Tag: deeplyrootedinlove.com

Posted on

Supermoon Wolf Blood Moon Sign

Supermoon Wolf Blood Moon Eclipse Sign

By James Anthony Curtis

Some decisions are made for us, vibrationally, while others we gain insight into as we are choosing them. Life has a funny way of working things out, revealing places, shifting the tide to journey us to the shores needed for our transformation. Although we may feel the pains of where we are headed in uncertain circumstances, often desiring different outcomes, the gift of embracing our heart through the changes brings us to fulfillment in ways we never could have imagined possible.

From the oldest of times humanity has been connected to the earth in the rarest of revelations. As ‘Gods incarnate,’ we have come to express, heal, and experience a mixture of life forces on a level we frequently fail to grasp consciously, with the waves of our forefathers triggering whispered calls to our pilgrimage in purpose here. Souls, we walk traveling through time, mystical agents in disguise, and when we are ready, we start to receive glimpses of our former life, patterns are revealed, as deeper meaning starts to take us back to forgotten halls.

Everything has its place in our dogma, all environments contribute to our evolution, and some decisions arrive with uncomfortable resolution or healing balm, in the most chaotic of healings; turmoil, trouble, and afflictive tides may disturb the waters, but in those disturbances are the key energies of our healing. If we are brave enough to face our fears, feeling into each wave, the shifting tides bring with them the love needed for our transformation in strong energies.

Love, is the key, childlike humility the innocence of admittance, and surrender the action that opens once sealed doors.

May this sacred moon bring blessings, opening those places to receive what we have been asking for, as we honor the one coming forth, the one we already are, for the benefit of all beings.

May it be so, so it is. 

Pictures taken at Roper Lake, Eastern Arizona, January 20th 2019

“Scientific explanations aside, there’s a weightier reason why all of humanity has observed blood moons with reverence since the beginning of time (and countless astrological articles analyzing its significance are published every day).

A supermoon is like every other full moon except infinitely more powerful. The closer the moon is to the Earth, the more intense are the pull on the tides, as well as all of your instincts, feelings, and overall complications in life. When a supermoon is combined with a total lunar eclipse, you get one strong cocktail of cosmic forces. An eclipse symbolizes beginnings, endings, culminations, and clean slates.

Whether you’re ready for it or not, an eclipse is the perfect time to finally make a decision you’ve been afraid to make, to add your final touches to a project that’s been driving you mad, to break off a relationship that lately has been feeling like dead weight, to gather up the courage to ask your crush out, to finally start writing that novel, to quit your dead-end job and follow your dreams. Eclipses are necessary times that book-end the period of life you’ve been living in. Basically, this story is over but a new one will begin tomorrow. No matter where you’re at in life, the eclipse will push you out of our comfort zone. This might result in success as much as it could in failure but one thing’s for sure: by the time it’s over, you will have grown.”

–https://www.elitedaily.com/p/the-meaning-of-a-blood-moon-ac…

Posted on

“The Ghosts of Gunfighters: Tombstone, Arizona”

“The Ghosts of Gunfighters: Tombstone, Arizona”

By James Anthony Curtis

As someone who grew up playing outdoors when I was a kid, with no cell phones, computers, or video games to occupy the mind, the imagination was free to roam in the backwoods of Pennsylvania as far as it was allowed to move us.

Frequently my best friend and I would ‘pretend,’ creating various adventures from Saturday morning tv shows, or books we had read. Although we tended to find ourselves on other planets, or fighting for our lives on this one in some post apocalyptic drama, westerns were always a cornerstone in theme of the old cinematic world of showdowns we conceived. Gunfights, or the ‘high noon’ square-off, has always been one of my favorites, and even though it has been embellished over the years by Hollywood, the one difference in the tale of Tombstone, Arizona is it was not “pretend,” but very real in the events that unfolded in 1881’.

As we walk the very streets where Wyatt Earp, the Earp brothers, Doc Holiday and “The Cowboys” lived and breathed, there is a sense of a time when men were hardened by their truths, struggling to survive in them, placing a high value on the pride of life as it was felt by them. One look perceived as threatening could send another man sideways, and in the old west where justice was served from the hip, any movement towards the handle which dispensed it, almost certainly meant death or close to it. Tombstone was not unique in this environment, Dodge City, El Paso, Lincoln, San Antonio and others also were rampant with old west justice, but many of the other gunfighting towns never reached the fame that the O.K. Corral did.

