The months have flown past, and we are already in the midst of Summer! For me, the Spring has been a time of great activity; I was delighted to meet many of you at the New Life Expo and The Health & Harmony Festival. I thank those of you who visited me there, and those who helped support SoulWorks in the booths. Many Gratitudes!!
As the seed-planting of spring flows into the abundance of summer, with the fertility, freedom & joy that the warmer weather and longer days bring, I discover myself continuing to examine the eternal questions of Life (who I am, my right place in the world, and my calling to express my fullest self) while sorting through the conditions of the world around me. Some of the terrible and disturbing conditions of our world from earlier in the year have seemingly dissipated and others have continued. We are not under the threat of imminent war, but our economy continues to be in deep recession, unemployment continues to rise, and much of our country's faith in its leadership trembles and continues to erode.
Some of my personal experience may be colored by my approaching 50th birthday, and of the 'Life In Review' process that such a passage demands, yet I am struck by the fact that many, if not all, of my students and clients are grappling with many of these same questions, no matter what their life stage. I propose that we are all deeply affected by the tremendous upheaval in our world and on the planet as it moves through our collective. Perhaps some of our personal struggles are rooted (in either subtle or obvious ways) in the universal struggles of our society and planet, at this time.
As the world around us changes, perhaps never to return to its old order, it is of grave importance, that we, as seekers of consciousness, continue to engage with the age-old questions that lie at the core of Life. If we are to find satisfaction in the daily expression of our lives, if we are to create the fulfillment of our Souls' expression in the world, and if we are to have the sort of impact on our collective that our hearts dream of, then we must honestly come to terms with these changing times. Getting aligned with the changes creates possibility for transformation, while resisting them will only root us more deeply in what is 'passing away.'
Stephen Aizenstadt, the president and founder of Pacifica University, in Santa Barbara has discovered in his work and research with dreams that, culturally, since 9/11, we are experiencing more and more violence and disturbance in our dream lives. This tells us that we are still uneasy with the tremendous power and change wrought by that event.
When one pulls the Tarot card, "The Tower," with its image of collapse, it becomes evident that the 'old order' is dying, and for those who trust in the power of that divinatory process, it is clear that aligning oneself with a 'psychic death' is what is being called for. While that is hard enough for an individual , it is exponentially more difficult when the collective structure that has served for centuries is undergoing a 'psychic death.' Perhaps the collapse of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center has been the foreshadowing of the collapse or death of parts of our collective psyche. Personally, this calls me to reconsider my place in the world around me, and I sense that this is a reorganization that many of us are undergoing at this time. (See The Four Seasons of Change, a selection that addresses our need to allow for death as part of a transformational, growth cycle.)
Have we resumed our lives after 9/11, after war in Afghanistan and Iraq, and after any of the catastrophic or difficult events of these past years, wishing for life to 'return to normal?' For many of us the answer may be both "yes" & "no." "Yes," because we all want for our lives to be reflective of a peaceful environment. And,"No," because we understand that something profound, and core, has changed. Many of us wish to align ourselves with the change, or incorporate the values that these changes are initiating into our daily lives.
And so, I ask the questions: Is it possible to return to 'life as normal?' What is 'normal' in the 21st century? What can I, as a conscious person, do to come to terms with the changes our culture is undergoing and what sorts of choices would honor them? What must die in the collective psyche (or in me, personally) in order to find 'right relationship' to ourselves and the world in which we live? And how can I support the collective consciousness, or at least those whom my life touches, to come into 'right relationship' with the reality of the changing structures of life at this time and into the future? For those of us who are consciousness seekers, these questions must arise as we contemplate the conditions of our world, and our place in it. My experience is that exploring them in Nature supports the process of deep encounter with Self, Source & Spirit. That is healing for the individual psyche, and, therefore, rejuvenative for the collective psyche. Engaging with wilderness helps us to reconnect with our instinct and intuition; and with the simplicity and organic flow of life that is restorative to the human soul.
In that vein, I continue to offer EARTH WISDOM RETREATS in the hope that they will help us, one by one, to bring transformation to our personal lives, and ultimately, to the world in which we live. We are descended from the Earth, which makes her our Ancestor. In Earth-based or Indigenous societies, the Ancestors are the carriers and guardians of age-old wisdom and guidance for the sustenance of the tribe. Thus, when we connect deeply with our Ancestors (the life forms of the earth as well as our familial and clan ancestors) we open to that which is our Natural Inheritance - that which guides us toward right relationship with the world in which we reside. From there we are able to find inner peace and wisdom to bring to our personal lives and to our troubled planet.
