Acknowledgements Foreword by Peggy O’Mara PART I Introduction Boyhood Today: Going Off-Script What Our Sons Need Most: The Gifts of the Hero’s Heart Mothers and Sons, Together Widening the Circle: Sharing the Practice of Sacred Circling with Our Sons PART II Everything You Need to Know to Set up Your Circle and Keep it Strong Implementing The Hero’s Heart Curriculum PART III Mothers’ Organizational and Intention-Setting Circle: “I Am a Co-Creator” Month 1: “I Have the Heart of a Hero” Month 2: “I Choose Resilience” Month 3: “I Challenge Gender Stereotypes and Discrimination” Month 4: “I Express My Feelings in Healthy Ways” Month 5: “I Am a Heroic Friend” Month 6: “I Think For Myself and Take a Stand for What is Right” Month 7: “I Am a Peacebuilder” Month 8: “I Listen to My Intuition” Month 9: “I Care for My Body, Mind, and Spirit” Month 10: “I Honor My Changing Body” Month 11: “Sex is Sacred” Month 12: “I Am Changing the World” Closing Circle and Rite of Passage Ceremony: “I Am Crossing the Threshold” Parting Words Resources About the Author
A revolutionary twelve-month journey for mothers and sons, ages 9–14 to explore the core values and themes our boys need most in their passage to healthy young manhood. The Hero’s Heart is a groundbreaking new approach to raising healthy, compassionate, and emotionally intact young men. Innovative and timely, this mother-son curriculum is an answer to what our boys need in order to thrive – rather than just survive – in the current culture of traditional masculinity. With genuine encouragement and invaluable insight, Melia inspires mothers to create the intentional communities, character-shaping opportunities, and rite-of-passage experiences that adolescent boys crave. The Hero’s Heart is a gift to anyone involved in raising or nurturing boys. By sharing the Hero’s Heart together, your son will: Develop a strong sense of self and values. Learn to be comfortable with intimacy, authenticity, and vulnerability in relationships with others. Develop a solid working relationship with his own inner guidance system. Be well-prepared to safely navigate peer-pressure, drugs, alcohol and sex.
