Calling in My Ancestors: A Somatic Experience in Bereavement

By Laurie Lynn Clark

I sit and explore my present relationships with my ancestors who have passed over and into the next world of being. I recognize the warmth of feeling in body and mind when recalling their role in my life.  My memories embrace this warmth of feeling in a shared sense of self and other. In this embrace, a spark of memory recall brings my ancestor back into the living moment. Sustaining the memory in the present moment brings me a sense of comfort.

I regularly explore the energetics involved when recalling a loving memory of my loved one who has left this physical realm. I invite the warmth of feeling when I connect with the beloved ancestor through memory recall.  I observe the sensations in my physical field of awareness as well as in my emotional field. When intentionally connecting with my heartfelt memories, there is a nuanced presence that I feel with my loved one- a presence that exists beyond the veil of physicality. 

I believe we can accompany one another as we bridge the spiritual and physical realms of existence. Personally, it begins with my core belief in acknowledging that their spirit continues to exist.

As long as I am open to receiving the warmth of their essence, I feel their spiritual companionship in my living life. The presence of their essence is engrained in our shared life experiences stored in my memory bank, and is wholly embodied in me.  

Upon these memory recalls, I hold onto the feelings that rise and fall, expand and contract and become magnified with conscious observation.  Observing the sustained physical sensations interoceptively without distraction takes focus, patience and practice. When being present with these sensations, I  surrender into a liminal space of awe as I slip into a nuanced relationship with my loved one. As abstract as this liminal space may seem, the feelings of warmth and comfort exist there within. This liminal abstract space is the place where my ancestors and I feel most at home.

I can’t help but believe … I feel them; therefore, they exist. 

How does this energetic recall of shared memories maintain their continuing presence in my life?  Can we redefine our relationship based on a feeling sense?  How does the pain of their non-physical existence test our need to connect with their non-physical manifestation?  What does this nonphysical relationship look and feel like somatically? What must we do to redefine our relationship from a physical manifestation into a spiritual bond that strengthens our eternal connection to our ancestors? 

This redefinition process of the relationship with our loved ones after they depart from their physical manifestation is a part of the bereavement process. It takes experiencing both worlds and re-establishing core beliefs on death, dying, and eternal life. It catalyses internal processing and a redefinition of our mortality. I feel a sense of liberation when intentionally expanding my understanding of the living presence beyond death’s door. Inevitably, I realize that death mirrors a new beginning. 

The pendulation between head and heart challenges my faith at times. Silencing my inner critic and tendencies to overthink is confronted by confusion. The feeling presence of their love exists and bridges my spiritual connection to them, and all the while, I miss their physical presence. It is a complex dual perspective to uphold. The pain of bereavement resides in being torn away from our loved one’s physical presence. Feeling their presence through memory recall nurtures our safe and calm acceptance of their spiritual existence in the present moment. The communication connection is always accessible should I choose to take the initiative to greet the essence of my ancestors in the present.

The work involved in this transformative relationship guides my core beliefs into a deeper sense of empathy. Empathy is the foothold of my spiritual communication with them. When activating my mind’s eye to call upon an image of my loved one, I am called to prepare and practice on a grounded somatic level.  Finding a sense of deepened presence with my breath and body is a prerequisite when initiating the communication process. The depth of communication depends on my capacity to surrender to the connection without carrying false expectations and without overthinking. When I am in a safe and comfortable space in body, breath, and mind, I feel a freedom to communicate in a heart-centred connection with my ancestor. This is the somatic work involved in continuing my empathetic relationship with my deceased loved ones.   

I reach out to my ancestors for guidance regularly. I connect with the feeling of my ancestor in a comforting transcendental liminal space. It is in this space that I ask for guidance and open myself up to receive messages rooted in wisdom. 

When connecting into my interceptive landscape of the soma - I become a receptor of sensational messages through both body and mind.  Messages are channeled through my internal landscape. All I need to do is to be open imaginatively, curiously, and empathetically while being grounded to receive. When asking for ancestral guidance, the resonance that rises from deep within my subconscious springs forth answers. I believe that when one opens up and lands in the deep subconscious seat of the soul, one may be able to connect with the relayed messages that our ancestors are waiting to share.

About Laurie Lynn Clark

Trauma-informed Somatic Grief Consultant Laurie Lynn Clark, offers bereavement companionship to individuals and groups challenged by a significant loss of a loved one.

Laurie companions with a deepened level of empathetic presence to nurture the collective wisdom and co-intelligent dynamic found in group and community interaction.

Empathy Circles in Nature also play a prominent role in Laurie's therapeutic approach - especially with youth.

Therapeutic interventions include techniques from the practice areas: Somatic experiencing, bereavement circle work, compassionate inquiry, parts work and EMDR intervention, nature connection and integrative sound vibration.

Meet Laurie and learn more about bereavement companionship on The Embody Lab’s Therapist Directory.

If you’re interested in understanding more about how somatic practices can help you, consider working with a Somatic Therapist or Practitioner. The Embody Lab’s Somatic Therapist and Practitioner Directory can help you find the right practitioner to support your journey towards more self-compassion, connection, and authenticity. Explore our directory and find the support you need.