This morning I watched a single maple leaf on a very old tree blowing in the wind,
Not letting go.
For hours it held on despite the cold wind blowing,
And so many leaves already scattered over the ground.
What was this teaching me,
So?
And I remembered words I heard in my peace garden many years ago.
Oh,
Be joyful.
Live in the light.
Let nothing deter you from this.
Please take a moment now to settle in comfortably to listen,
And may I suggest you place your self-care hands on your body,
Perhaps on your chest,
Or abdomen,
Or both,
And then begin to breathe more easily with me.
Breathing slowly in,
And slowly out.
Again,
Slowly in,
And slowly out,
And slowly out.
Just relax your shoulders,
Letting them soften and lower.
Relax your forehead and your lower jaw,
Allowing it to open with your mouth remaining closed.
And then just take one more breath of deep comfort.
And the raven spoke to me.
Raven will help you to solidify scattered energies when your mind is all over the place.
Visualize yourself in miniature,
Climbing on the back of Raven and feeling her solid body beneath you as she takes off into flight.
And trust that Raven will take you precisely where you need to go to be able to once again focus your entire energy where it is most needed.
The universe speaks to you in your uncertainty,
Saying,
It's alright to be uncertain.
In time,
You will know.
The universe speaks to you in your fears,
Saying,
Don't be afraid.
I am with you.
The universe speaks to you in your moments of greatest challenge,
Saying,
Relax.
I am in your every breath you take.
The universe speaks to you in your denial,
Saying,
I am with you always.
The universe speaks to you in your sadness,
Saying,
I will help you move through this.
Draw on me for strength.
The universe speaks to you in your hopes,
Saying,
Anything is possible.
The universe speaks to you in your moments of joy,
Saying,
May you always know joy.
The universe speaks to you in the faces of all you meet,
Saying,
Look for their light.
And the universe speaks to you in your expressions of gratitude,
Saying,
Thank you.
And the raven spoke to me,
Let go of the past.
You have been given the gift of life.
Live it now.
Feeling disconnected is about feeling disconnected from spirit and soul.
All the rest of scattered energies are attachments that mean nothing to you after you leave the earth.
Clearly,
When you feel lost,
You are disconnected from your own spirit and soul journey and living something else.
Climb upon the back of Raven in your mind and feel her solid body beneath you now as she raises you up with these words that flow from nature.
When plants die at the end of a season and leaves fall,
Only a portion of the plants or trees die.
Their roots remain fully supported by the earth,
Ready for renewal in spring.
So don't worry about the future.
Your future is determined by the way you are living this very moment,
And the next,
And the next,
And the next.
Don't allow yourself to be trapped and trampled by dark days of the past.
Learn from the trees in nature and let go when it is time to let go.
Don't hang on to be blown about,
Unwilling to let go,
Where nature's process of breakdown and rot,
Rather than happening in the earth,
May begin to happen in you.
Let go when you know it is time to let go.
Trust and believe.
Leave all the darkness behind,
Cleansed by earth's healing powers and light's forgiving hand.
Then go forth in your beautiful spirit,
Light nourishing you in this new hour,
Now freed from past holds,
Free to know true growth,
Free to know you,
Free to know joy.
And what is joy?
Joy is your relationship with the light of yourself,
The place where all darkness is gone,
Where fear cannot haunt you,
Only light serves you here.
Light as joy,
And joy as light of yourself,
Carries the true essence of your soul.
As you open to this light,
Open to the vastness of light that surrounds you,
To the light in the space that surrounds you,
The light of all who surround you in this humbling place.
There is pure joy here,
Now.
And the raven spoke to me.
Raven takes pleasure always in the now,
And meets each challenge head on as an opportunity to restore balance and freedom.
Reminding you of spring.
Spring that follows winter.
This beautiful season of spring filled with rejuvenation,
With warmer breezes and lilac air,
Sounds of birds caring for their young,
Bees in the honeysuckle,
Water overflowing the pond,
Newly formed maple leaves fluttering,
Swaying,
Sheltering,
Offering color and beauty,
Home and hideaway,
Stately pine needles,
Their branches poised upwards,
Waiting to receive,
While spruce branches contentedly spread open horizontally,
Allowing winged space and haven,
Greening cedars bordering,
Offering privacy to take this all in,
New plantings,
Their still delicate beauty as though grateful to be acknowledged as spring,
Now risen from their slumbers of winter,
A new awakening as time and opportunity to begin all over again.
Oh,
Be joyful.
Live in the light.
Let nothing deter you from this.
And the raven spoke to me.
Raven will soar ahead of you in your thoughts and prayers,
To deliver healing energy to the person to whom you are directing prayerful thought and energy.
And sometimes this healing energy is being directed back to you,
Magnified by joy.
The universe speaks to you through every moment of every day,
Saying,
Remember,
I am here with you now.
You are never alone.
In this,
There is joy.
Please join me next time when Raven will teach us about grace in letting go.
For now,
Many blessings on your day as you continue to think about joy.
Making lots of room within yourself to receive it this day.
Namaste.
