Memories

The memories we have of facts and figures, of situations, things we have learned along the way — whether we have just a sense of recall of them or truly can remember every last little bit of detail about what happened — pretty much have entered our memory through the conscious path. In other words, as we experienced it, it became part of our short term memory — and after that, either because the event was important to us, or because we put effort into it (like learning things at school which you may have done through repeating the very things that you needed to remember) they have found their way into your long term memory...

Yet, for pretty much everybody there seem to be memories — things you seem to clearly remember — of situations or events that you have not physically experienced during your life.

For instance the sense you may get of ‘having been there before’ while, from a factual perspective you arrive there for the very first time in your life. Or a clear memory of a situation that took place in a different time, and perhaps even on a different continent...

These type of things would indicate that we remember things across time and space. Or do they?

Some people may say that what we ‘remember’ are no actual memories, but more things that for one reason or another ‘we tune into’. We tune ourselves to a certain frequency, a certain field of energy perhaps, where images of some past event become available to us.

This brings up the question how those images — the knowledge of past events — are being kept in that particular place, that specific energy.

From that perspective it seems that humanity is not the only one to have a memory. Somehow important events appear to be kept in the memory of the place where they took place. Like an energy imprint. 

The manner in which we gain access to these energy imprints is through meditation — through our sensory awareness.

This may even mean that a place is just a place we may even have visited it many times before — until that time that there is something in the atmosphere… a scent, a certain color of the light, a stillness… Or sometimes even a specific sound that puts us into the state of mind where we can remember whatever it is that is held in the energy imprint of that place…

And with the veils between “here” and “there”, between “then” and “now”, getting thinner to the point of almost disappearing, we may receive these kind of memories more often and wit greater ease.

In other words through a sensory trigger we may suddenly remember things across time and space.

It is important however, to realize that those memories may or may not be our own... And yet, somehow those memories have value on our path through life right now — otherwise, chances are we would not have tuned in to those memories…

Therefore, the truly interesting questions are… 

• What can I learn from this memory, this energy? 
• What does it show me that is pertinent to this point in time?
• How can having remembered those memories help me on my path right now?

Adapted from the original post, published in September 2012

Living your life your way and taking the responsibility for it

The better we get to know ourselves, then more aware we become of the things that are truly important to us. We know our needs, as well as our wishes and desires… When that happens, we can — bit by bit— shape and mold our lives in a way where the things that are important to us can be expressed more fully. 

As we do, chances are that our needs are met just that much easier. 

In a sense it may seem like living life becomes a smooth flow.

This does not mean — unfortunately — that there will never be any challenges, or difficulties in our lives as we are walking our personal path. Those are called “growth opportunities”, as often, when we overcome them, we are richer for it. Not rich in a monetary sense, but rather from an experiential perspective.

To a certain extend, these things are sort of expected to happen. Especially when you find yourself on a personal path through life that is spiritual in nature, where you are purposely taking steps to get to know yourself ever better in order to gain an ever greater ability to express your true self. Your core self.

What may come as somewhat of a surprise is that when we choose a path like that, we also become more self-reliant. Perhaps also more of our own best friend. It is not that we would not enjoy other people around us, but somehow we feel more and more comfortable hanging out with ourselves. 

Enjoying some quiet time. Sensing that special quality in the air, just before a thunderstorm breaks. Finding joy in dancing in the rain, shouting to the wind, and being touched by the warmth of the sun. Being in awe when you find yourself in the right place at the right time, to have just that once in a lifetime opportunity be handed to you…

Another aspect that may come as a side effect to having a lifestyle like this, is that it may become easier to respect yourself, and when you do, to respect others. To give other people the breathing space you like to have, in which they can live their life the way they see fit.

Without the need for anyone to interfere, pass judgement, tell them how they can be better at what they do, or start making decisions for them — just to help out…

Yes, it may seem that when you seek to know yourself and to live your life your way — and to take that as the entire package, responsibilities and joys, obligations and seeing your wishes and desires fulfilled — you would need to take a step back from a society in which so many people — on so many levels — are continually interfering with other peoples lives. 

