Devotion – a place where all forces come together.

"At Eternity's Gate" by Vincent Van Gogh  (1890)

“Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment. Only this moment is life.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

“I understand our mornings can be busy; however, if we cannot make time for God now, then when?” ~ Ashley Ormon, God in Your Morning

It’s been another rough week as a mom in Buckeye Land.  My heart has been heavy.  Words have been exchanged and feelings have been hurt on both sides of the dinner table.  This has also expanded outside our home too.   An unexpected task has now appeared on my desk and my heart hurts for a son because a young woman said yes and then stood him up.  My feelings and emotions are all turned-up-side- down. 

In situations like this I set off to find my grounding point.  For me, it is the place where all the forces come together within me.  That point where I know I’m connected with the divine spirit.  When I’m there; I’m balanced.  I can put the dark emotions into a perspective.  There, I know that I will survive and can move on.  The divine drives my emotions and no other forces.

Getting to that place and finding that place takes work.  It isn’t something you can buy at the store or an herbal spell you brew up.  It comes from daily practice of being devoted to MotherFather Spirit.  I have discovered the more I’m devoted to practice the easier I can come to that middle point where I'm not at where my emotions are out of control and the world looks dark and without hope.

A daily devoted practice to me means prayer, meditation, yoga, knitting, walking, exercising on the stationary book, writing, drawing mandalas, and etc.  I do it alone and I do it in fellowship.  My practicing time isn’t about calling the spirit for a 911 “help me request,” but putting in the thanks and joyful noting or citing WOWness.  I believe you need to see both (i.e., 911 and joy) in order to find your balancing point and center.  The world isn’t just about crisis; it has the joys too.  If you can see both, it helps you put things into a calmer perspective.     
          

~#~ 

Over Cherry Blossoms

by Shuntaro Tanikawa

Over cherry blossoms

white clouds

over clouds

the deep sky

over cherry blossoms

over clouds

over the sky

I can climb on forever

once in spring

I with god

had a quiet talk.

~#~

If you haven’t ever prayed before or don’t know how to start to find your center.  I got this from a women’s meditation retreat back in the 90s.  The key was meditation or prayer help FADES the crisis.  The FADES is a mnemonic describing things to consider when you pray to MotherFather Spirit.    

F= Free and Formed

A = Alone and Assembled

D= Desperate and Delighted

E= Explosive and Extended

S= Spontaneous and Scheduled

My instructor at this retreat was animate that prayer wasn't about sitting still in a room.  This was the first time I heard this.  She said prayer needs to be done while you are singing with friends; waiting at the check-out line when you see an act of kindness; or when you are pondering out what word should come next in your "blog."  She stated that the "Now the lay me" and "God is great" ritually at dinner is fine for a starting point - but prayer should be done on the seat of your pants.  You should think of prayer as a day long conversation with MotherFather Spirit.  

  

Tibetan Wind Horse Prayer

(Tibetan prayer flag is 'Lung ta', meaning 'Wind Horse')

As Wind carries our prayers for Earth and All Life, may respect and love light our way.

May our hearts be filled with compassion for others and for ourselves.

May peace increase on Earth. May it begin with me.

You say talisman and I say amulet….. Turbulence, Tempestuous – Lets call the whole thing off.

“Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress.”  ~Mahatma Gandhi

“Thus, we see that one of the obvious origins of human disagreement lies in the use of noises for words.”  ~ Alfred Korzybski

“The last sound on the worthless earth will be two human beings trying to launch a homemade space-ship and already quarreling about where they are going next.” ~ William Faulkner

~#~

When written in Hebrew, the Bible has many names for God.  Is one better than another?  I don’t know, but in English one is mainly written – “God.”  The same can be said about the word love.  In Italian, Greek and other languages in the world there are many, but in English we have only one.  I think sometimes we get too caught up in using the right word and we end up quarreling about who is right.  Ultimately someone’s feelings get hurt and bridges get burnt and wars fought.

