Awareness

"Awareness is all about restoring your freedom to choose what you want instead of what your past imposes on you." ~ Deepak Chopra 

Lately, I have come to have a greater appreciation of this term "Awareness".  Often when I have used the term "Consciousness", or especially "Expanded Consciousness", I really mean Awareness.  

The more advanced a society is, the more it values Awareness.  Awareness has nothing to do with industrial or technological advancement.  A society could live in a pristine forest on some distant planet and be more Aware than any of us here. 

Awareness also implies honesty.  There can be differing perceptions of a topic, but when a society is intent on honestly exploring truth, and honestly conveying it, Awareness is treasured. 

To advance as a civilization, we cannot do it without valuing expanding Awareness.  It's really that simple.  Anything less will go the opposite direction.  

 

My Basement Window

"May it be a light to you in dark places..." ~ J.R.R. Tolkien

In the wonderful place where I'm now living, I spend a lot of time working on my laptop in the family room in the basement.  In Oregon, especially as we enter into November, most people would not choose to be working in a basement.  Generally basements here (if they exist at all due to the water table) would not typically be considered "bright places".

Yet my basement is.

Do we notice the little miracles all around us each day?  Many people think the Pacific Northwest is dark in the winter.  It is very true that those us of who have lived here for a while recall many a week of all cloudy days.  Last winter in particular was historically rainy, even for here!

I moved from a place that had floor to ceiling windows, exceptionally bright, as well as multiple skylights.  I had lived there many years.  I have often said that the Pacific Northwest is not actually a place where one becomes familiar with the darkness - it's a place where one becomes familiar with the Light.  I had never heard the term "sunbreak" until I first moved to Oregon, a sudden break in the clouds.

I'd say what I'm experiencing now, in my new basement, is more like a "sun flash". 

Light comes to us where we are, when we choose to see it, when we accept how it arrives.  And then perhaps we glimpse the purposes of the darkness.

On This Day, November 9

"Shining true and smiling back at all who wait to cross.  There is no loss." 

~ Kansas, The Wall

On This Day in History, November 9, 1989: "East German officials today opened the Berlin Wall, allowing travel from East to West Berlin..." 

And that's not all this date carries, for those who might look, for those who remember.

We get to choose.

We get to choose what sort of a November 9 THIS one is going to be.

I feel we are choosing already, many of us. I'm personally choosing the same thing I chose yesterday, in what might feel like an imperfectly perfect kind of a way (that's why we chose to be human).

We can simply choose to choose Love.

L-O-V-E

The choice doesn't need to appear to be perfect. Just by existing, it IS. It's about honest, heartfelt intent, in the most human of ways.

I remember early November 1989, perhaps more in feelings than in details. It was like some kind of a Miracle, back then, inexplicable, yet Real.

How could it be?

It simply was.

I remember the years leading up to it. I remember the years that came after. No, not all the details. I remember the feelings.

On November 10, they started tearing the wall down. I DO remember at least some of those details. I was 25 years old. And I had recently fallen myself - that Fall, I had fallen in love. I remember studying the images, astonished. They didn't arrive quite as rapidly in those days, but still, we all watched. I remember the front page of the newspaper. I remember the evening news. And we did already have cable.

We tended to believe back then that the wall would never actually fall (except through the madness of mutual destruction). I remember a friend telling me what it was like to have visited there, how forbidding it actually was - traveling there wasn't needed to feel it - we felt it in plenty of ways. Falling like that, truthfully, it wasn't even "a concept", for a very long time, not for most of us. As long as many of us could remember, that wall simply >was<. Yet fall it did. And it all came about in a way nobody expected.

It's time to begin.

It's time to continue.

We get to choose.

November 9.


Photo from July 1, 1988, permitted use with this attribution from Wikimedia Commons: By Neptuul (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]

Sunrise

It lasted a moment or two
or a little bit more
And that was plenty
Now unseen, yet seen.

The Window Without a View

"But lo! the morning peeps 

Over the eastern steeps"

~ William Blake

In my house upon a hill, there is a window to a wall. 

But what is it that you glimpse when you approach and truly see?

All the Angry People....

"...but angry people are not always wise..." 

~ Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Lately, I cannot help but notice...the "world situation" is making any number of people angry, and in very personal ways.  Because world situations are always very personal - they have to do with human life.

It is indiscriminate, the outrage.  If you are angry about something, and the more openly you express that anger, I can just about guarantee there is someone across "the divide" who will match it willingly, or even without thinking.

Sure, I have felt it, I have at times expressed it.  Openly.  And not so openly.  But I'm thankful I have gradually learned throughout my life to find a way to deal with it (even if imperfectly).  I'm dealing with it now.  Right here.  Right now.  Because something made me angry earlier today, and I consciously chose a different approach.

I claim no particular expertise, except to know what I have observed:  When we are angry, we are generally judging more than we are observing, and we are very rarely breathing, or at least not particularly well.

What if we could do our best to put our anger on a shelf and decide to understand instead? 

What if we could actually make an attempt to glimpse the other side? 

Wouldn't that be astonishing!?! 

(OK, fine, that last remark was just a little bit angry, because you see, I'm just a little bit angry about the anger itself and what it's doing to our lives and to our society.  I choose to see mine too, when it arises.) 

What if you could try on someone else's shoes by trying on their hearts?

You might begin to hear.

And some of "them" might very well begin to hear you too.

I must include a warning.  It takes a lot of courage to "try on" someone's heart, to allow yourself to understand.  Because the absolutes begin to fade, and that can feel uncomfortable - if you decide to tell your friends, some of them might choose to judge you, and you need to let that go. 

The starkly outlined blacks and whites begin to shift.

Some say they blur to shades of gray.  And you may see the gray at first, the mind sees gray, you may only see the gray, the mind sees ambiguity.  Keep going through the gray, keep going, keep on going (this is a very important step, it's still in process for me too).  Because when you keep on going, when you consciously choose to understand, you begin to see the colors, at first they come in softly.

