Quotes

The Invitation

by Oriah Mountain Dreamer



It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.


It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive.


It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shrivelled and closed from fear of further pain.


I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it, or fade it, or fix it.


I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own; if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, remember the limitations of being human.


It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself. If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.


I want to know if you can see Beauty even when it is not pretty every day. And if you can source your own life from its presence.


I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand at the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, 'Yes.'


It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone and do what needs to be done to feed the children.


It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the centre of the fire with me and not shrink back.


It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away.


I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.

 
 “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

from A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles by Marianne Williamson






 “Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.”

 – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe





Testimonials



"I came to counselling this time with the intention of unravelling and better understanding my role in a difficult relationship. I found Steve to be welcoming, supportive and non-judgemental. His ability to really deeply listen and reflect has helped me to find my feet again. After nine weeks I feel more solid, more sure of myself and more able to speak my own truth without fear. Steve has a gentle way of showing an unconditional acceptance that has encouraged me to rediscover my own acceptance of myself. His skill and commitment have also built my trust in the counselling process. Thank you." AP

 





"As you know, I was processing some very difficult news and dealing with a variety of different emotions when we first met. However, I really appreciated the way you let me talk without trying to interrupt or steer our sessions in a certain direction. I felt as if I was in control of the sessions and you were acting as a sounding board for my thoughts.


With your help I have been able to overcome those emotions and get to the point where I now feel ready to continue with my life and start a new chapter." MC


"When I first met Steve, I had come to a difficult cross road in my life, fearful of what decisions lay ahead. Steve quickly built up a trusting rapport with me and patiently helped me to understand, layer-by-layer, what was stopping me from moving forward in my life. As the sessions progressed, Steve adapted his style to meet my growing understanding and provided me with techniques and resources to practice outside the sessions. He compassionately guided the exploration of my feelings and needs until I reached a level of self-awareness where I could choose the right path for me." NS





"Before I started meeting with Steve, I had zero self-worth, crippling anxiety, my relationship was on the rocks and I had spent several years in and out of very dark places, struggling with everyday life. My mindset was that this was who I was, and that the few good days I would have would purely be down to a stroke of luck. I struggled to relax and live a normal life due to anxiety about ‘what ifs’ and struggled to find any positives in anything. I struggled to trust myself in how I would react to certain situations which could set me off; minor issues would feel catastrophic.



Steve made me feel very comfortable and relaxed in our first meeting, and removed any feelings of anxiety I had about meeting with a counsellor. He was very approachable and offered an entirely non-judgemental perspective, and tactfully made me open up to issues I didn’t necessarily know were there. During the course of our sessions, Steve made me believe in myself and understand my own self importance. He gave me skillsets to understand and see different angles and viewpoints in everyday life issues that I struggled with. 



Steve has shown me the light now, and I am confident and happier than I have been for years. I feel that I have closure on many deep lying issues which I wasn’t aware of but were holding me back, and were spiralling out of control. Now Steve and I have worked through this together, I am much happier, settled and look to the future positively." CD







I have been seeing Steve on and off for about a year. He has helped me enormously through a period of great change in my life. 


Steve listens deeply and responds and guides with great skill. He is wholly nonjudgmental, and creates a safe space for discussion about sensitive topics such as sexuality and atypical relationships. 


Steve has helped me move through a highly transitional period. With his guidance, I have been able to more easily process a great deal of intense emotion and complex situations.


I recommend Steve Moore highly. He truly understands the human psyche and uses this skill to unpick complicated and long-standing problems.


KLT





"I just wanted to write to thank you for all your help after [my partner] passed away. I know it’s been a few months since our last session but life has been busy.

I think the best thing I can say is that I’ve started to enjoy life again and that felt like it would never happen (as you know). I still miss [them] and that will never go away, but I accept it now.

I do look at grief as the ball inside the box, it fills the box at first touching all walls (consuming the box). It never disappears but it gets smaller and will touch a side now and again – but I’m able to manage those when they come.

I took so much from the sessions I can’t really explain it all, but I know that after every session I felt lighter. A massive lesson was to not feel guilty about enjoying life. That was a really hard thing to do for me (as you know), but I seem to have got there. The kids are well and we talk about [them] all the time, which is a really healthy way to deal with it." TR

"I arrived at your practice with an unusual problem, but at no point did you make me feel unusual.


You listened to my details of my journey carefully and attentively and showed that I was heard.


You asked the right questions at the right time.


You challenged me on occasion, but not in a way that made me become defensive and closed down.


You were a seasoned, sensitive and expert practitioner and it was in thanks to that that I made a breakthrough that I have wanted desperately for decades. And I'm pleased to say that I have recently had entire mornings and afternoons when the intrusive memories that were troubling me for so long were faded so far into the background as to be, for all practical purposes, absent.


I enjoyed our sessions.


They were a friendly, warm and supportive space.


So I just want now to say an earnest and heartfelt thank you for your expert and warm therapy." NV