Mandala and the Butterfly: Secrets

By Ginnymarie M. Leines and Ruth M. Godfrey

The Mandala and The Butterfly celebrates the power of the human spirit with vivid stories of courage, possibility, and success.  Answer the invitation to participate fully in life’s secret gifts that your dreams offer you.  Real people lead the way in this book of insights and wisdom. “We are the only species in the world with the gift of imagination. It allows us to ponder, predict, and even postpone our destiny. This book, through the sharing of stories, demonstrates the unstoppable strength we all possess when we utilize our imagination to envision and take action in the world ...”  Jennie Antolak President, International Center of Coaching, Learning Journeys, MCC. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Apr 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781663219220

Ginnymarie M. Leines

Ginnymarie Leines Curious, inquisitive, and a seeker of the mysteries and adventures of life, Ginnymarie M. Leines is a Master Certified Coach and Narrative Certified Coach Practitioner from the International Center of Coaching, Learning Journeys. She loves people, listening to their stories, and delighting in their vision and possibility. A businesswoman, entrepreneur, international manufacturer, designer, artist, and educator; she is the mother of three sons and three daughters (in-law), grandmother to eight grandchildren, and lover of Gregory, her soulmate, partner, and husband of fifty years. The following are some of her professional credentials: Bachelor of Science, Language Arts, English, Secondary Education, Journalism, and Communication, Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota. University of Minnesota, Leadership Training Certification, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People & Sales Management Trainer. www.ginnymarieleines.com Ruth Godfrey She is the founder of the International Center of Coaching, Learning Journeys, which she co-owns with her daughter, Jennie Antolak. Exploring the ideas of Mandala and The Butterfly has been a creative structural placeholder for her. The writing experience continually reminded her of the importance of breathing life into dreams. She has three adult children and five precocious grandchildren. Her wish for all readers is to become the soul of their journeys, allowing their dreams to take flight. The following are some of her professional credentials: Master of Science, Adult and Occupational Education, Kansas State University, Bachelor of Science, Recreational Leadership, University of Minnesota, Master Certified Coach, designated by the International coach Federation; Certified Narrative Coach Practitioner. She is the co-author of Delicious Conversations and Coach on the Run 10: A Way of Being.  www.learningjourneys.net

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Mandala and The Butterfl y

SECRETS

Copyright © 2021 Ginnymarie M. Leines & Ruth M. Godfrey.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

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except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect

the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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ISBN: 978-1-6632-1923-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-1922-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021904141

iUniverse rev. date:   08/03/2021

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Artist & Illustrator Ginnymarie M. Leines

You Came to Me

You came to me.

Tiptoeing through my thoughts, my heart, my soul.

Secretly, you tightly held my gifts of hope and possibility.

I didn’t realize the sacredness of what you had.

You were holding what matters.

I rejected you.

I said, I’m not ready.

You ignored my pleas.

You choose

to walk alongside me,

pleading with me to listen.

One day you stopped walking.

You sat down.

You waited for my soul to catch up with me.

I missed you.

It was in this silence I heard your voice.

I began to understand

my dreams are who I am.

My dreams are the life in me.

—Ruth M. Godfrey

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CONTENTS

Foreword Jennie Antolak

Introduction Ginnymarie M. Leines & Ruth M. Godfrey

Chapter 1   When Is the Right Time to Take Flight?

Mandala and The Butterfly

Shoulda … Woulda … Coulda …

How I Became a Mother in Thirty Seconds

My Near-Death Experience

My Daughter’s Rare Genetic Condition

Chapter 2   What Happens When a Dream Catches You?

Mandala and The Butterfly

A Dream Caught Me

I Got Down on My Knees

Their Pain Became My Pain

The Dark Side of My Teenage Feelings

Alone in Open Waters

The X Games Called Me

Chapter 3   What Gets in the Way of Soaring High?

Mandala and The Butterfly

My Box of Stories

My Shocking Diagnosis

Making the Goal

My Baby Wouldn’t Stop Crying

On the Other Side of My Trauma

Chapter 4   What If Getting Lost Is Good?

Mandala and The Butterfly

My Space in Between

I Took a Perilous Risk

The Scream I Heard

Chapter 5   Who Is Most Likely to Soar with You?

