Calling Forth Unity

Crestone Peak Peeking Through the Treetops

It’s time to pivot: calling forth and practicing unity, oneness, the interconnected nature of life. Time to cooperate and co-create.

This is week three of what has emerged as a theme of the weekly muse, consistent with observations and concerns about our world and with my heart’s deep longing that I live more fully into the reality of unity with each step I take and every choice I make.

Reading some new/old material from Gregge Tiffen, one of my greatest teachers, reminded me that our sojourn on this earth is not an easy ‘school’.  We are tasked with the challenge of working with/working on three levels that are often in conflict: body, mind, spirit. It was an important reminder as I seek to practice unity – inside and out – in a world that seems hell bent on division and separation.

As I sat in the quiet of daybreak this morning, it occurred to me that dark and light are not separate. Opposites, yes; but light and dark coexist, cooperate, and flow from one to the other and back. Whether in the dark of night of a new moon or in the light of a ‘Colorado blue sky’ day, the ‘woods out back’ are ‘the woods out back’. The degree of light or dark simply changes my experience of seeing the woods.

Perhaps we might consider the same of other ‘opposites’: good/evil (every time I write this word, I’m reminded it is simply ‘live’ spelled backwards); we/they; pro/con (vaccine, life, war, and the list goes on).  We are different, yes. We each have our stories that differ, sometimes widely. And we are the same: humans navigating a tough learning school at this seemingly pivotal point in time.

As I further engaged the muse, I wondered what all the aspects of the growing (and troubling to me) ‘vaccine divide’ and a recent movie, A Wrinkle in Time, have in common. Each presents the opportunity to ‘choose the path of love with conviction’. Yet each in their own way perpetuates separation: the movie with its classic ‘good vs. evil’ where one or the other must ‘win’.

The vaccine divide doesn’t look much different. Each side choosing language to vilify the other, claiming they alone are ‘right’ and the other is ‘wrong’. Neither side recognizing the truth in some aspects of the other’s story. The noise from both is deafening and the damage to families and friendships, heart wrenching (AND avoidable!). Much of the ‘information’ from both sides is fraught with assumption (at best) and both are guilty of fear mongering. Each seemingly wants to usurp my free will to choose what is right for me, my body, my mind, my spirit.

Is anyone reminded of the acrimony of the ‘choice’ vs. ‘anti-abortion/right to life’ divide? It’s enough to bring out my inner contrarian rebel and allow her to dance beyond the words of the weekly muse. I’m reminded of a favorite line from Rivera Sun’s awesome novel, The Dandelion Insurrection: When fear is used to control us, love is how we rebel.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, I have consistently expressed the idea that the best path forward is to build our individual immune system in whatever ways best serve the body we inhabit, as well as align with our individual, intelligent understanding of available information, and consistent with our personal spiritual beliefs. This should be front and center of public health policy and media attention. It isn’t.

Where is the love and care that providing such information widely would demonstrate? Why does it seem increasingly more difficult (and sometimes lonely) to follow this path? Where is our humanity in this great divide?

Why is it that those who offer information about this path must be cautious about how they speak about covid, natural health, etc. lest a ‘bot’ label their words ‘misinformation’ or worse yet, prohibit others from seeing it? How is such censorship any different than burning books – indeed entire libraries throughout history – to suppress views that challenge our own?

My aim is to not add to the babble of the divide, what a friend calls part of the ‘debris field’ of these times. Rather it is to shine light in the darkness, to rebel with love, sharing that which I find helpful in navigating the choices of this time with solid information, with love, and with care.

Neither I, nor the muse, nor anyone outside of you knows what choices are best for you. But each can offer information, insight, perhaps even inspiration to take the best care of you that’s possible and to be a part of bridging and healing the divide, not furthering it: to call forth unity from within and promote unity in our world. Toward that end, I found this recent video informative and rebellious in a most loving, caring, and unifying way: Strange Virus …

Whatever your choices, may this and other information in your field support you in unifying body, mind, and spirit and calling forth that unity in our fractured world.

