wisdom
Frog’s Wisdom To Adapt To Change
I must admit, when I initially discovered that my spirit animal is the frog, my ego took somewhat of a dive! The frog is such a small, insignificant creature that is mostly overlooked, and certainly not the most attractive of species.
In had secretly hoped my totem animal might be a majestic, powerful animal that commands attention and is admired, even adored. But here was the tiny frog, my spirit guide.
However, once I uncovered some of the spiritual symbolism of this amazing little being, I soon grew to embrace its guiding presence in my life. Frog has in fact been teaching me much about myself, my path, and my place in the world.
The magnificent little frog’s most prominent attribute is its ability to adapt and transform. Frogs are all about change and new beginnings. They are also associated with purification, rebirth, and welcoming luck and abundance into your life. Frog is therefore the ideal power animal for anyone going through major changes in their life.
In my case, it was the opposite. Over the years, I had gradually developed a worldview that was somewhat stringent, restrained, and resistant to change. My inability to communicate with grace and clarity further complicated this outlook by causing me to become frustrated, and sometimes even angry and resentful.
The fact that I chose to perceive life in a self-limiting way was not apparent to me, until frog showed up. But with frog’s inspiration the realization started to sink in that it was not that the world was not kind, patient and accommodating towards me, but instead that I was creating resistance and that my needs and expectations were not always clearly expressed to others.
Reflections
Sitting on the porch. Rocking. Yes, rocking in my willow rocking chair, surrounded by the smell of petrichor – that delightful odor the earth gifts us with when fresh rain is coming down after a long, dry spell. The aroma of the freshly hung chile ristras greets me in the Santa Fe, New Mexico tradition at this time of year, when the growing season is done and the picking of the season’s ripe offerings has begun. Richness abounds with the aromas of the petrichor and the strung pods of red chile blending in the softness of the evening breeze.
The automatic flood light and the blue laser lights have come on, as they do every day at dusk, to illuminate the waterfall in the garden, although it’s still a bit early for them to shine their brightest. Not quite dark enough yet, but soon it will be. I just fed my precious four-legged fur daughter her dinner. Now that my day is done and another week has gone by, I am contemplating whether or not I have done well this week.
Yes, I believe so! I have learned so much and have grasped many new concepts. I also renewed my awareness of some familiar concepts that were in need of repetition, so I could complete some hard earned lessons. And I found resolution to some newer viewpoints on old issues. Whew! I feel I’ve been turned wrong side out in just one week, only to realize it is the other way around. I was wrong-side-out before. Now I’m right-side-in, or more so at least.
I look up from my musings to see the lights. It is dark now and they’re shining brightly against the dark night sky. The lasers look like blue fireflies as they pinpoint their magical presence. The synchronicity feels deeply significant. At the end of another week, after much breaking down of old thought patterns, I see the flood light and laser lights reflecting the realization that I am different now than last week, or at any time before.
The Messenger Must Know When To Hold Her Peace
Ever heard of “less is more?” Well, there is a lot of spiritual truth in the saying. It is especially valid in this day and age, where everyone seems to have preconceived ideas and strong opinions on just about everything. Sometimes saying less, or even saying nothing at all, is enough, and usually for the best.
Saying nothing can be very empowering and liberating. We have free will to choose how we want to spend our time and energy. I choose to focus on things that are for my highest good, and those I care about.
It is not our duty to correct every misinformed opinion or ignorant viewpoint we encounter. Does that mean we should be self-absorbed and uncaring? No, certainly not. But we can also not make the world a better place by wasting our precious time and energy trying to fix everyone, and correct everything, while our own inner peace and well-being suffers.
Compassion, charity, and kindness are all much needed in the world today, but not if it is constantly at our own expense. I therefore prefer to wisely pick my battles, and stick to my lane. One person cannot be everything for everyone. We must focus on our own unique strengths and capabilities when helping others.
If we randomly go out on a limb to help everyone with advice and support, it is often not appreciated and frequently met with negativity and resistance. Not to mention trying to point out the facts or truth of a matter, which can be very risky these days! There are some things in life people just need to figure out for themselves. They don’t always need to hear it from us.
Let Spirituality Be Your Guiding Light
In a fast-paced world where superficial, materialistic pursuits tend to dominate our lives, the search for deeper meaning and purpose has become even more significant for many people. Spirituality has always been a guiding light in this quest.
Spirituality offers solace, clarity, and a profound connection to something greater than ourselves. It is inherently personal and subjective, and not limited to religious affiliations, formal belief systems, or cultural traditions.
