The mind translates our experience as product of the good or bad, the beautiful or ugly, a transmission depending upon the GPS we choose. The fact is there is a secret power within us that is flawless (see archives, "What to Do While Searching for Your Soul's Misplaced GPS"). Connected to universal intelligence, this mysterious guidance turns out to be the breeding ground of confidence, well-being, and that joy that comes when that which is best within comes out to play, creating a better world. As Matisyahu puts it: "In this maze you can lose your way..." He also shows us a return to soul through his music:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JjMGXz9P6Y
Such is the zenith of the creative breakthrough. This is the place where we find the dance of life, and it finds us! In this zone beyond thought, we lay down our burdens, making way for a fountainhead of guidance for what's needed in the moment. The trick is discovering and making daily visits via meditation, creative activity, dream work, nature, and whatever lights your fire. The choice is to make a regular practice, whether you are a believer or not, that life has more to offer.
The good is always with us, attempting to live through us, but we get in the way. How? We doubt, we deny our own intuition and instincts, override wisdom from doubt that comes when we are caught in the traffic jam of distraction. It was not always this way. I defy you to recall a toddler who did not find joy in the spontaneous, who worried about making mistakes in expressing himself. No, such blockage begins around the time the child enters school. Here, the spirit of his little creative imaginings and expressions get snuffed out before he masters his first multiplication tables. The soul of said child may long to bring the spirit of life into form, but the fear of failing is quickly incorporated into his little psyche. Before you know it, what could bring joy and connection is relegated to the trash can. Life is never the same. (More on what transpires in the soul of the artist in weeks to come.) For now, suffice it to say we must learn a way of releasing our fears of imperfection and disappointing others if we are ever to employ the Law of Creation on the behalf of ourselves in service to what is greater than self-doubt.
True surrender. True surrender to The Law of Creation (one of the four cornerstones described in The Love Project: Coming Home), requires cultivating self-trust and respect for what lives through us beyond the ego. Nobody develops this skill set and attitude without sincere intention and hard work. Nor does anybody bother until they have run out of answers by doing the "same old" which only brings more of the "same old." We do this by knee-jerk, heading for our "go to" fixes that never work for long. We only end up where we started, still asleep, still frustrated. Breaking this self-defeating habit is nothing less than a spiritual practice.
This is why the attempt is called "practice." Taking it on means the ego fails again and again and must get accustomed to taking a back seat as needed. Turning over, giving over to that which lives in the stillness, beyond the mosquitos called "noise and anxiety," is one of the most difficult challenges of a lifetime. Partly what gets in our way is over-reaching, over-functioning.
Take, for instance, the license plate in front of me while waiting for a red light to turn green. It read: "Think Big." Maybe. What about "... For everything, a season, and a purpose under heaven..." It behooves us to discern which train of thought transports us best to the destination we have chosen. My own license plate reads simply "Thank You." It is my message all the way around.
What do you choose? What message do you create through how you move through life? How fast are you running to arrive? Or, is Alice's rabbit alive in you, whispering, "I'm late, I'm late for a very important date. No time to stop, or say hello, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late."
Late for what? Perhaps we are right on schedule for returning to what lives beyond our little plans, our to-do list. How clear is your vision for what you most want? Our faith is forged in the fire of our deepest private conflicts.
One of the most prevalent is doubt over whether to trust or not. Not only trust for others, but beginning with trust for Wisdom within, buried beneath the chatter. Here is where the inner terrorists are busy at work, the egoic attempt to distract us from what might put "him" out of business. Be informed, however, that the soul's wisdom does not speak in linear ways. It does not bother with the world's language but returns us to the realm of imagery, creative imagination, and the felt-sense of things. Here is where the goodies wait for us to find them.
What are the universal message and prescription that live in the land of creative spirit? The injunction and practice go something like this, which I will share in the form of today's Love Letter on the subject. This prescription works if you work it, mess around with it on a daily basis, slowly. This is crucial. I suggest a 21-day reread every day, three times a day with a simple sentence jotted down afterward, for what arises from your belly. Date it. Watch what opens. Enjoy.
Relax. Take heart. Return. Feel your heart beating, bringing you what you need. Trust your heart. Let life move through you, releasing the poison from your system, all your oughts. Forgive yourself for being human. Breathe. Let go. Refuel.
