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A FRIDAY POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – Wounded Man
This is an interesting poem I came across for today. I wrote it in the Spring, four years ago. It seems to fit the Rhythms & Cycles collection as we all go through the highs and lows of life.
We are all wounded in some (or many) ways. So I write. And perhaps I’m feeling a little wounded now because I haven’t been writing enough lately. How are you wounded? And how do you treat that wound? We have to take care of ourselves; then each other!
Wounded Man
Wounded healer,
Heal thy self.
Recover that lost piece
Which bleeds in some far place.
Wounded warrior,
Come home now.
Soothe thy fevered brow
And sing songs of peace.
Wounded High King,
Rule in peace.
Strengthen thy green land
And love your people free.
Wounded poet,
Write thy verse.
Create the song of peace
To heal the Warrior-King.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
ROSEMARY’S EXPLORATION: Commitment and Solutions
A message from The Divine Feminine:
“Dear Ones,
You are being invited into a new level of conscious living on Planet Earth at this time. Will you accept the invitation?
For so many of you there have been problems in your life that you have struggled to handle. Money, relationship, children, career. These problems exist in the 3-dimensional world of Planet Earth. Your pain, whether only emotional or a combination of emotional/mental/physical, is also a 3-dimensional pain.
But we would tell you that there are many dimensions beyond the 3 you are considering and your solutions lie beyond where you are searching for them.
Have you learned to access your Inner Wisdom? Your Spirit Guides and Angels? Do you meditate? Pray? Journal? Seek counseling/mentoring?
We understand that, when there are problems in life, it is tempting to constantly consider the problems while hoping for the solutions to appear. You are, however, not a slave to your circumstances or to your problems. You are empowered to seek solutions wherever they may reside. And focusing on the problems continues to give them power in your life.
The empowered approach to solutions is to seek them without the attachment to the problem. If you focus on your problems you energize them at a low vibrational density that causes you to anchor yourself in that density. If, instead, you focus on what you can do to shift your circumstances, what you can try, even if success is not guaranteed, then you can operate at a higher frequency level and lift yourself out of your story.
Solutions are always available. They may not be the solutions you want but you are always presented with only those situations that you are ready to handle. Sometimes the solution is to decide to take no action. Or maybe to change your thinking about what you have decided to call a ‘problem’ so that you can accept the situation and no longer deem it a ‘problem.’ And sometimes there are actions to take to move you toward resolution.
No matter where the solution lies, your responsibility is to your personal growth and, therefore, you must be committed to working in a way that is focused on evolving and not just on ending a problem.
Concentrate on your commitment level to that which you desire. Are you congruent? Are you committed enough to sacrifice something to achieve your goals? Are you committed enough to focus on where you want to be instead of what has happened or where you have been?
This is the commitment that problems invite from you. Do what is required for you to grow through the experience of finding solutions. Focus on what you DO WANT and commit your energy to making that happen, even if it scares you.
Your level of commitment to changing your circumstances determines the success of your efforts to change.
It is always about commitment.
And so it is.”
Thank you for this message.
I invite you to look at your life and your challenges and commit to taking some action toward what you desire rather than focusing on what is happening around you. YOU can change yourself and, thus, your life.
Conversations that Heal: On Shame
Shame is a deep and often dark subject; not an easy conversation subject, especially for men. I am posting this because I believe it is a very important topic and may open you to considering shame in a different light.
Rosemary recently had the privilege of participating in a Conversations that Heal Radio Show with host Susan Jacobi. They discussed the topic of ‘shame’ – what it can show up as in your life and some ways to clear shame from your timeline. I think you’ll find their discussion interesting, so here is the link to the 30-minute recording. Let us know in a comment what you think:
Dream a Big Dream! – Richard’s Commentary
Rosemary begins her message with a question:
Do you know your Heart’s Desire? Do you have a Big Wish?
Well, do you? The very first step in moving forward with your life is to visualize it, see it, dream it! As humans we are good at making pictures. We are an extremely visual species. Consider the simplest of things we do; if we want to go out to the store, in the snow, to get that last loaf of bread, we first make a picture of the store, the way to get there, the car, the road conditions, and a thousand other images that pop into our minds just to accomplish this simplest of tasks. We create a “map” of the task to “see” us through to successful completion. No matter how simple the action we visualize it before acting.
