Snippets of Wisdom

The Mystery within...

I have a friend who is active in the Black Lives Matter movement who also helps me navigate the world of electronics.  I envied the training she recently attended for her social justice work.  So each time we've met since, I've asked her to share one snippet from her social justice training.

- Stay spiritually nourished was the first snippet.

- Practice good self-care was the second.

- Look for beauty in the world was the third.

Then this past Saturday I attended a mini workshop with Marianne Helm, "Two Perspectives on One Life Lived," presented through stories aimed at making us wise.  Each story was told twice around one set of facts.  The first telling had the protagonist react positively to the given facts; then it was retold but had the protagonist reacting negatively to the same facts.  The positive or negative energy generated from the two versions of each story was astounding.  To reinforce this in our own lives we wrote our own positive and negative reaction story to facts in our previous day.  I left the workshop with a deep knowing that my attitude creates my reality and also has a ripple effect on others.  Even if bad things happen, when I take a closer look, something good can come out of everything. True happiness is within my control for it originates in my mind and heart.

And today as I sat in a waiting room there was a free publication titled "natural awakenings" on a small table next to my elbow.  "Wise words" caught my eye and when I picked it up and turned to the page indicated I found "Bruce Lipton on the Epigenetics Revolution—Our Beliefs Reprogram Our Genetic Destiny" written by Linda Sechrist.  Lipton, a stem cell biologist, is an internationally recognized leader in bridging science and spirit.  Epigenetics (epi meaning above) is a revolution in our knowledge and awareness of heredity.  A few astounding snippets from Sechrist's article:

- Changing our lifestyle, beliefs and perceptions also changes our genetic expression.

- Our perceptions and the way we live, including our spiritual nature, adjusts our genes to manifest either a functional or dysfunctional state of health.

- As more of us hold the intention for living a life of love and peace, the broadcast of that harmonic energy amplifies and those not yet there will eventually entrain to the stronger signal.  This is the shift we need to make for conscious evolution to occur.

- We can't die because our real identity is represented by the invisible environment-derived broadcast, which might be referred to as spirit. 

All of the above reminds me of my November 23, 2015 post Reflecting on Instability and the priest, paleontologist and mystic Teilhard de Chardin.

What if science shows us changing our own individual actions can save the world?

Sparks and Synchronicity

The Mystery within...

Allowing myself three weeks off from my Monday blog routine would not have happened without attending an early August weekend retreat titled “Listening to Your Journey.”  It helped focus me on knowing and listening to my true self, my life, and practicing good self-care (which oddly occurred to me, only I can provide.)  I pared down on preparations and expectations for the rest of August’s major activities that followed--primarily my brother’s weeklong visit, and then getting ready for, and spending a week at a family cabin in the north woods with my daughter, three grandchildren, and two puppies.  It was a very active month.

I entered my retreat with the specific intention that I know, and remember, I am not responsible for others’ happiness.  It was a most appropriate intention for the family gatherings that followed.  It focused me on being an observer of what was going on around me rather than trying to please or placate others.  And because of my observations I became aware of multiple synchronicities occurring in each day, for which I was truly grateful—from my daughter-in-law driving my brother to the airport, to alternative meal plans and activities with the children in the north woods’ soggy weather.

I have been visiting my late in-laws cabin, tucked in a woods on a lake, for 53 years now starting back when the main amenities were kerosene lanterns for light and an outside pump and privy for plumbing.  It is where my late husband and I honeymooned and later became an annual trip with our three children.  My visits there have become much less frequent now and are filled with nostalgia for all those who had enjoyed this rustic beauty and now somehow seem to live on in the pines, sunlight’s sparkle on the water, patter of rain on the roof, multiple hued sunsets, dark, sparkling night sky, and heady clean air.  I became aware of the many long-term synchronicities, born out of trauma and tragedy, which grew me.  And it occurred to me that I could be next in line to become a nostalgic memory.

Coming home to ankle high grass, loads of laundry and stacks of mail, I half considered prolonging my time off from my Monday blog one more week until there was a knock on my door.  There a friend stood with a small gift and card in hand for me.  She had just finished reading my memoir, “God Never Hurries” and told me her light had gone out but my words rekindled it.  On her card she wrote the following Albert Schweitzer quote:  “At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person.  Each of us has a cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.”  She wrote:  “You are the spark!” and she sparked me back into blogging.

What if we all became more observant of synchronicity that sparks gifts and growth in our lives?