Growth, a Journey

DP Photo Challenge – Growth, link here

 

Reflecting all that is around it, a drop forms, a nourishing drip of melted snow. The branch experiences stillness, a quiet presence of possibility. The tree readies herself for the coming season.

 

Leaves sprout, holding and protecting the new born bud.

 

 

How did they get there? Did the tree have to run out somewhere and get it? No, it has been within the tree all along. The Truth is already inside us.

We just be, as we watch our lives flower and unfold.

 

 

The bud grows, still asleep, dreaming of her awakening.

 

 

 

 

 

She begins her unfolding, surrounded by her beloved sisters. Energy from deep in the soil nurtures them, as does the rain from the clouds.

She blooms, her sisters still dreaming of their own rites of passage. She experiences the sun, the dew and her community. She is fully present with being alive.

 

 

 

A snow storm, a late freeze brings danger to our bloom and sister buds, as well as needed moisture for the tree. I imagine the tree smiling sadly, with tenderness and compassion for its delicate flower. Divine Love smiling upon Her child.

The flower has no fear. She is present with what is. None of the others will experience this unique moment as she does.

 

The ice begins to thaw. This mirror is in the prime of its own short existence as a drop, holding the Light just before falling to the ground.

 

 

This leaf has made it through, holding for a moment the experience of wetness and warm sun.

 

The sisters are opening, feeling the same warm sun and wet droplets. New life abounds.

 

 

 

New buds appear

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And bloom.

 

Fully awake in this stage of their growth. The fragrance is subtle, sweet, intoxicating.

 

 

Experiencing waiting, being in the moment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The bees arrive

Being bees

 

A baby apple appears, a sister not far behind. A new chapter for this once closed up bud.

The harsh weather is not over…

Hail storms and whirling winds …..

 

She has experienced much so far, this little apple. Adversity has marked her, making her stronger whilst giving her character. She glows as she creates her seeds deep inside.

The Universe will provide us with many triggers, or opportunities to help us learn what we came here to experience. To help us grow.

Without loss, how would we know what true living is? Without sadness, would we know happiness? Without shadow, light? Perhaps it is within the contrasts that we learn the most here on this planet. In experiencing duality, we learn to grow beyond it, or awaken from it into Oneness and Love.

She is not embarrassed by her flaws, and fears not ridicule. She is part of the landscape, just as she is.

She is an elder now, her life complete. With my hand, I touch my friend gently. She steps onto my palm. She has given herself to me. We have been in relationship, as I have ducked beneath her on my walk along the path each day, noticing and loving her. I thank her reverently, and bite into her juicy flesh. Tart and sweet. I feel her life, her stages of growth within me as her energy fills my belly. I am completely mindful of each mouthful, how it tastes and feels. I eat three quarters, along with two seeds, which contain cyanide, an anti- cancer element in small doses. I can taste it, the flavor of almond. I take the rest to the horses. They will enjoy little morsels of apple. Maybe they will poop out the seeds and plant another tree. That is how most of the apple trees here began.

Though the apple’s life is complete, for the tree it has only been a season. Life experiencing life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“May the seeds of pure understanding come into full bloom within your being.”            Mooji

 

 

Wonders of Imagination and Detail

When I ponder the topic of this week’s photo challenge, Details, my first image is mouse. I don’t have a picture of one, but you all know what they look like. If you can imagine what it might be like to be one, it’s easy to be in touch with the details of your life.

Sometimes I get too dreamy in my imagination, neglecting important details. On the other side of that coin, I can get way too stuck in details and lose sight of wonder and inspiration. Sometimes, I find myself chewing the weight of every detail to bits, long after I should have spit it out or let it go. I don’t want to be picayune, but to be mindful of both imagination and detail. We can’t be overwhelmed by the maze of this world, in all its weirdness, but must follow our own unique path.

Hawk vision and mouse vision. The big picture, combined with attention to detail. However, hawk eats mouse, so we must be cognizant, somewhat, of a balance there, and notice where we are. When we get too focused, we may miss other opportunities. Not focused enough, we miss opportunities to manifest our dreams.

Dream the idea, feel it already manifested in your heart, see it through visioning, then dive into the action of details that bring it to fruition.

Hummingbirds spark details and imagination. Since they can fly backward, forward, sideways and also hover, they remind me of being in the now. I can see the mystery of cause and effect through their wings, which can move in a figure 8 movement, portraying infinity. The past and future are now. Cause and effect are now. The hummers are so quick. They seem to move from one reality to another as they spiral up into the air together and zoom down. Their dance and play remind us to aspire to a joyful vibration of gratitude, and to enjoy the sweet, rich nectar of our beings. They can be aggressive and protective, but even when they fight, no one seems to get hurt.

It seems impossible to fly as they do. We find it is possible to accomplish the seemingly impossible, as we grow and learn to fly, merging imagination with attention to detail.

They need 50 – 60 meals a day, yet can fly 2500 miles during migration. Amazing little creatures.

Their symbiotic relationship with flowers, reminds us we can have a symbiotic relationship between hawk vision and mouse vision.

“There are always many realities. The one we experience is the one we transmit from inside of us for our own experiences here.” Lisa Brown

Your dreamer’s eyes

Behind armor and scales,

What lesson do you bring us from deep within the imagination?

Lizard encourages us to pay attention to the symbols and recurring patterns in our dreams. Are we lacking in dreams for the future? Imagination is the door to all new ideas and creations. It gives us sight into new dimensions of awareness. I may be aware of being here on our mountain, and even of being one with it, but I am also a city, a country, the planet, many galaxies.

Those are some fingernails!

The dream is born in seeds of imagination

There is unique individuality in the detail of each seed within the whole.

