Category: Shadows

It’s Time for a Little Faith

One of my favorite quotes has always been “faith is believing in things when common sense tells you not to.”  A Miracle on 34th Street.  Sometimes we just have a feeling that everything is going to be ok.

We are living at a time when people around us are afraid.  You might even be one of them.  You may have lost your job or are about to lose it.  You might not be able to pay your bills.  You may know someone who is sick, or you may be.  You might just be frustrated that you can’t get everything done in a day.  First off, take a deep breath.  Everything happens for a reason.

For a long time, I had trouble with that statement, and I know I’m not alone.  Why does a young child get sick and die?  Why did this happen to me?  I wish I could answer all the why’s, but it isn’t always possible.  What I can tell you is that there is a lesson hidden in there and until you can find it, you must have a little faith.  Some of my biggest life lessons took me years to discover.  Some only took a few hours.

There is no right answer.  Every person lives life differently and you’re allowed to, but are you growing as a result or are you staying stuck?  If you’re stuck, it’s time to change that feeling and have a little faith that when we come out of quarantine that your life can be better.   Let’s be honest, life can’t be what it was before.  That may be hard to hear, but it’s true.  We can never be the people we were yesterday.  We have learned something or uncovered something which has moved us forward.  At the very least we are a day older.

On Tuesday I broke quarantine to go grocery shopping.  I started my day with a plan.  As soon as I put my key in the ignition my plan was gone.  I’ve spoken about my car battery before, well it decided it was done.  Why had it chosen that moment?  I looked to see who was open.  The least expensive option that I could see at the time was temporarily closed.  The only other place I could think of was the car dealership.  I called and they said they could replace the battery and it might still be covered under warranty.  I asked if he could look up when I purchased the battery.  I thought I had purchased it in 2016, but I had purchased it in October 2017.  It was still covered by the 30-month warranty.  I got a new battery for free!  I haven’t always had faith, but I had enough to get me there.  I had 1 month left on my warranty and if my battery hadn’t died, I will admit I would have tried to keep it going because I don’t have extra cash lying around.  But I also could have missed out on a free battery.  I was fortunate, but I was also going to another place and interacting with more people than I had planned.  As the day progressed, I started to think about how different things are from just a few weeks ago.  But I had to have faith that all would be ok.  I took all the precautions that I could and the rest I had to believe would work out.

We aren’t in quarantine just to keep us safe, but those around us safe.  To know that what we can contribute is enough and have faith that it is working.  Faith can help us in many things from getting a new car battery to walking through the grocery store to just working through our fear.  We just need to believe that everything will work out how it’s supposed to.  It’s time for a little faith.

What do you need faith to help you do?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

The Walking Wounded

This is a challenging time.  No one has ever seen anything like this, and we are unlikely to ever see anything like it again.  We are being asked to rise.  We are being asked to have compassion for our friends, our neighbors, our enemies, and ourselves.

It can be difficult when what we want isn’t going our way.  Our frustrations can be unleashed on those who have little to do with our problems.  This is a time to take a breath and think before we respond.

So many of us have lost our income.  We are having to file for unemployment and take steps that we never expected to take.  We did everything right.  Each one of us is the walking wounded.  We have so much in common right now, but it can be hard to see other people’s pain when we can barely see our own.

Last week was a challenge.  The place where I have been working part-time closed its doors until we are able to open again.  Last year I experienced all these major shifts and put the pieces together to have half of my plan blown apart again.  My first step was to make it through a day and then through the week.  It can be too hard to make decisions when you’re just trying to get through the day.

Once I made it through my work week, the next step was to take care of anything that I needed while on my way home.  Then I arrived home and cleaned up anything germs that I might have on me.  I washed the floors, the surfaces, and anything else I might have touched.  My final step was to give myself time.  I knew from experience that I could only take care of my most immediate needs at that moment.  I gave myself permission to feel anything I felt.  I listened to USA For Africa’s “We Are the World” and cried.  I worked through my pride and filed for unemployment so I could pay my bills.  I allowed myself to be angry at what this virus has done to the world, my plans, and to grieve for what I and others have lost. 

