Of Plants and Magic

“To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.”

~ Anatole France

I am rather fortunate with my work and my life, I get to experience and witness miracles, magic, and out of this world adventures.  I work (play) with the Plants in this world and others.  For the past 29 years, my relationship with Pink Lady’s Slipper has been solely in the dream world.  Fortunately, I believed, planned, and acted and my dreams came true in incredible ways.

My first (and only other) meeting with Pink Lady’s Slipper (PLS) was in 5th grade.  Ever since then, I have wanted to see this rare, native Orchid; however, I could never find him.  PLS would often visit my dreams and journeys.  I wrote stories and poems about him.  I have seen his relatives around the world and have seen many different Orchids, but this unique pink bloom was elusive.

Twenty-nine years after my first encounter, my search is complete, my dream realized!  With the help of a friend, we found several patches of PLS in Ramapo Mountain State Forest in NJ.  Seeing the first bloom, brought tears to my eyes.  Finding the Plant to sit and spend time with was life changing.

Someone asked me, "Was the wait worth it?"  The short answer: “YES!”  The real answer is that I have learned there wasn’t a wait, there was a journey.  Had I met Pink Lady’s Slipper before this day, it would not have been the same experience.  The dreams, the shamanic journeys, my life events, even the walk up the mountain all contributed to the magic.

Earlier this Spring, I received the message from Trillium that the wait is worth it.  In the case with Trillium, I have wanted to make an Essence with ki* for many years.  Every year, I would miss the opportunity; I would either find a Trillium and not have my essence equipment or I would be set to make an Essence and would miss the flowers.  In the beginning of April, I finally saw a Trillium blooming AND I had my essence supplies!  I started making the Essence; however, Trillium kept telling me to continue further on the trail and to come back for the Essence later.  I reluctantly listened, which ended up leading me to an unbelievable experience with Dutchman’s Breeches aka Faerie Laundry and the Faeries (and the making of another Essence).  Completely blissed out, I returned to Trillium only to discover that a volunteer for the Preserve took my essence bowl!  I was so sad and dumbfounded.  I decided to make another Essence, but Trillium would not agree this time.  Instead he kept pushing my attention in another direction, which lead me to find two flowering Trout Lilies.  While I was sad that I yet again, did not make a Trillium Essence, I was grateful for the amazing way that Trillium directed me and could feel our relationship strengthening.  Several weeks later, I went hiking in the same Preserve, assuming that Trillium had stopped blooming.  What a surprise when I found a later blooming variety!  And this time I did make the Essence.  It was then that I received the message about being worth the wait.  I understood.  If I had made an Essence when I first wanted to, years ago, I would have missed these other experiences.  Plus, my relationship with Trillium would not have been the same.  I needed the searching and waiting (and frustration) to prepare me to be in relationship with him and to be able to receive his medicine.  Tears of gratitude ran down my face as I bottled the Essence.  

The same is true with my experience with Pink Lady’s Slipper.  I have learned much in the past 29 years, my life is drastically different from what it was when I was in fifth grade (and what I imagined that it would be).  I needed all of these experiences, I needed the dreams, I needed the wondrous walk in the woods to prepare me to understand and incorporate the magic of PLS.  Adding to the magic, I was now able to connect her to the Music of the Plants device.  So not only could I feel her magic, I could hear ki too!

Of course, we do need to take action and make intentions.  I would not have found either Trillium or Pink Lady's Slipper had I stayed home.  There is a balance between forcing and being passive.
While spending time with the Plants, I move into a different realm. In this place, I am able to understand more, able to see solutions, able to make connections.  I find listening to the Music of the Plants during this time opens other worlds.  This was true during my encounter with PLS.  While listening to her sing, I could see how her song enlivened the other Plants in the area, particularly the other Orchids.  Her song also helped Elementals to come out of hiding. The song attracted more Animals, particularly Birds.  Her music was helping me to move beyond conceptual understanding towards experiencing and being in connection with Nature.  I was able to really witness (and experience) the threads between the species.

Working with Trillium and Pink Lady’s Slipper these last several months has helped me to let go of my timeline and to understand that sometimes when we think we are waiting or wasting time, we are actually preparing.  And here’s the best part, what we are preparing for ends up being even better than our wildest dreams.  We could not have envisioned this because our earlier selves did not have the tools or capability of thinking it possible.  It is not achieving our goal or desire that creates the magic; it is our dreaming, our growth, our preparation, our journey.

