Many years ago, during a health crisis that kept me in the process of diagnosis for 6 months, I entered into an experience known as "a dark night of the soul." This experience is more common than I realized at the time because it is not often shared due to the fact that it involves an individual's personal spiritual journey. My doctor was a brilliant internist and, through our many hours together, I recognized he was also very spiritual. At my lowest point, when I asked him if I needed to be on a psych ward, he asked if I was willing to speak with a friend of his who was a Catholic priest. Without hesitation, I agreed. I was born into the Catholic faith and then became a Protestant and rather well-known Bible Teacher in my 30's. There was a reason I came to know and practice m faith in both "sides" of the Christian house. It prepared my heart and mind to receive truth on a deeper, wider level.

The Catholic priest I met with manifested such a depth of understanding, love, and...

I am a certified Instructor of Primordial Sound Meditation. A primary part of this meditation format is beginning with the Four Soul Questions. These have been so effective in my personal practice that I often use them in other meditation styles or formats. I will share them in this week's blog and invite you to try them on whether you plan to meditate for 5 minutes or 30 minutes, whether you have a personal mantra or will use one like AUM Shanti Shanti (Universal Peace Peace), or you want to simply sit quietly after you use them.

Sit comfortably in a quiet space.  Always remember that we do not answer these questions. We put them out to the Universe, to Divine Love in All That Is and we trust that the answers we need during this part of our spiritual journey will come to us when we are ready to receive them.

The Four Soul Questions:

Who Am I?  Repeat this a few times silently as you draw your awareness within. Underneath gender, age, titles, etc. Who is the being having...

Emerging from the isolation of the pandemic is a challenge for many of us. Others seem to just go for it in spite of the emergence of another variant. I am in the first group and it isn't out of fear for myself. I am fully vaccinated and healthy. My youngest grandchild will be 5 in April which will bring wider freedom to our family because we will all then be vaccinated. And now the holidays are here in earnest, along with challenges of time, transportation, energy, etc. I have always preferred simple, quiet holidays with more emphasis on the spiritual meaning of each one so I am somewhat surprised at myself this year. Why?

Because I want to go to the store and buy my gifts! And yes I have waited until supplies may be low and crowds large. Oh well. I'm retired and I know how to double mask if that feels necessary. I want to feel normal or, at the very least, experience this year's "normal" in person and not just hear about it on television. I am not a recreational shopper; I shop...

Many of us were raised to help others. Giving of ourselves, whether donating to charity or offering rides, from an open mind and heart is a blessing. How many of us were taught to receive just as openly and graciously? I wasn't. Until a spiritual teacher taught me that accepting support graciously, even joyously, allows space for God/Divine Love to bless others.

Is it necessary for me to say anything else? Maybe a little. Notice how you feel, what you say in response, even the tone of your voice when you express gratitude. Just this morning, a friend texted that she was going to check on something I need. She thinks she knows some one who can and who may be available to do so. There was a time in my life when my response, delivered in an unworthy voice, would have been "Oh please don't trouble yourself about this. You are so busy." My response today was very different. This is the response she received when I texted her back:  Wow! Thank you!

Something to consider during...

My mother and I held hands whenever we were together. Dad was stationed on Okinawa my senior year in high school. One of my most vivid memories is of Mom and I walking down a street in the village just outside the base. We were exploring the shops for the first time. As we always did, we strolled hand-in-hand as we looked in windows or went in to shops. We hadn't been there long when I noticed people coming out of their shops and watching us. It was a strange and confusing experience. Later I asked our sweet housekeeper (having one was one of the ways Americans stationed there supported the local economy) why people watched us. It wasn't because seeing Americans was a novelty. We had been a presence there since the end of World War II. She said it was because I was so tall - Okinawans tend to be quite short - and my mother had such red hair! And because we held hands, much like many family members did there. My mother made her transition almost 19 years ago and even now, when I...

If you have never thought about this before, it can be a bit mind-bending. In everything that exists in this third dimensional plane, there is more space than substance. I am sitting in my rocking chair having a cup of espresso. My chair is a rattan Bentwood Rocker that I have had for years. If one of the molecules in the wood shifted out of place, this rocker would disintegrate. In order for a solid object to have form, countless numbers of atoms must align and hold their alignment. Wood, stone, bone, you name it and its substance is composed of atoms. We all know this, right? Atoms are not solid. They are energy in motion and, when aligned in certain ways, they form substances that may be fluid like water or more stationary like stone. Within all substance is the motion of the atoms, the energy, that makes up that substance. And within each atom, there is more space than substance.

My physical body is more space than substance. Does space imply emptiness? If there were nothing in...

When I was younger, I often judged myself for "not getting it right." Freedom of choice was rather routinely denied to the women of my generation, as it was to our mothers. Once in high school, I demanded the right to choose a personal behavior. My father patiently agreed and quietly offered his point of view. I took some time and realized he was right and I chose not to take on that particular behavior because it was  not healthy. When I told him my decision, he said doing what he wanted was the best way to go! He did not know how to affirm it as my choice.

I learned over the years that self-judgement is counter-productive and damaging to the mind and emotions. I now understand that life is a journey of knowing myself and becoming more and more truly me. I wrote this during a time of deep reflection during mid-life:

I remind myself that I did the best I could

with what I knew at the time and

I choose not to regret the past.

I appreciate the person I am and realize that

...

We can tell ourselves we are "alone." We can choose to ignore and/or stay away from those who do not agree with us. The truth is, however, that all of natural life is inter-connected. Whether I socialize with someone or not, we are still fellow members of the human race. We are connected.

I cannot say it better than John Donne:

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee.”
― John Donne,  No man is an island

My actions, words, choices may not always please another and I cannot live only to please others. I live my personal truth. In doing so and as much as I am able - no one is perfect or "there" yet - I live from love...

One of life's challenges is understanding that the ability to wait, to allow circumstances to unfold, is powerful. It requires faith or trust in one's self, in the Divine and/or in the flow of life. It requires that I release the need to control all of the details, the timing, and the results. Over 50 years ago, when I was attending university, I sought the counsel of our Dean of Student Affairs. It was a serious situation and my parents were overseas, not readily available by phone. I went into my meeting with the dean assuming he would gently tell me the right choice to make. I can't even type that without chuckling! Of course he wasn't going to do that - he understood far better than I did that this was an opportunity to learn about life, making decisions, and growing up. He began by teaching me just that. I was with him for over an hour, taking notes and asking questions. We explored many possible ways to approach the situation and possible choices I could make. The key was...

I realize as I type the topic of this blog that I could type way a lot of words about this! Then I read an intention I formed 30 years ago:

I will make choices that nourish and enrich me

so that I am more able to enjoy my life.

I cannot be at my best if I do not

give myself the best.

 What else is there to say?

I simply suggest that you sit with these words. Find what works for you without judgement or comparing yourself to others. 

Contact me with questions, appointment requests, or whatever is on your mind and heart:   [email protected]            Please consider joining my online meditation group