Feel. Sense. Listen. - Matt Licata

The capacity to mourn and to grieve the death of an old
[perspective/view of life] is the portal to a new life, and one
that so many of us in our contemporary world have lost
contact with.  To go into the broken and to feel, to honor the
shards and shattered pieces of soul, to not pathologize them
and to not  urgently scramble to put it all back together.
For they are holy and complete in their brokenness...

Perhaps they need not to be "put back together," but held
in presence and in love.

In a more subtle way, we may discover a moment which is
"in between" the light and the dark, the known and the unknown,
lunar and solar - an opening into liminal space, where we come
into direct contact with something mysterious and vast...

[We can] train ourselves to recognize this inner space and its
qualities, to trust and listen to its non-ordinary, non-rational
wisdom and allow it to cleanse our perception...

...in this way, as the veil parts just a bit and we begin to lift
out of the collective matrix, we may start to see, in an
embodied, experiential way, that the soul is always speaking 
to us...

This communication will at times come by way of experiences
of beauty, joy, connection, and peace.  Through states of flow,
awe, wonder and pure Being.

But this dispatch from The Beloved from the Soul, will at times
emerge as an eruption of the dark, of the lunar, out of the
underworld and the somatic unconscious, and can be fierce
and untamed.  It doesn't conform to who and what we think we are,
what this world is, what "God", or the Divine is.

[It can express as] a surge of activation in one of our relationships,
out-of-the-blue experiences of depression or anxiety, an
unexplainable symptom in our body, the collapse of the known.

To perceive this also as grace is not easy and will ask everything
of us.  Stay in your body.  Feel. Sense. Listen.
Something important may be emerging, to be illuminated and held,
just underneath the threshold of consciousness.

Step into the unknown, and listen...

Matt Licata

~

Photo by my husband :)

 

Sweet Scent of The Sacred...

Overcome with fatigue - exhausted,
I enter the Liminal Space of "The Sacred."
I listen for Her "voice" - Her Sound - Her vibration
in the space of Deep Rest...

...and find Her waiting...

Her sweet cedar fragrance briefly wafts through
the room and soothes my senses,
calming the "noise" in the body and mind...

In the Quiet, she whispers from within:

Let the mind rest in The Sacred,
take comfort in The Sacred.

There is nothing to do but let things unfold...

Nature is taking its course...
All will be made known in time,
and an "answer" revealed...

Stop everything:
all seeking for solutions
 to unsolvable dilemmas,
or attempts to shift consciousness.

Just allow the natural unfolding of all
circumstances in their own time...

Lay down all "spiritual trinkets"
that you "buy" into - to feel safe and
validated in your beliefs; to feel happy;
to feel "enlightened"; to feel "special."

Just cling to Me...

Communing with Me
in the Liminal Spaces
 all will be made clear.

Mystic Meandering

July 13, 2021

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

Quiet Grace...

Quiet Grace made Herself known today,
rising up from within,
surrounding from without,
like a familiar fragrance that wafts through,
only - felt by the senses,
recognized in the Heart...

She drew me in with the clearness of Her Quietness;
an invitation I could only accept,,,

I floated in Her clear, deep Stillness - unfettered.
The tangible, soothing quintessence of Quietness
filled all my fractured places,
smoothed all the jagged edges, and
unwound the choking tension of
body and mind...

Without asking,
She knew just where to go...

Her Essence moved in me...
Her gentle, clear, and fluid Presence
drew me ever more deeply
into Her receptive tenderness,
allowing me to experience
Her pristine Stillness,
like that of a sacred hidden pool,
unexpectedly discovered.

I waded in Her waters,
surprised and blessed by
this unbidden revelation of
Quiet Grace...

Mystic Meandering
April 28, 2017

_/\_

A Humble Lover of "The Mystery"

~

Photo - The Savannah River
Augusta, GA
taken by my husband

Be The Energy - Danna Faulds

That’s how you came here,
like a star without a name…
Rumi ~

Be The Energy

Trust the energy that courses
through you. Trust – then take
surrender even deeper.
Be the energy.

Don’t push anything away.
Follow each sensation back to
its source and focus your awareness
there.

