Love Truth's Full Moon Fire Works

Independence Day and the Full Moon shared the fourth of July this year.

The teaching of this moon cycle for July is LOVE TRUTH. She seems to be calling out to us to love the TRUTH of our country, the United States of America. 

We need a comprehensive and unconditional Love to face the truth of our country's history.  Facing the truth in our country's history is the only way to manifest the vision for our country written by our imperfect founding fathers. 

Like most communities, our town did not have official fireworks this year, yet neighbors cobbled together their own informal shows.  I went outside to look at the full moon. A friend had texted me the moon was unusually large and exceptionally beautiful. A disorganized yet seeming unending barrage of flashes disrupted my intention of contemplating this deep yellow globe hanging just above the horizon. My feelings from earlier in the day flashed in my mind--I woke up feeling an ambiguous but deep grief.  I moved through my day, unsettled by feeling, but trying to focus on preparations for a social distanced barbeque.  When Alexa selected a patriotic play list, the identity of my grief made itself known: the meaning I held of this holiday had been torn away from me-not by the president, although he is the principle catalyst, but by the explosion of truth telling that is bursting forth upending every aspect of our lives. There was my grief; the meaning of 'independence day' has been shattered.  

I stood in the dark, watching. Fireworks flared and faded, sulfur smoked wafted thick and then drifted away. This July full moon, whose meaning for me is a reminder to LOVE TRUTH stayed steady and unaffected.  It is possible to love truth even when it is ugly and has caused deep and long harm.  Anyone who has recovered from an addiction with the help of the principles and tools of a twelve-step program has this experience.

Our country needs-we need, this kind of love of Truth that explodes the old myths and lies and nurtures the seeds of possibility and potential that the visionary authors of our 'declaration of indepence' compiled nearly 245 years ago.  We are a country in need of recovery, and we may not have another chance if we fail to embrace our truths yet again. 

 

Thursday Summer Blessing

Karen shares a blessing that resonates with her journey of Love Truth:

Thursday Summer Blessing

As the tree shares its gifts of fruit,
So I, too, share the gifts of me.
For in me
Is the facilitator
Of a more loving world;
In me is the catalyst
For a greater social awareness.
In me is the power of the Word,
And I share that gift with All.

--Essene Book of Meditations and Blessings
     by Danaan Parry


Carolyn shares:  When Karen shared this blessing with me, I truly felt it as 'a blessing'.  As I read these words, I felt an affirmation of my intention and commitment to open myself to love the truth of what is and my desire to be a catalyst who helps others know the power, peace and sense of well-being which comes with loving the truth.  Reading this blessing, I heard this: There is power in the Word, and this power is a gift.  And I am blessed in sharing this gift.
I left my contemplation time with a deep sense of peace and with hope. To embrace 'power', I think will be a practice, and the coming cycle of Serve Truth, will offer a time for practice.

We All, Eventually, Return Home to Ourselves

29 days on a journey committed to loving what is Truth will reveal parts of our character that have previously been hidden in shadow.  As we embrace these parts of our selves, such
harmful behaviors, errant beliefs, or judgments (of self and others), it is common to experience feelings of shame.
Love Truth invites us to compassionate forgiveness of ourselves for all the foibles of our life journey so far.  we are the prodigal goddess of Sara's poem.  The parent we are returning to is ourselves, the woman we are becoming; the woman Love Truth has invited us to see as Truth.  We are returning to a mansion where a life rich with possibility, creativity, growth and abundant love is waiting to be experienced.

Wait no longer to Love all the Truths of your journey thus far. Embrace the imperfections of your life as a human being. This conscious act starts the healing, just as in Jamie Sams' story of Loves All Things.

Sewlf Reflection:  Have I allowed ALL of me to return to rest in my own being, in my heart?

