I have recently embarked on my first major diet change. Diet changes have not historically been my forte as I like to eat a variety of foods and not rule anything out.  I have found that over the years my body has naturally changed preferences for certain foods, but I never intentionally made changes for health purposes, until now. 

In order to help with some health issues I am experiencing I have gone on an elimination diet, cutting out all dairy, meat, soy, citrus, wheat, and the nightshades.  I will re-introduce some of these foods into my diet and see how my body responds to them, but I also intend to make a low inflammatory diet my staple and eat other foods infrequently. 

Diet changes can lead to profound alterations in mood, energy levels, and overall health.  They can also catalyze healing processes.  For example in reducing inflammation, an internal condition of excessive fire, I wonder if I will be less prone to irritability.  I have been having different physiological reactions to the diet (being in the first week) that I view as energy working itself out of my system.  I am having memories of people and places I have not thought of in years. 

Diet changes bring about physical-level transformation.  Our bodies are made of the food we eat, when the food we eat changes so do the very contents of our bodies, and as our bodies are parts of our energy fields the transformation impacts all levels.    

Diet presents an interesting issue as it is usually challenging to change our diets as there is often a lot of resistance to it. I also personally believe that each diet change should be done on an individual basis instead of applying the same diet to everyone, as everyone's bodies are unique and need different things.  For example some people do really well as vegetarians and others experience a decline in overall health when on a vegetarian diet.  The idea, then, is to listen to your body and find what foods work and which ones don't.   

I found that for this diet to happen I needed to be ready to do it, and for some reason, at this stage in my life, I am.  It was easy to do because I wanted to do it.  Now I'm buying much more basic (not processed) foods, I'm cooking, and I'm spending a lot more time cleaning dishes, but it has brought me "home" in a way I haven't experienced before.  I'm finding that I really enjoy it, and for the most part I don't miss the eliminated foods.   I'm looking forward to what this transformation will bring. 

Welcome to January 2012!  The word "January" is derived from the name of the Roman god Janus.  Janus is a god with two faces, one of his faces looks back and the other looks forward.  As he represents portals and  transitions, he is a fitting gate-keeper for the turn of the New Year as we celebrate it. 

I woke up this morning, January 1st, 2012, feeling the shift of the New Year in a way I don't remember feeling before. I do not usually relate to January 1st as the marker of the "new year".  If anything, maybe because I was a student for so long, I feel that my year starts in September.  But this year I feel the turning in my bones now.  I feel the powerful silence of Winter taking in what has been released to be transmuted for the coming Spring. I think of the leaves that the trees have shed being turned into new soil, richer soil, and I wonder what leaves have I shed this past fall to be transmuted by the loving earth. 

I know a few of these leaves, they came to me in dreams and flashes of insight.  One insight came as an old relationship that was not resolved came back into view, and I finally found the gift of wisdom that was waiting to be claimed from the experience.  When I asked myself what was going on for me that would lead to the choices I made, I realized that my fear of loss at the time was so strong that I would sacrifice almost anything else to avoid it. I would ignore the warning signs, I would accept unacceptable behavior, I would settle for so much less than what my beautiful heart desired, I would abandon myself to avoid being abandoned by someone else. Not a winning strategy of course, but my responses to the events of that relationship finally made sense to me. That leaf had finally reached the ground. 

I have had three beautiful dreams in the past few months, all related to the reconciliation of the masculine and feminine within my nature.  Three heartaches from my past were resolved in a few powerful moments of True Seeing. In each dream I was with my past love as fellow souls, deeply in the state of love, grateful, and free of the illusion of our worldly concerns.  I awoke from those dreams still feeling the love and connection.  I awoke feeling profound gratitude knowing that those relationships had finally been reconciled, that my memory of those men had reached the blessing point, that I could say goodbye to them with true graciousness of spirit. 

The wheel of time is turning.  What is important to remember is that it turns in your favor if you let it, if you have the patience to let the dream of your life unfold as it will.  You can't force change, or healing, but you can show up, and show up, and show up again, until one night you have a dream straight from the hands of Grace, a glimpse of another level of reality, and your beautiful heart expands and opens in ways you never thought possible, as a gift for you. 

