Truth

Watching the news, forums, and social media it seems that truth is becoming more important. As the saying goes in my native tongue: “Truth takes longest” which means something like ‘it may take a while, but given time the truth will come out’. And this seems to be the case pretty much wherever you look, nowadays.

No longer is it possible to hide the truth; at least not for any length of time. And when it comes out, it comes out with a vengeance ~ or, in the vernacular of the social media, it goes viral.

And where ‘truth’ is looked at as being the polarity of ‘deceit’, this is a good thing.

On the other hand it makes me think: what is truth?

Surprisingly enough, there are many truths.

• There is the factual truth.
• There is what is believed to be true.
• There is cultural truth.
• And it appears that as we grow older, what we consider to be ‘truth’ changes. 

The factual truth seems easiest to distinguish. We quite literally look at the facts and see if everything truly adds up. Whether all the information is there, with nothing left out. It is a logical process through which we conclude if what we are presented with is true or false.

What we believe to be true is much more intricate. It comes from the subconscious, as the subconscious holds not only our dreams and intuition, but also our belief-system. And suddenly we can find ourselves in a situation where we believe something to be true (for instance because we were told as we grew up that this was so), whereas when we look at the facts from a logical perspective, this is clearly not the case...

Cultures can have their own set of rules and mores that say something is true or false ~ and so what is truth in one culture doesn’t necessarily have to be true in another. Clear examples can be found in the separate legal systems, for instance when looked at the acceptability of the death penalty.

And then there is the phenomena that truth appears to be changing as we grow older... When we were 5 years old, truth was that we were not allowed to have a cookie right before dinner. At 20, for most of us this is no longer true; it is our choice whether we want to eat a cookie, and when we would want to eat it. And at 30 truth may be that cookies make you gain weight and should be steered clear from at all cost.

So, pondering truth... What exactly is truth?

First published in 2013

Skipping Stones

Somehow, skipping stones are something that seems to defy the laws of physics. After all, when a stone hits the water, on all accounts it should sink, well, like a rock. And yet, under the right circumstances that is not what happens; at least not right away. When that stone hits the water at exactly the right angle, at precisely the right speed, it jumps back up and floats through the air once more. And sometimes that happens again and again.

I remember that as a child we tried to find the perfect stones, taking great care in how we would aim them at the water’s surface just so that they would skip again and again, and again! Leaving us in awe…

And so it is in life.

Under the right circumstances, that which seems impossible does happen. It can even happen over and over again; without us really trying for it, or even being appreciative of it. After all, sometimes, when we kick a rock in the pond, we just want it to disappear.

In a sense it is like the Rolling Stones have been singing since 1969: “No, you can't always get what you want, but if you try sometime, you just might find you get what you need.”

The thing is that we don’t always know what we need. We may now what we want. We probably have a fairly good idea as to what we desire. But whether that is also what we need is a different matter altogether.

We may say that the minimum we need is three square meals a day, and a roof over our head.

When we then start working towards just that, three kinds of things may happen. 

• We may get just that. Enough food on the table and a roof over our heads.
• We may get more than we are asking for. Things may work out better than we thought possible, and what we set out to manifest into our lives gets there more smoothly, more quickly, and in a bigger fashion than we anticipated.
• We may get less than we desire. No matter how hard we are working at it, at the end of the day we find ourselves just scraping by.

When things work out way better than we thought they would; we tend to call it a miracle. When it just doesn’t happen no matter how hard we work at it: ‘bad luck’.

Either way it seems to defy logic.

Either way it is Divine Intervention.

The Universe has a knack of providing us with what we need to stay on our individual, personal paths; in such a way that we have the opportunity to grow. The prospect to unfold our greatest potential.

And sometimes that is achieved by not just getting a roof over your head, but by finding yourself having a big house, a nice garden, and everything that comes with it. Other times we may be best served by not being tied down by too many material things… In that case, perhaps all the work we have been doing was directed toward what we wanted more than what we needed. As soon as we redirect our energy, for instance toward travel or something like that, suddenly we find that everything is coming together wonderfully!

Recognize that?

Then you may agree that Divine Intervention is a lot more common than you may have thought.

Just like skipping stones are…

First published in 2014

A thousand eyes are watching me…

Every once in a while I find myself in a place where it seems I’m being watched. Usually this is not a matter of people watching me ~ my sense is that as far as people are concerned some may, yet most won’t.

However, in nature it is a different matter.

In nature there are places that somehow are special places, places that have a specific energy. Often places that are old. Older than memory, even. And while they may look non-assuming in the present, they have a decidedly different feel to them.