The world that we knew is not the same place and it can’t be.  When you do venture outside to get groceries or gas, say hello and thank the clerk.  Accept that the things you need might not be available.  Have compassion for those around you.  We are all in this together and are feeling the same things.  We will come out of this better people. 

After the attacks on September 11th one of the lessons I have always remembered was a sense of unity in our collective grief.  People hung their American flags at their door.  We have an opportunity again.  There is always a possibility of a rainbow after a rainstorm, but we must look for it.  Look for the silver lining.  We are resilient and will come through this stronger than ever.  We can do this but show a little kindness to each person.  It goes a long way.

How are you showing compassion? Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

What Am I Going to Do?

It’s time to pause the posts of the Map of Consciousness for at least a week and focus on something that most everyone is feeling right now, anxiety and fear.

People like to be in control of their own lives.  They like to have an idea of what is going to happen from day to day.  They like certainty.

As we live in times of a pandemic, there is very little certainty or control.  New information is being reported throughout the day.  How are we supposed to keep calm?

While I believe that we make choices in our life, I also think that some things are fated.  I believe this may be one of those times.  For a long time, our culture has been all about me and what do I want.  You could see it in the grocery stores last week with people fighting for the last pack of toilet paper.  We aren’t meant to live our lives focused on only ourselves.  We are meant to be concerned for our neighbors and have compassion for our fellow citizens.  We are all hurting.

We are meant to shift right now.  Shifting isn’t comfortable.  Some of the anxiety you’re experiencing could be due to this.  Maybe you’re an empath and can feel other’s emotions.  Just going to the grocery store was an exercise in not picking up other’s emotions.  Or maybe you’re just trying to make it through the day with some sense of normalcy.

This is a time for us to come together, but your emotions will follow you wherever you go.  You can’t run.  You can’t hide.  It’s ok to be afraid or anxious, but you need to move through these emotions.  You don’t want them to become a part of you.  Negative emotions are said to weaken the body which can make you more likely to get sick.

So, what do you do?  You need to find what works for you.  It could be meditation, reading a book, going outside, or having a dance party.

My ability to quiet the mind started when I practiced regular Reiki sessions.  First by having other people conduct them for me and now practicing them on myself and others.  I also regularly turn off the TV.  I get the news that I need and then give myself time to process it.  In the evenings, I’ve been reading books.  I’ve been rereading books that I’ve loved over the years such as Harry Potter, Jane Austen and Twilight.  Books that can take me to another world and allow my imagination to soar.

What are you doing to help with your anxiety? Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

I Need to See the Truth!

Neutrality.  The 10th level of the Map of Consciousness according to Dr. David R. Hawkins.  Neutrality resonates at a level of 250 within the body.  This is where we’re able to be objective, impartial, and unbiased.  You can see the big picture and want to see the truth.

Our past wounds can hold each one of us back.  If we are acting from a place of our wounding instead of a place of neutrality, we can’t truly see the truth.  Our wounding tends to cloud our lens.  We see everything that happens through that lens, instead of seeing it for what it is.

There is a lot of fear circulating in the world today.  The slightest panic can cause the stock markets to plummet and for people to wonder what they’re going to do.  Unfortunately, we may be at a point in time where we’re being forced to grow.  We may have to make different decisions than we have previously made.  It isn’t easy to get to a place where you can see the big picture, but there is a calmness that can come over you with being able to make an informed decision.

Every decision that you make needs to be right for you.  So many of us live paycheck to paycheck but having to see things for what they really are isn’t easy.  For years, I would try to look at things positively.  If I could just find a positive spin on things would get better.  They might be better for a short period of time, but my bottom would eventually fall out again and it seemed like I was right back where I started.  It wasn’t until I started going through each step of the map that I made progress.  That doesn’t mean there weren’t situations where I had trouble looking at the truth.  One example was money.  Some of the basics I knew and couldn’t escape.  I knew I was in debt, but I wasn’t willing to look at the numbers.  I even knew most of the reasons why I had gotten in debt from wanting to learn new things to the rise of prescription drug costs to unexpected expenses.  But how to dig myself out of it.  Like you, I’m still a work in progress, and working myself out of my past ways, but I took a big step a few months ago and looked at where I was spending money and how much.  I cut out every program that I wasn’t using on a regular basis or cost more than I could afford, even if I loved it. I kept going until it was down to a place where I could pay my regular bills.  The process was painful, but I can now see the big picture.  I can see the truth.  I had spent years using material things to help me feel better about myself.  Let’s be honest, they didn’t.  The only thing that did was being honest with myself and seeing the truth.

