forgive more

Today’s A Course in Miracles lesson:

“Forgiveness is the key to happiness. I will awaken from the dream that I am mortal, fallible, and full of sin, and know I am the perfect Son of God.”

The text of the lesson states that “forgiveness is acquired. It is not inherent in the mind which cannot sin. As sin is an idea you taught yourself, forgiveness must be learned by you as well...”

Sin/guilt/shame are not real in these terms. They are something we have created in error that seem to hold a lot of power over us. Because we give focus to negative emotion within our minds, we inadvertently create what appears to be a negatively-tilted world. What most of us don’t realize is that it’s all an inside job. Our thoughts are not meaningless. They are things that shape the world we see around us. Thankfully, we have been given the tool of forgiveness to correct the errors of negative thinking within our minds. As we practice doing that within ourselves, our own experience will change for the better. As more and more people join in, the whole world will naturally begin to change for the better. Because we create this world with our minds. 

One of my favorite teachers of A Course in Miracles - Marianne Williamson - likes to tell the story of Michaelangelo and his sculptures. He was known to say that he did not create the sculpture from a marble slab. God had already done that. All Michaelangelo would take credit for is holding the vision of what was within the stone, and removing the outer layers to reveal the beauty within. I like to think of each little thing in my life that I forgive as another piece of the stone flying off under a chisel. As I do this, over and over, day by day, the beauty of my life becomes more and more apparent. All I need to do is hold my vision of a beautiful life, and let the stones fly. 

Much love to all, and thank you for reading.

xoxo,

erin

when it rains it pours

Today is pretty mellow. It is cloudy, a little rainy, and I find myself listening to music on the headphones and laying around reading my Delores Cannon book in between fulfilling my motherly duty of keeping everyone in my household fed.

The book I'm reading right now is called "Between Death and Life." I'm almost at the end.

If you don't know who Delores Cannon is - just briefly - she was a hypnotherapist for 40+ years. She found a way to talk with the deepest level of a person's subconscious mind - even deeper than what we typically consider to be the subconscious. She found that, when taken to this level, people could "miraculously" heal from certain ailments (mental and physical) that modern doctors could not cure. She also found out many many many other things. The type of hypnotherapy she pioneered is called QHHT. She taught many people how to do this over a long career. Despite the fact that she passed from the earthly plane in 2014, you can still go get this type of therapy for yourself, and you would be likely to find someone who learned from her directly.

Anyhow, in this particular book "Between Death and Life," Delores shares her conversations with people who are regressed to times when they are without a body - so times when they are in spirit form. She is learning about some complicated processes that our spirits go through before we decide to enter the earthly plane. It is some very mind-bending stuff, and I won't go into it all here. You can read the book if you are curious. But probably my favorite line from the whole book is this:

"Apparently we, as conscious human beings, are the least informed participants in the whole earthly scenario."

I just had to sit the book down and laugh when I read that. It completely reminded me of the title of a chapter in the book "The Tao of Willie." (A book written by Willie Nelson - another recommended read, for sure.) The chapter is called something to the effect of "Thankfully, we are not in charge."

And I guess I wanted to share it here because this whole concept just totally relieves me of the need I sometimes feel to control things. How can we control things from this side of the "veil" if we know so little of what is actually going on? How can we legitimately believe we can control anything at all? It's insane to think any good can come of that. Better to just - again - let go. Allow yourself to be guided.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A daily prayer from A Course in Miracles:

Dear God,

Tell me where to go.
Tell me what to do.
Tell me what to say
and to whom.

Amen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for reading, and I hope you have a large day!

xoxo,
erin

forgive

The topic of martyrdom has been brought up into my awareness a lot lately, and was reinforced by my card pull of the hanged man in reverse.





Usually, the hanged man is hanging upside down, indicating a change in perspective, and “letting go.” However, the hanged man came out of my deck upside-down, which means he is standing upright (confusing, I know.) This indicates martyrdom, and I am guided to think about how martyrdom is the opposite of "letting go."

Many religions (if not all) speak often of forgiveness. We tend to think of forgiveness as something that makes a bit of a martyr out of us. If someone has done us wrong, somehow the forgiving of that makes us feel a bit above them, like the bigger person. Like we are doing the right thing even though they are not. We are sacrificing our own happiness in order to forgive them - we are becoming a martyr for their sake. That is how we generally look at forgiveness, and it serves no one. I have learned that to truly forgive, we need to make a 180 degree turn in our perspective (kind of like the hanged man does.) 

True forgiveness is realizing that there is nothing to forgive. In order to forgive another person for the pain they have caused us, we need to realize that everything is just as it is supposed to be. It was our own expectation that something should have turned out differently that creates the need to forgive in the first place. So we need to let that go.

Remember the fox that eats the hare? Remember the neutral and expanded perspective that makes it all okay? I am talking about that again. When we can let things be just as they are without feeling the need to change them, and be at peace in that space, then it is surprising just how fast the things we would like to change just fall away. When we focus on the thing that needs to change as a point of forgiveness, all we are doing is giving energy to the thing that needs to change. When we give our energy to it, we make it grow. The problem continues. To truly forgive, we need to let go of any expectations we had regarding the situation. Release our grip, remove our energy, and let it be as it is. Anything less than that is trying to solve a problem from the same level at which it was created, and Einstein tells us that is impossible. 

