Welcome to Balance Points!

One of your portals into the Divine!

Continue reading

Convicted:

How many of us would go to prison if our closet doors were opened and our skeletons were allowed to be seen?

That is a question that rolls around in my head a lot.

After all, the only means of judging on this Earth is by our own peer group, by other humans just as fallible as the next person.

While it is true that some people seem to make better choices in life that keep them above the fray of the law, all of us know that it may just be a draw of the cards allowing us to “pass go, collect the $200 and get out of jail free”.

My point in all of this is that pointing fingers at those that have been caught, tried in a court of law and convicted are not always guilty and those that are may only represent a small number of society that really are guilty of similar crimes; crimes that have been determined to be crimes by a society comprised of people that are just as fallible as the next person, even those convicted and sitting in prison.

So maybe the next time we jump on board the band-wagon to jeer when an alleged person is convicted and actually deemed a felon, we need to stop and think what pushed them to the level of insanity that caused them to do what they did that landed them in prison. The phrase “if not by the grace of God” may sound cliché but all of us living in this chaotic world are subject to the same kind of energies and forces that led that convicted person to the act they committed. And maybe, due to their background or current circumstances the trigger in their own mind got pulled causing them to react in an irrational manner losing all restraint and common sense for just that moment.

I’m not advocating that we allow all people that commit crimes to run free simply because they may seemingly have had one bad day they couldn’t control themselves, but I am asking all of us to have compassion for even the lowliest in society. These people have emotions too, that’s probably what got them into trouble in the first place. They may not have the same kind of ability to restrain their emotions as the majority of society. They may also have family members that care deeply for them, and these people need our support through the trying days of their kin’s incarceration. However, maybe the convicted person doesn’t have family members that love and support them, and that could be part of what lead them to their moment of insanity.

So often the victim of the crime gets made into a victim-hero, and that is quite understandable given the torture and torment of the crime. But try to remember that the person that committed the crime may very well be a victim of their own life as well. Victims become bullies, and often become criminals for lack of anyone in society seeing what is happening to that person in plain sight.

For those that suffer victimization and do not end up a criminal it takes tremendous willpower to maintain their emotions and overcome their abuse. They still suffer, but they suffer quietly harming no other person. But often they end up harming themselves, they internalize their abuse. Not so with criminals who end up going on the attack of others. But anyway you look at it every victim has to deal with their past abuse in some manner, some choose to deal with it internally, some deal with it externally. Sometimes it is literally a draw of the cards. Those that deal with their abuse internally, and may attempt suicide are usually pitied and eventually shown how to get help through counseling. But those that deal with their abuse externally by harming others are incarcerated and many times never receive any help at all.

I realize this may sound like I don’t believe in incarceration and that I believe in rights for the criminal and not for the victim. This is factually untrue. I believe in incarceration for those that harm others, but I also believe in the right for everyone, no matter how they display their internal demons, to receive the mental and emotional help they so desperately need and are crying out for.

To live in a mind that has been brainwashed into believing that you are worthless and will never amount to anything, to live in a mind that has been twisted by the environment you grew up in to believe that you are scum, to live in a mind that has been bullied by your peer group or family members, causes a person to have a distorted way of thinking. It is only through deep, deep self-evaluation and being offered a much different view of the world that a person might be able to unlock the box their mind has been placed in by former authority figures when they were but a small child growing up in an uncertain world. If a person is never exposed to a clearer point of view then no clarity will ever be introduced into their mind. The tapes of the past will continue to play and the distortion will only become more distorted with time and age. Eventually something will trigger the submerged hurt, anger and rage and someone will pay the price, either the person harboring the distorted beliefs and/or victims of their distorted ways of thinking.

This is one reason why it is society’s responsibility to offer support to those they deem worth of incarceration. Not only does it cost taxpayers millions of dollars to hold these confused people in prisons across America, but it serves no one any good purpose to keep all of these people sick in the head when they may be able to be made purposeful contributors in and of society. While it is not possible to redeem everyone that has been victimized beyond repair, completely ruined, nor totally “fix” those that have been born with a mental disability, it is possible to evaluate and help those that only need to have their thinking re-shaped and their self-esteem rebuilt through channels of proper support on an individual by individual basis depending on the needs of each. We can either spend taxpayer money on keeping these people locked up serving no real good purpose in life, or we can spend money on real rehabilitation helping them to become the people they were originally intended to be from the moment they were born upon this Earth before their environment and life circumstances caused them to get off track.