Seeds in the comfort of the Loving and Spiritual Home.

 

 

We learn of Light, as we absorb the blueness of our atmosphere,

 

and Shadow, as we take in the void, the Feminine.

Each unique seed holds the potential of the future. Where will you fly? One has to leave the whole to become form. We forget for a moment because life seems so foreign.

We  re-learn we are part of the collective. We are all One. Then we break off into our own form, and have to remember it all again.

“Whew! Thank you, friend” she says.  “You have lightened my fall. I would have hit the ground. Please hold me as I remember who I am and why I am here – until a breeze takes me on my journey to find the best soil for my growth. I will sail just like a dream.”

 

 

Sometimes details blend together to create something new. The big picture blends with the minute. Just being their own unique selves, these drops express an authenticity all their own. Everything is within them.

 

 

As several details blend, the whole emerges.

Walking on water as if on skis, the water strider rests, gazing at his reflection, or is it a shadow?

Is he floating on the sky? He reminds me that I am supported by Spirit, all the time no matter where I am.

Intricate and unique: A portrait in detail.

Alignment with love and peace, magic and beauty, bliss and abundance, Light and purity.

Dreams manifesting into detail

Behind feathered Light, he watches, waiting for his beloved to feed. A valiant, courageous knight.

 

 

Looking back tentatively, a dream horse catches my eye, beckoning me to hop upon her back of thick pink and green fur. Ok, so it’s a baby oak leaf in the rain. Dreams begin in the imagination before details emerge.

 

 

 

 

An elegant gown to wear for gathering food. The thistle and the butterfly dance. One pollinating,

one receiving the gift of nourishment.

It’s a sweet relationship – just one detail of this beautiful life.

 

 

 

Point by point, detail by detail, we split hairs as we go, figuring it all out. A magnetic attraction, drop to drop to drop, until the forms become One, ready to venture forth and spread their love upon the soil.

 

 

Though divided, we soon remember, and come back together.

Such loving attention to detail, like rivers or an angel in our midst

Magpie feathers are iridescent in the sun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This baby’s feathers are still white. They still live in a black and white world, colors yet to be explored.

 

More details of wonder and discovery

A mandala surrounded in yellow; inner circles ever closer toward the center of our hearts. We are sacred geometry.

A  mandala of joy, or opening, or doing this right now. Endless expansiveness.

Prayers and blessings go out all over the world, all of the time. Imagination and detail made manifest.

Folded Hands

The energy is Love, Grace and Peace. Take it in and send it back out. In Unity, we thrive.

Curves Around Here and There

Well now, I couldn’t not do the  WordPress Photo Challenge, Curves! Pretty much everything in Nature has them.

Our life path, with all its twists, turns and tangents was my first thought.  I know mine has been anything but straight, as I go off trail often. Some people sprint up the mountain in a determined, goal oriented fashion.  I have always enjoyed a more circuitous route, meandering around the hills, trusting I will return to the main road when the time is right, and to veer off once again.

How about you? Do you go for the top right away, to see the broader view early? Or do you wander from the beaten track? Do you find joy in the not knowing what comes next? Either way, I wish you joy in your journey. In everything is love, learning and growth.

If I am too short sighted on my way, I miss the wildness, the spontaneity and the adventure of it all.

So fortunate am I to feel beauty so deeply. I am grateful.

To be so completely entertained by simple things:

The new growth on the tips of pine trees in the spring.

A drop of water held by baby oak leaves unfolding.

To feel the power.

To laugh at the silly shenanigans of a sapsucker wrapping himself around the hummingbird feeder for an easy meal.

To stand in awe before the curve of a hummingbird’s dancing flight.

To notice lessons Nature has to share. To look in the mirror She offers.

This curved leaf, holding a drop of water as a mother holds a child reminds me to nurture my inner little one.

Looking at this little beetle, and the black spots on blue, I am reminded of some probable judgements and negativity I still may hold. As I project my inner uncertainty onto him, he transfers that energy into the Earth, where it is transmuted into positive, useful vibrations for a Higher Good. He needs those beautiful spots to be attractive to a mate, and to blend in to his wooded habitat. The mirror is always there for us to look deeply into our hearts to see what still needs healing, and to notice our growth along the way.

Lizards don’t resist the rock, or argue with the reality of it. He surrenders to its shape, using its solidity, his tail curling along its surface.

Water, the life blood of the Mother flows around, over or through objects it comes upon, shaping the land with patient strength, giving sustenance to all.

The gift of water from Father Sky

nourishes all it falls upon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some might see this tree as linear, but seen as a reflection, the perspective changes. Something seemingly tight lets go in the ripple of a dream.

In a recent post, Michael at Embracing Forever says

“I know uncertainty is like a little film of color that floats on a deep and abiding knowing.  It seems very massive, but it is more like a mirage.”

He continues with, “I’m thirsty because I’m walking through a desert mirage and I believe what I see sometimes, but it is the thirst that will lead me to water.”

We never know what exquisite surprise awaits us around the next turn.

These are the seed heads of the lovely Pasque flowers I have enjoyed for the past 3 months. They are ready to plant their seeds, and say goodbye until Easter next year.

I love their naturally wavy hair!

As we have our summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere, these flowers are going into hibernation like our winter, as are our friends in the southern hemisphere. It reminds me of the Yin and Yang symbol, and the small circles in the larger parts of the design. Everything is everywhere. This brings me faith and a certainty of the Divine, and a love for All That Is.

Happy Solstice everyone. See you around the next bend in the byway.