The Quest to Love Truth Bridges the Gaps in Our Perception and Judgment

The quest to love Truth is the journey of compassion.  The Truth cycles up to this point have been offering us gentle invitations to embrace a more compassionate way of living: with ourselves, with others, and in the world. On this quest to Love Truth we now come face to face with what we perceive or judge as wanted or unwanted, good or bad, kind or hurtful, honorable or shameful...For most of us, coming face to face with the undesirable of these is like coming to a cliff edge 'reality' and come to an abyss of our fear-based perceptions and judgments.

Our options are always the same:  We can turn back, taking up our addictions for comfort and retreat. We can freeze-up emotionally or physically and become frozen into inaction. We can fight them until they consume us and we end up falling into the abyss. OR...we can build a bridge of compassionate forgiveness, one plank at a time to span the abyss of our dark shadows--all those places we can not yet truthfully see in ourselves, judge in others, and perceive in the world.

Self Reflection: When I lay down my judgment of self and others, I am freed to accept the Truth,  I am able to love what, in my error of perception, I deemed unlovable. I am freed from a prison of my own making, and I cross the abyss toward a freedom of great love.

Our Traveling Companions for Our Waning Moon Journey

Let the days of the waning moon be a journey of more fully experiencing those aspects of our life that have woken up in us during the waxing moon.
We take as our waning moon traveling companions, compassion, acceptance, patience and forgiveness.
We embrace imperfections in ourselves and in others, and we celebrate even small progress.
Joy, appreciation, faith, trust and hope fall into step beside us.

Self Reflection: I can be aware of the joy, appreciation, faith, trust and hope that surrounds me--waiting just to be noticed with my awareness.

Acting on My Intention to Love

Karen shares a blessing for the intention to love:

There is a vibration
That emanates from me
In whatever I do,
Mingling with,
Enhancing or detracting from
The Universal Vibration,
Depending on the quality
Of my intent.
I commit myself
To a positive enhancement
Of the Universal Vibration
Of Love
In each act and thought
That I create.

Essene Book of Meditations and Blessings

Self Reflection: I commit to practice loving all the is.

The Full Moon arrives. Just in Time!

Creator of all that is, we need this full moon of Love Truth to shine her brightest!

The people of the earth are suffering from the illusions put forth by our shadows.

We need Truth to be illuminated to her fullest.

We need to see the truth beyond the shadows of small stories, media slant, and stubborn prejudices.

We need the light of the full moon, whose nature it is to expose distortion and invite clarity, to bring us clear vision, truthful knowing, and words coming through Truth’s Love.

Welcome full moon! You have arrived in the nick of time!

Self Reflection: I open my heart to let in the full moon of Love Truth to fill and illuminate my heart!

Our Work is to Love Our World, Our Community, Nature, and the Home Which Shelters Us.

The cycles of the moon are a continual reminder of how Divine Love invites us to begin again and again and again, as many times as we must, to live our calling and fulfill our purpose for our life.  While it may never be easy to stay focused, having a routine and living in our familiar and usual environment can help keep us staying in alignment with our intentions. And yes, we can also use our surroundings to distract ourselves from our intentions!

So, what happens when we are not in a space or environment where we feel supported in keeping our  intention for living our life calling?

Two thoughts come to mind: The first one, I mention only briefly: our Life Calling should be broad enough to encompass the moment to moment experience of our daily lives.

The second is that our Life Calling becomes the anchor for our future. It can draw us toward our life purpose, even when the path we are on becomes rocky and crooked, or takes a detour. It will help us see the bigger truth of a world we struggle to stay connected with. The moon cycle energy for this month-and the energy of summer and the cycle of the south, all  are reminders for loving the truth what is, not just in relation to ourselves, but the full truth of our entire globe: all the peoples of the world, our own community, all nature around us and our own homes.

Why is this so critical, especially at this time in creation? Because  'love' is the most nourishing nutrient there is for growing a healthy human, a healthy community, a thriving, abundant nature and a world that will come to know Love IS her Truth.

Self Reflection: Will I do my full part into create a nourishing environment for all my world?

Embracing the Journey of Loving Truth.

To love truth is to accept both our gifts and weaknesses, our strengths and the places we still struggle, our failures and our victories.  In accepting all of our self, we are not diminished, but made whole. We become complete human beings, with a great capacity to love, and carriers of Wisdom.

