Tag Archives: Bruce Springsteen

Infinite Blessed Renewals Of The Sacredness of Everyday Eternal Moments

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I remember when an old friend once commented on a “missed opportunity” of a potential rendezvous that never ended up happening. It was in reference to another friend during a private conversation between us. But more poignantly, his attached emotion asserted a grieving for the dirge of a moment that did not go the way he wanted or expected. He’s not the only grown man I know that suffers from ‘mantrums.’ I’ve fallen prey to them myself. Ah, the clinging and grasping of life is the root of our suffering. We all suffer and suffering is merely part of the human experience, myself included.

Moreover, as expanding souls, it is natural for we humans to desire and want more. But it is also an opportunity for choosing gratitude for what is. Without this practice, happiness as a way of life is impossible. Even when we get what we want, it is a sad and lonely story on the inside of a person who remains hooked into the cycle of grasping and clinging. Self examination reveals this experience always leads to disappointments and the accompanying funeral procession. It’s not that I don’t have my moments here. It’s just that I tend not to get as sucked into them as I used to.

Even the committed optimist or followers of positive psychology fall prey to wanting to hold tight to what we fear we will lose. This is because it is natural to experience the tragedy of life that is not without its grieving and trauma aware process. Moreover, the same old friend once said to me, “Ari, I think you and I have different definitions of friendship.” And I agreed with him. Because his definition is more typical and normal, from an old world reality. From this perspective, it’s tit for tat, I’ll scratch your back and then you scratch mine. It’s as if there’s a punch in/punch out clock that keeps a tally of a friendship that is based on competitive acts. Who is one upping who?

Beyond this behavioral trap, I do have some old relationships that appear somewhat akin to basketball legends Larry Bird and Magic Johnson’s. It’s the kind of relationship where we don’t see each other or talk for years and then when they reconnect, it’s like we don’t skip a beat. There aren’t any resentments about the time stamp between our communication because neither of us are really keeping track. And if there were any feelings that need to be cleared up, this kind of relationship allows for a healthy conversation about it. If anything, there’s a shared experience of gratitude for the reconnection. You just never know what unexpected surprises or gifts the Universe might bring. When one door closes, another door opens.

Lets face facts here . . . All adults are like big kids. And like kids, we tend to act out. The old paradigm did not teach us effective ways to express ourselves, including how we communicate with each other. It has done a good job of teaching us to pretend and hide our true feelings, from each other but more importantly ourselves. Dysfunctional and deeply engrained behavioral patterns have taught us how to use what my “Aunt that likes to rant” has called “secret decoder rings” and how to manipulate and control each other- even in cleverly covert and subtle (or not so subtle) ways.

For example, if you are maintaining a relationship that is based on guilt driven motivations, that’s something to look at inside of yourself. If you feel like you did something wrong, based on someone else’s energetic output, that’s something to look at within yourself. Consider the ritual of gift giving. There’s nothing wrong with ritual. But the power of ritual awakens spiritually when it is done with a sacred connection and done so without a sense of expectation. But when the ritual is for the sake of ritual and the gifts have an underlying edge of expectation, there’s a difference.

As humans, we all get insecure, have attachments and want to be loved. So it stands to reason that we have a tendency to cling and grasp to FOMO (fear of missing out). Bruce Springsteen’s lyrics capture the sentiment here, “it’s sad funny ending to find yourself pretending you’re a rich man in a poor man’s shirt.” Accepting this tension of opposites, like the Boss would say, reveals “better days are shining through.”

Remember what we were taught as children: Stop. Look. Go. There’s a time and a place for running the hurry up offense, to use an American football metaphor. But most of the time we’re rushing through life, there’s no need to do so- particularly with regards to racing thoughts or what Taoism calls the Chattering Monkey Mind.

Be Kind To Your Mind Folks,

Ari

Soaring Yangward in the Spirit of an Eagle in Flight

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I remember when an old co-worker friend gave me a handful of bumper stickers that collectively found a home on my old guitar case.  If pressed, my favorite one sports the lyrics, Who Would Jesus Bomb?  However, Sorry I haven’t been to church lately, but I’ve been busy practicing Witchcraft and becoming a Lesbian, arrives in a distant second.  And then I thought of the powerful You Tube video that responds to the Trayvon Martin tragedy in a way that left a roomful of Sweathogs speechless in class the other day.  In fact, one of The Sweathogs poignantly commented that before I showed the video, my student thought the story about Trayvon was something straight out of the 1900s.  I’m so proud of Horshack for connecting the dots of American History X, as revealed on an episode of PBS’s Liberty’s Kids that we featured during one of our Social Studies classes.  And then I think of Starbuck’s taking a stand against bigotry against folks whom are sexually oriented differently than I–though many so-called followers of Christianity and “Disciples of Christ” seem threatened by Starbuck’s desire to pour coffee equally to everyone, regardless of their sexuality.  I don’t know why, but perhaps having choices like drinking Our coffee black, with cream and/or sugar leaves a bad taste in their mouth? 