There is a knowing that is impossible, yet real.  It embraces every contradiction of the mind.  It is a knowing that can only arise from Love, from heart to heart to heart to heart.

And the anger falls away.

You can look into "their" eyes, completely, without flinching...you can look into their eyes and See.

And the tears begin to flow.

The New Earth doesn't exist on one side of the bridge or on the other.  The New Earth is the Bridge.

Transistor Radio Summer #11: All Over the World

"There's gonna be a party all over the world." ~ Electric Light Orchestra

As the summer draws to a close, the Autumn Equinox just hours away, I can't help but include a song that had a magical, expansive effect on me in my teens and still does...

"I got a message on the radio....from where it came from, I don't really know....and I heard these voices callin' all over the world...."

By the way, I found the radio.

Expect a Miracle

"I am realistic.  I expect miracles." ~ Dr. Wayne Dyer

The other day, a friend told me a family she knows in Oregon packed up all of their belongings and headed for the hills, to an undisclosed location, the apocalypse deemed near.

And we are faced with a humanitarian crisis of untold proportions, as desperate refugees flood into Europe.  Barbaric extremists desecrate human life and human history, running amok.

The world is in crisis again. 

This morning, at Dawn.

What is the answer?

The first answer is to Love and to demonstrate Love, in whatever way we can.  Some Germans are showing the way.  And so is Pope Francis.

The Greater Answer, which is derived from Love, as all things must be, is to take it even Higher.

How about expecting a Miracle? 

Is this the New Earth or not?  We have a choice.  Miracles are Real.

Transistor Radio Summer #10: Born Free

"Live free, and beauty surrounds you, the world still astounds you, each time you look at a star." 

~ Born Free by Don Black

The other day I read a post on Facebook inviting us all to spend 5 minutes per day on a dream, suggesting that if a dream isn't worth spending 5 minutes per day, then it must not be all that important to us.  It's one of those posts we might tend to see one moment, forget the next.  Yet every once in a while, the simplest of instructions actually takes hold. 

You see, like many people, I have all sorts of projects in progress.  Some of these projects in progress have been in progress for years.  It might be months between visits to some of these projects.  And I asked myself:  Can I spend 5 minutes?

It wasn't long before I realized 5 minutes isn't necessarily enough, though in some cases, it is.  5+ minutes works even better.  I have made a few compromises too - not every project gets my attention every day, but I'm finding the 5+ minute rule invites me to at least visit some of them every few days. It's a very simple thing to do.

There are some things that aren't exactly dreams, but they bring us Joy.  Playing the piano is like this to me.  I am a highly imperfect piano player and was a reluctant student through most of my childhood, with a very strict, unpleasant teacher at the start.  I can save my childhood piano stories for another day.  Imperfect or not, even as an adult, playing the piano freely brings me Joy.  And it's easy to use the 5+ minute rule with the piano.

And so I just did.

And I discovered a song in a very old stack of music many of us have heard (far too many times in elevators in the 70's) and ignored or forgotten.  It gave me astonishing Joy to rather imperfectly play this on the piano just now, while dinner is cooking. 

I'd like you to listen to this song very closely. 

Listen to what it has to say. 

Don't tune it out.

Listen . . .

It can set you free.  In less than 5 minutes...

Transistor Radio Summer #9: Open Your Eyes

"Open your eyes..." ~ Asia

I write in the midst of an intensely busy week, a day surely too busy to write.  Still, I am here, because this song is going through my head, and my Heart.

Asia generally wasn't considered a "good" band of the 80's, or so I tended to hear. Still, some of their songs really reached out to me, and a few were definitely popular.  This one really wasn't "known", but it carries a message.  It did then.  It does now.  It does always.

Transistor Radio Summer #7: Feelin' Groovy

"Slow down, you move too fast, you got to make the morning last..." ~ Simon & Garfunkel

On my way to an early morning dentist appointment (when I really wanted to be on my morning walk instead), this came on the radio.  It surely had a presence on my transistor radio, long ago.

No matter what you are doing this morning (or any other time of day), no matter how you feel, take the time to listen, and to smile....

[LINK REMOVED]

Joy in the moment happens, every day, if you choose to look for it....

Transistor Radio Summer #5: Rocky Mountain High

"You might say he found a key for every door..." ~ John Denver

I grew up in Denver with the wonderful John Denver, his musical creations flowing through my days for years.  I can't remember the first time I saw John Denver at the legendary Red Rocks, but I know it was more than once.  I was surely listening to this song already in the Summer of 1973.  I play it often still.   It too is all about Awakening.

I tried to touch the sun a couple of times.  I took it into myself.  But I didn't need to take it in at all.  It was a part of me all along. 

Transistor Radio Summer #4

"A real celebration..." ~ Saturday in the Park, Chicago

And now a song on a Saturday, one I surely did hear on many a Saturday through and beyond my transistor radio, starting in 1973.  I really liked this one, from the start.  It's about Awakening.

Every day's the 4th of July...

Make A Wish

"...for to have faith is to have wings..." ~ Peter Pan, J.M Barrie

"Make A Wish"

Just three simple words and perhaps a "...."

I was about to post it on Facebook, a picture at the ready, from my time in the midst of Beauty, a walk long overdue.

And then I read the words.

And then I read them again.

And again.

As if for the very first time.

Make A Wish. 

How does a person truly "Make" a wish? 

It is a participatory process, the Multiverse embedded. 

Some might call it "co-creation"...

The picture.

Clearing a Way to the Dawn

"Only that day dawns to which we are awake. There is more day to dawn. The sun is but a morning star." 

~ Henry David Thoreau

The other day, I just happened to be upstairs in time to see the Dawn peek through my attic window. 

But I could only see a glimpse. 

There was an old bed frame in the way, boxes of papers, books and who knows what, a bag of old, abandoned shoes, and a table upside down, awaiting a garage sale. 