Take for example the words Amulet and Talisman, according to Webster’s Dictionary:

Amulet: a charm (as an ornament) often inscribed with a magic incantation or symbol to aid the wearer or protect against evil (as disease or witchcraft).

Talisman: 1: an object held to act as a charm to avert evil and bring good fortune. 2: something producing apparently magical or miraculous effects. 

Note: on Talisman comes from the Greek word Teleo which means "to consecrate.”

I seem to think of these two items as one as the same which to some I would be quite wrong.  I also feel I tend to use talisman more often; perhaps it is due to my exposure of this word in the books I read growing up.  In some of my reference books, they clearly identify a distinction between the two.  A talisman must be charged with magic whereas the amulet has the magic in it.  In others, they use the word interchangeably.    Both cases, they agree like I do that you need to do a blessing/consecration ceremony to let the object know what it is intended to be used for.    

~#~

A friend sent the Dali Lama’s quote to me on Facebook.  Unknowingly this has come at a good time.  My work has become a turbulent and tempestuous environment.  I’m finding myself working with people who have different values than me.  They seem to see work as products that need to be checked off by some random date rather than how I see it as something that will make a difference and something of quality.  (As I’ve spoken before I see my work is an extension of Motherfather Spirit.)  I really try to practice the Dali Lama’s philosophy, but more often than not I get pushed off my chair and my blood pressure is racing.  The same can be said about how I practice my spirituality; sadly this is one of the reasons why I end up practicing in a solo kind of way.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t be in community.  But, if I’ve found that if I walk away angry and upset after a meeting; or I feel like I’m being spoon fed knowledge and others aren’t opened to a different point of view; I’m treated more of like a guest, or I’m coasting along for the ride than perhaps it is better to evolve alone.      

It takes a lot of courage to walk away.  In doing so, I believe you’re strengthening your heart chakra and practicing the love and kindness spells.  Ultimately, you are following that master law of the universe: you reap what you sow.   Your small act could be the tipping factor in helping the universe be a nicer place to live.

Okay – so walking away from your job isn’t so easy.  The only way I've found to cope is to think out of the box.  I always say to myself: how I can be like Merryweather who can change a curse into a more positive outcome (Disney, Sleeping Beauty).    And, for added protection I hang an evil eye (talisman/amulet) in my office charged to ward off nastiness.   Worst case scenario - I sprinkle salt on the floors before leaving to help absorb the negativity - the cleaning crew come and sweep it up.   

In those meetings where you know you will never win - I've taken up meditating - so hum....... and a walk during lunch.

~#~

Activity

So Hum meditation is a contemplative meditation.  So means "I am" and Hum means "that."  I really like my own meaning - this whole negative conflict is - so hum.....this office in-fighting is - so hum.....

Breath in thinking "so."  When you exhale think "hum."

So Hum meditation

Auntie Grace’s Shortbread Mixed with Peace and Love.

Basic Shortbread

2 cups of sifted all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon each of baking powder and salt
1 cup of softened butter unsalted (2 sticks)
1/2 cup of confectioner sugar sifted.

Addition:

2 tsp ground coriander - for peace and protection
Grated zest from one large lemon - for love, purification and blessings
1/2 tsp of lemon extract
2 Tbsp or fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350.

Sift together flour, baking powder, dried coriander and salt. Cream butter and sugar til light and fluffy.  Add in lemon zest.  Add flour mixture and then add in lemon juice and lemon extract.  Pat dough into 9"x9" ungreased pan. Place your hands over the pan and imagine the intent as being there already.  Bake 20-25 minutes.

Cut into squares. 

Purification – cleansing our thoughts

“We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.”  ~ Buddha

“Those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace.” ~Buddha

“Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Lammas Day here in Ohio was really hot and humid.  The celebration I attended had an outdoors fire going.  This managed to create enough heat to perhaps bake bread.  A quick sniff test – I was relieved to learn that my deodorant was still managing to give off its “spring fresh” scent throughout the ceremony.     