 

 

3 – Day Quote Challenge – Day 1

“Walking mindfully on the Earth can restore our peace and harmony, and it can restore the Earth’s peace and harmony as well.”        Thich Nhat Hanh

 

Eliza has invited me to participate in a 3 – day quote challenge, which I have gladly, though belatedly accepted.  In turn, I invite Sandy, from Guide to Awakening Your Inner Self , Debbie, from Spaceship China and Cate, from Local Travel Tips.  There is no pressure to accept.

Participant requests: Post an inspirational, uplifting quote for three consecutive days and invite three other bloggers to join you.

Anyone who would like to participate, please share your favorite quotes with us!

 

 

Along My Path

 

This blog post is written in response to the Time machine challenge by Linda, over at litebeing chronicles.

Directions: Pick a time in your life that was critical to your development. You can go back or forwards in time. It can be real or imagined. After all, it is real if you imagine it!      Choose an idea or a skill or a value you hold dear in the present and infuse it into that time period.   Share your story of what happens to positively impact your life.

 

Looking back on times in my life that were critical to my development, I can’t narrow them down to one, not even three. My life has been so full of critical moments, I will highlight the most salient.

First of all though, it is part of my belief system that we choose our experiences before we come into this life. I believe in reincarnation, the purpose being Soul growth. I feel it is a privilege to have a body here on this beautiful planet/school.  I can just imagine being on the other side, setting it all up with all my favorite souls, dreaming up life experiences to provide the most growth. “Ok, you be my mom since you need the experience of cancer and leaving your beloved children with an alcoholic father, and since I need the experience of a loving mother in my formative years and the loss of her right before adolescence,”etc. “And you be my very eccentric alcoholic, rage-oholic poet father because…”and so forth.

Going along my timeline, the first event was the onset of asthma at age 2 months. Lungs relate to grief. I was set up to have lung ailments, as my mother’s mom died when I was in the womb, so I absorbed grief through the umbilical cord, right off the bat. More on this later.

The next major event was the illness and death of my beautiful mother. It was in the mid- 60s, when cancer (said in a whisper) was not part of anyone’s conversation. Death was also a hushed word, said only behind closed doors. She loved me. She wanted to protect my innocence until the last minute, so she chose to keep me in the dark. She swore all her friends to secrecy, and my naiveté defended my heart. However, I heard a voice lovingly preparing me for the eventuality. I don’t know if it was the tree under which I often sat, an angel, Spirit, a guide, or my Higher Self, but I was forewarned.  I respect her choice in not telling me, but it taught me that there must be a better way.  I grew up the day she died. I was 12.

Though I had always been a nature loving, spiritual child, having grown up and confirmed (one month before my mother’s death) in the Episcopal Church, I stepped onto a conscious spiritual path soon after she left. I already had a deep understanding that God and Love were synonymous, and that Jesus taught this truth. I began searching for something else, something to ease my pain. There had to be more. I got into the metaphysical world, and my older cousin took me to meetings at the Theosophical Society.  I read everything I could get my hands on. It resonated with me as if I already knew.

Since few people my age had the “spiritual knowledge” I had, or experience with death, I became the go to person for my peers to talk about these things. Adults told me I was “wise beyond my years,” and I liked that. My little ego liked that.

As time went on, and adolescence set in, I lost my self- esteem. I didn’t know how I was supposed to be. I had no role model for “normal.” I watched others to get clues about how I was supposed to act. I felt out of place and inappropriate. It kept me frozen and painfully shy, though I did have good friends. I became obsessed with what people thought of me, which of course I now know is none of my business. I tried to appear spiritual, as that had gotten me acknowledgement before, but my inner critic started hounding me. There was an inner war going on inside between all the different parts of me, and I fell deeper and deeper into depression. This, of course, exacerbated my asthma, and I became quite ill. I couldn’t live with my alcoholic father, so I moved from family to family (mostly friends of my mom), then to a favorite cousin who, though she tried very hard, was going through too much herself to be able to care for me, so I went to a very strict girls’ boarding school. I was so unhappy. I remember crying under a beautiful pine tree every day.

From Pinterest

It was Nature that saved me. Nature, music and horses. My cousin was diligent in trying to get those needs met for me, for which I am eternally grateful. Thank you, Jessica.

At 17, the day after I graduated from high school, I left Maryland, and went to New Mexico to be part of a metaphysical center there. There were only a very few of those in 1971. The new age movement hadn’t quite become popular yet. One of their teachings was self- forgiveness. I didn’t really understand it then.

I took some classes at the college, met some fun people, tried a lot of different drugs, and pretty much escaped from my inner pain.

I moved to a small mountain town. Several other like- minded people also happened into town at about the same time. We formed a community, and all did our hippie years there, adding hallucinogens to our spirituality (we are all still good friends).  I went through several relationships during those years, including a marriage and divorce. My dear father came to my wedding, and died 3 months later. I was 22.

Another dive into depression.

My lung disease took a big toll, as I was in complete denial about it, and I found myself in the ER about once a month. Jessica, who had since moved to Albuquerque, had had about enough of that, so the last time I was in intensive care, she rescued me, and set me up with every naturopathic practitioner she knew.  So I moved to her home in Albuquerque. I ended up working with a massage therapist, a psychotherapist and a nutritionist/chiropractor. I was on the strongest doses of prednisone and other lung drugs legally possible, and had been told by the medical profession that I had about 2 years to live.  I took that seriously, and changed my lifestyle completely. I was 26.

My learning curve escalated, and I found myself in a serious healing crisis, which put me in bed for over a year. The process of getting well actually made me a lot sicker for a while. At one point, I did die and had a life changing near death experience. A story for another time.

