It sometimes takes a little while to get used to a new space. I am experiencing this at work these days. I have moved my practice to a location at the Aquamarine Healing Center. The space is absolutely beautiful. My practice room is much smaller than what I am used to, having come from a space that was 24X26, but the smaller space creates an intensity in the energy that the larger space could not. It is also nice to see smiling faces greeting me when I arrive at work. My co-workers are the absolute best one could hope for.
Now that the move of the office is complete, I find myself in a state of slowing down and allowing all the changes of the past six months to sink in. I am glad that this part of all the changes is happening in the summer, because I like to slow down a bit in the summer anyway. I have my morning coffee on the balcony and look out over our beautiful city, and I now have a leisurely walk to work. It all feels good.
All these changes, although positive, do stir up some fears about personal capability and security. As I walk through these fears, I find myself getting stronger every day. Chogyam Trungpa said,"Through courage we do not reduce our fear, we go beyond it." Although I would really like the reduction aspect of it, I think I can live with the going beyond it aspect.
Blessed Be
Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com
Showing posts with label Fears. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fears. Show all posts
Friday, July 4, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
The Will of God
A new friend of mine emailed me last week. She enclosed in her email two beautiful quotations. I am not sure of the source to the quotations, but this one really stood out to me:
"The will of God will never take you where the grace of God will not protect you."
So often people are afraid to make a move in their lives. They think that the risk is that they will be left all alone in total devastation. I know that fear well. I have experienced it frequently in my life. In fact, just recently I have worked through that one yet again. And I have, each time, experienced the rediscovery of the simple truth that we are never given more than we can handle and that when we think that there is just one set of footprints in the sand, they are not our own, but God's as we are being carried.
Taking a risk is sometimes exactly the leap of faith we need to make. It will always turn out well, if we just give it a chance. That doesn't mean that we deny our fears. We need to acknowledge them and work through them. We need to be able to break down in tears and let ourselves sob out our fears and our sorrows. That way we do our healing. It is also important to breathe and to pray. That way we connect with Spirit and access Spirit's grace. And it is important to walk as well. As we walk, it is solved. The act of walking helps to ground us as well as bring us back to ourselves in times of crisis. Then all that healing we are doing sinks in and anchors into the cells of our bodies.
The will of God will never take you where the grace of God will not protect you. It was worth writing that one out a second time!
Blessed Be
Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com
"The will of God will never take you where the grace of God will not protect you."
So often people are afraid to make a move in their lives. They think that the risk is that they will be left all alone in total devastation. I know that fear well. I have experienced it frequently in my life. In fact, just recently I have worked through that one yet again. And I have, each time, experienced the rediscovery of the simple truth that we are never given more than we can handle and that when we think that there is just one set of footprints in the sand, they are not our own, but God's as we are being carried.
Taking a risk is sometimes exactly the leap of faith we need to make. It will always turn out well, if we just give it a chance. That doesn't mean that we deny our fears. We need to acknowledge them and work through them. We need to be able to break down in tears and let ourselves sob out our fears and our sorrows. That way we do our healing. It is also important to breathe and to pray. That way we connect with Spirit and access Spirit's grace. And it is important to walk as well. As we walk, it is solved. The act of walking helps to ground us as well as bring us back to ourselves in times of crisis. Then all that healing we are doing sinks in and anchors into the cells of our bodies.
The will of God will never take you where the grace of God will not protect you. It was worth writing that one out a second time!
Blessed Be
Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com
Friday, April 18, 2008
Making Peace
“Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that defences of peace must be constructed.” Ananda W.P. Guruge
It is amazing what people can stir up in the deep, dark cauldrons of their minds. When we allow our egos to run rampant, we will construct the most hurtful thoughts, fears and insecurities, and then project them onto those around us. We seem, as human beings, to constantly be in a struggle to maintain control of our environments and those who are in them. And anything that does not fit in with our personal constructs of reality must be wrong and even evil because it threatens our personal views.
I believe that it is this dynamic that has led to wars, crusades, and mass genocides.
When we come to realize that, although all people are similar, we are also different, and that although we are all individual, we are all the same on a basic level, it takes away the fear. Without the fear, there becomes no struggle for control. With no struggle for control, peace is able to begin. It starts within us and then ripples out around us as we loosen the strangle holds we think we should have on others’ thoughts and beliefs.
Then all can become radiant and powerful. And this is not a power over others. It is a power within the self that aligns us with the Self, the higher consciousness. When this happens we become more divine than we have ever imagined ourselves to be.
Blessed Be
Trent
It is amazing what people can stir up in the deep, dark cauldrons of their minds. When we allow our egos to run rampant, we will construct the most hurtful thoughts, fears and insecurities, and then project them onto those around us. We seem, as human beings, to constantly be in a struggle to maintain control of our environments and those who are in them. And anything that does not fit in with our personal constructs of reality must be wrong and even evil because it threatens our personal views.
I believe that it is this dynamic that has led to wars, crusades, and mass genocides.