I only ask the next time you feel the urge to shout and jeer that a certain alleged criminal has in fact been convicted and has become a legitimate criminal in the eyes of the law, stop and feel the adrenaline pulsing through you when you are celebrating their conviction; this is similar to the feeling they felt when they committed the crime. We all have it, it’s a “rush” of excitement and we all live for that feeling to different degrees.

©2013 Machelle Pacion

Talk Therapy

I understand that all of us are connected, that in essence, if not in reality, we are One. I also understand that what we see in our brothers and sisters most likely exists in ourselves, that others are mirror reflections of what is in ourselves. Seeing the behavior in others is a good learning tool for each of us, we can be challenged to grow by what we see in others because most likely what we observe is in ourselves, it is a way of holding ourselves accountable, it is probably the best way of holding ourselves accountable if we will only use that mirrored reflection.

But there are times when each of us just needs to be loved through the pain we experience from the bumps and the bruises of life.

Some of us are actually bright enough to see the reflection of ourselves in the mirrored reflection of the behaviors of others and actually take action on those behaviors within ourselves. Some of us have been working on ourselves for most of our lives, holding ourselves accountable for every action, or lack of action, that would cause others to experience pain because of our behavior.

And yet, simply because life does not promise us a rose garden, we still receive those hard bumps and bruises and get knocked down from time to time, seemingly undeservedly. We have tried to do everything right; we have tried to be compassionate, understanding, giving, unconditional with our love, and so on and so forth. Yet because of someone else’s issues we become the target of their emotions. We cannot take the blame for every person’s hurt, anger and confusion in life and say it is due to the cause and effect of the need of “looking at our own man in the mirror” every single time. Sometimes bad things do happen to good people that do and have given all.

No, when this happens in our life we don’t need to be reminded that we need to take yet another look into the mirrored reflections trying to find yet another flaw within, we need to be loved, just loved through the bumps and the bruises.

Yet is there truly a place we can turn to for this kind of love, the kind of love that doesn’t judge, or tell you to take another look in the mirror that may have brought this on ourselves?

We hope that there is family or friends we can turn to, but for many of us this kind of community does not exist.

This is when it becomes more important than ever to know of that still and quiet place within, the place where we feel completely safe and secure where there is no judgment, only love, peace, calm and joy.  But it is also nice to have a friend or family member that is willing to listen to us, and validate us. Even if that friend or family member doesn’t completely understand our situation, if they can listen with an ear that doesn’t judge us and just offer love and support it may be what we need in order to process the emotional pain and hurt we have bottled up inside so that we can heal. It is when we keep our emotions bottled up that they begin to turn into hurt that turns into anger that turns into bitterness. Then we do have a situation and circumstance that requires us to take another, fresh new look at the person in the mirrored reflection. But if we have a true friend or family member that will just listen and support us, love us through our emotional pain without trying to “fix” us, then our emotions may never elevate to those levels where we have to take a deeper look into the mirrored reflections that need to be “fixed” in the first place.

This is called “talk therapy” and I highly recommend it.

I was just about ready to throw it out of my life thinking that I was emotionally and spiritually mature enough that I didn’t need to use it any longer in my life. But recently after yet another incident in my life I realized that a person never outgrows “talk therapy” with close friends and family that loves non-conditionally.

People that accept me for who I am at any specific point in time and don’t expect me to be any better than I am at that point in time, these are the people that I run to when I find myself in a situation that seems unfair, even if it wasn’t unfair. Because whether the situation was unfair, or not, is not the concern of these people…the concern of these people in my life is that I’m okay and that I feel loved, that is their only concern. The fairness of the situation is my responsibility to figure out, and they let me concern myself with that problem because they know I am mature enough to figure that problem out, but they know that no matter how mature I am I will always need their love, and they are willing, always to give it to me.

The Disconnect

I am a nature person. I love sitting under trees, or splashing in water. I love walking through the brush and listening to the birds special songs. I love digging in the dirt and finding special rocks. I love being out in nature away from the bombardment of electronic energy and noises created by the hustle and bustle of modern civilization. I love being on the soil, untouched by concrete, steel, and other forms we’ve designed to make life easier. So, when the opportunity arises for a trip into the natural world, I’m ready.