Be the ecstasy…

Be unafraid of consummate wonder.
Emerge so new, so vulnerable,
that you don’t know
who you are.

Be the energy,
and paradoxically,
be at peace.
Dare to be your own illumination,

And blaze a trail across
the clear night sky…..

Danna Faulds

From: Prayers to the Infinite

Copyright 2004
No website found

Peace Window

Peace is at the window tonight…
It is tangible.

There is just a sense of well-being in the night -
a sense of calm…

I feel into The Rhythm of the Inner Wave
through the breath more easily.

The eerie sound of a lone coyote howls,
but doesn’t break the peace…

Momentary thoughts pull me away from the window,
and The Rhythm,
until I realize I’m in my head – thinking.

I bring my awareness back to window –
the opening of Awareness;
to the feel of the air at the window,
the sound of the crickets,
the Spaciousness,
the experience in the moment,
the felt sense of peace
that is right here…

The window, awareness, is an invitation
to settle into The Rhythm…

Aware of thoughts.
Aware of peace.
Aware of feelings.
Aware of peace.

like the rhythm of the in-breath and out-breath…
automatic…

Thought – no thought.
Feeling – no feeling.

Only when thought and feeling are grasped,
held onto, believed, identified with
do they get stuck, frozen…
Otherwise they just pass through – like light waves.
They just rise and fall like the breath,
in the deep Internal Rhythm
of Stillness…

Let them dance…

Peace….


~*~

Heron Wisdom

Heron was a kind of totem for me about 9 years ago. She first showed up when I was dealing with the break up of two very close female friendships in one year. I would go out on walks in my favorite area, sit on the grass and seek “counsel” from Nature. One day as I was sitting, I happened to look up and saw a Great Blue Heron flying overhead. I took it as a sign, my “message” from Nature, if you will. Heron has been showing up off and on ever since.

“Nature meditation” is different from sitting meditation in that awareness seems to be more acute, more vivid, involving more of the senses. It becomes an experience of breathing in the sights, sounds and smells: seeing, noticing, observing, connecting. It’s when I *feel* the alive Stillness of Life humming around me. I automatically take huge deep breaths as I cross over the foot bridge to the pathway, breathing in the aliveness – entering a refuge. It’s where I relax, slow down, and feel open and receptive at a different level than in sitting meditation. As I start each walk I ask “Spirit” (how I refer to the inner Life of everything) to “speak” to me through Nature today – to reveal the Truth of a situation. Sometimes she does and sometimes she doesn’t. But usually it’s in subtle ways – through things that catch my attention along the way. And so I become aware. I notice. I look. And I wait. Yesterday I asked for a “sign” about our current situation.

As I passed by the little wild life habitat pond I scanned the edges curious to see if there was a Heron. I was actually hoping I’d see one – but nothing. I kept walking and then on the return trip scanned the pond again. Nothing. I took in the sight of the reflection in the pond, and the sound of the red winged black birds chirping in the low overgrowth along the edge, and kept walking. And then, as I was nearly past the pond, out of the corner of my eye I saw her coming in low over the pond – wings outstretched, gliding in. My heart leapt. I didn’t see her land, so I turned and walked back to see if I could find her. As quickly as I had seen her, I lost her. I went down the embankment and scanned around the edges of the pond to see if I could see where she might be. Eventually I spotted her across the pond perched on a tangle of branches.

I stood still and watched her as she sat looking into the murky water. Then I started to move closer to the edge of the pond, to get a better look. I may have even uttered a few sounds. My attempt to “connect.” As I moved she saw me. Even from across the pond it evidently disturbed her and she took off, climbing slowly and gracefully overhead. Darn I thought, if I had just stayed still, observing and quiet. If I hadn’t tried to move toward, hadn’t tried to grasp at the experience. My messenger was gone. And yet I knew she was the message: Stand still, watch and observe. Sometimes it’s better not to make a move, but stand in stillness. Movement too soon can cause unnecessary disturbances. Good advice for my present drama… :) Stand and wait…

Herons have great symbolism in many different cultures. When Heron first made herself known to me many years ago, the wisdom that she brought me then was to stand on my own, to follow the call of my Heart, to seek my own wisdom, my own counsel, and follow my own way, not the path of others.