Einstein was a pretty smart guy. Just saying.

This is how "letting go" is the opposite of martyrdom, and also the key to our peace.

Below is one of my all-time favorite poems by Mary Oliver. I am including it here because of the line “There is still deep within you a beast shouting that the world is exactly what it wanted...Whether or not you have ever dared to be happy. Whether or not you have ever dared to pray.”

The world is exactly what it wanted. 

It is truly truly all good.

I would like to see this hanged man upside-down the way he belongs. I feel like he is a little uncomfortable the way he is right now. He wants to dangle 🤣. Think of something you can forgive, release your expectations over it,  and see what miracles occur.

xoxo,

erin

the fox and the hare

Well, I got the hare again. If you haven't been following this blog, I'll just say that this is probably the fifth time in the past week that I pulled a rabbit card in one form or another. But this time, I got the hare with the fox, which to me is a very interesting relationship. To top it all off, it is followed by the two of cups. This has so many implications - I could probably write an entire book on this card pull, but I will try to keep it brief for your sake, and the sake of my children who will probably need some attention soon!

So first - think about the relationship between the fox and the hare. Generally, the fox eats the hare, and the hare dies. We think that is the end, but we forget that death is not the end. We forget that the hare - in ancient lore - is a master shapeshifter. What if the hare has as much to benefit from this relationship as the fox does? What if we try to see this interplay as fundamentally neutral - as we are told by our most advanced spiritual teachers that everything essentially is? Instead of pursuer, the fox becomes a vehicle for the transformation of the hare. The hare is not a victim; rather it is a shining example of invulnerability and transmutation. Look at the hare in this card. It is the bigger of the two. It is standing in front of a mysterious henge. It is guarding four eggs. You can see a beautiful crescent moon in the background. This is not an average hare. This hare represents a mutable, receptive, and feminine energy. The eggs it is guarding are the very symbol of rebirth and transformation. This hare is telling us it is not the victim we think it is. The victimhood associated with the hare in this interplay is a result of our own fear-based projections.

And then there is the two of cups.

I feel like the two of cups - in this context - is asking us to take a look at what we perceive to be separate. What appear here to be two beings are actually part of a larger whole. Our senses, and the way our brains interpret things can be very deceptive at times. The hare and the fox appear to us to be mortal enemies, participating in an endless cycle of pursuer and pursued. But do they see themselves that way, or is there something bigger, something formless and nameless, going on here? I am touching on something that is incredibly difficult to put into words here, but look at the two snakes coiling around the rod in the picture of the card.

This is a Caduceus, which is - among other things - a symbol for alchemy. There is something profound that happens within the space of a relationship where real transformation can occur.  When two whole and complete beings come together towards a common goal, something within them forgets that they are separate at all. This is the fox eating the Hare. This is the Hare - not disappearing - but changing form. Within the space of this dance, beauty is created that is bigger than the sum of its parts. This is where we find the truth in each other, and we begin to approach the very definition of Love.

                        ~~~~~~~~~ 💗~~~~~~~~~

I hope you enjoyed my deep thoughts for the day. There are many more where that came from, so I’ll see you again here soon!

xoxo,

erin

eastertime

I sat down to pull cards yesterday and got the rabbit you see on the right. I needed clarification, so I got out a different deck, and immediately got the rabbit you see on the left. A bunch of rabbits kept popping up on my Instagram feed. Then today, I pulled a card again, and again, got the rabbit. 

So I am thinking that I have a theme going on here. 😂

Staring down at all the bunnies that seem to magically multiply (as rabbits often do,) it also dawned on me that Easter is coming up. I never celebrated Easter growing up as a child - it wasn't part of my religion - so I've always been a little removed from the popular holiday. But I do know that there is a bunny involved.

I have no idea what the Christian justification is for the Easter bunny, but I do know that - in Druidic lore - the rabbit is considered the creature of the Goddess and the moon. It is known for it's abundant fertility, and is a symbol of intuition, shapeshifting, and rebirth. The hare has long been the guardian of the mystical Druid's egg, and this is likely why we celebrate a rabbit that hides eggs around this time of year. The resurrection of Jesus plays nicely with the theme of spring and rebirth. There are also teachings that suggest that Jesus learned from the Druids during his “missing years,” but that is another story for another time.

I feel there is a rebirth occurring on this planet. I feel there is a lot of shifting and changing going on. The usual spring cycle is occurring, but I feel this is something more. We are witnessing the breaking down of many of the old structures and systems that used to work for us. These things are breaking down because they do not work for us any longer. (I am thinking health care, education, insurance, business, etc...) We are here in the middle of this perceived collapse, and it looks damned scary. But at the same time, people are beginning to wake up to the abundance and the beauty that is all around them all the time, whether it be spring, summer, winter, or fall. People are learning more and more the power of their own thoughts, and they are learning to trust their intuition. People are finding the keys to the grace that resides inside themselves. And with all of this, a new world is being born.