Hastily I cleared a path, stumbling over boxes.  By the time I foraged my way to see, it was too bright to take a picture. 

Today the Dawn arrived again.  Today the way was clear.

Transcending the Storm

For many hours yesterday I found myself utterly engaged in a modern-day version of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington unfolding in the U.S. Senate.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

I was fully prepared this morning to publish a bold and detailed blog in response, outlining meticulously in multi-partisan fashion all the many ways our rights are being infringed, not only in America, but throughout the world.

A person didn't need to be an ultra-right conservative, a Tea Partier, a Libertarian, or any kind of Rand Paul supporter at all to join the conversation last night (which trended worldwide).

My scattered Twitter contributions started with retweeting Amnesty International in the afternoon, not exactly a right-wing organization (nor is my very liberal Oregon Senator Ron Wyden):

Thanks to @SenRandPaul @SenMikeLee @RonWyden for speaking out on #drones & lethal force http://owl.li/it3Pl #filibuster

And then I RT'd someone else's response to Amnesty Internationall:

@amnesty This goes to show that bipartisanship for true principles is possible! (via @cacarrillo)

A sampling of my other tweets:

If you want to find true security, look within. #innerpeace #peace

Tune out the voice of fear and tune in to #Peace.

Our rights, our #freedom & our very way of life transcend politics. That's a good reason to #StandwithRand. #Filibuster 

#Peace requires far more courage than war.

The Senate may be going to sleep for the night, but America is finally awake. Thank you @SenRandPaul. #standwithrand #freedom

Last night, rather early on, I also RT'd:   

I'm not afraid of storms, for I'm learning how to sail my ship. ~ Louisa May Alcott (via @ShareAwakening)

So why did I choose just now not to publish what was quite a detailed, albeit artfully diplomatic, diatribe?  In the end, fully embraced by the Light of day, I chose not to allow resisting the storm to rip my sail to shreds. 

When I spoke of "transcending politics" last night, I was correct, but perhaps not quite in the way I saw it in the passion of the moment.

Resisting the storm is not what is going to steer the boat this Earth is on. I don't regret my writing exercise this morning, as it was quite cathartic, as were my tweets last night.

But it's my words of Peace I finally choose to heed today.  Truly transcending means not engaging the storm.  Truly transcending means blazing a trail to the Light that shines above it.

Yet another RT of mine last night:

Sometimes your voice finds you. #Little Mermaid (via @high_on_glitter)

I thought I had found a kind of voice, fully engaged in the storm, yet another found my heart instead.  Perhaps it will take sail.


P. S.  After I posted this blog post to Twitter, I noticed another tweet I had forgotten, my last before I went to sleep last night - somehow it wasn't in the window I was looking at before:

When you surrender to #peace, everybody wins.

I think that sums it all up quite perfectly...


Mr. Smith Goes to Washington photo considered public domain and obtained from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:James_Stewart_in_Mr._Smith_Goes_to_Washington_trailer_2.JPG.

The First Day: A Story of 2012

I wrote the following short story after what I can only describe as a vivid dream state experience I had in 2002 (a significant part of my own spiritual awakening). You can tell this short story was written around 2002 due to the assumption there would be major terrorist attacks in the years that followed 2001, plus the lack of references to modern social networking tools.

This was at a time when my writing voice was only just beginning to re-emerge, after many years of slumber, but the dream state experience was so powerful, I felt the need to bring the fear and confusion that it surfaced to resolution through my writing. I also was acquainted with many skeptics at the time in the engineering/scientific community, something you can see reflected in the story.

I attempted to publish the story around 2006 (and that is the version given here), but I was a novice short story writer, and it was rejected. In fact, I recently came across one of the rejection letters from "Asimov Science Fiction Magazine". Even so, I did receive encouraging feedback from at least one editor (not at Asimov) on what really was my first attempt as an adult at any sort of fiction.

I thought it was oddly coincidental that the 2012 movie included a relationship between co-workers in India and the U.S., even though quite different in nature. The relationship in my own story was actually based on my supervising an engineer in India around the time frame when I wrote it.

~~~~~~

The First Day
Copyright © 2002-2012, Susan Larison Danz. All Rights Reserved.

On the last day, I awakened to what seemed like a normal sunny morning. But it wasn't a normal day at all. It was the last day. The last day. Although we had known this day would come, the reality of the moment was almost impossible to comprehend. In fact, I was astonished I had slept at all.

On the news last night I'd heard millions were planning to revel until dawn. “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow...” and so it went. I wasn't much into reveling, being a more contemplative and reserved individual myself. In fact, I was relieved things hadn't gotten too far out of hand. I had earlier entertained notions that society would break down in the streets below right before my eyes. But it seems that in the end, the human race was turning out to be more dignified than anyone would have dreamed.

And then of course the news had said millions more would be spending the evening in church, and no doubt the churches would see even the most recalcitrant of souls today. As for me, I had no plans to be among them. Despite a solid Catholic upbringing, I had abandoned that path long ago. We would collectively discover “all that is” or “all that isn't” soon enough, no church required.

For some masochistic reason, I decided to turn on the news once again. I had always been addicted to the news, not really sure why. After the first major terrorist attacks in 2001, I must have watched the news for days. And the sporadic attacks over the years since hadn't helped my addiction any. But the ultimate reality of 2012 had finally stopped even the terrorists in their tracks. No doubt they were reveling in their own way today, delighted that their God was going to do their work for them. Even the governments they loathed had failed in all attempts to circumvent what had now become our inevitable fate.

As I turned on the television, my curiosity was met with “This is the emergency broadcast network. Please stay in your homes...” It didn't look like there would be much news on today, which was quite a disappointment to me.

I walked out on my balcony and gazed up at the sky, but everything looked perfectly normal. On the other side of the world, I would suspect the sight was quite something to behold. But I would see it again soon enough, for a final few hours. After that, nobody really knew what was going to happen. Theories had been popping up like wildflowers, many of them not really new, just repackaged for a curious populace.

Perhaps the most fascinating theory suggested we were all about to be burned alive as a super-heated atmosphere rapidly incinerated the planet. Proponents of that theory pointed to a layer of ash in the worldwide fossil record dating back to about the time the dinosaurs disappeared.

An oceanic event was no longer predicted, but mesmerized by the various movies over the years depicting such a scenario, I actually had a secret fascination regarding the prospect of getting a final glimpse at a monolithic tidal wave breaking over the city.

And then of course there was the prospect that perhaps I feared the most, the notion that this really wasn't the last day, but just the first of a slow, horrific demise, somewhat similar to a nuclear winter. As amazingly stoic as society had proven to be to date, I knew it wouldn't be able to preserve itself in that eventuality. And of course plenty of newly converted survivalists were hunkered down, prepared for exactly that possibility. As if prolonging the agony was really a fate to be desired.

I turned on my computer in hopes that I might actually be able to get on-line. It was hooked up to my satellite phone, so I figured I had a chance at a connection. Sure enough, it looked like I still had internet access. I tried jumping to my favorite news sites, but as usual in these final days, they were basically inaccessible due to the millions of others with the same idea. I tried to check email, but not surprisingly, the server was down.

Communication was indeed a challenge these days. Phones based on land lines or cell towers were virtually unusable as well due to the heavy traffic. And not too many people had satellite phones, which I was fortunate enough to have as part of my work. Besides logging in, there really was no one I needed to call today. An only child, I had lost my parents years ago. And as for relationships and friends, it seems I was mostly a loner these days, except for a few acquaintances at work.

My closest friend had chosen an easier path some weeks ago, a fate shared by many in the past year. But as for me, I was curious enough to stick around for the final show. Hopefully, I would not live to regret that decision. Of course, nobody was going to live to regret much of anything much longer.

My reverie was broken by the sudden alarm of the computer. A co-worker in India wanted to chat with me via our work conference link, although nobody was working today. This would no doubt be interesting...