In Jamie Sams story of Loves All Things, the clan mother of July's moon cycle was eventually able to see how the errors in her perceptions had caused great harm to herself, others and the world. She became willing to see the larger Truth about her life experiences. Only then was she able to seek forgiveness and make amends to her community.  Only then was she able to step into her role as wise teacher and mentor for her community. Her struggles were transformed into compassion and wisdom. We too have this capacity. It is our birthright.

Self Reflection: I accept both my gifts and my weakness, my victrories and my failures, my strengths and the places I still struggle.

Wednesday Summer Blessing

Karen shares wisdom of Love from the Essene's:

Does not the apple tree
Share its fruit with all,
Not choosing who is blest?
As my Vessel
Overflows with Love,
Do I not share this Love with all?
For in our Oneness
There exist no chosen ones.
Only Fellow Travelers do I see
On the path back home
To The Divine.

--The Essene Book of Meditations & Blessings

Self Reflection: I am a fellow among fellows, all traveling on the path toward Love, of Love.

A Call to Keep Loving Through the Terror

Carolyn shares: "The slaughter throughout the world continues. With the grief that rises from within, I can barely center myself to hear any guidance inviting me to post tonight.  I know in my heart love and truth will prevail, but I think it will be long journey." 

We must keep loving. We must love even more than we think is possible.  We must keep looking for the light which is there, waiting to  burst forth from these dense dark shadows.  We must Keep the faith by holding fast to our commitment to Love. 

Self Reflection:  Do I commit to 'keep in loving'?

Messages Received: We are Never alone; Our Tears are Waters of Transformation

Carolyn Shares: In my morning contemplation these words came through my heart, leaving a sense of peace and well-being I have not felt for a long time: "You never walk alone. I AM always with you. Bring your heart into everything you do and all will be foundationally well, allowing you to see, hear, know, feel, touch, sense, taste, receive, learn and accept the Truth of All That Is."

The feeling of peace continued and I was able to let myself sink into deeper knowing about the gift of these words: "...this experience of foundational well-being can always happen, even in the midst of trauma, disaster, or violence. It occurs also in the midst of tremendous joy and beauty or when in the middle of overwhelm. With this practice of bringing your heart into everything LOVE, which is Truth, will wash over all. Your tears, all tears, are the waters bringing transformation."

Self Reflection:  Can I bring my heart into EVERYTHING I do?

Loving the Truth of the Creative Part of My Being

Loving myself is the doorway to being a human who adds to the creative juices of the world. When I am able to love the truth of myself, my life becomes a living expression of Creation's vision for my being. My actions become creative and life giving. They have the capacity to nourish everything I touch. In return I, too, am nourished.  I flourish and prosper.

Self Reflection: Do I nourish and honor my creativity truthfully?

Our Truth is Reflected in Our Relationships

Our Own Truth is reflected in how we relate to others. 

Our relationships can reflect the parts of ourselves with which we resonate--like attracts like.
Our relationships can reflect to us the parts of ourselves we reject, or that we need to learn to love-- finding ourselves repeating the same kind of relationships with the same kind of conflicts and challenges.

The gift of relationship is the gift of experiencing the truth of our own being through our interactions with others, as well as their response to us. It is a primary catalyst for our becoming our True Self.

All the cycles of truth are experienced through relationships.  This is true leading way back to the original gift of the Cycles of Truth relayed through the story of Hiawatha (also see the wolf clan teaching lodge ), with each teaching a necessary and cyclical precursor to the one that follows:

Learn Truth

Honor Truth

Know/Accept Truth

See Truth 

Hear Truth

Speak Truth

Love Truth

Serve Truth

Live Truth

Work/Walk (in) Truth

Share Truth

Thank Truth

Be Truth

Self Reflection: With what in my relationships do I resonate? What in my relationships do I reject?

