President's Letter Summer 2022
Dear Friends,
The topic of this newsletter addresses a question of importance for many teachers and caregivers - how to best take care of oneself while serving in a role of caring for others. Our contributors in this issue have done an admirable job of addressing this question.
Dr. Susan Johnson advises us in practical ways with suggestions for lifestyle changes and methods to enhance our immune system and assist in the prevention of common illnesses. Mary Jo Oresti discusses “universal activities that can be done as a brief respite during the workday to provide centering and strength,” which are presented in relation to the seven planets. Barbara Bressette-Mills shares the steps of the “Hallelujah” Soul exercise that “can help one feel well, refreshed, and inwardly still”, in an easy-to-follow manner with a link to a video soon to be released. Jeff Tunkey addresses the Pedagogical Law and how we can be of help to each other with the touchstone of “Faith, Love and Hope”.
Other intriguing aspects regarding self-care can be found in many indications given by Rudolf Steiner regarding health. Dr. Steiner speaks practically about the importance of Soul Health and presents suggestions for ways to achieve it. In reviewing the Subsidiary Exercises, I am once again struck by the wisdom and careful guidance that is provided to assist an individual who chooses meditation as a path of self-healing and self-development. I quote Dr. Steiner here when he lectures about the culmination of doing the five exercises and then speaks particularly of the sixth, ”The sixth exercise is the matter of persistence. One should try to repeat all five exercises again and again systematically in regular turns. In this way a beautiful balance is gradually achieved in the soul…One gains a quiet understanding of things that previously were totally closed to the soul. Even the gait and gestures of a person change under the influence of such exercises…(see Rudolf Steiner, Esoteric Development).” I am filled with gratitude for the tools we are given, such as this Meditation, and the ones from our aforementioned colleagues that can assist us on our journey towards health and helping ourselves and others.
From the “Course for Young Doctors”, March 11, 1924
It was in ancient times,
There lived in the initiates' souls
Powerfully the thought, that ill
By nature is every human being
And educating was regarded
Akin to the healing process
Which to the child maturing
Brought health along the way
For life's fulfilled humanity.
-Rudolf Steiner
Current AHE news:
AHE board members and friends have been working on various projects to stay timely with the needs of schools and the best venues to bring them to you.
Using funds from a grant we received from the Waldorf Education Fund, we completed a round of on-line consults with individual teachers from schools across the country. We just learned that the grant has been renewed, so we will continue this program next fall. For more information, or to apply for the program, click here Online Consulting
We recently completed an on-line program, “Today’s Learner”, for the faculty at Portland Waldorf School.
AHE’s Educational Support Program (ESP) began a new 3 year cycle in the fall of 2021, with in-person attendance hosted by the Waldorf School of Lexington in Massachusetts. Lately much content has focused on the work of guest presenter, Stephanie Johnson, author and creator of Baby Bare. For more information about our ESP program contact Connie Helms connie@healingeducation.org
Best wishes for a delightful, rejuvenating and uplifting summer.
Sincerely,
Betty Jane Enno
President, Association for a Healing Education
Ways to Strengthen Immunity and Help Prevent Common Illnesses
This article contains a list of lifestyle and dietary changes that the author is making in her life and/or recommending to her patients.
To read or download the entire article, click here: Strengthening Immunity
Reflections On Self Care Through the Lens of the Planets
Care workers of all kinds, from physicians to undervalued elder care workers, will tell you that self-care is necessary if you are going to care for others. This maxim is similar to “adjust your oxygen mask, before assisting others”.
As teachers, what methods do we use for self-care? Your choices will of course depend on your own preferences and your constitution. Obviously, the primary focus in self-care is maintaining a balance in our physical, soul, and spiritual health. Steps include nutrition, sleep, inner life, exercise, EMF protection, the arts, and spending time with what enriches your happiness.
The purpose here though is not to suggest any guidance with this very individual path but rather to present more universal activities that can be done as a brief respite during the workday to provide centering and strength. They are organized to reflect qualities of the 7 planets.
To read and/or download the entire article click here: Planets
Eurythmy Soul Exercises
The word of “Halleluiah” was the first word given and carried out in eurythmy with the explanation of - -“To Purify oneself from all that hinders one from beholding the Divine or the Spirit.”
Whether engaging with a single client, a group familiar with eurythmy or anthroposophy, or those not so familiar, the result is a powerful experience. I have found that most often an incredible stillness comes over the space and within the participants, along with a feeling of well-being and quiet.
Stillness and quiet, a feeling of wellness, are essential aspects of self-care.
To read or download the entire article, click here: EurythmySoulExercises.pdf
The Pandemic and the Pedagogical Law
Holzapfel makes clear that the pedagogical law is meant for our dealings in general with our fellow humans, i.e., with all ages, and not just in teacher-student realms. Thus, especially in a time when stress is the common denominator, we can offer others at least a homeopathic dose of the needed responses as Holzapfel describes them.
To read or download the entire article, click here: Pandemic and Pedagogical Law