 

From Deviantart.com

 

Walter, my psychotherapist was a psychosynthesis practitioner. He got me in touch with my inner parts, such as the inner critic, the scared and sad little girl, the  wise one, my Higher Self, the witness, my angry adolescent and others (sub-personalities). He helped me to make friends with them, and get their needs met in healthy ways. He did some past life regressions as well. He taught me that being “spiritual” was all well and good, but that the ego work must be done too. There has to be a balance. So I did a lot of intensive ego work. I can’t even tell you how freeing that was and is. Some of the work we did involved looking through an imaginary window at the little girl that was me.  Through the window, I imagined me as an adult going to her, comforting her, letting her know that I loved her and was there for her. It took a little bit to gain her trust, but we formed a relationship that is healing to this day. Linda mentioned infusing a skill onto a situation for this blog challenge. This was one of those. It worked well. Walter also taught me how to embrace my shadow, make friends with it, and work through deep issues. This freed me to be more authentically in my true Spiritual Self. I had jumped into “higher consciousness” as an intellectual defense to avoid my original pain. If we don’t do the original pain work, it has a tendency to keep pulling us back.

Learning spiritual concepts before I did my childhood pain work helped me initially, but also helped instigate my depression later. The harder I tried to be in my airy fairy, spiritual happy place, the deeper my separation became.

Walter taught me I was not a victim of circumstance, and that I create my own reality. He also taught me how to live in the big picture, in the belief that everything is unfolding in a perfect way. I learned not to fight reality. It is what it is. Acceptance. When fighting reality, one never wins. Having no expectations really helps, as does “being with” whatever the experience is, in a conscious and mindful way.

I went on to become a massage therapist, which was a wonderful profession, but I realized after about 5 years that my true calling was psychotherapy. So, I went back to school, got my BA in psychology, then a Masters in Spiritual Psychology and another in Counseling Services. I also took a two year certification in Psychosynthesis because it had helped me so much. I took a course in Shamanism too. These studies culminated in a 35 year career that has been amazingly fantastic. I have such gratitude.

by Susan Boulet

When I was 32, my beloved only brother got an AIDS related brain disease. I moved to San Francisco to take care of him through his illness and death. Though excruciatingly sad, I learned more about death, dying, illness and bereavement. It catapulted me into the AIDS world when it was a new epidemic. It was 1986.

After my brother’s death, I went into another deep depression and lung sickness. I came close to death on several more occasions. After I got well, my profession took a huge leap up, and I became the Director of the Emotional Support Program for an AIDS organization. I was there for 10 years.

I had a couple other agency jobs over the years, but maintained a private practice the whole time. I was the clinical supervisor for a children’s outpatient program, so one opportunity I had was to help dying parents tell their children, and help them to cope as a family through it. It was gratifying to help mitigate the suffering of children after difficult situations. My own death and dying experiences helped me be good at this.  Though I am retired from agency work now, I still have a private practice where I do SpiritWalks. I absolutely love it.

I am now married to a wonderful man. We built a house in northern NM in the mountains, and I am extremely happy.  The Dalai Lama said that happiness is the purpose of life. That feels right.

Nature has remained my deepest connection to Spirit. No matter what, I have always made a point to live in a beautiful, natural setting. Nature has always saved me. I also have close friends, and my beloved Tibetan Tai Chi practice that feeds me on many levels.

It’s interesting that my astrology chart speaks mostly of death/rebirth/transformation being my path in many ways. I do feel comfortable going to those deep places with myself and others. My life experience has given me this, and I am grateful.

This being a time machine challenge, I find the concept of time kind of strange. It just isn’t real. If time is an illusion, I like to think that maybe healing migrates to all time lines, so healing childhood wounds actually heals the child back then. Maybe she felt the certainty that her Higher Self or the adult me was with her. I hope so. I believe the more we do our healing work, it echoes all over the world.  The vibration of healing and Love attract “like” energy, and it grows and GROWS, and ripples, like water, through time. It is never too late to have a happy childhood. I am grateful for the angst that shaped me, developed my compassion, and evoked my Loving.

Because I love my life, I don’t regret anything that happened. I wouldn’t be the me I am now without having gone through all I did. Everything led me right here, right now. I owe my profession, my friendships, my spirituality and my happiness to what I learned throughout the years. Having gone through grief, I gained skills for my profession as well as the knowledge that I can get through any loss, even though it still feels impossible each time.

Compassionate self- forgiveness is one of those skills I infuse onto any situation that disturbs my peace. I learned about forgiving myself for any judgement whatsoever in my Spiritual Psychology program. Any time I feel hooked by something, I apply love to the places that hurt. Any time I have a judgement about myself or another, I am really judging myself. It only hurts me. Judgement stems from unresolved issues. How I relate to an issue is the real issue, or more specifically, how I relate to myself while I go through an issue is the issue. This world/school mirrors all the places we need to heal, and brings us closer in healing to our Authentic Self or our Loving. When I judge another, I am judging myself. I forgive myself for the judgements. I forgive myself for judging myself as not perfect. I forgive myself for judging another person or group.

If I forgive myself for being a dummy, the judgement is still there. If I forgive myself for judging myself as a dummy, it dissipates.

Further on the timeline, I imagine how I want the future to be. As Linda says “if you imagine it, it is real.” I imagine a healed planet. I imagine only peaceful beings on it. I imagine healing of the bees. Perhaps the planet ascends, as many people are saying, and the people who are awakened into their Loving go with Her.  There are many theories and prophesies out there. Perhaps the illusion of time and the karmic wheel will be left behind. I don’t know. What I do know is that this beautiful planet cannot sustain us as we are today. There has to be a MAJOR shift in consciousness with a GREAT AWAKENING of many. I can imagine that happening. No more greed, anger, hate or FEAR. Only LOVE. Fear and anger amplify the vibration I do not want in the world. Love and forgiveness transform. I choose to envision how I want to see the world, and to live that vision and raise my vibration as best I can today. I choose to envision true solutions to issues, and not to be hooked by what I see on the news, as that disturbs my peace.  I choose to hold the thoughts and feelings of what might be possible, and to dwell in the miracle of Grace, while at the same time living mindfully in the present moment.

