Coming Home to Myself: Reflections for Nurturing a Woman's Body and Soul

"ISBN-10: 1-57324-566-6
ISBN-13: 978-1-57324-566-1
A small compact readable, easy access to information in a short span of time.
Paperback - excellent quality
Easy read - easy to comprehend
"
~ Written on 2008-05-21

"This product was not what I expected at all. I would like to return it but it is too difficult a process."
~ Written on 2008-03-24

"Too much rehash of the author's former work plus a secondary author added her prose and it was not the quality of the author's so felt mislead and even more disappointed."
~ Written on 2007-12-13

"I purchased a copy of this book for myself, but have given one to my mother and will purchase another for myself. It is a beautiful distillation of the wisdom of Woodman's works that you want to keep close to your heart, like a friend who gently tells you the things you need to hear at the right time. I deeply appreciate the expansion of Woodman's wisdom provided by Jill Mellick. Wonderful nourishing for a woman's soul!"
~ Written on 2007-02-17

"This is a wonderful book on identity. It's a collection of short, easy-to-read chapters for women about "loving their femininity, themselves and each other" and for men "who are coming to grips with the lost feminine in themselves."

One of the most heartening chapters for me is the one on creativity. I'm a writer, so this chapter really spoke to me. This is some of what they say:

"Some people think of creativity as something that artists possess. It might be more helpful to think of it as Jung did, as an instinct. We can bring creativity to almost every life activity. Moreover, we can use certain imaginative forms of creative expression through the arts to explore personal, spiritual, and psychological development."

Herein, by the way, is a major difference between Jung and Freud. Freud thought the highest evolution of humans was toward rational thought. One this was achieved, we would no longer have a need for art, he thought. (Freud was an athiest.) Jung, however, believed in the mysterious possibilities of life, in a spiritual life, and in the importance of art in expressing not only our pain but also our joy. I find Jung's philosophy to be much more to my liking.

Woodman and Mellick also write:

"Creativity is divine:

the virgin soul opens to spirit

and conceives the divine child.

We cannot live without it.

It is the meaning of life,

this creative fire."

In the chapter on creativity, Woodman and Mellick also touch on the difference between "doing" and "being." They say:

"When doing is all we know,

being is just another word

for ceasing to exist.

When being begins to flow

through dance and paint and song,

joy is no longer luxury

but absolute need."

This is a terrific book. I keep it within easy reach at all times. It gives me comfort, revelation, and inspiration. "
~ Written on 2005-08-03