It has been over two weeks since I have written the Cricket Newsletter. With all that is going on, to find time to just "write" seemed almost impossible. It's a little bit sad, because out of all the projects I have, Cricket Newsletter is one of my favorites. Besides the time factor, so much is going on in the world, that I just didn't seem to have anything that was important enough to write. But after this last week and the horrific circumstances in Japan, I was suddenly compelled to write something.
As the facts unfolded of the horrors of the earthquakes in both Christchurch, New Zealand and Japan, there was something that struck me in the center of my heart. And that was how the people in both catastrophes, handled themselves. I watched how hour after hour, family members would walk through debris, groups of people and government agencies in order to find loved ones. I saw how these people in quiet dignity stood in lines for water and small portions of food while huddled around heaters in makeshift tents. I cried as individuals described trying to hold on to loved ones, to no avail as the raging waters swept their children and spouses away. In all of this, I never felt pity but only admiration for how courageous and kind they were being to each other in the middle of their hell. Very much like the Taiwanese interacted when they were faced with the same horrors.
I wonder if this same kind of horror happened to this country if we would conduct ourselves the same way? Would we still hold on to our humanity while rebuilding, allowing us the realization that it was the only way to maintain and/or grow physically and spiritually? Or would we think that the government or the world or life needed to give us what we deserve? And what is it that we deserve? Who owes us? Anyone? Would we loot to our heart's content? Or would we look inside ourselves and find out what we are made of which may then lead us to rely on each other and then out of that building a stronger, richer and wiser community?
I will speak for myself on what I deserve. I was told a long time ago when I was living a very selfish life, by someone very wise, "If you got what you deserved you wouldn't be alive." Sounds harsh, I know, but honestly, that was the truth. I completely got it when I heard it. The statement drove home how much more I could be offering to the world. I needed to up my ante as a human being and become more useful but not only that, I had a moment of clarity that allowed me to see that false promises had been made to me on how life should be. On how easy it was supposed to be. Ah, I get it....work hard, enjoy the hard work and lower all expectations.
Maybe what I deserve is a crimson sunset. A hot bath. A monarch butterfly. The reassuring voice of a stranger. The gifts that nurture the soul. Maybe this is what are the special moments instead of yearning for a nice house, a big color TV, being famous or being rich. Maybe what we might be actually yearning for are the special moments to give balance to that which so often and easily becomes off-balance due to the hectic demands and increasing pressures of society, government, ad campaigns and what the next door neighbor has. I have known catastrophe to clear the way for divine energy to speak and filter through my senses so that the human spirit can be invigorated.
Now let me be clear, that my intention is not to minimize the horrific suffering that people in New Orleans, Australia, Haiti, New Zealand and Japan have been through. Far from it. It is just my way of putting a personal perspective on what is happening in a way that I can make sense of it. I have to remember that so often, people who have endured nothing less than catastrophic life experiences have most often come out victors rather than victims. When asked, "What was it that got you through your crisis?" Each person gives a similar answer. What they describe is what can be coined as "muscles of the soul." Those inner resources which help us dismantle and transcend the roadblocks on life's journey. These roadblocks include everything from the ex-spouse from hell to cancer to earthquakes.
The muscles of the soul include, but are not limited to courage, faith, humor, patience, compassion, imagination, humbleness, forgiveness, intuition, creativity, optimism, honesty and love. These are the resources people draw upon in times of crisis and catastrophe. They are not gifts for a chosen few. They are birthrights for each and every one of us. But, like our physical muscles, they will atrophy if not used. And while they will never disappear, in a weakened or inactive state, they will be as ineffective as the muscles of a sedentary person attempting a marathon.
In times of catastrophe we are called upon to use our inner resources and come through each situation the victor, not the victim. Our spiritual muscles are there for the asking. Spiritual health is flexing these muscles and feeling the strength they provide when needed.
I can only hope that my spiritual muscles have not atrophied when I am called upon to act in difficult times. I hope that I remember I am a spiritual being living in the physical. And with these hopes I pray for everyone that is suffering in this changing world. I choose that in the end what we are left with is love, light and compassion. I choose to live with an open heart expecting nothing in return. And may I be left with knowing the one thing we do deserve is that we deserve to love.
From my garden to yours.......... |
Monday, March 21, 2011
Deserve To Love
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Deserve Humanity
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Pilgrimage - An Unfinished Opus
'We only have to look around us to see how complexity and psychictemperature are still rising: and rising no longer on the scale of the individual but now on that of the planet. This indication is so familiar to us that we cannot but recognize the objective, experiential, reality of a transformation of the planet as a whole'.