An irony of awakening and progressing spiritually is that it is really an unlearning process back to who we really are: a spiritual being having a human experience. It is a letting go of false ideas and coming back to our HEARTS. Spiritual reality is outside ego. Moving more deeply into our spiritual hearts, and experiencing the presence of LOVE allows us to awaken. It dispels judgement and heals the painful illusion of separation.

Turns out I had what I needed all along. My happy place is in Nature and in my Loving Heart. Going through all of my life experiences re-taught me these things, and I am glad.

Thank you Linda for this challenge. Next up is a guest blogger, Laura tomorrow.

Angles of Perspective

This post is in response to the Daily Post weekly photo challenge. This one is about taking pictures of the same object at different angles.

This creekside rock is part of the landscape.

A red-tailed hawk, visionary of the air,  may barely notice it as she soars above.

Do you see the smaller pile of rocks just above the first curve, behind the thin tree?

This is that pile.   It is the home of a lizard. The top of this rock holds his whole world.

To another animal, perhaps a small mouse who lives in a hole close to the creek, the rock is just something to notice as he drinks in the evening.  It is the bottom of it that he sees, and the designs on it.  As his little tongue ripples the water, the reflection changes. I wonder if he knows it is the same rock, mirrored. I would guess not.

I walk on top to visit my friend, the lizard. He comes out to greet me.

Later, I go back across the stream to sit. I meditate with the rock, enjoying another perspective completely.

We are all One, yet we see things so differently.

The outer world is a mirror of our own unique inner reality.

May we see love and unity as our world changes and shifts. May our hearts be open to all that is.

Perspective.

May we be empathic to the perspective of others, and observant of our own.

We lost a beautiful teacher recently. Dr. Wayne Dyer. I remember him telling a story about perspective. It went something like this.  He was almost bald, with a thin band of hair. He said, “you might look at me and think that I don’t have much hair. But if you saw this little bit of hair in say…..your soup, you would think it was a lot of hair. Perspective.”

It is transforming to see the world through many perspectives. In hawk vision, we see the big picture – the overall view. There is much responsibility in this awareness. Compassion and wisdom can be aquired here. It is a higher perspective. It is a vantage point from which we see that all gifts are equal in the eyes of the Great Spirit.

From mouse vision, much detail can be seen. We can look at ourselves and others very carefully.  Slow down and really look.  Look deeply, as if through a magnifying glass.

And our dear lizard is prominent in dreamtime. With lizard as a friend, symbology becomes a deep perspective. Quiet listening in several worlds, separated only by a thin veil.  Breathing deeply into and through our shadow, we grow in deep wisdom.  As we pay attention to our dreams and the symbols therein, lizard shows us the subtleties of perception.

This picture was snapped from the rock with zoom lens

As our world changes, and we change within it, may our perspective hold a great amount of gratitude.

 

 

 

 

Rock Concert

Wandering mindfully in the Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky, where I had an inspiring vacation last month, I found myself enamored by the wondrous and varied rock formations.

Crags and outcrops whittled and sculpted by water and wind over hundreds of millions of years have become arches, bridges, caves, windows, shelters, and exquisite pieces of living art.

As the water seeps through cracks in the sandstone, slowly eroding its façade, shapes and designs appear. This one is clearly a tortoise.

Recognizing the sacred, I sit.  My heartrate slows with this intimate exchange.  Through the heart, the connection is made. Giant rocks are the best meditation teachers. The wisdom of stillness.

These primordial symbols of eternity were both intriguing and enchanting.

Numinous being with your steadfast wisdom, thank you for mesmerizing me with your deep eternal mystery, conveying the divinity within us all.  I am spellbound.

Portals to another place…

Another time….

Another dimension.

In the ever evolving movement of our lives, we flow, overcoming and transmuting our struggles, floating on the Power of the Divine.

Tranquil, enduring design of waves gone by.  You teach us to withstand and embrace the swells and currents of our lives, allowing ourselves to be shaped and transformed by strength and vulnerability.

Pearls of wisdom, the colors of serenity.

I am immersed in the masterpieces of abstract art all around me.

In this artistic cave, I can easily stand beneath the arch under the green wall.  I am humbled by the enormity. Whole communities of people lived in this dwelling place.

Looking through the window to the sky, the tones of color created by water and earthy minerals catch my breath.

Shrouded in myst, standing in reverence behind the waterfall, I feel tenderly caressed and splattered, sheltered within the protection and unfailing strength of the colorful perennial sanctuary.

Absorbing this energy and offering mine, I feel composure and integrity.  Plants growing on moss, growing on different moss, growing on lichen growing on this jaggedy edged friend.  Love in the face of loyalty.

Charmed by a jewel that reflects and holds the Light.

Like being inside of a mysterious wave or a tunnel to the unknown.

Ah, the relationship between the immortal and the ephemeral.  The sylvan faeries congregate, enfolded in the solid embrace of their wetted home, as their devoted guardian, worn by weather, delights in their presence.

Walking in balance across the bridge connecting where were have been to something beyond struggle and mortality. From chaos to acceptance, truth and peace. Grace.

As we let go of the layers, and as we age – we are changed.  Each wrinkle, each spot tells a story. Character.

In the eternal constancy of our Souls amidst change, we build endurance and substance.

Movement dances on the immovable.  The harmony of base and treble; discipline and unbridled play.

Gently, the moist breeze flutters, showing off the intricate green make up worn by this gigantic face.

