Tell It To The Judge.

Ugly.
Stupid.
Smelly.
Sickening.
Racist.
Disgusting.

Many of you who read the above words will experience a feeling of discomfort.
When a word evokes an unpleasant or uncomfortable feeling from an individual, the word is sometimes said to "carry a negative emotional charge".  Every word you speak, think or write carries an emotional charge-which is largely determined by the experiences and perspective of the listener/thinker/reader.
Writers are particularly aware of this. Just as visual artists use symbols, form and color to evoke or convey emotion, writers use things like word choice, punctuation and adjectives to evoke certain emotions from their readers-this is how they convey the meaning of the story-and keep people interested in reading their books!

When a person assigns a (most often negatively) charged  word to a situation or thing, they are often said to be "judgmental"-and this is often vilified by the New Age Community.

Are they?
OF COURSE THEY ARE.

But is this necessarily a "bad" thing?

Of all the words in use in our language today, especially among those of the New Age Community, I feel that the word judgment carries the biggest negative charge of all.  Many Spiritual Teachers teach that judgment is a by-product of the ego, and therefore is something that must be released in order to attain true enlightenment.  Buddhist philosopher, Chogyam Trungpa had this to say;

"The attainment of enlightenment from the ego's point of view is extreme death".

While I agree that attachment (another no-no among the Non-deist philosophies) stems from the ego, and that judgment is a form of attachment , I think that the attachment that is inherent in being judgmental is more subtle than just the ego trying to perpetuate itself.


Let me explain.

With regard to our New Age friends, what you are really "attached" to here are the assumptions that;
1)  A always represents B.
          and, ironically
2) To have this point of view is always a bad thing.

But let's take another look at the nature of judgment.
Many of the day-to-day decisions made by our brains, based on the input of our senses, happen automatically-and far too fast for us to really register that a decision has been reached.

(Now, for those of you who adhere more strongly to dictionary definition may feel that this continual process does not really qualify as "judgment".  But the thesaurus gives many equivalents to the word judgment, such as estimation, evaluation, decision and intelligence, which may be more acceptable to you, but still mean the same thing.  This is a good example of a judgment-that judgment is an inappropriate word based on your beliefs.  I'm not doing this to get under your skin, dear literal friends-but I am trying to make a point.)

So what this means is that a person is immersed in a constant stream of information that that comes from the outside stimulation, which, in turn, is interpreted by their senses and influenced by their own beliefs and perceptions-in other words, judgment.  They do this many times a minute-even a decision as simple as "I will sit in this chair because I judge it sturdy enough to hold my weight" is a judgment.
Forming a preference is a judgment.   
Making a decision is a judgment.
Expressing a desire is a judgment.
Taking a step is a judgment.
Being human means being judgmental.  That's it.  It's that simple.
So judgment is really not the issue here and has gotten a bad rap.

The problem comes, as I see it, when a particular word carries an emotional charge, and that causes us to attribute a value judgment (to deem better or worse with relation to something else) to it which evokes a reaction from you that does not serve you.  That is the "attachment" that the Non-deist and New Age philosophies would have you avoid, not the word itself or even the meaning.
Our preferences are not what hold us back; it is the belief that our judgments make us a better or worse person than someone with a different judgment.  It is also the fear that the opinion of those who assign us a negative value is somehow more valid than our own.
Judgment only becomes dangerous when it is used to shore up our own self-esteem or to undermine the self esteem of another.

So, what to do.....

The first step is to stop beating yourself and others up over doing what your very nature compels you to do.

The next step is to loosen the hold of our value judgments.  This allows us to examine more closely the world around us.  We are forced to examine each thing, in each moment without getting hung up on whether something is negative or positive-better or worse.
It simply is and is allowed to exist as it is-which, in my judgment, is pretty good.  :)

Stop Filling In The Blanks

Because the Ego is continuously fighting for survival to justify its existence, it takes it upon itself to know everything- even when there is no information with which to form an opinion.  Its need to be in charge is so great that it supplies "facts" to make up for the unknown elements of a given situation. 
In other words; it just makes stuff up.
We are all involved in a constantly evolving story-line of our own creating.
This week, I had a first-hand opportunity to see how this can wreak havoc with my life.

It began with a flat tire.
Well, not completely flat, but on its way to that state.  The car, however, belonged to a friend of mine, and they informed me with a sense of utter certainty that someone had let the air out of the tire; and that this act was done in an attempt to "get back" at my friend for something.
Not that my friend "believed" someone had done this, but that someone had done it.