We are heading through a period in history where we can no longer dismiss the wisdom of ancient peoples. Being that - the cosmic concept where intelligence is not just a function of humans on earth but an intrinsic part of energy space and time itself. Every religion comes to the same concept in the end - there is a hierarchy of sorts along with one creator. These beliefs, which I share, cause me to believe there is one full consciousness, so therefor there is only one identity. Singularity - the concept of oneness. The tricky part is that everything we see around us is part of a dream leading us to think that when we are looking at others we are looking at someone else. But really, as we are all part of the same consciousness - we are just looking at ourselves.Yep, that's right folks. No pointing fingers or it's the other guys fault or how can she do that or boy, that so and so is really stupid.....in other words, all we are ever seeing in each and every face, is the face of God. A perfect human being made in God's image. This is my mantra when I begin to slip, finger getting ready to point - and then begin with an inner voice, "I can't be angry, I can't pass judgment, I am looking at the face of God.The journey, pilgrimage, if you will, has not been an easy one for me. I did not come into this humaneness, adjust my halo, fluff my wings and begin loving everyone....Life just always seemed hard. Many reasons for that. Being an overly sensitive kid, mother on welfare and food stamps while my father ran around, no proper clothes to wear in a community where that was not the case for others. Then choosing the music business to go into at a time few women were singing in bands, developing a tough skin, while being forced to make decisions that did not make me the most popular girl in the neighborhood. More than half of my life, I was incredibly angry.As I look around the world, so many of "us" are still angry. The world moving through its journey, is now dying it's angry death of what it has been. I am standing on a planet watching a rebirth, pulling us all in since we are included in the active elements of the universe. But maybe "journey" doesn't really explain it as the word seems to have a beginning and an end. So Pilgrimage may be more fitting. "Pilgrimage", because it is a journey of the spirit frequently beginning long before the journey commences and continuing long after the destination has been reached.Believing that the earth/ universe/mankind, all part of a singular concept, we can look at the earth's pilgrimage, as if it applies to an individual (or the other way around?). How does a pilgrimage begin? Could be an invitation from a friend, a suggestion by a stranger, an unexpected prompting from within one's mind and heart can set a pilgrimage in motion. Haven't many of us, in our hearts and mind yearned for a more peaceful world? Because a pilgrimage is a spiritual journey, it makes the decision to go on a pilgrimage not come quickly or easily. Don't we still feel the pull of the negative even though it can only lead to our demise? Isn't there a tug of war within our own collective consciousness, playing out on a world stage? To displace oneself, that is, to leave the familiar and comfortable place and travel along an unknown and different path may require a season of prayer, the support of a praying community, and a process of discernment before the inner "yes" is freely and intentionally uttered. I am beginning to hear a collective yes, each day more affirmative revealing that awareness of the pilgrimage has already begun.
"The words community and solitary pilgrims may seem like they do not belong together in the same sentence. Yet, throughout the experience of pilgrimage the need for pilgrims to be alone and the need for them to be also in community complement and support one another. Pilgrims come together often with an innate contemplative attitude, a stance requiring periods of inner solitude and outer spaciousness so the spirit can be cared for by silence. Corresponding, when pilgrims come together and form a pilgrim community, the spirit of each pilgrim speaks to the spirit of the other, harmonizing and balancing the movements of each person's involvement in the divine cosmic dance of transformation".
What is the spirit in spiritual for the earth's and our pilgrimage? Maybe the answer begins with a premise-that we are not human beings seeking somehow to do something to become spiritual, but rather we are spiritual beings who long to become fully human. If that premise is accepted, then spirit is an element of being human, being alive and experiencing the emotional qualities of spirit, inner promptings that reflect certain conditions of the mind, heart and body.
As humans, if we can remember that we are truly pilgrims often encountering the shared experiences of a deeper life-giving spirit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and compassion, which affect the mind, the heart, and the body. Then we can realize this is the only way to combat intolerance, rebellion, hatred, violence, or bigotry. If our collective spirit can embrace that a pilgrimage is not always what it seems to be, it is not a vacation, it is uncomfortable, including moments of despair, doubt and conflict, then we can look around and understand what is happening providing more clarity to what is playing out.