And what if the task is bigger; what if we are talking about a “heart desire”? Then the visualization needs to scale to the level of the desire.
I’m using a visual perspective here because we are strongly visual. But if we engage all of our senses, our emotions, our intuitive senses and even our spirit in creating a dream-environment how much more powerful the “map” becomes to get us there. If we begin to hear the desire, smell how it might be, taste the flavors anticipated, feel the quality of the air and imagine being in the midst of that desired condition we can actualize the dream that much more powerfully.
Let me give you a personal example: my Big Wish for 2014 is to travel to India to participate in the Kalachakra Tantra Rite of Initiation being offered by His Holiness the Dalai Lama this year. He is offering it in Ladakh, in the north of India in the Himalayans. This dream touches on many of my wishes – travel back to India, travel to the Himalayan Mountains, visiting Buddhist Monasteries, participating in Buddhist rituals – the list is quite long. And as I begin to picture this dream it becomes very large, almost to the point of overwhelm. But I am taking my own advice:
The first thing I have done is to read more deeply about the Kalachakra Tantra Rite of Initiation. I have read Jeffrey Hopkins’ translation of His Holiness’ work by that title. And now I am practicing the Six Session Yoga as a prerequisite of the Initiation. I am visualizing the practice, visualizing Kalchakra and Vajradhara and beginning to get a deep, heart and soul understanding of this Tantra.
I am also reading about Ladakh. And I am remembering the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, feelings and wonders of being in India. I have only visited three cities before, Mumbai, Bangalore and New Delhi. I have not been to the north or anywhere near the mountains. But I have been above 14,000 feet in Colorado and I have been above 19,000 feet in Africa; I can combine my various experiences to begin to form a picture of what it might be like in the highest mountains in the world.
I have also visited Buddhist monasteries, practiced Buddhism there, enjoyed the beautiful art, heard the bells, chanted the mantras, smelled the incense, tasted the simple fare, felt the cold hard floor of early morning meditations in the middle of winter and shivered not with the cold but with the moving spirit of the sangha.
I am putting lots of pictures, experiences of all the senses, and deep feelings of my past into as complete a picture as I can of my Big Wish, what it might be like. I am energizing this wish. I am empowering it and sending it into the cosmos as something already done. And I let go of the particulars of how; I leave that to the Universe. I am doing my part!
Rosemary asks another question in her message:
So what do you want? What is your Heart’s Desire?
Answer that question, and the rest is up to you to paint the picture of your Heart’s Desire. Go for it!
Settling In
This phrase has been popping into my life since the New Moon and New Lunar Year. It seems it comes to mind every day as I write my Morning Pages. I catch myself writing it and wonder, what’s this about…
And I realized today, as I wrote it once again, that I am settling in. There are many aspects to this, not the least of which is settling in to the new energies coming in with the New Moon and New Year. It’s different. Is it just me who is feeling and sensing the difference? Do you sense it?
So, I am settling in to this New Year, the Year of the Wood Horse, or Green Horse. In the Chinese Medicine Five-Element system one of my dominant elements is Wood. With the New Moon we left the Water Snake Year of 2013 behind and moved into Wood Horse. There is an energy about this Horse coming in; some have said it is galloping in! And the Wood energy is hitting right on top of my Wood tendencies. What this means is lots of energy for me and I am finding myself needing to dampen it down; adjust. I am settling in to this New Year and I expect it to take more time. After all the Chinese celebrate the New Year for two weeks, until the Full Moon, which is still a week away. Maybe it takes the two weeks to settle in to the new energy.
We are also still setting in to our new home. We spent some time yesterday moving filling cabinets so we can more easily file and re-file paperwork for the business, church and personal lives we lead. We are still finding places to put things and still looking for things misplaced! Settling in.
And it occurs to me that this is what life is really about. We are always settling in. Do you feel this way? And it’s a good thing. Settling in is becoming present. It is sensing our environment and getting comfortable with it. It is getting in touch with our bodies and settling in. It is examining our emotions, our heart-feelings and settling in to whatever arises: joy, sadness, grief, gratitude.