What can you do to help you see the big picture?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

I Will Prove It!

Pride.  The 8th level of the Map of Consciousness.  Pride has a vibration of 175 within the body.  You’re almost to the level of starting to feel empowered, but first you need to move through I’ll show you; I know what I’m talking about; I know I’m right; and I’ll prove it!

Pride can take many different forms.  It can be my way is the right way.  We see a lot of pride specifically when it comes to political opinions.  There is a lot of I know I’m right going on now, to the point where people aren’t willing to hear or see other viewpoints.  Their view is the only one that matters.

There is also another form that pride can take.  This is the one that I’m going to spend some time this week.  I grew up with a large extended family.  When I was in college, I had a discussion with my mom.  She was curious as to where the female line of our family originated.  I figured that I knew enough about computers and research to find out the answers.  I started researching and by the end of the day I had reached the female ancestor that would have traveled from overseas to Prince Edward Island, Canada.  I couldn’t find her maiden name and you know what all these years later, I still haven’t been able to answer that question, but I started to branch out.  You know what?  I didn’t just do my ancestral line but traced back cousins and have built a family free of over 44,000 people.  It’s one that I’ve found relationships to presidents, royalty, authors, explorers, and other well-known people.  It changed my views on history.  It’s a project that I take great pride in and it’s a positive aspect of pride, but for the downside.  When you put your research out there, people will comment and question your research.  With genealogy research, you’re looking for documents to prove relationships.  Your research is only as good as your proof. Also when you have great pride in your work, it can sometimes blind you to other options.

I have been working on finding my 3rd great grandmother’s parents for years now.  I knew her maiden name, so that wasn’t my stumbling block, like it normally is with women.  She was born in 1820 and got married for the first time in 1840.  The 1850 U.S. Federal Census is the first census that lists members of a household and she was already married.  I looked through everything I could find to prove her parents.  I had a couple of strong possibilities and if I’m honest, my intuition told me it was one over the others.  I was going to find a way to prove who her parents were.  For many years I was so sure as to who her parents were that I had it published on my online family tree.  I kept working at finding the documentation to back it up, but I started to get nervous when others cited my research as part of their research.  I had no genealogical proof.  I disconnected her parents from my family tree.  I couldn’t completely delete them because something told me there was still a connection.  This weekend I finally got my proof.  One of my cousins completed a DNA test and we were finally able to find a link between her and one of the siblings from the 1850 census.  My pride in this case might have kept me going, but also prevented me from seeing options.  I didn’t have the courage to stand behind my intuition.  Eventually when I was ready, the next step was revealed. 

How has pride helped your or hurt you?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

I’m Not Going to Take It Any Longer!

Anger. The 7th level of the Map of Consciousness according to Dr. David Hawkins, which resonates at a vibration of 150 within the body.  It’s the place where hostility and resistance reside.  You’re tired and you won’t accept this any longer.  The biggest advantage to this vibration is that for the first time you’re willing to stand up for yourself and realize that nobody is coming to save you.

When we are in the lower levels, we tend to want to people to accept us, so we’re willing to bend over backwards to accommodate their needs, while sacrificing our own.  For the first time, anger is where you realize that you matter, and you won’t take it anymore.

For so many years, I didn’t want to be angry.  I had seen anger and it typically ended with me being in tears.  I didn’t like it and I wanted to avoid the emotion at all costs.  I didn’t consider myself to be an angry person, but I wanted to be accepted.  I would allow people to walk all over me.  My feelings didn’t really matter.  I would find ways to stuff them down.  I had anger that I needed to release before I could move up to the next level of Pride. 