I took a look at the event, the realization that one tire was low on air, and decided that it didn't quite add up to evidence of a malicious act.  Why did they just take some of the air out?  Why did they only do this on one tire? Wouldn't someone who was being truly malicious want to cause the greatest amount of inconvenience to their victim?  Wouldn't they let the air out of all the tires-or, at the very least let all the air out of one tire?
But my friend was already caught up in the natural progression of thought which went something like this:
If one was to assume that someone let some of the air out of one of the tires, then there had to be a reason why. 
The reason why was obviously something negative.  They were trying to "get back" at my friend.  They were unfriendly people.  They were making a political statement.  They were ignorant.  etc etc etc....
That led to my friend to feel  disliked, unsafe and threatened. 

Now, hold on here.  We do not actually know what really happened.  But the owner of the car went automatically to the negative.  Is the preferred state of being to feel unsafe and threatened?  No, that certainly does not serve me.
Then why do it?

Well, it seemed obvious to me.
There was no reason to do it.
Knowing that people around me often reflected my own beliefs, I decided to take a look at myself, and Goodness, what a mess I found!

Turns out, I do the same thing on many, many subjects.  Someone didn't return a text because they must be mad at me.  Someone offered me a gift in order to buy me off in some way.  I didn't get asked to a place because my company is not as enjoyable as someone else's.  Someone didn't like my Facebook Post, I'm not as good as other people who post and get "liked".

Sheesh!

To show you what I mean, I'll take a specific entry from my journal:

Situation:
Someone didn't return a text.

Old Thoughts:
They are mad at me.  I've offended them somehow.  Other people probably get their texts returned right away.  I bet other people get lots of communication.  I am being excluded.  I am less worthy.  Something is being hidden from me.

Of course, none of this made me feel good about anything, in fact, thoughts like this often just brought me to tears.
So I continued;

It COULD be they are simply busy.
Perhaps other people are getting the same treatment.
Perhaps they have not gotten my message.
Perhaps they do not know how to answer.
They don't like to text.
They are having some quiet time.
The phone is not working.
I DO NOT KNOW WHY AND THAT'S OK

I release the need to know WHY-and I no longer fill in these blanks.  The event is neutral and even though I do not, at this time, see how it will work out positively, I accept that it will and leave it where it is.  The Universe is working hard to send me what I desire.  I'm getting a handle on this and as painful as it is to face, I'm proud that I have figured it out and I KNOW I have the strength to face it."

There could be any number of reasons, NONE of which pointed to anything negative about me or how I was being treated, but the point is not really to assign some specific meaning (though positive possibilities feel better than repeating the negative ones), it is to remember that there is no inherent pain in any given situation.  They are all neutral.  The meaning they have is what we assign to them.  Our physical mind is not designed to know and understand every little detail so stop forcing it to do something it isn't designed to do.
I went through my present thoughts and did a process like the above for every instance where I realized I was filling in the blanks for something I didn't know.
Even if you don't believe, as I do, that Reality is directed by your thoughts and vibration, why would you choose to suffer those negative thoughts before you really, REALLY have a reason?

And if you do agree with me about the nature of Reality, then you can see how putting out a vibe of negative expectation just causes those expectations to be realized.
Your mind is designed to take account of how things are happen-ING, NOT to determine how something happened or will happen.  It is a great, in-the-moment interpreter, and that's all it's supposed to be.  It functions best when we are in the present moment and there are many systems of belief that say the same thing.

Have faith that things happen for a reason, but don't knock yourself out or worse-make yourself cry, wondering what that reason is.  Just remember that when the time comes for you to know, and it will, that everything will become clear; and that reason will always turn out to be the very best for you. 
Whatever the actual reason behind the low tire, from my perspective it happened to bring another layer of myself to my attention so that it could be healed-and that turned out to be a very good thing.

"What Is This World Coming To?"

This is a question that someone recently asked of me.
"I can answer that, but you won't like it.", I said.
"Tell me anyway.", they said.

OK...here goes.

In recent times, it seems that there has been an increase in unpleasant happenings.  We look at the news coming from Boston (my home town) and other places, and at first glance it looks as though the state of the world is going down the drain. 

Now pay attention to what I said; "AT FIRST GLANCE".
But think.
Many of you know and understand that we are in the midst of a global shift in consciousness.  But what some don't realize is that in order for this shift to occur, there has to be a motivation.  In other words, every improvement in the world that has ever taken place has happened because someone recognized a thing or situation that they did not prefer and focused on an improved version of it. 
"But why so much?" you ask...