There is also a settling in of our mental state as it ebbs and flows from alert awareness and high functionality to drowsy calmness as we get ready for sleep. I even find myself settling in to the rhythm of time, adjusting to what seems to be shortening days (can they really still be 24 hours long?).
And spiritually I am becoming very settled. No, not complacent nor dogmatic, not fixed in anyway but very open and always questioning. Yet at some level I am accepting that I will likely not find the answers to my all my questions in this life. I’m not settling for this as a final conclusion, but I am settling in to this possibility.
I have a greater sense of calm around this notion of settling in. I’m in this for the long haul – and it could be very long, if the reincarnationists have it right! So, why not settle in and enjoy the journey!
This phrase seems to be following me everywhere. Even in my yoga class last evening we were led to “settle in” to our bodies during shavasana. And I knew just what to do.
I hope you are not settling for anything. But do find some peace and settle in to your life; it’s so much easier that way!
Have a great weekend!
Get Ready for the Big Shift! – Richard’s Commentary
You’ve been hearing about this “big shift” from Rosemary, many others and me for a long time. We talked about it leading up to that momentous pivot point of the Winter Solstice of 2012. And we have been talking about it for more than a year since that point. Is it coming? Is it here? And most importantly:
Are you excited about taking a quantum leap forward in your life?
I am excited! And I do sense this is the time. Rosemary says this:
Now is the time! The world around you is showing you in not-too-subtle ways that you have turned the corner into the place where you are facing the biggest shift of your life. Are you willing to shift?
But notice something here: she is not talking about something on the outside; this is not necessarily a change that is coming at you. She says, “you have turned the corner.” Indeed we have all turned a corner and we now have to embrace what we have generated.
This “change energy” is an internal potential. The calendar has little to do with it other than to focus our attention and intention on a specific time. Yes, there are many factors pointing to this time as important: a Mayan calendar change, a rotation of the wheel of the Zodiac through to a new sign, other calendars, other potential physical shifts in galactic space, even a potential shift in the Earth’s magnetic poles.
But the shift Rosemary and I are talking about is a shift in consciousness. Yes, this shift may be influenced by one or more of these external factors. But, the important shift comes from within. This is a shift in awareness. This is a shift in who we think, and feel, we are as conscious beings.
So, the question of being ready does not motivate building a bomb shelter, stocking the basement with a year’s supply of food and water, getting all of our affairs in order or preparing in some physical way for impending earth changes. Preparation is an internal check-in; it is a matter of preparing our bodies, emotions, minds and spirits for the next phase of human evolution.
If you are reading this post you are a “cultural creative”, you are on the leading edge of expanding human consciousness. And you are key to this coming shift!
How do you get ready? That may be a personal question you must answer for yourself; you are likely already preparing, may even be fully prepared. Here’s what I’m doing:
I am meditating more – more frequently through the day and for longer periods of time. I am reading through the Kalachakra Tantra Rite of Initiation by His Holiness The Dalai Lama and Jeffery Hopkins. I am practicing yoga and qigong. I am practicing the six Transcendent Perfections of Buddhism (as best I can). I am attending to my body, speech and mind. And I am planning to attend the Kalachakra Initiation of 2014 in Ladakh, India this July.
I may not be ready for the “big shift” but I am “being the big shift.” I am practicing what I can to be prepared. And I am excited!
The Moon is new today at 4:38 pm Eastern Time. This marks the end of the old Lunar year and a shift into the Year of the Horse. I feel the energy gathering and galloping in. I am as ready as I can be for this shift and the bigger shifts to come.
I hope you are ready with me!
ROSEMARY’S EXPLORATION: You Are the Best Holiday Gift!
Are YOU in the holiday spirit? Or are you feeling a bit down about something in your life? Do you feel some pressure to perform with a smile on your face when all you want to do is hibernate?