I come to you in the stillness. I live in the beyond the beyond. I have been here since before time. Beyond your busy mind, I am. What monkey mind says is so important is not. What you are looking for can only be found within. Here is the honey that most deeply satisfies what ails you, even if wordless, invisible, beyond imagery.
Witness what troubles you, but do not follow it into the darkness. Witness what troubles those you care for as they struggle with their anxiety. But do not follow them into their darkness. You will only lose your way. Love does not mean solving other people's problems. Love is born through witnessing what is greater than turmoil, where all is well. Love sees rightly, where fear causes you to overreach beyond your game. Leave what is not your business alone. Sitting in the space beyond distractions brings grace's song that all is well, and "all manner of things is well." Do not doubt it. This is the land of the free and the brave, the home of universal heart where all are welcome, and none remain the orphan.
A life of turmoil is an unconnected life. Earth may seem the great orphanage, where suffering ensues whenever you are myopic to the treasure that abounds around and through you. True, it is not the gold the world seeks. This does not matter. Your treasure lives and breathes through what brings you joy, what renews your spirit, and feeds your soul. Let the rest go.
Do not worry so much about what seems missing. Out of the holes, it is possible to find the whole. Stay steady. Trust your process. Love wounds come as a deeper call home to who you really are. Hear the call of the beloved through them.
Rest your exhausted mind. Give over your worries to that which is beyond your limited understanding. Breathe deeply. Know that there is only good, despite the present appearances of what persists to test you. Fear not what you do not understand. Your answer will come in unexpected forms, but it will come. Everything in its own good time.
In the meantime, turn what troubles your heart over to creation. Visit a place of beauty. Perhaps a walk along the water, or a drive through the desert, a hike through the woods or park, a trip to a gallery, or concert, or meadow. Notice what uplifts you most. Maybe it is the toddler by the stream, enchanted by reflections of the sun, or unleashed pugs racing along the path in pure delight at the doggy park. Or maybe it is the row of red, yellow, and orange tulips planted on the fourth floor of that overhead apartment building. The fact that someone has taken the time to seed beauty where there was none.
For this is why we are here, isn't it? To envision and seed beauty within the heart, marry it to creative imagination, birth it through the sweat and labor pains of returning focus to that fertile ground that lives beyond the beyond of distraction, guiding you home to your soul made manifest in the world. Step by step is good enough. Take heart, the beloved lives through yours.
Be the Love,
Cara
For more by Dr. Cara Barker, click here.
For more on mindfulness, click here.
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We are both light and dark. We can embrace the darkside, just as night is followed by daylight.
Soul is not either light or darkness. Identifying with either one is a learning opportunity.
American Indian Prophecy, Living As Soul on Earth; via A Green Road Blog
http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/04/american-indian-prophecies-and-way-of.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm_SxGey9_M&feature=related
It's hauntingly beautiful and I find I could get lost in the music. It takes me to a beautiful place. Will be interesting to hear your thoughts on this.
hugs and bushels of love
xxxoo,
Cara
Many here know me, and will tell you that I have embraced my "dark side" and made the best of it. I use the strength of it to do volunteer work with veterans. It serves me well.
Welcome to you (as I don't recall seeing you among this group before). You are among friends and kindred spirits.
My best to you and yours and all who read this.
Paul
See you on the 6th! Pats to Tess,
Cara
Sorry for the delay, as I'm still 'on the road' doing what I love to do. My dear Lynn, you come from 'Beyond the Beyond.' No wonder you love it! I relate deeply to what you write, and am touched by your outreach: its simple truth, genuine feeling, and sense of gratitude for life, including the 'crawl.' I know it well myself!
Be the Love. See you on the 6th,
your Cara
I took a shellacing from my wife yesterday for wanting to use the toilet (for a moment) while she was putting on her false face. I demanded an apology before speaking to her again; because of her wanton use of redundant hostility. (Of course, I have never received an apology since I’ve known her.)
I dreamt of my cabin in the Yukon; then to annoy her worn out ears thru a song and improve my disposition, I played: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9bfRb1dS-w&list=PL2DFDD6AA87709A1A&index=1&feature=plpp_video
Thank you for your reply, even the presumptuous ending…! Just what I need; the opinion of “another wife…!”
Love your way...