The family camping trip promised time away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. We chose a site on top of a mountain where we would be able to disconnect from life in the valley. No cell phone, no internet, no electronics, of any kind, just interaction with each other in Mother Nature’s arena. On the first night, we were busy setting up camp and had only a little time around the fire. We noticed the dark sky holding the moon in place and the blanket of stars too numerous to count, but most of all it felt good to be away from the bombardment of life in the valley.

Excitement filled the camp as one by one we crawled from our tents and gathered for breakfast. Even as we broke bread, the lake lured us with a promise of refreshment and we answered the call. As soon as we cleaned up the camp from breakfast, we raced down the hill to take the plunge and found exactly what we were expecting, cool, refreshing water. When our stomachs began to announce it was time for lunch, we made our way back to camp to replenish our spent energy, that’s when we all noticed the noise. I recall looking around trying to pinpoint the source, wherever it was coming from, it was drowning out the natural sounds of the birds, the wind through the trees, and the human exaltation’s of joy.

The noise was pinpointed, a nearby camper with a large RV generating energy from a machine that violated the serenity of the campground. Somehow, it just didn’t feel right since we had to raise our voices to engage in conversation. I felt irritation as the noise intruded on our serene environment catapulting the relaxation into a reproduction of just another day in the valley.

The afternoon continued, but the energy had shifted. The noise was intrusive and the challenge was to move beyond the noise. Part of me wanted to march to the RV, knock on the door, and remind them that not everyone appreciates the racket, but another part of me knew that wasn’t an option. After much thought, I decided there had to be a lesson if I could move beyond the thoughts that our peaceful weekend was going south.

As I prepared dinner, I noticed the campers from the source of the noise didn’t seem bothered by the invasion, and then I remembered they had brought the invasion, and I began to see the connection. We were all the same. We all had a desire to leave the valley and spend the weekend in nature. We had all chosen a place where electronics just wouldn’t work unless you brought something along to give them power. We desired disconnection; we travelled away from our homes to bask in the serenity of nature, no phones, laptops, or any other gadget that would maintain a connection to the electronic energy. We wanted to relax, but not all of us remembered how to do that. Something about nature had drawn us all to the top of the mountain, some of us brought extra noise and others were simply along for the ride, so it was up to me to maintain my peace or allow externals to destroy it.

Standing in the middle of the campsite I began to relax knowing eventually the generators would run out of fuel. I prayed that the other campers would find what they were searching for by visiting the natural setting, and I knew the more I resisted the noise, the more I would have to resist. So, I began to focus on the beauty surrounding me and before long joy began to surface. A couple hours later generators began shutting down and soon after the last generator ceased running and every camper on the mountain began applauding. The natural setting was back, complete with laughter and playfulness spreading from one group to the next.

The big lesson in this experience was the disconnection. I think we all have a longing to disconnect from the bombardment of noise and electronics; we long to travel to that sacred place where nothing can touch us but the symphony of nature as she caresses our senses. Yet this isn’t always easy for us to do. On one level, the noise is part of our existence and when silence penetrates the cacophony of racket, our inner compass goes amiss. Thus, we drag our noise along with us to maintain our sense of normalcy, when in fact; nature is fully capable of restoring our balance. We must be willing to disconnect from the noise and allow the natural symphony to connect us to our Source.

One final note, we don’t always have the opportunity to travel to a mountain to restore our natural balance, so the challenge is to look around your space and take note of your environment. We all have the power to disconnect from the bombardment of electronics and such. If we begin to notice all of the noise around us and learn how to turn it off (i.e. TV, radio, internet, etc) we create space for nature to infiltrate our being. If we learn how to disconnect here in the valley, when the opportunity presents itself for a trip to the mountaintop, then the process of disconnect won’t be so painful!

© Jounda Strong 2012

Faith

I’ve got some thoughts bumping around in my head. And as E.M. Forster said, “How can I know what I think till I see what I say?” So I’m going to try to figure out what I’m thinking.

The increasingly infrequent times that I choose to debate with someone in the cult, I find that faith is often pulled out as the last-ditch explanation for why they cling to beliefs that defy logic, evidence, experience, and intuition. I’ve been thinking about that more and more, as in, how could one possibly believe that a God who supposedly created logic, science, etc. would want his creation to ignore all of that and blindly follow the words of a book that self-validates, at best.

