The darkness always ends…

As we approach the Winter Solstice, often called the ‘shortest day of the year’ (it’s not, but it does have the least amount of sunlight in the northern hemisphere anyway), it’s helpful to remember that the darkness ALWAYS lifts.

We can learn so much from the seasons, including this dark and dormant time of year. It may feel as if everything is dead and brown, but underneath, things are percolating, resting, gathering strength. Inevitably, they return and pop through the soil in the spring.

Animals are gestating the next generation now. Humans are ‘snuggled all warm in their beds’, awaiting the return of the the light.

We’re almost there, my loves. And on the solstice, you have probably heard something about “The Star of Bethlehem” returning.This is true…mostly. Jupiter and Saturn will conjoin or meet up in the sky and form what appears to be a large, bright star.

It’s a big deal in astrology and astronomy and they have not come this close since the 1200s, but more importantly, scholars believe that this celestial cycle was the genesis of the Biblical story of the Star that the Wise Men followed to find the Christ child, over 2000 years ago.

The two planets meet up at 0 degrees of the sign of Aquarius. This also has massive significance for astrologers and human kind.

Some talk about the ‘second coming of Christ’ and point to various Biblical prophesies, particularly in Revelations. Personally, I think it is ushering in the era of “Christ Consciousness”: cooperation, community, helping and loving our neighbors, equity, letting go of the ‘every man for himself/survival of the fittest’ mentality.

This will take time…more time than I likely have in this human incarnation, but it’s real, it’s coming. But, as always, it is up to each of us, individually, to usher in these energies of evolution in the collective energies of humanity.

Just know this: we are being given a chance here. But, it starts with all of us looking inward; the external influences are strong right now and toxic. This is the time of year for us to go inward, dormant, neutral; knowing that something beautiful will bloom after we do the work required of us.

Happy Solstice, fellow humans. We have much to do; much to learn.

Cocooning to cope…

 

It’s a turn off the news, ask Alexa to shuffle Norah Jones morning.

Very cold this here; one of those hard to catch your breath, the dogs are walking on 3 legs, super clear at 8500 feet, mornings.

The condo feels like a little cocoon with Christmas lights, warm slippers, fireplace, counting small blessings (like clean sheets) happening.

The world is so absolutely chaotic right now. I was talking to a friend yesterday about various current events and happenings, when we both came to the same conclusion: “We’re screwed!”. HAHA!

But, I/we need to put ourselves into our cocoon now and then; to inhabit the eye of the storm where there is peace, calmness and often, clarity.

Yesterday I was standing in the valley where I currently live and gazing at the huge, beautiful, ancient mountains that surround us like a giant hug.

This, too, shall pass my loves. The timeline of humanity is sooooo long and so varied and yes, ALWAYS chaotic.

We look at various other eras in history and are lulled into the idea that it was a calmer, simpler time. That everything was as it should be and that everything ‘made sense’. It never has. Ever.

There has always been suffering and violence and hunger and oppression and all of the bad, icky things that we think are at an all-time high right now.

The difference is that we are in an era where we MUST ‘see’ them. We are awakening at a fairly rapid rate, thanks in part to technology, which is both a boon and a curse.

So, as always, my loves, it is two steps forward, one step back in our evolution. As we approach the Solstice a week from today, we are called to rest; to go inward.

To retreat to our cocoons, to gather strength as the light begins to return, oh so slowly as it ALWAYS does. Respect the cycles or more accurately, the spiral that is life as we move higher and higher in our awakening.

It’s a hard job, this whole being human deal.

You are the light

We woke up to a blanket of snow this morning and the snow is still falling. I just took a few minutes to gaze out the window. Early morning snowfall mutes or removes all color from the landscape.  Fresh snow is so peaceful.

Then, I turned on the news. God, the world is a mess, isn’t it? I’m pretty sure that statement has been uttered every day since the beginning of time, but since this is our time to inhabit the earth, this is our mess.

Violence, anger, hatred, oppression; the greatest hits of man’s inhumanity to his fellow travelers. If you think about all of it too much, you are likely to have reactions like anger and/or withdrawal. The worst is the feeling of impotence; that nothing you can do will matter.

I don’t believe that our reactions don’t matter. I believe that we can all throw out a little bit of light into the world and with enough light, we get enlightenment; an awakening of sorts.