You might think Wyatt and his brothers were famous beforehand, or the cowboy faction they were at odds with had some national news, and although the territory was under distress from the lawlessness, not many people had heard of a place called Tombstone until that fated day of the gunfight. Why? A little known fact besides Tombstone being a very wealthy mining town, silver had transformed the little town, bringing it some modern advances like the ‘telephone.’ Moments after the fatal shooting took place the confrontation was being transmitted across the country, and overnight, the Earps, Doc Holiday, the ‘Cowboys,’ and Tombstone would become famous.

Walking the streets of Tombstone today you will find yourself immersed in a fun loving crowd of actors, shop owners, and tourists who have a curious passion for the mystery of the old west. People who wonder at a time of legends, and a hardened yet fulfilling existence, where words spoken were enforced by bullets, and attention to detail might save one’s life. Although we live in different times, as a species we still crave this edge, its in our mythos of humanity, the story of the ‘hero’s journey,’ and the ‘villains’ of our darkness that accompany us. We need fulfillment, adventure, and challenges, to explore the depths of what it means to be alive. And when we hear of such stories, or another time where such took place, we question ourselves, curiosity coming to the surface, and we open our heart to greater potential of what life paths we are walking.

It’s in our nature to strive for the ‘better,’ gazing in reflection on how we may ‘improve.’ But sometimes its not as difficult as it may seem. Watch any child pretending, playing by themselves or with others, and you will glimpse the world we have come here to explore in our innocence. A virtual playground of imagination raised up in the dust of bodies, all that we may feel, express, and experience ourselves more deeply.

So as today unfolds, let us remember to live as we have come here to be, feeling all that we feel, meeting life wherever we are at, setting out with our imaginations of different times, places, and cultures that might challenge desires once asleep in us. And when we hear of stories from a time past, or wonder how others might live, if it sparks something in us, let us fan the flame of our divinity, without judgement or opinion, but meeting our own hero’s journey with all the innocence of the heart.

May it be so, so it is.????

Posted on

“Coyotes Howling, 1:47”

“Coyotes Howling, 1:47”

By James Anthony Curtis

In native lore the coyote is the familiar spirit of the trickster, the one who comes as a sign of both trouble and good fortune, bringing transformational energy often in the form of laughter. Ciara’s parents have been visiting us for the past week in Arizona, and as they explore our little part of the world we are staying at, the topic of different sounds we often hear at night comes up during the day conversation. Almost every night this week the fresh air has brought with it various sounds to our ears: donkeys’ hee haws in the distance, birds squawking at sunset, and of course, one of my favorites, usually started by a dog barking somewhere in the campground — one, then two, three or more coyotes chiming in off in the distance.
And almost every morning this week Ive remarked, “Did you guys hear the coyotes last night?”
Which in turn I’m usually met with by her dad, “Are you sure? Coyotes? Did you really hear that here? That would be cool to hear!”
Although those late night howls I hear tend to make me out to have the appearance of a crazy person or a liar, once again tonight as I got up to use the bathroom, sure enough, one, then two, three or more began, until the chorus had dogs all around the camp barking in envy. I found myself smiling as I looked up at the stars, remarking to myself, “Come on you guys, cant you prove to them I’m not just saying this?!?”
But then, that’s the nature of the coyote, the trickster, and as I pondered the time we’ve spent with her parents, reflecting on the visit, I felt the coyotes energy in laughter, warm moments of bonding, good natured sharing, good fortune in transformational energy as I feel a bit closer in connection with them.

