Jose AIID LENA STEVENS 99some time, integrating his experience. Somehow he just
knew dogs would not be such a problem anymore.John did not completely overcome his fear of dogs over-
night. His body had built up a habitual fear response to dogs
ever since that early childhood event, so he needed some
time to learn to relax around them again. Nevertheless, the
shamanic journey had torn the heart from his fear. Not only
was John on the road to relief from his fear of dogs, but he
had gained a powerful ally in the Lion. Now he could call
upon the Lion anytime he wanted to, whenever he made
house calls. Somehow with a big lion at his side, even large
dogs paled in comparison.
Exercise #5: Altering the Present from the Past
Follow the simple journey method again and, of course,
drumming is helpful.
Relax and close your eyes. Choose an obstacle or diffi-
culty present in your life. Get in touch with your feelings
about it by noticing where your body reacts when you focus
on it. Spend some time with this.
Imagine your cave entrance and meet your guide there.
Ask their help in recalling the origins of your present diffi-
culty in the past. Let them take you to a locale where you
can witness or reexperience the earlier event.
Deliberately interact with the characters within the situa-
tion as in the story of John and the dogs. You may wish to
offer guidance and advice to the "you" who is having diffi-
culty there. You may wish to consult your guide or power
animal about possible choices. Act as if you are directing a
play. You can rerun the scene with alterations as many times
as you wish. The dialogue between the people can be impor-
tant to reconsider. Remember to keep in touch with the
Exercise #5: The Steps
- Relax and close your eyes.
- Choose an obstacle or difficulty.
- Imagine your cave entrance and meet your guard-
ian spirit. - Journey to the past.
- Reconstruct the past event.
- Return and thank your guide.