Well, in order for someone to care about changing the unwanted thing, it must be relevant to their lives.  Of course what happens to Boston is relevant to Bostonians, but is it relevant to those living in Michigan?  Is what happens in Michigan relevant to Californians?
Not so much.

So, in order for the entire world to shift the way in which they view reality there must be events that provide the inspiration in many different areas and on many different levels.  And, since time is speeding up (actually it only appears that way but more on that in another post), it appears that these negative incidents are happening more frequently.

The important thing here is to focus on HOW we are dealing with these events. 
Do we choose to focus on blame and revenge?  Do we responded by promoting fear-based programming and become fearful ourselves?
For my part, I chose to look at the recent events in Boston and made the decision to see the larger picture. 
It was a picture which illustrated the process of the unwanted giving rise to the wanted.  In other words, I was able to understand that it was exactly this type of event that makes possible the tremendously powerful coming together of peoples looking to create something better.  It was a strange feeling-this thought that , on some level, I might feel some form of gratitude to those who had caused so much suffering; but when I understood that I had been given an opportunity to learn more about compassion if I so chose, I learned to appreciate the lesson. 

I try to look at all episodes of negativity this way.  Perhaps I'm just noticing it more because it has been such a focus for me, but during this global shift I'm finding that more and more often others have followed suit.
By doing this, there is no negative situation that cannot give birth to something positive. 

Violent episodes, like the one in Boston, have no meaning aside from the meaning we assign to it.  What we take from the experience becomes more important than the experience itself.

So..."what is this world coming to?"

I, for one, am pretty optimistic.  :)

What Good May Come Of It-A Father's Legacy

There is no delicate way of saying this.

My father was a crook.

And a recent reunion of 3 of his 6 children from 5 different mothers sparked a conversation about his life and how sad it was that such an apparently brilliant man wasted his intelligence and skills on a life of crime.

As a Shaman, I appreciate the lessons that we come to this Earth to learn when it comes to the larger picture.  I understand that, in Spiritual terms, my father's existence provides lessons and experiences that are unique to his children and what we do with those lessons helps us to realize who we are.  For that, at least, I am forever grateful to the man and his spirit for being there to teach me that.
Yeah.
Sure.
Right.
;)

But it seemed, on another, more "Earthy" and In-Your-Face level, to be such a sad waste of talent and potential for him to have gone the way he did.  My awareness of the "bigger picture" did little to soothe the hurt feelings of the 3 year old child inside me who became aware that there was something "different" about my history with respect to other children.  What my family avoided speaking about told me much more than the short, terse answers I got when I was old enough to start asking difficult questions.  It's hard not to assume that this somehow reflects on your worth as a person; especially for a child.
The mothers of his children have a particular point of view concerning their experiences with my father, and their opinions are, shall we say, less than complementary.
Before I met these men, my brothers, I was resigned to incorporate this vibration into my own being, and thought I had made peace with it all.  But as we chatted easily together, it became apparent that there might be a connection that transcended the common pain and chaos our father had caused for each of us.  As we exchanged the bits of knowledge that we had, and discovered more about this man, we slowly discovered things about each other that provided a different picture.

From my brother Joe, I learned that my father painted and had considered attending art school at one time.  Painting is a skill I discovered for myself only recently- it surprised me more than anyone, but it made sense to me that somehow I may have inherited this unknown talent in part from my father.

From my brother James, we learned that my father had studied law and became a paralegal while still incarcerated.  My brother James certainly inherited this practical intelligence and became a successful businessman who left a steady job to strike out on his own.  In the middle of a recession, he used his skills and knowledge as an engineer to build his own branch of an international company. He had the flexibility to accept and appreciate his two sons for the exceptional individuals they are, and they have flourished. 

Out of the 6 of us, Joe spent the longest time with our father in his life, and though he had more of a negative example, he turned it around and took away important lessons concerning family and responsibility.  He works hard providing for his 3 daughters in a way that our father never did.  He channeled his anger into martial arts, and is still well-remembered in relevant circles as a talented Thai Kick-boxer and instructor.  Joe balanced his physical existence with a deeply Spiritual side.  He takes pride in that, and so do the rest of us.