My prayers for the new year are these:

In the coming year may the dreams of our hearts bloom and grow in beautiful ways for the highest good and benefit of all sentient beings, the next seven generations, and the past seven generations. May we source love from the deep, nourishing wells of our souls.  May this love fill our hearts and overflow as blessings for the world. May the Earth Soul be nourished by our awakened heart dreams.  May we fall passionately in love with life itself. 

May we be honorable stewards to our own heart dreams and the dream of the planet. May we honor and uphold the beauty and power of the masculine and feminine in ourselves and in each other.  May we be reconciled in love. 

Thank you, Spirit, for this beautiful home, this beautiful journey, this Great Gift of Life. Aho. 

In the game of life there are two players-known in one tradition as the wise word and the cross-wise word¹.  The wise word is the voice of your soul, the part of you that knows how beautiful and lovable you truly are.  The wise word supports your dreams, celebrates your life, and holds you, always, in the highest esteem.  The love of the wise word within is unconditional. 

The cross-wise word is everything else, our tendencies to put ourselves down, to doubt ourselves, and to believe the cultural spells of doubt and diminishment.  It is the voice that says we are not good enough, handsome enough, smart enough, successful enough, and never will be.  It is the voice of futility (What's the use? It won't matter anyway.), the voice of fear (What if something bad happens?), doubt (Can I really do this?), and diminishment (Who am I to be doing this anyway?). 

There is nothing wrong with the cross-wise word, it is a necessary component of the world of duality.  Without the cross-wise word the wise word would not exist.  The voice of the cross-wise word, therefore, doesn't go away, but we can take the power out of it, and we don't need to believe in its poor advice. 

One of the gifts of the cross-wise word is that it comes up whenever we are ready to take steps towards empowerment, steps to fulfill our dreams, steps to express our gifts and beauty in a bigger way in the world.  I know that when my cross-wise word rears its head that I'm onto something.  I use its presence as an indication that I'm on the right track and that what I'm doing is important.  It strengthens my resolve to carry out my plans. 

Whenever we take action on the wise word and pass on the cross-wise word, we strengthen the wise word within and weaken the cross-wise word.  That is the practice, when the cross-wise word comes up, and it will, say "pass", and act on the wise word instead.  When the cross-wise word comes up strongly, take it as a sign that you're about to do something really important, and act on the wise word.  Let the wise word win. 

1.  from Fate and Destiny by Michael Meade

I wanted to write about 2012 since it is on people's minds, and will be more so as the year progresses.  First, I don't have any special knowledge about 2012, and frankly I don't believe anyone really knows what is going to happen. We are aware of energy trends, but how those trends manifest is, I believe, at least somewhat flexible. That flexibility could be influenced by our intentions, therefore I recommend an optimistic approach as the best use of energy to maximize positive outcome.  

What we do "know" is this- 

• 2012, in particular December 21, 2012, is according to the Mayan calendar, a time when an old cycle is finishing, and a new one is beginning. We are at the end of a 26,000 year-long cycle! And we are at the beginning of another.  That makes this a transition time.  Transition times are times of transformation, they involve letting go of the old so that the new can arise. 
  

• The date December 21, 2012 is the winter solstice, and in this particular one the sun will align with a part of the Milky Way called the "great rift", seen by the Mayans as a doorway to access the underworld.  Overall, this transition is seen as a move into times when the human race will become more awake and enlightened.  Anyone present on Earth during this time is part of this process. 
  

• Disaster mentalities have been present throughout known history.  This is not the first "end of the world", nor will it likely be the last.  But the "end" is one side of the coin, the other is a beginning. The "end of the world" mentality often arises during times of significant and global transformation.   
  

• Some say that this is a time when Gaia, the ancient, perhaps original, Earth energy is going to "ascend" and a new energy (called Pi) is going to take her place. 
  

