Walk Through Fire

Have you ever felt like you were walking on hot coals? or across burning sand? I know some people have done these things literally, but I'm referring to that feeling of needing to move quickly and gingerly through something.

Lately, with the wonder of Mercury Retrograde and both the Solar Eclipse and New Moon, much of that kind of feeling has been happening in my world. Scorpio is so intimately involved in all this ~~ the hidden places are being brought to light. This is not the easiest path to pursue. Yet there is no true alternative. If I try to avoid the truths arising and being revealed, well, it'd be like stepping fully on the hot coals without protection or awareness. I only get burned. And I still have to face the truths. So I might as well face them from the start.

Since Mercury has gone direct, language is easier and expressing what's been happening and what continues to happen is more likely to make sense. The revelation piece comes out of Scorpio's hidden realm.

How does all this relate to Bukowski's quote? Revealing my truths, especially the ones I've spent time tucking away into the darkest corners, is "walking through the fire." It burns away the cover I've so carefully designed, planted and cultivated ~~ sometimes so well that I've hidden the truth from myself too. I walk well when I keep moving and face whatever is left after I get to the other side of the fire. I am eager to walk well through the fire!

What lies at the core of your fire? What have you hidden? What is being revealed? How well do you want to walk through your fire?

Solar Eclipse and Scorpio New Moon

The Solar Eclipse coincides with a Scorpio New Moon on October 23, 2014. The New Moon is at zero degrees Scorpio: a signal of completion and initiation. Scorpio is about truth. When we are truthful with ourselves, and in the light of the eclipse, releasing our karmic loops, we have the opportunity to begin anew. We need to use this time to look at our Shadows: our fears, anxieties and old patterns. If we see them clearly, we can then move forward into a new pattern for our lives.

The Hoopoe is a totem of completion, the trinity and creative capacity. She carries the ability to tap into ancient wisdom, energy body and connection to higher realms. She balances with Mother Earth and is quick of movements: making decisions, increasing spiritual awareness and tuning in to personal internal rhythms. Hoopoe sings her own song and lives through her own power. Being in the sun taps into Hoopoe's wisdom. She is skillful and creative in deterring predators in both the spiritual and physical worlds. A perfect totem for the Solar Eclipse and Scorpio New Moon!

I sense an era, a phase of my life, coming to completion. It's not a huge change. There's a tug on the sleeve, a nudge of an elbow, a nod pointing me into another direction. My heart feels both apprehension and joy at the possibilities as they open to me. I'm glad to have the Eclipse, the Scorpio New Moon and the Hoopoe reassuring me that all is well and as it should be.

What phase of your life is coming to completion? How do you feel about that occurring? What supports you in the midst of change? What spiritual wisdom guides you?

Become a Lake

After growing tired of her novice's complaints, a sage sent her novice to get some salt. When the novice returned, the sage told her to mix a handful of salt in a glass of water and then drink it.
"How does it taste?" the sage asked.
"Bitter," responded the novice.
The sage instructed the novice to put another handful of salt into her pocket while they went for a walk. The novice did so. They walked in silence to a nearby lake. The sage said, "Mix your salt into the lake." The novice swirled her salt in the water.
"Now drink from the lake," said the sage.
As the water dripped from the young woman's chin, the sage asked, "How does it taste?"
"Refreshing," said the novice.
"Do you taste the salt?" asked the sage.
"No," replied the novice.
The sage and novice sat on the rocks beside the lake. The sage explained, "The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less. The amount of pain in life remains exactly the same. The amount of bitterness tasted depends on the container into which the pain is placed. So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is enlarge your sense of things. Stop being a glass. Become a lake."

How do you stay a glass? How do you become a lake? Which would you prefer to be? Why?

Silly FB Questionnaire

When I logged onto FB the other day, I was greeted by one of those silly questionnaires. This one wanted me to answer the questions to discover my totem animal. My immediate thought was, "What the heck? I might as well give it a go and see what happens." So I did. This is the result:

"What animal walks by your side? ... Your totem animal is the owl,... Owls represent wisdom, and the ability to see what others do not. This means your mind is unique,... You observe situations in a 'positive' aspect, meaning you probably suggest that there is good in everything. Owl people make excellent spiritual teachers...
Some additional details about owl totem: Intuition, ability to see what others do not see; ...change; capacity to see beyond deceit and masks; wisdom; traditional meaning...is the announcer of death, most likely symbolic of a life transition, change."

