The Winter Solstice; the Time for Thanking Truth

On this shortest day of the year, we celebrate the longest night.  We are symbolically offered a longer span of darkness to sit with our dreams for what we might be, could be, will be as we consciously commit to being more completely our Self!

Have a wondrous and inspired solstice!  Light a fire or candles to celebrate the gift of darkness, to remember of the gift of light that is eternally within your being, to offer gratitude for the balance of life-the gift of rhythms and cycles.

Self Reflection: I thank Truth for my light, which becomes visible to me in being with my own dark times.

New Moon, December: Darkness Becomes Apparent When Exposed to Light

Darkness becomes apparent when exposed to light.
On this new moon, darkness is apparent, because, for the moment, the light reflecting from the moon is not visible to us. And in December, the darkness seems even darker as the night continues to lengthen.

This is the month to Thank Truth.  There may be things, rules,experiences, persons and institutions we struggle with, maybe even feel hatred toward, that we we not only don't want to hold in any form of gratitude.  These same 'things' we also repel from even considering that what have is true about them is not true at all, let alone ask with sincere intention to know and be grateful for the truth of these life experiences.

Gratitude is the light that will end the darkness of any situation.
We begin to bring in light by acknowledging there may be a truth in (the situation we are thinking of) that we do not yet understand and are not yet able to accept.  This can take effort and time.

Self Reflection: Am I willing to commit to continue looking for a tiny place for thankfulness, no matter how difficult or horrible the experience?  If not yet, what would I need (within myself) to look?

A Prodigal Goddess Prepares to Serve Truth

To return home,

to walk as prodigal into our own life.

Will we feast on our fatted calf?

Or mete our own justice?

To know the light, we must learn darkness.

We value most, that which is nearly lost.

Treat yourself with kindness.

Turn

and upon turning back,

Welcome yourself with open arms.

Embrace the cycle.

Hug your Goddess.

Greet yourself,

perfect in your imperfection

Originally posted by Sara on cowgirlzen.com

Self Reflection:  My imperfection is my path of learning my perfection as a child of Creator.

Encouragement For Moving Through Times of Challenge

Karen Shares:
I carried this with me all day yesterday.  May I continue to look to my Inner Nature, that Font of Love, even during the uncertain, the unknown, the silent, even violent, times of darkness:

"In this time of outward activity,
Of Creation on the physical plane,
I ask to remember
That the Wheel is ever-turning.
And I am propelled by my Inner Nature
Even as I celebrate
My Outer Nature.
For in the fullness of light
Rest the seeds of night,
And in darkness the seeds of day."

--Essene Book of Meditations & Blessings

Self Reflection:  I look to my Inner Nature, where my love sprouts, to inform how I will live my life.

Shadows and Brilliance from the Same Source

The full moon casts the deepest shadows and shines the brightest brilliance.
We turn and face the shadows of ourselves.
These shadows are distorted images and misshapen reflections of our true Self.
When we turn and face them, we see they are not the 'real thing'.
When we sit with Grace, our shadows reveal for us how we are mistaken about who we are.
Our shadow seen for what it is, we turn toward the light, and see for ourselves the shining brilliance of our being.

Self Reflection: Start by reflecting on the miraculous light of your own hands:
Cupping your hands with your fingers slightly spread in front of you. Let your eyes rest softly on your hands. Breathing gently yet deeply for twenty breathes, hold your gaze on your hands with soft eyes. These are miraculous hands; they can do so many things, caress, comfort, create...
As you breathe and gaze and appreciate, you may see a thin brilliant white aura reveal itself around the fingers.  This is the same brilliance that emanates around our whole being.  It is always there, even if we don't see it.

Heeding the Call to See the Light

As the waxing moon of April moves toward fullness, Sara’sPoem, from yesterday’s Daily Inspiration speaks to our own movement of stepping into our own fullness.  Using the gift if this cycle, to See Truth, we are given all we need to step out of fear and into Self. 

An immensely bright light beckons to us, calling us toward a thin line of  inky blackness, the crack in the cosmic egg of our Being.  This immense light is the passionate fire ever bursting forth from the heart of Creation.  We have this passionate fire in our own hearts as well. Our willingness to grow, our efforts and our actions to know more, feel more, hear more and see more bring us to the time when we notice this light and are drawn toward it. 

