Understanding:

In this life, there is much to experience.

Whether it be in the inner world or the world around us, there is much to observe and take in.

Not all of it is pleasant yet it is part of the reality that we experience and are affected by.

Some of it we can have agency over, much of it not so much.

So how do we manage to stay balanced, healthy, and engaged even when the conditions around us are challenging and dont feel safe?

How can we maintain a semblance of calm and reason when beings around us are scared, angry and reactive?

What I have been taught is to PAUSE ...and return to a place of perspective that serves all beings ....Understanding.

We all want respect. We all want to be appreciated. We all want to be loved...

But what is really emerging in this present-day reality and confusion is beings REALLY want to be heard.

They want to have rights and they want their opinions to have value.

They want to feel like their lives matter and that they and their families are important.

THIS IS NOT STRANGE. It is normal and reasonable.

The Important element to focus on though is:

How do we go about getting our needs met and also allow others to have the same benefits...even if our goals and needs are different?

THAT  IS  THE  ISSUE.

It is this simple yet profound understanding that allows us to be more kind, reasonable, and flexible when in the middle of fear and challenge.

It is Understanding that allows compassion and forgiveness to arise.

This is NOT a checkout or disengagement, and no one's rights should be disrespected but..

It is a conscious choice on how to deal with the difficult and interact with the reactionary.

Then with this wisdom, we can have more space, bandwidth, and skillfulness in dealing with the chaos that impacts us all.

And always return to the LOVE.

                          Inner Freedom

This incarnation can be both beautiful and challenging.  So many things outside ourselves vie for our attention and energy. Family, jobs, relationships, and society itself, can tax our emotions and deplete our resources, mentally, energetically, and spiritually. If we do not have methods for self-regulation, healing, and release we will be exhausted, miserable, and eventually, be imprisoned in our own suffering. Even if our outer world seems fine, external sources of validation and success will ultimately never bring us happiness and peace of mind. 

So, sometimes we have to look deeper at what it is that fulfills us and brings us joy or what it is that is hindering us from living our best lives. This work is an inner job. 

Not always pleasant, not always immediate but if there are things that are uncomfortable within us, we have to go inside to address them. It’s the inner world where our wounds and seeds of imbalance live and so we have to return to the roots to identify, examine, and heal them.                                        Most importantly, all of this work has to be done with a mindset of understanding, compassion, and patience.   All beings want to feel safe, respected, and loved so the process should always be non-judgmental and kind in this process of uncovering truths.

Two elements that are essential in supporting this work are meditation and mentorship. This process is always beneficial when done with support from others who have experience in this work and have our best interest at heart but ultimately it needs to be done by ourselves for ourselves. 

 Then we can be inside a prison or outside in the world and still have a sense of peace and Inner Freedom