Though I do not know them as well, I can see that my father's legacy was not limited to the three of us.  My sister Marjory has a sense of aesthetic that rivals the most experienced interior designer.  She built a beautiful home for her family.
My sister Alicia, however, inherited our father's temper.  But, instead of turning those feelings into negative actions, she developed a sense of justice and outspokenness that we all admired.  Unfortunately, she passed away before I could meet her in person, but we did speak often by phone.  We both worked hard to put ourselves through school and we shared stories about those challenges.  Of all of us, it was Alicia who was able to stand up to our father and tell him in no uncertain terms just what she thought of him.  And though we may have cringed a little on the outside when she did it, inside we were all cheering her on for doing what we all wish we had the guts to do for ourselves. 

Of the 6, I know the least about George, who lives a quiet life in the mid-west with his wife and children.  He doesn't seem to feel the need to put what happened in perspective, nor does he seem to spend a lot of time soul-searching and sharing his experiences with the rest of his siblings.  Maybe our father, who was a poor Cuban immigrant, did what he did on some level in order to fit in with his ideal of the rich, successful American. Of course, what we do, we do because we think that it will make us happy, and it seems that, out of all of us, George has come the closest to realizing the kind of life that our father wanted.   George seems happy.  Without the glamor, without the glitz and showy possessions; he is happy.
Perhaps that's the greatest gift of all.

Looking at all of us through the lens of greater understanding, my brothers James and Joe and I realized that our father's life may not have been as much of a waste as we had thought.  Though there are many holes in the story that may never be filled in, we know that in terms of his children at least, there was a positive outcome to my father's existence.
I can know who I am, and be proud of who I am.  Partially because of it all, and admittedly partially in spite of it all-but nonetheless; proud of all of who I am; the negative and the positive.
And I have a great family.
I've said that before.
But until now I've never been able to say this;
Thanks, Dad.

Faith

"It is inconceivable to me that a Universe in which anything is possible could present us with a life full of challenges without also giving us the means to overcome them."
- Grace Gemini

On Repeating Numbers

 I've seen so many sites and it seems that a whole lot of people have put a whole lot of time into "defining" just what these numbers mean-books, websites, pamphlets, angels, specific meanings, blogs. wow.
Some of the "meanings" aren't really that positive from my perspective, "Your agels aren't with you" or "brace for change"-and sometimes that brings me down; so I decided to do it this way;
I told the Universe that coming across repeating numbers is simply an indication to me, sent by my higher self, that I'm ON THE RIGHT TRACK.
Thanks to all those people who spent so much time and effort in breaking it all down, and I'm sure that it works for them, but I'm not going to worry about what 9's mean, or if I prefer 3's to 5's-if I see them, I just know I'M DOING THE RIGHT THING, and I smile.
I have noticed that since I decided that, they are coming up a LOT more often!
I think I did the right thing.
:)

When Life Gets Rough, Remember Why You Are Here.

You’re here to *learn* things.

Not to know things.

That’s a very important distinction.

You’re not here to *know* lessons-you’re not here so that this information magically appears inside your head.

...

It was the *process* of learning that was important to you, with all it’s delays, issues and effort and pain. Have faith that everything you experience is a part of that learning- the reason that you are here.

The journey *IS* the destination. So relish it.

A Walmart Tale

Several months ago, while I was sitting on a bench waiting for a friend to complete her shopping at Walmart, I had a chance to chat with a lovely older lady who was sharing my seat.  We discussed our day and it came up in conversation-as it often seems to between perfect strangers and I- that she had been having a bad time recently and I said, ” I’m so sorry to hear that.  Do you have anything pleasant to focus on at all?”  Unfortunately she answered “No.”
So I gave her my bracelet.
It was a silly thing I had made, a coil-wrap wire bracelet with bright beads and charms on it.  It had a little guy in a space suit on one end and a charm of the space shuttle on the other and I chose the beads because they reminded me of planets.  I said, “Well, now you can say that you got a gift from a complete stranger!”  And she smiled.
A few days ago, I was at Walmart again, and a somewhat younger lady was at the pharmacy waiting in line with me for medicine and I happened to look at her wrist and noticed my bracelet.  I asked her where she got it, and she said “My mother gave it to me.  I was having a bad day and she said she got it from an angel on a day when she was having a rough time, and it would make me smile when I looked at it too.”
Everything is working out just the way it’s supposed to.

Sometimes...

