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Contentment

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Do you fear that you will lose your edge, become complaisant, or a lie-about if you allow yourself to be content? (Those of you who push, jockey, and fight for position in life will need to cover your ears and eyes for a moment.)

Contentment is peace and peace is your true nature. Contentment is a feeling that all is right with the world. “All is right within me. I want for nothing in this moment. I feel good in this moment. All is well in this moment.”

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Belted Kingfisher

Yet, in the next moment, you may find yourself remembering a want, a need, trying to solve a problem, or worrying about what is next for you.

Can you hold the memory of the feeling of contentment in your heart? Then you can bring it back to mind when you want to feel peace again.

You might remember the feeling of contentment you had while sitting on your porch watching golden patches of sunlight light up the trees in late evening.

You might remember the feeling of contentment while walking in the woods on a cool summer morning listening to birdsong.

You might remember the feeling of contentment you had when holding your new grandchild in your arms.

Savor these moments of your precious life and inhabit them fully, for they are your life. Remember the sights, smells, feelings and emotions of contentment and bring them to your awareness.  Pay attention, absorb the feelings into your heart and breathe in the peace you feel.

And now I ask on behalf of the trees and all living things: Can you be content with the earth and her living creatures, her rooted beings, her stones and bedrock without bulldozing the sacred trees, scraping away the precious soil, paving over the prairies, felling the forests, scarring the landscape with ugly buildings, making war on those you do not understand?

Dear ones, these acts  reflect discontent, a pulling away from your center.  They are not you at your best, not a reflection of your higher self.  Find gentler ways to live and interact with this earth and her people, and we will all thrive.

Those who find contentment and peace within will live in harmony with nature, with the earth, with others, and with all that is.

We belong together

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Dear ones, you are here on planet Earth inhabiting your magnificent body, taking up the space you need, partaking of the Earth’s resources – drinking, bathing washing in her precious water, eating foods that originate in the earth…

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You are using her stones to pave your roads, her wood to build your homes; her gems, minerals and metals to beautify your lives and support your roads, bridges, and buildings.

All living creatures depend on Mother Earth’s growing things to feed and clothe and nourish and shade and shelter and provide a soul satisfying life.

We have grown up together, the earth and all her creatures. We depend on each other.

We need each other to sustain our beautiful lives here on this sweet green earth where there is space to be who you are; space to live.

Let us care for one another, human, animal, plant, insect, bird, micro-organism, water, air, soil, so all can thrive!

Upwelling of spirit

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There comes a time when you must acknowledge that you need the help of a higher power; that you need the wisdom and compassion of all that is to heal yourself, to solve your problems in surprising and miraculous ways with soul satisfying results.

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Dragonfly

Dear ones, you cannot do it all by yourselves! Give up the illusion of control and allow the wisdom, grace, and peace of spirit to work in your lives.

You will have access to all wisdom, all possibilities, all combinations of factors, all inspirations and ideas. It is having the entire universe at your call.

Let go of your grasp on that which is holding you back! Let go of your narrow picture of how things will happen.

Allow yourselves to be filled with fresh inspiration and energy. Allow the amazing upwelling of spirit in your precious lives!

Mass Consciousness

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Through the millennia humans have walked the earth, your ancestor’s fear, anxiety, and feelings of dread have built up and accumulated exponentially, multiplying in the people and in the environment.

At first the feelings came in response to danger – a storm, a dangerous hunt, a predator. The fear was quickly here then gone. As life became more complex, with more humans living close together in settlements and cities, the energy of dread and fear became overwhelming and difficult to clear. The feelings themselves became taboo, frowned upon.

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Thick cloud cover

“You must be brave!” “You must not think that way!” “You must be strong!” “You must not be angry!”

The feelings, being energy, did not simply vanish into thin air, but began to build up like cumulus storm clouds on the horizon. Every generation added their own burden to the mass consciousness.

Now we are enveloped in haze, a thick cloud cover of anxiety, unease, fear – a legacy from the past. It continues to press you down with its heavy weight and affect all living beings on this earth.

Dear ones, you do not have to be crushed under this burden. You can release the feelings of anxiety as you find a safe, compassionate loving way to transmute your stuck feelings.

You can shield yourself from the anxiety of others and the fear of mass consciousness. If you do not know how to do this, find a healer that will help you transmute and clear your energy.

When you do this, the world will change, the world will become a safer, more harmonious, more loving place.

Enjoy wasting time

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It is OK to rest and relax and waste time! It is OK not to know. It is OK not to have all the answers. It is OK to stay home from the party, to enjoy your own company.

It is OK to be at loose ends. It is OK to not know your next step. It is OK to take a siesta. It is OK to empty your mind as you study the shifting sunlight and shade under a magnificent tree.

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Indigo bunting

Give yourself time and space. Release the pressure you place on yourself to constantly decide,to judge to think and do.

Don’t worry that you will become a habitual or perpetual lie-about, for that will never happen! You will receive inspiration for fabulous new ideas or take action soon enough. In the meantime, give in to gravity and take a nap!

