Ups and downs and dreams

There seems to be a lot of ups and downs in my world at the moment. Some say that this is the energy from the recent eclipses affecting my life and causing lots of chaos and rethinking of things. Whatever, it has definitely been one of those weeks. Even though I had good photo shots when out, the euphoria from those did not seem to last long and I was often plunged down into the depths of depression within hours and then suddenly, I felt OK again.

It is said that eclipses stir up things and that those of us who are on a spiritual path feel  this kind of energy more strongly and deeply. I know that my dreams have been quite vivid and only fragments remained in the morning. Last night I dreamed I was somewhere in France for example but there were buses and lots of people and a lovely town. I was also speaking in French too, and french is a language I do speak so nothing strange in that. Another dream involved a friend who died a few years ago.

Years ago I used to keep a dream diary so I could look back and try to interpret them. Maybe it is time to do this again. Keeping a notepad by the bed is good and a pen of course. I was told also not to move when you waken from a dream but to lie still and go over the dream until it was clear in your head, then you could move and write it down. I am a believer in dreams giving you messages and often foretelling future events and I have had one or two of those.

Another up is the publishing of my new book ‘ Me, myself and I – a spiritual journey’ and I hope it will be available soon on lulu, amazon and other sites. It is a very personal book so if you get round to buying it I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Now I am looking for other projects and I do have two books half written from several years ago so maybe these will be my next projects. So the ups and downs continue and as usual I will just go with the flow!

Do you have ups and downs like mine and if so how do you deal with them?

Silence

Yesterday I was talking to a friend about something she had shared on social media. The item was a photo of a protest in Turkey. There was no shouting or talking and no placards. The people stood there in silence and those in authority did not know what to do. I hope that those standing in silence were all thinking the same thoughts of peace, truth and love. Silence is a powerful thing. I have spent time in places where others have been having a silent retreat. No talking to each other even at meal times.

This leads me to thinking about how much noise there is in our world. This morning for example, I first hear the central heating boiler come on, then the noise of a car in the street. Later there was the noise of children next door. The fan heater makes a noise, the fridge and freezer make noises as does anything mechanical that has a thermostat. If I open the door I can hear the noise of traffic on the dual carriageway. I am writing this blog on mny computer and the fan is running making yet another noise. Our worlds are so noisy it is a wonder that we can think properly.

I feel that it is time for me to take a retreat somewhere that is quiet and the only noises are the sounds of nature, birds singing, the running water of a stream and so on. Have we let the constant noise in our lives change our lives? Do we take time out to be silent or as silent as is possible? It is much easier to think about things if there is silence around us and when you can find the silence within you then that is even better. Many of us are able to find that deep silence within us wherever we are at that time. But I find it much easier if I am out in nature even if there are many other people around me. How do you feel about all the daily noise? Do you find time to be in silence? Does it make you feel better and think more clearly?

Words from the Druids Prayer

I have spent some time this week thinking about the words of the Druid Prayer. Some words stand out clearly, knowledge, justice, truth, love. There are many versions of this prayer but they all have the same intent within them.

At this time in our lives and in our chaotic world, then these words are ones we need to hang on to. I am not sure what order I should put them in as for me they all have equal impact. However, truth and justice are extremely important at the moment. How do we know what the truth about a situation really is? This is where knowledge comes in of course. But don’t take everything you read as being true. So many lies are told nowadays and so many truths altered to make people think differently. Brainwashing was a term used many years ago but it is inherent today. You have only got to look at adverts on the TV.

If we are really spiritually aware and awake then we will have that inner knowing of what is truth and what is a lie. Work on this so you get better at it! So what about justice? There is not much of that about at the moment so we need to make sure it happens in whatever way is right for you. Last week I wrote about protests and the word protect came up as an alternative word. I think this word ‘protect’ fits in here. We need to protect our justice system and make sure it is not contaminated by wrong thought.

Knowledge is something we gain over the years although many of us who go deep inside know that we all have an inner knowledge that can serve us well. Dig deep into your inner self and find that knowledge. You are going to need it.