Hidden, hallowed cave, into which one travels to the mysterious and shadowy underworld. In an alternate reality, it is the secret fort of a young tom boy girl.

Gentle feminine strength and stability.

Swathed in a cloak of pebbles and moss, the ancient one breathes.

In admiration, I gaze upon power and permanence. Perseverance of a climb offers strength and perspective to complete one’s quest.

Thank you Mother Earth, for your peace, which is keenly felt. Thank you for tranquility, solidity and the wisdom in your presence. Thank you for your strength, your guidance, your perpetual entertainment, your enduring Love and for teaching us all how to be our most Authentic Selves through example. Thank you for sharing your Beauty. Happy Mother’s Day.

 

 

Goose Music

Yay!  The geese are back! There are two pair so far.  We used to have the same 11 every year. Five pair and one lone goose. They came seven years in a row. They tried rearing young each year, but there has been less and less water, so they were successful only one year.  Each year we see babies, and are hopeful.

Last year we watched the mama on the nest, and the male keeping vigilant watch – just far enough from the hidden nest to draw attention away.

The babies are yellow when they hatch. Right away, the parents bring them to the meadow by the creek.

 

It seems like the day they come out is the same day the yellow dandelions start to bloom. Perfect camouflage. After a couple of weeks, they turn a fluffy gray, just at the same time the dandelions grow their fluffy gray seed heads.

From pinterest

 

Geese are such solid parents. One watches, while the other eats and teaches. Then they switch roles. If a predator nears, there is no panic in the goose parent’s stride. They just round the goslings up into a line – one parent leading, the other heading up the rear, gently urging the little ones along, who suspect nothing. With calm, skillful determination, they get them into the safety of the water, without scaring them into a scatter.

From pinterest

 

Geese talk about everything. Everything.

“ Honk, aaawww, aaawww, honk honk ticlic aaow”

“Huuumph, aawwww. Oooooh honk, ewwup….”

“ Should we go to the other pond?”

“I don’t know.  What do you think?”

“ Yes, let’s do it. I am becoming annoyed by all these ducks!”

“ But, the other geese.  They may take our spot.”

“Well, we can come back and chase them away.”

“Ok, lets go!”

“Alright. I am ready. Let’s go then.”

“Now? Right now.”

“Yes, let’s go now.”

“OK”

“Ok!”

“OK!!  Let’s go!”

“Let’s go now!!!!!”

“OK!!!!!!!  LET’S GO!!!!!!!!!!!!

“We are going!”

“We are flying. We are flying. We are flying.”

“Yes, yes, yes, yes!”

“Let’s land. Let’s land.”

“We are landing, we are landing.”

“Other geese are here.”

The other geese start talking too and there is a big chase, and one pair comes back making a beautiful water ski landing in perfect synchronicity. They have a lot to say about it all.

Fortunately for us, we love the sound.

One spring day, when the 11 were here, one pair flew over to some flat rocks on the other side of the pond. Even though they argue about territory all the time, the other pair in the pond was not having it. They just thought it was wrong, wrong, wrong for that pair to be on those rocks. They started barking at the pair on the rocks. “Honk! Honk, honk squeep! Mutter mutter, squeep! Honk, honk!”

I know, I know…just a little more anthropomorphizing. Please just indulge me for a moment longer.

“You can’t be over there!”

“Yes, we can!”

“It’s just not right! Geese don’t sit on rocks on the other side of the pond! Get back in here where it is safe!”

“Oh brother! Honk, honk! We are fine. Leave us be, mutter mutter,”said the pair on the rocks.

“No, no honk, squeep! Don’t make us come over there!”

“Nah, we are fine, mutter, mutter honk.”

The arguement escalated with no you can’ts and yes we cans for about 45 minutes. Finally, the pair in the pond flew to the rocks and chased them back to the pond.

“Ok, ok…whatever! Jeez…mutter mutter aaww.”

Then all was peaceful again. Soft chirring, clucking, errrup, aawww sounds, then graceful silence.

Until… “Let’s go eat in the field.”

“You want to go eat in the field?” etc. etc. Talking, talking, talking, louder and louder, the four flew to the field, and then had to talk for a while about their exciting 50 ft excursion to eat alfalfa and dandelions and grasses.

Another aspect that I find interesting, is when there is a common enemy, they all come together. They can be in the middle of a territorial disagreement, but the second another goose is in some kind of danger, it is all for one and one for all. United we stand.  My dog and I were crossing the field, and all 11 geese formed a line and started slowly marching toward us until we changed our direction.

I once saw the 11 chase off a herd of 30 elk. Shouting and dive bombing. The elk finally gave up. Even toward coyotes, I have seen them take a stand.

We haven’t seen the 11 in three years. They must have given up after losing their young so many times.  I don’t know if these four used to be part of that flock, or if these are new ones that don’t realize the water often dries up.

It is snowing as I write this so, maybe, maybe, maybe we will have water through the summer. Hope. I love hope, but it can be a little mean.

There are a lot of predators here: coyotes, mountain lions, bobcats, snapping turtles, raccoons, bears, weasels, snakes, hawks and owls. If the water dries up, the geese don’t have a chance with their babies.

I know and trust that Nature knows what She is doing, but I do believe climate change is at least 75% human caused. Sometimes I feel hopeless becaues I don’t see us changing all that much.  Coal and fossil fuels. Why are there not solar panels on every commercial building, and on every covered parking structure? Why are new houses being built without even passive solar capacities? Why are we still using gasoline? I do in my own truck. Why are there green golf courses where water is scarce? Ok…soap box.  Sorry, but I struggle with this. I am happiest when there is enough water to keep the creek and valley alive. It is mostly out of my control. I am doing all I know how to do.