This is only a small snippet of the magic that I experienced that day (and continue to experience) with Pink Lady’s Slipper.  My friend and I had an incredible encounter.  Even before we sat with PLS, we were witnessing exquisite Beauty, interacting with Animals, and aligning with the Possibility.  We were in a place that allows magic to exist.  Yet, as we encountered other Humans, I noticed that they were not experiencing this.  They were focused on the exercise and the destination.  They were practically running past PLS without even noticing that she was there.  Which to me speaks volumes about our lives.  I wonder how often we miss the magic, we miss the gifts, we miss the Beauty.  I of course encourage you to keep your eyes and Heart open to the Beauty and Magic, they really are all around.  And Dream!  Dream awake, dream asleep.  It is through our dreams that we create our reality.



*I am transitioning to using ki and kin as pronouns for Earth Beings.  This comes from Robin Wall Kimmerer and I really appreciate her work in returning our relatives to their rightful place of Honor in our world.  Here is an excerpt from an article that Robin Wall Kimmerer wrote for Yes! Magazine, "Nature Needs a New Pronoun: To Stop the Age of Extinction, Let's Start by Ditching 'It'":

“Ki” to signify a being of the living Earth. Not “he” or “she,” but “ki.” So that when we speak of Sugar Maple, we say, “Ohthat beautiful tree, ki is giving us sap again this spring.” And we’ll need a plural pronoun, too, for those Earth beings. Let’s make that new pronoun “kin.” So we can now refer to birds and trees not as things, but as our earthly relatives. On a crisp October morning we can look up at the geese and say, “Look, kin are flying south for the winter. Come back soon.”

Language can be a tool for cultural transformation. Make no mistake: “Ki” and “kin” are revolutionary pronouns. Words have power to shape our thoughts and our actions. On behalf of the living world, let us learn the grammar of animacy. We can keep “it” to speak of bulldozers and paperclips, but every time we say “ki,” let our words reaffirm our respect and kinship with the more-than-human world. Let us speak of the beings of Earth as the “kin” they are.

Pink Lady Slipper

She wanders in woods

Discovering wonders

Gathering precious jewels

Delighting in secrets revealed

Conversing with Gnomes

Dancing with Faeries

Kissing Trees

Sleeping on mats of

Chickweed and violet

She does not know it

Yet her heart is searching

Yearning for something

As she walks

She sees an opening

There is a glimmer

radiating light

She falls to her knees

There he is

Long has she heard the stories

But they were only whispers

Now he is in front of her

She could touch him

Smell him

Oh what should she do

She wants to embrace him

But she knows that would

crush his delicate beauty

Oh and the beauty

the perfection

the awe

of the Precious

Pink Lady's Slipper

She reaches out

Touches him gently

He brightens at her touch

Stands taller

Opens, revealing his inner heart

Cradling her in his pink petals

How rare indeed

How wonderful her life was

before finding him

Now all seems meaningless

and dull

How she wishes she could

keep him forever

Take him with her

But that would destroy

him, his beauty

She must be content

to admire him

and enjoy this time

Until he returns to the otherworld

Knowing that his absence

Too is temporary

Revel in the ecstasy of 

such a discovery,

a Divine gift

Fill her senses

and her heart

with his grandeur

Allowing his essence

to flow through her

fill her

lighten the way

even when he is gone

And so she continues

Wandering through the woods

Something is different though

Her eyes are far away

She has a knowing look

And why shouldn't she?

She has tasted bliss

Seen the center of the cosmos

Learned the secret of life

And she knows he is here

Even when he is not

For love is all around

_________________

* I wrote this poem in 2014 before my encounter with the Feminine aspect of Pink Lady's Slipper.

Of Plants and Patience

With love and patience, nothing is impossible. 

~ Daisaku Ikeda

Patience is a difficult lesson that many of us are trying (read struggling) to learn.  For myself, I thought I was a patient person until I had children.  It was the 20 minute walk down our 200’ walkway that would push all my buttons, particularly since we generally were running late due to a missing shoe or clothes that suddenly needed to be changed or a book that must be brought along.  Over the years, I have made significant improvements in this area (or so I think).  Of course, it seems that whenever I feel that I’m becoming more patient, I get a lovely little test to remind me that I’m a work in progress.