Frequently this relationship I’m in has been challenging, not because Ciara and I don’t get along —we have a great connection, but from the judgements that come from within me: those thoughts about our age difference, and how peers, parents, and what others might feel or think about it. Those thoughts alone have brought both great internal strife, but yet great strength in resolve for the heart. What I mean is, regardless of how things turn out between us, both her and I have grown tremendously through our odd choices, standing in each truth, and meeting difficult circumstances either that we have created, or exist in our mind, with a better love of ourselves, friends, and family. Kind of like, coyote saying, “Doesn’t matter if they hear me, do you hear me?”
So as I write this late night, at 1:47 in the morning, “Yes Coyote, I hear you. Thank you — thank you for reassuring us in times where we struggle, that there is also good fortune, ‘God fortune,’ in our paths.” And even though at times we may feel less than, disconnected, and doubting our choices, its not about the choices, but about how we love ourselves and others through them — that the sometimes oppressing weights that we may feel, are not here to harm us, but bring the transformational energy we have asked for.
So may coyote bless each of us as needed when we experience doubt, lack, or difficult circumstances — as both messengers and divine expressers, appearing in the times and places that they are most fulfilling to us, coming for the benefit of love, sharing their lives with us, both in inward and outward, as we walk the pilgrim road.
May it be so, so it is.

Posted on

“Light upon our fears”

“Light upon our fears”

By James Anthony Curtis

There are times Ive been so cold, it feels like the marrow in my bones has hardened, and the body shakes uncontrollably seeking any movement for warmth. My shell feels like it is cracking under the strain of a relentless pain, but after a time yields to a stillness that quiets the tremors within. It’s funny how the cold brings with it and introspection to our destruction, revealing those places inside that someday will cease, and be still, moving no more in this form.

In the spiritual community, there is a buzz of talk in allowing destruction for the new year, almost an asking of sorts, that those parts within us that serve us no more be completely shattered, so utterly decimated that there will be no recovery of our former selves. While this is a part of our transformational process, we must take care here, for what we embrace in our energetic field also affects the heart deeply. Yes, we desire change for our innermost selves on such a level, that our divinity shines forth as never before — but the nature of our divine is one of loving compassion, so much so we have waited eons patiently in our process for the emerging that is unfolding. Humanity has grown through cycles upon cycles of shifting evolution, to produce these circumstances laid at our feet before us. Our infinite journey is unfolding for wellbeing, not for completion.

So as we look forward in time, devoting ourselves to the light that reveals each intimate desire, if we are ready to move deeper, and as parts experience the creative destructive life-force, let us do so with love, as we hold the heart in compassion, feeling all that we feel for the sake of both our wellbeing, and of all beings universally. Let us approach the ends of that no longer serve us, by allowing them to decrease, fall away as they are ready when fully embraced by our love. And if we fear we are not moving fast enough for our wellbeing, that something must give in order for our divine to come forth, let us proceed into the feelings of what “not moving fast enough” feels like, abiding with the fear while tenderly acknowledging the heart, saying, “I will not abandon you, even though I feel this dark fear.”

Vibrationally the work we do with feeling our feelings, either allows us to go deeper in the myriad of ego, which brings about a firmer resolution in coming back to the heart, or we are ready to clear the emotional debris that surface by the loving of who we are, embracing every defect of character with the love that it has been asking for. As we do so, either path serves for our desire to manifest the one coming forth in us, that we have seen glimpses of, our future self that is master of all destiny.

So let us grant space for the time asked for, spending each moment with our most fulfilling reality where we are, embracing our truths, loving our heart, moving as we are ready in the coming year. And as each choice presents itself, may we remind ourselves that we are here on this pilgrimage not for the choices, but for the journey, that we may live fully well where we are. As all masters do, we came here knowing we agreed to the uncertainty, that there would be pain at times, and that even so we would experience all things necessary for our wellbeing.

May we be blessed, may we be healed, and may all that we desire come forth, as we are ready, loving the heart in tenderness through a that we feel, one breath, one beat, one moment at a time.

Posted on

Seeing our Greatness in Affliction

“Seeing our greatness in affliction”

By James Anthony Curtis

The past few days near Mt. Graham, Arizona, the temperature where we are staying has dropped significantly, the wind adding to the chill goes right through the body, piercing the marrow in the bones, until it feels like there is just no warmth left to the soul. You begin shaking, seeking out any place that might bring some relief, even acting out in mannerisms that might be very telling of the desires locked away within our mortality. Anger, frustration, and depression are common elements that arise as the cold seeps into the body.