This is my biggest happiness challenge. I can’t bear what we are doing to our Mother Earth. The greed! It hurts me. I have talked a lot about true Happiness not being affected by “upset because.” Here is where I flunk at this. I do get upset because of all this, yet I continually try to keep my inner Peace and Happiness through it, though it breaks my heart.  The prediction is that our creeks here in New Mexico will dry more and more. That is not ok with me. Today, however – and I am big on being in the moment – today we have water in the creek and the geese are here. Yay! Love, gratitude, trust and happiness.

Geese are loyal animals, and mate for life. They communicate profusely. They teach us about communication, especially through story- telling. They use sky, water and land each day – the elements of earth, air and water. Air symbolizes the mind, thought, wisdom, freedom and breath. By working with our breath, we can mitigate our stress, and also learn to empower our thoughts. Air separates the Earth and the Heavens, a realm in which prayer and visualization can become manifest.

Water is the environment of the emotional, the creative, the unconscious, dreams, and intuition. Geese fly from both water and land, encouraging us to rise above our thoughts and feelings, above our struggles, to lift ourselves up; also to develop higher forms of intuitive discrimination. We can rise to new heights, where there are endless possibilities, and be grounded while doing so. Geese also wade in the water.  Their heads are in the air (wisdom), legs in the emotional/intuitive realm, and feet in the grounding mud.

Their eyes are on opposite sides of their head, giving them great range of vision. They have keen eyesight both close and far away. This can remind us to be mindful of vision in all directions, including past, present and future, physical and spiritual.

Their necks are long and flexible, a bridge between body and mind – head and heart. A link between physical consciousness and spiritual consciousness.

They are very graceful on the water, as we can also be present in our emotions with grace and compassion. They put their heads under the water to eat roots growing there. We can also nourish ourselves with our feelings, creativity and intuition.

They are migratory birds, and use natural currents to gain altitude. They know when to start, what route to take and where they are going. We can learn from this for our own migrations (inner and outer). When they travel long distances, they shift formation, creating wind drafts that make it easier for those flying behind.  They take turns to conserve their energy. The ones in front pay it forward.  When one of us makes a quest in life, or we heal or shift something inside, it becomes easier for others to follow suit. The healing energy is added to the collective.

The birds don’t fly directly behind one another, so all can see. They offer us greater vision, both physical and spiritual. The V formation reflects an aiming to new possibilities, like an arrow. Let your imagination fly, and feel the joy as you manifest your dreams. Feeling it will raise your vibration. Make your creative visualizations fun!

In the newness spring, with the equinox upon us, we can learn a thing or two from the geese. As we let go of the old and open to the new, may our lives be happy!  May this be a new birth, awakening and renewal for all of us in this time of balance between light and dark – in the water sign of Pisces.

Happy Spring Equinox everyone!

Happy Autumnal Equinox to those in the Southern Hemisphere!

 

Spring Snow

Happiness is a romp in a fresh spring snow.

 

Suspended energy, frozen in its path.

Not stuck – merely stopped a while in place before going on.

A contemplative moment in time.

Emotional burdens break free; sometimes released one drip at a time, or a cathartic dropping of layers into the oneness, washed clean.

In stillness; creative opportunities existing in the waters of our own being come alive.  Dreams awaken and are found to be valid and sound.

Ideas taking form; waiting to reconnect to fluidness and the feminine aspects of life.  Creative, intuitive imaginative powers poised for action.

Water adjusts to its environment; shaping, shifting. We learn to adjust to change, to become adaptive to the flow of life, while at the same time knowing where and when to make ripples.

A junco, warm in his feathery down, serenely confident in his ability to find food beneath the snow.

A pine siskin fluffs out her feathers, peacefully but steadfastly finding seed.

This little goldfinch doesn’t seem to mind the cold, and appears quite proud of his acquisition, looking much like a stogie in his mouth.

The ice creeps between a rock and hard place, not stuck at all.

 

Frozen crystal soon to have no beginning or end stimulates positive thoughts and feelings with its force field of negative ions.

 

Intuition is hard to hang on to at times, but is watered by our inner knowledge, just as this grass swallows each drip offered.

A cold, harsh wind disrupts the silence and stillness.

The red squirrel comes for one last visit (and meal) before he heads for his spring and summer home in higher country.

 

Reflections of many colors – our many facets.

I remember walking with a little 5 year old boy in the woods on a moist day, when suddenly the sun appeared. “Look!” He cried with utter amazement and wonder, as the light made prisms in the droplets.  “The trees are sprouting rainbows!”

Gazing into the crystalline ice, a moment of clarity. I write it down, as it can be gone in a flash. Moments of a dream or a vision, captured in color.

The rhythm and movement purifying the air, healing and re-energizing – empowering the realm of dreams and emotions.

Initiation, baptism, a sacrament of tears. Watery clearing of winter’s hibernation.

The earth is half water.  We are three quarters water. Research has been done on emotions projected into jars of spring water. Words powered by emotions of love, peace, beauty, happiness sent to one; hatred, anger, mean sarcasm sent to another. After being flash frozen, the positive jar created beautiful cohesive, perfect geometric snowflake patterns. The other jar created partially formed, non- geometric shapes. (Masuru Emoto). How much do we create with our thoughts and emotions? What energy are we putting out there in any given moment? Our thoughts and feelings affect physical reality.

Mindfulness.

The next day, a rain came and washed away all the snow.

The earth drinks. I can feel the gratitude and joy of the trees, and it fills my spirit.

Maybe this year, we will have baby geese and ducks in the cattail reeds.

 

Happiness

What I know about happiness is this: We are supposed to be happy, and being in the moment gets us there. Being mindful, aware and totally present in each moment is all there is to it. Easy, right?