A couple of weeks later my leader sent out a quick post evaluation of the event. The lack of purification came up quite a few times in his observation.  The noted lack of purification seemed odd to me, because it seems like common knowledge that you should do this before going to any ceremonial event: keeping Sabot, wedding ceremonies, visiting a new baby, going out to dinner at a nice restaurant for someone's birthday…..

Purification or ritual cleansing before any ceremonies is an ancient tradition.  It’s done in order to prepare the physical body to act as a liaison between the spiritual and physical plane.  A cleansing before a ritual or ceremony is done to wash away residual energy both seen and unseen.

I can see some of you doing the hand flip of “yea right” on the unseen stuff.

Think about this - have you ever been in an office that causes your neck hairs to rise?  Or perhaps you’re at a person’s house and as you move room to room it feels like cobwebs are sticking to your arm.  Have you ever sat through a meeting where everyone is arguing and you end up with one whopping headache?

That “stuff” you are feeling is sticking to your body’s energy field until you remove it. 

Think of that “stuff” as a piece of dust you find in your sofa.  Look at it closely, there’s a lot of stuff there: hair, cookie crumbs, lint and that button you’ve been looking for since….Get the picture?  This is what surrounds your energy field and ultimately effects how you think and feel. 

I’ve found there seems to be a lot written about how to cleanse the physical body and the physical environment (i.e., purification bathes, aura cleansing, appropriate ritual clothing, listing of cleansing herbs, smudging and salt containers to pull out negative energy), but not so much on how to purify the mind/thoughts and heart. 

Spending time on Navajo Nation, my preceptor told me that thoughts are silent messages out to the universe. Negative thoughts have a way of putting a kink into the universe.  I think of them as the sludge that gunks up the magic in the world.  In car terms, it is the very reason why you need to change your oil – if you don’t your engine might halt, that red light might turn on which leads to a sizable mechanics fee.  The red light under magical conditions can mean that intended love spell has now been directed to another or has been transformed into lust.  Examples of my gunk include:  focusing on what the heck I’m going to do with all those tomatoes; stressed out on how I’m going to get all those tasks done at work, or anxious about my son’s grades. 

I’ve brought the importance of mental cleansing up before a ceremony before.  I feel people seem to brush me off saying: “Oh.  Did that.” or “Good thoughts, check.”  When people tell me this, I feel mental cleansing has been reduced to an easy and quick process like lathering up your hands with lavender soap.  When I have this type of attitude, I’ve found that I tend to be distracted or show a lack of concentration in my work.  To me, purifying the mind goes beyond ticking off “positive thoughts.”  It requires a time and space devoted to introspection, personal change and self-control.

Much of the written work done regarding how to purify the mind has been completed by both the Buddhist and Yoga communities.  The common key is looking at how we react to patterns.  This is done through meditation by doing a mental check in about noticing what is going on in your mind without judgments and accepting it. 

Activity:

Meditation - there are a lot of great meditations out there on Youtube.  

Open to the Spirit

SARK Poster

“Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing. Miriam sang to them: "Sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea." Exodus 15: 20-21, Bible

“David and all Israel were celebrating with all their might before the Lord, with castanets, harps, lyres, timbrels, sistrums and cymbals…..  Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might.”  2 Samuel: 6:5, 14. Bible

“Joy is the grinning inside.”  ~Melba Colgrove

“Joy is the holy fire that keeps our purpose warm and our intelligence aglow” ~ Helen Keller

Miriam Dancing

Growing up in the Christian tradition I heard a lot about feeling the spirit move you.  People were quick to give me of examples such as Miriam, King David or the disciples feeling the fire at Pentecost.    I sat at many church youth retreats watching my friends cry, sing and hug – telling me how the spirit was moving through them.  Me?  I waited patiently for this divine knock your socks off feeling to occur.  Waiting to dance like King David by flinging off my clothes down to my undies (which due to my modesty values would never occur), but nothing ever happened, not even a giddy toe tap.  I also didn’t want to feel left out with this emotional crowd so I’d end up claiming: “Oh yes I feel it.”  And, then I’d wonder: “Is something wrong with me that I don’t feel anything?” or “Why isn’t it happening to me?”

