April 2020 – Voices in My Head

If We Can Dream It, We Can Build It

The sky is not falling. The roof is not caving in. No, we are just under construction. We are tearing down for the purpose of rebuilding. Well, that’s the way the horoscopes usually say it. . . .

Today I feel this overwhelming urge to say, “Hey—as long as we are rebuilding, let’s have a say in the design of the new future. Let’s use our collective intelligence, passion, vision, and imagination to recreate the world in a way that we would like to have it be. Let’s use our minds in a positive way rather than focusing on the fearful thoughts that bring the risk of turning themselves into self-fulfilling prophecies.

When I was an outside sales representative in Washington, D.C. years ago, I encountered an old man on the same street corner every day wearing a helmet and holding a gigantic placard with tiny writing. The gist was that the atmosphere was filled with negative radio waves and that his helmet was protection against the toxic energy emitted by it. Everyone should be wearing helmets, he said. Well, obviously, the man was a little off. Or maybe a not.

But here’s the thing. His helmet and rambling placard were the catalyst that jolted me into a new awareness. What if there was some truth to his ramblings? What if I was walking through life wearing a broadcast helmet that blared my every thought out into the universe and everyone in it? What if every friend, loved one, and passing stranger heard every ugly, spontaneous thought that popped into my head? Oh egad! Just think of the ramifications! Maybe I should wear a helmet to protect myself from my own thoughts, as well as those from others.

There is no hiding from our thoughts and much as we might like to think so, we cannot hide our thoughts from the universe. On some level, we are broadcasting our thoughts for all to hear, and there is an always an impact, like ripples in a pond. The most important thoughts that have the greatest impact of all are those that we have about ourselves.

Ah but I digress. Every thought has creativity and power within it, and every though has meaning. We can use that powerful energy as a construction tool to create whatever we want, but first we must create a blueprint and build upon a solid foundation of love rather than a shoddy, haphazard foundation of fear.

Fortunately for us, there is so much help available to us as we seek to find our way through the debris left in the wake of so much destruction. Just as we are locked within our homes during this universal crisis, the answers we seek are locked within ourselves waiting to be set free. Seek and ye shall find.

We are standing together at the crossroad of the past and future, and together we can use our God given power and ability to help build the bridge that will get us safely across. We are under construction, following the blueprint of a Divine Plan. Trust. Have faith. All is well.

Note: The photo above is courtesy of New Waves of Light, a website designed by anonymous individuals around the world who share the intention of bringing light and love to a world of darkness and chaos. (newwavesoflight.org or NWOL.us).

Charlie Calling—Or Is It My Soul?

It’s not that I don’t like dogs, mind you. It’s just that I like them a whole lot better when they belong to someone else. Nope—no dog for me.

Get a dog.

Gee thanks, but no thanks.

And a few days later—

Get a dog.

The banter went on for weeks.

I was emphatic. NO! I don’t want a dog. Ever. I don’t want the responsibility, the expense, the restriction, the dog hair in the butter, the walks in nasty weather, the accidents on the carpet, the health issues, the suffering through the loss at the end. No. No dog for me.

Get a dog.

Finally, after several months of serious resistance, I gave up and got a dog. Surrender Dorothy.

Enter Charlie, a Japanese Chin named Charlie Chin—a caramel sundae of a fluff ball that stole my heart and changed my world forever. It would take too many words to tell you about the wonders or Charlie, or the gifts that he brought into my life, but maybe another day.

Even now after twelve years, it is difficult to fathom the profound lessons that came along wrapped in the package with Charlie. Among the many, the one that stands above all others is the willingness to heed the call of the Inner Voice that knows what is best for the growth of the soul.

Trust me, I’ve heard about a bazillion voices throughout my lifetime, most of them annoying, confusing, obnoxious, and just plain downright not nice. Thankfully through trial and error, I’ve managed to narrow them down to my favorites, the ones I call the committee in my head. By the way, and just so you know, I never thought of myself as crazy. Maybe a little misguided from time to time, but never crazy. Misguided would be courtesy of listening to a bazillion wrong voices. It pays to hear with a discerning ear.

Dogs don’t need to learn how to hear with a discerning ear because they already know. Charlie was wise. He knew how to just listen and be. Sometimes I called him Yoda. Charlie Chin Yoda.

I want to be just like him when I grow up. I want to just listen and be. I want to develop that inner wisdom and knowing that lives within the animal kingdom, and that also lives within us two-legged creatures, if we will just be still long enough to seek it within ourselves.

