I have recently been going to a women's circle.  A women's circle is when a small group of women get together and share time together.  This particular group gets starts by joining hands in a circle and someone sings a song or says a prayer.  Then we sit in a circle around the room. There is usually a talking stick or something to hold while the first person talks. It is passed around to whomever is ready to share their thoughts or feelings.  All things said or shared in the circle is confidential to that group only. You can just talk about how you feel in the moment or you can talk about something that you are concerned about so that others can lend a compasionate ear for you to process through something.

  It has been really amazing for me.  Most of my life I have spent in a more male dominant world.  I worked on dairy farms,  landscaping crews, and construction crews. I learned how to relate to men better. At one point after getting married and having my first child I realized that I would not be able to go back into those occupations. I got a job working in an office setting and quickly learned just how different it was to talk and work with women.  It wasn't a good experience for me. In the next few years I avoided any job that I felt would be mostly women.  Now,  I am in my mid thirties and have realized how I yearn for female comradery.  A friend of mine invited me to this women's circle.  It was amazing.  I didn't realize how powerful it would be to share my thoughts and feelings with a group of women who were willing to just listen and not try to fix things for me.  It has given my life such fullness.  I also love to see the faces of the other women who are listened to, to see their heart being nurtured.  When our time is finished we usually close in the same way that we open the circle.  I leave feeling geat peace and contentment.