A few weeks ago I had a very unique opportunity. I had the chance to walk on fire. (Actually, they were hot coals after the flames had died down.) Fire walks are one of the oldest rituals known to man, yet are rare to find here in the United States. I can’t say it is surprising that fire walking is uncommon, but I do think it is a shame. A fire walk is a personal journey, an opportunity for growth and a chance to celebrate life with new and old friends.
My first fire walk was shared with about fifty chiropractors several years ago on a hot night in Texas. I still remember vividly my girlfriend who was waiting in line in front of me turning to me and saying, “I can’t do this.” It was a friend who I thought (and still think) is capable of anything. But for a brief moment inside her head, she didn’t feel ready. She lost faith and had doubt.
Have you ever arrived at a point in life where you didn’t feel ready? It was your turn, your time, but yet the little voice inside your head said, “No, not yet… I don’t know if I can do this”? Maybe it was a new job, a public speech, divorce or the passing of a loved one. We all face challenges in life, and the choice to run, linger or move through them is ours.
When standing in front of the burning red coals, you have the same three choices. Turn around and run away. Stand there and waffle, “Do I go, or don’t I go?” (I personally think indecision is the most painful option.) Or take a deep breath and move forward though the fire.
At this particular walk, my second fire walk, I knew far fewer people. But there was one participant I watched with a special excitement and anticipation, it was my twelve year old daughter, Brooke. (Yes, I brought my child to have her own dance with fire. In fact, I attended this fire walk just for her.) Before we arrived, we talked about what it would be like. How important it was that she decide fully, by herself, whether or not to walk. And that she should be walking for herself, not for me or anyone else. This, like many adventures in life, was mind over matter. Her mind had to be completely in. People can get burned. However, for every fire where someone is burned, there are many who walk with no physical effect. Some like to say the secret is “mind acting with matter.” Before we even left home, Brooke knew that success of our fire walk wasn’t in whether or not she chose to walk. The win was just being there are experiencing it.
That evening we stood in a circle around the fire. It wasn’t the line formation of my first experience. When you felt the time was right, you stepped out of the circle and walked the coals. I lingered to give Brooke the chance to walk before me if she wished. But she kept giving me the “you go first” eyes. I obliged and walked up to the coals. I hesitated, looked for my path through the coals, thought to myself “cool moss” and then moved quickly across. My mind was thankful for the cold wet grass on the other side, but in reality my feet didn’t need it. No burns, no hot spots. Just a pleasant warmth on a brisk New England night. A few more people danced through the fire after me. Then, when I was least expecting it, Brooke stepped up. Unlike the adults, she didn’t hesitate at all. She just walked up to the coals and kept moving, right through to the other side! It’s funny, as soon as the only child in the group walked, many of the more hesitant adults lined up and took their turns.
What a great lesson for life. We will all have challenges, things we will come up against in life that our minds think that we are not capable of doing. But in truth, we are capable, powerful beings. We just need to move through it. Move forward. Don’t let self-doubt paralyze us. Move through the desire to hesitate, and move through the fear. Once we get to the other side, we realize just how easy it can be.
So easy on that night, that Brooke wanted to do it again. So we did. We danced hand in hand, mother and daughter, through fire. And then she did it one more time alone for good measure!
May you keep moving.
In love and health,
Dr. Stephanie
P.S. This can be dangerous. Don’t try this at home.