I know I still believe in faith, but I also totally believe that faith does not require a denial of the reality surrounding me. I have faith that the Divine exists, but it doesn’t mean that I have to close my eyes and plug my ears when someone brings up evolution. So what is this faith that believes in what cannot be proven? Is it really this illogical clinging to something that doesn’t make sense just because “God said it”?

Then I accidentally stumbled on an epiphany talking with someone else. Faith isn’t clinging to what we’ve been taught to believe. That’s fear. Fear keeps us in the known, even if the known is wrong or violates our true self. But faith, faith reaches out towards the unknown. Suddenly, I’m feeling that faith is really actually the foundation of science, philosophy, mathematics, and any other form of knowledge. It’s more than a simple belief in something that cannot be proven. I’m starting to think that it’s the willingness to explore the unknown with the belief that you will find something on the other side. It’s what creates hypotheses that go on to be tested in scientific experiments. It’s what creates the speculation and questions that lead philosophers down the road of creating a coherent worldview. It’s what leads the mathematician into following some crazy problem to its end–the belief that there is something else there. It’s the thing that tells us there is more to the universe even while others may tell us we know all there is to know (whether they be a theologian or a close-minded scientist).

But more importantly, I think faith may be the willingness to take that journey, make that exploration, all the while knowing that we may never find the whole answer or reach the end. It’s a belief that exploring the unknown is worth it, even if we don’t find what we were looking for.

And with that definition of faith, I think I want to live a life of faith. I don’t want to exist safely within the defined lines of what people call living. I want to live radically, wildly, freely, and fully. When I chose not to commit suicide as a teen, I did so with the intention that when I finally died, I would have my tombstone carved with: “This has been my life. I found it worth living.” Now I think I’m starting to understand what makes my life worth living. I want to live a life that constantly reaches out with the knowledge that existence is more than doing and knowing. It’s being.

Copyright 2012 “Diane”

The Mountaintop

There is something intriguing about the mountaintop. It draws me with a mysterious luring, beckoning me to climb, promising solace and rest. Every so often, I find my way to the mountain and bask in the mystery shrouded by canopies of trees and backdrops of refreshing rivers. The climb never disappoints, as my Spirit is renewed taking in the pure air untouched by the business of society and what remains below. On the mountaintop, I find clarity and see glimpses of what it all means. My body relaxes, thoughts slow, and the rhythm of my heart falls in cadence with the natural essence of the Spirit of nature.

On the mountain, I sense I have returned home and in the midst of enjoying the songs orchestrated by nature, I long to remain. Deep within I sense a longing to stay and nestle into the forest taking nourishment from the refreshing river. On the mountain, shaded by nature I know I am one and my soul has sated its hunger from the peacefulness. I am in harmony and need not speak, for words are not necessary in the Presence of Love. The mountaintop is where I go home and release all costumes of conformity. Competition is not required, for all on the mountain live for the common good. Nature has no reason to compete, for it understands that each part creates the orchestrated melody that whispers through the valley, for those who have ears to hear.

Nevertheless, the mountain is only a resting place, a place to renew, refresh and nurture my soul. It is a place to visit and rekindle the fires of passion, but I was not born to live on the mountain. I was born to visit the mountaintop and walk out the message in the valley. My journey is in the shade of the precipice bringing the message of unconditional love and forgiveness.

On my journey through the valley, I met a soul sister with a message. The earthly connection was short, but the message will resonate with me throughout eternity. Julie was an amazing woman, full of passion for life and compassion for the living. Last week when she made her transition the door opened for contemplation, giving me an opportunity to reflect on the impact Julie had on my life. Her life had meaning, not just for me, but also for everyone that crossed her path. She was Love in action and it radiated through her words and constant smile. Quick to offer encouragement and slow to anger, Julie was the reminder that good is in every situation and in every person. She was Love personified and a living example of goodness.

At her memorial, I heard one after another speak of her selfless acts of kindness for everything breathing. She rescued animals and humans without fear of consequence. Julie simply responded to every situation and every person from a place of Love. Her family spoke of Julie’s decision, early in her life to follow Christ, and yet as hard as I tried, I could not remember a time when she attempted to change or convert anyone to her religion. As I listened, I began to understand even more.

Julie also lived on a mountain. It was her place of refuge and her home. She spoke often of the life there with her family and the peace that surrounded her home. She loved the mountaintop, but she also loved the valley. As I traveled down the mountain after her memorial, I noticed the treacherous roads she drove every day. For her to drive down the mountainous road spoke volumes of her passion for those in the valley. Julie lived on the mountain, but she walked through the valley without boundaries, judgment, or needing to change anyone.

