Dear ,

There is always a shift in the summer when a hot breeze begins to blow through the California desert and the kids stop attending school. It coincides each year with my work week (which I thought was already full) starting to play second fiddle to the questions my children ask and the camps and projects they need to attend to. I feel momentary frustration as my projects are filed on the shelf until autumn.

Then as I turn my focus and presence toward my children a new type of magic happens. I get to discover where they are on their journey of realizing themselves. Children are curious about everything, and I love that about them. Actually I do everything I can in my power to keep that quality of brilliancy alive in them, and in myself. My kids remind me that we live in a field of awareness and when I am fully present life reveals itself in both extraordinary and ordinary ways. 

   Raising conscious children is about keeping a very safe environment and enough presence so that the children can fully explore life. They need to be able to ask questions, and then ask another question, and to stay in the curiosity of living. After all, a fully satisfying life is a throughly examined one. It's how my books come into being. I become curious about an idea and sure enough as I'm taking a bath or walking in nature a story comes to me as if in response to my questions. One question tends to lead to another question; one story leads to another. If we are very brave we might explore for a moment what it is to live raw and undefined in the fire of the Infinite Light...

   We are so used to outside distractions that the practice of being fully present for another can be challenging. Yet if we slow down and become quiet and receptive a gift awaits us. When we are lovingly present with another we may behold an increasingly beautiful and alive human being in front of us. Without judging yourself, notice how long you can fully be with your children, and then see if you can extend that time. Practice being like a child and noticing everything about the world around you. You might become curious about the way your feet feel in the sand, or simply lay under the night time sky and look at the stars.

One of the main paths to Self-Realization is self-inquiry. Since a large part of what we do together as a family is to evolve consciously, we tend to inquire a lot. This comes in handy when raising conscious kids. When we practice with each other we learn to both share and listen. Inquiry can be ordinary, fun and straight forward. After all, everyone is curious about who they are becoming and we can act as loving mirrors for each other's awakening.

    It seems that often the conversations we have are about our lives and the people in them. In order to grow into who we wish to become we wind up having discussions about what it is to be a conscious human being. It's fun to explore the qualities and capacities of our True Nature, such as: intelligence, love, steadfastness, joy, strength, power, kindness, creativity, etc. We might inquire into which qualities are familiar to us and which ones need to be developed.

    I am grateful for the time I have with my kids for every moment is truly a treasure beyond price. Together we can become co-creators, aware that there is a field of intelligence that always exists in and around us. This unified field of awareness is something we can trust - no matter what. 

    The way we love and relate with each other has a profound effect on our entire family dynamic. The changes that happen in our indivdual lives impact all of us. It is useful to study, reflect upon and integrate all the transformations that are taking place in the living field of our family life. The poor choice of one person impact us all, and so do the wise choices. We explore with curiosity, and try to leave judgement behind as we ask authentic questions that help us learn and grow. 

    Where we live, what we eat and what we are studying brings new awareness into our family field. Our current and new relationships impact all of us as well as the loss we each feel when a relationship ends. Aging, health, illness and death of friends is part of the living and dynamic field of awareness that we live within. All the changing forms help to define us in meaningful ways. 

    I do share my current understanding of the colorful essential nature of existence and how it lives in and around me. That seems to excite even more questions, because it generally inspires my children to check out their relationship to their red strength, or the way in which blue helps them define and speak their own truth. They also explore who they are as human beings, what their qualities and capacities are, and how they feel they can make a contribution in the world. Also they seem to be very aware that the way we contribute has seasons, and so it changes with age and time. This year my fifteen year old son William earned some money as a surf instructor and he shared how important to was to feel valued by the camp and the kids.

    Self-Inquiry is a rather radical way of raising kids. From this perspective, I'm not pretending to be an authority figure or to know anything. Since there is nothing to enforce there is not much need for structure or discipline. Instead there is a focused awareness regarding what happens to our body/mind and our connection to source based on our own decisions. It is a way of teaching self-responsibility and what it takes to live consciously together. It is a way of loving each other enough so that we all thrive and blossom. 

May the Infinite Light be with you now and forever. 

                                                                                                                        --- Ayn Cates Sullivan