I believe these earth-based practices are rising up once again and it may be time to let go gracefully of that which no longer serves the common good. The beauty of a willing release is another lesson that the Hare has to teach us. It is springtime, and maybe some "spring cleaning" on a massive scale is in order. It is important to remember that the universe is infinitely abundant, and that it is capable of sharing this abundance with you through many different avenues, so letting go of things that we no longer need does not need to be scary or sad. We are always supported, guided, and provided for. We are truly invulnerable to lack in any form.

I have a lot more to say on this topic, but I will leave that for another post. I hope you can remember the hare and all her promises as you are going about your Easter Holiday. We will be going out of town overnight, so I probably won’t post again until next week. But as always - thank you so much for reading.

xoxo

love,
erin

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Game On

We live in strange and wonderful times.

The weather is changing.

Historical structures are crashing and burning.

Nothing appears to be as it was.

What lies beneath this apparent madness?

For many of us - there is a tendency to try and "figure it out.” Many of us - myself included - try to find meaning in the symbolism of it all. Because, after all, what is life except a string of symbols? What are words except essentially meaningless sounds that we have strung together and agreed upon a meaning for? We live in a world of archetypes and myth that we have created over time. So why wouldn't we try to piece the meanings together in the same way?

But do we really want to know?

Our spirit, or our higher self, or God, is aware of what it all means. Deep inside, there is a part of us that has the bigger picture. However, we are here in this space at this time because we have volunteered to move forward as if we don't know what is going on. We put our own blinders on when we signed up for this a long time ago. We didn't want to be told all the answers right away.

So while it is fun to try and "figure it all out," maybe part of the reason behind it is so we can learn to let the mystery be. 

I've always enjoyed listening to music where the vocalist is singing in a language that I don't understand. Even if they are saying the most boring and mundane things, I don't care. It is made so much more beautiful to me for the fact that I have no freaking clue what they're talking about.

This life is much the same. If we were shown all the cheat codes, what would be the point of playing the game? How about just kicking back and enjoying the music for a bit? How about letting ourselves be amazed and surprised by the magic of what unfolds?

Game on.

xoxo,
erin

give and take

Today's lesson from A Course in Miracles (lesson 106):

Let me be still and listen for the truth.
What does it mean to give and to receive?

In yesterday's post "the eye," I spoke about how The Queen of Swords is receiving with her left hand, and giving with her right. It is important to be doing both. When one or the other becomes stopped up, our natural harmonious nature tends to become a little off-key.

Also, according to ACIM, giving and receiving are not what we generally believe them to be. We think that to give something away is to lose that item. Under current mainstream thought, if I give you a sandwich, I no longer have that sandwich. But in reality, to give something away is to strengthen it and make it multiply. Most of us perceive this world with a mentality based upon lack, and so that is what we create. (See, we are strengthening that which we are giving.) But actually, the Universe is a place of total abundance. When we make that switch in our minds, when we move from a place of trying to believe in abundance, to a place of KNOWING abundance and SEEING it all around us, then we start to see miracles come to life right before our eyes. This is how Jesus fed the multitude with one fish and one loaf of bread. He knew that to give away a "sandwich" makes it multiply. He had no doubt that this was true. And so it was for him, and so it still is for all of us - we need only to know it.

There is a flow happening all around us all the time. We are always a part of it, but sometimes we forget. We are infinitely more happy when we can see that we are part of this ongoing dynamic process. Giving and receiving are ways we can acknowledge our part in this flow. Most of us like to think we are trying to become more balanced, but balance implies stasis, and nothing in this universe is still. To truly be a part of this dance we are all in, I think harmony is a more appropriate word. So let's focus on having a more harmonious relationship with that which we give, and that which we receive. Let's be grateful for what we can give, as well as what we can receive. Because, truly, what we give is increased exponentially beyond our wildest dreams. Giving and receiving are actually the same.

A Course in Miracles also touches on the idea behind the now popular word "Namaste," which means something like "The light in me recognizes the light in you," or "The God in me recognizes the God in you." This also ties into giving and receiving in a more etheric way. It says "See [another] through the Holy Spirit in his mind, and you will recognize Him in yours. What you acknowledge in your brother you are acknowledging in yourself, and what you share you strengthen. The Voice of the Holy Spirit is weak in you. That is why you must share It. It must be increased in strength before you can hear It." So, in essence, that which is shared (or given) is made stronger (or received). Yet another reason why it is so important to focus on the good in each other, and the good in the world.

So you see, I have a selfish motivation behind writing this blog. I am giving these thoughts to you not because I am some kind of expert or know-it-all, but because I am learning too, and I want to hear them better for myself. I hope you enjoy what I have to give. 💗💗💗

Much love to you all.

xoxo,
erin

P.S. Today I would like to thank my friend and mentor Max Ryan for bringing A Course in Miracles into my life, and also for teaching me the difference between balance and harmony. If you feel moved, go check out his website - great stuff there.