You may have noticed I haven’t been around for a couple of months – in the blog world, that is.  Occasionally, I enter a cycle when the pull to go inward is so compelling it has to be honored, and I’ve learned the value of allowing it to run its course.  Though I maintain the basics in my work and personal life, I surrender to the wisdom that this is not a time of outward productivity.

It’s not always easy, especially in the beginning of the cycle when I’m not fully aware of its arrival, and am having some resistance.  Or when my mind continuously sends out those “shoulds” that are so generously reinforced by society’s standards.  It’s unfortunate in our American culture, that going within often means going against the grain.

In this regard, it was an advantage to experience life before computers and cell phones existed.  We had the experience of our senses being sharper, and quiet wasn’t something you had to go and find.  There was greater accountability and our communication was more real.  Texts and emails weren’t the bane of our dialogue with one another or used for evasive tactics, and our minds had not yet become addicted to instantaneous response.

Technology and social media have altered and advanced our daily lives so dramatically, that the tendency to slip out of consciousness is hard to avoid.  Given the astounding volume of data and experiences we have to process each day, I’ve come to respect these inward cycles as mandatory time for assimilation and integration.

By allowing periods of lessened activity, we afford ourselves the chance to rest, replenish, and reflect – mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally.  In turning our outer focus inward, wisdom and clarity arise that would otherwise be obscured.  Ideas culminate, understanding comes, and often there are “light bulb” moments when transformation is instantaneous.

When we override our internal rhythm and timing, we become out of harmony with the energy of our creation – with the universe itself – and the creation process inherently within us.  The neuroses of our minds then interferes with the life flow that is supporting us, and we get disconnected.  We don’t intend it, but the pain and difficulty of our separation is usually projected onto others.

We can also miss the inner promptings and outer indicators that would not only keep us harmoniously engaged, but easily guide us to our greatest opportunities and fulfillment.  And rather than experience the organic and miraculous nature of life, we create struggle.

As the manager of our own lives, we don’t have to follow the dictates of the outer demands we are conditioned to respond to.  There is nothing on the material plane worth the surrendering of our souls’ purpose to create from love, and we all have the power to shapeshift our lives to reflect that.  The space we create for inner connection will only increase the potential and beauty in our outer realities.