Day Fades in the Sangres as the Sun Sets in the West

Ponder THIS Possibility

Water’s Response to Love and Gratitude

To give your positive or negative attention to something is a way of giving energy. The most damaging form of behavior is withholding your attention. … Water records information, and while circulating throughout the earth distributes information. This water sent from the universe is full of the information of life... … If we consider that the human body is a universe within itself, it is only natural to conclude that we carry within us all the elements. Masaru Emoto - Hidden Messages in Water

You operate beyond negativity when you are in control of you not by attempting to control conditions. We live in the ocean of consciousness that is boundless. All things in the ocean have available to them the same things. All of love, happiness, and freedom are available in the ocean of consciousness. Gregge Tiffen – The Language of a Mystic: Awareness

Throughout the time since March when Covid 19 was declared a pandemic, I’ve been curious about what messages, what lessons the event and the virus itself might teach us. I’ve observed our fear and how it is being used to divide us and further our sense of separation. I’ve explore my own fear as it has arisen and invited me to put it to rest.

I’ve observed and experienced love, the best within us supporting one another showing our care and love. Being masked and keeping our distance without allowing those masks or physical distance to isolate.

Indeed we are navigating a different world and in so doing we are creating the world that will be in the future. This time is ripe for reflection, consideration of new perspectives, especially ones that challenge the mainstream thinking seeking to control conditions rather than gracefully ride the waves.

A thought-provoking idea crossed my path last week. What if the coronavirus is an evolutionary driver?

Viruses like all life contain information. What if we became curious about what this virus has to teach us? What if we loved rather than feared it?

Thinking about that reminded me of Masaru Emoto’s powerful work and images demonstrating the power of our thoughts and the impact of sending love and gratitude to water. I first heard of his work in the film What the Bleep do We Know? The film’s website (click here) has some of the stunning images of from Emoto’s work. Take a look. Contrast water’s response to love, gratitude, Mozart to its response to ‘you make me sick’.  Then consider, what perspective you choose to hold about this virus?

What if, like water as it circulates through the earth, this virus (perhaps all viruses?) imparts information as it moves through our body?

When fear is used to control us, love is how we rebel. Rivera Sun – The Dandelion Insurrection

Let’s spread some new thinking. Keep wearing our masks while we unmask new possibilities for creating life in harmony with all of nature.

A Formula for Ending the Pandemic

Cottonwood Creek - A Feast for the Senses

There was a forest fire in the mountains. Birds and beasts fled as fast as they could. Among them there was a little bird that thought she would try to put the fire out. She dipped her wings in the river, then flew over the fire again and again, sprinkling drops of water. The other birds laughed at her and said it would only exhaust her and come to nothing, but she continued anyway. That was all one small bird could do. A heavenly deity felt sympathy for the little bird and sent a great rain that put out the fire. —Anonymous [Daily Inspirational post for 15 April 2020 from Pace e Bene Campaign Nonviolence - https://paceebene.org/campaign-nonviolence]

One morning earlier this week, I woke thinking about what I (and WE) can do to end the current pandemic. A list emerged which I shared with a few friends, and I was gratified for the positive responses. I wasn’t thinking about my ideas being a blog post, yet when I read the quote above this morning, my thinking shifted in a flash. We each need to be the little bird with the faith that what we do WILL make a difference. Indeed, as I’ve written about in various previous posts, EVERYthing we do (and think and speak) matters!

Like me, you're probably already doing much of what I've come up with in my 'formula'. And, I’m sure you have practices and ingredients to add (Please share what you’re doing!).  

My belief is that, if we take action with strong purpose and intention, we WILL extinguish this Covid-19 ‘fire’.  Science tells us this is so. Your heart knows this truth just as the little bird knew.

Yep, it's a big job. And, each and EVERYone of us has a role to play. 

Do these with strong purpose and intention …

1.      STAY HOME!

2.      IF you must go out - cover your face, wear gloves, and use sanitizer frequently. Think of the postal, grocery and other essential workers as your most endeared family member or friend who you would never put in harm's way.  Do only what you absolutely MUST do. Go Home -- sanitize what you bring in, wash the clothes you were wearing, take a relaxing hot bath or shower. Rest.

