All I Know

All I know is that when tragedy happens, and the world seems like it’s falling apart or that we will tear each other apart with our bare hands, I ask, what can I do, right now, to help? What can I do as one person who seemingly has no power or influence or enough wealth or status to change the world? The answer: bring forth the light from within. Please bear with me, as this used to be an “eye-roll” moment for me. Until I started practicing “bringing forth the light from within.”

It’s important that we all take time to get quiet. It doesn’t take much, I promise. That 30 seconds in the shower, the 2 minutes it takes to brush our teeth, or the one minute we get alone between leaving home and going to work, we can do SOMETHING to quiet the world around us and feel love. Make it intentional. Make it real. Pause and close your eyes and imagine what it is that makes your heart feel full, feel good. When you have that image, thought, or vision, and you automatically start to smile, FEEL IT and lean into how that makes your heart happy. Hold that feeling, that vibration. What do you see? How do you feel? What sensations do you have in your body right now?

When we get quiet, and we feel our happy heart, I implore you to believe me that it makes such a difference to the world.

I believe in my heart of hearts that we walk this earth at this moment in time for a purpose. Through the turmoil, injustice, and oppression, joy, celebration, and peace, we are all living together right now as one and it is pre-destined. I truly believe in my heart of hearts that we all have magic in us, and it’s our responsibility to honor that magic. What is the magic, you ask? Well, our magic is our intuitive voice. It’s our Soul Speak. It’s the gentle, persistent nurturing voice that speaks to us in such a way that we know it’s a good thing. It’s kind, never harsh; it never judges or makes us feel bad or conflicted. It is pure and unconditional.

When we all honor our magnificence, wild and beautiful things happen. What is your magnificence? Maybe you are a check-out person at the grocery store with the same customers every week with whom you share a quick and familiar smile and laugh; that interaction puts someone in a good mood and they end up yelling less, or sharing a joke later in the day that makes other people laugh. Perhaps you are the accountant that helps someone organize their life or help with planning for college, retirement, or a new home. Maybe you are a coach teaching others your passion which inspires them to be better and healthier. Perhaps you are President Zelenskyy and feel the power of your truth so fiercely that there is no turning back. Or maybe you're a mom, like me, whose heart fills up to the max and then some when she sees her kids laugh, tell a joke or look at you with so much love that your heart could melt for days. Big things, little things, it all matters.

Whatever it is, listening to your heart and your soul speak is essential in raising your vibration. When we focus on listening and nurturing ourselves and those around us that we love, we raise the vibration of the planet. When we focus on our circle and lift those around us up, if they choose to move up with us, we live our earth-bound purpose. Let’s not feel the fear loop- the loop of anger and feeling out of control as a collective. We are all sovereign beings. And in our current times, we have to use the power we have as magnificent humans to project love, light, and persistence to see and be the change we want to see in the world. This isn’t just Roe v Wade; this is Africa, this is Ukraine, this is the middle east, this is India…. Our persistence in loving ourselves and spreading love to those around us makes a difference in the worldview. I feel this truth in my bones, in my cellular DNA.

And that looks different for all of us. Maybe that’s one of you marching in a protest, maybe it’s donating money to a food bank, maybe it’s doubling down on a commitment to vote in any and all elections, maybe it’s going to school to become an advocate for peace and human rights. We have options, despite all the voices telling us we don’t.

I tell my kids all the time, that if it doesn’t feel LIGHT in your BODY then it’s not right for you at that moment. SO what are you feeling in your body right now? Do you need to pause if you’re not feeling LIGHT and lean into what feels right for you at this moment? The world will be full of discomfort, and I don’t need to validate the “wrong” – I know it’s there. I don’t want to put suffering in a box. But I do want to show it out the door.

I think there is a misconception in the world that we have to have all the answers and fix all the world’s problems if we are anything close to being worthy human beings. Well, I call BS. I do not believe that to be true. When overwhelmed with the world, we need to look at one little piece, one little chunk, and offer it grace and gratitude. Feel the discomfort. Get pissed off at the intrusion and the injustice. Then show it the door.