Becoming more of an observer. 

To then continue walking your walk through life. Your way.

Fear

There are two kinds of fear. The fear of what is right in front of us — like the fear of being run over by a car when we are crossing the road — and the fear of things that may or may not come our way in the future, like a situation that is roaring its ugly head on a different continent…

The first experience of fear is immediate and related to our ‘fight or flight’ reactions. This type of fear is connected to something that is happening right there and then, something we are personally involved in that we can handle. Chances are that the fear — and the associated stress — we feel in that moment, will help us make the best choices in that split second, and take the right action in order to come out at the other end unharmed.

The second experience of fear that is connected to a situation that is out of our control, a situation that is not imminent, a situation that is played up and fed by the media as something that may happen, the fear — and the associated stress — can keep building in our system. In this case, the fear, then, has a tendency to creep into our system slowly while at the same time it fails to show us a way out. The experience of this type of fear is often accompanied with the sense that we cannot do anything about it, and therefore there is no safe place for us to go, nothing we can do on a personal level to escape impending doom.

The immediate fear is in most cases very helpful to our survival in the world we life in. As long as it doesn’t get out of hand and starts ruling our lives, it prompts an evaluation and reaction that prevents us from doing something that could put us into danger. Like just walking out into traffic. It also comes up right when it is needed, and dissipates fairly quickly after that. Granted, in some cases when we have had a ‘close call’ it may take a couple of days for us to overcome that pang of fear. But as long as we celebrate the good outcome, and not keep rehashing the close call in our memories, chances are we are back to being ourselves the next day ~ feeling fine, and hopefully a little wiser as we may have learned from the situation…

The feeling of fear and the associated stress have gone from our system.

The sense of fear of future events isn’t by any means as straightforward. It is related to the thought that says “That could happen to me, to us”. It is a fear that is often fed, not by the threat itself — be it economic, violence, an epidemic or whatever — but rather by what we see, hear or read about it on the news or on the internet. It is presented in a way that we need to insulate ourselves from that situation, and in order to do so we need to take big, sometimes worldwide, actions. We need to guard our borders such that this thing we are afraid of cannot enter.

At the same time, we are generally told that there is nothing we can do about it on a personal level. The natural reaction then, is for the fear to linger in our systems, and for stress about this situation — that is well outside of our realm of influence — to keep building.

The result may well be that because of the extended period in which we experience feelings of fear and stress, our immune systems start weakening. Making us more susceptible to disease. And when we are in a general state of unease, or dis-ease, we may not be quite as aware or vigilant as we would normally be, or perhaps go to the other side of the spectrum and become extremely aware and hypervigilant. We may not sleep as well, and still feel restless…

And bit by bit, over time, we deplete the natural resources our bodies have to deal with things, to be healthy and happy.

So, especially when a fearful — or a stressful — situation lingers, it is important to adopt a state of mind that brings peacefulness into our personal lives…

Perhaps the best way to deal with the fear and stress that are brought on by events that are happening on a worldwide scale, that are outside of our realm of influence, and are not affecting us on a personal level — is to send Light to all those that are involved. Independent if we personally agree or disagree the situation, the actions taken on a personal level as well as on a larger scale, and how things are playing out globally. Send Light! Pray for the best outcome for those involved, for ourselves, and for the world in general.

And then, take a deep breath, and let go of the fear and stress you have been experiencing…

First published in two parts in 2009/2010.

Energy Follows Focus

If there is one thing that we can control in these changing times, it is what we choose to focus on. As we focus on something, we reach out and touch this — even if it is just a concept, a sense, or a feeling — in order to bring that which it has to offer back inside ourselves.