Maybe while we percolate, grow and morph, we can bring intentional prayer, meditation, silence, shared reflection and a peace driven vision to the petri dish. We can keep at the forefront of our minds, that love, compassion, peace and knowing are the connection of the human heart to our higher self. And then maybe we can connect, protect and realize what is at stake. One of our greatest gifts....The Great Mother, Earth. |
Friday, January 14, 2011
RESOLUTIONS
That is a pretty heavy quote. Actually, my mother, a wise old soul put it differently. "Kathleen, the minute you want something, the universe puts up roadblocks, so it's best not to "want" anything." Or in another case, my dear friend, Johnny B said in reply to me stating that I "wanted" to practice acceptance, said, "Why do you want anything, just learn to be." Ah, the perils of being human! I have to say that my experience in the spiritual realm tells me there seems to be forces at work trying to keep me from becoming my best, that try to keep me from progressing on my spiritual journey. Whatever these forces are they don't have my best interest in mind which means that the progression of a spiritual path stalls and I end up staying right where I am at. And to not want anything? Of course, that is pretty impossible as a human being - over the years I seemed to always be in a state of "wanting" something or the other. Even with my Taoist leanings of "everything you need is in the moment", it seems that I get popped out of Taoist serenity all too often.
But it is getting better. My list shortens and has more purpose. This last year, so much was accomplished that I can't believe it. Losing weight, working out, finding spiritual teachers, meditating, gardening, organizing my lifeto be more efficient, getting rid of clutter, the garden, the produce stand, finishing a book of poetry, getting two websites up, setting up a fund for families in need, moving into working spaces that are conducive for what I want to do and training in the etheric, spiritual and physical so that it can be applied to the voice and all that goes with it. The list continues for the new year; find time to write/read/study, going vegetarian, recording my next CD & a children's record both with original songs, opening up my own Voice Institute, go camping more often this summer and step up the physical activity. And of course the little cross hairs that get in the way - balancing and working within a budget and improving communications in business affairs. It's not a big list nor are these insurmountable - however, some of them get brushed under a rug, sidetracked, bamboozled and skewered - because I don't really want to do it (budget) or just get lost in the shuffle.
Oh, this just doesn't work anymore because as long as my thinking and/or headspace is taken up with all the internal chatter of life's clutter and whether my checkbook is balanced, it steals all the energy away from what may have more purpose for duties that ring through to a higher level. So stinking thinking takes over and leaves little room for loftier thoughts. Because of this realization, resolutions have now become something more important - however, they are no longer, what I "want". Instead I place my "needs" into right now and manifest as if it has already happened. I no longer get into the "I want" or even "I need" but rather state it as "I Am". Then I seem to become a co-creator, if you will, as opposed to a victim - someone waiting for something to happen to them. It seems to be working as now, I sometimes move almost too quickly towards my goals.
We live in a society of wanting - wanting something other than what we have. This is tricky ground to walk, filled with ego-driven landmines. The tightrope for me has been turning wanting into what my actual needs are and then living as if they are already in place. It takes some meditation, guidance and thought - but keeping the heart pure and my eye on the goal of what I am here to accomplish - seems to keep the journey honorable.
Years ago, while working with women who were ex-addicts and trying to put together clean pregnancies - would come to me worrying about every little thing. My standard reply was, "What are you worried about? It's already happened, you just haven't gotten there yet." (Believe me, there was a lot of eye rolling after that statement). How many times have I looked back and thought, how the hell did that all happen? Between the experience of living life and of course, the garden, have taught me to just "be" - the Water Course or the Way of the Tao. When in the garden, I compost, plant, water and then lower my expectations. Because of this the Taoist lessons of try without trying to act without acting come into play.
By doing so, maybe I won't attract the attention of those who want me to fail.
Or am I the culprit of the failure.....hmmm.........
With the beginning of the New Year I want to take a minute and thank those of you who take time out of your busy lives to read this newsletter. You have no idea, how much it means to me when you drop a note to tell me how you look forward to reading it. It means a lot because it confirms my belief that all of us are on the same journey - different modes of operandi, but the journeys are the same. My purpose of writing this newsletter is to share some of what I move through, hoping that it will strike a chord with some of you. Afterall, we are all part of the same cosmos and need each other to grow, love and share.
May your New Years be as loving and rewarding as we all deserve.
From my garden to yours......
Songs of Peace
"We sang all night and everybody went home early in the morning. It was emotionally so strong that the next day there were even more people. The day after, there were even more people. People took out their hidden flags. They had these flags hidden for 50 years and now they took these out and started to wave them."...Estonian
"They listened to the sounds of the wind, the mountains, the creeks, the rustling grass and imagined the many spirits surrounding them. The Tibetan monks, used this as part of the preparation for prayer as a way to cleanse themselves to pray to their deities"...Humming Your Way to Happiness
Sound is a healer because sound is who we are - a mass of beautiful vibrations as a result of connected harmonic strings informing us of all of that we are made of, beyond and etheric. We along with every living thing has a "cosmic hum" - which of course includes our planets (The Murmers of Earth, Carl Sagan). If we are so lucky as to be sensitive enough to hear the sound (Ah the ears of our furry critters), it is these hums, sounds, harmonics that I think prove that everything is humming along with everything - until there is a discord, putting us out of sync with the universal flow. And as we look around, there is much discord.