"Sometimes, a Soul mate comes to teach you something you need to know, but sometimes a Soul mate’s job is to let you go so you can experience something alone, then reconnect and help you heal again after the lesson has been learned."
-Grace Gemini

A Thankless Job

Last night, I did a distance healing for someone who I know will never thank me for it.  I opened his heart chakra, pulled out all the gunk and replaced it with Love, Peace and Clarity.
I think it worked.

The Three Pearls

Goodness only knows how this started--I think it had something to do with watching all those episodes of "The Tudors"
My apologies for the formatting- it's a tad messy.



"Cry me a river." said the Witch Queen to the Elvin King, and he did, which carried them away to distant shores."My heart is your compass", said the king;"Given freely, and without remorse"

Then she kissed him on his kingly brow, her lips were warm against his skin, her love to show for all the world; a golden spark to kindle flames that flickered deep within.

"Your eyes, my stars to guide us by", the Witch Queen lay the words upon the night, "your breath, the winds to fill the sails and that which brings all things to set aright."

And up amidst the roiling, spewing wat'ry coil arose an island bright whereupon the travelers lit and thought to spend the night.The ship which carried them, in which they held great store; brought them safely through the waves, and to the grainy shore.

Wrapped in velvet black of sunless sky, did they lay themselves upon the sand,which served to cradle them as flowers held within a gently curved hand.  And lo- from heaven to softly kiss each sleeping Fey on creaseless brow,did bend the Lady Moon, within whose silver net, the lovers rested now.


Presently, Nature's gentle alchemy turned subtle silver to radiant gold, and great Helios loosed his rays from the vault that was their's, within to hold.On flaming horses drew he, his chariot across the blue which caused the lover's waking world to once again renew.

And from within empty bellies did roar the memory of food, and that which wanted more.  Into the hills they did pass, lock'd arm in arm with heads whispering together in search of that which sustains and grows in places made easier to gather.

Said the Elvin King to his Lady Fair "you are my bounty, and all good things that gods to men do bring" and with these words occurred a strange and marvelous thing; for before them upon a stone which sat atop the fertile ground they did spy,a table strewn with all manner of things in whose design were meant to satisfy.

And there on the table, set to grace the display of Fairy fare,upon a scalloped shell, three pearls of varied hue lay shining there.One of copper, bright as flame, one of silver in Luna's way and the third of gold, and each of a size to match the round wonder in lovers' eyes.

And wonder they did, at the gleaming treasure so then at last, with hunger satisfied according to their pleasure they took for themselves, this regal gift and our Lady secreted the pearls within the bodice of her flowing shift.

But all was not well, for in a tree that grew across the glen, perched a creature with a taste for the riches of mortal men.  And knowing benefit of neither hope nor heart within his hollow chest this wizened being did scheme for ways by which the shining orbs away from the lovers, he might wrest.

With naked hatred did he jump upon the groundand waved his black and twisted arms in circles all around and where his evil, jealous flesh did cast its shadow on the heath another dark and sinister thing would crawl up from its den in reaches underneath.

"I'll have those pearls!" growled the twisted elf intent on taking all the lustrous riches for himself. His gibbering, spitting horde did move to carry out his will and encircle the lovers, now arm in arm though standing defiant still.

So from her gown the Witch Queen brought forth the pearl as red as flame and the Elvin King said "You, black and twisted thing who has no name,can have this pearl, by my leave and without redress, for I would rather have the copper of my lover's curling tresses."

The evil thing held aloft his hand with fingers curled into a dark foreboding ring and made as if from air to catch the luminous thing but as he closed his greedy fist around the pearl of reddish hue suddenly it was a pearl no more and like it's shade in name, did burst into a gout of copper flame.

"What trickery is this!?" he cried, letting loose the elemental sprite upon the ground as dancers dancing, did the fire circle dark and muttering host, on all sides 'round.When burning terpsichorean had gleaned the final stick, and wind had wiped the hillside clean the foul and choking smoke retreated from his eyes to show, the shining couple nowhere to be seen.

Half-mad with fury, taunted by the image of the gem that circumstance had caused him to eschew The greedy gnome said "Very well, if one pearl has been denied me, then I shall have the other two!"So reaching, grasping, clawing, spurred on by crazed ambitions yet to be fulfilled he aimed his forces skyward, ever climbing, driving them with stinging blows and foul curses on to take the summit of the hill.

Three days hence, the loving Fey found themselves upon a rocky ledge above a valley spread below like a length of autumn-colored silk.  A clear view, their vantage point afforded from farthest east to western edge with no sign of twisted goblin or others of his evil ilk.

