In this episode of Story Medicine, we explore the Haudenosaunee creation story of Sky Woman - a profound teaching about how life emerges not through force or individual power, but through receptivity, community, cooperation, and the willingness to both offer and receive help.

Sky Woman falls from the Sky World, pregnant and carrying seeds as she descends into a world of only water. Birds catch her, Turtle offers his back, and little Muskrat sacrifices everything to bring earth from the depths. Through their combined gifts - and through Sky Woman's receptive wisdom and generative dance - the land itself is created. This is why North America is known as Turtle Island.

This story speaks to anyone who struggles with asking for help, anyone trying to force solutions rather than receive them, anyone who feels they must do everything alone, and anyone who wonders if their small offering matters. It offers medicine for moving from isolation to healthy interdependence, from control to cooperation, and from self-sufficiency to co-creation.

The episode includes the complete story told in full, depth psychology analysis revealing the archetypal patterns and symbolic meaning, and three practical integration exercises to help you embody the medicine.

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Learn more about Joe's therapeutic work: www.joesummerfield.co.uk

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