Years ago I made this card at an Introduction to SoulCollage® workshop I was facilitating. I wasn’t particularly drawn to any of these images; I had just grabbed them so I could demonstrate to the group how to lay out and glue down a card.

After I’d made it and they’d had their “lesson,” I could viscerally feel in my body the power and importance of this card. But… no matter how many times I journaled with it or set it out on my bureau to assist me through my day, I couldn’t really get a grasp on what this Neter’s meaning for me was.

Then, not too long ago, I heard someone say something and as soon as their words hit my ears, I had a bright image in my mind of THIS card.

That “someone” was Alan Cohen and what he said as part of an online class on Prayer was this: Don’t drop the baby. He was referring to taking tender loving care of our inner little one, our inner child, that part of us who is still so vulnerable.

And the next time I journaled with this Neter, here is what it said:

Monks: We are the ones who are listening, facing forward, learning and absorbing the lessons of mindfulness, the lessons of life. We are, at various times, serious, intense, light-hearted, introspective, laughing.

Our message to you today is this: accept all the many aspects of yourself. You too are learning the lessons of mindfulness, the lessons of life. Here’s the crux of our message: DON’T DROP THE BABY. The “baby” is many things: your tender, compassionate heart, your mindful spirit, your deepest desires, your innermost vulnerable child. So don’t drop any of that! Don’t let go of your most precious Self. It is too easy to give it away to others, to food, to boredom, to distractions. Don’t drop the baby!