ritual

Connecting with My Own Sunshine

Connecting with My Own Sunshine

It’s been a cool and cloudy spring here. While I can usually flow through periods like this, I must confess, it has started to get to me.

And then this morning, with the clouds hanging low again, I remembered my walk out in nature on Monday, on a new trail I discovered. Well, not a new trail, but new to me.

When I was walking along the path I saw these pretty purple wild flowers and picked a few. As I did, my reason for doing so was to put them in a tiny vase on my kitchen windowsill so when I looked at them they would take me right back to that glorious, sunshine-y hour I had on that beautiful trail.

Talking with a friend yesterday I shared how I feel it’s so important to have something tangible we can see or hold to bring us back to those special moments.  Taking pictures does that for me. Writing about my experiences also does this for me. And making SoulCollage® cards and picking one each day as a ritual does this for me too.

And so today, I stood in silence for a few moments staring at these wee little flowers connecting to my own sunshine for the day from the memory of that delightful hour I had in nature.

So sometimes on days like today with no sunshine in the forecast, one has to be a little creative and go out of their way to make their own while holding in their heart that the glorious sun will find it’s way and light up the sky once again.

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Search for Yourself, by Yourself

Search for Yourself, by Yourself

Do not allow others to make your paths for you. It is your road and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you. Accept yourself and your actions. Own your thoughts. Speak up when wrong, and apologize. Know your path at all times. To do this you must know yourself inside and out, accept your gifts as well as your shortcomings, and grow each day with honesty, integrity, compassion, faith, and brotherhood.  ~Terri Jean

I love this quote though may I add, “sisterhood”  to this as well. The quote is from 365 Days of Walking the Red Road – The Native American Path to Leading a Spiritual Life Every Day.

I’ve become increasingly fascinated by the Native American culture. The more I learn and understand, the more my heart breaks for what I feel is such a disservice we did to the Native American’s in our history. How we thought our way was better. How that caused great distress and harm to the Native American’s and to the earth and to our ourselves.

Their connection to the earth, plants, animals,  sky, and the Creator, and the wisdom this offers is something I feel more drawn to everyday of my life. How their connection to all living things is what they instill in their everyday practices and rituals to guide their lives. 

Author Kent Nerburn quotes Ohiyesa, a great Dakota teacher and thinker in his book, Voices in the Stones – Life Lessons from the Native Way, “Each soul must meet the morning sun, the new sweet earth, and the Great Silence alone.”

He goes on to write, “There is no need to justify the purity or sufficiency of your spiritual convictions, no need to defend them through theology or philosophy or argumentation. All that is necessary is that you acknowledge the Great Mystery that is behind everything and present in everything.”

Having read this last night and then the quote from Terri Jean about walking your own road alone this morning, accepting your gifts and your shortcomings, and understanding that the road is yours alone to travel really hit home for me today.

We all take wrong turns in life. I was reminded of that today having just let go of something I thought I wanted to pursue and realizing I wasn’t doing it for the right reasons. I’d lost my way of who I was.

What I’m grateful for is that I found myself back to what matters most to me in a relatively short period of time and didn’t spend too much time traveling down what I feel was the wrong road for me.

It was by being in silence and having an honest conversation with myself that I realized an opportunity I was looking to follow wasn’t coming from my heart. When I took the time to tune back into who I authentically I am it became clear that the intention and committment I made to pursue teaching workshops and SoulCollage® workshops is exactly where I want to be.

While the other road I took for a very short time may have afforded me the opportunity to gain more financially, it didn’t speak to my soul of how I want to continue making a difference where I can.

As I read the teachings of the Dakota teacher in Nerburn’s book I was reminded that being open to the Great Mystery, having faith, and trusting the path ahead when walked with integrity and from the compassion in my heart is the right road for me to walk….

And my spirit soars for having found my way back to myself, by myself.

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Space still available for Talking Sticks Workshop at Joyful Pause Studio, this Saturday, March 4th, 10am-12:30pm.

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On Not Being Left Behind and into Awakening

On Not Being Left Behind and into Awakening

Late yesterday afternoon I saw an article on my friend’s facebook page titled, Humans are Waking Up: For First Time in Recorded History, Schumann Resonance Jumping to 36+

While I don’t completely get all the science or deep thought behind it (even though I consider myself to be a deep thinker!) what I do understand is how I relate it to how I’ve been feeling and so many others I know, too.