A river flowed, woven through as a ribbon of blue to hem a lady's gown, along the verdant valley floor and food aplenty leaving them to think they could not have wanted more.But in the misty hours of grey morning, in numbers seemingly without measure they saw the dark and fiendish hordes arrayed along the valley, and intent on gaining their remaining treasure.

Below the ledge, the hateful thing held a vision of the silver pearl before his eyes,and knowing it to be possessed by those whom, in his esteem, there was no equal to despise he stood with legs apart, anchored firmly to his chosen spot, and sent his orders out upon the moving air that they should leave their rocky nest, to bring the pearl unto him while he waited there.

"Give me the pearl of silver" said he with his face a mask of boundless greed,"And should you not comply, your brightness will be ended!" he gleefully decreed.This time, it was the Queen whose words fell like a gentle rain from rocky place above"I would sooner have, than all the silver pearls under Heaven, just one silver tear of joy from him, who is my treasure, and my joy to Love!"

"Take your pearl, and begone!" she said, and drew the jewel from within her gown and with a radiant smile, threw the silver pearl down.And from where it struck, a fountain sprang up tossing water droplets bright high into the sky, to cast a veil of colors across the riverbank as they fell and caught the light.

But much more than this, the water fell and as it ran across the valley, did it join with it's sister, the River, causing it to swell above the tracks which had held it fast,rushing across the land, where the evil horde had passed.

The angry roar of water surged forth in suffocating waves and swept before it, those spiteful goblins who went gasping to their graves.The silver flood spared none, save the twisted thing alone and when he looked to the rocky ledge, his shining quarry, King, Queen and pearl, were gone.

Fled to open spaces, high atop the mountain range,and to its rocky spine whereupon they fell to their knees and called to Spirits both Earthly and Divine"Oh save us from this Evil thing who seeks to settle some imaginary score!"The only sound, the whispering wind who answered not, and nothing more.

‎"You cried me a river," Said the Witch Queen to the Elven King "And it took us here, to distant shining shore.""And dance we did" replied her lover bold"under smiling stars and silver moon, though we knew not how many trials we would face,nor what fickle fate had put aside in store"

And as she smiled, a smile more radiant and rich than ever had before graced the lips of any witch they understood the lesson to be learned so when the Evil thing at last approached, each took the others hand and turned.

‎"Give me the pearl of gold!" the jealous creature spat""And I'll have no more of your spells, I shall not fall for such cruel trickery as that!But pearl in hand, the fey atop the grass did throw and as he reached for it the golden orb began to glow.

"Treasure we have always had!" they looked into each other's eyes as gentle as if speaking to a child, the couple did advise.In unison, they said, "My love is mine, and I am for my love which is valued, and more precious than any earthly trove."

The creature shrieked, for now he understood the greatness of what he would never have the ground beneath him rumbled, then shook and split the great fissure opened up before him and his pearl and swallowed him along with it.

Knowing now that true worth lay within their love and not in precious rings that earthly men covet and, in their greed become twisted evil things.A rainbow formed a sturdy bridge across the sky to be a path for them to follow according to their will and home they went, hand in hand and hearts entwined, and if they have not died, they exist there still.
Fin.

What is meant to be

"There is no "meant to be". All that determines what happens in your life is what you want, how much you want it, and how purely you believe in its happening."
-Grace Gemini

"Real Love doesn't save you-it cheers you on while you learn to save yourself."

-Grace Gemini

On perfection

"If someone tells you that a relationship is perfect for them "in spite of the shit", then it's not perfect. If they truly thought it was perfect, it wouldn't even occur to them to say "in spite of"."

-Grace Gemini

Fear

"Fear is what takes us out of the present moment. When you are afraid, you are thinking about something that has happened, or worrying about something that may happen.
When you are out of the present moment, you are off your path. Your mind will play tricks on you. The rational mind will begin to search for reasons and evidence to support the fear it feels. You become reactionary instead of responsible.
Don't worry about this, it happens from time to time. You are always able to stop, take a breath and re-focus on the present moment. You are always able to begin again."
-Grace Gemini

Truth and Lies.

When people lie, it often stems from shame, fear or guilt. Shame comes because we can't, or won't except the truth.  Fear occurs when the truth is something we might not want to hear.  Guilt happens when we expect that the truth will hurt another.

But the problem is that all words carry energy; lies, especially so.  Even if the person being lied to does not know on a conscious level that they are being lied to, they do feel it; and that energy eats away at the foundation of the relationship.

