by Sue Todd
February is such a wonderful month to celebrate……a time to look at love, friendships, relationships, God’s blue print of love for all humanity, how we love each other well, how we love our sisters across the country and around the world, how we fit into the Great Love Story. I wanted to share with you some of the happenings at LHM this past month.
At the beginning of the month we hosted our first Journey of 2012. Every Journey has it’s own beautiful uniqueness, and this one was no exception. For the three days we shared together, I truly felt like we were standing on holy, sacred ground. There was an anticipation in the air as each woman who was there came in a state of readiness……to share deeply, to hope with abandon and to dream wildly. Intelligent, creative women shedding more layers in order to step more fully into their life’s purpose. It was such a privilege to sit in a Circle with these women and be witness to important steps being taken on their journeys. As always, amazing food, creative art, a morning of pampering from our Beauty Babes, and a visit from a deer made the time together so memorable!

On February 14th we hosted a small Valentine’s tea for some of our friends and partners in the downtown Eastside, and then shared together the honor of participating in the annual Women’s Memorial March. It was an important time of remembering, grieving, standing for justice and holding hope for a future where women are treated with dignity and respect in our country, our city and our world. Once again, the eagles visited, soaring high above the intersection of Main and Hastings as women elders drummed and cried out the Women’s Warrior Song. Reports afterward indicated that this years’ March had the highest attendance of any so far, which gives us all great hope for the level of awareness, concern and attention being raised on such an important issue.

In the weeks leading up to the Memorial March, both at the Journey and in the Great Room, we spent hours making Love Notes to a City, little cards of life, hope and encouragement that we spread throughout the March and the community on that day. It’s always wonderful to see the look of the faces of people as they receive an unexpected note, and we all prayed and held great hope that each and every message would land in exactly the right hands!
Toward the end of the month, Jen and I had the opportunity to meet with a group of women from North and West Vancouver. They are a book club who have been meeting together for years under the inspiring guidance of Dorothea Rae. Several months ago they read the book “Half the Sky”, and that was it! They were fired up, incensed, and moved to action to do their part. On May 12 of this year they will be hosting an information and awareness day at Park Royal Mall on the issue of human trafficking, both domestically and internationally. Over 25 organizations in the Lower Mainland will be participating, and Linwood House Ministries has the privilege of being one of those organizations. Please come to show your support, expand your knowledge, and find out how you can do your part to bring justice, hope and love to the women of your city, country and the world.

And now, to leave you with a quote that has been held, meditated on and prayed through in our circles…..as a ministry, as a circle of women, as individuals on personal journeys of healing. May your “now” be full of grace and love.
“Your journey has molded you for the greater good, and it was exactly what it needed to be. Don’t think that you’ve lost time. It took each and every situation you have encountered to bring you to the now.
And now is right on time.”
-Asha Tyson