Why is patience so important (and difficult)?  It is a way of moving beyond our ego, it is a way of surrendering.  Plants have an incredible ability to help us learn patience.  Of course they do, they move at a much slower pace.  As we learn patience, as we learn to surrender our ego, we more easily move into co-creative partnership with Nature.  A benefit of this is that we discover, we are not alone nor do we need to do everything on our own.  Co-creative partnership does not mean the Humans do all the work, it means that all of Nature works together (and yes, sometimes there is a balancing).

Spring came early this year in Pennsylvania (actually it was more like Summer).  We had 80 degrees on days that the previous year there were several feet of snow on the ground.  My body was saying that I need to work in the garden (as were my neighbors); however, when I checked in with the Garden, the message I got again and again was to stay out.  I have worked enough with the Garden and the Plants to know to pay attention to this message.  Still I watched as Lamium purpureum (Dead Nettle) took over my herb patch.  I will admit, I had anxiety thinking, “If I don’t do something soon, this will be completely uncontrollable.”  Well, isn’t that part of the problem, we are always trying to control.  I did get excited as I saw some of the Plants beginning to return from the underworld.  I thought, surely I can clean up the beds now.  Again, “No.”  Well, at least I can take down the dead Sunflower stalks, there aren’t any seeds left.  “No.”  

Earlier this month, I received confirmation of the Garden’s messages.  We had snow and heavy frosts, the “weed” cover and the dead Plants provided protection for the newly emerged Plants.  Plus the birds continue to use the stalks of the bigger Plants as a platform from which to sing their songs and rest their wings.  This did help me to relax and wait.  I could still feel the pressure from my neighbors to clean up the garden (they do have rather pristine yards).

I was so excited when I returned home from California earlier this month because I received the okay from the Garden to begin work.  I had great plans, I was going to enlarge the garden, prepare all the beds, begin planting some of the hardier crops, move some perennials ...  And then, I broke my toe.  Now all I could do was ice it and keep my foot elevated.  I had work to do!  How was I supposed to do that with a broken toe?!  See what I mean, about having more lessons in patience?

Well, here’s the thing, my toe is almost completely healed now and I was able to work in the garden for the first time earlier this week.  And I was completely surprised by what I saw.  You see, all that time that I thought I needed to be working in the garden, the Plants were taking care of it.  The Lamium purpureum is dying on his own, no need to take the time to pull him.  He and other “weeds” have helped to provide nutrients to the soil and provide protection for the young Plants.  (And food for me.)

For years, I have thought that I had to work hard to have a healthy garden.  When I first started, I listened to others (humans) and thought the garden had to be completely weed free.  Years ago, as my Love affair with Plants grew and I began to communicate with the “weeds”, I realized that many of them were providing a service for the garden.  I started following their advice of the Plants for who to take out and who to keep in, sometimes we did have to negotiate.  When I lived on the farm, I developed a relationship with the Groundhogs who started weeding my herb garden for me, they were particularly fond of the Ragweed and stayed away from the herbs that I planted.  

Of course, in order to move into this relationship with the “weeds” and groundhogs, I had to be willing to have a garden that most likely would not be on the front of a magazine (Whew!  That’s a relief!), I needed to be willing to communicate with other Beings, I needed to have the courage to Trust, and I needed to learn patience (at least a little).  After years of this, I am still learning.  And what I am learning is that I do not need to work as hard as I thought, for I do not need to do it all on my own.  This is a partnership.  This is also a give and take.  So it does mean that I’m willing to honor the other species too.  When the Japanese Beetles came into my garden last year, I set 2 Basil plants aside just for them.  I promised that I would not harvest these and I didn’t and they for the most part stayed away from the rest of my Plants including their favorite, the Roses.    

This is only 1 example of what can happen when we can listen to Nature and when we can be willing to move at a different pace than we think we should.  When we can do this, whole worlds can open up.  We can use our energy more efficiently.  (For while the Plants were preparing the garden, I could focus my energy on other projects.)  It is the difference of walking upstream and going with the flow.  Having patience and awareness, allows us to tap into the flow or the “Yes” vibration of the universe.  It allows us to access resources we didn’t realize were there.  All of this, allows our stress level to decrease.  Which we all know that too much stress is detrimental to our health, even if our culture feeds on stress.