As we keep focusing on the same thing, the importance of it in our lives will grow…

From there we can make a decision. Is the understanding of what this thing, this concept, entails all we wish to get out of it? Or do we wish to use this understanding to change something in our lives? In other words, do we want to use this understanding as a basis for something new we would like to manifest in our day to day lives?

If the enhanced understanding is it, then we usually move on and focus our attention, our thoughts, and yes, our energy on something else.

On the other hand, if we wish to use this new understanding as a foundation for creating newness in our lives, chances are we will start thinking about it, talking about it, and eventually  find that it manifests in one form or another in our lives…

This, in and of itself, is nothing new.

Where it becomes interesting is in the realization that we can control what we focus our attention, our thoughts and our energy on.

Especially in times when the whole world seems to go through enormous changes, that are picked up by news media and then broadcast continuously to anyone who is willing to listen, we are bombarded by information on what is happening in other parts of the world — information that comes on top of changes that are likely going on in our own lives — we may get the sense that there is hardly anything we can do to bring balance — or even peace — to the upheaval.

And yet, it is our choice where we focus our attention.

It is up to us to focus on those things that are positive, and have an immediate impact in our own lives.

As we focus on the things that work for us, but also on new adventures that can bring about positive changes in our lives, we permit those things, those concepts to grow, and even manifest in our lives.

New things. Fun things. Wholeness and creativity, on many different levels…

By the same token, if we focus our attention continuously on “everything that is wrong in the world”, chances are we make obstacles in our own lives bigger than the need to be…

Energy follows focus, and where we focus our attention is our choice to make…

Inner Reflections

If we start from the premiss that we are first and foremost responsible for our own path through life, our own actions, communications, and thoughts, our own beliefs, and our own attitudes — then whatever happens in the world that touches us is a reflection of something inside ourselves…

At first glance this seems to place us in a perspective that is somewhat far fetched. 

After all, how can a war on a different continent in some far away Country be a reflection of something — a thought, an attitude, a belief — that is inside ourselves? Even if we are touched by the horror of it, and feel a great sense of compassion toward the victims…

But then again, it is not necessary the scale of events, yet more the energy of the events that is reflected. We may have been angry with the neighbors as they permit their dog to keep on barking endlessly… we may even have yelled at the dog and/or its owners. An action born out of frustration which exploded into an angry shout…

It is a perspective that says that when somebody ruffles our feathers, it is a reflection of something inside ourselves that we may feel a little bit uneasy about. Something we wish we would handle differently in our lives.

By the same token, when somebody would be angry at us, there might be part of ourselves that we are frustrated with. Whether it is about something that has happened to us long time ago that we are still not in balance with, or rather the way we present ourselves, or perhaps the way we fail to stand up for ourselves when it matters… In each and every case there is something going on inside ourselves that deserves a fresh look.

And taking an honest look at the things we wish we would do differently will then benefit us on many levels.

It will help us place situations and events in our lives in a proper perspective. It may bring the realization that while we could not stand up for ourselves effectively when we were young children, now, being adults, it is a different matter. And therefore, the situations that made us feel insecure — or may have been dangerous to us as a child — can be handled differently.

And it is those inner reflections that, when looked at, and placed into a new perspective, can benefit us enormously as it offers us a way to use our own power to better our situation.

And chances are that when we change our inner selves — our thoughts, our attitudes, and our beliefs — the inner reflections are bound to become more and more positive, and ultimately will have a positive effect on events happening in the world we live in.

First published January 19, 2016

The Lovers

The card in the Tarot called “The Lovers” is part of the Tarot deck that depicts our path through life. It has a strong relationship with twins, as well as with lovers — and with the astrological sun sign Gemini.

As such, the meaning of this card goes well beyond describing Lovers, however, as far as the Tarot is concerned, first and foremost the meaning of this card depicts how we relate to ourselves…

From a practical perspective, the meaning of this card when I read the Tarot reads like this…

When the card is upright:

Love. Affectionate partnerships. Attraction, harmony and beauty. Choice to be made intuitively rather than intellectually. Inspiration. Second sight. Abstract thought. Inner harmony. The union of inner ideals and outer objectives. True partnerships where the individuals involved resonate on every level of being.