Love of course is a word often used and misused too. Unconditional love is so important and we need to work at this more. Putting all four words together can make a powerful statement whatever order they are. Let’s concentrate on these words today and all days until the world changes for the better. One word I missed out is understanding but for me they all come together in understanding, and for me understanding is also part of knowledge, truth and justice.

 

 

 

Wishes and blessings

It is that time of year when I spend a lot of time reflecting on what I wish for others. So here goes; I wish you all a happy day whatever you are celebrating whether it is Christmas or some other festival.

I wish you peace and joy;

I wish you the joy of sharing with your friends and family;

I wish you the joy of giving and the joy of receiving;

I wish you the gift of compassion and understanding;

I wish you the joy of counting your blessings;

I wish you the joy of helping others who are less fortunate;

I wish you the gift of strength to follow your truth and your path;

I wish you the gift of strength to stand up for your beliefs;

I wish you the gift of positivity;

May you be strong in adversity, healthy in body, mind and spirit, caring and loving to others, follow your dreams and be happy.

 

Reality or Illusion

Recently there has been a lot of talk about Fake News. But all news media reports are often not true or only partially true as they miss out important facts about what they are reporting. Live news reports have a time limit and the person doing the report has to choose which bits to keep in and what to leave out. This often gives a distorted view of what is actually going on.

So what about the reality of all this? According to one dictionary definition, reality is the state of things as they actually exist. We all know about our own reality, the things we do, what we see around us in our daily lives, etc., but we rely on the media to tell us what is happening elsewhere and to tell it as it is not what they think it is. The media is often used to persuade us to see things differently, to not see the reality but to see the illusion they are sharing with us. The dictionary definition of illusion is a deceptive idea or impression, a false idea or belief.

Over the last year or so we have seen false ideas and many false impressions of what is going on in the world. Look at Brexit, the US Presidential election, the war in Syria and the issue at Standing Rock for starters. How can we decide what the reality is in those areas? This is difficult if we know nobody personally who can tell us. But then we all have a different perception of what we see so what is the reality of these situations? Is it what we see or hear from others or what we are told in the media?

I currently see two world situations where I am concerned that the truth is not being told and that we are given false ideas of what is going on. One of these is Syria and the other is Standing Rock. I am lucky that I have what I call a ‘gut conviction’ of what is the truth and what is an illusion but it is still hard to know what is the reality and what is media hype. It seems as if the whole world media want us to believe things are different from what they really are and I wonder who is paying them to do this. For me it is all about being controlled by people who don’t want us to see the truth, the reality of our world or they would lose their power.

I will stop here as I am sure that many of my readers will have lots to say about this. I look forward to reading your comments.

Spreading love and peace

There seem to be more wars going on around the world than ever before. For centuries there have been wars and then we had the one war that would end all wars. Well, that didn’t happen as there have been quite a few wars since then. History just keeps repeating itself and we do not seem to learn from our mistakes.

As a druid I am all for peace and love, respect for others and a fairer world. Our thoughts are energy so thinking about peace and love sends ripples out into the world and reaches others often through their subconscious minds which in turn stimulate them to think about peace and love.

There are songs around, some of which have been around for years like ‘Imagine’ and ‘Love is all you need’. Keep singing these and it will have an effect but the more of us who do this, the quicker there will be change. All over the world are little groups of people doing this and each time we send out peace and love it moves through the whole world.

To change the world you have to be the change. Change the way you work with words and send positive thoughts of peace and love out all the time. It only takes seconds to do this. It is all about intent. Stand up for what you believe in and intend that the world is peaceful and fairer for all.

There is an old video on youtube worth watching. It is still relevant today

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-HbtxumvLM .

Sunday ramblings and music

I was not sure what to write about this week so I will be rambling a bit. It has been a quiet week in many ways with the weather changing every day. I have been looking for more signs of spring and there are quite a few now. Yet some mornings everywhere is white with frost and it is very icy underfoot. When going out on my mobility scooter I have to take care not to skid and tip it over!