~~~~~~

Naresh: Chris, what's happening there?


Chris: Nothing interesting to report. So far, it's like a normal day, which I must say is amazing! You would think there would have been absolute chaos in the streets, something like that old “Star Trek” festival episode, but nothing like that has materialized yet.


Naresh: You should have seen the sky out here a couple of hours ago. It reminded me of that scene in “Close Encounters” where the drunk man talks about the sun coming out at night.

~~~~~~

Naresh and I loved chatting about sci fi trivia. Of course, it wasn't a UFO Naresh had seen. I chuckled about all the wildly hopeful theories people had entertained in recent months. One group was intent on the hope of being rescued by intervening saviors from an alien parental race. That's one outcome I too would have found fascinating, but not so surprisingly, intervening spaceships had yet to appear. Alien beings may well exist, but like my favorite old “Star Trek” series, perhaps they had rules about intervening with the primitives, even in the most extreme of circumstances.

Yet another alarm sounded on the computer. An old friend and co-worker in England wanted to join our conversation.

~~~~~~

Lauren: I'm on to something. I just know it. It's key, key. How do I begin to explain it.


Chris: I sure hope you're not going to start with that broken record regarding the Mayan predictions because you know how I feel about that. Yes, 2012 was the end of their calendar, that's old news now.


Lauren: Chris, I'm telling you. Did you even read any of that stuff I gave you on the Mayans? You have it all wrong. It's not supposed to be the end, but the beginning.


Naresh: It sounds like a bunch of superstition to me. And I can tell you, I've had my fill of that out here. It's bad enough on a good day in India. You can only imagine what it's like tonight.


Lauren: Please listen to me, guys. It's really, really important, and I promise you, this has nothing to do with superstition or religion. This is key, key, but I'm not sure how to get you in on it.


Chris: In on what?


Lauren: Did you ever read anything by Richard Bach? Maybe that would give you a clue.


Chris: You know I don't like that metaphysical nonsense, trying to masquerade as science fiction.


Naresh: Well, it may not be traditional science fiction, but I kind of liked “Illusions” myself.


Chris: I read it a long time ago, but I could never figure out what people saw in it.


Lauren: Would you please just listen. This is absolutely key. And so very simple. All you need to do is believe.


Chris: Believe what?


Lauren: Just believe it's going to be ok, no matter how far-fetched that may seem. That's all. It's the key.


Chris: Right, and that's really going to help? Just how the hell do you expect anyone to “believe”, on today of all days?


Lauren: I knew this was probably a waste of time. It's actually a lot easier convincing my religious friends who already believe in prayer. But prayer isn't the only answer, it's the belief itself that's key.


Naresh: I understand what you're getting at Lauren, but it just seems a bit too late. Too much fear is on the loose now, and that makes it tough for people to believe anything.


Lauren: Well, my hope is that it won't take a lot of people. For all I know, maybe it will just take one, one person with a belief strong and pure enough to exercise mind over


Connection terminated.

~~~~~~

So much for chatting with the outside world. I knew I was being somewhat intolerant of Lauren, but I simply wasn't in the mood for such a wildly optimistic approach to life, especially today. We had known each other for years, but we had never been quite on the same page. I hadn't really read the article on the Mayans she had given me; I'd seen enough of that in the news. But since there was nothing else better to do, I decided to take another look at it.

~~~~~~

Mayan Misconceptions?
Much has been said about the ancient Mayan calendar ending in 2012 and their remarkable ability to predict astronomical events. But with the catastrophic approach of asteroid Nemesis, very little has been said about Mayan beliefs in precessional ages, according to renowned Mayan scholar Dr. David Sherwood.

According to Dr. Sherwood, "the Mayans did not believe 2012 was to be the final end to humanity. In fact, their true beliefs were incredibly hopeful. They believed the events of 2012 were to signal the coming of a new precessional age based on their astronomical calendar. In this new age, the Mayans expected a dramatic shift in the consciousness of the planet, as humanity became what they called 'beings of light'."