Today I see the gift in Julie’s life. She was an example of living in the Divine Presence but willing to make the journey into the valley. She lived out her passion with a heart of joy and compassion. She was a living example of Pure Love and a reminder of what it means to follow the Master Jesus. She was willing to leave the serenity of the mountaintop to bring the message of hope never complaining about her mission. Her work was in the valley; her message was that of unconditional Love, she was the embodiment of the Christ, walking amongst us daily. She was the reminder of what Love in its purest form looks like and that it is something we all can do. Julie came with a message and every life she touched was changed.

I am reminded of my longing for the mountaintop and the knowing that my work is in the valley. I am reminded that the mantle of passion is not meant for just one, but for all who are willing to answer the call. The Master reminded us that “many are called, but few are chosen”; the choices becomes ours, as we must decide will we be the embodiment of Pure Love or remain imprisoned by the chains of unforgiveness. Julie walked this earth in a mortal body for a short time, but long enough to spread the good news and be a shining Light of Love. Her life and transition reminds me that waiting until tomorrow to share Love is no longer an option and it is no longer enough to preach about Love, the time is now to Be Love in action.
I wonder if anyone else has felt the tug of Spirit beckoning you to forgive and Love? I wonder if anyone else has heard the call to make the journey to the mountaintop so that the walk through the valley is one of Peace and Harmony? I wonder if anyone has ears to hear what the Spirit is saying as we are called to Be Love personified?

Now is the time to take inventory and release the things that no longer serve your highest good and make the journey to the mountaintop for renewal and refreshment orchestrated by the harmonic whispers of nature.

Now is the time to wake up to the call that will not let you sleep and tugs at your thoughts as you run to and fro through the daily agenda.

Now is the time to rekindle the fires of passion within your soul and release yourself from the self-created prisons.

The call to Love is a call for all, but the question remains, do you have an ear to hear the Voice that whispers in your soul?

The world does not need another person to establish or maintain the rigid rules of dogma, the world is crying out for people who are willing to respond with compassion and unconditional Love.
Now is the time to hear what the Master is saying, that Love Is, now and forevermore.

© Jounda Strong, July 22, 2012

Authenticity

Some countries sacrificially murder baby girls just because it is a disgrace to birth a female child. Some cultures in the world mutilate female genitalia in order to suppress the feelings of a girl child that will one day be a woman.

Around the world, stories loom of women that are abused, oppressed, enslaved, and murdered simply because they were born and identified as female. These acts carried out against females leave a story behind to each and every woman, an individual story that is as inaccurate as the very act itself, a story bedded in lies ripping and robbing each woman’s authenticity away from her forever. The World news covers the atrocities with graphic details that if we are willing, we are able to catch a glimpse of pain and torture unfolding in corners across the globe.

When we hear these stories, we gasp at the atrocities, so our response is to pick up our posters and our petitions and demand rights for all women; some will even resort to arming themselves with weapons to fight the evil terrors across the seas. But most of us will march in rallies, wear T-shirts, and donate money to save the girl child from the crimes perpetrated by humankind. Our conscience demands something of us, so we step into the arena and fight injustice the only ways we know how.

When I hear stories of abuse perpetrated on another human being I gasp and my mind traces plans of rescue, nevertheless, there is more to this story. I could write in length about the slayings of girl children or female genitalia mutilation, but for a moment, I would like you to consider another perspective.

When I contemplate all of the things we fight for, I find it gripping that we are willing to march into battle for every cause, every reason under the sun, every person, with the exception of ourselves as well as our very own prodigy.

Did you hear me? Our hackles rise when we hear about a girl being mutilated, but do we not self-mutilate on a daily basis? Do we not murder a part of ourselves everyday when we refuse to acknowledge our passions and dreams? Do we not enslave ourselves when we choose fear over love?

The countries that allow physical mutilation to their female residents are doing nothing more than showing an outward display, an outward sign of what we allow to happen in our own country every day, the hidden agenda that tells our young women that they are “less than”, “not equal to”, “not worthy of” because of a female’s sexual identification. Or that the only way a woman will be worthy is if somehow she can rise to a position of esteem through a powerful man in her life, and/or wealth and fame. We do not teach our young women that they are intrinsically worthy simply because “they are”, simply because they “exist” and that the purpose and passion they were born with and for is enough. For some reason they are led to believe that they have to fit a certain mold in order to “become” important in life, when the real fact of the matter is, they were born important. Unfortunately the society in which we live sends a not so hidden message that if we are not born male, we are not important. We may as well be cutting off our daughters’ female parts, breasts, clitorises, vaginas and clawing out their wombs just like the other cultures, because mentally, emotionally and spiritually we are just stopping short of doing that heinous act anyway.