This past weekend Mercury went retrograde meaning that we’re being asked to review parts of our past.  The feeling of being taken advantage of started to come up.  Someone I know asked me to do them a favor.  I allowed myself permission to say no and stand firm in my decision.  I felt badly, but I needed to stand up for myself and stay committed to my plans.  A few days later I received another message asking the same question.  I’m being challenged.  Have I learned the lesson to stand up for myself and say no?  No one is going to save me and it’s time for me to save myself.  Is there anything in it for me?  No, in fact I end up losing more than I gain in this situation.  It’s ok to be nice and all, but the truth is that this is a pattern I’ve run in the past.  I’ve allowed people to not pay me back.  I’ve allowed people to take advantage of me.  I’ve allowed people to use me.  I don’t want that to be a part of my life anymore, so the answer is no.  So now I move up to Pride.

What are you angry about?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

I Wish…

Desire.  Up the map we go to level 6.  Dr. Hawkins found that Desire vibrates at a level of 125.  Desire is where you find jealousy, comparing, and longing.  You can hear yourself say I want more, and I deserve more.

How often have you said that I can’t keep living this way?  You notice how everyone else is living their life and wish that you could have that in your life.  It could be about anything that you want in your life from the seemingly mundane to the life altering.  What do you wish you had?

For so many years growing up, I just wanted to be like everyone else.  I didn’t want to be different.  I didn’t want to be singled out.  I wanted what everyone else wanted.  I would move up into Desire and then slip back into Fear.  I wanted to make a change in my life, but did I truly want it.  Not enough apparently because I would remain in the dream state, but why would I do that?  The next level up from Desire is Anger.  I didn’t want to be an angry person.  So, I would fluctuate between Fear and Desire.  I would hope and dream and then my fears would swallow me up.  I couldn’t take that step.  I couldn’t completely walk through that door.  I had a desire to be like everyone else, but I couldn’t quite do it.  In this case it might be because I wasn’t meant to be like everyone else.  I would do it for a while, but a true part of me would come in and the illusion would be dashed.  I was meant to be me and my path forward in this life may have similarities to yours, but it varies.

Other examples, love.  I have longed and dreamed since I was a little girl to be a wife and have children.  I’m still single and have no children.  My fears couldn’t quite overcome my desire, until recently.  I’ve been working on my personal blocks that have led me to turn down dates for no seemingly good reason other than the idea of how could that person possibly like me.  I had to get angry and move up before I could start to become empowered.  I might still be single, but I’ve finally started to become confident in who I am as person.  My desire finally started to push me forward.  My desire started to outweigh my fear.

What do you desire in your life?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

I’m Afraid

Fear.  The 5th level of Dr. David Hawkins’ Map of Consciousness, which vibrates at a level of 100 within the body.  Most of us are aware of the feeling of I’m afraid, but how does it make you act?  It can make you feel anxious; Give you a racing brain; The inability to focus; And paralyze you.

Fear is an emotion that can controls us.  It prevents us from moving forward.  Whether it’s a fear that is conscious or unconscious.  Fear is a complex emotion that we may not even realize is controlling us.  Our fears can be used to manipulate us.  While we think it might be keeping us safe, it is preventing us from living and growing.

Fear is all around us.  Look at the world around us.  The things that we’ve been taught can end up being used against us.  The idea that we might not be right about something, that we have long believed to be true, can keep us from examining a new perspective or listening to a new opinion.  This is reflected everywhere right now.  People will only follow people on Facebook and Instagram that have the same beliefs.  They will follow a news outlet that portrays their political perspective.  We seem to live in a moment in time where even facts can be twisted into a lie or to fit an opinion.  How can that be?  People are fearful that if others knew the truth, they would be different, so only certain information is disclosed.  We’re at a turning point right now, you have the option examine something for what it is and make up your own mind.  You don’t have to let the collective fears control you.

Then there are individual fears.  For so many years, I would say that I was afraid of living.  I’d been hurt and I wanted to control situations, so they turned out how I wanted.  I wanted things to magically appear without having to put myself out there.  Do I still try to do this?  Unfortunately, yes.  I’m a human being, just like you.  I don’t want to be wrong, but the truth is, I don’t know everything.