It is in those kind of places that I often feel watched…

Perhaps it is the animals that live there. Or the birds.

Yet many times it feels like the trees and plants themselves are watching me. Questioning me as to what brings me there. What are my reasons, my goals? What do I have to offer?

And the longer I look at nature in a place like that, the more eyes seem to be looking upon me.

A thousand eyes are watching me…

Sometimes, while meditating in a spot like that, flashbacks come. Images of long forgotten times. Snapshots of rituals performed in ancient times ~ some of which could still have a place in the present, while others have long since outlived their purpose. They may even give me a sense of belonging; an idea that I could have been part of that in a different time, a different day and age…

Whenever that happens, it feels that throughout time, a thousand eyes are watching me…

It brings up thoughts and questions in this current time.

After all, if I had certain knowledge in that other, long forgotten time, what did it entail? And is it still there for me to use? Is it information that I feel comfortable about in today’s world, or do I feel the whole world would be watching me if I would start working with it again?

The more I look into that; the more I ponder those questions, I find I am looking at these strings of thoughts with different eyes. There are the eyes that see the flashbacks, and the eyes that see the snapshots. There are the eyes that see the rituals unfold, the eyes that see the energies build, and the eyes that see the energies wane again and go dormant…

And I realize that I am watching me with a thousand eyes ~ through time.

A thousand eyes are watching me, inviting me, bringing back memories to me of long forgotten times.

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This blog was first published in August 2015

Foot Prints

We all leave our foot prints.

Whether that is on the beach where our impressions linger in the wet sand until the next wave washes them away, or rather the paths we have walked that become road maps for others who are traveling in a similar direction… 

Yet no matter how you look at it, we all leave our foot prints — and have done so throughout time.

The fascinating thing is that even when we are not necessarily trying to retrace our steps, we may stumble upon them anyway…

Have you ever had that experience of familiarity in a place you were visiting for the first time? Or when you were reading about a certain place or time, that you just knew how it was at the place, in that point in time? Perhaps experiencing dreams of a long forgotten time…

Chances are, that even when we tried, we would not be able to retrace our actual foot prints. On the other hand, our dreams may give us a lot of information about those far away places or timeframes that are buried deep in history. We can also use meditative processes to gain ever greater insight, not just about what was happening in that place once upon a time — but more interesting — what it has to offer us in our lives right now.

Did we leave our foot prints at that time just for us to retrace them now? Sort of like a “Back to the Future” moment, helping us to gain a different perspective? A way of looking at things that may have been commonplace back then, yet is all but forgotten in our world today?

And if that would be the case, how far away — both in distance as well as in time — would that take us? How deep do our roots run?

For me, I find that there are many foot prints to be found — and retraced — in North Western Europe. Ancient foot prints. Old enough that they  seem to accompany the fossilized bones of the Woolly Mammoth that roamed the area as long ago as before the last ice age, about 120.000 years ago…

And looking at those (metaphorical) foot prints — listening to the stories they have to tell — I find myself surprised every time by the wisdom they have two offer. The insights that in a sense are “not of this world”, and yet are so needed in our world today.

Messages that turn out to be valuable and productive in my life, right here and now…

Are you curious what those ancient foot prints have to offer you?

Check out our 2022 workshop here…

Imagination

Imagination is probably more important than we give it credit for...

Whereas fantasy is not based in reality ~ or even is a flight from reality ~ imagination is our roadmap to where we are going. Without it, we would be stuck right where we are now; just because we cannot imagine ourselves being anywhere else...

All great plans started out at some point in the imagination of the person that thought: ‘What if...’

What if... my business would really take off?

What if... I would be rich, like having won the lottery jackpot - rich?

What if... I could travel to where-ever I would like to go?

What if... I could help groups of people becoming more aware?

What if... there would be peace on earth?

And just by pondering the question with an open mind, we are giving it positive energy. It is the first step to actually manifest it in the physical world ~ yes, even the ‘peace on earth’ thing.

As soon as we can see in our mind’s eye what it would look like ~ whether ‘it’ is something mundane or spiritual; something personal or something global ~ a path forms that shows us how to get there. And again, it is to a certain extend up to our imagination whether that path is wrought with challenges and obstacles, or whether it is smooth, even easy-going.

This doesn’t mean that imagination is the only thing that is needed. 

We can imagine things; we can think about it all we want ~ at some point we need to bring that which we have imagined outside of ourselves. Usually that is when we start talking about it, making logical plans, doing actual research as to what we need in order for our plan to be successful; and finally, we need to put in some physical action.