Mandala and The Butterfly

Who Gave Me This Gift?

My Unusual Partner

My Tipping Point

Chapter 6   What about the Unexpected?

Mandala and The Butterfly

My Uninvited Disease

Waking Up My Consciousness

I Was There in 1929

Chapter 7   Who Are the Bullies Blocking Your Flight?

Mandala and The Butterfly

My Father’s Stand

Meeting My Bullies Head-On

Talking Back to My Inner Critic

I Faced Mount Everest

Chapter 8   What If Your Landing Is Not on Your Radar?

Mandala and The Butterfly

I Lost My Friend

My Bipolar Bear

I Healed Within

Chapter 9   What If Becoming Is the Soul of Your Journey?

Mandala and The Butterfly

Dreams Become YOU

My Conflict with Inner and Outer Beauty

My Soul Is the Mountain

How My Life Is a Miracle

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

FOREWORD

This is a book about the power of the human spirit and how we can handle any fallout when we focus on affecting our fate. As president of Learning Journeys, the International Center of Coaching, a designated ICF master certified coach and facilitator for coach training, I experience this phenomenon repeatedly with my clients and students. For over twenty years, I’ve had the opportunity to assist people in imagining and manifesting a life beyond their current situation. I’m still in awe every time I get to witness someone who musters up the strength to punch his or her circumstances in the face instead of surrendering to them. This is unbelievably hard work, and none of us are immune to the internal battles we experience while determining how to respond to our present status. In fact, there are many days when I and or my students fail to source our skills as we face our personal dilemmas. It is on these days that I pull out a piece I wrote awhile back. I read it out loud to my class to remind them, and myself, that if we remain fixed on the promise of a better future, we can endure the challenges of today.

The following is what I read:

A story is told of a caterpillar named Yellow who is trying to find out what she should be doing with her life. In her wanderings, she discovers another caterpillar seemingly caught in some gauzy, hairy filament. Concerned, she asks if she can help. He explains that this is all part of the process of becoming a butterfly. When she hears the word butterfly, her whole insides leap. But, what is a butterfly? The cocooned caterpillar explains, It’s what you are meant to become. Yellow is intrigued but a bit defiant. How can I believe there’s a butterfly inside you or me when all I see is a fuzzy worm? On further reflection, she pensively asks, How does one become a butterfly? And the answer? You must want to fly so much that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar.¹

Every now and again, we find ourselves on a journey of transformation. When we are called to our adventure, we often resist at first. We do not have a clear idea of where we are headed and if our there will truly be better than our here. If we do not answer our call, we naturally focus on and fear what will end instead of shifting our perspectives to what will never get to begin.

The book Hope for the Flowers isn’t just a bedtime story. Nature mimics real life. For a caterpillar to change into a butterfly, the shift is challenging and doesn’t take form right away. The caterpillar’s transformation begins with the appearance of scientists have termed imaginal cells.

At first, the imaginals are destroyed by the intelligence of the caterpillar organism. The imaginals keep coming back and eventually form clusters of cells to strengthen their domain. Soon the clusters form bonds where they pass genetic type information to one another. The clusters resonate at a higher frequency, beginning to change the physical makeup of the caterpillar. Eventually, the long string of clumping and clustering imaginal cells switches gears from being a group of likeminded cells into the programming cells of the butterfly. They literally reach a critical mass of influence where the caterpillar’s destiny is altered to become a butterfly.

Researchers have no idea where these cells come from or why they appear. They are called imaginals because scientists hypothesize their purpose is to imagine something incredible is about to happen. We need to recognize when our inner resistance is trying to push away our dreams of an incredible future. Then we need to find ways to protect this image as we collect proof that our efforts are worthwhile. This will allow us to achieve our own critical mass and ultimately experience our awaited transformation.

We are the only species in the world with the gift of imagination. It allows us to ponder, predict, and even postpone our destinies. This book, through the sharing of stories, demonstrates the unstoppable strength we all possess when we utilize our imagination to envision and take action in the world we desire but doesn’t quite yet exist.

—Jennie M. Antolak

INTRODUCTION

All people have dreams waiting to be nurtured. Sometimes, they fear acknowledging them.

To find happiness in life, you must leave your comfort zone to seek the unknowns of your future. The key to