Soul Messages

I stood with my mother, aunt and a couple of other family members, lined up side-by-side. My grandmother standing before us, looking serene, said good-bye, hugging us one-by-one. She then turned, and crawled out a window and stood on the ledge. She stood still with a small peaceful smile and gazed into the distance. I called out to her, desperate, my heart gripped with sorrow, “Grandma! Don’t go!” I awoke from the dream, heart wrenching and choking back sobs caught in my throat.

Later that morning, I got a call from my mother saying that my grandmother, who was staying in a nursing home during that time, had gotten sick and almost died the night before. I was astonished at the coincidence and I knew that I’d had a telepathic dream. I was living in Toronto and my grandmother along with the rest of my family was in B.C. Despite the distance that separated us, my grandmother and I had experienced a psychic connection.

Dreams have given me many years of soul messages. I have been keeping dream journals for over twenty years and I am often amazed at what can come to me once my conscious thoughts are out of the way. Despite the seemingly often silliness of dreams, dreams are an incredible phenomenon. They are the gateway to the soul. They have allowed me to look deep within, and to experience universal consciousness at work. Our spirits connected, we make up this great web we refer to as universal source.

I also refer to the universe as soul. Soul is the collective mind and our spirit is our essence through which our dreams can communicate. Thoughts pass us by all the time and a dream comes from thoughts whose message we are prepared to receive. Hence, the soul relaying messages for guidance in our day-to-day lives.

Dreams have presented me with the opportunity to experience first-hand that time does not exist as we have invented. Past, present, and future are not separate. They are one. Precognitive dreams, or dreams that predict the future, demonstrate such a phenomenon. My dreams that have come true sometimes months later have proven to me that linear time, as we know it does not exist.

The language of dreams can be very difficult to decipher, as it is a language of the spirit, and the spirit is not the rational world to which we have become accustomed. This is what is important about listening to our spirit. We have lost much of our connection and now we have reached an era where we are hungering to reconnect to the essence of who we are, and for our connection to the divine. Dreams are the voice of our spirit that is part of the Universal Ocean, or Soul.

The dream of my grandmother all those years ago showed me timelessness and the lack of separateness, especially with someone in my life to whom I had been close. It is the connection with the divine, which is universal soul of which we are all one. 

Spider Sense

"We dance around in a ring and suppose but the secret sits in the middle and knows."

Robert Frost

Nature taught me another lesson just recently. Spending some much-needed time by the water, I asked for guidance, a little insight into whatever I needed to know at the time. As for any answers I seek like this, I never know what will come, and I need to stay clear and present.

As I perched on a large boulder under some trees, I began to notice a host of spider webs around me among the rocks and plants. One such web caught my attention nearby, as something told me to take notice. A smallish, delicate spider sat in the centre, doing what spiders do, and I saw nothing out of the ordinary.  As I watched, each leg gave a careful tug on the strands, detecting whatever might have graced its presence. A couple of times, it scurried down a strand to investigate. Each strand was the extension of its universe, with its central headquarters, where the spider always returned.

For a moment, I looked out onto the water and admired the scene on this perfect summer day. The sound of the wind through the trees was one of pure tranquility; my place I had chosen was private and perfect.

After a brief disappearance of the spider, somewhere beneath a large rock, what had taken its place was a much larger spider that looked to be of a different species, lumbering around the web.  I was a little shocked and watched as it busily set about destroying the web. It appeared to be devouring the web and by the time it was done, three quarters of the web was gone. I was astonished! I wondered how a spider could do this to another, and I was intrigued and maybe a little upset. The spider then disappeared and the original spider returned, taking its position in the centre, seemingly unperturbed.

When I got home, I did a little research on this behavior. It turned out that the larger spider was probably the female and the smaller one the male. Apparently, the larger female ate the silk of the web for food, as they sometimes do.

Okay, so I assumed something false, and I got a little emotional while the spiders were just doing their jobs.

The spiders taught me to keep my centre. There will always be opportunities to be offended, and the better way is to return to our centre. Who are we and what is our place in the universe? To be centred is to be present; always awake and watchful, paying attention. Like the spider who tugs its strands, the universe is made up of strands that connect us all, and what happens far away can affect us where we sit, as we are all connected by the same stuff that makes up the universe.  Where is our centre, and how do we access the world around us?

The other thing I had to remember is how our thoughts can be our worst enemy, assuming things that aren’t true, especially concerning things we don’t understand, so spirit must take precedence, as it is truth. 

A Rainburst Omen Indeed.

A friend did some work with me over the phone this evening. We talked about some issues that had come up for me in the last couple of days.

As I sat in my living room, with the phone in hand, I looked out at the sun, setting low just above the distant skyline. From my ninth floor window, I see below the skyline a smattering of houses visible among a sea of trees. I marveled at the cloud formations slowly passing by.

