Raising Spirits At The Expo
It’s been almost three months since the release of the final print issue of Spirit of Change, with no certainty of its future form.
But alchemy was afoot at the 15th annual Natural Living Expo held last weekend in Marlborough!
Thousands of attendees filled the expo and workshop halls each day to seek out new healing experiences and products, reconnect with friends and favorite vendors, and enjoy being part of a huge good vibe tribe. Reader after reader visited the Spirit of Change booth to express the very same sentiments: Thank you for publishing so many years, sharing unique information and resources, creating possibilities for thousands of connections between people and healing opportunities to occur, and what will I do now without the print issue?!
Out of this outpouring of heartfelt expression, I felt the unmistakable heart beat of a way forward. So, there is life at the other end of the tunnel! Time will reveal the form.
This is the power of the network in action. Our collective thoughts, energies and efforts create the world around us, but when birds of a feather flock together, anything is possible.
James Carbone at the MMI expo booth.
Case in point is this Expo thank you we received from James Carbone, Board President of Maya Midwifery International, whose booth each year is laden with colorful Guatemalan weavings and beadwork for sale to support ACAM’s midwife center: “I cannot thank you enough for your support of the midwife center. We had our best weekend ever and made some wonderful contacts.”
Since 1998, Spirit of Change has supported this special center in the highlands of Guatemala, envisioned into being by Mam-speaking midwives through the extraordinary dedication of James and the MMI organization he created to support it. The center opened in 2003, and has remained to this day the only medical facility in Guatemala owned and operated by indigenous midwives, generating enormous respect for their work countrywide, and even internationally. Each year expo attendees support this essential clinic with their purchases, their largest sales event of the year.
James Carbone with ACAM midwives in Concepcion, Guatemala, and the new mobile clinic to reach remote highland areas.
On Monday, November 14, ACAM received even more good news when they were awarded $5000 in prize money from the White Ribbon Alliance’s Respect Campaign video competition. Check out the announcement here! Please consider supporting this cause dear to my heart in any way you can.
In-person events bring people — and literally — their energetic sparks together, generating a positive charge and vibration shared by all. This facilitates healing on many levels seen and unseen. The pandemic robbed us of two years of social contact, and in some cases lifelong routines. Don’t wait. Get out to reconnect as soon as it feels safe for you to do so. Sharing our “spark” with others increases good health, both personal and planetary.
I am deeply grateful to my daughter, expo producer Michella Brudner, who has created a remarkable community healing venue enjoyed by thousands of annual returnees and growing. Filled with gratitude and amazement, I enthusiastically look forward to what is to come! Please mark your calendar for next year’s expo November 11-12, 2023, and stay tuned for Spirit of Change updates.
Carol Bedrosian is the publisher of Spirit of Change Magazine. www.spiritofchange.org.