Back east, every winter this seemed like a mass exodus in emotional waves that would cover the small town of people when winter began its arrival. The mountains of the Alleghenies though, have a way of hiding the sky, even their greatness, as the hills are close in relation to one another, providing a sense of density that out west does not have. And the humidity seems to stick with you, clinging, in all its various forms, creating a weight of sorts, that feels very much like your body is oppressed in reasoning as to why you would ‘live where you live.’

But the point of it is, we have chosen, each of us, to live where we live, be with whom we are, even if we are caught in habitual patterns of arrangement unconsciously, seemingly through no control or thought of our own. In an inclusive universe, although it may not feel like it, those very parts that are under affliction, are streaming information to the whole of creation as to what we like, even in our ‘dislikes.’ More importantly, as we learn to listen to ourselves, the places within us that surface in emotion, are coming forward to ask or reveal what it is we truly desire. This is always love, in some form or another, whether it be nurturing, holding space, or acknowledgement, our divinity is the love manifesting circumstances for us even though it may appear we have not chosen them. What we do with our response, or reaction, how we treat ourselves through what comes forward, is the love we have been gifted with for shifting our vibration. How we meet life, even in our dislike of circumstances, produces a way forward for the expansion of the heart, which in turn allows room for us to grow in our eternal form. We can either choose to embrace the beauty in our orchestration, acknowledging the genius source creators that we are, or continue on in our patterns, seeing only what we wish to see until we are ready. In either case though, love again is the point in our choosing, beit conscious or unconscious in our awareness.

It might bring some small comfort that, though I am aware of this process, each time is an opportunity to move through it with grace. The ‘unmerited favor’ comes from allowing me to be with me, finite self to connect with infinite self, choosing to abide with strong feelings, uncomfortable sensations, while holding the heart with love, and not abandoning or rejecting it along with the cold.

Today as I look up at the majesty of the mountain, I feel the incredible wealth of colds affliction, the greatness in our mortal journey, why we are revered above angels, because of the pilgrimage we have chosen. With each breath we open ourselves to the one that is coming forth, that desires more than anything to be born, to live as god incarnate here in earth. The fears that we feel are only the pains of being squeezed into this tiny frame, so we feel as we are ready, being gentle with our mortality, granting passage to our afflictions, knowing they are only a part of the birthing process, of coming to know the one we already are, the love that we are, as compassion warms the heart in light for all beings within us.

Blessings my dear friends, much love, gratitude for the heart road we are walking. May it be so, so it is.

Posted on

“Ranchers, Aliens, and Conspiracy Balloons”

Roswell, New Mexico November 13th 2018

“Ranchers, Aliens, and Conspiracy Balloons”

By James Anthony Curtis

Events leading into 1947’ were a hot bed of activity on Earth. America had tested, and then dropped atomic bombs on Japan as World War II was nearing its end. The world’s first general purpose electronic computer is assembled, and completed (Electronic Numerical Integrator Analyzer and Computer). U.S. Navy Flight 19 disappears over the Bermuda triangle. The Transistor is invented, The United Nations is formed, with 50 nations signing the Charter in an effort for world peacekeeping, and government, as the Cold War begins.

No automatic alt text available.

We may never know exactly what Mac Brazel found on July7th, 1947’ while out tending to his sheep pasture near Roswell, New Mexico. Even the initial press release from the local Air Base stated, “RAAF Captures Flying Saucer On Ranch In Roswell Region.” The story released days later has sparked conspiracy theories to this day, as to the amount debris, odd looking bodies, strange writings on even stranger metals, and two large crash sites — all coming from one “Dummy Test Balloon,” as stated from the supposed cover-up. No automatic alt text available.

But as we entered Roswell, one thing becomes very apparent, the town has embraced this legacy as their own, with everything from alien pizza shops, to used clothing stores, all dedicated to the little green men with graffiti. I found myself grinning from ear to ear, my boyish nature hardly contained, as I saw large Aliens in front of hotels, displayed in paintings on buildings, and lining the streets on lampposts. Our destination for the day: The International UFO Museum And Research Center in Roswell. First let me say, even if you are not a ufologist, this is a great little gem of a place simply to spark wonder, imagination, and intrigue — you will not be disappointed.