And now she seemed to be saying – wait in stillness – don’t act too soon - don’t move too quickly - be “stillness waiting…” Wise Heron. Nature always shows you the Truth…

~*~

Nature's Call

A difficult week here. Facing reality as it is has been intense.

Late Friday afternoon, needing to find a get-away, I drove to a place where I used to walk near an old agricultural canal. The path along the canal is rather wide, winding through open space, a wildlife refuge, huge cottonwoods and pines. Many people walk, jog and ride bikes here. From the parking lot there is a foot bridge to get over the canal to the pathway. When I used to walk here I would be about halfway over the bridge when I would feel myself take in a huge breath and relax – as if relieved by entering the gateway to nature. Due to health issues in the last several years I haven’t been able to take my usual walks here, and I have missed it. So Friday when I needed a respite, and didn’t have time to drive the 40 mins to my usual retreat place, I thought to take this quick drive to a familiar place and re-discover a familiar sanctuary.

Being late afternoon – after 3:30pm – the sun was far to the west leaving long shadows as it shone through the clouds. This long-shadowed light was comforting. I’m not usually out at this time of day, but I love the late afternoon sun. As I pulled into the dirt parking lot, classical music playing on the radio, I felt the familiar deep breath, and saw a hawk swooping in the sky. The tension began to subside. I found a space to park in the small lot at the end of the row, tucked away from the comings and goings in and out of the parking lot.

As I sat there taking in the scenery with my senses, I reflected that I needed to start seeing my situation with new eyes. I have to see it as a life *experience,* a new opportunity, as uncomfortable and intense as it is, and one that I would rather not be experiencing. I realized that life is just an experience, and we’re not guaranteed what experience we’re going to get, even if it’s due in part to our choices along the way. So I have to deal with what is - now – along with the discomfort, the frustration, the anger, sadness and grief. I have to *move* with the way life is moving.

I continued reflecting. Despite inner and outer life chaos I was beginning to feel the call of Nature – like a homing call. The still, yet fluid movement of Existence, in the scenery around me, was drawing me in from the outward experience of chaos. I watched as people walked their dogs on the path, and in the distant field near a frozen pond. It was quite pastoral and picturesque – and soothing. While sitting there it occurred to me that trees are just being trees, mountains are just being mountains (yes, there are mountains there), fields are just being fields, frozen ponds are just being frozen ponds, clouds just being clouds, hawks just being hawks. Everything is just being what it is. Life is just life – being lived, being experienced: people walking dogs, crossing foot bridges and fields – life falling apart and coming together. And of course it’s *all* Existence, all Consciousness, “The Mystery” disguised as trees, mountains, fields, frozen ponds, clouds, people, dogs, hawks. LIFE disguised as life.

I wrote in my journal that I know I need to open up to this particular experience of life, to the perfect brilliant experience of Life in all its expressions, all its experiences – including my present experience. This truth seems so obvious, and yet I find I need to keep seeing it – to be reminded of it again and again… And life is certainly providing those reminders in one form or another!

I just happened to look up from writing in my journal just as a flock of geese had taken off from out in the field. They were climbing into the sky, merging into the usual V formation, except for one. She went off in a totally different direction, all by herself – unfettered – following her own internal rhythm, her own nature – right over me. I couldn’t help but notice the metaphor and smiled. The Lone Goose – following her own path in flight…

I plan to return to my “new” sanctuary often. This time in nature, seeing the innate movement of nature, inspired me to want to experience life in a new way – more flexibly, more simply, as I also noticed this week that I seem to create a lot of complexity, and need to “decomplexify” – kind of like detoxifying I think. Life, it seems, is offering me/us this opportunity. I intend to go willingly, and see where this life experience goes… Who knows where I’ll/we’ll land…

Honk :)

Serenity's Sanctuary - Rest

Rest, just rest ~

deep rest

in the Rhythm ~

the internal, intuitive

fluid movement of Life

~ rest there ~

sense its fluidity

taste its scent

smell its color

feel its music

touch its texture

hear its whisper

see its sound

move with its Flow

its natural cycles

~ rest sweet rest ~

Sweet Serenity

Christine Kennedy

January 31, 2010

Fun-Qi Art™ - :) Christine