22/02/2015

In the deep freeze of your winter emotions....

Spirit Care 101 is my brain child and upon searching it out online there appears to be few others who are using the phrase.  To care for your own spirit is uplifting and will nurture the most important relationship in your life.

I have said before and continue to quote Pierre Teilhard de Chardin who was a French philosopher and Jesuit priest who trained as a paleontologist and geologist who said, "We are not human beings having (trying to understand) a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience."  So by honouring your spirit you honour that which is most sacred, caring for yourself. Being in relationship with yourself is important.  Understanding yourself is key to living a well balanced and caring life.

As you walk the path of your own life and travel through the deep freeze of your own emotions you will ebb and flow in your spiritual awareness.  We are seasonal beings here in Canada traveling through cold temperatures and changing times.  We travel with Mother Nature as she protects that which is her own.  Withdrawing into the darkness of winter the very sap of each plant to envelope it in the warmth of the earth.  Trees look dead but we know they are sleeping, resting and refreshing themselves to burst forth in the spring.  We as human kind trust in this phenomena, this evolution of our home and our planet.  We never doubt that spring will come the question often simply is "when?"

So why when we are emotionally in the dark, in the winter of our lives do we lose hope that spring will come?  This is a time when we are most vulnerable to spiritual growth and a time of change in the very fabric of our being.

In a dark time, the eye begins to see - Theodore Roethke

Barbara Brown Taylor in her book "Learning to walk in the dark" talks about how the dark is a frightening place where few dare to enter.  However, she notes on page 112 how going into the darkness of a cave physically taught her that the darkness of her own mind can be physically over come when one takes the body someplace dark.  As she enters the "wild" cave she says, "The idea scared me, which made it a good opportunity to practice courage."  It takes courage to go into the darkness of our grief, loss and pain.  It takes courage to be vulnerable and let others see we are in pain.  It takes courage to admit to self you are scared.  However, realize when the ego bonds with the fear of the spirit and the brokenness in life spiritual growth is paramount.

Only she [he] who is ready to question, to think for self, will find the truth.  To understand the currents of the river, one who wished to know the truth must enter the river! - Nisargadatta, Indian mystic, born 1897

Come journey with me ..... take the first step, dip your toe in the water ... and take the plunge!



17/02/2015

en*theos

en + theos. Two little Greek words. Put ‘em together and you’ve got enthusiasm—or "God within"—the secret sauce to authentic awesomeness.
Can we find the divine within ourselves?  Can we look inward and not outward for that which we may call "god"?  When we do not like ourselves very  much how can we look within for the very depth of spirit that we seek to save us?  I don't know.
Family day weekend a time when family is promoted and family is the focus.  Did you spend time with your family or are you one of the  many that struggle with this concept?  I saw both  my children and love them both deeply.  They are both adults now with their own lives and good news.  Family day has brought for my family a wonderful announcement and hope for the future.  For me though I struggle trying to find something, anything that feels  hopeful in my own life.  I grieve something and have a great sense of loss but cannot seem to put my finger on it.  Do you ever feel that way?  A darkness that is so imposing and yet like the proverbial monster in the closet or under the bed the sensation is palatable but the monster is not tangible.  One cannot put a finger to it, other than to know it is there haunting you every single day.
The grief workshops I manage and run teach me I am not alone.  They teach me how to look into the eyes of another and see their pain, fear and struggle.  Together in a group setting we share our most darkest moments and honour that which is scaring us.  The fear of being alone and finding no one really cares.  The recent announcement of a colony on Mars, a one way ticket for colonization on a planet that is so far away you can be assured you will not return to earth.  You sacrifice your existence here on earth for this mission and yet the supreme court is the decision maker for those suffering and struggling with illness are requesting the same thing; a one way ticket out of here.
How do you deal with the desire for a one way ticket anywhere?  How do you find en*theos?  I don't know ... all I know is I am not alone in this quest and seek others to walk this lonely road with me.  Join me through a workshop, through email correspondence or a  message on Facebook.  You are not alone and neither am I ... Family Day shows me that physically but emotionally I still struggle.
I just do not give up ... that is my one way ticket ... a ticket on the "keep trying" locomotive. 



citing:  https://www.entheos.com/Fierce-Love/entheos