My joy this week has been the purchase of a digital piano. I have played the piano since I was seven years old and there has always been music in my life. But I moved a while back to somewhere with no space for a piano and it had to go. Now I am living somewhere different with a little bit more space so I can have another piano. Music soothes my soul and I find it hard to live without it. My fingers are a bit stiff but practice will help with that so some piano playing every day. I also feel it will help with depression too. I feel so different as well so it must be good for me.

Are you a music lover? Do you play an instrument? How does it make you feel?

Sunshine and hope

What a difference the sun makes! You feel so much better and cheerful when the sun is out. The flowers are starting to bloom and the fledglings are learning to fly. I counted at least 10 this morning on my shed roof. It brings us all hope in this troubled world. The natural world carries on and grows throughout whatever the weather does. The cold has made the spring growth happen much later but nature has survived and shown us that we can survive too.

There are many people in our world struggling with one thing or another. Some have lost loved ones, others have lost their jobs and some have lost their homes for various reasons. But out of this mire will come something new. Each disaster we have in our lives, makes us stronger and we learn how to live in a better way so that some of the disasters which are of our own making, do not happen again. Look around you and see how nature has survived the long cold winter, see the flowers blooming, the tiny fledgling birds learning to fly. Let them give you hope and strength to move on and work your way through any problem in your life. Visualise yourself living in the way you want to live, caring, nurturing but strong and connecting with everything around you.

The peony in my garden is now flowering and gives me joy every day as I look on its beautiful colours and petals. Look around you to find something which gives you joy too.

Time out and being still

Taking time out is important for us all. Many people rush around all day and often until the late evening. It is as if they have to always be on the go and find things to do so that they are always occupied. Are you one of these people?

Do you find it hard just to sit and be still even for a few minutes?

I have just been lucky enough to have three days away, time out for me but also time for my writing without other interruptions. However I also found the time to explore the woodland, to sit and watch the birds and trees. I also walked the labyrinth, each time in silent meditation.

If you learn to be still for just a few minutes every day, all kinds of things start to fall into place and life becomes easier and less hectic. Worries become less as your time out increases. The stillness helps you to get your life into perspective. Do you need to rush everywhere? Do you need to do all the mundane things in your life? Look at what you do every day and find a small space where you can just sit and be still. Watch the birds, listen to their singing or just sit with your eyes closed. See if it makes a difference to your life.

My photo this week is of one of the ponds in the grounds of Launde Abbey. I sat there for hours watching the reflections move in the water. Could you have done the same?

Wanting and needing

During and after a Beltane meditation, the difference between needing and wanting came up. If you don’t have a lot of money then the question of do you need something or do you just want something can often cause quite a lot of argument between people.

In today’s world we all seem to want everything that is available for us to buy and many people get into debt because they feel they have to have what they want. As I’ve grown older and delved deeper into my spiritual side, I now find the decision of needing something much easier to deal with. But for many this kind of decision is much harder. Of course, the wanting or needing something can apply to jobs, holidays and other things such as relationships as well as the purchase of material goods.

There are other ways of looking at this kind of choice but you have to be honest with yourself. You can look at the ethical side of the holiday or goods that you buy. Do you really need whatever it is? Why do you need it? Is it a good buy or the kind of bargain that falls apart after a few weeks?

I was brought up with parents who believed that you bought nothing until you had saved enough money to buy it. The only exclusion to this was the mortgage on the house. There was always enough food despite the post-war rationing and my mother made my clothes as well as her own. My father grew vegetables in the garden and enjoyed walking in the local parks. We had no TV so there were no adverts to try to persuade us to buy things we did not need or even want. There is so much pressure today to buy things we don’t need, to take holidays abroad and to do things we don’t really want to do.

Does your respect for others and our natural world influence what you buy and how do you choose whether it is a need or a want? Does your spiritual path influence this as well?

I’d love to hear your ideas on this theme. This mornings photo is of the trees at the back of my garden just coming into leaf. They give me hope for the changes in the world that I would like to see.