“Eagle . . . Fly high, touch Great Spirit.  Share your medicine, touch me, honor me, so that I may know you too.”  Feathering Our ripple with Eagle’s spirited guidance teaches Us how to balance Our co-creative connection to Heaven and Earth so that We may know balance by walking with “one foot in spirit, one foot in ground”, as Abenaki storyteller, poet and novelist Joseph Bruchac muses in his classic Native American book Dawn Land.  Similarly, Bruce Springsteen recently reminded Us in his keynote speech at South by Southwest, that Our tensions of opposites relax as We become more effective in holding two seemingly contradictory views in Our psyches at the same time.  Perhaps my own Nervous Woodland Creature energy might have been driven less nuts back in elementary school while singing the apparently contradictory folk lyrics, “it rained all night, the day I left, the weather it was dry . . . the sun’s so hot, I froze to death, Susanna don’t you cry.”  In the spirit of that, one of the reasons I stick to my daily meditation puree is because it allows me to gently watch two seemingly polar opposite ideas pass through my field of awareness with compassion, while releasing judgments that May Spring up.  In saying “peace out” to budding judgments, We say “what up, G” to giving inner peace a chance by transmuting internal conflict into Love and Light.  And it can’t hurt to remember Brother Buffett’s Infinite wisdom that jests “if we couldn’t laugh, we’d all go insane.”  Isn’t the definition of insanity to keep doing the same thing over and over, but expecting different results in the process?  I don’t know about You, but I’d rather take a step into the realm of Infinity than stay stuck in quicksand of insanity!

During this forthcoming week, please consider allowing Eagle to fly into Your life in a way that teaches you how to view Your current situation from a perspective that includes all directions.  Given its strong talons, Eagle has the potential to help You stay grounded and remember that with great power, comes great responsibility.  From a karmic perspective, Eagle helps Us understand that Our actions have consequences that will arrive more instantly if We choose to invoke Eagle’s power.  Please be mindful of what you think, do and/or say and what you do not think, do and/or say.  Also, meditation on the figure 8 sign of Infinity, the water element and paying attention to Life’s opportunities will help get your creative juices flowing like an eternal spring, within the depths of You soul.  And gaze onto Your fears with chimes free of repression, suppression and/or going Straight Outta Woodland, Ma’ Chucka.

Stay True,

Ari

Soaring With Hawk

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I remember getting some Thai food to go recently and while chillin’ wit my peeps at the crib, I read my fortune aloud, “to remember is to understand.” In the spirit of that, I observed some experiences recently watching mobs of Crows chasing away a Hawk soaring above, merely getting a bird’s-eye view in their neck of the woods.  It is true that Crow represents magic, shapeshifting, darkness and the womb of life. Moreover, their communication skills are effective and impressive to say the least. How many skilled politicians have abused Crow medicine in their rise to power? And while it is tempting auction off the Self to become a demon ruling in hell rather than serving in Heaven, “when the trumpet sounds its call”, Blue Jay reminds me that I’d rather be “in that New Morning” by staying True to the Self. Yes, the little ego’s trickery enjoys stifling the evolving personality, but that doesn’t qualify allowing it to happen. For then it becomes a conscious choice to squelch One’s spiritual growth and the evolution of One’s personality. “Hawk . . . Messenger of the sky, circle my dreams and teach me the message as we fly.” Akin to Mercury, the messenger of the gods, Hawk’s medicine remedy’s Our powers of observation, watching, noticing and paying attention to Life’s signals. Did anyone else out there hear Bruce Springsteen plea for Us in this light after 911?

I remember when Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream that “We shall Overcome” and like Hawk, inspired Us to rise to the occasion and transcend life’s circumstances, regardless of how daunting and challenging Our Life’s obstacles may appear. But wisdom speaks to Us as we understand “when the doors of perception are cleansed, things will appear as they truly are.” Moreover, Hawk asserts, “you are only as powerful as your capacity to perceive, receive and use your abilities.” What’s more, Hawk reminds Us that awareness is the intuitive capacity to discern fact from fiction and “perceive, receive and use (Our) abilities”. I hardly think Fox News can compete with Hawk’s ‘Fair and Balanced’ view from the perch Hawk sits. Unlike a restless and nervous Mouse, whom sees from a mircrocosmic orbit and zones in on details, Hawk observes the big picture and takes in a holistic view, as Hawk “flies close to the light of Grandfather Sun,” while carrying a “keen eye and a bold heart.” I wonder if folks like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Gandhi had a Hawk totem to help them rise to the occasion against all odds, as they BOLDLY faced the Monster of Fear with a gentle heartfelt gaze? In my experiences with trauma, I’ve called on Hawk’s energy to help me rise up and feather my ripple, even when I wasn’t conscious of it.

Finally, Hawk’s talons are strong, even offering protection from a normally lethal snake bite. Moreover, Hawk can take out a Snake without a Snake ever knowing what hit Him. Alas, with great power comes great responsibility, so it is important to be mindful of speaking One’s truth, with the understanding that One’s words, with Hawk medicine, can be rapturous and deadly. Further, Hawk’s energy allows Us to tap into Our Root Chakra and Kundalini, as We remember the power of staying grounded in Our journey, even when soaring above the Clouds. I wrote a letter to someone whom I care deeply about this week, expressing heartfelt sentiments that might be bitter for the receiver to digest. However, I know that I expressed myself authentically, respectfully and coming from a place of Temperance. In carrying the energy of Temperance, We invoke Archetypal forces that temper beauty and harmony, access Higher Consciousness, transcend the ego and actualize Our True Soul purpose. Paradoxically, in my letter, I released old hopes and dreams and at the same time, opened up New Space, a la “out with the old, in with the new.” Happy Full Moon in Taurus later on this week. Can You hear the Scorpions singing “Winds of Change”?

I Hopi You are well,

Ari