It is easier to look around and place the blame and judgment on others; it is easier to criticize what everyone else is doing. We judge our sisters for not being enough, their choices regarding their attire, their choice in partner or partners, their choice of career, their parenting style, even how much they weigh, the list goes on and on. We glance at the mayhem all around us and declare disgust and anger, and yet when was the last time any of us looked in the mirror and uttered the words, “You are beautiful, I love you.”?

When was the last time you acknowledged your dreams, your passions, and your desires? When was the last time you took a moment to caress your soul? When was the last time you felt empowered by your internal flame?  When will you decided to go to the Deep inside of yourself and heal the brokenness, the wounds and stay deep until all is healed and repaired?

Most of us have hidden behind distractions or addictions denying our pain. We’ve masqueraded in our designer clothes covering our scars, some of us even launched into religious zealotry to validate our guilt and shame, and at the end of the day, we wonder why we are sick and tired of the daily grind.

We surrendered our Divinity at a young age and now our Divine power is a distorted image of conformity and complacency, dictated by those who thought they knew what was best. We are exhausted, so we reach for the latest trend of materialism, some psychology self-help book, or still yet another form of spirituality, to restore our energy only finding ourselves left feeling exhausted and disappointed with the results; alas we’ve read every self-help book, and followed the latest teachers giving our power to anyone that shows up. Moreover, when the topic surfaces of the girl children in foreign countries that are being mutilated, we join in the chorus and lead the march for justice and equality.

So, the story continues, but does it have to? Do we continue rehearsing the stories of shame, guilt, murder, and mutilation; or do we examine our personal power? Do we continue to conform to the social norms, or do we address ourselves on a deep and far-reaching soul level and begin peeling away the layers that stretch across and embrace all borders of the female consciousness in totality?

We are at a crossroad where we need to make a decision, but before we decide we need to look closely at ourselves and be honest. We need to search back through the archives and discover, maybe for the very first time, what our real dream is. Is it to have more material goods? Is it to have a bigger house? Is it to have one more car in the garage? Is it to have finer clothes? Is it to have more expensive jewelry? Or, maybe, is it to claim our real and Divine Power within, the power, worth and credibility we were each given at our very conception and then validated at birth as “female”? Is our real dream to live out the intrinsic and instinctual purpose and passion that was seeded deep within us at our very creation? If so, we need to uncover that latent purpose and passion. We need to acknowledge that we surrendered our Divine Power in order to hide from our pains, and most importantly we need to recognize that we are not alone.

Yes, girl children are dying because they were identified as females at birth, but how many little girls die on a daily basis because they were told they were not enough? Perhaps you are one of them. Perhaps you are one of the little girls told she would never amount to anything, or that she had to marry, have children, and forget her dreams. Perhaps your innocence was stolen at an early age, and you alone have carried the weight.

Do you see the pattern? Everyday females are disempowered, murdered, mutilated, and reminded that they will never be enough. Everyday women around the world deny the Feminine Power that is their Divine birthright. It is time to move from under the weight of our stories. It is time that we cast off the guilt and shame and walk out of our self-made prisons we have built as the result of believing the lies.

Society has blamed and judged, but even that has not carried us into authenticity. Blaming and judging does not change circumstances, so it is that I am not speaking about a replay of the feminist movement, I am not talking about a war against the patriarchal systems. I am talking about stopping for a moment and taking a look deep into our souls, I am talking about remembering the dreams that have been annihilated and buried, then stoking the passionate fires of empowerment so that each woman’s purpose and passion can be reborn. I am talking about looking around at ourselves as sisters and seeing that all of us are connected in these Sacred Waters we are traversing through. It is the cleansing of our souls and the repurposing of our lives through the reigniting of our original passions that will carry us into our authenticity!