• No one knows what the transition will look like, and I don't believe that the future is set in stone.  We will be experiencing a cosmic process of historic proportions.  For all we know it could bring the most beautiful and exciting times of our lives, and if my intention has any say in the matter, that is where I'm putting my energy. 

I trust Spirit.  I trust that my life here is done when it is done.  In the meantime, I am going to envision a new beginning that heralds in great beauty, harmony, and global cooperation.  I envision societal standards where everyone is taken care of, where generosity and sustainability are held in high regard, where the masculine and feminine work together with mutual respect, love, and appreciation. I envision a global culture that respects and honors the beautiful Earth, our home. I am going to use all of my creative potential to support a new beginning that creates a better world for the generations to come.   

I have been thinking a lot about value, what I value in life, how I value myself, how I value what I create.  I see how fundamentally important it is to value life, to value who I am and what I create.  It is easy to focus on perceived shortcomings, as that state of mind colludes with inaction and lack of risk.  But when I value who I am and what I create, that state of being colludes with offering myself to life, sharing myself with life, sharing myself with others. It calls for risk, the risk of being visible, the risk of putting myself "out there", the risk of taking action and surrendering to the outcome. 

When it comes to navigating my life, this fall I have been frequently asking myself the questions: "Does this add value to my life?" and "If I valued my own well-being, what choices would I make? How would I respond?"  Then I observe what else comes up for me, am I afraid of disappointing someone else? When and why do I choose pleasing others over valuing myself?

Many of us have learned through cultural conditioning to not value ourselves.  We believe our worth lies in something outside ourselves, in money, in success as it is culturally defined, in beauty as it is culturally defined.  Then we spend a lot of time and resources molding ourselves to fit an externally defined sense of value. 

This fall I encourage you to explore your beliefs and practices around self-value.  Then, see if you can self-source value.  Ask yourself the question "What do I truly value vs. what am I doing for outside approval?" See what happens when you start making choices based on your true sense of value. 

In joy,

Melissa

Hello Beautiful Fall!  Though summer felt very short this year here in Seattle I always love the time of year when summer turns to fall.  Maybe it is because I was born in November, but fall feels like a coming home, a relief, a calming and slowing down. 

Fall is a time of letting go, it helps us to release anything we are done with and ready to let go.  It is a great time, ironically, for "spring cleaning". 

So I recommend going through your space and letting go.  What can you give away? What is stagnant and could use an infusion of new life?

Anything that we hold onto that is not functioning energetically for us is blocking the flow of our life, and serving as excess psychic weight.  What is weighing you down? Let it go, give it away, let the river of life flow again. 

"Find yourself in the light, in the dark, in the time of spark whispers and tender missives of affection, in the voice of change that breaks your heart, in the sound of soft love falling like leaves to the ground to be loved into nothing"

(from my poem Life is an Illusion of Time)

Let fall love you, let it take what no longer serves you, let it lighten your heart and soul.  Give whatever you no longer need to the Earth, to Spirit, to your community.  Leave your burdens behind, and let fall prepare you to relax in the peaceful embrace of winter.  Let fall love you. 

In love and gratitude,

Melissa

i

Nothing can move a body and soul like sound.  We experience it all the time with music, but there are other ways to use sound to "move".  Sound is a healing force, meaning it gets us in touch with aspects of our complete selves.  The word "healed" means "whole", and the journey through life is one of re-membering, remembering who we are in all aspects of our humanity, which is not removed from our divinity.  Sound can remind us of those lost places, it can awaken areas of our bodies and souls that have gone to sleep, or gone underground.  Through resonance and entrainment our bodies and souls can remember those places that have seemed to have gone missing. 

There is an area of study called sentics, which refers to the phenomenon of how emotion or quality of being can be transferred from one person to another through the use of sound, in particular that of the human voice.  This is one way that sound can serve as a healing force, if one person remembers a state of being that another has forgotten, the one who remembers can transmit the experience of that quality through vocal sound.  The one who has forgotten simply listens and receives.  Parts of the body and soul, which vibrate and are made of energetic fields, will entrain to the sound that is created, and the sentics, the emotion or state of being carried through the sound, will be transferred as well. 