Every summer I get to enjoy sunsets like this, a vision of exquisite beauty in the heart of this great city.

As we approached the end of our conversation, I began to hear a sound outside that sounded like a street cleaner. I got up to look outside and was astonished to see a great downpour of rain. Raindrops bigger than I had ever seen, came down in a torrential wall of water, with the sun shining brightly, backed by vivid blue sky! I have seen showers with the sun shining, yes, but I had never seen anything like this. The sight was truly phenomenal.

I gasped at the sight, and my friend expressed a knowing portent of the work we had just done - a cleansing and a clearing of thoughts and feelings that had accumulated over the past while, backed by the brilliant illumination of the sun.

I got my answer to what I had asked for just this morning, in addition to wonderful support from other friends. A sign from the Creator, I was open to recognize. It was bold, and it was the impeccable timing that made it so phenomenal.

I was open and alert to this meaningful coincidence that had special relevance to guide me at the perfect moment.

Tribute to my Mother

April ninth 2012, marks the first-year anniversary of my mother’s death. So much goes through my mind in memory of her that it is hard to know where to begin. My heart is mixed with sadness and feeling grateful to have shared a part of my life with her.

Our relationship was fraught with difficulty, stormy to say the least. The screams, the fights, the unkind words, the butting head… We were so much alike and yet so different; her, living a life that included choices she made that brought regret and emotional turmoil; and me, wanting to be what I could possibly be, while struggling to gain the tools to allow me to walk my own path.

My mother’s life was a difficult one, and she never gave to herself in a way that would allow her to feel worthy of her place in this world. She never believed she was deserving of self-love, never having learned to take care of herself, to put herself on a higher rung of the emotional ladder. She suffered greatly.

In her brief career as a family support worker, she was known for her good work in helping others. She worked her way up without formal education and, deservingly, took pride in her accomplishment.

She endured many years of incredible hardship in certain family problems, and never gave up on the people involved. She was kind and generous in ways she knew how, and despite the difficulty, she continued giving.

Later in her life, she began to share some of her poetry, inspired by faith she developed in the higher power. Through a series of serious illnesses through her adult life, along with family strife, her poems became her voice, and prayer became a comforting place to lay her head.

Why could she not see the gifts and beauty she beheld within her?

How much has changed in my thoughts toward her now that she is gone. Now, I have only myself to contend with, and it has been a lesson in humility that I have not understood until recently. It has brought me clarity and understanding, and a new appreciation for the woman who gave me life and did what she felt best.

To have spent more time sitting with my mother, listening to her stories, would have been one of the best things I could have done for her, and for me, and I regret not doing so. Even though we all have our stories of painful lessons in life, I think that to be able to share with those we are closest to would be a treasure indeed. If we really come from a place of love, we could never judge another again.

I wear my battle scars like a badge of honour, and hold my visit with my mother in this life, locked deep in my heart. I wish I could have said this to her when she was alive.

I honour and share what I have discovered to be a treasure in my relationship with her, of which I can be truly proud.

I love you mother. Until we meet again, in another life.

Nature is One Heal of an Entity

Nature heals. It heals because it is the original balance of energy. It encompasses all that is. It is everything and it is everywhere.

I recently heard a statement, that love puts humans above animals. Well, that statement got my back up like a hissing cat, hair standing on end. The only thing I can say that I agree with, is the arrogance of this statement. Here on Earth Mother, animals would thrive just fine without humans, while humans would not survive five minutes without animals. Looking at what we humans have done to this planet, and to other inhabitants here, including each other, I can hardly agree that we are a superior race. Where is the love in the idea that we are above nature?

I find that when I spend time alone in nature, my mind very soon becomes calmer and quieter, grounding me to the present. As I observe my surroundings, I see a symphony of life forms in their splendor, whether they are in movement or seemingly still. They all have their place, vibrating at their own energy level, all playing their part in the in the scheme of life.

My thought on this issue is this: if we have been living more in accordance with how Indigenous cultures lived for thousands of years, this planet would be in much better shape than it is today. We have continuously depleted our earth while putting little back, as we have lost respect and regard for our Earth Mother.

Natural disasters, sickness, and climate change, are symptoms of an ailing earth trying to heal herself. She heals, and she must balance herself when she is ill. Just as the body heals itself in the manifestation of pain, illness, and disease, which can be uncomfortable, the earth is showing her distress, in the manifestation of dis-ease. The greater the need for healing, the more intense the discomfort in the healing process. Thus, the more the earth needs to heal, the greater the inevitability for natural disasters.

Everything has its purpose here, be it human, animal, tree, stream, or rock. No one is above anyone else. This is the belief of the Indigenous cultures of our world – we are all one and everyone is merely a strand in the web of creation. We are all, human, animal, or otherwise, vibrating to the tune of our own energetic frequency, assigned to each one of us to play our part here. Is this not the Creator?

