memories
Dragging A ‘Knapsack Of Irrelevance’
Reading for a client recently revealed her toxic work environment, and how one co-worker in particular was making things very unpleasant for her at the office. It reminded me of a short-lived, but very unpleasant working situation I found myself in years ago.
I was scheduled to work with a woman for a couple of weeks who had an extremely negative attitude and was having a profound effect on me. I shared this unpleasant situation with my boyfriend at the time, and his view was that I was just carrying around a ‘knapsack of irrelevance.’
I was so upset! How could he even think that? However, he did give me some food for thought when he then also said, “Just consider how you will think about this situation in a few years from now. How much will it matter then?”
Well, that did help to put things into perspective. And guess what? Just as he predicted, I forgot all about it until this recent reading with my client! Yes, he was correct. After all the years, remembering that brief work situation made me realize that it never had any major relevance or importance to my life. Stressing and worrying about it was indeed just a waste of time and energy.
I met this particular ex-boyfriend in the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). He was very well-versed in the twelve steps and other tools helpful in achieving and maintaining sobriety. He also gave me an Alcoholics Anonymous pamphlet, which I have to this day, which reads:
The Karma Of Animal Cruelty
Our cats, dogs and all the other wonderful animals we call our pets are like tiny buddhas. We receive wisdom from them in so many ways. They never use words to convey anything, only feeling. If we are in-tune with them, and watch their behavior, we get a sense of how they are feeling.
Venturing into the Akashic record, to read for my clients, I have come to understand that much of our karma is based on how we not only treat ourselves and other humans, but also our fur friends and every other living being on this planet.
And in my experience, karma seems to bear an especially heavy weight when it comes to the animals. To my knowledge, those who abuse and mistreat animals will pay a severe price for it in their spiritual growth and soul evolution. In fact, many people return in a next life as the very animal they hurt, and will experience the same, or worse infliction they put upon that animal.
Animals are creatures of God, messengers of Love. They are here to teach us how to co-exist with each other with compassion and unconditional love. They show us how to share space, heal with touch and communicate telepathically. Some cat owners, for example, will tell you how their cats begin to circle around them and purr whenever they are meditating, or engaging in other forms of spiritual practice, which heightens their energy frequency and spiritual awareness.
The Blue Jay – A Sign From Spirit
I grew up Christian. My mother was devout and my father followed, yet was not as much of a believer. I remain very spiritual in my adult years, but although I still hold my belief in God and spirit, I no longer follow any particular religion. I also have no doubt there is an afterlife and that our spirit lives on. One of the most significant moments of faith and joy on my spiritual journey happened when my father was sick and dying.
He was a magnificent man and I loved him dearly. He was my rock, the anchor in my family. He truly was that one person in this world who was always there for all of us. When he was losing his health battle, I tried to speak to him about faith, as I could tell he was afraid of dying. It was so sad for me to see him with so much fear, as he used to always be such a fearless man. Until now.
He told me he did not know for sure where he would go or what would happen to him, once he passed. He had tears in his eyes. He said, “I believe there is something after this life, but I am not sure about Heaven, or what it will be.” I could tell he was actually very afraid, and it broke my heart. I tried to reassure him. “Dad, I have every faith that you will live on in spirit,” I said.
He was a patient in palliative care, with about a month left to live according to the doctors. He was struggling emotionally. It wrecked my heart every day to witness his fear and uncertainty. He had also been very worried about those he was leaving behind.
Eventually, we reached the time where he was losing consciousness. He was drifting in and out, but while he could not do more than utter a sound or squeeze my hand, I knew he could hear me, as he would continue to respond.
The Sweet Dreams Of Spirit Visitation
Dreaming is one of the best ways for spirit to relay messages to you. When awake we mostly receive information from our senses, but when we are in the dream state, messages from beyond can reach us more easily.
While resting our conscious mind, our subconscious doesn’t need to battle for our attention, so dreams can play out like a movie in our mind and relay spiritual messages in the form of symbols, abstract story lines, or my favorite: past loved ones coming for a visit.
When in dream mode, our right-brain emotion is not challenged by our left-brain logic, making it easy for our subconscious to connect with spirit. In this altered state of consciousness our departed loved ones find it more easy to visit us.
So, how do you know you are just dreaming of a departed loved one, or experiencing an actual spirit visitation? A spirit visit is different from a dream for many reasons. Dreams will be prevalent when you first wake up, but will quickly fade from your memory.
A visitation is an actual visit from spirit. It may feel like a dream, but you will remember it more vividly and you will be able to play it back detail by detail, word for word, and clearly remember and relive the emotions you experienced during the visitation.