As we stay cloistered within the walls of our own homes, what better time to do just that—practice our communication skills with the wise Voice within—the voice that leads unfailingly down a path beyond fear and toward love. We’re all going to get where we’re going eventually. Guaranteed. It’s just a matter of how long we’ll linger along the way.

Me? I prefer sooner rather than later. It’s why I got a dog. And quit smoking, and knocked off the wine, and signed on for a daily blog. I guess I’m in a bit of a hurry. How about you?

The Truth Will Set Your Free

I had a little chat with my friend (the one who plans to buy a gun) and without going into great detail, it turns out that our differing interpretations of the meaning of yesterday’s blog (Faith Trumps Fear) was Venus and Mars. I thought that such misperceptions only happened between men and women, but apparently, I was wrong. That happens a lot. That I’m wrong, I mean.

As the last child in my family, I often did not feel heard so I learned to stuff my words back down my throat to avoid choking on the disappointment of not having my needs met. My inability to understand my feelings and express my thoughts became the undoing of my failed marriages, but thankfully, after decades of trial and error, I have learned a great deal.

Oh, there were lots of errors—sometimes comical, sometimes painful, and often they came wrapped up as a combination platter. In one of my marriages, my husband and I developed what we called the two-week rule, a tool that we used in the midst of an argument, or anytime that we faced a weighty issue that affected both of us. It gave us two weeks of radio silence to mull over options and consequences and seek answers from within.

At the end of one such period, my husband’s conclusion was that he was leaving. “WHAT? What do you MEAN that you’re leaving? That’s not what we were supposed to be thinking about,” I bellowed. “That’s what we were thinking about and that’s my decision” he replied. “Noooo—we were thinking about whether we would invite your son to come and stay with us for a while.” Talk about the mother of all miscommunication!

So, he packed up and left. But it didn’t last long. He was back later that evening at which point I wanted to throw him out again. We laughed about it later, but it wasn’t very funny at the time.

Hmmm. Why did I wander down this road, I wonder? Is there a point? Does it have to do with being wrong? Or communication? Or telling the truth? Or check all of the above? Or Maybe it’s just a way to crack open the door and take a peek to see if there is room for improvement to be made anywhere along the line.

There is truth and then there is Truth, and it takes conscious effort to decipher one from the other, to discern the difference between the voice of the self and the Voice of the Soul. Communication on every level is a skill, a fine art. To be successful it must be learned, studied, rehearsed, practiced. But mostly it requires honesty with one’s self. It’s a trial and error process. Will there be mistakes? Absolutely! Will there be wrong turns? Of course. I’m an expert in both, but even in wrong turns, there is great value. But like anything truly worth having, it is truly worth working for.

Oh—and as a side benefit, it may even eliminate a few trips to Venus or Mars and save a marriage or two.

Faith Trumps Fear

I thought it would be easy.

It is easy. You are the one who makes it hard by thinking that it is.

Oh, right. I keep forgetting. Thank You for reminding me.

Would you care to get on with it now?

Ok.

I have a friend who plans to get a gun as protection against what is for now, only an imaginary enemy. That worries me because it says to me that fear is in play here, and fear is an enemy that cannot be annihilated with a gun. Fear draws what is feared closer unto itself.

This morning when I read the news that two million chickens were killed because processing plants have stopped production due to the lack of employees, my heart skipped a beat as I thought about the poor chickens, and the utter waste of their lives. Then came another headline about the possibility of food shortages. Yep—I agree that such a possibility certainly is a scary thought. It might be enough to make me think about going off in search of a gun myself.

But here’s the thing. I believe that we have greater protection than guns. I believe that there are hundreds of thousands of people walking around on our planet whose sole purpose for living is to carry a torch of light to help others to find their way through the dark. They are faceless, they are nameless, they have never met, yet they are joined in consciousness as one in service to humanity.

Fear gone unchecked creates wars, and the war against fear itself begins with each individual. It is not an easy battle, but for those who choose to engage in the fight, there are outstretched hands to help make it easier. It is a noble undertaking to choose love above fear. Reach out and someone will take your hand.

So, I ask my Self what we can do to help ourselves undo fear and replace it with visions of healing and rebirth. Self replies:

You can remember that there is a Divine Plan at work and everything happens for a reason.

You can remember that in the war between good and evil, good is winning, even though it may not seem evident at this moment.

You can know that no matter what, you will make it safely through whatever the future may bring.

You can use your imagination to create a vision of a new and beautiful world without the need for guns.

You can have faith that no matter how bleak things may look, you may rest in the knowledge that you will make your way across the bridge from despair to the safety of the new world that awaits you on the other side.

