Loved and Protected

Yesterday I reconnected with this little girl, my inner child.

When I first saw her, I just wanted to hug her and hug her and hug her. She is so precious. We took a walk through a park, holding hands, swinging our arms, both with wide smiles on our faces and eyes twinkling. We had a grand time.

We had a photograph taken of us, the adult Joyce with the child Joycie snuggled together on the park bench clearly each full of joy and love.

And then it was time for us to part. She had a hard time with this. I reassured Joycie that I would be there for her in the days to come, apologizing for neglecting her in the past, as her parents had done. It was difficult to split for each of us, but with enough reassurances and plenty of hugs, Joycie was okay about going back to her house. She knows of my commitment to her now and that I will be there for her.

This morning during quiet time, Joycie and I met up briefly. This time I told her that not only could she count on me, but she also had God to rely on. She can’t lose now! She’s got me, and God, and her own strength, courage, and love too.

We are God's beloved today and always. We are in the strong and protected presence of God (adapted from Daily Word, Friday, February 26, 2010).

Spiritual Contracts

I have a friend who talks a lot about spiritual contracts.

My understanding is that a spiritual contract is the agreement between two souls to get together in a future lifetime to learn and grow together. It may be for business, love, familial, etc. experiences. And, my understanding is that once the contract has been fulfilled, each party is free to move on.

I think this concept is an interesting one and a most plausible explanation for the reason why some of the people who once were such a prominent part of my life are no longer in it at all.

Take for instance my friend, Gloria. We met in college and she became like a sister to me, the one I never had. We partied, ‘man-hunted’, shared life together in many ways. She married my favorite brother, and was a primary relationship in my life for most of 33 years. Then almost overnight she was gone.

One might say our relationship couldn’t survive her divorce after 25 years of marriage to my brother. Or that she was so overwhelmed from exhaustion and grief over the ten-year battle her ‘baby’ sister waged against cancer that she was a big part of. Or that she truly couldn’t forgive me for something she had imagined as a transgression of trust. Or... the stories could be endless, and I don’t suspect I’ll ever know what happened (although ‘the door is always open').

The idea that we had a spiritual contract that had been fulfilled makes a lot of sense to me. We had our time together, full of laughter, tears, confidences, etc. She was the very first person (in a platonic sense) aside from the few hugs I had received by some relatives, who embraced hugging as a natural phenomenon. She taught me its importance both emotionally and physically; she taught me about love.

I’m so grateful that Gloria was able to attend my wedding and help celebrate my finally finding The Man, the life partner I had so yearned for and that she was so well aware of since our college days. She was out of my life within my first year of marriage.

I can think of other folks who have come into my life, taught me some important lessons and vice versa I’m hoping, and then vanished. I’ve long since gotten over the pain of their departure and now the idea of spiritual contracts closes the door on questions of ‘why?’

Dear Spirit of the Most High-
Thank You for the people who agreed to meet me back here for another round of life learning and love. Bless them, bless them, bless them.

A Spiritual Conspiracy

I came across the following poem and was able to track down its author. Written by Brian Piergrossi, it is included in his book The Big Glow.

I resonated with it immediately... The world and its peoples are healing and moving to a higher vibration – yippee! Hope abounds.

Love Is The New Religion

On the surface of the world right now there is war and violence and things seem dark
But calmly and quietly, at the same time, something else is happening underground
An inner revolution is taking place and certain individuals are being called to a higher light
It is a silent revolution
From the inside out
From the ground up

It is time for me to reveal myself
I am an embedded agent of an secret, undercover
Clandestine
Global operation
A spiritual conspiracy
We have sleeper cells in every nation on the planet

You won't see us on the T.V.
You won't read about us in the newspaper
You won't hear about us on the radio

We don't seek any glory
We don't wear any uniform
We come in all shapes and sizes
Colors and styles

Most of us work anonymously
We are quietly working behind the scenes in every country and culture of the world
Cities big and small, mountains and valleys, in farms and villages, tribes and remote islands

You could pass by one of us on the street and not even notice
We go undercover
We remain behind the scenes
It is of no concern to us who takes the final credit
But simply that the work gets done

Occasionally we spot each other in the street
We give a quiet nod and continue on our way so no one will notice

During the day many of us pretend we have normal jobs
But behind the false storefront at night is where the real work takes place

Some call us the "Conscious Army"
We are slowly creating a new world with the power of our minds and hearts
We follow, with passion and joy
Our orders from the Central Command
The Spiritual Intelligence Agency

We are dropping soft, secret love bombs when no ones is looking
Poems
Hugs
Music
Photography
Movies
Kind words
Smiles
Meditation and prayer
Dance
Social activism
Websites
Blogs
Random acts of kindness

We each express ourselves in our own unique ways with our own unique gifts and talents

"Be the change you want to see in the world"
That is the motto that fills our hearts
We know it is the only way real transformation takes place
We know that quietly and humbly we have the power of all the oceans combined

Our work is slow and meticulous
Like the formation of mountains
It is not even visible at first glance
And yet with it entire tectonic plates shall be moved in the centuries to come

Love is the new religion of the 21st century

You don't have to be a highly educated person
Or have any exceptional knowledge to understand it

It comes from the intelligence of the heart
Embedded in the timeless evolutionary pulse of all human beings

Be the change you want to see in the world
Nobody else can do it for you

We are now recruiting
Perhaps you will join us
Or already have....
All are welcome...
The door is open.

The Mother In Us All

I made the conscious choice to not have children in this lifetime. As I grew older and remained single, I figured that when I finally met my life partner, in all likelihood he’d have been married at least once already and probably have children. That was ok with me – I just didn’t want to raise them.

And so it was with Rog... His children were in their early 20’s when we met up in Summer 2004. Since they all lead active adult lives, I’ve not spent large chunks of time with them, although I do enjoy their company and I think they’d say it’s mutual.

It’s been almost 5 years now and I’ve never felt that I was really a mom, a step mom that is. The first time someone referred to me using that label I truly didn’t know who they were referring to! I’ve felt perhaps I was like an older sister – and, at times, when I wasn’t up to date with the latest lingo (like what “411” means), I’ve felt like the younger one!

So, Mother’s Day is not a day that is about me. Just because I’m a woman, doesn’t mean I’m a mom (as I felt that assumption was made today at church). I love to hug, and do tend to be nurturing, but hey, I’m a Cancer!

I am grateful for the women who are great moms and role models, not just for their children, but for all humanity. And, I see that Mother’s Day can be a day to celebrate the Divine Feminine in us all, regardless if we’ve given birth to a child or not.

So, whatever your gender, whatever your station in life, Happy Mother’s Day!