discernment

A Way Forward – Day 1100

Posted on by Lisa Weikel 2 Comments
29 – Nautilus – The Ocean Oracle by Susan Marte

A Way Forward

In last night’s post, after expressing worry over both the state of our country and our overall morale, I wrote: “There is precious little overlap between realities anymore. And without common ground? How do we salvage what’s left of our country’s future?”  Holding the energy of those questions in my heart, I consulted The Ocean Oracle to “seek a way forward. What do we need to know? How can we help ourselves?”

The answer I received? Nautilus on a foundation of Sea Urchin.

Nope, this isn’t an order of sushi. Rather, it stands for New Beginnings – on a foundation of Truth.

29 Nautilus – New Beginnings

The story behind this card is lovely and bears repeating:

“He wore the shell around his neck, on a cord long enough so that the nautilus rested just over his heart. A reminder to him of his past which had led him to the present, hopeful about the future. He had been going through some personal issues, issues which weighed him down. He felt stuck – stuck in the middle of something he could not see clear of. He took himself away to the beach, to clear his head and hopefully gain insight into how to move forward. It was on a long walk during this that he found the nautilus. There had been a huge storm the night before and this treasure had been left behind in its wake. He had seen shells like this before but had never realized their intricate and intrinsic beauty; how they were formed into a perfect spiral – that nature had the instinct and intelligence to allow a grain of sand to grow into this perfection. He opened himself to the sacredness of the design realizing it offered a new beginning – a new way of being in the world. That everything was an opportunity for growth and change and beginning anew. This awareness released him from his past, allowing him to be fully aware in the present moment.

The Messages

What needs to end? What needs to finish so something new can enter? Open your heart to divine perfect timing. Let go that which keeps you stuck. If you free the energy around holding onto something which no longer works for you, you will have more energy to put into a new beginning. Enjoy the newness of your latest endeavor. Be awed by the perfection of nature and the new beginnings she offers.”

22 Sea Urchin – The Ocean Oracle by Susan Marte

The Foundation

The foundation, or card on the bottom of the deck, when I pulled the main card (above), was 22 Sea Urchin – Truth. The ‘story’ accompanying this card is as follows:

 “These creatures had not been seen in these waters for years. They had left long ago, driven out by the pollutants that people had left behind. They needed clean water to thrive and the waters here became too murky and infested for them to live in a healthy way. So they chose to leave, find a place where they were part of a balanced ecosystem. They flourished for years but grew too may for their home to sustain them. Some migrated into new waters and some eventually ended up back in the place they had left long ago. But it was not the same place. Something had shifted. The things that had polluted the water were no longer there. There was more awareness of the way the oceans and ponds and tides worked. There was a place now for the urchins to thrive. They were able to expand and contribute to the ecosystem in a life enhancing way.

The Messages

Your truth is your truth. Are you in a situation toxic to your truth? Do you need to reassess your truth? Has a situation changed in which your truth can come forward again? Is your environment supporting you in your truth? To live in our truth and integrity, it may be that we have to move, and something that means physically. Stand strong in your truth and respect your limits. Set your boundaries but know rigidity may not be the answer. An urchin’s spines protect it but if pushed too hard, or in the wrong way, the spines break.”

My Take

The way forward for our country very well may be via a new beginning. I don’t mean ripping asunder everything we’ve built over the past 245 years. But I do mean that we are stuck – road-blocked in so many ways from accomplishing anything productive. Thwarted from listening to the needs, hopes, and dreams of a majority of people who comprise this nation.

The story of the young man is almost transparently applicable to us as a nation. We’ve surely been ‘going through some personal issues’ – and, indeed, we’ve recently endured a huge storm. Sadly, I sense the storm has yet to abate. Precious little has been accomplished as a result of that maelstrom – neither change nor accountability. But the fact that it occurred at all is, perhaps, the sand that will result in an even more ‘perfect’ creation than was created two centuries ago.

We tend to think our system of government is the be-all and end-all. And as an idealistic person who believes in democracy, I’m pretty fond of it. However, I do believe it can be better. I believe money has corrupted the fundamental tenets of our system – and if we stand any chance of keeping our great experiment, we must get the money out of it.

Idealism

Yes, I’m idealistic. But I also believe that our country was founded on idealism. It makes sense to me that the foundational card underneath Nautilus’s vision of a New Beginning for us as a nation was Sea Urchin – Truth. But I can’t say that I entirely agree with ‘The Messages.’

Yes, when it comes right down to it, we all have our own unique perspective on the world, on life, and on the way things ‘should’ be. We have our opinions about the way things should be. Need to be. Must be, if a system is going to work. And our firmly held beliefs can be called our ‘truth.’

