than 60
participants. The day was part of Gather the Women's worldwide
network of International Women's Day celebrations.
Special thanks go to Kathleen Gorelick, chairperson of
WP's board, and Susan Pascucci, who spearheaded this event,
Weaving a World that Works, as a follow-up to the 2003
Gather
the Women Congress. Plans are underway for another event
this fall to examine global issues of money and spirit.
Our goal in sponsoring this gathering was to inspire women
to think hard about how their financial lives affect those of
people living in other countries. We introduced Springs Ministries
and MayaWorks to a
diverse audience, who applauded the courage and spirit women
display in the face of medical and economic deprivation. The
photo from International Women's Day (above) shows,
left to right, Rosemary Williams welcoming guest speakers
Margaret Auma from Springs Ministries of Kenya and Pat Krause
from MayaWorks of Guatamala.
Computers Donated to Sierra Leone Women
Rosemary Williams of Women's Perspective and Ann Smith of
Peace X
Peace conducted a workshop sponsored by the International
Public Policy Institute as a side event to the UN Commission
on the Status Women this March.
Entitled Circles of
Power: Matching Your Passion and Pocketbook to the World's
Greatest Needs, the workshop drew 30 women from a dozen
countries. The women participated in exercises to break down
cultural barriers in order to discover how to help one
another. One participant shared that she was able to reach
across vast differences of color and economics and experience
her "opposite partner" in newly human ways.
By the
day's end, a donor of refurbished PC's had connected with
African women who needed computers. The workshop was an
example of how the Women's Perspective process of connecting
money and spirit can make a global impact.
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Thanksgiving 2004: Join WP in Africa
 You're invited to join
Women's Perspective on a sojourn to Africa to attend the
International HIV/AIDS Widows Conference in Kisumu, Kenya, to
teach and be taught by the widows. The tentative dates for the
trip are November 20 - December 6, 2004.
The photo (above)of holding hands was taken during a
sharing circle on Women's Perspective's 2002
trip to Kenya. As one participant said, "The sacred act of
holding hands created a feeling of safety that nurtured deep
personal sharing, and it transformed our lives."
In 2002, we attended this moving three-day conference,
learning about the toll that HIV/AIDS has taken on women and
their families. We worked with African women in small groups,
finding ways to harness our resources to help them better
their lives.
Please let us know if you'd like to be on the mailing list
to receive details about this trip as they become available.
Join Kenya Trip Email
List »
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A Look Inside a WP Workshop
Women, Money and Spirituality is the foundation
workshop of Women's Perspective programs and is based on
Rosemary Williams' and Joanne Kabak's book, A Woman's Book
of Money & Spiritual Vision: Putting Your Financial Values
into Spiritual Perspective.
What happens in a workshop? Exercises,
discussion, story telling, journaling, and teaching sessions
help participants think about the roles that money and spirit
play in their lives. Participants go home with a renewed sense
of responsibility and purpose, along with a practical action
plan to align their financial choices with their beliefs and
values.
Quotes from recent workshops:
"Intriguing and energizing"
"Really got me
thinking"
"Supportive and accepting environment where we
could tell our stories"
2004 Workshops Near You
Delray Beach, FL: April 17, Women, Money &
Spirital Vision, Church of the Palms
White Plains, NY: May 1, Money &
Spirituality: A Woman's Perspective, Divine Compassion
Center for Spiritual Renewal
Montreat, NC: May 31-June 1, A Woman's Worth:
Faith, Money & Power, a workshop at The Reclaiming the
Text Conference, The Cost of Discipleship: Faith, Money &
Possessions, Montreat Conference Center
Chautauqua, NY: July 24-31, Aligning the
Spiritual & Financial Aspects of Your Life, Chautauqua
Institution
Darien, CT: Sept. 18-19, joint workshop with Jean
Bolen, Goddess Archetypes, Money and Women: Tapping into
Financial & Spiritual Wisdom, Convent of St. Birgitta
NEW! Westfield, MA: Oct. 2, Life, Values, Money
- Connecting Your Wallet to Your Soul, Genesis Spiritual
Life Center
Click for
the Women's Perspective calendar »
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Recommended Reading & Fun Quiz
 New Book: Lynne
Twist is a global activist and fundraiser. Her new book,
Soul of Money, shows how we can replace feelings of
scarcity and guilt with experiences of "sufficiency, freedom
and purpose." For excerpts and reviews of this inspiring work,
click here.
Good Article: "Use Your Money to Lead!"
Ruth Ann
Harnisch, executive and philanthropist, suggests 10 ways to
share your leadership as well as your wealth by:
- Showing thoughtful, strategic, philanthropic
decision-making
- Demonstrating generosity
- Creating imaginative possibilities ...
Read all
10 recommendations in the
full article.
Are You a Financial Phobic or a Mogul?
Take this
quiz and find out! Authors Karen Maru File and Russ Alan
Prince have shared with Women's Perspective an enlightening
quiz from their book, High-Net-Worth Psychology. You
can find the book on Amazon.com.
Money Motivation Quiz
All women do
not think alike when it comes to managing their money. Read
over the following nine statements about managing money and
check the ONE or TWO that most reflect your attitude.
- Managing my money lets me take care of my family.___
- I am very fearful about money management.___
- Money management helps me to achieve my goal of
financial freedom.___
- I really do not want anyone knowing about my money.___
- Money management makes me powerful.___
- I get respect by managing my money.___
- My goal is to accumulate as much money as I can.___
- I like the thrill of making financial and money
decisions.___
- I am most interested in the latest ways of managing
money.___
Answers
to the Money Motivation Quiz »
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