Up until this time our little sisters have been following in our footsteps, just like we followed in the footsteps of our mothers and grandmothers. Our little sisters are following our patterns and settling for less than they deserve and desire. They have forgotten who they are, because we have forgotten who we are and have failed to mirror our own authenticity. Thus, they succumb to the influence in society that perpetuates the motto that “we are less than enough”. Our little sisters do not know the familiar call of the inner voice of intuition, nor do they approach life as Sacred, it is our responsibility to teach them. And sadly it is us that have acted out life’s dramas before them and now weep because they appear to be lost and repeating the same dramas in their own lives.

We look around and shake our heads and demand the crimes against women to stop and that we want a better world for our girl children, but what are we doing about it? Marching in a protest or holding a banner declaring freedom is not enough. Until we are able to stand in our personal authenticity declaring that we are women of power, all of our protests and banners are nothing more than weak attempts to correct something that can only be corrected by modeling a new way of life. Until we are willing to look deep within ourselves and surrender to our Divinity, our current condition offers our girl children nothing but vanity, pride, and self-loathing.

If we want to see our sisters rise up in their Divine Feminine Power then we must lead by example. We must remember who we were created to be, who we really are and why we are on this journey. This trip is about Love, but how can we declare compassion and love for our sisters who are dying daily, if we do not acknowledge that we do not love ourselves enough to live authentically, with our original purpose and passion? If we want to see our sister’s rise in authentic power, then we must first live in it ourselves.

The message is clear! If we want to shift society’s stagnant thinking away from genocide and mutilations of the female body and spirit into a new consciousness where the Divine Feminine is valued and honored, the way it was always meant to be, we must step into the Sacred waters and look at the image mirrored on the water’s surface. We must see the shadows of the Sacred fire dancing in the moonlight and connect with the Source within. We must forgive ourselves for believing the lies told to us about ourselves and end our self-hatred. We must forgive ourselves for the role we’ve played in supporting the lack of consciousness that slays our Divinity. It is time to tap into our authenticity and both free ourselves from our self-imposed prisons as well as model Love for our sisters.

The message is clear! We must look within and begin to heal!

© Jounda Strong June 6, 2012

“I’m an Activist, Get Over It!”

*activist

“one who advocates a doctrine of direct action,” 1915; from active (q.v.). Activism in this sense is first attested 1920; earlier (1907) it was used in ref. to a philosophical theory.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

~Recently, I guess because of the 2012 presidential “election year” at hand, I have been bombarded with all kinds of issues I could become an activist for and against, so many in fact that they are too numerous to list.

The fact is though, I already have my own agenda and I’m not about to change my position or jump on someone else’s band wagon, or a new band wagon, I have all intention to remain firmly planted in my own philosophy.

Yes, I’m a member of the infamous “Facebook” social networking site where people post their rants and raves that correspond to their deepest beliefs and philosophies. And as I perused through my own personal account this morning I became increasingly bored with the posts I was reading. Is it the friends I keep? Or is it merely their beliefs that I no longer identified with? Of course, realizing that my friends and their beliefs are one and the same, I quickly came to realize it is not my friends I am having the problem with, they are not changing, it is me.

I know my friends have good hearts and well-meaning intentions, they do, they are kind people who love others and want good to prevail over evil. It’s just how the majority of people go about getting “love” back into our world that I am finding myself detaching from.

So as I read one post after another I found myself reading each post in a removed manner, as though I was not a part of “that world” any longer, as though there is a much, much larger world encircling “that world”, holding “that world” in a warm and comforting embrace, waiting for “that world” to awaken to a much easier, more balanced way to enter into the kind of love that each person in “that world” is so desperately fighting for, yes, fighting for.

As I read post after post after post with a semi-hidden agenda, I realized that under each and every one of them lay a dormant amount of hate, anger, bitterness, fear and mostly hurt. I realized that my friends are only attempting to convey for themselves, and the people they love and care for, that they are absolutely worn out and frazzled to the end with the fight for peace, freedom, equality and love.  Their confidence, self-esteem and worthiness have been shattered by others who do not yet begin to understand the tiniest bit about real love. The other side uses the word “love” is as a manipulative tool to gather body numbers in buildings so that battalions of people can be accumulated to be sent out to war for inhumane reasons against the very people fighting for…peace, freedom, equality and love.

