Tag: Warfare and Conflict

Daily OM for May 10 – Finding Peace Within

Finding Peace Within
A Full Embrace Excluding Nothing

by Madisyn Taylor

 

If we are to have true peace in the world, we must first find it within ourselves.

Most people agree that a more peaceful world would be an ideal situation for all living creatures. However, we often seem stumped as to how to bring this ideal situation into being. If we are to have true peace in this world, each one of us must find it in ourselves first. If we don’t like ourselves, for example, we probably won’t like those around us. If we are in a constant state of inner conflict, then we will probably manifest conflict in the world. If we have fighting within our families, there can be no peace in the world. We must shine the light of inquiry on our internal struggles, because this is the only place we can really create change.

When we initiate the process of looking inside ourselves for the meaning of peace, we will begin to understand why it has always been so difficult to come by. This in itself will enable us to be compassionate toward the many people in the world who find themselves caught up in conflicts both personal and universal. We may have an experience of peace that we can call up in ourselves to remind us of what we want to create, but if we are human we will also feel the pull in the opposite direction—the desire to defend ourselves, to keep what we feel belongs to us, to protect our loved ones and our cherished ideals, and the anger we feel when threatened. This awareness is important because we cannot truly know peace until we understand the many tendencies and passions that threaten our ability to find it. Peace necessarily includes, even as it transcends, all of our primal energy, much of which has been expressed in ways that contradict peace.

Being at peace with ourselves is not about denying or rejecting any part of ourselves. On the contrary, in order to be at peace we must be willing and able to hold ourselves, in all our complexity, in a full embrace that excludes nothing. This is perhaps the most difficult part for many of us, because we want so much to disown the negative aspects of our humanity. Ironically, though, true peace begins with a willingness to take responsibility for our humanity so that we might ultimately transform it in the light of our love.

I be darned if I take another day off……

Hello Images, Pics, Comments, Graphics
Good Saturday Morning, my luvs! Did you miss me? Sorry about that! Most of the time I try to give notice when I take a day off. But yesterday was sort of an impromptu day off. And boy, if I take another one off, I hope someone turns me into a jackass (you notice no “lol!”). I won’t go into details because I will just get mad again but it had to do with my lazy husband. Today is peaceful and I am going to let sleeping dogs lay for now, “for now!” Things are always subject to change, lol!

Anyway, I hope you missed me because I missed you. I missed the peace and quiet of the internet. All my sweet and loving friends, all the peace and quiet of the internet, did I mention that already, lol! But it great to be back. It is funny, it seems like you miss just a day, it seems like you have been gone a week or two. So before time gets away from me anymore, I am going to get busy. 

Have a super fantastic day!

Love ya,

Lady A

Overwhelmed? Try An Intuition Check

Overwhelmed? Try An Intuition Check

  • Christy Diane Farr

It is easy to be overwhelmed when you can’t decide out of a whole world of possibilities which things are actually true for you.

When I woke up this morning, my mind was swirling with all of the choices. So many, in fact, that I felt a bit off balance. It’s the beginning of the week of Christmas and there are packages to mail, cards to write, and I’ve got to get a bit crafty because a major car repair two weeks ago devoured anything that might have resembled gift money. And except for the holiday greetings we’ve begun to receive, there’s not a single decoration in sight.

Plus it’s a work day. I have my own business and there are emails waiting for a response, a newsletter that needs to be written, and a book that I vowed would be submitted to the publisher by the end of this year. I have checkbooks to balance and marketing to be done for the clutter clearing class that starts again in January.

The floor at my office, which converts magically back into a home when the children arrive at 3:00 pm, needs to be tended, as does the laundry and the half bath. If the dust was glitter, it would look like fairies live here. For the record, the difference in dust since we took out carpet and installed hardwood floors (a most generous gift from dear friends this time last year) makes me wonder if carpet isn’t the nastiest thing on this planet. Seriously, the dust level seems to have tripled since the carpet came out.

