Mid-life Crisis, Post-Graduation Identity Crisis, Post-Retirement Identity Crisis–household terms in our culture–how did the passage from one stage of
life to another come to be characterized as a crisis? Each stage of life contains within it an opportunity for growth, change and a deepening of Soul. To pass from youth to adult is to acknowledge and take on certain rights, responsibilities and most importantly a sense of one’s true destiny or mission in life. Mid-life can viewed as the true adulthood, when human beings have the greatest opportunity to fulfill their dreams, be of greatest value to the community, become leaders, and begin to understand more precisely the unique contribution they are capable of making. Elders may complete their missions and give back in a variety of unique ways. To honor such transitions and to help with the discovery of a truer and deeper Self is the core purpose of the Vision Quest Ceremony.
He not busy being born is busy dying. –Bob Dylan
In traditional and indigenous cultures ceremonies such as Vision Quest exist to help people to become more fully themselves. In the alone time of the Vision Quest a person communes with Spirit, Nature, and Inner Voice to bring forth a clearer and more powerful manifestation of True Self or Soul. With this vision of Soul a person can more beautifully and dynamically embrace the subsequent challenges of living life on life’s terms. Each life transition, youth to adult, adult to mid-life, mid-life to elder, and others, requires a profound reassessment of goals, desires, and motivations to live as one reborn instead of one simply growing older.
Process: Preparation begins as soon as you decide to quest. Your guides provide preparation with regard to safety considerations, general philosophy, and individual goals and concerns. They camp nearby while you are solo in the circle of your creation. They provide spiritual, psychological and physical support for your efforts. After the alone time of the quest everyone sits in council, listens to the questers’ stories, and mirrors their stories back to them. To tell your story to the elders is powerful. To hear your own story told back to you is a marvelous and wonderful gift.
Who: All who are ready or may be ready for initiation into a deeper sense of their own unique human life: youth, adult, mid-life, or elder.
Where: Northern Sierra Nevada Mountains in the watershed of the Feather River
Guides: Howchi Kilburn, MFT and Associates
How to learn more or decide to join in the venture: Call l Howchi at (707)303-3238 or (707)536-6117, or email Howchi at [email protected]
Payment: by donation to Wilderness Guides Council, a non-profit organization,
We are always happy to talk about the beauty and wonder of questing in the wilderness, so please contact us even if it’s just to talk.
