It’s been a while since I’ve posted a blog, so I want to start with a special thank you to those who so lovingly and generously supported me through the Thomas fire incident in California that halted my employment for several months and affected so many in my area.  Your support was invaluable in more ways than I can mention here and I am forever grateful.

As the cyclical nature of life continues to move us forward, there are green grasses sprouting on the blackened mountains, and the renewal energy of spring is readily apparent in the blooms of nature all around us.  There are longer cycles of our collective consciousness and humanity’s evolution, however, that are bringing forth daunting challenges.

With our shadow consciousness fully exposed on a global scale, denial is no longer an option, and numbing ourselves has escalated to levels that are killing us in greater proportion than we’ve seen before.  The prevailing dynamic of attacking others through acts of violence or words spoken, is painfully disturbing.  Highlighting the precarious and dangerous nature of life these days, this hostility is generating a great deal of anxiety and it’s a lot to bear.

So how do we journey through the shadow that we must face?  How do we navigate our daily lives in the midst of world distress?  How do we deal with all that is arising in our own lives as part of the greater change in consciousness that is occurring?

I think we must recognize the warriors we are, to be alive right now.   Rather than soldiers of war, we are spiritual warriors and healers, here to assist in the birth of a higher consciousness that enables flourishing sustainability in harmony, and with respect for all life.  Our rules of engagement are radically unconventional and often disregarded, yet demand the same disciplined practice and training required of any conventional warrior.

Compassion has to lead our way and must be generously extended to ourselves and one another.   Awareness of the shadow aspects of thought and behavior that create disharmony must be recognized in order to change them.  Challenging our conditioning to determine its value or worthlessness is necessary to then choose a practice of higher truth in mind and action.  Asking for help from higher dimensions of consciousness (which some call God, Spirit or Higher Self), enables the transcendent power needed to break the embedded dysfunctional patterns, and allows us to realize our innate potential as spiritual beings.  Utilizing our infinite capacity to love unconditionally, we heal the wounds and come together to create from the higher ground we attain through these efforts.

As we all work to recreate our lives in response to the urgency of transformation that’s upon us, we’re simultaneously facing endings in many ways.  We are witnessing death daily and globally through media, and many of us are experiencing the death or illness of loved ones, or going through it ourselves.  There is a tremendous amount of processing and grief taking place.  Maintaining respectful and open communication, dropping judgments of ourselves and others, offering love and forgiveness, extending support and those random (and conscious) acts of kindness every single day, will make our journey easier.

Wars have been fought to enforce a change in consciousness and laws have been made to sustain those changes.  We’ve seen how far that can take us, and now we are carrying it forward differently.  We’re on the front lines every day as we strive to clean up and transform our own thoughts, emotions, bodies, relationships, and environment; as we dare to see with greater vision and love with greater might.  It’s incredibly hard work, but as our inner light grows exponentially through our efforts, it will shine the light on our path and illuminate the way for others.  Our collective shadow may be reflecting the journey of humanity thus far, but Our light reflects the possibility of where we are going.