When we come to realize that, although all people are similar, we are also different, and that although we are all individual, we are all the same on a basic level, it takes away the fear. Without the fear, there becomes no struggle for control. With no struggle for control, peace is able to begin. It starts within us and then ripples out around us as we loosen the strangle holds we think we should have on others’ thoughts and beliefs.
Then all can become radiant and powerful. And this is not a power over others. It is a power within the self that aligns us with the Self, the higher consciousness. When this happens we become more divine than we have ever imagined ourselves to be.
Blessed Be
Trent
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Totally Not Willard
Have I ever mentioned that I have this thing with rats? Some people find them to be the most adorable, cute and cuddly little creatures. I do not. It stems from being attacked by one in my sleep when I was a kid. As my father came barging into my room to see why the heck I was screaming my head off, it finally jumped off my back, which it had been biting, and raced out the door between his feet. The next day we got rat traps and rat poison.
Now, even just seeing the little critters on TV makes me squeamish. I know that I got myself over my fear of snakes by purchasing a ceramic cobra, whom I named "Oliver Twist" and setting him at the foot of my bed so that every night and every morning that was what I saw. I also figured it would be a good fake out for any rats. I am now able to hold and handle a python with no fear whatsoever. But put me in the same room with a rat, caged or otherwise, and I am on the ceiling screaming like a baby. The child of a friend had one for a pet. I looked at it in the cage. 15 seconds was all I could do. Then I was out of the room and planning on how soon I could round up the family and get out. They no longer have the rat. Seems it needed a new home. That is okay by me. I now can visit again. This fear has also transferred to mice. Although I can kill a mouse if I have to, I break a cold sweat doing so. My heart pounds out of my chest and I feel weak in the knees. Still, it is at least not as big as a rat. Besides, this is why I have a cat in my house. She is an excellent assassin of rodents. I know we are supposed to be at one with all creatures. But really, when there is a hostile invasion happening in my home, that's it, they've gotta go!
Rat Medicine is supposed to be that of resourcefulness and cunning, wisdom and knowledge, all the stuff that a basic martial artist would love to posses. Well, that is good, and I do have that medicine within me, especially since the infusion of it into my body by the teeth of the rat, but as to being at one with the animal itself, I think I will have to work on that a bit longer.
When I talk about this with people they are rather surprised that I would have a fear like that, being a shaman and all. I am here to tell you that being a shaman means that you work on your fears. It does not mean that you have no fears. We are human, just like everybody else, and we have our stuff to work on. Yes, I could fool myself and others into thinking that I have no fear. But that would eventually catch up with me because life does that. Most people find it relieving that someone like me also has a fear/phobia. It makes them feel less screwed up. Well, I say "Good on you for finding out that you are not the only one who has issues! Welcome to the human race! Now let's work on those issues so they don't haunt you." I am sure that the makers of that Willard movie had folks like me in mind. And if you have ever seen The Bone Collector, well, let's just say that you will know exactly which scene made me squirm. Willard I am not.
All the Power of the Rodent World to ya!
Blessed Be
Trent
Now, even just seeing the little critters on TV makes me squeamish. I know that I got myself over my fear of snakes by purchasing a ceramic cobra, whom I named "Oliver Twist" and setting him at the foot of my bed so that every night and every morning that was what I saw. I also figured it would be a good fake out for any rats. I am now able to hold and handle a python with no fear whatsoever. But put me in the same room with a rat, caged or otherwise, and I am on the ceiling screaming like a baby. The child of a friend had one for a pet. I looked at it in the cage. 15 seconds was all I could do. Then I was out of the room and planning on how soon I could round up the family and get out. They no longer have the rat. Seems it needed a new home. That is okay by me. I now can visit again. This fear has also transferred to mice. Although I can kill a mouse if I have to, I break a cold sweat doing so. My heart pounds out of my chest and I feel weak in the knees. Still, it is at least not as big as a rat. Besides, this is why I have a cat in my house. She is an excellent assassin of rodents. I know we are supposed to be at one with all creatures. But really, when there is a hostile invasion happening in my home, that's it, they've gotta go!
Rat Medicine is supposed to be that of resourcefulness and cunning, wisdom and knowledge, all the stuff that a basic martial artist would love to posses. Well, that is good, and I do have that medicine within me, especially since the infusion of it into my body by the teeth of the rat, but as to being at one with the animal itself, I think I will have to work on that a bit longer.
When I talk about this with people they are rather surprised that I would have a fear like that, being a shaman and all. I am here to tell you that being a shaman means that you work on your fears. It does not mean that you have no fears. We are human, just like everybody else, and we have our stuff to work on. Yes, I could fool myself and others into thinking that I have no fear. But that would eventually catch up with me because life does that. Most people find it relieving that someone like me also has a fear/phobia. It makes them feel less screwed up. Well, I say "Good on you for finding out that you are not the only one who has issues! Welcome to the human race! Now let's work on those issues so they don't haunt you." I am sure that the makers of that Willard movie had folks like me in mind. And if you have ever seen The Bone Collector, well, let's just say that you will know exactly which scene made me squirm. Willard I am not.
All the Power of the Rodent World to ya!
Blessed Be
Trent
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