Image may contain: sky and outdoor

As we walked the halls of the museum, they have done their best to entertain, with fancy mock-ups, artwork, and scenarios, but lets be honest, the artifacts just aren’t there for obvious reasons. This is one place you have to go all-in, without reservation, letting your mind wander where it wills. There is evidence to support arguments in any narrative you choose, believer or not, which is nice in its presentation.Image may contain: sky

Personally Ive been a UFO enthusiast all my life, from the time I could read, to watching those old black & white movies of ‘visitors’ with various intentions coming to our world. I remember as a teenager growing up in the forests of the Alleghenies, intently watching the stars for extraterrestrial presence, longing for contact from universal friends.Image may contain: sky, tree and outdoor

Looking back, the life I knew growing up was very shrouded, there was no internet, no cell phones, and much of the information we received was via television, radio, or newspaper. It gave us the space for the mind to play, to listen to our longings, feel into ourselves with the lack of communication globally. And although I’m not against technology, I do see the need now for this space, one in which we connect specifically in darkness.Image may contain: indoor

Roswell presents us with an opportunity, not so much in the events that unfolded back in 1947, but more to the point of opening our minds to the space from which we may feel into something, be with both our fears and our longings. Whether we believe in the strange circumstances of cover-ups or not, mathematically we are assured its an impossibility that we are alone in the universe; life has evolved abundantly and without doubt on our little blue planet, and the same has already happened elsewhere or is in progress in the cosmos. Aliens present us with the truth about how we face ourselves, the openness we give to our heart, and what we offer to one another, in terms of both borders and boundaries.Image may contain: 1 person, sitting and indoor

When we look into this facet of our meaning, we grant ourselves the wisdom of seeing an extension of life very difficult to embrace in our current evolution as a species — going beyond human limitations and lifespans to a higher place we refer to as “the heavens.” One in which when we look at the sky in amazement, or climb a mountain simply because we feel the need inside of us, we connect to something far reaching in revealing the truth to our pilgrimage here.

For me, Aliens present those sides of me I long to know, and are only ‘Alien’ in nature until I have come to know them.Image may contain: outdoor

Today may we acknowledge those parts, giving them passage in us, breathing in deeply the love they are asking for. May we share in our commonality, both as a species, and as members in the same universe, recognizing the greater body of ‘self’ that we are. And if we meet some day, may we meet when we are ready, preparing our paths to intersect as the long awaited friends that we have been, with each holding of the heart we give, through all that we feel, for the benefit of all beings.

May it be so, so it is. ????

Posted on

Kartchner Caverns, Arizona State Park

Kartchner Caverns, Arizona State Park

By James Anthony Curtis

 

We had the pleasure of visiting Kartchner Caverns on Friday November 30th, 2018. Its hard to believe that 44 years ago, almost to the date in November, this cavern was just being discovered by Gary Tenen and Randy Tufts as they were exploring the limestone hills at the eastern base of the Whetstone Mountains. The two men dreamed of finding “a cave no one had ever found,” and indeed they found it.

As we neared the Limestone hills containing the now well maintained, manmade entrance to the caverns, we had no idea what we were in store for as we approached the entrance. The hills themselves do not sit that far from the highway, and leave little to be awed by from an outward view. There is nothing that gives any indication to the incredible beauty that awaits under the surface, and once inside its mind boggling what it must have been like coming upon this treasure in such a dark exploration. Gary and Randy were two such souls that truly felt the significance of a place like this, and kept the cave secret until February of 1978, when they sat down to share the their find with property owners James and Lois Kartchner. The two knew the cave had to be conserved, since natural wonders can seriously be damaged from unregulated usage, and a course of action was set into motion to approach Arizona State Parks about acquiring the caverns.

It’s hard to believe as you look over at the original entrance, which is hardly noticeable, that a small, dark, hole into the earth, leads to such magnificent beauty in what lays beneath. Our ranger guide was very informative, as was everyone working at the park, and you could feel the passion in his sharing each step of the way as we entered the tunnel to the caverns.

