"Are we awakening?"
Over tea, a friend asked me a big, interesting question the other day: “Are people awakening?” I blinked a few times before I answered with another question; “What do you mean?” He answered: “Are people, or is humanity awakening the way we new-agey, spiritual people talk about all the time? Are we seeing through the illusions? Or are we still clueless about who we are and what’s going on?”
Honestly, I think he was trying to set me up so that he could point out that, yes, we humans are still clueless and asleep because we are still waging war and we are still enslaved to our addictions, and we are doing stupid stuff to the earth and each other. All valid points.
I took the bait anyway: “Yes, we are waking up. I believe I see more and more people aware of Spirit in their lives. I also see people waking up from the semi-coma we might have been in when we thought we were but puny beings with no bearing on the planet’s destiny or even our own destiny.”
But awakening is not just waking up to the “pretty bits,” as my first spiritual teacher said to me long ago. Nope. Waking up means waking up to everything: pretty, dark, light, cranky, outrageous, divine, beautiful, and so on. We’re awakening to all of it: All of this earth experience.
And it's not easy to see what there is to see—especially if we put our sole focus on the not-so-pretty bits, and on what’s not working. Mind you, we need to know what’s not working so that we can find solutions. But we also need to acknowledge this:
There are gifts everywhere—unopened gifts that only our view can reveal. What we are also waking up to are solutions, and ideas, and ways of being, and that kindness matters, and this life is one precious strange journey—so best be grateful for all the above. Because…
When a person is awake, a person has a big choice to make: Either: “This is too much here, and too hard, so I might as well go back to sleep: I need distractions, stat!” or “This is a lot, and there’s a lot to do, and here I am. What can I do?”
Along with the latter choice, here are tips for staying awake and healthy:
Practice:
Meditation. Yup, an oldie but a goodie. Meditation of some kind helps to reconnect with our center. Connecting with our center helps us weather whatever passing tempests life may offer.
An attitude of gratitude: Focusing on what we are grateful for brings us more to be grateful for. Gratitude shifts our focus from the big old logjam of problems to fix, to the gifts inherent in every problem and possible solutions.
Compassion: For everyone, including people you do not like at all, and including you.
Seeing the humor: This is a funny place. It really is. Finding humor helps cope and unfreeze frozen hearts.
A spiritual practice of some kind. Yes. Practice a practice. Find a way to connect with Spirit every day: Taichi, yoga, prayer, rituals; listen to beautiful music or play music; sing, chant, dance…. The Sky is literally the limit
Honing and using your spiritual gifts: We all have them: Intuition, extra senses, healing energies, wisdom… Find ways to share what you have to give, and the world will thank you.
Being a good member of the earth family. Remember our interconnectedness? It’s not just a concept, it’s the truth.
I wish you well one this journey of awakening.
Elke