Tag Archives: wisdom

Earth School

Do you believe your soul is returning here in various lives to work out all that you need to learn to evolve? Or, are you a person who perhaps believes in only one life, but also the eternal aspect of the soul after that one life? Or, are you someone who does not believe in either; there is one life and no afterlife?

I’m not here to say what is “right or wrong”, or what someone else “should or shouldn’t” believe, but only to share my own process on this idea of the evolving soul.

From a very young age, I always felt within me the presence of a higher creative power at work in the world. (If you’re sensitive, you can feel it between the lines in everything. The Native peoples call this “the web of life”.) However, exploring my feeling of this higher energy within the Christian church as a child, and again later as an adult, did not satisfy within me a suspicion that we need way more than one life to encompass all the learning a soul needs to perfect and move back to the One. I also could not accept the idea of a punishing God. (What truly loving being “punishes”?) I also could not accept the idea that such a God would dole out a life of poverty and strife to one person, while giving another a life of relative ease and wealth.

I think we have various experiences, over as many lifetimes as we need, to learn the important principles that various spiritual masters have come here to teach us. And, within each life we, and only we, are responsible for our choices, and the outcome of our lessons. (Taking responsibility eliminates the victim mentality and blame.) Ofttimes we also have other souls that will return to us again within several lives, different bodies playing different roles, so that we can work out our lessons together.

Religious institutions, although they play a role of bringing people together to explore spirituality, can also be one of the great dividers in society. What religion who is truly oriented to nurturing a spiritually evolved society, would condone or promote hatred of another? There are many paths to becoming spiritually evolved, and should we not be simply all helping each other on that path, if the positive evolution of humanity is indeed the common goal?

Eternally

We don’t remember
our other soul lives spent here,
alien Earth plane.

Swaths of sand smooth and
soften hard edges of lost
civilizations.

We visit, then with
infinite impermanence,
return to dust too.

Soul Mate

Eternal surprise,
all the hellos and goodbyes,
right there in your eyes.

Eternal Rhythm

The golden leaves fall,
fearing not the decay of
a coming winter.

Death is essential
to the renewal of life –
All will spring again.

If each in nature
can feel this simple rhythm,
so can humans too.

Why do we resist?
Our fears overshadow the
truth of our being.

But the fall leaves know,
they show us that we too will
green the tree anew.

Read it online, or download the PDF here.

Just Let Go, and Fly!

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Do you have a stranglehold on life? Most of us do, to one degree or another. Our stranglehold stems from our fears, our judgements, our need to be right, our focus on self. These place immense limitation on our growth and progress.

Life can become very small and petty when we dwell in this behavior. Living in such a troubled world has this tendency to drag us down, reducing us to little balls of worry and stress. We suffocate our own happiness when we succumb to it.

The challenge is to be brave enough to just let go of it all… and fly.

Inspirational Quotes:

“More smiling, less worrying. More compassion, less judgment. More blessed, less stressed. More love, less hate.” ~ Roy T. Bennett

“Love is the absence of judgment.” ~ Dalai Lama XIV

“Do one thing every day that scares you.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

“We should all start to live before we get too old. Fear is stupid. So are regrets.” ~ Marilyn Monroe

“Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart. ~ Roy T. Bennett

P.S. Hello! I’m back from a break from writing. Sometimes the well feels like it’s starting to run dry, and when that happens, you know it’s time to replenish it.

The past few days I’ve been wrapping up some new ebook work. I’ll post about that soon. Most importantly, I’m happy to report a little miracle. You may remember that I posted Jan. 5th about a very sad event, the sudden illness over Christmas, and passing of our black cat Mocha on Jan. 2nd. See my post How Can It Be?

Due to several vivid dreams at the time, we’ve been on the lookout for his return in a new little gray body. As it turns out, Shadow was born a couple of days after Mocha’s passing, and a mere couple of miles away. At just a little over six weeks old, she was posted for adoption, and the universe conspired to help us meet up. She is so like Mocha in personality, it is startling!

The universe really does work in mysterious ways. Never forget that when you’re intending what you want to come to you in life. 🙂

“Hello world! Here I am.” (Again.)

Grow Your Soul

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We have all experienced discouragement, sometimes to despair. These feelings are part of life. Without obstacles and disappointments, our souls would not learn and grow. When I look back on my own difficult challenges, I would not want to do them over. But when I evaluate the growth in myself, it is tremendous. I am grateful for those soul lessons, not just because of the wisdom gained, but I also became a stronger person.

When we are struggling in darkness, it can be difficult to see light. Other people can extend a loving hand, either with a different perspective, or, hands-on assistance. But in the end, we must own our inner journey. It is ours, and it is we who develop the fortitude and mindset to deal with whatever life throws at us.

