Natural Passages Natural Passages Newsletter

APRIL 2008

In this newsletter, we will review the four principles of the Natural passages program. These four principles of living a present-centered existence were created after eight years of research and development. I was searching for cross-cultural principles that would enable men to fully live their lives in a very difficult and chaotic world, regardless of where they came from, what color they are, or who they are. As such, I was able to bring my own native American heritage and combine it with Celtic, African, Asian, and Caucasian ways of being in the world. Since then, we have managed to be a brotherhood of men from many walks of life, many persuasions, and many ethnicities, all finding our commonality of being men in this world.

I hope you enjoy the newsletter. Please forward it to others that might find it of interest.

Bountiful blessings

Herb Stevenson
One White Horse Standing


Four Principles of
Present-Centered Living

The Natural Passages program is based on four present-centered principles, which can translate easily into four principles of living. The four principles are:

Centered Presence: Show up and be present without preconceived notions, while having the Ability to Take Action and Enforce Boundaries.

Clarity in Thought & Action: The Ability to Assess, Analyze and Contain, while saying what is so when it is so, without blame or judgment.

Consistency in Head and heart: The Ability to Connect and Feel, while paying attention to what has heart and meaning.

Supporting the Whole: The Ability to Initiate, Support and Create Order while being open to outcome.

Each of the principles are paradoxical in that the actual practice is not consistent with day to day behavior. For example, Centered Presence: Show up and be present without preconceived notions, while having the Ability to Take Action and Enforce Boundaries is the first principle. Typically, we are taught to set boundaries and take action, but not coupled necessarily with being fully present without preconceived notions. The typical day to day situation for men is to determine what we want (goals), how we will get it (options and obstacles) and then take action and set boundaries around those goals. However, it takes a hell of a lot more courage to maintain a centered presence than to bull our way through life.

The same applies to the second principle, Clarity in Thought & Action: The Ability to Assess, Analyze and Contain, while saying what is so when it is so, without blame or judgment. We are more than capable of assessing, analyzing, and containing (conceptualizing) every situation or problem we face, however it is usually conveyed in ways that support our personal goals and/or conclusions of what is best for our self. A more difficult and in the moment process is to convey our findings and thoughts in descriptive terms that do not convey blame or judgment. As a result, if we combine the two parts into the Ability to Assess, Analyze and Contain, while saying what is so when it is so, without blame or judgment, it is likely that we would enable more dialogue and better solutions to evolve at home, with family, and at work. In doing so we garner more respect.

The third principle is Consistency in Head and heart: The Ability to Connect and Feel, while paying attention to what has heart and meaning. Often, men connect and feel internally with the satisfaction of their work, and, occasionally, with their family. This is because most of us have been taught that vulnerability is not a virtue. Opening our heart can be deadly at worst and painful at best except in those rare moments. Hence, in terms of these four principles, to connect with our head and heart, we must invoke both principles 1 and 2 at the same time so that we are fully present and therefore able to determine how intimate we wish to become. Intimacy is what most people confuse with vulnerability when in practice, it is the combination of presence with a desired level of vulnerability that we become intimate. Therefore, to shift our focus from our head only and require that our heart and head must be congruent, shifts the experience to one where we can personally connect with others in a strong and fully present manner. In most cases, it is what people term as presence.

The fourth principle is Supporting the Whole: The Ability to Initiate, Support and Create Order, while being open to outcome. Clearly, this principle is closely aligned with showing up and being present without preconceived notions. Moreover, it is indicative of the ability to create a vision of a possible future and allow those around us the capacity to influence, shape and contribute to whatever we are leading. As such our role becomes that of supporting the whole by providing wisdom and insights to the process without managing every benign detail. As a father, a manager, a leader, in action, these four principles permeate and sustain the emotional intelligence required to establish the credibility, maturity, and capacity to garner respect and followership.

You might take some time to think about whether you practice all four of these principles in your life as you are presently living it. If not, consider the richness that might come from shifting your practices.

Upcoming Programs,
Workshops and Retreats

Discovering Our Way:
Natural Leadership Retreat

Blacktail Ranch in Wolf Creek, Montana
August 9-15, 2008

Join us in big sky Montana for a lived experience in Natural Leadership where you will identify, clarify and claim your natural ability to lead. We will leave life and work’s familiar routine, complexity and technology to retreat into the clear open space of the natural world and the rich interior of our inner world. Take the lead for an unforgettable experience in which you will create sustainable leadership and life changes.

Find out more...

Natural Passages
The Hidden Path of Male Maturity

Novelty, Ohio
Weekend Introduction — May 1-4, 2008
Natural Passages is a program that enables the core integrity of the man to surface. It is designed to awaken, develop, and nurture the essence and fullness of being a man in today’s world.

Find out more...

The Hero’s Journey: A Look at Our Shadow Sides

Novelty, Ohio
May 8-11, 2008

The hero’s journey workshop is a four day adventure into a self examination of shadow behavior that prevents the mature man within you from fully showing up in day-to-day life.

Find out more...

MoMen Return

Novelty, Ohio
July 12-15, 2008

The MoMen Return weekend is a return to where we started. It is an exploration into the four principles of presence. The focus is to delve deeply into the relational next steps of the four chambered heart, the four phantoms of fear and the resulting shadow behavior. Dynamic exercises will be provided to support an inward journey and then the opportunity to share these private stories with each other.

Sign up before May 1, 2008 for a $100 discount per person!

Find out more...

MoMen Return Extended

July 15-18, 2008

MoMen Return Extended is a natural bridge of three additional days to deepen the work. Those staying will come together to complete further exercises and each per will be provided the opportunity for extended personal time with Herb or Will.

Find out more...

Fathers & Sons

Novelty, Ohio
August 6-9, 2008

The Fathers & Sons weekend workshop is an exploration into the relationship between Fathers & Sons. The focus is to delve deeply into the relational aspects by revealing our personal stories to each other. Dynamic exercises will be provided to support an inward journey and then the opportunity to share these private stories with each other.

Sign up before June 1, 2008 for a $100 discount per person!

Find out more...

Bear Medicine - Horse Spirit Retreat

Black Tail Ranch in Wolf Creek, Montana
2008 dates to be announced

Bear Medicine has been used for thousands of years to provide insight into the human condition awakening wisdom and the power of the unconscious. Bear medicine can teach us to go deep within surrendering to our primal instincts, where we become still within our selves. Bear medicine awakens the inner soul open and opens us to the depth and breadth of life.

Horse Spirit inspires our dreams, awakens passion, carries us far and fast, and brings us close to our instinctual and authentic nature. Horse enables us to move beyond our limitations and run freely. A Native American legend tells us that the horse is a gift from eagle making the difference between a prosperous life and a struggle simply for survival.

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Norwegian Program

Luster in Sogn, Norway
September 15-19, 2008

This is a five-day experience that develops into the four laws of change applied through exploring the archetypal energies of the deep masculine, deep wisdom, deep feminine, and deep caring.

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Intimacy: The Road to Wholeness

Novelty, Ohio
October 2-5, 2008

Intimacy for men is often confusing and bewildering. If we listen to the general world, women believe that it is merely a case of our being more vulnerable, whereas men would suggest that it involves sexual closeness. In reality, intimacy for men is the ability to balance presence with vulnerability. Too much presence leads to a stoic, mechanical existence with little real relationship with others. Too much vulnerability leads to a sense of over-exposure, embarrassment, and possibly humiliation.

Sign up before July 1, 2008 for a $100 discount per person!

Find out more...