When the card is reversed:

Contradiction. Duality. Conflict with the self. Partnerships disrupted by external factors or inner dissonance. Vacillation. Inconsistency of purpose. Choices made against all inner feeling. Decisions made without reference to all the factors involved or without reference to those factors which are intangible.

This, when we start looking at both sides of the description (upright and reversed) it depicts an arena — or concept — that is given by “The Lovers”, and therefore brings attention to how we may relate to ourselves.

This arena then, is all about loving self, heartfelt feelings and an heartfelt outlook on life, and resonating with every level of our being — while recognizing any inner duality, or conflict, such that they can be resolved — and making decisions where the seen and the unseen, the inner ideals and outer objectives, all are taken into account…

Another way of looking at this Tarot card is as an invitation to know yourself.

If we are willing to explore this concept, we may be confronted with questions like:

• Do we accept the loving, the harmonious and beautiful person that we are? 
• Are we willing to trust our intuition enough to act on it?
• Will we commit to that partnership with our inner self in such a way that we resonate with all that we are, radiating that energy into our environment?

And perhaps hardest of all: 

• Can we accept those parts of ourselves that may not be nice, reasonable, kind, compassionate, and that sometimes are downright weird?
• Are we capable of embracing — and accepting — all of ourselves? The good, the bad, and the ugly?

As soon as we have the intention to do so, not only our awareness, but also our ability to bring inner ideals and outer objectives together in an harmonious manner will be considerably enhanced! And as we then radiate that energy into our environment, inner peace will translate into outer peace…

It seems that this is just what we — and the world — need at this point in time… 

Patterns

We can see patterns all around us. There are traffic patterns, often associated with for instance rush hour. There are weather patterns, the seasons provide us with patterns, but also the sun shining through the leaves of a tree creates patterns on the ground beneath it. 

And come to think of it, even the way in which plants grow follows patterns ~ a very unique, rhythmic pattern of growth, making it possible to identify a tree by observing its shape, its pattern…

Patterns are rhythmic recurring ‘designs’. This means that there seems to be a ‘cause and effect’ associated with a pattern ~ “If this is occurring, then that will happen”. This ‘cause and effect’ then makes patterns predictable.

In our personal lives, patterns provide structure.

Getting up in the morning, taking a shower, getting dressed and drinking a cup of coffee is my pattern to start the day. As long as I follow this pattern, everything in the world around me, or at least in my direct environment, fits in place. My start of the day sets me up with a sense that ‘all is good’, and that my day has every chance to unfold itself according to plan...

Yet when the pattern is not complete, for instance because I choose not to drink my cup of coffee immediately after getting dressed, the structure I have given the start of each day feels ‘off’. And continuing my day, it is almost like some part of me is waiting for ‘the other shoe to drop’.

Fact is that most of us feel comfortable functioning within a structure, and patterns give us a structure that is flexible enough to change on a moments notice when a situation requires us to do so.

And there is the rub...

Sometimes we experience patterns in our lives that seem fixed ~ when the ‘cause event’ takes place, we feel unable to change the ‘effect pattern’.

Frequently this is true for patterns that have to do with interaction with others. These patterns often have started during our childhood, and prove very hard to recognize. And as long as we don’t recognize both the ‘cause event’ and the ‘effect pattern’, it is almost impossible to break patterns like this.

Whenever the pattern is triggered, we find ourselves reacting in a way that we don’t necessarily want to, but can’t stop ourselves from doing so nonetheless...

In most cases we may not even want to break patterns like these — we accept them as part of who we are. In other cases, when we feel a pattern has grown into a habit, we may feel we do want to release the old pattern, or replace the old pattern with a new pattern that, while still providing us with the desired structure, better suits us at this point in life.

First published on November 4, 2011