As I said, Plants are great teachers for patience.  I have found Trees to be particularly helpful.  Simply spending time in Nature (particularly sitting, meditating, or napping) helps to adjust our rhythms, helps our breathing to slow, and our nervous system to relax.  We can say that spending time in Nature allows us to access our Heart intelligence.  The Heart has the broader perspective, is more comfortable with patience than the brain who can overthink anything and create an urgency out of nothing.

Good energy hygiene (such as smudging, egg limpias, sacred bathing) can also to help increase one’s patience.  When we do not take the time to clear the excess/unwanted energy, it clogs up our energetic field (and attracts more).  This increases our level of anxiety and makes it more difficult to access the Universal flow.  Anxiety is an adversary of patience.

Letting go of the “shoulds” also helps to increase one’s patience.  As I shared with my garden, I needed to let go of what a garden should look like.  Often, we have ideas of where we should be in our lives or how we or our house should appear or many other shoulds.  It truly is to everyone’s benefit for us to release these and to accept and Love ourselves and others as we are, imperfections and all.  When we can let go of the shoulds, we open ourselves to other possibilities and we can enter the flow.  Through my work, I have seen that many of the shoulds are a bandaid for an earlier wound.  The Plant Spirits and Flower Essences can help us to heal these wounds and release these bindings, allowing us to more easily express and experience who we truly are. 

I encourage you to take some time this Spring to be with the Plants and Nature, to stretch your patience muscles, and to release what is feeding the impatience.  As Francis Bacon says, “Who ever is out of patience is out of possession of their soul.”  It is time that we take possession of our souls and start living the lives we are meant to live.  The world will be a more beautiful place for this.  And remember, it is about progress not perfection.  There are always more lessons to be learned, this is the gift of Life.

A World of Beauty

As a sensitive person, my Heart hurts sometimes when I look around and see how we live and how we treat one another and Nature.  And other times, I look out and all I can see is Beauty.  My Heart wells and I begin to cry with Gratitude and Hope.

This Winter, I was watching events unfold with horror at the hatred and violence that was being expressed, especially through our (the US) presidential campaigns.  (Don’t worry, I’m not going into politics.)  As I listened, my Heart hurt; however, I started realizing that none of this was new.  Some of these racist, sexist, antisemitic, anti-Muslim, homophobic, and classist sentiments have been expressed openly; others underlie our cultural structures; and others have been thought but not expressed, at least not publicly.  While I do not in any way condone or agree with these, I am grateful for the expression.  I consider these thoughts, statements, and actions as an expression of our cultural Shadow.  When we are afraid of our Shadow or when we try to suppress it, it only festers and grows.  From my experience, the best way to “deal” with the Shadow is to acknowledge it.  Then we can begin to see what the underlying issues are.  Generally, what we consider to be the Shadow is a fear that was created due to a wound or unmet need.  When we begin to shine Light on this area, we realize that the fear is not as big and scary as we thought and now, we can bring healing to the wounds and ultimately ourselves or in this case, our culture.  Let’s be honest, there are many wounds and unmet needs in our society and we have been allowing our fears to run rampant for too long.

As I look out now, I again see Beauty and Hope, for these expressions have created dialog.  We are now talking about the hidden and subtle ways that our culture promotes racism, sexism, and the other forms of discrimination.  This is great!  Now that we are acknowledging them, we have a better chance of healing and changing these.  We are all connected; therefore, hatred directed at someone else, effects us.  We are also effected when someone is treated with Love.  It is like the story of the two wolves, we have a choice, we can respond with fear and anger or we can respond with Love and compassion.  Our response determines the world that we live in.  Again and again, the message that I receive is that this stage of the evolution of humanity requires a collective evolution.  This means that while it is important that we each do our individual work, our next big step will only occur by working together for the good of all.

The World of Love and compassion is the world that I want to live in and I imagine what that feels like every day.  As I do this and as I work with the Plants, I am continually told that we have all the tools we need to create this world.  We have many wonderful Guides who are willing and wanting to help the Humans learn to work cooperatively and co-creatively.  The issue is that we need to be able to receive their teachings, lessons, and gifts.