But for our country to move forward as a democracy, we have to at least be able to agree on what is ‘truth.’ We have to be able to start from a foundation of shared understanding of what is true and what is fear or paranoia or deliberate disinformation meant to rip us apart.

Back to Letting Go

In order to get back to at least some modicum of a shared reality, I think we’re going to have to let go of some of our beliefs about how our country is currently set up. That includes changing at least a handful of (and possibly a lot more) ‘ways we’ve always done things.’

This post is becoming long and unwieldy. I wanted to quote the full text from the two cards, though, even though the simplicity of a New Beginning built on Truth is a hopeful outcome.

And I do believe it’s possible. But I don’t think we’re going to achieve it in the next few months.

No, we’re going to have to work for it over the next few years. We’re going to have to figure out a way to discern truth and be willing to let go of ‘the way things have always been done’ in order to create an even more perfect union of people and cultures and belief systems from all over the world.

You know: e pluribus unum.

(T-11)

Flamingo Medicine – Day 624

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Photo: L.Weikel

Flamingo Medicine

It’s funny how things play out in our lives. It’s also fascinating to see how Spirit will sometimes go to extraordinary lengths to get our attention. In the span of just a few days recently, Flamingo ‘medicine’ has appeared in our lives as a clear and obvious messenger of some sort or another.

To be honest, at first I was simply taken with the ‘kitschy’ aspect of the plastic hangovers from the fifties and sixties when we first spotted them lurking in the garden of our next-door neighbor about a week ago. Karl saw them and started salivating with envy and a scootch of “I told you so.”

OK, I’ll admit it. As soon as I saw them and realized someone else had actually taken the plunge, I regretted having scoffed at Karl’s desire a couple years ago to get a pair of our own. I’ll give him credit (now) – he was ahead of the curve, even if that curve arced backward. (There will be a price to pay. I’ll write about that another day.)

Within Days

Odder still was when, just a few days later, we found ourselves practically shielding our eyes from the neon brilliance of yet another pair of flamingos. We discovered these saucy birds perched on the elevated sand mound of yet a different neighbor at least half a mile away from the first.

I have to admit these two were remarkably photogenic, strategically situated such that their gaze naturally falls upon a pond filled with peepers and frogs at the edge of a stand of woods.

While I cannot say I’ve seen a third set of flamingos (which would ‘seal the deal’ that they are appearing as messengers to us), I must admit to being captivated by the second set. Not only do they grab our attention every time we walk past them, but they’ve also managed to yank us out of a couple of rather cranky moods we found ourselves in recently.

Flamingo’s Message

Of course, I took their photo the first time I laid eyes on them. My initial purpose in doing so was, of course, to share them with you. I had the idea in my head that they might serve as fodder for some evening’s silly or whimsical post.

I’m so glad I did take their photo, because otherwise I might not have realized that they were bringing all of us a message that just might serve us in good stead.

Checking my trusty reference book, Animal-Wise* by Ted Andrews, here is something I thought we all might ponder as we enter this final week of July, in this Coronavirus Pandemic year of 2020:

“(…) When the flamingo appears as a messenger or as a totem, we are entering a time of cleansing and filtering to find that which nourishes and heals the heart. It is a time to follow the heart in all endeavors, in spite of the environment we find ourselves in. (…)

We should also ask ourselves some important questions. Are we discerning about that which is most beneficial to us or are we just accepting whatever comes our way? Are we ignoring the things we love to do? Do we need to pursue what is in our heart? Are we ignoring what we are feeling? Do we need to explore our own healing gifts and abilities? Do we need to let others know how we feel?

Now is the time for healing the heart. Follow your own heart in all your endeavors and seek out only that which will heal and nourish what is dearest to you and your own heart.”

When I got the nudge to explore the meaning of Flamingo medicine this evening and share it here, I never guessed the message would feel so perfect, or the questions so provocative.

Flamingo Sky? – Photo: L. Weikel

*affiliate link

(T-487)

An Idea – Day 519

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Blue Jay – Photo: L. Weikel

An Idea

Back when I was only a year into writing this blog (yes, well before beginning the 1111 devotion, which I began on 12 November 2018), I had an idea. I engaged in a form of “the 12 days of Christmas.” Only it was actually the “Nine Days of Solstice,” leading up to 12/21/2012.

In that exercise, I chose a card each day, a “Point of Reflection,” for myself and my readers to apply to our lives as we awaited the much-ballyhooed ‘end’ of the Mayan Calendar.

As I was sitting here a few minutes ago pondering what I might write about this evening, I found my eyes scanning the bookshelves surrounding me, causing me to appreciate the embarrassment of riches I’ve accumulated over the years. Ever since I invested in my first set of Medicine Cards*, I found that I have a predilection for divination tools – which gave me an idea.