To me, love is this balancing energy of nature and the acceptance of all beings as they are. I cannot put humans above animals, as everyone is here for a reason, taking no precedence over another. To suggest that love puts humans above animals (or nature) is to say that animals lack importance in their part of creation that is love; that animals are not love. Animals are love, no less than the trees and the waters – and humans. 

This is the healing power of nature.

The Chinese Bamboo

I have recently been awestruck by a teaching on the Chinese bamboo. It goes something like this. A tiny bamboo seed is planted, and then for the first five years, it appears as though nothing is happening accept for a tiny sprout protruding from the surface of the ground. During those five years, the root system is developing; a complicated system where all the growth takes place underground. Then, at the end of the five years, within just six weeks, the bamboo suddenly grows and grows, shooting upward, reaching a height of about 25 meters, or 90 feet. What this extensive root system offers is a solid foundation for the bamboo to continue to stand tall, able to withstand high winds that would ultimately topple the plant if it should possess a smaller root system.

We can learn much from the Chinese bamboo, as we possess many of its qualities.

For years, as I worked on my self-development, not much seemed to happen. It appeared as if no growth was happening, and that everything I had worked on so hard was futile. I felt discouraged and frustrated and like many others, in abject frustration, I felt like giving up and tossing it all to the curb. I felt as though I were mired in an endless vacuum.  Only the tiniest manifestation of my fruits appeared, yet – I persisted, just because I was driven by something deep within me I couldn’t quite understand. What I wasn’t conscious of were the intricate happenings deep within my soul.

The Chinese bamboo teaches us about patience and perseverance, and that what is going on is not always what we see on the surface. We live in a society where instant results and what we perceive with the five senses are highly favoured over savouring the intricate process of growth and development. Deep underground, is a wealth of preparation, a foundation that will help us to stand tall and to be a deeper and more self-actualized person.

The task is to trust in the process, and to know that what we experience on the surface and in the light is not all there is.

Like the bamboo, it may take years to build a strong foundation for our own spiritual and personal growth, while on the surface appearing to be just a wisp, never growing and changing. The intricacy of the teachings we receive, the healing, and all the work we do on ourselves, is the foundation we are building to enable us to withstand the strong winds of adversity, and to become the person we want to be. In fact, adversity is what is also involved in building that foundation.

So, the message is clear. Don’t give up! Push past your fears and doubt, and continue on your path. How much are you willing to cultivate your hope and make your dreams come true? You may not be aware of how much you are growing and healing until sometime later on your path. Then at some point, you rise up, tall and strong, with your foundation grounding and holding you, as you reap the rewards of all your hard work.

Help Stop the Violence

An eight-year-old girl shared her story on the radio this morning about her experience with living in poverty in Canada. It was a sad story that depicted how a child feels when she lacks what others take for granted.  A tragic feature about this account was her lack of confidence in talking about what she wanted to be when she grew up, even though she knew what it was. Similarly heart wrenching was her fear of asking for anything, for in her budding life, she is already learning poverty consciousness.

Now, do not get me wrong. I am not saying that violence only happens among the poor. I think we all know that violence is a systemic problem that happens across the board, showing no preference for race, income level, or any other specific group.  What I am saying is that the poor and marginalized groups are more vulnerable to violence due to many factors including lack of financial health. What this little girl believes at such a young age, is that she is headed for a difficult life with low confidence and low self-esteem. She is already losing her voice and consequently, her power. Where is this going to lead her in terms of relationships later in life? This could render her more vulnerable, at the loss of her voice, and self-confidence – a lack of personal identity. The repercussions of child poverty are copious to say the least.

Aboriginal women are even far more at risk of experiencing violence than non-Aboriginal women. Here is a quote from the Ontario Women’s Directorate, “In 2004, Aboriginal women were three times more likely to experience spousal violence than non-Aboriginal women or men, and the rate of spousal homicide for Aboriginal women was eight times the rate for non-Aboriginal women”. In addition, “11% of non-Aboriginal and 21% of Aboriginal women in Canada reported experiencing stalking during the period of 1999-2004”.

Women hold a special place in the importance of healing. This is because of their impact on the well-being of their children and their roles in the community as healers and teachers. It is known that children witnessing violence experience the same level of trauma as children who have experienced violence, making it important for women to find ways to stop the violence and protect their children.

Violence and abuse stem from the loss of personal power and the misuse of power over another. By becoming more self-empowered and overcoming feelings of helplessness, women can heal and make better choices for themselves.

Within the Aboriginal community, we believe that men need healing just as much as do women. By taking back the ceremonies and the Traditional ways, by finding our voice and taking back our power, we heal as individuals and as a nation.

Speaking out and hearing the stories of others are powerful ways to gain more understanding of what we have experienced and to know that we are not alone. We must not be silenced. We must find and expand our collective voice.