Part of the pleasure of being human is the state of grace when you simply exist in the moment without thought of past or future, without worry, without analysis, without argument.

So, sink your bare toes in the dewy grass or a sandy beach, and throw off your stuffy adult responsibilities for a few hours.

What can you learn from plants?

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What is it you’d like to know dear ones? Do you want to know what it feels like to live your entire life in the elements in tune with the seasons and cycles of nature? Do you wish to experience life from the perspective of a rooted creature of the earth?

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Virginia creeper, sunlight and shadow

Can you imitate a magnificent tree, rooted and patient and focused in the here and now? Giving all of yourself to your current occupation, focusing your attention like a shaft of sunlight or a laser beam?

Do you know that roots give freedom to grow, reach, spread, and accept the gifts of sunlight, moonlight, rain, twilight, sunset color?

Do you become quiet and observant?  Do you breathe in the rich fragrance of the soil, feel the rough bark, become mesmerized by the shimmering silvery leaves overhead, marvel at the intricacy of our root systems?

The community of rooted beings has much to teach the human world, both at the physical level and the level of spirit. Can you quiet your mind and focus your powers of attention enough to learn from us?

Are you bent out of shape?

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Do you tie yourself in knots, bend backwards, reach out beyond your comfort zone into a state of anxiety and discomfort for any reason?

Do you fear that others will suffer if you do not put in superhuman efforts to “save” them? If so, you are over-reaching. Your circle of influence and power can only include yourself and your small children if you have them.

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Purple cone-flower and bumble bee

You can plant seeds for others with your words and actions, but you cannot make them grow. You can be an example with your own grounding, centering and focus, but you cannot make others “get it”.

No matter how much you love another adult, it is not your job to save them from themselves, show them “the way”, correct them, control or command them.

Others may learn from your example, or they may not.  Focus on you and your precious life!

Use your mighty power of focus and your alignment with source to find your own way. Correct your own course when you waver. Focus your attention on your own thoughts, words, and actions. If a change is needed, take action and do what is required.

Command your own energy, thoughts, words, and actions to create an empowered life for yourself.

What is success?

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Have others defined success for you? Do you subscribe to the popular view that bigger and more is better?

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Grandmother Cottonwood

How do you define success? Is it a big house and three car garage in the fashionable part of town? Is it a stressful high powered career in which you get to boss others? Is it lots of money in the bank?

Is your definition of success winning at your game of choice? Are their losers in your game?

Is your idea of success feeling happy in the life you’ve chosen? Is it thriving in the place you’ve chosen, doing what makes you heart sing, feeling comfortable in your body? Is it having time to relax and enjoy your family and friends; the simple but soul satisfying moments of a life well lived?

Decide what matters to you, what success is to you. Take the time to quiet your mind and get in touch with your inner spirit, beyond thought. Your heart will know the truth.

You are the master of your life, your time, your energy. You choose how to spend these most precious resources. Spend them wisely! Spend them in support of a life that satisfies your soul!

Access your power!

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Does your mind outpace your body? Do you feel spacey and disconnected?

If your mind races ahead and leaves your body behind, you are living in the future and forgetting the present; neglecting your grounding in the here and now, your need for earth energy, for your full and complete presence in this time and place. Don’t jump or skip ahead!

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Red wing blackbird on a breezy day

If your body rushes ahead and leaves your mind in the dust, you are living in the past ; disembodied, perhaps getting yourself into situations that do not serve you well. Perhaps you feel stuck.

Can you bring your body mind and heart together and concentrate all your focus in this moment? Can you keep it together?

The present is where your power lies! When all of you is in the present.  This is the state of flow, where you are plugged into your power supply – All that is – and you have access to boundless energy.

Here’s a practice for you to help you pay attention to what is now. Choose one of the 5 senses: feel, taste, touch, smell, sight. Focus for a few minutes on only that information coming into your body and mind through that sense.

Can you narrow your focus that much, aligning body and mind and balancing your consciousness in this point in time? Can you gather all of yourself, your scattered energy, thoughts, feelings, physical sensations and know your wholeness?

In this way, you train yourself to be wholly present, to empower yourself and tap in to amazing energy!

Intoxicating…

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Must you intoxicate yourself? If so, intoxicate yourself with the summer day.

Lose yourself in the shifting and dappled shade under a friendly tree, the breeze moving through the grasses like waves on the sea.

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Female red winged blackbird

Feed your spirit with the shimmering silver leaves on the crown of a cottonwood tree, birdsong, insect music, cloud patterns, rushing water in the creek weaving patterns in the sand and silt, the scent of wildflowers and tree blossoms…

Come under the influence of the soft morning air embracing you, the hoot owl at dusk, patterns of sunlight and shadow in the leafy neighborhoods, soaring birds riding the thermals, the hot sunlit air…

Surrender to the beating of your heart, the breath flowing in and out of your lungs, the weight of your body and limbs as you let yourself rest, as you allow the earth to support you

Fall in love with the moon waxing to full, filling the night sky with her silvery light, waning to new, repeating her ancient cycle without end.

This is your world, your precious gift. Give yourself to it, body and soul.