We all have an innate ability to communicate with other species; however, most of us have forgotten this or been taught that it is not possible.  I believe that it is imperative that we remember this skill, our survival depends on it.  More than this, when you learn how to communicate with Plants and Nature Spirits, your life becomes fuller and more meaningful.  You gain a better understanding of yourself and why you are here.  You are able to actively participate in the world around you.  This is why I offer Plant Communication classes.  We are capable of communicating with all Beings.  I teach Plant communication because I think it is the easiest way to start down this path.  We have an incredible relationship with Plants (even when we are not conscious of this).  It is Plants who provide the air we breathe and it is Plants who are the basis of our foods (including animals).  With every breath and every bite of food, we receive messages.

The Plants have been stepping forward in amazing ways asking us to connect with them and remember who we are.  Now it is our responsibility to meet them.  If you do not remember how to communicate with other species, I encourage you to join me for the Plant Communication Workshop June 3rd-5th in West Chester, PA.  This weekend is focused on awakening and deepening your relationship with Plants.  You will learn various ways of communicating and receiving information from them.  Through this process, we often gain insight into ourselves and receive healings.  If you can not join me, then I highly recommend that you find another class or workshop to re-learn this skill.  If you email me, I can share some other recommendations and try to help you find the right class.  I truly think that it is the responsibility of every Human to know how to communicate with other Beings.  We so often think of responsibility as a burden; however, in this case, it’s like winning the jackpot!  It is such an amazing gift, for which I cannot even begin to explain the rewards.

Once you know how to communicate with Plants (and other Beings), the magic begins!  If you have this skill, then I have a special opportunity for you, Plant Initiations!!  Plant Initiations have been important in cultures around the world for ages; Carole Guyett of Derrynagittah in Ireland has brought the work forward by having Initiations with “common” Plants.  This is another way for us to go into deep harmony and connection with Nature and to learn from the Plants.  I am hosting a Tulsi Sacred Plant Initiation July 29th-31st, which is 3 days of fasting (recommended, not required), consuming a Sacred Elixir, and doing ceremony with Tulsi (Holy Basil).  Plant initiations are a chance to move into deep union with a Plant, where the Plant is initiating you into the world of the Sacred Human.  Of all the work that I have done, it is the Plant initiations that live the strongest in me.  If you have any interest in working with Plants or if you want to awaken and grow, I HIGHLY recommend that you experience a Plant Initiation.  Pam Montgomery is hosting a Dandelion Initiation in Ohio, a St. John’s Wort Initiation in Vermont (which is full), and a Nettle Initiation in the UK.  Carole Guyett, the author of Sacred Plant Initiations, is hosting a Primrose Initiation in Ireland.  Go ahead, dive in, allow yourself to be connected, to be One.  As Pam Montgomery writes in the Forward for Sacred Plant Initiations: “The plants and trees are calling us to take up our rightful place and reclaim our birthright of being a part of Nature, not separate from it.  They are asking us to remember who we are, where we live, and how to live.  They are guiding us in our evolution to know the truth of our lineage as sacred humans, those who walk with Spirit and aliveness each and every day.”

If you look out at the world and wonder what is going on, why we are living this way or if your Heart is hurting from the violence, hatred, and destruction; I invite you to turn to our Guides and Helpers.  Go to the Plants.  Go to Nature.  Go to your Soul.  For there is Beauty in this World.  And there is Hope beyond Hope.  We have everything that we need to create the World of our Dreams.  It is up to us to work together with all the Beings to bring this into existence. 

Dreaming the Earth of Love

Several nights ago I had a extraordinarily vivid dream.  I woke up in the early morning hours and went outside to look at the sky.  What I saw was mesmerizing.  There were 6 Planets in a cluster, not quite in a line, more like in a formation of some sort.  What was more incredible, these Planets were large and clearly visible, about the size of full Supermoon.  It felt like I could reach out and touch them.

I called to the person that I was with and asked him to come outside.  He had to see this.  I said, "I've heard people talking about the line-up."  We were enthralled with the beauty.  We started naming the Planets.  Jupiter was very clear (and large).  That's when I saw her, a Planet of blue and green.  She was whirling through the sky and my Heart leapt.  I said, "There's the Earth!"  I had such Love for her and was completely enamored by her Beauty.  (I wish I could share the Love that I felt and that was pouring out of me at the sight of her.)

Suddenly I realized that if I was looking at the Earth, I was no longer on her.  I awoke shortly afterwards.