3.      BOOST your IMMUNE SYSTEM! This is where our true power is! (a) be curious and find a regimen that feels right for you (mine; Vitamins C & D, Zinc, Magnesium + a healthy diet that includes some comfort foods - yes, chocolate - and lots of veggies); (b)get outdoors -- soak up some rays and move your body ... find beauty wherever you are! (c) maintain a positive attitude -- fear, stress and negativity work against the immune system. If you feel down in the dumps, fearful, or stressed be curious about the source; work with it, read something inspiring or to help you understand and move through it. Get help from a coach, a counselor, or a friend. (A few of many resources: Brene Brown's work -  https://brenebrown.com/;  Dr. Gerald Jampolsky's Love is Letting Go of Fear; recent articles on fear from my colleague & friend Kathy Wilson -  http://www.warrior-priestess.com/Newsletters/#archives)

4.      Embrace the pandemic event as an opportunity to learn, stretch, grow and to create life anew. Be inspired by stories of how the earth is responding, e.g. canals in Venice, pollution reduction in China, India, Los Angeles, and elsewhere. (https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/04/coronavirus-pandemic-earth-pollution-noise/609316/)

5.      Stay informed without excessive exposure to news. What do YOU need to know in order to make wise choices for you?

6.      Ban drama, complaining and judgement of others from your environment (the ‘judgement’ thing? THAT is my biggest challenge!). Note: This does not mean denial or avoiding important conversations and decisions.

7.      Discipline your thoughts, words, and deeds. As my friend, author Rivera Sun (www.riverasun.com)  says "Be Kind. Be Connected. Be Unafraid." Our thoughts, words, and actions live forever as energy in the Universe. What are you contributing?

8.      Keep a gratitude journal. What are you grateful for today?  Share your gratitude.

9.      Laugh! At feline and canine videos, at silly posts, and, heck, even at yourself.

10.   If you've completed all these and still need entertainment - watch your favorite sports reruns, an inspiring movie; read an uplifting book; discover a new inspiring podcast (check out Sounds True's resiliency tools -  https://product.soundstrue.com/resilience-in-challenging-times/); love on your pet(s), Zoom chat with a friend. Find joy!

BONUS! Become an activist! Find a cause that you care about and become an active participant in creating a more beautiful world, one that cares for the earth and offers true economic and social ‘liberty and justice’ FOR ALL.  

We CAN do this! Humanity and our Dear Mother Earth are counting on it.

Onward and upward (with wings)!

REST! Gentle, easy rest.

Spring! Awaken, Think Deeply, Pivot

Yield and step into the flow of nature.

Life seems to fail us because we do not make new space for ourselves. … life is a continuum of things being ‘broke’. Unless you are willing to take a new stance, walk a new path, find a new answer, develop a new character, build a new body, express in new terms, and see through new eyes, everything will remain the same. … Nature moves down two pathways. One assures equal balance on the planet. The other leads to a natural development and advancement of all living things.  Gregge Tiffen (It’s Springtime! Flow with the Power of Nature – March, 2007)

Spring! The earth spins and the season of new growth begins here in the northern hemisphere. Half of the globe is springing into newness and light. The other half ‘falling’ into the season of harvest with the darkness of winter just beyond.

But no matter the season, life has changed drastically for all of us. We have the power to decide how that change will emerge. As nature moves down her two pathways, balance and advancement, will we step into her flow, listen deeply to her voice, reflect on her cries, and pivot to create new ways to live on our precious planet?  Or, will we simply pause, rest, entertain ourselves in the hope that life will soon return to ‘normal’? Which will I choose?

Do we have the courage to challenge the thinking of scientific materialism that has taken us further and further from nature, our mother? Do I?

Are we willing to be honest with ourselves about the destruction we each cause in our daily participation in a culture that values science and the material world over spirit, not understanding that the two are not separate? Am I?

Might we examine the life we call ‘normal’ knowing (even complaining about) the stresses that it creates in our bodies, our relationships, and all of life? Might I?

Our children who haven’t yet lost their connection to nature are asking and, rightfully, demanding. From Greta Thunberg, to the Sunrise Movement (www.sunrisemovement.org), to your own children and grandchildren as voiced by this young person’s question to ‘mom’ over breakfast posted by a colleague yesterday on Facebook:

Mom, we’re doing our part and staying home from school, not seeing our friends, not going outside. We are doing this even though Coronavirus won’t kill us. We’re doing this to help the adults and the older people to live longer and healthier lives. So, when this is all over, will they repay us by making changes to save the environment? So that we will be able to live longer, healthier lives when we are their age?
Because, you know, that seems fair to me.

