The thunder in our steps (North Carolina Maritime Museum)
By James Anthony Curtis
Not long ago we had the opportunity to visit the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort, NC. One of the latest exhibits was due to the find of Blackbeard’s ship, Queen Anne’s Revenge off the North Carolina coast where it went aground in 1718.’ Nearly 300 years after the pirates’ death, Blackbeard remains one of the most notorious rebels of the high seas, inspiring tales such as Treasure Island, and in more recent times movies such as the series Pirates of the Caribbean. And although there is a mysterious shroud surrounding the details in the path of piracy, many of those who chose to become pirates including Blackbeard, saw themselves as a social caste in revolt against a system which employed unfair treatment to those in it. Once committed to a life of rebellion on the high seas, ships were reorganized in social structure to provide very little power to the captain, instead electing or relieving him as necessary by the consciousness of the vote. And pirate vessels were one of the few places where slaves could gain freedom, which according to accounts a large portion of Blackbeard’s crew were of African origin.
Although Edward Thatch or more commonly known as ‘Teach’ was a tall slender man, his terrifying countenance was achieved when boarding a ship by the many lit fuses under the brim of his hat and in his black beard, which created an eerie essence along with the sling carrying several pistols and sword in hand. And despite his reputation he was remarkably judicious in his use of violence, as various eyewitness accounts claimed, he killed no one when boarding prior to his death in battle with the Royal Navy. Many Merchants simply surrendered without firing a shot, both witnessing his appearance and the small army that followed him as they were overwhelmed. At one point Blackbeard and his crew even settled in the small town of Bath, attempting to live out ‘normal’ lives, but eventually the life of piracy would draw them back to the sea, calling for something more than ‘settling’ could offer. And the image as a killer which was created by authorities to gain both public support for his demise, would not only resolve any of his misdeeds, but quell any future would be attempts at rebellion by setting an example.
Throughout our life path many of us will try to appease the demons that surface, doing our best to fit into the societal structure we live in, sweetening the day with our words, and hiding the doubts that may present themselves in our circumstances, but in the end our nature will expose itself in the innocence of who we are if our darkness is left unanswered. There is thunder in our steps, a radiant impression we leave in signature upon the earth as we walk in pilgrimage here, and even though who we are here may be tossed about on a sea of doubt, our thoughts, feelings, and desires will only continue to surface until they are acknowledged. The power of our divinity in human form wants to be birthed, reconciled, and expressed, which is why we may turn to desperate measures in order to bring our attention back to what the soul is asking for.
Today may we relax into our steps, feeling the ground shake beneath our feet, that the one we already may emerge in godhead, as thunder resounds in the heart of our answering. May we hold fast in dark places, allowing our innocence to guide us, and rather than rebellion, create the sacred space of our birth we have come to experience here in earth. And may we choose a free life rather than the stability of servitude to a system of impermanence, proving the ground we walk on by the love we offer, for the one who only desires to come forth in benefit of all beings.
May it be so, so it is.
As per usual, the universe lines up what we need, even though we may balk at our circumstances. Sometimes I struggle with negative or afflictive emotions, and being in places where tragedy or strong pain was felt, vibrationally I will sense the energy stored in the items, land, and buildings that are still there. Although this happens, Ive received guidance over the years to really embrace the energies, that there are always deeper lessons, healings, expressions coming forth in the experiences that are priceless.
I’m a firm believer in learning from our history, and contributing to the process of healing by emerging myself in these areas of need that call out energetically.
Earlier in the day when we were choosing our destinations, its also beautiful watching the synchronicity of events that align for our desires of what we need to manifest in our life paths. Everything plays a part in coming to surface what we may realize in hindsight, as perfection is always moving all things together for wellbeing. Our conscious ‘trip planning,’ really is the tip of the iceberg in what happens on any given day.
So we found ourselves moving through the halls of what was once labeled “State Lunatic Asylum No. 2″, renamed the “St. Joseph State Hospital” in 1899. Built in 1874, the structure has echoes of a medieval fortress, where one might suspect to find all sorts of various torture devices in the damp lower sections of its foundation walls. Although the mind might run a bit with the idea of barbaric treatment as you begin to wander the museum, instead what we found was far more revealing in nature, sinister even, — a vain attempt by our predecessors to understand dark places in the human psyche, and in failing to do so, meet them with brute force in order to bring them in line with societal codes of conduct.
In an introductory video when you first enter the museum, a modern Psychiatrist examines his own methods of treatment for the mentally ill, posing the question, “fifty or a hundred years from now, will the methods I use be thought of as barbaric or inhumane attempting treatment of the mentally ill?
Though I do not hold those in authority or charged with the care of these people at the time responsible, it is difficult to imagine being flexible with such obstinate thinking. The fact that we are ‘evolving’ is still in debate today, drive long enough on any major highway in the US, and you will eventually see a billboard disputing evolution with a rather narrow view of creationism. And although this may seem counter productive, even resistant, and full of rigidity, we are only being served with a deepening path to practice the love we so much are calling out for in humanities shortcomings.
As I look closely, feel into the history of many of those that were housed at ‘Lunatic Asylum No.2,’ the devices used on the people, the ‘tranquilizers,’ restraints, and many methods of treatment being explored, a story begins to unfold of two lives — both intertwined in the relationship of questioning our sanity. With each whipping, dousing of water, and handling of the insane with brute force, to the more sublime encounters where some small connection might be made, both patient and counselor must have wondered what bridge they were walking on through their chosen life path. As each questioned each, why couldn’t the other see what was so revealing and important in meaning?
On the third floor of the museum is a display of crafts, artwork, and instruments that gave worth to so many in the halls where they stayed. Some venting, others broken in heart, pain pouring forth in expression, and moments of joy in once heard voices having hope of being listened to again. The evidence on this floor was overwhelming, the conclusion of contrast real, that which was opening was being opened by the innocence of love, not by the torture of oppressive obedience. Those place that are so misunderstood, dark to us in nature, even violent in their force, are merely asking for love, the attention we long seek by the demons of our desires. The artwork resonated so much with us, it brought up other great artists of our time, and we were made to wonder how many of them were seeking only to be loved, valued in their journey of introspection, so clearly translated and identified on a mass scale of human canvas in the heart of the minds eye? How many of them were merely seekers, walking the inward road, only to escape incarceration or rejection by a narrow thread had their thoughts been more openly known?
The answer is not an easy one to accept, because it means a shift in each of our personal daily lives. As we draw closer to the truth of healing, expression, and our divine nature, we also meet our ‘mirrors,’ those places we lack conformity with, that are not aligned, asking only to be loved in their cries. As humans we are in a place of unique significance, in that we are both living embodiments of earth and sky, having the capacity for greatness and awe in our movements, but only as we learn to endure our most afflictive of energies in emotion with loving embrace. As we continue to grow into our potential, those parts that come forward in what we may perceive of as ‘insanity,’ are only indications of the higher self we are coming to know as we struggle to maintain some semblance of reality. With each grounding that falls away from under our footing, we are moving inward to the uncertain path, and learning to trust in the universal weight of liberation.