Divination

Yeah…as I glance about the walls in my living and dining room I’m realizing just how much I enjoy exploring the various means we have at our disposal which help us tap into our own inner knowing or, perhaps, the guidance provided to us by unseen allies or forces.

Dictionary.com defines ‘divination’ as follows:

  1. the practice of attempting to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge by occult or supernatural means;
  2. augury; prophecy;
  3. perception by intuition; instinctive foresight.

To be clear, when I access a divinatory tool, I am not ‘attempting to foretell future events.’ The reason I say that is because I don’t think ‘the future’ is something static or fixed to which we’re inexorably bound to ‘arrive.’ Since we have free will, we can change ‘the future’ at any moment. Thus, there are an infinite number of futures to which we can travel.

Usually, though, when making a decision, we are faced with only a limited number of options at any given time. We could call the paths that each of these decisions would set us upon ‘strands’ of destiny. And each strand we choose at any given moment weaves together to form the fabric of our reality.

My perspective on divinatory tools, as I’ve undoubtedly expressed in various other posts, is that our souls know, at the deepest levels of our being, the lessons we’ve chosen to learn in this lifetime. We’ve set a course for ourselves before we were born. Tools that help us tap into our own inner knowing can help us make choices that can are in greatest alignment with our chosen destinies.

The Times We’re Experiencing Now

Because of my lifelong interest in acquiring tools that would help me develop my intuition and also access the inner knowledge I hid from myself at birth, I have access to a vast array of such items. From oracles such as runes, the I Ching, and oracle card decks to the almost limitless number of tarot decks that exist, I have a sweet collection. This work – this dedication to discerning our inner wisdom and accessing the guidance that is available to us is part of my livelihood – but even more importantly, it is part of who I am.

Right now, I think it’s indisputable that humanity has entered a whole new phase of existence. Indeed, we are at a confluence of many different paths, a crossroads of epic proportions.

Not only are we each being asked, individually, to stop our relentless running in what we sadly but accurately call the ‘rat race,’ but we’re also being asked, collectively, to decide – to choose – the path, the strand, that best serves humanity’s destiny or evolution.

We Could Use Some Guidance

We’re all in this together. We’re each facing situations that probably none of us expected (consciously, at least) we’d ever encounter. Each of us has our own unique constellation of factors influencing us, not least being the life lessons we set out for ourselves long ago. But again, we’re all, also, in this together, and each of our decisions impacts everyone else, even if we don’t realize it or see those impacts on a daily basis.

I have access to all these cool tools. Some will appeal to one person while others will appeal to someone else. Many of the decks I have do not resonate with me on such a level that I use them often. That doesn’t mean they don’t have value or might appeal and speak to someone else quite powerfully. And it doesn’t mean that one or another of them might not be absolutely perfect for the particular day – or moment – it’s used.

My Idea

My idea, which you probably all saw coming a mile away, is to periodically choose a card or a rune or throw an I Ching ‘for us.’ The intention I will set is to ask for a message or guidance for us, both individually and collectively, and then report it here. Depending upon the day or what’s going on for me, or for us, I will offer my perspective. But I’ll also encourage and ask you to contemplate what the particular oracle might be specifically telling you.

How could whatever I choose apply to you and your unique life?

Do you notice that you resonate with one particular oracle more than another?

Maybe allow yourself to think about what I’ve chosen for the day or days that it applies (which is until I choose another). You know, maybe write about it in a journal that you’re starting precisely because of these times we’re experiencing – so you can remember how you felt, what you experienced, and how you’ve been changed by these extraordinary times.

And if you discover a tool that particularly appeals to you, then you can buy it for yourself and work with it more extensively. I’ll provide links where I can (and full disclosure, if they’re to Amazon, I am an affiliate, so I might earn a couple pennies if you purchase through a link from this blog).

That’s my idea. We’ll see how it goes.

Goldfinches – Photo: L. Weikel

*affiliate link

(T-592)

Falling Down and Getting Up – Day 456

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Sunset – Photo: L. Weikel

Falling Down and Getting Up

I picked up a book today that’s been half stuffed under my bed for, dare I guess, at least six months or so. My box of tissues had slid off and I could see one of the words of the title: Exquisite. What a delicious word.

The book isThe Exquisite Risk – Daring to Live an Authentic Life*. It’s written by Mark Nepo, an author whose words unfailingly resonate deep within my heart. In fact, I often begin my Listening Retreats with a quote from one of his other books, Seven Thousand Ways to Listen – Staying Close to What Is Sacred*.

Opening the book randomly to a vignette entitled “Falling Down and Getting Up,” I was captivated by the first few sentences:

“When medieval monks were asked how they practiced their faith, they would often reply, ‘By falling down and getting up.’ And there you have the whole muddled mess of being human. Over and over, this very humbling sequence returns us to the earth, to the humus, to the soil. (…)

“How we think about this matters. For falling down is not about failure, but about experiencing as many of life’s positions as possible. It is how we learn. And getting up is not about vanquishing or conquering an opponent or circumstance, but about not getting stuck in one of life’s innumerable valleys.”