It wasn’t until I began expanding my spirituality toolkit did I fully understand what it means to be “Open to the Spirit.”  I remember it happened during a Baptism ritual, the congregation was asked to remember and honor their connection to the source, Motherfather Spirit.   The minister asked us during a moment of silence to say: “Hey” to the Spirit.  He assured us that the Spirit is present in everyone – those Baptized or not – we were all filled with the spirit; we need to take time out of our busyness to acknowledge our connection.  Baptism was just one ritual recognizing our connection to Motherfather Spirit and an identifiable starting point where our relationship began.  And, for those already Baptized, it’s an opportunity to start afresh if we have forgotten our relationship.

The sermon continued on the theme of being opened to Motherfather Spirit.  What struck me was how I had been lead to believe that those filled with the Spirit acted in an otherworldly state like the descriptions of St. Teresa of Avila or Native American Shamans.  Sure some people had outward behaviors, jumping around or waving their hands showing they were connected, but I found out its more inner, personal and private – each person it being something different.  The minister saw our relationship to Motherfather Spirit crucial to having infinite love, happiness, peace, and laughter in our life.  He equated it to that spark or passion that gets us going expressing our deepest purpose of life (expressing love); and we’d never have to do it alone.  I sat realizing I was already connected and opened to the Spirit.

~#~

“The Wild Woman isn’t a workhorse….The Wild Woman needs aired out.” ~ Z. Budapest

A RECENT DREAM:  My family was being evacuated from our island.  I was deeply upset.  I loved my home with a Maine Vancouver feel.  But, the sirens were blaring and the police were telling us we needed to go: “The fog was coming in.”  I told them I wasn’t afraid of the fog.  My neighbors were in a panic and packing everything they could get into their mini vans and SUVs.  Begrudgingly I grabbed the family heirloom, an oversize glided mirror and loaded this into our Smart car. This was very out of character for me being “Ms. Ohio Preparedness.”  A mirror isn’t on my disaster evacuation list.  Sleeping bags and a tent, YES.  Mirror, No.

Coming back from my Bright Angel Labyrinth experience, I’ve been really focusing and examining my Spiritual Tool Kit to sync my heart, mind and spirit up.  Being at the half-way point of this yearlong blog, I’ve realized I’ve been coasting.  Sure I’ve been doing what I’ve written, but coasting.  The dream to me reinforces this message.  It is my wake-up call for self-reflection. 

I’ve been comfortable with this coasting; it has kept me safe and isolated – thus not wanting to leave my home.  And, by getting too comfortable, I realize the things in my life aren’t as solid as I’d like it.  My joy was kind of flat like day old Ginger Ale with no fizzie.  The mirror urges me to do an honest reflection.  Yes, there are places in my heart that aren’t able to express love because they are filled with other things or past experiences that have left me burnt.  And, if I wanted more love and joy in – I needed to declutter some stuff, get out the polishing cloth, and bless things away.  My messages from Motherfather Spirit – boring…. Yawn… you can do better.  These messages have been going on for a long time and I've been ignoring them.

Z. Budapest would say my “Wild Woman” (or “Wild Man” if you are a man) was bored.  And SARK?  My Succulent Wild Woman - was on the sofa eating too many chocolate creams.  In the meantime - the creative juices have been shrinking.

~#~

I googled “opening spirit pagan.”  I found not much was written.  I tried several other topic searches and laughed when up popped SARK, Z. Budapest and Clarissa Pinkola Estes.  Women who help me begin my Spiritual Quest.  All have written about this connection with spirit and describe it as a place within that is connected to the source.  That inner wise-place that is playful and passionate and joyfully creative.  All three have described our connection with Spirit as having a life filled with peace, love, happiness and laughter.

Another ah-ha moment during this self-reflection was my need to meditate in community.  I’ve been doing it on my own for 7 years and there is something more connected when you meditate in community.  I signed-up for the 21 day meditation challenge with Deepak Chopra – another person who laid a stone on my spiritual journey.