While I do want to do some more work with this dream and get some clarity around where I was, the more important part for me was the Love I felt.  I, like most people, have had moments of utter despair.  Times when I was ready to leave this planet, when I thought this is too difficult a challenge.  But seeing the Earth like that, feeling the Love that I have for her, made me realize that for better or for worse, I am committed.  I will do what I need to do to help her (which includes her inhabitants) thrive.

I have long been an Earth Lover.  Enchanted by her Beauty and delighted by her abundant bounty.  When I was a teenager, I learned that this is "odd".  I was given the title, environmentalist (this is one of the nicer names).  I really didn't understand this.  Now, 20 years later, I am just as confused.  Doesn't everyone Love the Earth?

I don't understand how you could not fall on your knees and weep tears of gratitude.  I know that it is difficult for some to be in their Hearts or to cry tears of anything.  Even so, it only takes a minute to realize the pure miracle of life on this Planet.  Think of the air that we breathe and that it is the Plants who give us the gift of oxygen.  Or the water and how she is continually recycled.  Or the seed, that precious little package that contains 25 Zucchinis or a Maple tree.  Each of these is part of many complex processes, which we simplify for ease into the water cycle, etc.  Really, just trying to think about all that is involved in one of these processes, blows my mind to the point, that I can't think anymore.  And so, all I can do is feel and Love and be overwhelmed with Gratitude.

There is much fighting and discord these days (both internally and externally).  I think, "Why?"  What is the point?  When we are surrounded by such unbelievable Beauty and so many incredible gifts, why would we waste our precious time on this remarkable Planet like this?  Surely there are more important things to do like sitting with a Tree and thanking her for the air we breathe, for the warmth her branches provide, for the tasty fruit she so willing shares.  Or sticking your nose in the ground and smelling that delicious Earth, thanking the Earthworms and Mycelium and all the many creepy crawlies who decompose the plant matter and turn this into Soil to feed new life.

And isn't it time to turn to the people who share this Planet with us and say, "Hey!  I see you there!  Isn't this a crazy ride?  How did we get so lucky?!  And look at you, with that skin and those bones.  Look at the many shapes they make.  Look how Beautiful you are!  I have skin and bones too, mine make different shapes and colors.  Isn't it crazy?!  Who would have thought that you can combine the same elements and get such varying results?  Truly amazing!  Hey, did you eat a fig yet?"

We are all part of this round spaceship.  Our survival and even more important, our ability to thrive is intricately linked to the surviving and thriving of everyone else who is on this with us.  (By everyone, I mean every Being - not just humans.)  As humans, we each only have a relatively short time to enjoy this experiment.  So enough with this separation bullshit.  Enough with fighting or hating or not-worthiness.  Enough with better than or exploitation or destruction.  Let's move on to exploring and delighting in this beautiful spaceship, in the bounty that she provides everywhere you look, in the truly artistic creations, and in each other.  Humanity is capable of so much, I mean really, it only takes a quick perusal through reality TV to see the many different talents that people have worldwide (and this is far from the best humanity has to offer).  Just imagine what we are capable of, what we could experience, the Beauty that we could create (with the other Beings on this spaceship), if we would stop wasting our time and start focusing on the Love that connects us all!

I know it can be difficult.  I know that there are systems set up to keep us from re-membering our connection, our Love.  When you see the Earth like I did in my dream.  And your Heart leaps out of your chest.  When you see her like that, you don't remember the arguments or the separation, all you remember is the Love!  So let me tell you, it is time.  It is time to re-member and remember.  It is time to awaken.  It is time to Love.

Let's Talk about Sex ... Sacred Sex that is!

Turn on the television, watch a movie, listen to the radio, drive down the road and you will see images of sex.  Sex is everywhere.  Sex sells.  The media tends to encourage men (and women) to have as much sex as possible with whomever they can.  There are some scenes that depict this as a loving act; however, the focus continues to be on an act of pleasure and the man having an orgasm.  This is the form of sex that is considered the “norm” in our culture.  What most people do not realize is that this is limiting.  Sex is meant to be more than a form of pleasure and more than a way to insure the survival of our species.  Sex is meant to be a Sacred act.  So let’s talk about (Sacred) Sex!