Dr. Sherwood and an ever-increasing group of followers believe there is no reason to despair as the asteroid approaches. They believe instead that humanity is on the verge of an evolutionary quantum leap, and the asteroid will somehow become immaterial to this reality.

"We don't know yet just how the Mayans envisioned the earth surviving an asteroid this massive. But we have hope that we'll find a way. We must remember that not only did the Mayans foresee the asteroid. They apparently saw much, much more for 2012. So we must find a way to trust that all of their predictions will indeed become true."

~~~~~~

This was indeed a hopeful article, but now that the last day was upon us, the article itself seemed immaterial to the reality at hand. In some ways, I was happy that hope was still alive for Lauren even today. Although I had never understood Lauren, I would have wished nothing less.

I decided to wander out to my balcony again just to sit and try to relax for a while. Reflecting back on my own life seemed somewhat meaningless today, although of course there were things I wish I had pursued before the reality of 2012 became so painfully apparent. It seemed somewhat self-absorbing to be focusing only on my own life right now. Rather it seemed more appropriate to reflect on the whole of humanity and what dreams the human race itself would never live to realize. Perhaps some future race would spring up from the ashes and scrutinize the artifacts we would leave behind. Visions of the shattered Statue of Liberty in “Planet of the Apes” came to mind, although in the end it seems the human race was not the master of its own demise, as so many had expected would be our fate.

I closed my eyes and listened to what seemed to be the much quieter than usual noises of the city. It would be only hours now, yet the city remained amazingly calm. I wondered if this would change once we glimpsed the asteroid again on the horizon. As I allowed my mind to drift, I realized that I was actually feeling rather odd, even somewhat dizzy. Although contemplative, I was never one to truly meditate, yet this was beginning to feel somewhat like what I had heard others report of meditative experiences. How odd to be experiencing this on today of all days.

As I settled deeper into contemplation, I felt my awareness expand out over the city. I felt the fear so very palpable in so many hearts today. And surprisingly, I also sensed a glimmer of hope here and there. Perhaps Lauren wasn't the only one.

“Chris, Chris, can you hear me? Chris? We did it, Chris. It's going to be ok. Can you feel the change?”

I emerged from my reverie with a start. Surely I had now sunk into a state of hallucination since I thought it highly unlikely that I would suddenly be hearing Lauren's voice inside my head. Or else I was simply dreaming. I heard the alarm on the computer once again. It was Lauren.

~~~~~~

Lauren: Did you get my message?


Chris: No, I've been off-line sitting on my balcony.


Lauren: No, silly, I mean my other message. I told you it's going to be ok, and I asked if you felt the change. Do you want me to send you another?

~~~~~~

“Chris, the Mayans were right. They really were. Surely you can begin to see now.”

Sure enough, as unbelievable as it might seem, I really was hearing Lauren's voice in my head. Either this was a very complex delusion, or something truly remarkable was indeed happening here.

~~~~~~

Lauren: How about that one? This is really so cool!!! Or do we go about it the old-fashioned way?

~~~~~~

And what was even more remarkable is that somehow I understood where Lauren was coming from. I understood her optimism for the very first time. And although my own point of view remained for the most part intact, I could view the world from her perspective.

And what was more amazing still was that somehow in my heart, I just knew that the asteroid wasn't a threat anymore, as preposterous a notion as that might seem, I just knew...And I didn't even feel the need to turn on the news to confirm it, even more amazing still. Somehow I just knew...

~~~~~~

Chris: What's going on, Lauren? I feel so very odd.


Lauren: It's the change, Chris, it's the change. It's the miracle so many people were hoping for, except it's so much more than that. So much more than even I expected.


Chris: What on earth happened?


Lauren: It was our hope and belief. We did it! We pushed the asteroid away, just enough, but we did it, I'm sure of it! Don't you feel it? I know not everyone believed, not by a long shot, and maybe it just took a few. I just can't believe it all happened so fast!


Chris: What I can't believe is that this is suddenly making sense to me. Somehow I'm still myself, but I understand you now. And I sure as hell never understood you before! ;-)