After my mother passed, she came to visit me a few months later in a lucid dream. I can still see the pantsuit she was wearing, her hairstyle, how young she looked, and the strong presence of her energy. In the dream she simply walked past me, went outside towards the pecan tree in the backyard, and then faded into the light. No words were spoken, but her brief presence was very comforting. I woke up crying, sobbing with mixed emotions of missing her and the joy being with her for that short moment in time.
Looking Within – A Message From My Guides
As the holiday season starts to ramp up around the world, everything becomes more and more hectic. Travel plans are made early. Gifts are purchased. Party invitations are extended. New outfits are bought. Menus are set. Baking is done. It is a wondrous time of year, to give thanks and to show appreciation to family, friends, neighbors and colleagues.
Under these circumstances, it is understandable that stress abounds too. For some people, in addition to all the excitement, there is a real feeling of obligation. The expectations of others can be overwhelming and, of course, it is impossible to please everyone. There is also the feeling that time is running too short to accomplish everything on the to-do list. Demands on your time can seem endless and unreasonable.
For others, the holiday season can be a very quiet and somewhat lonely time. Old memories can be triggered. Losses can become more heightened and a sense of sadness can prevail. In the Northern Hemisphere, the days get shorter and sometimes much colder, so sunlight isn’t as prevalent to perk you up and lighten your spirit.
Whether you are run off your feet or living a more solitary lifestyle, we recommend that you make some time to look within. A daily meditation habit can do wonders to give you a sense of peace, calm and gratitude. A quiet mind at the start of your day can prepare you for the remainder of each day as it unfolds. A peaceful feeling can help you to put things into perspective so as not to worry, overreact or panic unnecessarily.
Everyone has a ‘little narrator’ inside their head who is constantly chatting up a storm. If this little chatterbox was a real person sitting with you in your living room or in the car, you would eventually ask him or her to stop talking for a while so that you could think, read, watch TV, listen to music, converse, drive, and so on. However, because everyone has grown quite accustomed to this little tag-along giving constant commentary throughout the day, you carry on in spite of the continual interruptions.
Unconditional Love Is Heaven On Earth
When I was a little girl, I remember going to my grandparents’ home during the summers. I couldn’t wait for the summer to arrive, to get to spend time with them. It was always magical. The months leading up to those wonderful stays were always filled with anticipation and excitement.
Always having something to look forward to adds to the enjoyment and contentment of life. Whether it’s an upcoming event or something we are looking forward to, such trying an adventurous activity, or reading that new book you’re excited to dive into. Books have always been for me a bit of a mental vacation, because you can relax, while going places to imaginative places in your mind.
I believe the magic and enjoyment of getting to spend time with my grandparents came from it being filled with love and attention. Thinking back now, they were the only adults, when I was younger, who gave me their full attention and truly unconditional love. They were never too busy to sit and talk with me, or share stories from their childhood, which I found very fascinating.
Not all Grandparents are alike though. Some can be all about gossip, judgment, neglect, even abuse, and not the best role models. I was lucky that on my mother’s side of the family this was not the case. My maternal grandparents had all the traits and attributes one would imagine a truly loving grandparent to have.
I have memories of being in tears when having to leave and go back home. There I just spent my days alone in my room, as my parents were often too busy with church and other social groups they were involved in. I suspect all that time I was forced to spend on my own, helped me to expand and open my mind, to tap into those deeper areas of the psyche that are often left dormant.
The Importance Of Self-Trust
Of all the relationships in our life, none is more complicated or important than the one we have with self. And the cornerstone of this relationship is self-trust. Unfortunately, it is easy to damage the trust we place in ourselves. Why? Because all of us have or will make choices and decisions that don’t produce the desired outcome.
A relationship fails and we blame or question ourselves; a job opportunity eludes us; or a friendship fractures beyond repair. We lose self-trust when we don’t achieve a goal, whatever that goal may be. Then we may begin to question our own abilities, our dreams, and our worthiness to have them manifest in our life.
Every time we replay an event we label a failure the doubt in our own judgment and our self-worth increases. Self-confidence stems from self-trust, so the cycle can be a vicious one.
So, how can we repair self-trust? First, decide to give yourself a break. You made what you believed to be the best decision or choice in the moment. If you are saying, “No, I didn’t, I know I should have done…,” then stop and choose to forgive yourself for not trusting your instincts in that moment. Holding a grudge against yourself only assures that the pattern will repeat.
Next, decide to honor your emotions. If you have made choices and decisions that you perceive as a failure, then the tendency is to begin to substitute the opinions of others over our own intuition, desires and dreams. This pattern can lead to co-dependency, confusion and fear. Self-trust is harnessed when we follow our sacred wisdom, instead of looking outside ourselves to provide inner peace.