BALANCE IN CREATIVITY

Imagine that you are planting a seed in moist fertile soil. You stick your finger into the ground and make a small hole, you drop in the seed, add a little water and cover it over. The seed is received into the soil, it sprouts upwards and downwards. Roots appear, connecting to nutrients and water. A stem with leaves reaches for the sky and the sun. See it growing, branching, putting out leaves and more roots, it becomes a vine, or a bush, grass or a tree.

Feel into this image of creation and sense the balance of it, the yin and yang of it, the masculine and the feminine, the stretching out and the flowing in. The dance of these polarities are woven through all creation. The insertion of the seed, the reception of the soil. The rooting and skyward reach. The growth so that water and light and minerals can flow into the heart, which fuels more growth.

Imagine the life force flowing through your plant, the dancing of the plus and minus in the atoms, the polarities across cell boundaries, from the leaves of the crown to the deep roots, polarities of charge and concentration, temperature and light. From the forming of the intention to the flowering of the plant, when the next cycle can begin, at all scales and in all things the masculine and feminine are dancing together to create life.

Feel into your being now. Where is the masculine, the aspects that initiate, the seeds, the insertion, the expansion? Where are the impulses, the ideas, the thoughts, the feelings or words that are the seeds; for yourself or for others? Where is the feminine, the receptive, nurturing ground that the seeds are planted in? Where are the spaces, the acceptances, the appreciations, the openings to new possibilities, new ideas, and new growth that receives the seeds and makes space for them to flourish?

Allow your awareness to enter in, and open up, to the marriage of the two, the marriage that is necessary for creation to unfold. Breath: air entering, lungs opening, expansion; air leaving lungs releasing, compression; the pulse of life. Give yourself time to allow the subtler aspect to come into the experience too. The subtle receiving of ourselves that is necessary for our creativity to take root and manifest. The subtle aspect of initiation giving yourself to yourself and others, trusting and moving forward.

Notice any limitations or fears on either the feminine or the masculine. Perhaps you are more conscious of reluctance to initiate, concern about how our seeds will be received in the world? or perhaps you are more aware of the limits on your ability to receive, to open sufficiently that your seeds have the space to flourish? How often are we afraid that our intentions might really grow and things might really change? How often do we allow the fear that they won't to keep us from even trying.

Reach for courage, masculine and feminine. Stepping on a stage, or offering an idea takes a form of courage, of trust in ourself and Spirit. It may feel risky to decide, or to offer forth, but this is the strength of the masculine. The receptivity to growth, change, success, requires a different courage, a different vulnerability. It may feel like walking naked in the world, but it is the great source of feminine power and strength.

When we limit our initiation and our receptivity, we may feel safe, but we are left with a small center ground which lacks creativity and true life force. Opening this ground into a larger space requires both sorts of courage, trusting our creative impulses and also receiving them and the energies that will help manifest them. Work them back and forth, a bit of one, a bit of the other. Leverage your courage and make the space for your creativity.

May you find this balanced courage in abundance, and come into a flourishing creative dance with yourself, Spirit, and your partners and friends. Honoring both your feminine and masculine you join in the co-creation of your world. Set the intention and open to the understanding, it will come clear to you.

(© 1/10)

ESSENTIAL JOY

Over the holiday, with family here, it became clear to me that the essential thing was for us to be connected. After all that is what Christmas, Solstice, Hannukah, and the other year end festivals of Light are about, being connected to the Light, our selves, our family, and our Source.

There are certain traditional activities that our family does together that represent the holiday time for us. We put up a tree and decorate it, we give each other presents, we have a big family dinner. You and your family or friends probably have your own set of elements that "make up" the season. The way we approach these activities is important. It is easy to feel rushed and overwhelmed when faced with snow storms and lists for shopping or things to "do". The pieces of the holiday may become tasks that somehow we need to accomplish to have everything be "OK", but we're happier if others do them. We may feel separated and alone even with so many people around. We are missing the essence, the togetherness. All of this showed up early last week, wanting to feel that connection and the overwhelming sense that it might be missing in spite of all the business.

So I took time in the shower to release the grief and frustration that came up. Slowly others stepped up a bit, I let go a bit, I saw more clearly that all the "elements" are not to be done for their own sake, but to provide a space, an opportunity for us to do something together with our loved ones. That is where the joy comes. When I was young we used to take time to bake cookies and fruit cake, strain cranberry sauce, and spend time in the kitchen. It wasn't a chore to be done as fast as possible, or passed off to someone else, it was a fun time of tastes and smells and being together with family.

The season is like a ceremony, the elements are only important to the extent that they create space and support the intention; fellowship, love, peace and good will. It was still a fast week, speeding by, but I realized that if we couldn't figure out how to have fun with it we were missing the point. Perhaps shifting to an attitude of play would help too. So put on some music and gather round the tree, or in the kitchen, tell jokes, laugh. Let the "task" be a game to do together, something shared, a co-creation. This being together and co-creating is the essence and the point of the season, and what we will remember and cherish long after when we have forgotten the details of the dinner, or what presents we got, or didn't.

Life is to live from the soul and do only that which feeds the soul and nurtures connection, rather than madly rush through a check list. Recognizing the essence, and that the rest are details which are only important to the extent they serve the mood, the intention of coming together to call the Light in and forth. It is in knowing that we do this collectively, this year, in the moment, uniquely co-creating spaces that serve connection, joy and life. In shifting our perspective we can shift our experience. The week was fast, full, but not just busy, there was joy, play, connection and co-creation too.

I hope you also got to feel something of creating with others this year, calling in the Light with family or friends or your guides. I invite you to carry this forward into the New Year, knowing that amidst all the changing externalities your heart tells you what is essential and will guide you in creating spaces for it.
What serves connection? How can we re-create what we are doing so that it becomes a space, a ceremony, a game that is grounded in Spirit and is connected to each other and to Source?

Just like stepping through a screen or veil, appearances are not changed much on the outside, but everything feels different on the inside. Waking up we are more conscious of the under layers, the spiritual fabric flowing through everything. What is essential becomes clear, and in that clarity you know how to honor it and relate to things differently. Intending to be connected rather than disconnected, making that choice over and over, until by habit, persistence, and grace you realize you are connected and things are different. Even though they may look the same, they come alive and are joyful.
Blessed be.

(© 1/10)