To Love the Truth in Others, We First Must Love the Truth in Ourselves

What does it takes to be able to love all things?  We must be willing to develop a personal practice of being willing to trust ourselves, to trust what we feel, to acknowledge what we CAN KNOW when we REALLY LISTEN to our body, our gut, our feelings, and when we do all fear of loving dissolves. Why would this be so?  Because when we truly listen to our body then we become grounded in our body. We can trust our feelings to tell us how we are experiencing our life. Our thinking will be more in alignment with truth. WE (our spirit, personality, psyche and soul) become ever more fully embodied as our unique self .  We really cannot love another, or love life until we experience love for ourselves.


Self Reflection:  What must I do to trust myself more fully so that I may live loving the Truth in myself?

Love Truth and the Way of Our Mind PART TWO

Carolyn Shares: As I sit in meditation and continue watching the thoughts of my mind, always inviting her toward stillness, the flavor of her thought patterns becomes clear. My mind has a story, a number of stories. I recognize these stories aren’t necessarily true. They have been created by my beliefs, which are based largely on my past experiences, things other people have told me, and my observations (which are colored by my experiences, beliefs and information received from others).  As I become aware of the origin of the stories of my mind, I recognize my own influence on my mind’s patterns. What I feed my mind reflects my how I love and care for her. Do I fill her with experiences and images that inspire, uplift and grow? Or do I feed her violence, resentment and fear, a need for power and control?

Self Reflection: To love my mind is to treat her well, and to nourish her with supportive food for thought. To love the Truth of her as she is moment to moment, requires I am willing to see my part in how I have encouraged both her loving and destructive qualities.

Love Truth and the Way of Our Mind

Jamie Sams story of 'Loves All Things' (The 13 Original Clan Mothers)  tells of the destruction we are all capable of when we fail in our ability to truly love ourselves. We falter in our efforts because we have lost awareness of what is the Truth/the much larger picture of our experiences). This is a powerful cautionary tale of despair, destruction and redemption. It is worth reading. 

Our mind is a powerful vehicle for either embracing Truth or obsessing over inaccurate thoughts patterns of a self-created reality. 

How do we know obsessive thought patterns are inaccurate?

• They have a compulsive and intrusive quality. We think of them repeatedly, even when we don't want to.
• Their dominance in our life drives decisions that nearly always end in a bad outcome.
• They support and are justification for destructive actions.
• They tend to exclude others or be against others rather than being inclusive and receptive.
• They encourage us to be defensive and resentful.

Are these are symptoms of an 'unloved' mind? Maybe so. They certainly are symptoms of a mind that has not been provided the support and resources needed to know, receive and experience a Whole Truth.  

The way of shifting the mind's patterns of thinking is very simple, but not easy, as an habituated mind will resist any change that it perceives threatens 'taking care of 'itself'. Just as with our body, we begin by actively and consciously loving our mind. This process of expressly loving our mind is different then our practice of listening to our body. Learning to love the truth of our mind is not through listening to her (we already do that and have, no doubt, experienced the chaos this can cause). Rather, it is by our consistent and deliberate guidance of our mind that we are invited to go ever deeper underneath our thought patterns to know and reveal our Truth. If this sounds like a meditation practice--it is exactly that!

Self Reflection: Am I willing to consistently and deliberately guide my mind toward a larger Truth?

Loving the Truth of All Aspects of ‘Me’: Starting with My Body PART TWO

To Love Truth means to live in acceptance of what is shown us; which ultimately means we come to love the very thing we have had difficulty accepting.

Carolyn continues her share: "Following my imaginary walk with my body, I became aware of a new, clear intention to actually spend time and energy loving my body. Today I felt myself wanting to love her and care for her. And because of her trust in sharing her truth with me,  I heard clearly how she experienced me as always rushing, and the cost of that behavior to her health and ability to give me what I want and ask of her. She reflected to me (as do all our relationships reflect a larger truth to us) the rushing behavior that is so prevalent in almost all areas of my life.  How, just like cramming food down my throat, I cram way too much into my day and my schedule. She, my body, who is servant to the rest of me, pays the price. Her care is the first thing I have been setting aside in favor of other 'necessities' on my calendar. Of course, all this can change, must change. I will practice loving her, and I will stop putting off until tomorrow what is called for today.  I believe that is called 'living in the present'. It is the best prevention for warding off the phrase "it's too late".  This lesson has been hard won in the 60+ years I have already lived. My body sharing her wisdom and experience with me lets me know I have a choice."