To be spiritual is to have a deep awareness of the higher self, as well as a heightened connection to God, Goddess, Source, Spirit, the Divine, the Universe.
Our preferred spiritual practice does not have to be some form of dogmatic religion, which tends to involve organized rituals, ceremony, and fixed doctrines. Instead, it can also be an individual exploration of higher consciousness that seeks a direct and personal experience of the sacred and divine.
Spiritual awareness is also not confined to merely a few isolated moments of contemplation, but instead a holistic, consistent state of mind, or way of being in the world, that permeates every aspect of our life.
By integrating spiritual principles and practices into our daily life, we infuse our everyday choices and actions with intention and authenticity, leading to a more balanced, fulfilling, and purposeful existence.
Spiritual Awareness Requires A Soul-Body Connection
A practical way to understand our own spiritual identity within the co-created reality of this world is to think of our soul as the metaphysical software, and our body as the physical hardware. Both software and hardware are needed to have a fully functioning computer that is able to solve problems and complete tasks.
In spirituality, we tend to focus mostly on the mind or consciousness aspects of our existence, such as intuitions, dreams, psychic experiences, paranormal events, our belief system, and altered states of consciousness achieved through various spiritual modalities, including meditation, chanting, trance-inducing rituals, hypnosis, yoga, music, mandala, and so on.
Yet, we seldom consider the importance of the physical experience we are having. This is a vital component in our spiritual evolution that is often overlooked! As metaphysical, energetic beings, we incarnated in human form with a physical body to have a physical learning experience. There is therefore much spiritual value in making the most of our physical embodiment in this lifetime.
The physical body we are born with unique resonates with our soul consciousness and is designed to support us through our journey on this physical plane. But too often we take for granted this amazing vessel that carries us through life. Soon after our birth we become so used to being in our body that we seldom consider its true value.
Sadly, many of us tend to abuse our body in all sorts of ways, for all sorts of reasons, and yet, our body just keeps on doing everything in its power to keep us healthy and strong, for it to continue carrying us through our spiritual journey in this lifetime.
Find The Spiritual Gold Outside Your Comfort Zone
Some people are not ready or strong enough to embrace the truth, nor the unfamiliar. And that’s okay. We are all at different stages in our soul evolution. Energetically we are like magnets that resonate with those who are on the same frequency, and bounce off those who do not share our level of understanding. And that is okay.
The more evolved and sensible we are spiritually, the more open we are to embrace new information and learn from the acquired insight and wisdom of others. The higher our vibration, the less likely we are to overreact with extreme resistance, or become anxious or annoyed when we are confronted with inconvenient new realities.
Resistance and defensiveness stem from the ego. The ego tends to hinder us from being present and truly connecting, learning, growing, and expanding. This ultimately keeps us from evolving spiritually.
I have always been a firm believer that the teacher will appear when the student is ready. Those who are no longer held back by the human ego, are more ready and open to receive new information and explore deeper wisdom on a soul level.
We need not unconditionally agree with everything, but one can always find some ‘gold’ in whatever crosses our path. There is always some nugget of wisdom or insight we can use, even if we choose to discard the rest. There is always something of value that we can add to our toolbox of personal growth and soul expansion. There is always something new to learn or discover.
The Spiritual Foundation Of Self-Trust
Do you have difficulty trusting yourself? If so, you are not alone. Clients frequently tell me they find it hard to trust themselves for various reasons. Fortunately, it is never too late to rediscover, recover and heal your divine, confident self.
I struggled with self-doubt for many years, due to experiences that undermined the development of my sense of self in the formative years of my life. I have since dedicated decades to getting to the root of my self-doubt, and in time cultivated self-trust in its place.
My path to healing was intuitively guided by God, Source, Spirit, the Divine, every step of the way. Now sharing the wisdom and insights I have learned from my self-trust journey has become one of the prominent themes in my service to others.
The first major lesson I learned was the importance of becoming anchored in a spiritual conception of the self. I found this understanding in the teachings of two Hindu scriptures known as the Bhagavad Gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. These ancient texts meticulously explore the eternal identity of the self and how to revitalize it is.
Our true self is the spirit soul present within our physical body. It is the spark of life force, the divine consciousness that animates both our body and mind. This spiritual spark emanates from the Supreme Personality of God and bears its own eternal, individual identity. Although the soul is an atomic particle of God’s energy, it is also a person – the real person who is the self.
We are not our body, mind, or intelligence. We are not the personas we project or identify as in this world. All of those are mere ‘coverings’ of our true soul essence, much like the clothes we wear to cover our body.