It was sunny yet very chilly outside, and as you approach the first door, you see the beginnings of tunneling into the hillside. The park takes great lengths in precaution to preserve the still actively growing cave, listing many helpful ways in which we will be walking into the cavern as to not disturb what has taken hundreds of thousands of years to form.

Upon walking through the first door, immediately the temperature is a comfortable 72 or so degrees, humid, and surprisingly pleasant. We pass through long tunnels painstakingly made for easier access into the caves, and a total of three large metal doors, sealing the outside world, and preserving the inner one.

Kartchner Caverns is one of those rare places on earth that brings you to a place deep within yourself, thats hard to comprehend the amount of time, pressure, and gravity of circumstances to create. Gary and Randy crawled, through a tiny black opening, squeezing, moving, exploring the darkness, until it opened into something ancient, magnificent, leaving a legacy of awe to what others might share. The beauty is remarkable, even more so as you realize the process in discovering it, and the truth which made it.

I found myself feeling into my own journey as we walked, those dark places yet to be discovered, and the ones that have revealed themselves through much crawling, squeezing and exploring in great effort. The ranger that took us in remarked, “its hard to believe this much beauty formed over so much time in such darkness.”

Many times in our journey it’s difficult to view our own darkness with such reverence — mostly because we get caught up in those tight places, grasping for movement, trying to reason our way through tiny limitations, when being human is really all about feeling those closed spaces. As we allow ourselves to abide with the dark, seeing past the tiny openings, our desires guide us into something much more than we could ever have hoped for.

When we are ready, may we find our ‘sink hole,’ beginning the long journey inward to see what has been forming for a very long time. May we crawl, squeeze, move at our pace, allowing ourselves to enjoy each exploration with love. And as we come to know the one we have been waiting for, may we greet ourselves with all the tenderness we have long desired, for the benefit of all beings.

May it be so, so it is. ????

Posted on

Three Rivers Petroglyphs

Three Rivers Petroglyphs

By James Anthony Curtis

 

It might not seem like the post for Thanksgiving, but bear with me for a bit.

So on our way to Arizona, we had the privilege to visit what some might consider sacred places along the way. ‘Sacred,’ to me, means touching something deep inside, a part that reflects love in a manner that cant easily be given or received, but involves a space of gratitude, empathy, and attention which provokes the heart to see something more than the mere moment of passing impermanence.

Some beings choose to express these times in art, writing, and music, while others immerse themselves as the flow of the ‘sacred’ allows, giving the current permission to carry them where it wills as the path unfolds. All of us experience the ‘sacred’ through the acknowledging of something meaningful, greater than what we believe ourselves to be, vast, yet small, precious in valuation of what we know based on our current relationships. 

Most times for me there is a period of integration, a space of ‘allowing’ for what has been transmitted, and received, giving time for reflection to manifest back to the universe an acknowledgment of the journey here. Maybe that’s why I choose to write, sometimes in recording, others in expression, both sending those emotional energies to myself and others as apart of universal connection in cooperation with the life lived here. 

It might not seem like we have an impact at times, or like we are here fulfilling purpose, but some of the smallest of actions very well may be the most precious in circling back to our roots, granting ourselves passage as the ‘divine,’ or ‘sacred’ beings that we are — like these testimonials etched in rock, from a people long ago that farmed a once fertile valley, leaving small, unsubstantial traces of animals, actions, and feelings. We too carve out moments in time, possibly left for others to feel as they find, and maybe its not what we think in terms of preserving or recording our memories, or culture, but those ‘expressions,’ feelings that we leave in our absence, ‘signatures’ we leave of our life here in how we interact with our divinity in human form.

The people at ‘Three Rivers’ left no record for us to find, no monuments to any great civilization, but as you sit upon the rocks, walk paths they walked, and touch the pictures they left, you find yourself in the sacred, feeling a place in the heart for family, friends, and a deep gratitude rooted in the preciousness of life. They even buried their dead in the floors of the places they lived, perhaps to keep them close, or maybe as a reminder, to the spark each life holds, that in time transcends all boundaries of limitation.