Lauren: That understanding is just the beginning, Chris. If you could only feel what I'm experiencing. I mean...what about the telepathy, Chris? Isn't that amazing? You'll be able to do it too soon, I'll wager. Well, I should go now. So many people to talk to!

~~~~~~

After logging off, I sat in a daze for what seemed like hours. I really could feel a change. If I tried, I could begin to reach out to the city surrounding me. I felt the pain of poverty, of living with prejudice, of never being given a chance. This went beyond experiencing the fear of the asteroid, which was dissipating rapidly now as the reality of the miracle was sinking in. Never a metaphysical person by nature, yet I truly did begin to feel a remarkable oneness with the humanity surrounding me. And with that sense of oneness came an understanding that surpassed anything I had ever experienced. I was still an individual, no doubt about that, but now I was so much more than I ever realized I could be. And somehow I just knew this astonishing reality was now true for all of us.

I decided to try an experiment of my own. I settled my mind as much as I could, and I focused my attention on Naresh in India.

“Naresh, Naresh, can you hear me?”

Nothing. No response. I shifted my awareness slightly, almost like trying to change the frequency on a radio, not really knowing how I was doing this at all, and I centered all my focus on the person I knew as Naresh.

“Naresh, am I reaching you? It's Chris. Can you hear me?”

“Chris, I hear you! This is Naresh. Yes, you're getting through! So what do you think of this new reality, my friend? It's really taken hold quickly out here in India.”

“It's astonishing, Naresh, I must admit. It makes one wonder just what's in store for us tomorrow!”

“A new day, my friend, a new day! And a wondrous one at that...”

How could any of us have known when we woke up that morning? Or perhaps I should say that the key was that just enough people did know, just enough to make a difference. The Mayans had indeed been right, as had so many metaphysical and religious thinkers. Not to mention the quantum physicists and evolutionists, as they too had been right. It wasn't to be the last day at all. It was the first. The first day of a new age of humanity.

The Grinch: A True Story of The Shift

The Grinch classic cartoon was on network television tonight. I found it ironic that a cross-generational story which on one level has something to say about transcending materialistic impulses was so poorly chopped and truncated to fit the commercial breaks. Classics like The Grinch should be shown unaltered.

But with that aside, I chose to keep watching because as we experience the eve of 2012, The Grinch has been on my mind for days, a story many of us have loved since childhood. The Grinch is the perfect personification of The Shift, the kind of Shift I choose to believe in, the kind that leaves no one behind.

There is a reason why we love The Grinch...and it's the very same reason why we love all stories of darkness transformed into Light, whether it be the Grinch, Darth Vader or the Prodigal Son. It is the story of Planet Earth, and its contrasts and ultimate lessons are symbolic in every possible way, far transcending the message of Christmas or any particular spiritual or religious path.

In every society on Earth today, even a repentant Grinch would be scorned and jailed for years, maybe even executed.

Let's ponder the crimes of the Grinch. He is not only a vandal and thief of toys, Christmas trees and candy (not to mention an abuser of little dogs), perhaps the parts that enthralled us as children.

No, the Grinch takes every last bit of food, every last log from the fireplaces, tantamount to a genocidal act in that cold, wintry place at the base of Mt. Crumpit. He does it just because he can, for the sheer delight of it, to relish the suffering of others, especially children. Joy is painful to the Grinch, so he chooses to extinguish it entirely. We all know the story well.

But how well DO we know the story??? And how much have we truly allowed the story to expand our own hearts? Yes, there's the part about how Christmas happens even without the toys, that's the lesson about materialism we were supposed to focus upon as kids. As a kid, besides missing out on a Christmas feast, I'm sure I didn't really comprehend the dire severity of the Whos down in Whoville having no food or firewood at the coldest time of year.

So what makes this A True Story of The Shift? First, there is the Light, the Light that rises up the mountain, a Light generated miraculously, solely through the Conscious harmony of an entire people, young and old, singing in Joy hand in hand in a circle. By transcending the illusion of hardship, the Whos have shifted, and they are ready to share. The Light of The Shift is contagious, critical mass attained.

It's far easier to believe in a version of The Shift in which only those who "qualify" make the cut, a version of The Shift which is at its worst, yet another fear-based, non-inclusive version of "left behind" that we've heard so many times before. "You better watch out...The Shift is coming to town..." sums it up quite nicely.

But a REAL Shift, a REAL quantum leap, is not just about shifting the choir - it's about shifting The Grinch, including whatever remnants of The Grinch remain in each of us. It's about dramatic change, not incremental progress. It's about darkness transformed into Light.

No doubt we all remember The Grinch's heart growing three sizes that day, his smile radiating with that same Light which encompasses his heart. But how many of us have really pondered what comes next?

When the Grinch comes barreling triumphantly into town, what does he find there? Does he find fear? Does he find judgment? Does he find scorn? Does he find punishment? No, he finds Forgiveness. A Quantum Forgiveness so very vast that just like the Prodigal Son returned, The Grinch is the guest of honor at the feast, trusted and accepted so very completely, he is placed next to the sweetest, most precious child in town, a guest so very honored that he gets the highest privilege of carving the Roast Beast.

Could you give your worst enemy (no matter how transformed) the keys to your city? Would you honor him or her with a parade? Would you trust him or her with your children?

A lower consciousness society would cling to the past. A lower consciousness society would indeed jail The Grinch. A lower consciousness society wouldn't believe he has shifted and wouldn't really care (or those few who might notice wouldn't care enough to do anything substantial about it). They wouldn't trust. They wouldn't love. They wouldn't accept.

A lower consciousness society bases "justice" on punishment for the past, not on healing and rehabilitation in the moment. A lower consciousness society is focused on vengeance and fear, not on Unconditional Love. What would we do to The Grinch in OUR society now? What would YOU choose to do?

Until we can all understand what it truly means to completely accept, forgive and honor a "Grinch", we don't really understand the Higher Consciousness of the Shift at all. And that includes unconditionally accepting the transformation of the darkest possible soul you can imagine on Earth. And that includes unconditionally accepting the transformation of the darkest part you can find within yourself.

We already know how. Our stories have shown us the way. We don't jeer The Grinch or Darth Vader. We cheer. And the Prodigal Son story has been with us a very long time. Many Christians claim to believe in spontaneous transformation, yet they have made little effort to create a society to match - much like the bitter brother in the Prodigal Son, they still feel the need to punish even repentant wrongdoers and call that "justice". And many of them speak of a "narrow path", the most rigid form of exclusivity, with the other paths leading straight to hell.

At its most profound, challenging level, the in-progress Story of the Shift even includes forgiveness BEFORE apparent Transformation...because it is forgiveness itself which creates Transformation. Did the Whos know the Grinch had shifted when they began to sing?