In the US, it’s a bit difficult to distance yourself from all the ‘holiday hoopla,’ with bells ringing on the streets and music playing everywhere. Malls are crowded with people, some of whom are spending money that they can’t afford. There are parties all around. Some folks wish they didn’t have to attend so many and others wish they had been invited to at least one. Some people dread spending time with their family while others wish they could be with family that is distant or gone.
Is what is happening in December authentic? Are you feeling invited to be your authentic self? Or does a part of this smack of inauthenticity for you?
Neither constant, upbeat smiles nor constant, depressed frowns represent authenticity at the deepest level. It’s good to be upbeat. It’s okay to smile a lot. It’s also okay to feel like not smiling. This isn’t saying that you ‘should’ feel or be any way other than how you feel.
However, what choices are you making today? If you feel very upbeat and happy and in your ‘holiday jollies,’ are you thinking of less fortunate folks who might need a helping hand? If you are depressed or feeling low, are you focusing all of your energies on what you don’t have or how poorly you feel instead of looking at your life and feeling gratitude? Who can YOU help?
Helping others, giving to others, and not just gifts that cost money but gifts of self, time, talents, attention – this outward focus is the authentic aspect of humanity that we sometimes forget is a part of us. We WANT to be useful and helpful, even when we need help from others. We trip ourselves up when all we can see on our private radar screens is what we consider our own plight, our ‘woe is me’ vision. We can also trip ourselves up by feeling happy and smiley and not noticing that someone near to us has a broken heart.
If we put on our ‘service-self glasses’ we can see beyond our own situation and find someone out there to whom we can give a gift.
Stay in the holiday spirit not because it’s Christmas but because you want to smile. Help someone by holding open a door for them. Give to charities because there are so many in need. Call a friend who has suffered a loss and share with them your attention and time.
Play ‘Secret Santa’ for someone. What a joy it can be to do something for someone and never let them know that you did that for them!
Think outside the box of your own feelings. It doesn’t matter whether you are smiling all the time or crying all the time. There is more in you than just those feelings. And there is more around you than just what you are feeling today.
Stay upbeat, if you can. Smile if you feel like it. Ask for help if you need it. Find someone with whom you can let your hair down and be yourself and share your feelings without judging yourself. Then find someone who might need a helping hand and offer that hand, outstretched because giving is great and receiving is, too.
Are you willing to receive help? Are you willing to give help?
Have a Happy Holiday because you can genuinely feel gratitude and joy. Smile because you have smiles to give to others. Notice if someone is having a hard time and share your smile and your heart with them.
Be yourself and you are the greatest gift you can give to the world!
PS: I hosted a wonderful Winter Solstice event this past Saturday and channeled an important message from The Divine Feminine who gave us amazing guidance for 2014. You can receive this 57 minute recording for only $14. Go to my website for immediate access: TheScientificMystic.com
ROSEMARY’S INSPIRATION: Have a Happy Authentic Holiday!
Rosemary’s “Three-Minute” video for the week: Have a Happy Authentic Holiday!
PS: Rosemary hosted a wonderful Winter Solstice event this past Saturday and channeled an important message from The Divine Feminine who gave us amazing guidance for 2014. You can receive this 57 minute recording for only $14. Go to my website for immediate access: TheScientificMystic.com
Gratitude and Happiness
We just finished one holiday here in the US; some call it “Turkey Day” – affectionately because turkey is the traditional main course for the meal. And we held up our part of the tradition with turkey and all the trimmings at our niece and nephew’s home. It was good to be with the family and I am very grateful to be part of this loving and close extended “Robertson Clan.”
There is a lot of gratitude going around now. I wrote about two of the people I am most grateful for yesterday. My goal is to be grateful and demonstrate that gratefulness every day of the year. As we move deeper into the holidays, already in the spirit of Hanukkah, moving toward Solstice and then Christmas, the 12 Days, a New Year and then Epiphany, I grow ever more excited, contemplative, boisterous, quiet, bustling, restful, high and low. I like this roller coaster ride for the emotions. If I really want to get myself pumped up one of our traditional holiday movies will do it every time.
It is easy for some to remain in gratitude through the holidays. Many give and receive gifts. Our family drew names today for our “secret Santa” gift exchange. We keep it simple just giving one gift to a member of the family and receiving one from our surprise Santa on Christmas Eve. I am grateful we keep the tradition of gift giving and keep it simple; it eases the stress of finding just the right gift for a long list of family and friends.