Today we offer thanks, not for any set discovery, land, or celebration of peoples, but for all beings, on the sacred pilgrimage of love, as we come to know our relationships and why we journey with them. May you be blessed, may you be loved, may you find ease in the open heart of healing.

Namaste. 

Posted on

Glore Psychiatric Museum ~ “Finding our way”

Glore Psychiatric Museum ~ “Finding our way”
Saturday November 10th 2018 by James AnthonyCurtis

 

Today we visited the Glore Psychiatric Museum in St. Joseph Missouri just north of Kansas City.

St. Joseph is pleasant town, with lovely people, a rare little gem of attractions in US history. Having a commitment we are en route to, we decided on a couple of places that peaked our interest for the day. I chose the Native American exhibit, and Ciara picked the Glore Museum.

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.
I forget as a healer though, that when in exploration while sighting seeing, the impact things may have on me. This actually works to the benefit of the process sometimes, in that each experience is felt on a much deeper level, when we are unaware of what’s happening, because the mind doesn’t interfere with its analytical inquisitions or opinions.

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?

As we walked from room to room, seeing the devices and various forms of treatment used in those individuals that were committed, neither of us had the words to describe what we were feeling. Knowing what I know now, working with many people that struggle with mental health, how many of these people would have been tossed to the wind as ‘abnormal,’ or ‘less than’ in humane consideration? ‘Love,’ seemed far removed from the equation, as each treatment focused more on the obedience of behavior, and awakening the individual to societal norms in thinking.

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.

 

 

May you be blessed, may you be opened when ready, free to explore those parts that are asking only to be heard by the love that you already are. May it be so, so it is.???

Posted on

Mirror, mirror…

Mirror, mirror…

By James Anthony Curtis

Rain continues this day, as I listen to the drip, drip, drip upon the gutters, grey skies holding true to their foretelling of the mood. It always amazes me how nature can be a perfect reflection of those parts within me on any given day, and when the shift comes, synchronized walls fall as the clouds move to produce the brightness of the sun. But the shift isn’t the goal, more of a byproduct of loves intrepid work in revealing the depths in deep need, each darkness claiming stake for the next round of feeling.

Some days as ironic as it sounds, I just don’t feel like feeling.

SO I wake up, go about my day, as the universe patiently waits for my readiness. Days may bleed into weeks, but not so much anymore, as once quickened, life has a way to coax us back into our attentiveness. I’m learning not to push, to prod myself or others in our chosen life path, but rather to simply allow me to flow as the person Ive come to experience this journey in.

As a healer, I’m very familiar with those coming to me for answers, but answers are different than healing. Healing can manifest in a variety of ways, but Ive never seen it arrive solely as an ‘answer.’ Mostly, healing comes as that pesky neighbor knocking at some odd hour at the back door, or the painful newscast we wince at in passing – wishing the world was a safer place. Deep healing arises almost unnoticed, maybe a forgotten dream in the night, or some ache upon waking for the day, possibly a co-worker saying the same annoying thing, complaining in our ear. These ‘feelings,’ left unattended, begin to work their festering magic, seeping underneath, into the cracks of our soul, until that day comes when we don’t ‘feel’ like going to work, we call off, crawling back into our bed.

And when ready, when there has been enough space created, we begin to examine ourselves, asking those difficult questions, maybe allowing difficult feelings.

The distance we feel, is nothing more than the space we have genuinely created, for love to close the gap between us and us. Oppression, heart-ache, sickness, and death, all reveal this great distance, the one inside that we miss, our infinite selves. But if we allow our demons to work for us, those parts that feel plagued, our eyes will come to know the truth of loves revealing, of each costumed scary character that has come forth, only as an aid to our most desired healing.

Sometimes the most potent feelings are the ones that arise out of our need to be seen, to know that we are not alone, that even in dire circumstances, all is unfolding for our benefit.

So we listen to the rain, feel the grey, hear the wind upon the trees, and allow as we allow, as we are ready to receive. We flow with the river of our true nature, granting passage for life to move as it chooses, welcoming both our resistance, and each embrace, with all the love we wish to be given, as no one else can, as we tenderly, sometimes painfully, hold the heart in all that we feel.

May it be so, so it is. ????