We have ‘seen the light’ and we can no longer close our eyes against it. A tiny crack has opened in the mask of who we believed ourselves to be, a thin line of inky blackness. It opens us to the truth of who we are in our Fullness.  Even if we turn away and try to go back to our old ways of being, we can never be the same. This light of Illumination has merged with the flame in our own human heart.  It will not let us forget.  Our experiences in our life will always call us to remember and return.

Self Reflection: Can I receive the gifts that come with a willingness to see the light in my own heart.

Inner Seeing in the Dark

The new moon time invites us to begin our choices, commitments, intentions, once again. That is the gift of each new moon, We have the opportunity to begin anew.

Practice inner seeing, being still and contemplate: "Who is this 'me', who is beginning anew?"

To sit in contemplation, prayer, or meditation with this question on our mind, in our heart, and perched on our lips is not an easy commitment.  But, it does seem easier to do in the darkness of the early days of the waxing moon.  Perhaps, this is because our physical eyes cannot see through the darkness clearly, and this gives a space for our inner eyes to reflect back to us what is Truth about who we are when look deeply within our being. We look through and past all our preconceived notions, ideas and prejudices about ourselves.

When we focus our inner seeing long enough, we will see the light that we are; the light that is our life. It has been said that the medicine bowl of the universe is filled with stars which represent light coming from the brilliance present in EVERY soul. That means us. That means, even if we do not look within, our light, our brilliance is still there. Waiting for us to see ourselves clearly.  During this Cycle of Truth,we are invited, encouraged, cajoled to a new way of seeing.

Self Reflection: I look far into my being to see the 'me' who is beginning anew.

Being with the Darkness of New Moon as a Path for Transformation

It is the time of the new moon.
Sometimes I forget the depth of darkness that arrives with the new moon.

Are there parts of my life where I am trying to push away darkness?
I push it away instead of living with it as a teacher and bringer of transformation?
This does not mean I partner or collude with darkness.
I just am with it, waiting to know what knowledge it brings to me.
What is it teaching me?
How might I be transformed by just being with it, to see what it tells me.
It is interesting that, given time, my eyes adjust to the darkness.
I can see, where only moments before I was blinded by the dark.
I can trust in the knowing to come.
I can trust what comes when I stay with the dark until my eyes can see.
This adjustment comes more quickly when I remember I can see through the eyes of my heart.
I remember the light comes.
The light comes, in Her own time.
I will see the Light.
Trust

Self Reflection:  How might the darkness of this new moon be an opening for me to see my life with new knowing-a knowing founded in trust.

Choosing to Thrive

Sara shares: "You cannot push the dark away, you can only transform it with light".  These are the words that came as my message in my morning contemplation of the meditation Reflecting on the Waxing Phase of February's Moon Cycle.  Then came these words "Manifesting Truth is not about correcting wrong behaviors".

As the full moon's light displaces the darkness of the first half of the cycle, I am reminded that I can make a choice in how I perceive my Now, my history and my future.  That choice makes the difference between thriving and surviving.

Neuroscience reveals that we make decisions primarily from one of two parts of the brain: The deep core of our brain is our "survival" mode. This part of the brain drives cravings and addictions, flight or fight mode and short-term pleasure seeking. In contrast, the prefrontal cortex is the part used when we consider long-range outcomes and the bigger picture. This is the part of the brain responsible for "thriving". Only one part of the brain operates at a time; we are either in "thrive" or "survive" mode.

We can fight the impulses of our "survival" mode, but we have a limited reserve to do so.  Significant and lasting change is much more likely when we switch to focusing on our values and the long term view, rather than 'correcting wrong behaviors'.  Welcoming the truth of our experience as a teacher on our long road is one way to do this.

For the waning portion of this cycle, as the dark slowly approaches, I am honoring the truth of what is (and was and will be) by choosing a perspective of the longer journey.  In this light, even the inevitable 'wrong behaviors' become my teachers, and no matter how long the night, I can see the dawn.

Self Reflection: I honor without defense. I welcome all teachers. I won't defend against Truth; I will take it as it is, without an effort to change it.
I won't rush to embrace what 'may be' Truth. I will embrace a practice of aware restraint.
I will take time to be with what Truth reveals itself.