I received the sad news today that my beloved Raven Lodge has been sold. At least an offer has been made on it. I am sad, for sure. And yet, as I hiked down to the river past the thunder of the waterfall near the covered bridge on the trail down to the Sandy River that I’ve come to love, excitement started to creep in to my senses. I hadn’t realized until then how much energy was going into hoping I could stay here.

Although the depth of sorrow isn’t the same, losing the Raven Lodge feels like losing a family member to a chronic illness. When my father died after 25 years of battling Parkinson’s Disease, living much longer than the doctors predicted, there was relief despite the sense of loss and the vacuum-like ache of his absence. It was not welcome, but inevitable and necessary, and as such the logjam of emotion shifted. It is much the same feeling today.

Along with my holding all that energy in my body, I realized that I have effectively been scheming my Plan B and I’m actually pretty excited about it. That Medicine Wheel card I drew yesterday (see post) portended change and movement. My trust in the spirits is blossoming, as I feel more and more energized that this is all good. I’m not sure exactly why, but I’m more sure than ever that the spirits have my best and highest purpose in mind. It must be because I’m looking forward to the change, instead of back with any regret.

Fog at Sunset from the Raven Lodge

Tonight, as I sat out on the old wooden bench overlooking the creek, the river in the distance, fog filling the spaces between the lines of trees covering the side of the mountain, each layer darkening against the sunset, a bright crescent appeared behind the leafless yellow poplar.

Crescent Moon

The moon is in a new cycle, a sign to me that all life continues as everything and everybody moves inexorably through each phase on our path. The scene reminded me of one of my most loved sayings… “The moon never meant to reflect on water. Water never meant to mirror the moon.” With acceptance, each moment is perfection.

The whisps of low-hanging clouds morphed in the view, looking like silk scarves blowing in the wind, although the air was still. I viewed the panorama, breathing in the earth, filled with gratitude for this moment, and all of the moments I have loved and enjoyed while here.

I have been given a gift by having this time at the Raven Lodge, of seeing the earth and all things more clearly. Of realizing what beauty and abundance I have in my life. Of what’s important, and what I want — and don’t want.

In this time, I have been dying to the old, shedding the cocoon. And I am ready to step into the next cycle of my life… to become the butterfly.

Plan B? Stay tuned…

M.

Every morning I have a ritual. For years, I thought I could do without having this routine in my life. But I have seen the tremendous benefit from taking 15 – 30 minutes to meditate on a subject; thank the spirits for their guidance, protection, and gifts; and pray for what I want to have happen in my day. What I have been doing recently is upon waking, I will read a book on spirituality, personal growth, or some other forward-looking writing for 5-10 minutes, then sit down at my altar and pull a card from the Sacred Path Cards: The Discovery of Self Through Native Teachings deck by Jamie Sams.

Sacred Path Cards by Jamie Sams

These cards are an invaluable tool for spiritual growth. The cards help cut through the illusions of self and the world. They provide a reflection of what’s happening in life. Jamie Sams writes insightful stories that provide a perspective on Native American culture, history, ceremony, and ritual, as well as specific lessons for reflection. Her work focuses on bringing balance back into our lives.

After reading her card and meditating on its message, I tie 7 prayer ties for each of the directions: East, West, South, North, Above, Below, and Within (see my post on the Medicine Wheel). Eventually, I am guided to burn these prayer ties to release their energy to the universe.

Since I have been following this routine, my life has dramatically changed. I’ll share with you some of those changes in these posts, as well as daily insights from this ritual. If you’d like to follow along, subscribe to the RSS feed in the upper right corner of the blog page and you will be notified of any updates!

Tomorrow, I’ll write about the Medicine Wheel and the Cycles/Movement of life.

Aho!

Marilyn

In the nine years I’ve studied Shamanism with Jan Engels-Smith, founder of LightSong School of Shamanic Studies, I have witnessed an ever-increasing shift in the willingness of people across all beliefs to talk more about their spirituality, about energy frequencies and how they affect what we create in our lives, and about a need to strengthen our connection with what I call Creator Energy (God, Spirit, Source, or whatever you choose to use to describe that energy). Even media icons like Oprah are regularly discussing these changes. Although everyone uses different metaphors, archetypes, mythology, symbols, rituals, ceremonies, etc. to connect to the Creator Energy, we are all, ultimately using the same basic principles to reach our higher purpose by how and what we create in our lives.

This blog is meant to give you different perspectives on how energy works, mostly from a Shamanic perspective, but also incorporating understanding from the different belief systems my path has revealed to me. I will share resources, insights, and observations that I hope will stimulate your creativity and transformation as our world moves to a new paradigm of consciousness, discovering new ways of utilizing energy to make change within, as well as changing our world.

Welcome to the Journey!

Marilyn