Self Reflection:  Am I willing to live in balance in my life, in balance with my body?

Loving the Truth of All Aspects of ‘Me’: Starting with My Body

Imagine yourself taking a taking a walk with your physical body. Of course, anytime we take a walk, it is our physical body who does the walking, but this time, imagine you are walking with your physical body, as a companion to her.  The two of you are walking with the intention of having a truthful conversation about your body and it is first ‘body’s’ opportunity to speak truth to you, and you job is listening and to receive with an open, non-judging and receptive heart, to your body’s truth.

Carolyn shares: "The first time walking with my body, I chose a set time for meditation-about 25 minutes and sat comfortably, imagining walking beside this body, long silver grey hair and an easy gate in her walk. I ask  my‘body’ to speak to me the truth of her experience as the one who carries the rest of me around. 

"My body speaks: 'You don’t give me enough time-enough time to go to the bathroom, I feel hurried, like you are impatient with how long bodily functions take. And the same with eating. I can’t digest as fast as you eat, it’s hard for stomach to deal with the chunks of food that you haven’t chewed well enough to break down. This makes your allergies worse, and then I suffer for that because I have bits of toxins and irritation in the most tender places of my body: my joints and soft tissue. It’s hard to stay healthy when I am using so much of my daily energy to deal with that, and yet, I want to move more. That would help every part of me.'

"My body continues: 'I feel like when you look at me you are comparing me with how you think I should look, noticing new wrinkles and age spots, or places you call ‘fat’. Give me time and I can show you how I am meant to look- not the way you think I should, not the way I do now. You are not able to imagine that, but I would reveal it to you, if you would let me.'

"I ask what Body needs: 'Love me, appreciate the 24/7 work I do for you. Be willing to set aside the habits of the emotions and the mind where I end up feeling like a catch-all for your unfinished emotions and unresolved conflicts. I am a garbage can for food stuff that you love, but is toxic for my cells and my heart. Have gratitude, don’t just say it, act toward me as if you are grateful. This is energy for me, for my soul-yes I am a part of your soul.' I am surprised by that, I hadn’t thought of my soul as having ‘parts’, but it makes sense when I think about it, that I am ALL a manifestation of my soul’s energy.

"My time for my walk with my body is coming to a close, and I feel I have just scratched the surface in hearing what my body would teach me about her truth. I am surprised that the anxiety I had at the start is no longer present in my body, or in my feelings. I feel more connected with this physical part of myself.  I do thank my body, and I AM living in a different way to change this relationship with my body. I feel my intention and desire to be in partnership with her, a symbiotic relationship, being mutual servants to each other. I thank her and let her know we will walk again. "Everyday” She says. “I’m not finished yet!”"

Self Reflection:  What would my body say to me?  Am I willing to walk with her and listen?

New Moon For July: Learning To Love Truth in All Aspects of Life

To Love Truth is to fully embrace 

joy and sorrow

pain and pleasure

triumph and failure

history and vision

with a full and open heart!

This Moon cycle teaches us to Love Truth in all her manifestations and in all experiences of our human journey. Love has an immense creative power when freely given, and horrifyingly destructive power when we are blind to the inevitable change and loss that is part of life.  

Self Reflection for today's New Moon: This cycle I am invited to expand my capacity and willingness to love. I first begin with loving myself.  Without loving self (as I currently am, not as I think I need to or should be) It is not possible to really love another, or the world, or even the one we name as our Source and Creator.  

On this new moon I reflect on how I AM loving my body, my mind, my emotions, my spirit. I will reflect on how I have yet to learn what it means to Love the Truth of these.  I make my lists and trust through the course of these next weeks, wisdom will come bringing me the teachings I need to learn to love my WHOLE self, so that I may love all.