During one particularly tough time many years ago, focusing on gratitude helped me not only to get through it, and but also to develop a different perspective about myself and life. That’s right! Really seeing and acknowledging all of the blessings, big and small, that surrounded me. Going forward, I built on that. It created a positive mindset in which I could then conceive of hope and possibilities and solutions.

Light begets light, and that which we focus on expands.

Here is a good article about how seemingly small, simple actions can bring us closer to happiness: 10 Simple Ways to Find Happiness

Inspirational Quotes:

“A quick way to overcome your despair… is to go out and help someone else overcome theirs!” ~ Timothy Pina

“Be thankful for everything that happens in your life; it’s all an experience.” ~ Roy T. Bennett

There Are Moments

There are these moments
that will haunt me forever,
distant, but distinct,

the same lessons learned
again, they won’t be denied,
important imprints,

but the regrets are
indelible too, embedded
in bittersweet light,

born out of moments
that will haunt me forever,
distant, but distinct.

Poem There are Moments is from Soul Journey: The Poetry of Life.

My Gifts from the Sea

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One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach. One can collect only a few, and they are more beautiful if they are few. ~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Gift from the Sea

The quote by Anne Morrow Lindbergh reminds me of one of the first Christmases away from my family whilst traveling. Heart sick in Australia, I was missing them terribly, so I went for a walk on a beach at Glenelg, Adelaide to center myself.

I had walked that beach quite a few times before, but there were never more than a sparse few shells. That Christmas Day the beach was covered with them. I’m a huge lover of the ocean, and I walked in bliss for a long time, soaking up the sunshine, immersed in the beauty, and collecting a few shells to takeaway. I felt that some angel had heard my prayers and laid these gifts on the beach to soothe my soul.

My family’s heritage includes Scottish, and I love the stirring sound of the bagpipes. From a balcony high up on one of the apartment buildings overlooking the beach, a lone sentinel dressed formally in kilt, played them for me as I walked under a cloudless azure sky. I can still see and feel all of it.

What were the chances? I suddenly did not feel so bereft; I was clearly cradled by energies watching out over me.

Everything is part of One. Never doubt it for a second…

“The sea does not reward those who are too anxious, too greedy, or too impatient. To dig for treasures shows not only impatience and greed, but lack of faith. Patience, patience, patience, is what the sea teaches. Patience and faith. One should lie empty, open, choiceless as a beach—waiting for a gift from the sea.” ~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Gift from the Sea

I Am Ocean

Snowflakes
falling softly
tentatively
pure, white
innocent
new life.

I Am one.

Earth
cold hard
dormant
I land here.
I am ice, I am lost.
I wait.

Spring comes
warm sun,
I melt into
playing, trickling
tiny Rivulet.

I am born.

Playful riffles
gently learning
to flow
to maneuver
to be Stream.

Time passing,
stream is good
but I want more,
then suddenly –
rushing, roaring,
swirling, foaming

I become River.

Sometimes sunlight
flowing smoothly,
other times storms,
rocks, gashing
hard, struggling.

Learning
to be with rocks,
trees, sky,
other rivulets,
and streams.

I Am more.

Time passing,
waiting and
wanting,
with a deep
hunger inside
for vast.

And finally,
I let go
of myself
and transform,
to endless, infinite
water ocean.

I die.
I am born.
I Am One.

The poem I Am Ocean is from Soul Journey: The Poetry of Life. It’s free to read or download here.

The Beauty of Our Souls

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Sometimes we forget to look for the deeper beauty in life. Beauty is easy to see on the face of a young person, fresh-faced and attractive by the definition of the particular culture in which they live. And admittedly, we all love to gaze upon a beautiful face. Beauty gives us pleasure.

But when physical beauty fades around the edges, then we have no choice but to look deeper. And there comes a point in our own evolution when we realize: The full, deep beauty of a person lies in their heart. Ironically, it is in this realization that our own souls grow to another level of beauty. We start seeing and connecting to people in a different way. We start living from the heart.

Some inner wisdom, expressed by the model and actress Audrey Hepburn, who was revered in her time for her exquisite physical beauty:

“The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years.”

Later in life, Audrey worked hands on in some of the poorest communities in Africa, South America, and Asia, to help alleviate poverty and be an example of what the Greeks call “agape”, or love for humanity. She became an icon for beauty yet again, but this time for a different kind, that of her heart.

Yes, (no matter our gender): The wisdom accumulated from our many life lessons, the shine in our eyes, our caring and compassion for our fellow human, our enthusiasm and gratitude for life itself, and a deep desire to keep living it with the full on curiosity and passion of a child – these are what grow us into the fullness of the inherent beauty of our souls.