So, step into your truth.  Take responsibility for the choices you've made.  Act and speak with integrity.  Do not focus on the opinions or actions of others.  Letting go of dependance on the feelings of others brings you freedom.  You will no longer be bound by the fear of loss.  You will be free of having to maintain the lie.  You release the shame that comes when you know you have not acted properly.  You will be liberated from the fear of discovery.  You will be free of worry about who knows what information and you will have no potential shame at being "found out".  You will no longer have to pile lies on lies to maintain the status quo. 

Be equitable with others, but above all with yourself. And be aware how a torrent of suppressed "truths" about another may in reality be unresolved issues you have within yourself.  Understand how our "rational" minds can often deceive us.  Being honest is about allowing ourselves to feel vulnerable.  As with all paradox, this contains great power for transformation because only then are we genuine in our dealings with others; and only then can we change resentment into connection.

Channeling from Anghara

We are Anghara, and we have accessed this channel to disseminate information pertinent to your growth as Spiritual Beings. With that goal in mind, we submit the following:


All energy flows along the path of least resistance, and this can be the shortest path or simply the least obstructed. These pathways are also made of energy but they constitute the channels or boundaries which, in turn, direct the flow of energy. Think of it as the underlying structure or grid which can determine the ultimate expression of that energy- in much the same way that one may extrapolate the eventual appearance of a building by examining its framework.

Likewise, the sum total of our Life experience to date forms the framework that determines the flow of energy through our lives. This flow brings us joy, or frustration depending on what pathways have been established and how we direct our attention. Our emotions (Emotion = (E)nergy in Motion) are the indicators of the clarity of that path.


Unfortunately, most humans have been trained to approach a problem from the head, which effectively short-circuits this guidance system because there is little place for feeling in rational thought. The fantasies that are generated from this place of thinking cause rumination and stagnation. We are trying to function in a place of disconnection. Energetically speaking, is the metaphysical equivilant of banging our heads against a brick wall. Being attached to these fantasies saps the energy that could be joyfully flowing in the all the areas of our lives. This energy is not only the Universal-God-energy that Spritualists refer to, but our physical and psychological energy as well. Being lost in the fantasy means we are not tuned in to reality-and when reality eventually resurfaces we find that we have caused real damage to ourselves by our actions. The frustration and despondancy created by this paradigm can make us sick-in time, it can even kill us.


If there are many obstacles in the path to what we think we want, we dig in our heels and "try harder". We wrack our brains playing out scenario after scenario-we drive ourselves crazy with envisioning solutions and we give in to fear, anger and despair. We retreat to our heads and tell ourselves that our feelings do not matter as long as we reach the goal. We shame ourselves for those feelings, and that shame often spills over onto the others in our lives and we do not see them clearly. We are given to fits of paranoia and distrust. We see nothing clearly when in this state, and reality becomes grossly distorted. Even when the situations at hand cause us more pain than pleasure, we hang onto the hope that by holding ourselves in this place of stagnation we will somehow earn access to the desired object because we have been taught to equate success with suffering.

Many of you reading our words will even grow angry simply by reading them. Your ego will step in and you may become angry and lash out at the channel in your minds for posing information that puts the validity of your goals into question. This is a symptom of ego-control. Though the ego has its place, and we have given information previously through this channel to that effect, it was not created to be in control of Human Life. The ego makes a poor structure to promote the true flow of life.


We must learn to distinguish between our true path and one that we have chosen because it defines our ego in the manner that is indicated by the underlying structure of our adopted energetic pathways. We must understand that our ego will fight to perpetuate these fantasies and definitions even as that practise restricts the flow of energy and blinds us to the things that we do have access to. The ego forces the psyche into survival mode, and any attempt to change the ideas and beliefs that constitute the foundation of our struggle will cause us to manifest physiological symptoms-we may even feel as though we're dying. This is a trick used by the ego to hold us in the structures which do not permit the flow of energy.

When the importance of attaining the goal becomes dominant so that even our own suffering is not taken into account, it is time to re-examine the path.


A well known principle, sometimes known as Occam's Razor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam's_razor), when applied to this concept of energy flow, may give some insight into the underlying structure we are dealing with. In it, we are urged to examine other hypothese, or structural pathways for those which contain the fewest obstacles, or assumptions.

Understand that though all experiences occur ultimately for our benefit, becoming attached to a specific outcome, especially if you have had a negative emotional reaction to the words of the channel, is an indication that your ego is attempting to take control. You are, in effect, damming and constricting the flow of Universal forces through your Life.

