i am awake this morning. the heaviness of sleep still with me, my mind quiet and calm. the energy of a new month is palpable, the transition of summer into fall closer than seems possible. i feel movement, stirring, readiness to embody the callings that i’m hearing. there is a solidness to the experience of now, that kind of foundational fortitude that i’ve longed for. i am here and i am ready to go.

it has been nearly 16 months since i have taken a journey for the doorways project. the past year (and then some) was about the personal, the archival, the intimate, and the healing. i have had the profound opportunity to come into deeper relationship with myself, with my partner, and with powerful, transparent, and heart-led friends during this time.

what i know to be ever more true is that our relationships with one another are the true doorways to our freedom. the whole experience of connection is, i believe, the most effective and powerful way to create change within ourselves and in the world. it is in relationship, true revealed meetings,  where the spiritual meets the human. and as i become more in alignment with my own heart, with yearning and passion, longing and enlivenment, it is becoming more clear that relationships are the flares that are thrown up to show me where i ought to go.

and so i continue to go toward the people and places that trigger me. the ones that wake up something inside that cannot be argued with. it is an experience of the known alongside the hunger, the being and the yearning. it is the obvious alongside the revelation.

the next stop for the doorways project is mexico, where i will document midwives and mothers alongside two outstanding organizations who are, literally, saving women’s lives. the first is CASA. the second is One Heart World-Wide. CASA has mexico’s first (and only) government recognized school for the preparation of culturally appropriate, professional midwives. One Heart World-Wide is the only organization working in the the copper canyon with the indigenous Tarahumara who are suffering the highest maternal mortality rates in north america. i was able to hear each of the founders of these organizations speak through Direct Relief International in the past year; nadine goodman for CASA and arlene samen for One Heart World-Wide. during each of their presentations, i felt something stir within me, knowing that a doorway was appearing. both CASA and One Heart are dedicated to the saving of women’s lives in childbirth through the training of skilled midwives.

for many years, i thought i would be a midwife when i “grew up.” while that was not to be, i value the training and education i received through apprenticing with midwives and attending births as both a doula and, briefly, as an OB nurse in hospital. when the work of One Heart and CASA was brought to my attention, i felt sure that this was a doorway wherein i could use my current skills and platform as well as the education and birth experience from my past. i speak the language of mothers and childbirth, as well as the language of imagery and story. when the opportunity to travel to mexico and document the work of these organizations presented itself to me, i knew that i had to go.

everything you need to know about this project is here. i have launched a kickstarter campaign to fund the project and to make it a reality. it really is quite simple. the door is open and you can help me to walk through it. together, we have the opportunity to raise awareness and to save women’s lives.

and so it goes. another door, another step toward freedom.

much love.

ps. i’ve got a fun tell-all guest post up at the adesso blog today. check it out here.

photo: betty, my guide and translator in uganda. april 2011. doorways project in collaboration with cafwa.