Sacred Sex recognizes that sexual acts are a way of creating intimacy and connection between two partners and that their joining has the potential of raising their consciousness, which can lead to: inspirations, insights, and understandings; astral travel; healing; increased energy and vitality; remembering their own Divinity and recognizing the Divinity of their partner; Oneness; connection with the Divine, and more.  With Sacred Sex, the focus is on the connection and the energies created, as well as, on honoring the Divine in each other, rather than on pleasure and orgasm.  Here’s the thing, the “side effect” of changing the focus is an increased amount of pleasure and often both men and women experience multiple orgasms that are longer lasting and more intense.

For millennia, there have been many different philosophies and techniques of Sacred Sex.  The scope of which is far beyond this newsletter.  As with religions, I feel all roads lead to One.  And it matters less what technique (if any) you are doing than what your intention is.  If you are interested in learning more, there are many books, videos, and classes that share methods of Sacred Sex.  As with most things in my life, my own journey with Sacred Sex began with a thought that there is something more, followed by explorations and personal experience, and then later confirmation of my insights through books.  Therefore, feel free to follow your own intuition of what feels right for you (and your partner).

Just because Sacred Sex is seldom discussed, portrayed, or taught does not mean that it is difficult or scary.  In fact, I believe it is how sex is meant to be.  The problem is that through Sacred Sex, one becomes her own authority and is able to tap into the Divine directly.  We know how the Church felt about “regular” people having a direct relationship with the Divine.  Plus, in Sacred Sex both partners are equal.  Some would even say that the woman is the guide, for it is often through the opening of her Heart Chakra that allows the man to tap into the broader energies.  Sacred Sex is a powerful tool that threatened the Church and Patriarchy. 

This may seem like an odd subject for a newsletter about Natural Healing; however, I feel that Sacred Sex has a large role in both our personal and cultural healing.  For us to evolve and grow into who we are capable of being, we need to accept our full selves - this means honor both our masculinity and femininity.  And in order to be able to do that, we need to heal the wounds of Patriarchy, including raising Women above the role of Sexual objects.  Sacred Sex helps us to do this.  For in order to participate, you need to accept that your partner is a Divine Being.  We also know that sexual abuse (along with sexual addiction and pornography) is very high in our culture.  And that there is a high rate of those who were abused become abusers.  Sacred Sex has the possibility of stopping that trend.  For with the right partner, one can heal and re-member what it is to be a healthy sexual Being.  (Of course, outside help may be needed including therapy, Flower Essences, or other forms of assistance.)

Since I mentioned partner, let’s talk about this.  The partner is a key aspect to Sacred Sex, for in order to have any of these conscious raising experiences, both partners need to feel safe and free.  It is especially helpful if there is a large Love or Heart connection between them.  Please know that one can experience Sacred Sex without a partner.  In fact, many of the different techniques suggest starting as a solo practitioner until you are ready to engage with a partner.  This is particularly helpful for men who are learning to control or refrain from ejaculation. 

Hopefully by now you are curious and want to explore Sacred Sex.  As I said earlier, specific techniques are beyond the scope of this newsletter.  However, I encourage you to treat your next Love making as a very Sacred and Divine act.  Create a sanctuary or a temple for your explorations.  If you know how to set Sacred space, do this, call in the energies of your guides, call in Rose or Cacao or another Plant to help you, ask that the energies you create through your connection be used to feed the Divine.  And then, have fun, take your time, look at your partner with new eyes, and remember that when you touch her, you are touching the Divine and when you pleasure him, you are pleasuring the Divine.

Oh and one final thing, Sacred Sex helps to increase the Love in this world.  You may find that by practicing Sacred Sex, you are able to feel, express, and receive more Love.  At the end of the day, this is the question that we are asked, “Did you Love as much as you could?”

Artist unknown

Going Around the Roundabout

Some lessons can’t be taught.  They simply have to be learned.

~ Jodi Picoult

As 2015 was ending and 2016 was beginning, I was intrigued to hear from a number of people that 2015 was a difficult year for them.  I know for myself, I experienced heartbreaks of various kinds in 2015.  When I hear about (or experience) difficulties the question I ask is, “Have the lessons been learned?”  If you experienced a difficult 2015, I invite you to look back (if you haven’t) and ask yourself, “What lessons have I learned?  Have I gained what I needed to from these?”

We are so enmeshed in duality and polarity: good/bad, dark/light, etc. That often we easily dismiss an experience or a person as bad or a jerk or some other label.  While this can satisfy our ego, it does nothing for our soul.