What we have forgotten is that most ancient cultures and indigenous peoples, regarded sound as a creative generative force associated with the creation of the Universe, and capable of being harnessed to produce impossible physical and spiritual feats. I reiiterate "physical and spiritual feats", which brings me to something that I wanted to write about.
Most people don't think about singing when thinking about revolutions and/or troubled times. But in Estonia song was the weapon of choice when, between 1987 and 1991, Estonians wanted to end decades of Soviet occupation. The Singing Revolution was the name given to the step-by-step process that led to the reestablishment of Estonian Indepedence in 1991. This was a non-violent revolution that overthrew a very violent occupation. It was called the Singing Revolution because of the role singing played in the protests of the mid-1980's. The movement started in 1987 with 10,000 people at a national music festival and by 1991 two million people joined hands while singing, making a human chain across 400 miles. In late December the Soviet regime was over.
Let's face it - it is just getting weird out there or should I say here. Afterall, it is happening on the same planet I live on. So what do I do about it? Do I ignore it - the answer is no. Do I feed into the power of the negative as every newscaster and heandliner cast an eye on an atrocity that happened in Tucson or anywhere else. - the answer is no. The more we feed into the "paying attention" of how horrible it all is and then having knee jerk reactions which will take away even more rights, enslaving pepole that have nothing to do with these atrocities, we have to come up with a solution. Or do we find a way to "counter" the darkness of all this by bringing light and prayer? And frankly, I just don't think that we have given these incredbily powerful tools their due. It is really easy to point fingers and guns. But really, what can we do to change it? To change us? To change our world? And not to just change it, but to evolve - to have vision. Isn't it love? Isn't it compassion? Isn't it light? And since music is the most powerful thing I have ever come across and more importantly the human voice - is that something we can utilize for change. I think so.
As a singer and more importantly as a voice teacher, I see people change every day as they and their voice connect. They are happier, more relaxed, more confident, their creative juices begin to flow, problem solving becomes easier and they and I have the most beautiful connection. They and I are changing, one cell at a time. Human to human, voice to voice, heart to heart. So why can't we inform change one person at a time?
That is just what I am going to do. I have been inspired by sound all of my life. It has taken me to heights that sadly, most people don't get to experience. I am going to take this and do something with it. But let's not call it revolution. Let's call it peace. Let's call it Peacesong.
From my sound filled, peaceful garden to yours.........
|
Unity In Action
If in the seeking of such goals, a soul uses behaviors of separation; greed, theft, lies, betrayal etc., then such souls though creators, do not understand the Universal principle of Unity from which everything is birthed or created. Such souls then create chaos and havoc that each of you witnesses in your world. If other souls seek their dreams with behavioral actions that signify unity consciousness, then such are true masters and co-creators of not just the world, but of the Universe and they function in alignment with the natural order of the Universe...Unknown
Let's face it, the Cricket Garden Newsletter has morphed and most of the time, has little to do with gardening...or is that really true? If I follow the path that I have been guided to, then all things are inclusive and it seems through gardening, has driven this statement about inclusiveness to the core of who I am. I don't think it's just gardening that has brought me to this awareness. It is, most probable, the culmination of a very busy and varied life, which included the arts - once again bringing my awareness to the point of realizing that all information comes from somewhere above my hair.
There is practically no field of human endeavor that does not relate to gardening in some way. Seen from whatever perspective I might choose, nature touches on every single aspect of human life. Therefore, gardening becomes the metaphor for life or the other way around. But it doesn't matter as life and growing food are symbiotic with each other which has to be considered, as we improve on, reinvent and are inspired by, to move forward on an ever-changing planet. I might not immediately see the connection between everything, but I do act on faith that more information will come so that I can continue to be enlightened to the connectedness of all things.
So what's the point of all of this? I guess it's that I now know that science can no longer operate without the etheric/spiritual/cosmology of the universe as much as the other way around. Each modality, science and spiritual cosmology need each other. Quantum Physics takes on some of these issues as does Rupert Sheldrake, Carl Jung and Rudolf Steiner. And I say, more of this!
I don't even know where to begin as my head swims with all kinds of new information i.e. sound therapy, eurythmy, essential oils (when I have time), organic gardening, becoming a vegetarian, studying different modalities for seed propagation and on and on and on.......but the more I open up to new information, the more it seems to me that everything seems to mimic everything else. I have to commit myself to a much broader way of looking at all of my interests while considering the life of the Earth itself. I must widen my outlook to include the cosmos.