I’ve talked about gratitude books until I’ve been blue in the face. They work. Get a 99-cent composition notebook and write down 5 things you’re grateful for every day. Recently, every day, there has been another thing that showed up in my life that I could not control, predict or prepare for. Sprinkle in a little world chaos, and there’s another week of sleepless nights and anxious dreams. So I got my book of gratitude and forced myself to see my blessings:

I am grateful for my comfy bed

I am grateful for another day with my husband

I am grateful for wonderful doctors and powerful medicine

I am grateful for earth medicine.

I am grateful for the lovely Italian wine in my basement

I am grateful for cranky children who are denied extra video game time

I am grateful for being here and now

I am grateful for another day on this planet

I am grateful for a life filled with love

Another thing I do when I feel like the world might swallow me up whole is stop everything. Honestly, I usually clean the kitchen first and fold all the blankets on the ridiculously huge sectional couch we have in our home. THEN I go to my quiet space, and I meditate. For me, meditation is connecting with spirit. It’s not on a mat with a straight back and crisscross apple sauce legs; it’s me sitting or standing, wherever I’m at, and imagining my roots in the heart of Mother Earth and the crown of my head open to the Upper World and I ask Spirit, what do I need to do RIGHT NOW to feel good?

Connecting with spirit every morning is a part of my life and my life’s work. I know it’s not for everyone, but I hope you will find something that works for you in a brief moment, to think or see something that brings you joy and happiness and makes you feel loved. At the very least, know that I love you and that I see you; not in a creepy stalker way but as nurturing energy.

When I am REALLY stuck and in the thick of it and feeling the collective angst, fear, and sickness, I write. And the simplest thing I do, so I don’t have to think, is start writing, “I remember _________”. I don’t know how I started doing this, but it’s a writing exercise I learned a long time ago and have seen time and time again in various writing groups. Whatever time I’m at in my life, I can always go to this activity, and only the most relevant and healing stuff comes up and out.

This is purely stream of consciousness, meaning I write down whatever comes to mind. I don’t have to think; It doesn’t have to make “sense”; I only have to feel, and things flow out of the tip of my pen. You do not have to be any kind of writer to do this! You need to be a human with a pen and paper in front of you. Or maybe this is something you do while you’re jogging, hitting tennis balls, or shooting hoops, or maybe you like sitting and saying things out loud. Don’t think, just feel and do. Sometimes I like to walk and listen to Rob Zombie when I’m particularly angst-y. The I Remember activity always follows suit: I remember having my ribs bruised in a mosh pit in NYC … I remember when RUN-DMC were gods, I remember the original Lollapalooza, I remember Primus in the mud…

It can also be a very simple activity to pull any negative and damp energy out of your head. For instance, I’ve started with “I remember that I put my gluten-free bread in the wrong toaster this morning b/c I hadn’t finished my first cup of coffee yet,” or “I remember when I was so pissed off that I never thought my belly would lose the feeling of having been on fire” or “I remember feeling the communication with the Redwoods in Northern California” or “I remember when I first fell in love with my husband even though he was wearing white socks with black doc marten shoes.”

I remember when I thought I would never be able to come out of the woo-woo closet

I remember when I thought I’d never live a day without chaos and noise

I remember when I inhaled water as a child and saw a mermaid smile at me

I remember when I thought I was going to die but knew somehow it wasn’t my time

I remember healing a little boy by the river in a past life and hearing his mother’s sobs of gratitude

I remember how hard I laughed with my BFF every time we went through a drive-through when we were teenagers

We can all make a difference in the world when we feel love and gratitude in our hearts. We do not have to look far to see the love. Look to your left, to your right, at a photograph on your wall of an ancestor, at your last text to your mom, partner, or kid.

I am blessed to have many friends who are amazing humans. One friend has helped women not be sex trafficked and abused and has removed them from harmful situations. I have another friend who helps people find their perfect home. Both share and spread love.

Love is everywhere, and it comes from us; it comes from within. We can do this. We are hard-wired for love and survival, not hate. I believe this to be an absolute truth. I think that when the collective responds to world events with fear and lack, we lose our power, and we no longer remember who we are; we forget our Sovereignty. We are all divine interconnected beings, even with the jerks. I know it’s hard, and I struggle with that. But let’s focus on our light and how we can share that in the world.

How will you remember, and what will you remember, to bring joy and love to your world? The ripple effect is real. There is no light without the dark. Start with the micro, and the macro will have no choice but to respond. And so it is.

Thanks for listening.

Love,

Julie.