And this section of the article helped me too:  Scientist’s report that the Earth’s magnetic field, which can affect the Schumann Resonance, has been slowly weakening for the past 2,000 years and even more so in the last few years. No one really knows why. I was told by a wise old sage from India that the magnetic field of Earth was put in place by the Ancient Ones to block our primordial memories of our true heritage. This was so that souls could learn from the experience of free-will unhampered by memories of the past. He claimed that the magnetic field changes are now loosening those memory blocks and we are raising our consciousness to greater truth. The veil is lifting. The blinders are coming off. If true, it raises even more intriguing questions.”

What makes sense for me in reading this is that humanity is beginning to awaken – to what no longer works – to helping us to see what will work. Though this means we each have to do our own inner work. Something I’ve talked about a few times on my blog.

This sent me down a path last night of wanting to know more. While the speeding up of time feels frightening sometimes, I wanted to know how I could move through this rapid time of change in a way that will help me feel more grounded. I also wanted to know what does this really all mean?

That’s part of the mystery that is being slowly revealed to us – and only if we are willing to open to it. And I can say, even though I feel frightened at times, even anxious, I don’t want to be left behind. 

I also hope you don’t feel I’ve flipped my lid and gone all “woo-woo” on you. It’s always my wish that my blog is a soft place to land for those that aren’t always sure what to make of the world…because it is where I can find myself too if I don’t work to stay centered and grounded.

The more I explored last night, the more I began to feel at ease. I also realized that I’d been so worried about keeping up with the rapid change and worried how I was going to do that, I’d lost sight of how I can more easily move through this time.

Something I’d been preparing for all along – well, at least for the last thirteen years or so as I’ve walked my own spiritual path—moving more and more into who I authentically am— and how I am fascinated by the wisdom that animals hold for us, nature, and opening to our own intuition.

And that was it! I have the tools in place to guide me through these tumultuous times – not that it’s going to always be easy as I ‘m human and fall of the wagon now and then too. But it’s vital and important to keep my practices of ritual in place. Because when I do, I move through my days in a much more peaceful way, which positively affects those around me. And I’m really beginning to understand that my own vibration of peace and continuing the work of healing myself is what this awakening is about, and what we are all being called to do.

I went to sleep last night feeling less anxious than I have in a long time. This morning, I listened to Jocelyn Mercado of Sacred Planet talk about how she believes it’s the indigenous way of being we are moving back to. Something I’ve found a fascination with also the last few years.

It’s a way of living on this earth that does not need to be learned – we already know – we just must remember – and then we must begin to live in this way – one step at a time. But we must begin to move in that direction.

Jocelyn shared ideas of how we can begin to shift toward healing, peace and love talking about shamanic journeying, meditation, and understanding what Mother Earth is trying to convey to us. And I got so excited because I realized again that I’ve been walking this path for quite some time. It was a comfort to feel that I’m moving in the right direction.

One suggestion she had was creating altars, which is something I’ve done for quite some time too. But I loved her idea of bringing in the four elements of earth, wind, fire, and water. So before I moved into my yoga practice this morning, I created this altar:

The candle represents fire, the stones, pine cone, acorn and rocks, earth. The feathers represent sky and the small container of water. What I especially enjoyed was that having this small jar of water as part of your altar is a call to remember to just be in meditation with your altar as a practice. If you return to it after a few days and the water is gone it’s a gentle reminder of remembering to incorporate these moments of sacred and stillness into your everyday life.

I decided to pick at random an animal card to go with my altar for the day. And Swan couldn’t have been more perfect (taken from Animal Spirit Guides):

  • No matter what is happening your life right now, do whatever it takes to keep your faith strong.
  • It’s important to accept your life circumstances and surrender to the will of Spirit, trusting that all will work out.
  • You’ll soon find clarity and purpose in the confusion that you’re experiencing.
  • Focus on the fact that life is a precious and sacred gift, and express your gratitude and appreciation in as many ways as possible.
  • Whatever changes you’re going through, go with the flow.

And lastly from Animal Teachings: Swan is graceful and elegant. Swan brings our intuitive gifts to the surface, balancing insight with fair-mindedness. Swan reveals how to integrate inner beauty with our outward expression, teaching us to be clear and confident about our own personality.

As I moved through my yoga positions, standing in tree pose, my eyes locked on this bunch of pea pods hanging from our locust tree. They looked more alive than I’d ever noticed them before as if they came into a clearer view. I couldn’t help but think this is what we are being called to be – to see more fully and with greater depth the beauty around us.

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