Unfortunately, many of the cosmological influences have been diminished in their importance in this world of "only science is truth". It seems to me that some of the biggest revelations that have come through science, came through in dreams, intuition and mistakes. I have to ask that if you don't have the equipment to measure the unknown then how can you dismiss it? I would think, if I were in a position of doing scientific studies, than I would get busy discovering the instrumentation to disprove what I automatically was not believing. Just because you can't see it doesn't mean it's not true. We have been fed the opposite for many many years, and I think are less of a visionary populous than ever before. Where is the magic in our lives? Where is our belief in the effects of the outer planets and how they affect us? Why don't we support our artists as we do politicians? And while I am on the subject, let's not forget the arts in all of this - is it no mistake that when we look at plants growing, trees blowing in the wind, birds chirping, dogs wagging their tails and cats purring that life is an intricate multi-dimensional quilt that lives with sound, texture, color and smell. Is this not a beautiful work of art? An all-encompassing involved tapestry created by something a little bigger than us? God if you will - or light or love or higher beings or universal design - but if I have something to do with adding to the beauty of this planet, I had a small part and got my marching orders from higher up. And even with this belief system, I plead guilty in forgetting this at times, while in pursuit of paying my rent or in my old life where I spent a lifetime of trying to be famous.
Certain truths are basic, universal, and transcend all man-made religions. For example, all cultures have believed in a sun god of their imagination since each day begins with a sunrise and ends with the a sunset. The rising and setting of the sun represented the resurrection and death of their sun god. The point here is that all cultures understood that the entire universe is a whole and living unity, which means that all things are connected. Nothing is separate as it appears to human perception, but everything is interlinked.
When the garden thaws and I am face to face with the growing of things, I hope to carry new knowledge so that I am adding to - not taking from - my precious loving Mother Earth. And with this new information, I can hold in my heart a basic truth; All things in our universe (including us) that appear to exist independently are actually parts of an all-compassing organic pattern, and that no parts of that pattern are ever really separate from it or from each other. With this, I can keep my heart open to all living things allowing a loving intimacy that can only enlighten spirit.
From my garden to yours............
Monday, December 13, 2010
The Way of Love
The way of love is not a subtle argument. The door there is devastation. Birds make great sky-circles of their freedom. How do they learn it? They fall, and falling, they're given wings. - Rumi
Joe the critters and I, are snuggled up in front of the fire - well, I took a break to write this - watching a winter wonderland form in our front yard. Friends, Gerry and Lisa and fellow lake dwellers, gave us the idea to turn out our lights and watch freighters float by. A spectacular sight as they are lit up like floating holiday ships so that all can be seen from a distance. Last night while watching the lake - two 1,000 foot freighters passed each other in the narrow South Channel - our front yard. I heard myself say out loud - "Oh my, this is so beautiful".
You'd think it'd be obvious to be moved by all things beautiful, but for a long time, I sat in a very dark place wanting and/or needing things to be some other way than the way they were. I found fault with everything and everyone. A lot of this was a silent dialogue between me, myself and I...however negative thoughts leaked out over and over creating a dark cloud that persistently hovered over-head. It's a horrible way to live. Finding fault with others, which you later learn are just huge disappointments in oneself, the culprit always being fear. But through nature, gardening, love of animals, my husband and eventually some cosmic guidance, my heart began to open. With this came faith in something bigger than me which led to replacing the fear that kept me blindsided.
We are meant to be happy
The answer, the key, is the heart. I have been told throughout my life to "follow my heart." But how? I wanted to, you know, as long as it was on my terms. Which of course, isn't the point. There are no terms. You love all and everything for what it is - but I constantly fell back into negative thoughts. And honestly, I just think, that through pure exhaustion of not feeling spiritually right is what finally brought me to my senses. Not only that, but I live in my head, where it a dangerous place to go alone - like a bad neighbourhood. Why is the heart the main connection to True Source? Why is the heart the centre of beautiful feelings? Why is the heart, not our brain or other parts of us, the key?
Maybe it's because our true self is within our heart and will continue to live on even after this lifetime has been completed. While our physical body is only a temporary "shell"-flesh and blood that will one day turn into dust-our relationship with the heart, our soul, is True Source eternal, forever and always.
Sitting still, watching snow fall, holding my husband's hand are tiny clues that tell me the heart, not the mind, is the true instrument of perception. When I am able to live in heart, the world becomes magical, full of beauty, abundance and joy. As I open to my Source, not only do I draw the reflection of love into every area of my life but my heart becomes a magnetic field for entraining the hearts of all humanity. The heart becomes a pure conduit for the light and love of God.