I have to chuckle about this. It's almost as though Owl wants to remind me that It is in my life for the long haul. My high school mascot was an owl ~ Its presence began there. Five years ago, I attended a Women's Dreamquest where we drew power animal cards to place us into groups. I drew Owl (along with 4 or 5 other women). Three years ago, I spotted a recently killed young barn owl at the side of the road and felt called to do a ritual to send Its spirit home. In short, yes. I already knew my connection to Owl and Owl's connection to me. It was, and is, humorous to think that a FB questionnaire would identify the connection as well.

Have you taken any of the FB quizzes? Have you 'discovered' anything that you didn't already know? What do you think of these kinds of questionnaires? Do you consider them fun? serious? educational? helpful? What animal has shown up repeatedly in your life?

Easy Cures

Every now and again, I come across an image and a saying that strike me as almost too simple. My reaction is the mental version of smacking my forehead with the heel of my hand.

This one caused that reaction in me. Wow. It should be so easy, right? Yet I find myself awake in the middle of the night, thinking about .... well. nothing in particular and everything in general. Those weird questions run through my brain: What should I wear tomorrow? Is it going to rain/snow? What did X mean by saying Y? Did I pay the water bill? Do I have clean undies? I think you know the ones.

Then there are the bigger-than-life questions: What do I want to be when I grow up? and when will that be? Will I ever write the great American novel? Do I even want to? Do I have enough money to take a trip to Macchu Picchu? Will anyone ever truly know who I am? or love me for who I am? Is there a God? I think you know these queries too.

While these questions might keep me awake at night, I've gotten better at laughing at them, recognizing their potential for diversion, their non-real presence. The laughter breaks the mood, shatters the stress before it's fully formed, leaves me more relaxed. Then I can fall asleep.

I've also learned to laugh at these same type of questions that arise in the light of day as well. You know these too: Is my boss watching? Is this within my pay grade? Were my coworkers talking about me? Does my breath stink? Most of these questions pop into my mind because I feel insecure or "less than." Not because any of this is true or really matters. I make it important. I define my reality around some pretty silly parameters. That, in and of itself, gives me reason to laugh.

Do you sleep soundly through the night? Are there times you awaken anxiously? What is important in defining your reality? Can you find a way to laugh more? What would that be?

300 Posts

ML Monroe ~ 2013

"You are never given a dream without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however."

~ Richard Bach

Today I'm giving myself the opportunity and permission to celebrate. I had a dream that I would continue to write a blog for 30 days, or however many continued to bubble out of my moving fingers. Today's post is number 301. Even skipping an occasional day, I've written fairly continuously since March. That's an accomplishment worth celebrating!

I believe in celebrating every accomplishment we have ~~ every dream that comes true ~~ no matter whether it is a large colorful one or a small barely noticeable one or any in between. Celebrations can be, as this is, simple acknowledgements of having done the work to completion. Or taking oneself out to dinner. Or throwing a party. Or going to bed early. Whatever makes your heart sing when the task is over.

We human beings are better at putting ourselves down than at self-congratulations. I'm not saying to brag or boast, but to recognize that we have gone through some steps or trials or learning or whatever it takes in order to get there. I am always grateful for every encouraging word or smile; every person or thing that helped ease the way forward. I believe in recognizing, in the process, that others help us attain those goals too ~ we are part of a larger community that supports each other.

What have you accomplished today? How do you feel about your accomplishment? Have you expressed your self-congratulations? Have you expressed your gratitude? How have you done that?

Difference Beocming

"The old woman I shall become will be quite different from the woman I am now. Another I is beginning."

~George Sand

I'm always fascinated by quiet, unobtrusive, yet powerful statements made by strong women from various times and backgrounds. This one is the most recent.

Our culture teaches us that women disappear as they age. Their sole outstanding feature is the remains of their youthful appearance. This is what creates the incredible market for botox and a variety of plastic surgeries; hair color products that promise to cover the gray; the latest make-up and facial care products that 'defy aging' and keep our visible face, neck, eyes looking young and supple.

We forget the beauty of aging. We forget that we have earned every wrinkle with our laughter and our tears. We forget to be proud of the experiences that have shaped us into the beauties that we have become. 

I'm not saying that women should not take care of themselves. Or should not color their hair. Or should not use the latest 'age defying' creams and lotions. What I'm saying is that we women should not be slave to them. We should make the choice of using these products out of our own desire to explore the variety of aspects of who we are rather than to pretend that we are not growing older.

We can believe in our strength, our determination, our beauty without giving in to the culture that worships youth. I don't want to be afraid of growing old, of fading from existence and becoming invisible. I want my aging to be graceful and grace-filled. I want to exult in the different I that is becoming.

How do you feel about the aging process? What scares you about aging? How can you keep yourself from fading from existence? What first step ~ or small step ~ can you make toward embracing the different I that is beginning?