And that is all for today, dear one.

Huh. It appears that I have just outed my spiritual activist tendencies.

Yes. So it would appear. We’re happy about that, and may we say it is about time. The world can use more of them. We are also happy that you are now speaking your Truth.

Me too. Thank You!

Give Us This Day Our Daily Blog

Every morning I nestle down with my coffee and trusty laptop to start the day by hoping and praying that the Voices du jour will just show up on the page with little or no effort from me. Sometimes it works that way, and sometimes it doesn’t. Why is that, I wonder?

Perhaps it is a mirror of my life reflected in the experiences that proved easy—finding the perfect home, job, roommate at the perfect time—and those that were difficult, like marriages and finances. Occasionally, there were times in my life when I was stopped dead in my tracks from moving in a direction that I thought I wanted to go. I look back with gratitude for those aborted missions, for in hindsight I can see that they would have proven devastatingly painful had I tried to force the issue and succeeded in my efforts.

Day after day as I sit down with my coffee and laptop, I ask myself why I have made this commitment to publish Voices every day. I drown in an ocean of answers that flood my brain and threaten to drag me down into the undertow of fear and confusion. Then suddenly, I am catapulted to the surface long enough to see the sunlight and catch a breath of willingness and courage to carry on, regardless of how uplifting or difficult the effort might be.

Even now, in the midst of a patch of fear and confusion, my heart beats with joy at the thought of how much there is to be gained. I have agreed to enter an institute of higher learning where the question of why will be answered. It will take time, it will take patience, it will take courage and willingness.

I have no idea where the path will lead but I am looking forward to the journey. I suspect that there will be an ocean full of lessons, challenges, questioning, tests, frustrations, joys, and eternal why questions, but one day I will be able to look back in hindsight and say, “Oh. That’s why.”

I would enjoy having some traveling companions along the way and would be delighted if you would join me for a bird’s eye view of what goes on in the world of a serious Truth seeker in my practice of listening for the quiet whispers of the soul. And I would love hearing your thoughts and musings as you travel with me. Please share!

Meanwhile, I fully intend work hard and be the best student that I can be. As always, it will be good for me to remember that it’s not about the destination, but rather about the journey.

Such an adventure! Y’all wanna come along for the ride?

A Trip Down Memory Lane

In the last six weeks, the most exciting thing that has happened in my life is that my car battery died. Clearly, boredom has set in and become the catalyst that propelled me back into the writing game. Now, instead of sitting around watching my nails grow, I can wander around in my brain in search of some juicy tidbit of nothing to write about. Somehow though, today I keep coming up empty handed. Or maybe empty headed would be more accurate. I must be in serious need of some healthy mental stimulation.

Okay, I’m stuck

So soon?

Yep. Wandering around coming up empty. Wait—that’s not entirely true. Lots of stuff is competing for attention, but there is no theme or direction. Typical.

What have your brain wanderings offered?

Well for one thing, a peek into choices. I could roam around in my head looking for past grievances and old wounds to obsess about, or I could enjoy reminiscing about happy memories. I choose happy memories.

I could also do a past life review of the amazing synchronicities that have moved my feet in specific directions—the jobs that have fallen into my lap, the perfect living arrangement when I needed to find a new home, the perfect roommates who miraculously appeared out of nowhere at the perfect time. In that regard, I have indeed been blessed with good fortune.

On the other hand, things in other areas of my life were not as easy. There was the roller coaster ride of two husbands, three marriages, and three divorces and the attending financial struggle that plagued me throughout the middle years of my life. Nope. It wasn’t always easy. Oh, and in case you might be scratching your head trying to figure out the marriage puzzle, I’ll just say that some of us are slow learners—I married the same guy twice.

As I look back at my relationship history, it occurs to me that it mirrors my work history. I am the butterfly, sucking the essence out of each experience and moving on. Sometimes the essence is bitter, but always nourishing.

Hmmm. This turned out to be something of a life review. It’s not always pleasant to come face to face with the things that are sometimes best left in the past, but oh, the wonderous gift of learning that is the reward. As I move through the days of my life and sometimes stumble along the way, I am uplifted by knowing that regardless of what challenges I face, I am always and ever moving steadily forward toward my destination, guided by unseen forces that hold me steady when the road is rocky.

There is nothing a like a little trip down Memory Lane to realize that every experience, no matter now difficult nor exhilarating, is indeed a valuable one. The Spirit that lives in all guides each one of us, if we but choose to listen.