My fears stopped me from moving forward.  They stopped me from leaving jobs, going on dates, or living an authentic life.  Oh, where to begin with my fears.  We live within a set range of emotions.  The top of my set was probably Fear for a long time.  I would go to bed at night and my mind would race.  I had severe anxiety and my mind would loop.  I didn’t know how to stop it.  People would give me suggestions and I didn’t feel capable of giving it a try.  I would say that I’m not ready or I’ll try later.  It could have been as simple as dancing with someone.  The problem was that I never became ready.  I didn’t try again later.  Fear had paralyzed me and my life.

The thing is that life around me didn’t stop.  I just didn’t participate in it.  I was stuck.  I felt detached from the world and myself.  I saw what seemed like everyone moving on in their life and I remained in the same place.  The things that I had dreamed of growing up seemed to allude me.  I missed so many opportunities became my fears held me back.

So how did I start moving forward?  At first it was exploring something new.  Opening my mind up to the possibility that maybe there was something I didn’t know.  That led me to participating in something new, which led me to becoming a part of something.  One day things were just different.  I had been moving through my fear without even realizing it.  Imagine what you could do, if you did realize you were moving through your fears.

Does that mean that my life became “perfect”?  No, but it was better.  There were so many things that I had discounted.  People that I had hurt and hadn’t even realized.  There were layers upon layers that I needed to examine.

The day that I was fired from my job was terrifying and freeing at the same time.  I hadn’t been without a job since I was 17.  I knew that I was moving in a less traditional direction, but I needed to have a way to earn an income.  What was I going to do?  I started out small.  I started looking for a job in another field, while also dreaming about what could be.  I started dreaming about a business that combined all the things that I had become interested in, but how did I do that?  I began asking questions and the answers were revealed.  I started putting together a business.  When my severance expired, I wasn’t where I had hoped to be, but I kept going.  I got a part-time job.  I cut out everything that I didn’t need or use on a regular basis.  I kept going.  Are things in my life perfect now?  No, but I’m so much happier today than I was just over a year ago.  I started to confront my fears and space started to open.  I still have fears that are being tackled, but they no longer hold me back from living.  By releasing fear, I started moving into Desire.

What fears are holding you back?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

What Could Have Been

Grief.  The 4th level on the Map of Consciousness.  According to Dr. David R. Hawkins, Grief vibrates at a level of 75 and is the land where sorrow, depression and sadness resonate.  It is the inner voice that says I didn’t want it to be this way; It could have been different; I don’t want to let go.

Grief is an area of life that most of us try to avoid, but we seem to land there at the strangest of times.  There’s the obvious of grieving the loss of a loved one or an idol.  As of the writing of this blog post, the death of Kobe Bryant from a helicopter cash is plastered across the media.  No matter what you thought of him as a person, you can’t question that many people idolized him and are now grieving the loss of a not only a man, his daughter and others on board, but the idea of what could have been.  What if he hadn’t gotten on that helicopter in foggy weather?

There’s also grief over a part of you that was lost.  A part of you that you held back for whatever reason.  A part of you that wasn’t allowed to experience life.  Maybe your childhood prevented you from truly living as a child. 

Another type of grief is the loss of a dream.  This is something that we currently see across the United States.  No matter what your political ideology, things aren’t the way we thought they were or that they could be.  Things could and should be different.  People should be kinder to each other.  They shouldn’t bully others because their viewpoint is different.  People should listen to each other.

But, let’s go back to the most obvious form of grief, death of a loved one.  How did you learn to grieve a loss?  There were family members that disappeared from my life, but I had only met most of them a handful of times.  I lost a classmate at the age of 4 in a tragic accident.  I don’t know that at 4 I began to understand what that actually meant or the impact it had on me, but I will say the first person that I was close to that died was at the age of 17, my maternal grandfather Paul.  As children we see our parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and elders as greater than life figures.  Nothing will ever happen to them, but this is life.  For each one of us, our life on this planet is limited.  Whether it is a long-fulfilled life or one cut tragically short.  I spent a lot of time with my maternal grandparents growing up.  They were a part of every event that I can recall, birthdays and holidays.  I would spend time with them at their home.  My greatest remembrance of my Papa was his love of reading and watching C-SPAN all day long.  He taught me to love reading and to make my own opinions, to research and discover them for myself.

