It’s a really fascinating experience to be in this duality of life, to feel the immense peace that being embodied in love brings, while also playing witness to the deep sadness and pain of this world. I don’t know about you but I have been experiencing some of the most intense energetic pressure from all aspects of life; from my intimate family circle, to playing in the changing landscape of online business, to pandemic fatigue, to witnessing how my country is moving through a tumultuous time and now global fear of war… it feels like everywhere I turn there is division or challenge or pain.

And even though witnessing and feeling the depth of these emotions is the furthest thing from pleasant, I don’t believe we come here to just be happy. I believe we come to experience the full spectrum of being human; the highs and lows, the triumphs, the celebrations, the deep aching disappointments and losses. The questioning, the confusion, the need for stability when it’s not present, all of this arising in life to create the reality our Soul is here to evolve within. 

Which feels fine and dandy when things are flowing well and you are dancing through life with a grace and ease you only once dreamt of before, but what about the moments of deep despair? When you’ve lost so much faith or trust in yourself, or your community, or the world, and you don’t even know what could possibly bring some sweet release? When you desperately want to show up and be of service for others, but you can barely get yourself out of bed? When every old toxic pattern of yours is rearing it’s tempting head and just praying this is the time you crack and bring it all back in…

What abut those times?
How do we stay aligned with light & love in those times?

While there isn’t really a one-size-fits-all answer for you, here is my closest attempt:

C O M P A S S I O N
G R A T I T U D E
P R E S E N C E

Compassion reminds us of the immense power we hold in our heart. Remember that no matter what your reality, someone else in this world is suffering more in this exact moment, and the greatest way you can serve them, is to fill your whole being with compassion for all beings, and know that at our core we are Love. If a brother or sister is suffering, can we hold deeper love in our cells to emanate that love frequency throughout the collective?

Gratitude pulls us out of the depths of our emotion (emotion usually hangs out down around our abdominal area) and helps us to elevate to a heart-centered place of thanks. Sometimes just the simple act of looking around the room, noticing the objects that line the walls, remembering when those items found their way to you, and saying “thank you” to them for their presence, can be enough to help you align with Love.

Presence is our sacred gift from our Soul that we often forget about and subconsciously allow our mind take over instead. When we are present, we are in the now moment. There is no past, there is no future. There are no problems to solve. There is no guilt to carry. There is here, now, in this moment, for all of eternity. And as we tap into this, if only for a split second, we tap into the essence of Love. {and radiate more Love out to others}

What’s fascinating is that no two realities are the same. Even if you and I were standing side by side watching the same action unfold in front of us, we would experience it differently. That’s the beautiful gift of being individuals that creates this tapestry of life. You may be feeling this in conversations with family and friends right now. There is immense division around what is correct, right, inappropriate, possible and how as a global culture we get to navigate through life right now. Everyone’s opinions are valid, as they are all based on our own unique perceptions. If we allow ourselves to hold compassion, gratitude and presence with others while in these conversations, it can lead to a much more amicable experience. That doesn’t mean everyone comes to the same conclusion or view, but instead that we honour our differences and do our best to create safe space for ourselves and our neighbours to be seen and heard.

I stand by the belief that you need to question everything and ensure it feels right and true for you. And if it doesn’t, let it go.
But just because it doesn’t feel right and true for you, doesn’t mean it has to be the same for someone else. Can you allow yourself to practice emotional intelligence and hold all beings in love, even when they interact with the world differently than you?

Remember that an act of violence or hatred, no matter how big or small, is occurring from a place of feeling a lack of love. An emptiness or sadness that is so devastating, it catapults out in acts against others. Love and Soul are eternal, personality is not.

We all have a version of this within us. This part of us that would give anything to be loved. And when we can hold compassion for that part inside of us, we can do the same for others around us.

One question I asked myself recently was “if I were to die suddenly, what would matter most to me?”

And, before you read on for what came to me, I invite you to ask yourself this question and witness what answer reveals itself to you.

– – –

For me, it was ensuring that those I love know how deeply I love them. I did a gentle scan of some of my closest loved ones and asked myself if they truly know the depth of my love. The answer was yes! ?  fewf

And so, what else matters? What else runs deeper than Love? The rest of life is simply a continually changing expression of you experiencing life. Some will like how you do life. Some won’t. Some will be your friends. Some will turn on you. Some will celebrate your wins. Some will ignore your presence. Some will agree with you, and many won’t.

But ultimately, what matters most is how deeply you loved and how compassionately you lived.

So to each of you reading this and allowing yourself to feel the depth of love and compassion within you, thank you. Thank you for being a catalyst for love and a catalyst for compassion. That little part inside all of us that deeply desires to be loved, thanks you.