This past summer, I took part in a Mugwort Initiation.  During this weekend, one of the gifts I received from Mugwort was a trip to a higher dimension.  From this place, I was able to look down on Earth.  I could see that our “good” experiences and our “bad” experiences are different facets of one experience.  There isn’t good, there isn’t bad, there is one.

Bringing this back down to Earth, what can appear to be a horrible or heartbreaking experience through another lens can materialize as a gift.  Or a total jerk can be a great teacher.  The challenge is to be willing to move beyond the judgment and categorizing, to sit with the pain, to remain open and to look for the lesson or gift.  This may mean releasing a limiting belief or healing a trauma that led to a negative pattern or learning a new skill or gaining an insight or falling in Love with yourself.  Sometimes you may not know what the lesson is, sometimes it may take years.  However, by simply refraining from judgment, you remain open to the gift(s).

What do I mean by judgment?  Well there is the obvious that I already mentioned, naming the experience or the person - horrible, jerk, asshole, waste of time ...  Then there is the self-judgment, “I should have” or “I’m a sucker”.  None of this is actually helpful.  While the judging of the other person, limits the picture and your learning, self-judging is toxic and self-limiting.

Being open, means allowing yourself to feel what you need to feel, process these emotions, take your time.  We live in a fast paced society that is not comfortable with emotions.  Therefore, the tendency is to rush things along, skim over the experience.  If we do this, we risk missing the gifts.  Though, no need to stress over it, for if we were meant to learn a lesson, we will be given another opportunity.  Unfortunately, these opportunities usually occur in bigger and bigger lessons until you get the proverbial 2x4 across the head.  Therefore, I think it is wise to take our time processing the experiences, learning the lessons while they are somewhat easy.

Proper timing is personal.  This is your journey, your lesson, it is not up to anyone else to say what is the proper time to process an experience.  If you recently lost a love one, chances are it will take you longer than the allotted 3 days off work to fully grieve.  The same is true about an illness.  Illness is the physical body drawing your attention to something that has been in your emotional and/or spiritual body.  We think that when we are symptom free, we are “all better”.  However, if you did not take the time to process the underlying issue nor to let your body fully recover - often we are overworking our bodies and what is needed is rest - most likely, you will have another illness.  This too follows the progression of unlearned lessons, getting bigger and bigger until you are forced to pay attention: cancer, fibromyalgia, diabetes, heart attack, etc.

Of course, sometimes we can get stuck, which is also not healthy.  Nostalgia and obsessing are symptoms of being stuck.  The image that I think of is a car spinning their wheels in the mud.  The wheels keep turning, but the car isn’t going anywhere except deeper and deeper in the mud.  This too prevents us from moving forward and learning our lessons.

While I was traveling in Ireland, I quickly learned to love the roundabouts.  The maps and signs were not very clear (at least not to me), so when I came to a roundabout rather than having to decide quickly which road to take (and risk driving on the wrong one for hours before turning around), I would drive around the roundabout gathering info, looking at the signs, looking at the map until I was sure which exit was the right direction.  This is the analogy for processing an experience.

For instance, many people end a relationship and say, “What a jerk!  That guy has so many issues.”  Then they quickly find another relationship.  (This is the same as quickly picking a road from the roundabout.)  Only after the honeymoon phase is over, they suddenly find themselves in the same place as before, with a jerk with many issues.  They can keep repeating this process.  Or they can take their time after the break-up and feel their emotions.  Get curious about what it was in them that attracted this person.  What part of them is looking for healing?  What lessons can they learn?  This is going around the roundabout and gathering info until they are ready to proceed and suddenly they are on the right road heading to the next place of adventure.

The good news is that no matter what you choose to do, in the end it will be okay.  If you choose to ignore the lessons, you will be given other opportunities to learn them.  If you decide to process and try to learn the lessons this time around, there are many helpers to ease this evolution including Flower Essences, Plant Spirits, and more.  For when you allow yourself to process your experience and look for the gifts, you learn about yourself, your soul path, and you take another step towards becoming your True Essential Nature.  You will find that when you do this, the Nature Spirits and other guides will be there to support you in amazing ways.

   

If you had difficulties this past year, I again ask you, “What have you learned from these?”  

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Some people see the lessons of Love in their loss, and grow from it; others see themselves as unlucky in Love, learning nothing.  And again, all this is okay.

~ Michael J. Roads.