Anyway, all of this and more was swirling about in my head when I woke up this morning, “Pick me! Pick me!” My impulse was, I like to think rather understandably, to go back to bed and hide from it all. The reality is that there is no way all of this can be done today. It isn’t even an option. I’m sure that many of you felt the same way this morning. There is so much to do. Much of it is even important. But, this isn’t about being a diligent list writer. This is bigger than staying on task. Some of these things need to be chosen, and a good chunk of it needs to be left behind for another day, another person, and perhaps another lifetime.

Instead of wondering how I’ll get this all done, the question instead becomes, “At this moment, what is the best use of my time, energy, brain power, and other assorted resources?” This is my power position, with great emphasis on in this moment and best use. When I say “best use,” I’m looking specifically for the action that is going to cultivate the best results for me today.

 

While my brain was buzzing with overwhelm, I searched for the courage to pause–for just a couple of minutes, sometimes only seconds. I had stop and wait for guidance. I had to wait for clarity, a knowing from somewhere deeper, about how best show up in the world at this moment, on this particular day.

I need an intuition check and so, I wrestled myself into a moment of silence.

I do not use the word wrestled lightly here. It’s still a struggle most days, although I hear that eventually some of the resistance will pass. Lots of days, I don’t win the big fight but today I did.

And, it turns out, most of that to-do list isn’t true for me today and I now understand what few things are. I know about connecting with those who’ve written to inquire about working with me. I know to do what I promised I would do for my existing clients. I know that while I will balance the checkbooks, I can’t waste another moment freaking out about the bills that I’m unable to pay today.

When I calm down, freaking out never makes the list. It doesn’t serve me or anyone else. It doesn’t open any doors to allow goodness to flow in. It doesn’t help. Ever. Who can afford to lose another moment to the hysteria?

When I calm down, impossible things don’t make the list either, like decorating today. My back has been acting as if it would like my attention. It doesn’t feel wise to drag the stuff down from the attic, and possibly risking my back wanting even more of my attention. I just need to let it go and trust that a solution will present itself later in the week but today, there are things I can do to bring myself a little closer to ready for Sunday. I can finish that last gift and mail the box of goodies for my people in Colorado, leaving it enough time to get where it’s going.

When I calm down, solutions flow in. People do what they say they are going to do, sometimes even wonderful, generous, helpful things that I don’t expect them to do. The words flow with ease and the time seems to slow and work for me, instead of against me. It’s the same when I do yoga, meditate, journal, dance, or walk in the woods. When I do these things I feel grounded. I can hear my wise self, my intuition, whispering to me about what’s best. I can trust me with me… as long as I remember to listen to my true voice.

Are you listening to your intuition? What does it whisper to you in the still moments? What do you hear in your dreams? What are the activities, people, and places that support your inner dialogue? Are you getting enough of them lately? What do you need to feel supported? What kinds of answers are you looking for? Have you asked for what you need and then, waited for the answers to bubble up from within? If not, are you willing to begin right now?

Calendar of the Sun for January 30

Calendar of the Sun
30 Wolfmonath

Day of Pax

Color: White
Element: Air
Altar: The same as yesterday’s Concordia ritual, except with a cup of clear water instead of milk.
Offerings: Work for peace, in the home or outside of it.
Daily Meal: Fasting today, in honor of those who are caught in war.

Pax Invocation

Peace is not an easy thing to maintain.
It is not strong; it falls away
With an upraised hand or an angry word.
It is an act of constant balance.
It is true that there is peace in solitude,
If the cacophony of the mind will allow it,
But it is no true peace if the mere voice of another
Can so easily destroy it, like a child’s paper castle.
Peace must be achieved within the group of voices
Or it may as well be a mere pastime.
Peace must be more than a sanctuary;
It must be the work of every hand.
And yet it cannot be kept by force,
But it can only be achieved by understanding.
True peace does not come after victory,
For victory requires one to win and one to lose,
And a true peace can only be found between equals.
Therefore, we honor you, Pax, delicate bird
That we must protect and sustain with our strength.

(The clear water is poured out as a libation. All sit in silence and meditate on peace, and then go. There can be discussions today, but all who disagree must go into the discussions ready and willing to make peace, and see beyond their differences.)