How will we respond? How will I?

Will we simply hit the ‘play’ button when this pause is over and scramble to return to life as it was or as close to that as we can make it? Or will we use this time to think deeply and pivot to creating a culture and systems that recognize and use both spirit and science/material things, that honor the ways of nature and acknowledges that we will not control her?  Will we boldly demand a culture and systems that respect ALL life?

As I watch the snow fall in the woods out my window my heart knows that these are questions. And, as history has shown us time after time, a ‘war’ on the problem is not the answer.

Use this time wisely. Rest. Take extraordinary care of yourself and those you love. Hold those whose choices you loath in light and love for they too are on a journey of learning just as each of us. Muster the courage and willingness to think deeply and honestly about your life. Build upon that courage to pivot to walk through life anew.    

The calendar says ‘Spring’. Mother Nature says ‘not yet’.

Instead of Fear ... LOVE

Oh that all choices could be so light!

Whether you like it or not, you are the end result of everything you have ever experienced up until this very moment. What you are is what you have learned. Gregge Tiffen (The Journey Continues: Near Life Experiences – March, 2010)

When fear is used to control us, love is how we rebel. … Be kind. Be connected. Be unafraid. Rivera Sun (The Dandelion Insurrection)

Perhaps it was my own attention, but somehow the coronavirus pandemic seemed top of mind for many emails I received and posts that popped up on my Facebook timeline yesterday.

While most was positive, informative and helpful, one post in particular resonated with me for its sincere, yet light-hearted reminder that we are at choice in everything we do, including how we respond to this current event. “Let’s play a game,” the post began (I was hooked at the word ‘play’!). “It’s called the ‘Instead of’ game. It works like this. During this COVID-19 pandemic, instead of …”. My friend, author/activist Rivera Sun continued with her list of choices: “… grocery shopping for my faves, I’m going to dig into my back stock. (Instead of) going to social events, I’m going to journal and do some inner work. …”

I love this idea for its light and creative approach to a serious issue which we each must address in our own ways. For me, lightness always seems to ease the burden. The game is a reminder that I am at choice in EVERYthing I do.

My reply comment began “Instead of starting my own list, I’m going to use yours and build from there.” Hey, I need not ‘reinvent the wheel’. I continued, “instead of fretting, I’m going to walk the labyrinth and go on longer walks in the woods with Zadie Byrd.” I’m adding to that list as choices present themselves or as I find myself taking a turn toward fear.

It's a great game, a way to be present to the choices I need to make for me. Playing in this way lightened a decision I’d made to suspend my participation in a weekly Feldenkrais class with several other folks, and it reminded me that either love or fear rest at the root of our choices.

Gregge’s quote reminded me that in every moment we are learning, adding to the storehouse of knowledge in our consciousness. At the same time, we have all the knowledge and wisdom that we’ve experienced and accumulated throughout time. We are who we’ve become through those experiences.

In the face of crises we make choices about how to respond. We learn from those choices. As the world faces the pandemic and other disruptive events, how will we each respond? How can we respond from a place of love not fear?

Was my decision to not go to the class based in fear? It certainly could be. I thought of it more as ‘acting from an abundance of caution’, and I realized that it was about more than protecting myself, but also out of care for my classmates.

It’s possible that love and fear can make the same choice. But the energy behind those choices draws us to very different directions. Choosing not to participate from a root of love, opens me to care and curiosity about what’s possible ‘instead of’ attending. Acting on that I found an online resource of recorded practices to guide me. Making the same choice from fear would likely have led me down the path of anger at ‘having to’ miss the practice.

In the end, the organizer decided to cancel our group for now. Having already made my choice, I’m able to embrace her decision with appreciation as one made from love and care.

Instead of fear, I embrace love, reason and creativity. I’m curious to practice using what I know. And, I wonder what my learning is as I navigate this phase of life experience.

I’m definitely ‘in’ the ‘Instead of’ game What about you? Will you play too?

Zadie Byrd’s first hike to the Ziggurat