Some day all of us will understand. The Shift will be so radically transformational, it will transcend our every expectation. I firmly believe The Shift is NOT about "qualifying" for the ascension in any possible way, no matter how many teachers I have admired insist that this is so. When the Light begins to radiate irresistibly on this planet, when it encompasses and shifts each and every heart, nobody will need to tell you to shift - you will simply Know - nobody will need to tell you to forgive - you will simply Know. And that's when the REAL celebration begins...



Image notes:

Grinch drawing obtained from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ted_Geisel_NYWTS.jpg and is part of a collection donated to the U.S. Library of Congress as a gift, with no known restrictions on the usage of this photograph (see Wikimedia entry for more information).

Radiating star image obtained from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PGC_39058.jpg and can be shared under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.

Holding hands image obtained from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hold_my_hand.jpg and can be shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license

Does "Darth Vader" Qualify for the Shift?

A long, long time ago in my youth far away, I spent many a day reflecting on the first "Star Wars" trilogy, a young person (and admitted "Star Wars" geek) already on a spiritual path much clearer to me now than it was then.

And what perhaps reached me most as the first (and best) trilogy drew to a close was the story of Darth Vader, a villain ultimately not vanquished by vengeance, but redeemed by Love, in the end shown healed and restored, shining in radiant angelic brilliance, in harmony with his fellow Jedi Masters.

What is so very remarkable if you ponder this outcome is how the need for retribution was not a factor in the least, nor was the demand for "just" punishment of his crimes. In the story, Darth Vader was responsible for the brutal, callous deaths of many. Yet in the end, there is only Transformation, a transformation so very profound and powerful, a redemption so instantaneous, that all we can do is cheer.

The story of "Darth Vader" holds a very special lesson, one that only enhances the underlying "Star Wars" theme of finding the hero within.

Ultimately it is the story of Transformation, the story of the Shift.

In the end, it was the enduring, unconditional Love of a son that was the catalyst of Transformation for the "evil" father, who turned out not to be quite so "evil" after all.

And this is what I believe the Shift awaiting Humanity is actually all about. There are those who claim that the Shift will only be available to those who qualify, those who hold enough Love in their hearts at a particular point in time. Even though I have dear friends and mentors who insistently assert this is the case, the concept has never resonated with me, not for a moment.

Something that bothers me about the partial shift theory is the fear it ignites in some of its followers, not to mention the almost irresistible sense of vindication so familiar in our fear-based world. There are those who attempt to justify the theory in love-based ways, but to me, it's just another version of "Left Behind", a tale I know well from the teachings of my youth.

When the Shift truly takes hold, I believe there will be no need to convince the Darth Vaders of the world why Transformation is the One and Only Way. They will know already. They will simply know. And as another line in "Star Wars" conveys, they will realize that somehow they have always known.

For there is no path so dark that it cannot be instantly illuminated by the Light. Many tears of Joy will be shed on that day, a day so very revolutionary that even forgiveness itself will be transcended.

One of the most difficult questions we face in the world is why "evil" occurs and how to deal with it. If you choose to empower "evil" like the Dark Side of the Force, then what follows is Fear. And if you choose to live in a world of punishment and retribution, the fear-inspired vengeance goes on and on and on in seemingly endless cycles of pain. The same is true of "justice" based in punishment instead of rehabilitation.

But if you choose to empower and embrace Love instead, if you choose to accept that nothing is more powerful than Love, if you choose to understand that unconditional Love is the ONLY foundation that matters, it is then, only then, that you understand why "evil" is no more than an illusory nightmare of Fear.

Like Luke "Skywalker", I choose to walk a path above the fray. I choose to walk above vengeance and fear. Even forgiveness is eventually superseded on this path because I know some day, there will no longer be anything left to forgive. There will only be the Peace and Joy of the current moment.

Forgiveness is all about the past. True transformation reveals itself in the moment. It does not account for wrongs yesterday or long ago. Unconditional Love doesn't work that way. Unconditional Love first forgives, then miraculously heals, making the events of the past immaterial to the present.

When we celebrate Darth Vader's ultimate rise to the Light, the past is gone. All that exists at the end is the radiant Now. When you can consider every "Darth Vader" who has ever walked this Earth miraculously transformed and restored, it is then that I believe you will truly understand what the Shift is all about.

In peace,
Susan Larison Danz

Note: For more on this topic, listen to today's "The Frontier Beyond Fear" Blog Talk Radio broadcast Shifting Darth Vader.


Darth Vader Footsteps photo released under a Creative Commons 2.0 license from Wikimedia Commons. "Star Wars" quotes from "Star Wars Episode VI - Return of the Jedi" (1983).

A Dialogue on the New Age Between Evangelical Christians & "New Agers"

There is a profound and fascinating dialogue that has been underway for about a week on the Oprah spiritual forum regarding defining what is meant by the so-called "New Age". I did not initiate this dialogue, but I am actively participating. Like myself, there are those participating in the dialogue whose journey led them to the New Age after experiencing evangelical Christianity to various degrees. There is also at least one person participating in the discussion who was once a New Ager and is now an evangelical Christian. Others have a diversity of views, including at least one atheist.

Whether or not we agree regarding our particular points of view, I believe dialogues of this nature are essential to mutual understanding. I know that my evangelical friends and family, both online and otherwise, would lovingly like to see people like me led back to what they see as "the Truth" of the Bible. By the same token, those of us who can no longer fathom fear-based notions such as hell or the violence attributed to God in parts of the Bible hope that others will one day come to see that there is no exclusive path to the truly UNCONDITIONAL Love of God.

Often there are misconceptions about what people actually do believe, and only through dialogues such as these can we begin to find understanding. Such dialogues most certainly do NOT require that everyone agree, and indeed they can be quite empassioned, intense discussions, where everyone authentically and openly expresses their sincere beliefs and spiritual journeys.

Since I only have permission to share my own contributions to the discussion in this blog, I'm going to post two of my posts to the thread. You can read the entire dialogue (which continues to evolve) here: http://www.oprah.com/community/thread/140201.

My first post is in response to a very dedicated Christian who claims New Agers lack "conscience":

Since I consider myself a "New Ager" now (despite the many different confusing connotations of the label), I will respond in a moment to the overall question posed by this thread.