The sentics is what makes the difference between music that is simply technically good or entertaining, and music that moves you. 

You can give this a try yourself.  Simply access an emotional state, feel it, and sound (without words or structure) from that place.  Invite a friend to explore this with you.  See what happens. 

This principle can be applied to creating music, art, jewelry, writing, and healing.  It can be applied to any creative endeavor. 

In joy,
Melissa

Summer is the perfect time of year to rediscover or enhance your sensual nature.  Next time you are out for a walk try this-pick a sense, touch, sight, hearing, smell, even taste, and experience your walk through that sense.  If you chose touch, for example, focus your awareness on your skin and all the sensations that you are experiencing through touch.  Feel the air, the warmth of the sun, the way the ground feels to your feet through your shoes or barefoot. 

Try that with each sense.  Then, try them all together.  Move through the world like you would imagine an animal does-just sensing. 

How do you feel after you've spent time moving through the world that way?

This exercise will get you in touch with your anima which is derived from the same root as the word animal, and means soul, breath, and life.  It will enliven your senses, and get you in touch with your sensual (of the senses) nature. 

Enjoy!

Life is a transformational process.  We live in a world in which the only constant is change, in which the seasons turn us through time and our bodies carry us through a journey of self-realization and transformation.  Our bodies change like the earth through the seasons of our lives as we learn and grow.  Life will change us, it is the role of the Great Earth Mother to bring us to this place of discovery and change that helps shine the inner light of the spirit, bring out the richness and beauty of an ensouled spirit.  We are here to uncover, revel in, and explore the richness of spirit ensouled.  We are here to “make manifest the glory of the creator that is within us” (Marianne Williamson).  We are ensouled spirits creating and recreating, living and living again, exploring the depths and ascending to the heights of experience.  We are all spelunkers of the soul, the spirit drawn down and given depth.  We have created this world where paradox and polarity are necessities and as a result are the fodder for our experiences here.  We live in a world great in beauty, fierce in its fire, relentless and merciful.  We are here to bridge the gap between the two poles of being and in encompassing all we transcend, not by rising above but by becoming all that is.  The great integration of all elements of soul and spirit is the great awakening that is happening as we speak. 

(Note: The South is one of the Four Directions in the medicine wheel of some native traditions, it often is associated with the season of summer) In the South we access the heart-nature, the heart-dream.  What nourishes the heart? What expands and enlivens the heart-dream?  Joy, love, play.  The heart revels in that which is playful, and beautiful, and joyful, and creative.  The heart wants to love what it loves.  The heart never judges, condemns, or selects for superfluous reasons.  The heart is always aligned with the soul.  Does that mean in following our hearts all is easy or “perfect”? Not, perhaps, by the standards you have learned, but by the standards of your beautiful and wise soul, yes.  Everything your heart brings to you is a gift, a blessing, a step along the path you set for yourself joyfully and with great excitement.  Your heart is never wrong.  It is the mind that brings all of the wrongness-judgment, condemnation, criticism-into play.  It is the mind that has learned the idea of right and wrong.  The heart knows no such things.  If you want to be free from the endless parade of right and wrong, live in your heart.  Live from your heart.  Listen to your heart and tend to it like you would a precious fire that will sustain you through the darkest, coldest, winters.  It is your heart that like a light-house beacon will get you safely through the dense fog to the safety of the welcoming shore.  It is in your heart that you will find all that you are looking for, for nothing resides outside of its grace.  There is nothing it cannot do for you if you allow it to be open and bring its magic into your life.  Love, grace, peace, are all found within the domain of the heart.  Let your heart be your guide, your muse, your light.  Surrender to its beauty, receive its grace, follow its light.  This will take you down the path you dream of, this will take you where you need to go.  This will bring you to the end of a journey well-lived, well-spent, well-loved.  This is the one true task of your soul--live a life of love.  That is all.  How do you do this? Be your heart.