If your ‘what if?’ is about getting rich by winning the lottery jackpot ~ buying the lottery ticket maybe all the physical action that is required. If you trust yourself more than the lottery, maybe looking into what is necessary for you to get that really well-paying job is a better route.

Of course, as soon as you are thinking: ‘oh, finding that job is going to be sooooo hard ~ and even then, I would have to put in 80 hour workweeks...’ Then that is what you are imagining, and likely what you will bring into your life.

On the other hand, if you are imagining 20 hour workweeks at double the pay you have now with your 40 hour workweek...

As the seraphim Julian has said: ‘Imagine the greatest, most wonderful thing you can achieve ~ and realize that is only going to be your first step!’

Julian Teachings website  

First published in April 2010

On Edge

It seems like the whole world is a little on edge these days.

Whether you look at the traffic around you when you are going some place; or just watch the news on TV ~ it seems like everybody reacts somewhat ‘over-assertive’ to whatever is happening around them.

And I have to admit; I find myself on edge as well.

Sometimes I even think it is something in the weather, a change in the energies around us that we ~ consciously or subconsciously ~ react to. And suddenly all the things that we had organized so nicely, everything that should work so well, appears to get a life all its own...

And pretty soon our timing is off.

Chores that normally take us only a couple of minutes to do, now take us half an hour. Which makes us late for an appointment, so we have to rush through traffic ~ and while we might normally find we get where we need to go before the rush hour traffic, now we get trapped in heavy traffic. Making us even later for that appointment. When we finally get there, there is no parking place to be found close to the entrance; and when we find ourselves a parking place on the other side of the lot, it starts raining. Umbrella in one hand, purse in the other we dash into the place ~ only to find out we are the first to arrive anyway.

This then, instead of making us feel good that we at least made it in time ~ sort of ~ can put us even further on edge. After all, we have really tried our very best, rushed through traffic, dashed over the parking lot ~ only to find that whoever we have that appointment with is late.

How dare they! Don’t they know what you have been going through to get here in time ~ sort of?

As it turns out ~ no they don’t know that. 

And they may have an equally ‘on edge’ start of their day...

Probably the best thing to do at this point is to sit down for a moment and take a deep breath. To get centered. To step back from how we got here and move to the point where we can happily say to ourselves: “Made it!!”

It is easy in the energy of this point in time to get ‘on edge’. But rather than snapping at everybody around us who — whether they are or not — at least seem to be in our way; we would do ourselves an enormous favor if we just took a couple of deep breaths…

And then laugh about it…

First published in 2012

Superwoman and Superman

All of us are a Superwoman or a Superman. We may not feel like it all the time, but we are!

This means that each of us has her or his Super Power… A Super Power that is uniquely our own. A Super Power that sets us apart from everybody else — either because it is a rare thing to have or do, or because the way we use it in the expression of the we are is distinctive.

So, it seems like a good thing to know what the Super Power is, that defines you as Superwoman or Superman… And perhaps you already know what your individual Super Power is. And in that case, your Super Power may already be included in your life as a manner in which you express yourself…

However, if you are not yet familiar with your particular Super Power, how would you find out what it is?

Here are a few ideas…

• It is something that you are passionate about, even if it is something that doesn’t seem to be productive in your life.
• It is something that other people notice about you as a good — or strong — quality, while for yourself it may seem something “normal” or “regular”. In other words, nothing special.
• It doesn’t have to be something grandiose. It can be the fact that you make people smile. Or are always finding exactly the right words for any situation.
• It can be something that defines who you are — something that is innately yours, for instance an ability like running fast.
• It can be something that you do — a way in which you express yourself. Like having a “green thumb”.

Whatever our Super Power turns out to be — whether it is something that seems commonplace or something that is fairly quirky — through the expression of our Super Power, we are Super Woman or Super Man…

And that is just it…

Our Super Power needs expresion. It needs to be used. And as we start using it more and more, we will find that it will develop and grow. It will become something we can use to break the ice, or to fall back upon when we hit a bump in the road.

Granted, some Super Powers are easier to make a part of every day life than others. Like making people smile — and in doing so, you are lightening their day… But if your Super Power is something like meditative design — or meditative music, chanting, writing, etc. — make sure you take a few minutes every day to engage with your Super Power. Even if it is in the confines of your own home, or even a room, or in a favorite spot in the garden…

Doing so, you may find that in only a couple of weeks you find ways where you start expression yourself differently in the world around you — as your Supere Power will start shining through.

Pretty soon, Superwoman or Superman becomes more and more visible.

And that can make everyday life a whole lot more fun!

So, what is your Super Power?

Image by Myriams-Fotos from Pixabay