However, I did want to specifically respond to this notion of New Agers lacking "conscience". Personally I think more people need to find their conscience when they ponder the notion of a violent God who would actually choose to torture or abandon most of humanity for eternity, behave in the violent manner described in the Old Testament or engage in the promised wrath of the End Times. The reason I am now a New Ager and not an evangelical Christian actually has EVERYTHING to do with conscience (as well as courage). Other people leaving Christianity attest to much the same.

In fact, the reason I ALWAYS had doubts, even in the years I was trying to believe in the entirety of the Bible, was because of my conscience. I also find it fascinating that as I travel in New Age circles, many of the teachers and friends I encounter were once on the conservative Christian path and left it.

Personally I couldn't even fathom following a violent "god" anymore, and that has everything to do with conscience. I now know that Love is what matters, not harsh judgment and threatened punishments. God is SO much greater than that. When I used to sing "How Great Thou Art" in church, I could never fully accept it because of the violence in the Bible. But I get the concept now. I wish more people could know just how great God actually is and what true Love and grace actually are, abandoning NO ONE ever.

If you are being told something that violates your conscience (and I can surface any number of horrendously unconscionable concepts in the Bible), if it just doesn't really make sense to you that a Loving God could also be a harsh and violent judge and war-like entity, those doubts are actually God speaking within your heart. I hope you choose to listen some day, as many of us already have.

In my second post to this thread, I endeavor to define how I interpret what it means to be a "New Ager". Just to give you a little bit of context, I also refer to a question asked about the "New" Age actually being a "Middle" Age, as defined by writer Carolyn Myss.

Since I now consider myself a New Ager, and I have become quite active in New Age circles, I will tell you my impressions. I doubt I will get all of this in to one post. An entire book could probably be written on this subject.

I'm not sure about this concept of "the Middle Age" Carolyn Myss refers to (although I am familiar with some of Carolyn's work), but I will say that many view the New Age as very old. There are parallels to Gnostic interpretations of Christianity, but it even goes back farther than that to what some might call pagan roots (keeping in mind that Christianity also has many pagan roots). One concept of the New Age that is very old is the concept of the feminine aspect of the Divine (not just the masculine).

I believe I gave Biblically-based Christianity every possible chance to transform my life and show me the way to God. In fact, I cannot begin to describe my distress over the years, even starting as a young teen, regarding why others seemed to experience dramatic effects from Christianity, but I never did. As recently as about 8 years ago, I was sitting in church and Womens Bible Study trying to believe with all my heart (even after being exposed to New Age concepts) - I can't begin to describe my heartwrenching prayers over the years, begging God to assist me with my doubts, asking to be shown the way.

But ultimately it was only New Age concepts which transformed my own life for the better, not Biblically-based Christianity, and I do know many other people in New Age circles who have had much the same experience. So if you think New Age concepts are not life-changing, you are wrong. People have personal testimonies of miraculous transformations every bit as dramatic as any Christian conversion story I ever heard in my many years of being around evangelical Christians.

But I will say that New Age life transformation is different (yet in some ways the same) as what Christians report. For a New Ager (and many would choose NOT to use that label at all, but I'll use it), it is more about empowerment than disempowerment, not in a prideful way challenging God (as is often misconstrued), but such that you are on the path to becoming EVERYTHING your Creator intends you to be. God doesn't want us on our knees. God gently lifts us off our knees and then teaches us how to hold the keys to the kingdom, in full PARTNERSHIP with the entirety of God. And just like what many Christians report, God gently shows us the way to becoming a far more loving, giving, compassionate person in the way we deal with our fellow humanity. This is not at all a path devoid of conscience as some seem to think. I am a far more giving person now than I ever was before.

The most fundamental belief of New Agers, shared by almost all of them in my experience, is that we are inseparable from God, that we are aspects of God having a human experience, not yet fully conscious of Who We Are. Once they begin to have an increased awareness of this reality, people often have profound "One with the Universe" experiences. Often the Love conveyed in such an experience is completely overwhelming. It is not at all impersonal (even though some on New Age paths have a less satisfying impersonal view of God). What some might call "miracles" also occur, including dramatic healings (which I have personally observed) and other amazing "coincidences" (which New Agers call "synchronicities"). Many New Agers approach the dire news of the economy, wars, terrorism, the oil spill, etc., with far fewer fears than the average person. I know I wouldn't have handled it well years ago, as I was a very fearful person. I can see the transformation on a daily basis within me, more and more each day. I place my trust in God.

The dawning of the "New Age" itself is that process of more and more of humanity becoming aware of their Divine natures, precisely as our Creator intends. Many call this "expanded Consciousness". Some with Christian roots like to call it "the Christ Consciousness" because they believe mainstream Christianity has misinterpreted (misled by early saboteurs) what Jesus actually said and did. Many New Agers can point to verses in the Bible supportive of their views (though not in the entirety of the Bible).

What is the "New Age"? In many ways it isn't all that much different from what Christians look forward to on the Earth, a time of Love, peace and complete communion with your Creator. A Golden Age. An Age of fully knowing the unconditional Love and omnipresence of your Creator, including within your own heart. It is dawning already for many of us.

We would welcome more contributors to this dialogue, no matter what your point of view. Keep in mind that the Oprah forum requires respectful dialogue, even though it supports the notion of healthy debates. "Respectful" doesn't necessitate that everyone agree, and people do very honestly express things that sometimes others may not want to hear, what some might call a form of "tough love". But it is important to realize that LOVE for others is indeed the primary motivation behind the posts of almost ALL participants, no matter what they happen to believe. Many of us have discovered lasting online friendships on the forum with people of much different beliefs than our own. We may debate each other, but at the end of the day, we still love and care for one another, which is why we are engaging in the discussions to begin with.

If you do wish to participate in the discussion, registering for the Oprah forum is quite straightforward, and my experience with the forum, its privacy and email policies, etc., have all been very positive. I have been an Oprah forum member for several years, posting very honestly and authentically under the pseudonym bridgebldr. Over the years, I have found that hiding what I believe, just because some may not agree, serves the purposes of no one. To have authentic understanding of one another in this world, we must not only BE authentic ourselves, but we must allow OTHERS to be authentic too. Nothing undermines genuine dialogue and understanding more than the judgment or suppression of ideas and beliefs. What is so refreshing about the Oprah spiritual forum is that people do find the courage to express what they actually do believe, whatever it may be.

Here once again is the thread containing the ongoing dialogue: http://www.oprah.com/community/thread/140201.