The Road to Somewhere

The thing that amazes me about this daily writing gig is that it starts as nothing and ends up as something. Sit in chair, computer on lap, fingers on keys, nothing. Here we go again, what now? Sigh. Sometimes it feels like a mighty struggle, and sometimes fingers fly and the thing just writes itself. I prefer the latter, but today feels more like a struggle.

Why is that, I wonder? I start off headed in one direction and end up wandering down a path that leads to an unknown destination. It helps to have a goal in mind lest I find myself traveling blindly down a road toward an end that I did not seek to find. But hey—maybe that’s not always a bad thing. Maybe it was meant to be, who knows?

Come to think of it, my life has been a lot like that. Kind of a go-with-the-flow, seat-of-the-pants adventure. It is comforting to know that whatever happens and wherever I land, there is always good news, for there is experience to be gained and lessons to be learned. Classroom Earth offers an amazing curriculum, perfectly timed and tailored to suit each individual need. No road traveled is a waste because eventually it will lead back to the destination, even if the destination may seem obscure at any given time. Sort of like today’s gig. I’ll get there eventually, even if I don’t exactly know where is. All I need is just a little faith.

If I had a goal it would help. What might that be? Hmmm. How about this? How about feeling really good about pushing the publish button? How about feeling that it doesn’t have to be perfect, and that however it turns out, it’s all okay? How about letting it just be what it is without judging it, or myself, or caring what anybody thinks of it? Well that would be pretty awesome, right?

Indeed. Have you considered the lessons that you are learning as you fulfill your daily writing commitment?

Well kind of and sort of, but not really. Not thoroughly. I know they’re there, but maybe that’s a topic for another day.

Would you care to share about your experience of writing today?

Sure. It was a struggle at first. But after several starts and stops, it got easier. It just sort of flowed. Again, a lot like my entire life. It’s not always easy but it sure is worth it.

When do you think that it became easier?

About the time when I gave up on my little self and turned it over to You.

How will you feel today when you push the pubish button?

Pretty darned good, I think. Thank you.

It is Our pleasure indeed. We know that it takes great courage serve others by your willingness to share from the heart and be who you are. We love you and We thank you.

My gratitude to You as always, and as a way of saying thank you, I shall push the publish button and feel really good about it. Ta dah!

Onward, Upward, and Inward

Today marks the two-week anniversary of my daily writing commitment and in another six days, I will celebrate the four-month anniversary of a black TV screen. Not bragging, not complaining, just saying.

I reread A Night Without TV Link and was reminded that my intention is, was, and always will be, to do whatever it takes to move one step further ahead on the path toward enlightenment. Sometimes it’s a big ask, but the rewards are greater than the sacrifice. It takes time and patience to make progress along the way, and sometimes forward motion is not visible until seen in the rear view mirror.

No TV is a big ask, right up there with quit smoking, give up wine, and get a dog. I did it all because I don’t want to risk being sucked back into another lifetime by my addictions, if you believe in that sort of thing. If I come back, I want it to be because I want to, not because I need a glass of wine or a cigarette.

Ah, but I digress. What have I done to fill the gaping hole left by a blank TV screen? The only thing I know for sure is that I haven’t used the time to dismantle the stack of paper on my desk. Beyond that, I cannot say, exactly. Meanwhile it seems that I have finally decided to act upon the guidance that I received while in the midst of writing the no-TV blog, and I quote:

“I say to myself, “Self,” I say? What am I supposed to be doing with all of this blank-screen TV-less time on my hands?”

And my Self says to me, “Write your own story. Tell your own truth. Say it like it is in your world and do not concern yourself with how it is perceived. Judgment is not your job. Your job is simply to write.”

So I write. I clog up in-boxes with whatever comes to mind, be it ever so helpful, annoying, good, bad, or indifferent. It may or may not ever be read, but I truly appreciate those who take the time to do so. Meanwhile, in a week or so, I may have another little chat with my Self about the possibility of reevaluating and/or readjusting the writing schedule. Perhaps it would make sense to move to a three-day a week plan. We’ll see how that works out.

There will come a time when I look in the rear view mirror and clearly see the magnificent gifts of growth and learning that come along with the big asks. Meanwhile, I plod along day by day with faith that I am on the path to higher consciousness and I’ll get there in this lifetime or the next, or maybe the next. There is nowhere to go but up and within. With time and patience on my side I’ll get there eventually. Inch by inch. Hallelujah!

Just Imagine

analysis blackboard board bubble — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Hmmm. Day 748 of the virus shut-down and as each day passes the stack of stuff on my desk gets taller. Yesterday I was going to tackle it right after I posted daily Voices. Well, that didn’t happen, did it?