Be the Love,
Cara
"glitch" (Posting) Definition:
1. Evaluation Centers are on strike in India
2. Your post is being held, expect a late night visit by goberment agents.
3. You need to upgrade from that AT286 or Apple 1.
4. You are plagued by viruses from gaming and unmentionable sites.
5. A member of your household is downloading huge photo files of movie stars.
6. The oddmod was thin shinned and using Chinese CS standards
Nakai, Eaton & Clipman "Horses in the Rain"
http://youtu.be/7B5XMPrGdBw
Let the music play today in every heart,
Cara
Welcome back Cara from what many here have called Paradise.
In fact, let me address what you are saying with a blog because what you are sharing is that important.
Meanwhile, may we sing ourselves awake through the thumb sucking in the amniotic fluid! As for the Paradise, I am in it now, and welcome you along for the ride, and any other like-hearted and like-minded. Wheeee!
Love, Cara
Have a nice weekend. :)
Thank you and bless you. You seem to have found your own true Paradise.
Many thanks, witz! You've come through once more, as is your giving nature.
Cara
From someone who seems to have a few more holes recently than wholes, thanks Doctor Barker.
Nice to meet you here at Cara's lovely cafe.
Hugs,
Cara
Nice to meet you as well. :)
My very best to you, fellow lover of peanut M&M's!
Cara
I've zeroed in on the trust part. Not just trusting people but trusting ourselves. I mean I can easily trust myself but it's the trusting decision making where I get stuck. I remember how I used to take a legal tablet and mark pro and con remarks and then weight the columns. I always seemed to make the right decision that way. This time I seemed to be trusting the heart, or soul, and my acquired wisdom to help me out but I find myself resisting rather stubbornly change so I've ended up "living" with my jounral getting my thoughts and feelings on paper.
Sounds like your journey to paradise refilled your creativity dear Cara and charged your energy which is good. We all need that even if it's a trip to the beach or a wandering walk through the woods or beautiful gardens. Glad you guys had a great time.
Hmm, I was think mai tais all of last week. I've only had them in Hawaii, remembering my first one years ago and how quickly they could sneak up on you.
Have a great trip to the East Coast.
hugs and loads of love your way in sunny Seattle,
BTW: you are so right: "love just is; golden in it's simplicity." To that I add, Love is a choice.
Your words touch my heart, my friend, as always. The words for this blog came through my meditation on life and each of you, as well as me, of course. I do believe you 'zeroed in on the trust part' as an act of Wisdom. Without trust, what can grow? Without trusting our own Best Self, how can we ever take the necessary leaps of faith that our very Soul urges for our own unfolding? Without this, the irritant never becomes the Pearl.
I can see you are no stranger to those pro/con columns, for neither was I some time back. But, then, like you, I began to recognize that the best decisions I made always arose from the heart, for they sustained themselves over time, and always led to an expansion of life, albeit through a Trust Walk involving facing fears, and self-limiting beliefs.
cont.
Giggles,
Cara
http://youtu.be/7cPIT_T3mYU
hugs,
Cara
Clarification: I am, demonstration-wise, nowhere in the same lane as Cara and Judith. I can be vain, selfish, greedy, jealous, angry, lazy, etc. etc. and if I was going to a wedding you can be sure I would like to look great on the outside ..... was just saying how much you light up the cafe with your bubbly energy and am sure you do the same elsewhere.
P.S. Yes... may she rest in peace. ( Donna Summer)
oops! For some reason the info that I will be back 6/6 with the next post did not come up, and just wanted you to know that I will me mulling in a contemplative and grateful way what is happening here through you and me and address the creative process that is blossoming in such an amazing way.
So many thanks,
Cara
Oh wait Gypsy, don`t be so selfish.....you deserve the break Cara. Have a great spring,but know you would be really busy. XO
Love,
Cara
Meanwhile, know that I am smiling simply thinking of you and the gift that you are!
Joy to you,
Cara
Right back 'at 'cha', onethot
As for love and problems, I do experience that it is when we forget that we are part of a Bigger Field, this is when we imagine we are separate from love, and hence, are reduced to the level of 'problem solving.' All I know is that Love heals all things, knows all things, infuses beauty and wisdom in all things if we get out of the way and release our expectations as to form.
Love your way, through your Way,
Cara