I truly believe that the world is on the brink of a great spiritual revolution. Humans, by and large do not want to live in fear and anger and hatred. I think we are naturally drawn to love, beauty and compassion and that the vast majority of us practice those things. Watch the news and all you see is the bad stuff, so it seems as if the dark side is winning.

We have a choice, every single second of every single day regarding our feelings and what we toss out into the world. Many spiritual teachers call it “co-creation”, which means that we just need to tap into all of the positive vibes that surround us, in order to create the lives we want.

By the same token, we can tap into the negative and be a part of the darkness and chaos. I’ll admit it’s easier said than done, but we all have free will. Internal free will. That love and light and compassion and empathy is inside of us; in our hearts.

Of course life isn’t fair and events can make us angry and hurt, which leads to dysfunction, but that’s the human condition that we all experience. We can make a conscious choice to tap into that stream of the good stuff and reject the bad.

Jack Canfield distilled it down into a simple equation: E(event) + R(reaction)= O(outcome). Make it your mantra: E+R=O. How you react to life is instrumental in what you create.

So, we can rail against the messes in this world, but it all comes down to what are we putting out there? How are we contributing to more light, less darkness? Every second, of every day, we throw energy into the world. Give thanks, be kind, help a fellow human, love and nurture nature, try and see someone else’s point of view or as I like to say “walk a moon in their moccasins”.  Be gentle; don’t celebrate bitchiness and anger.

We can change the world; we’re all connected and my energy is your energy is their energy. Make your choices wisely. Send out light. You are very powerful.

Choose wisely

We all have choices: darkness or light, positive or negative, glass half empty or glass half full, gratitude or victimhood. I could go on, but I think you get the point.

The past two months I chose darkness and this period made the Top 5 Most Miserable Times of My Life List. I can’t really pinpoint what is #1 on that list, since my life is ongoing, but it was right up there near the horrible pinnacle.

Everything that led up to this 60 days of darkness has been well-documented in this blog: moving, the death of my dog, a long and brutal winter, regrets, changes and then the final straw, my dad’s sudden death. In other words, life. What knocked me off my axis, was the number of life-altering events that happened over the course of about 7 months. Too much, too quickly.

I’ve gone through some miserable times before, as have all of you. We are humans, walking around on an imperfect earth with other imperfect beings and bad shit goes down for all of us. My problem is that I always assume that it’s because of something I’ve done or didn’t do; some choice that I made or action that I took, that brings the wrath down. That’s my own little self-flagellating punishment that happens and it tends to make the challenging times in my life just a little MORE challenging.

So, after about 50 days of pain and suffering, inflicted mostly by me, I began searching for a remedy. I made a choice. Being in my skin had become unbearable; the urge to drink was overpowering. I almost felt possessed, as if someone else were animating my body and mind. I needed an escape from suffering.

I asked for spiritual guidance; threw it out to the universe and it came. From various sources. People, books, podcasts, nature, stumbling into a peaceful, little metaphysical bookstore in Traverse City. I also made a business trip to Denver that got me out of my dark little place and away from the oppressive energy at home. It was as if a swirling, cleansing wind had surrounded me, sweeping away the smothering black cloud.

That was when something clicked. I woke up, not feeling dread, but feeling whole and open and hopeful. I re-started my yoga practice that had been dormant for months, I finalized the end of a long-term commitment and was able to see clearly into my future with a sense of buoyancy, I heard the morning bird songs and was happy, rather than terrified to slog through another day. This all seems melodramatic, I know, but it’s true. And I’m so grateful.

The whole idea of asking the universe for help has been proven true for me. I reached out in a time of darkness and so many sent blinding light my way. I’m tanned, rested and ready to bloom again. Thank you to those who came to my rescue. Thank you to me, for opening up and basking in that glow and allowing that energy into my life.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Don’t blame yourself when bad things happen. We have choices that are in front of us every single second, of every single day. Feel your pain; surrender to it and then look around for the help and the grace that is always there for us. It could come from nature, church, people, animals, art, music, exercise, meditation; whatever speaks to you, find it. Go there. Life is hard, it really is and anyone who says otherwise is a big, fat liar. Find your light and go toward it.