In other words, when the path to a goal or desired outcome seems so cluttered with obstacles, debris, pitfalls and prior assumptions; and when we prefer the obsession of attaining the goal over the best way to re-access the flow of energy; the best option may be simply to choose a different path.

We realize that this may require more stringent self-examination and honesty than you are comfortable with. This will change with practice. Do not judge yourselves. When you begin to free yourself from the bondage of ego-control, other paths will become visible to you.

Thank you for your time and attention to this channel. Anghara hopes that this has been helpful and relevant and we look forward to re-emerging in your future.  We are your servants.

"Real Love is steady, existing in the midst of what it must withstand radiating its light with quiet intensity. Real Love is like a candle, it shines to show your path; it shines to becon you home. It reaches out to you, but it does not make you come to it. Love does not deny the darkness. In shining its light, it draws your attention to the darkness so that you may see your path, and know the darkness for what it is. Real Love allows you the choice to follow it, or become lost in darkness; and even if you choose the darkness; the Light still shines for you."

-Grace Gemini

Just A Note:

When we say "I Love you.", what we are really saying is "you are someone who helps me to feel the joy that comes from being connected to the Infinate." This often leads us to believe that we must be in a relationship with someone to be happy. We believe that without this person, we would lose our connection and therefore, our Joy.
And, of course, since from our perspective it is that person who c...aused us to feel joy; we expect and pressure them to perform to be what it is that keeps us happy.

The Truth of it is, that you are *always* connected to the source of your Joy.
And the Irony is, that you are **really** only ready to Love someone when you can feel that connection to All-That-Is regardless of whether you are "with someone" or not.

Anything else is just fooling yourself.

A Channeling On Love

Love is selfless.
Love does not request for itself that which is not given by itself.  Love sees no difference between things.  What you give to others, you are also giving to yourself.  Do not ask of Love what you are not willing to provide yourself.  The Universe will reflect in equal or greater measure than what is given.  The Universe will also reflect in equal or greater measure than what is held back.

Love does not ask for sacrifice.
Imposing self-denial or limitation is not Love, it is seeking to be worthy of Love.  Love gives in equal measure.  Love does not limit possibilities; Love simply chooses without judgement that which is in accordance to its path. 

Love makes no promises. 
Love knows it is eternal.  Promising is not Love; it is an attempt to validate your worthiness of Love.  Love expands.  Expansion is growth.  Promises are static, statements that conditions will not change.  Lack of growth is not Love.  Love is constant, not static.  Love contains within itself the seeds of its future expressions.  Love evolves.  All that is contained within, evolves with it.

Love accepts.
Love does not apply itself to certain things and not to others. Love is inclusive and expansive.  Love honors all possibilities.  Love honors all expressions.  Love includes all aspects.  Love sees all experiences as a valid part of the whole of itself.  It does not forgive because does not hold to one experience over the other, so in its essence there is nothing to forgive.

Love allows.
A Love is about choices, not limitations.  Love provides all paths and holds you to none.  Love knows that the path you choose most naturally is the closest to who you are.   Adherence to a particular path; when presenting this action as proof of Love; is not Love.  It is an attempt to prove yourself worthy of Love, but not Love itself. 
Love inspires you upon a certain path because it is who you are, not because the following of that path proves your worthiness of your Love. 


Love is honest.
Love does not give value to one while holding onto another.   Love does not give itself to one while withholding itself from another. Love is consistent with itself.  Love does not choose circumstances or convenience over expression.  Love does not make expression dependent on its own state of being.  Love inspires honesty in all its dealings.  Seeking to support Love by practising self-denial is not Love-it is striving for worthiness.  Seeking to support Love by being dishonest with others and yourself is not Love-it is obsession.

Love supports.
Love does not seek to tear down what it does not understand; Love seeks to understand.  Love supports all-even if what is desired is to experience its own lack.

Love Inspires.
Love does not force itself on others; it leads by example.  Love creates the desire for harmony with itself and harmonizes effortlessly.  Love creates for the sake of itself, and what it inspires creates in kind.

Love is a mirror of ourselves.  Choose a Love that reflects the quality of unconditionally, for that shows you that this is what you feel for yourself.  Conditional Love accepted means that you have imposed and accepted conditions on yourself.  Unconditional Love accepted means that you are the embodiment of unconditional Love.   What you wish to see reflected to you must first be embodied by you.