About 20 or so years ago, I was walking out of, and locking up my house to go have a weekend with some chums out of town. Just then, the phone rang. Ooooh, shoot! Should I go back inside and get it? Maybe it’s one of my chums, so I went back in.  Well, it was this guy I know saying,” I don’t know if you would be interested at all, but I have an extra ticket to see the Dalai Lama in about an hour.” So, I called my friends, told them I’d be late, and went off to hear His Holiness. I had the image of an auditorium with hundreds of people. It was a small room, holding about 40. Wow.

He came into the room, and walked up onto a little stage, and began to speak. I teared up just seeing him. The sound didn’t work.  We couldn’t hear him. Suddenly, I was having direct eye contact with him, and I can’t even describe the feeling of total and utter blissful love that shot through my whole being. Then his eyes shifted to someone else. The feeling inside stayed with me for a long time. I bet he looked at everyone in the room.  Then suddenly the sound came on, and he said, “People ask me why I am so happy all the time, given all I have been through, losing my country, watching my people get slaughtered in front of me.  It is a choice in every moment.  In every moment is the choice to be happy.  It can be work, but it is always a choice.“ At the end of that sentence, the sound went out again, and didn’t come back on. That was the message we were all meant to hear.

A friend of mine heard him interviewed on TV. One of the questions posed to him was, “what is the happiest moment of your life?”  He thought for a few moments, smiled and said, “Right now. This is my happiest moment.”

We can’t all be as enlightened as the Dalai Lama, but there are ways to go about being happy.

When present in the moment, we are neither stuck in the past, nor anticipating the future.

Many therapists will tell you that you have to dive way into your past and dig up all the skeletons lurking there. In my experience, while being in the present, the past will automatically come up to be healed. Much of what we learned in childhood is unconscious. The outer world, being a reflection of our inner reality, will present us with all the things we haven’t yet worked through, like a mirror. If we can, in the moment, dis-identify with the thought or feeling (ego), and watch ourselves react, we can use mindful self – compassion and self – forgiveness to heal the parts inside that learned whatever it is we are reacting to. Be the watcher, or the witness. Free yourself from your mind. Be the witness to your repetitive thoughts and patterns.  Listen impartially without judgment, without clinging.  Love the child. Embrace the pain. Let it go.

We are responsible for how we choose to respond. Not being identified with the ego takes its power away. Unresolved issues are not bad.  They are a perfect opportunity for Soul growth. You are dealing with the past and dissolving it through the power of your love in the present moment.

If you don’t face the wounds from past experiences; If you don’t bring the light of your presence into the pain, you will be forced to relive it again and again, in different ways. Grieve. Do the work of healing. Bring wisdom into it, without clinging or judging. Just love. Ram Dass says, “It is a paradox of mindful living that without having embraced the past, we cannot let go of it. “

Listen to your body. It gives us symbolic messages about what needs to be healed. It begins by tugging on our shirt tails, then uses more drastic measures if we don’t listen.

It is easy, when reacting in a way that feels bad – in order to justify our inner state – to put blame on something or someone.  We are inclined to say, “I am upset because…..” I am upset because the world is in chaos.  I am upset because of climate change, and how we are hurting the planet. I am upset because we are losing our ecosystem, and the creatures that need it. I am upset because of something you did. The only real truth in these sentences is “I am.” Just- I am.  These words indicate you are in the present moment. I am. Bring yourself back to the present, by saying, “I am.” Then you are automatically the watcher of your experience, not identified with it.

Events don’t automatically have to make us feel a certain way. The assumption that our feelings are because of something external is inaccurate.

It is easy for me to be in the present moment when I am home. When I look out the window or walk by the creek or in the woods, I see beauty.  Beauty always grounds me in the present, because I am just observing and becoming one with what is. I am not thinking about it or creating some kind of commentary about it, I am just in it.

I can be 100% in the moment when I am in Nature. When I am doing tai chi in it, talking to lizards in it, meditating in it, laughing in it, crying in it, being 8 years old in it, being wise in it, being creative in it.  I am happy, mindful and aware in the moment. I am not “happy because.”  Rather, my state of being is at peace.

The harder part is being happy out in the world. I get upset because…..

I get emails from agencies that support Nature.  There are always horror stories, all beyond my control. The news bums me out. It disturbs my peace.  I am “upset because” of big business greed, or whatever the “because” is.

Ok, what I can do is meditate; do tai chi; put as much love and happiness out there as I can; recycle; volunteer; Love the planet; raise my vibration, pray for the highest good, and then TRUST.  When in the moment, when in the witness, we can bring wisdom into the upset, and heal ourselves. When we heal ourselves, the vibration reverberates all over the world.

Another way we leave the present is fear of the future. I am afraid of so much. I am afraid of violence; I am afraid of climate change; loss of bees; poisoned water, air, food; the pain of loss; the collapse. I am afraid that I am losing my frogs.  I am afraid of the pain of losing my beavers.  I am afraid BECAUSE of the news and the horrors that are happening everywhere. I am anticipating pain. We don’t need to invite thoughts about the future into our minds before their time.

Inner disturbance isn’t caused by outer experience.  Inner disturbance is projected onto outer experience.  We are the authors of our experience, and not a victims of your autobiography.

“When you are not involved in the upset, you can be clear to address the challenging situation with wisdom, caring and effectiveness.” Ron & Mary Hulnick

This is acceptance of what is.  Addressing the situation with wisdom is not resignation.

“We must be willing to open to all that the moment contains, including that which seems most threatening….to cultivate fearlessness.” Eckhart Tolle

It is what it is.  Fighting reality never works. Let it go.

Be present and aware.

 

BE  HAPPY.