The interesting thing about all of this is though, no one seems to remember that no matter how blunt the arrows are, they are still arrows. In other words, no matter how a person disguises their agenda, all of the soft spoken words that blanket the real anger and hurt, the words are still intended with anger and hurt, and fire cannot extinguish fire, only water can put out a heated flame. It is for these reasons I will, from this point forward, choose more carefully the posts I select to share, for my cause is not about gaining numbers of “Likes”, it is about building a World of those who understand the depth of Truth in the word “love”.  “Deep” searches “Deep” and it is Within that “Deep” that Truth is found, understood and communes in peace and harmony in absence of all types of violence, both openly as well as hidden.

Many people are now calling themselves “Warriors of Peace”.  This is an oxymoron. One cannot be a warrior and bring peace, only Peacemakers can bring peace. The main crux of a warrior is to fight a battle, even if it’s a battle of good faith, it is still a battle. Peacemakers attempt to bring resolve to any situation, but understand that it is sometimes a long and drawn out affair where both parties are given an equal and fair hearing, without judgment. Then it is through the conversation, with the Peacemaker as the mediator, that an agreement is reached and the dispute is settled, albeit at times a compromise sometimes must be made where neither party is completely satisfied, but both parties must give up something, yet both parties also receive something they wanted as well. It is not always a “winner takes all” situation, because in peacemaking there is no winner, there is no loser. Peacemaking is a much more intense and noble of an action than what a Warrior can offer to any situation. (Peacemaking is…) (click)

So it is I am an activist.

I am an activist for love by way of peacemaking.

I come bearing no weapons. I wear no armor except for I am clothed in love, compassion, temperance, kindness, understanding and patience. My ulterior motives are to include, embrace and to love.

Willing to negotiate for as long as it takes, as long as the negotiation is manipulation and violence-free, yet admitting I am not perfect, I can only offer myself as one who joins in the love that encircles and embraces helping others see there is an easier way.

“The reality today is that we are all interdependent and have to co-exist on this small planet. Therefore, the only sensible and intelligent way of resolving differences and clashes of interests, whether between individuals or nations, is through dialogue.“
- The Dalai Lama

“The Inner Silence”

In all that is living lies this beautiful gift of silence.

This silence that cannot be found in thought,
nor can this silence be found in noise.

This silence that is so precious
lives within our being.

This gift of silence points us to be one with self,
yet One with all that is living.

As you become still,
surrendering your thoughts,
just becoming One with All,
listen as you breathe in and out.
This very breath you breathe
All comes from the same energy.

We are all connected, we are All One Being.

Within this gift of silence
you will find compassion,
forgiveness,
love,
grace,
humility,
acceptance,
and beauty.

All that flows from the positive energy
you will find within silence.

Look within self
and it is from within you will see!

Behold the beauty of silence.

©Jeff James 2012

Mother Earth

Mother Earth

 

Mother earth who gives life,

longs to rid all the strife

that lies within human kind.

 

Beautiful we are All created to be

but it is this beauty that some cannot see.

 

Mother Earth is always there

to lift us up from despair.

 

Nature sings her melody

to lead humanity into unity.

 

We rage war from left to right,

Mother Earth is hurting deep inside.

 

Her heart beats and longs for us to see,

love is the answer that will lead us to peace.

 

Oneness we were meant to be,

but suffering has separated humanity.

 

When things get rough,

cling to Mother Earth

for she will give you peace.

 

 

The heart of Mother Earth

lives in all human beings,

always there to guide us to our destiny.

 

©Jeff James 2012

Awaken Grace

Awaken Grace

 

Mother Earth’s grace awakens

in the dawning of each new day.

As the sunrise brightens the morning sky,

night then fades away.

 

As the Sun’s rays breaks through gathering clouds,

they shine down from above giving light,

Onto the world directing us

unto joy, peace, and love.

 

Though some will wonder off,

Mother Earth is always there.

Just call on her,

for She shines an eternal promise

that none will be forever lost

and All will soon be One.

 

Life: Mother Earth gives to all.

 

 

Though we are destined to fall,

get back up and learn from it all.

 

Created to be one human race,

let’s get together in unity.

 

No more polluting the water we drink,

no more trashing the earth

where we lay to sleep.

 

No more raging war.

 

Mother Earth is here

living in our hearts.

 

When storms of life

darken your day

Mother Earth offers a safe,

protecting place.

 

Nature sings Her melody

directing humanity to Its destiny.

 

Be slow to speak,

quick to listen,

for Mother Earth is always saying somethin’.

 

Be still and know that she is Life,

for in Her, and within All, lies Eternal Life.

 

©Jeff James 2012