The indications that his time was running out began in early December.  He was gone by January 1.  Watching him that Christmas it was obvious that I probably wouldn’t see him again and that he was no longer the infallible person I’d known.  He was going blind and had trouble taking the tape off a present.

I went to bed on December 31 sobbing and gasping for breath.  The next morning, I knew why.  I did what I’d been taught to do, I soldiered on.  I went back to school, only briefly though for the Ice Storm of 1998 struck that week.  My first funeral was held in the dark.  The minister needed a flashlight to read his notes.  He hadn’t brought one with him, so he had to borrow one from one of my aunts.  I watched my grandmother and the word that had always come to mind is stoic.  She had lost her partner of 57 years.  I never saw her cry.  That was my true introduction to grief.  I don’t know that I truly knew how to process the loss.  New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day lost their magical feeling and I learned to live without him.  Starting in 2004, most of that generation disappeared year by year.  Other than 2006 and 2011, I lost a close family member every year until 2012.  Every death was different.  Every reaction was different, and I just wanted it to stop.

I don’t know that I had time to fully process one loss before I was on to the next.  I did learn that every person grieves differently.  Some seem to have incredible faith, some know their spirit is still with us, and others seem to stop living.

In order to move forward, we truly must process our grief in whatever form it may be.  That may involve crying.  It may involve soul searching.  However, your process it is the right way for you.  So many of us stay stuck in Apathy because we don’t want to feel.  We don’t want to confront and deal with our emotions.  Our emotions make us human.  By releasing them, we’re able to move up to Fear.

What in your life are you grieving or need to grieve?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

It’s Not My Fault!

Apathy or Blame.  Number 3 on the Map of Consciousness.  Where it’s not my fault.  Why did they do this to me?  This is where the helpless and poor me reside and you’re the victim of your life.  According to Dr. Hawkins, Apathy resonates at a vibration of 50.

When you’re in Apathy, you tend to feel stuck and can’t move forward.  You can’t decide.  A person can remain in Apathy for a long time unless their focus begins to shift.  You may not want to feel an emotion, whether it be grief, fear, or anger.  You may not want to make a decision that could be difficult.  You may not even know you’re doing it.  Sometimes it’s easier to be stuck.  It can feel like no matter what you do, nothing will change.  It can’t possibly get any better.  Are you exhausted?  You could be resonating here in Apathy.  You’re left wandering around, just feeling lost.

What if I said that you don’t have to stay here, but like Shame and Guilt, you need to speak it and own what has led you to this point.

Emotional numbing is term that is used when it comes to Apathy.  For many years, I didn’t want to feel anything bad.  I only wanted to experience the good in life.  I had experienced enough loss.  Too many people that I knew had died or let me down and I was tired of it.  I didn’t want to hurt anymore.  I was avoiding the pain.  I was in denial.

I would complain about my life.  Other people were making my life miserable.  At one of my previous jobs, I loved it until the main attorney I worked with left to move across the country.  I was assigned to another attorney.  We had different work styles and I wasn’t all that interested in the type of law that she practiced, but I didn’t have a choice.  I tried to push through as best I could, but I was quickly losing interest.  I tried to get assigned to someone else, but that didn’t work.  Every night I would come home and complain.  I would get sympathy from some of my co-workers.  I felt like I had no options.  This went on for months.  Eventually the emotions took over.  I would listen to “Mean” by Taylor Swift repeatedly on the ride home and cry.  Nothing was changing.

One day I had a conversation with a colleague.  He said I had options.  If things couldn’t change where I was, I had the option to leave.  I had never considered myself a quitter.  My father had worked at one job for his career.  I thought that was part of having a career, you worked at one job until your retired.  It was the first time I felt like I had options.  I started to think about the possibility of something new.  Within a few weeks, I had a new job.

Denial had been a pattern for me in the past.  Maybe if I stuck my head in the sand, the problem would go away.  But it never did.  I had to accept the situation for what it was.  I had to grieve what I had lost.  I had to move up the Map of Consciousness.

Who do you blame?  What’s keeping you stuck?  Let me know.  Do you want to know more about what I do?  Click here to book a discovery session or an appointment.

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