What are your traditions? Are you happy with them? If they bring stress into your life it might be time to evaluate those traditions and make some adjustments. The rule here is happiness and self-care. Traditions don’t have to be hard and fast rules.
I am on a journey of happiness. I have frequently written here on this blog about transformation. We are on a long road of transformation and it doesn’t necessarily look much like I expected. But I know we are on it for all the bumps and curves coming at us at high speed. Have you noticed?
Is your journey smooth and straight? Are you cruising at a moderate pace, comfortable with the ebb and flow of your life? Be grateful; be happy!
I am adopting the attitude that happiness can smooth out the bumps and open up the tight curves we hurtle toward; and it can even ease the speed. Happiness is a choice. Happiness is a practice. Happiness is the journey. Happiness is the transformation!
As we enter the sometimes hectic, sometimes stressful holidays I am taking Rosemary’s advice: Let’s make this year the year of truly ‘Happy Holidays’ no matter what your personal circumstances might be!
I am choosing this Journey of Happiness! Join me?
You Are The Alchemist—Richard’s Commentary
The message from The Divine Feminine Rosemary posted yesterday is a heavy one. It lays on each and every one of us a substantial responsibility. Being an Alchemist is no trivial undertaking. And the statement here is we are all Alchemists in our very beingness, in every thought, word and deed!
Here’s the responsibility The Divine Feminine hand us:
Each of you who sees these words is a transformation artist in every moment. Every word that you speak has the power to transform the hearer in some way. You can speak with love and concern and em-power the other person, or you can speak harshly and increase their feelings of low self-worth or self-esteem.
Even your thoughts have the power to affect another person. If someone speaks to you, and your thoughts are not supportive, you are sending that lower energy vibration to the speaker. If, on the other hand, you really listen and see the essence of the person and not the circumstance they are describing, then your thoughts can help that person to experience a higher vibrational energy and feel that support.
Heavy! But anyone of us who reads these words knows they are true. Anyone who trusts in the power of manifestation, the ability to turn thoughts into things, the Law of Attraction must realize that these powers apply to our relationship with others just as The Divine Feminine point out in clear terms.
Now I know my thoughts, words and deeds are not always of the purest form. In fact I am going through some moody moments in these last few days as the Moon wanes to the extreme just before conjoining the Sun exactly at 8:34 pm Eastern tomorrow, Friday, October 4. At that exact time the Moon becomes new, reborn. But now as I write she is in her Waning Crescent Phase and nearly “gone” from the sky. What does this mean? For me I get lethargic, heavy, I feel a little under the weather, not ill really but not well either. It’s as if as the Moon goes into the shadow of the Sun I move into my shadow time. And my mood reflects this shadow.
I write from this shadow time and ask “how am I to be a catalyst for the uplifting of others; how am I, even in my thoughts, to help another experience a higher vibrational energy?
Fortunately The Message not only states the challenge to be The Alchemist, it offers the solution to my concern:
Your first obligation, however, is to transform yourself into the person you were born to be. Are you living the life that your essence is asking for? Are you being your true self and not a persona required by others around you?
And:
As your consciousness evolves, so will your vibrational frequencies. Keep reaching for greater awareness, greater understanding of the world around you and where humanity is evolving. Pay attention to your thoughts and ask about the ‘light content’ of those thoughts. Are you thinking at a high frequency of light or do your thoughts feel heavy and dark?
Well, my thoughts may feel heavy and dark at the moment as the Moon “dies” into the Sun. But at least I am aware of this. And with this awareness I can perform some alchemical magic around this time: I can honor the Moon, let the experience of the final phase of her waning wash through me, and look forward to celebrating the New Moon as she is born tomorrow evening. I can meditate on the cycles of the Moon as they represent all the cycles in our lives. And I can reflect on these cycles as they mirror all the cycles within me, even the waxing and waning of moods!
Awareness is the key. It is the first step forward as The Alchemist to bring more light into the world!
Men and The Goddess 