And why is that?

Well, my car died in the garage. My friends Heather and Jim jump-started it and off we went to the dealer for a new battery and regular service, which of course required a return trip for pick up. (Hint: it pays to start your car before 748 days roll by.) Then there was a walk, a nap, and excessive trips to the kitchen for exercises in refrigerator foraging. Beyond that, I can’t remember. If we all get out of this thing without becoming raging alcoholics, obsessive germaphobes, or the size of a blimp we’ll be on top of the game.

I just read a post by Tony Bologna (love the name) that talks about his fear of wasting time. Not me. I’m good at it—in fact, it’s what I do best. Practice is the key. Even as a child, I remember sitting idly on the back porch staring out into the space above neighboring rooftops and hanging out with myself just being. It was glorious then, and it hasn’t lost its magic. Maybe that’s what I was doing yesterday that I can’t remember. Maybe I just zoned out on the world for a while.

On one hand, I might call it procrastination—another one of my strong points. On the other, it could just be a matter of allowing my mind to drift off into the ethers where imagination lives, to a place where creation takes place and thoughts can be played out in the mind and possibilities explored, where futures can be written and rewritten based upon what feels like the best option, and where the mind can be used to heal, forgive, bless, and love.

So maybe I’ll get to that nagging stack of paper today before it topples over and buries me alive, or maybe not. Maybe I’ll get to those phone calls that I’ve promised myself that I would make, or maybe not. Recently, I’ve been hearing a lot of folks mumble about feeling lazy during this time, and putting off what doesn’t have to be done today because we seem to have a whole lot of tomorrows waiting in store. Maybe not.

Maybe this is the perfect time to set aside the gotta-do’s and sit on the back porch and dream a while. Dream of the possibilities. Dream about how to create a new and better world, not just for yourself but for all of us. Dream about what it would be like to live in a peaceful world where love is the leader and harmony rules. What better moment than this to just sit, think, and dream up a new and vastly improved world? As it is my assignment to write daily, perhaps it is also our joint assignment to write a new future for ourselves. We have it in us. We need only do it.

There really is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and it’s waiting for us to claim it. So what say you? Are you in? Can you be counted on to help rewrite the future and dream up a new world? Can you just imagine such a thing? I hope so, because, let’s face it, we need all the help we can get. You and your thoughts matter!

What’s in a Lifetime?

It’s 7:35 a.m. and I’d like to push the publish button by 9:00 a.m. so I can start the day by attacking the stack of papers that grow in the night and taunt me in the morning. Is anyone else experiencing a bout of laziness and/or procrastination during these days as shut-in’s, or is it just me?

If you’ve been following along for the past several days, you may have noticed a thread of self-doubt running through the pages. Me too, and do you know what? I’m sick of it. Enough already. It’s old news, it’s boring, and it’s time to move on to lighter and brighter things.

Okay, I’m struggling here. Why isn’t this easy? What am I doing wrong? If this is an assignment and I’m willing to do it, why is it so hard? You know me—I always want everything to be easy. Easy suits my lazy nature.

The clock is ticking and I’m nowhere near completion. Whoa. Now there’s a profound statement if ever I heard one! Will life run out before I’m finished? It’s enough to poke me in the derriere with a hat pin and get me moving post haste.

Dear one, no one said that it would be easy. Anything worth doing, being, or having is earned by virtue of the willingness to apply oneself to the task at hand. For some that is easier than others, based upon the soul qualities that one chooses to work on at any given time.

Yes, well willingness is one thing. Application is another. In my case, I’m loaded with willingness, but I have the attention span of a gnat.

We beg to differ. You may think that your attention is limited, but We would like you to review what you have accomplished during the course of your lifetime. By keeping your eye upon the donut, as you like to say, you have marched steadily toward the achievement of your goals and desires, even though at times you may think otherwise. Your evolutionary journey toward enlightenment is furthered by your willingness to accept this assignment. We know that it is not easy, and it is not comfortable. We have asked and you have answered, and for that We are grateful. From your limited perspective it would appear that progress has been slow to the point of being imperceptible, but viewed from a distance We see you standing strong amidst the growing cadre of global lightworkers. Hold the torch high to help light the path for others who struggle to find their way out of the dark. This, indeed, is your assignment, and We thank you for your acceptance of it.

No, thank You, and you are welcome. And thank You that it’s 8:42 and I think that I’m finished. Well, at least for today. A lifetime is another story.