Tests and Choices of Friendship – and Life

Sometimes tests come in unexpected and seemingly random moments. Situations arise that ordinarily would appear or sound utterly absurd but, for whatever reason, don the cloak of plausibility for the briefest of moments – and that moment (and our choice) changes everything.

We’re all given options. Choices to tumble into and remain stuck in valleys of ugliness and choices to open our eyes, look up, and wipe the muck from our eyes. Choices to see what is and has been in our hearts, and choices to see, perhaps, what never actually was.

I’m sure it’s been rather obvious that I recently tumbled into a valley of despair and disbelief, discovering betrayal is alive and well in the world (as if we need any reminders). Sadly, betrayal can come in the dual form of both the speaker of lies and those who would listen to those poisonous words and accept them as true without discernment.

Choosing the Mountain

When I discovered this specific passage today, I knew it was confirming what I’d already experienced. I’d just encountered the balm of deep friendship, of knowing my heart was seen – and known – by another. I’d chosen, by simply reaching out, to rise from that valley, regaining my preferred perch with its expansive, honest, and open-hearted view.

It’s amazing what loving kindness can reveal. It’s equally or perhaps even more amazing what lies – and the willingness to believe them – can reveal.

Knowledge is power, though.

Listening to the Voice Inside

Just in flicking randomly through this gift from under my bed, I discovered the following words, which also speak to my recent experiences:

“Whenever you put your ear to the earth or to your own heart, the deeper instruments play, swelling our sense of things. When lost, we simply have to remember to put our ear to the earth, or to our heart, and we will hear a warmth that guides.”

Listening with our whole beings. Listening to our hearts, to the earth, to our own deepest knowing. We all fall, we all make mistakes, we all get lost; none of us is perfect.

Listening, though, helps us make the choice to get back up.

Perspective – Photo: L. Weikel

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(T-655)

I’m Gonna Pay – Day 268

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Amadell Carp – Photo: L. Weikel

I’m Gonna Pay

Oh man. I know I’m gonna pay for this one way or another. But the piper will almost certainly collect his due in the most obvious way: levying a hefty surcharge on my checked bag.

It’s harder than I thought it would be, preparing for a Listening Retreat that’s far away from my home. I think I’ve known, in the back of my head, that this day would come. But it’s rough.

My First True “Away” Game

My evening’s angst issues from the fact that all my other Listening Retreats have taken place within a 20 miles radius of my home. It’s been eminently convenient. Too much so, I fear.

I’ve always made sure to bring a plethora of divinatory decks and books for my ‘retreaters’ to play with and peruse. I’m a huge advocate of giving myself and others access to cool stuff that entices us to steal some time away from everything and everybody and just indulge in…fun.

So it’s been excruciating for me to have to winnow my resources. As it is, all of you who’ve been with me through these past 268 days can take three guesses (and the first two don’t count) on what is the primary source of weight in my single bag-to-be-checked. You guessed it!

Books and Decks

Yup, books and various card decks that I want to share with my retreaters. And while I know that my hosts at Amadell are avid collectors themselves (having shared many a retreat with me through the years, they know ‘the good stuff’), I’m feeling naked. I’m realizing how much anxiety I quell within by having the luxury of telling myself, “I can always run home and get that book if I need it.”

Not this time!

And so it is I am forced to exercise some discernment. Some discipline. Although…I’m thinking that tomorrow’s reckoning with the airline when I check my bag is going to expose my grievous lack of discipline. Or at least the sad truth that I could’ve exercised a whole lot more.

The bottom line is simply my excitement to experience a Listening Retreat in a whole new venue. Yes, I’ve been to Amadell before (and all of you know first hand how much I love it) – but never specifically for a Listening Retreat.

Spirits of the Land Come Forward

And it always seems to me that during a Listening Retreat, no matter where I’ve held them, the Spirits of the Land we’re on reveal themselves in fascinating ways.

Thus, as I packed more and more goodies into my suitcase all day today, I’ve actually known, deep down, that They – the Spirits of the Land – will be the stars of the show. They will be the ones who show up and ask for a willing ear.

My Security Blanket

The books won’t matter. Nor will the decks. What will matter is the willingness of the people who are attending this retreat. Their willingness to trust my suggestions enough to witness the magic.

Ah yes. Just admitting all of this has led me to the realization that the contents of my suitcase are simply my security blanket. (Even if it ends up being an expensive one, when they weigh it.)

The magic of every Listening Retreat is in the land itself. I just need to get them there. The rest will take care of itself.

(T-843)