Introduction
One of the many positive things arising from the current global pause in normal routine is that habitual things are falling away. Not because we have made choices to let things go, but because they aren’t possible, available or allowed. And after a sustained absence, other things don’t make sense anymore. I’m going to reflect on the space that is opening up in people’s physical lives, as well as their emotional and spiritual lives at this time.
Just as the planet seems to be healing itself at record speed, we as humans are also self-healing organisms. If the ozone hole can close itself and the birdsong regenerate, maybe we can also improve some of our least helpful behaviours. We’re being given a huge chance to stop, reflect and realign. The difference is this time, it’s not about what we should do, but what matters to each of us individually. In this sense, there is no right or wrong, but there is truth. And authenticity. The question is how do we find and recognise it?
Common Responses to Change
I’ve noticed that during the pause phase people have tended to adopt one of two general positions. They either call everyone they know, zoom, skype, WhatsApp chat in every imaginable way and are inseparable from their phone for security. My other friends and I included did less connecting. Personally I found the amount of virtual contact overwhelming. I needed more space, more quiet, less activity just to process what was happening. Like many others, I enjoyed the space, I sank into it, expanded. Are you one of the people who felt guilty at turning down online quiz invitations dancing online because it felt wierd? You weren’t alone. We all have different ways of coping, and neither is right nor wrong. Those people who were able to let go of clinging to the outside sources of connection were able to sit with a few waves of fear and drop through to the other side.
I can only speak for myself, some clients that I have accompanied through this process and a few more friends. I am not speaking for everyone. The media has not portrayed quarantine isolation as positive for mental health on the whole. Yet I noticed that there was a strong instinct in many people that the “isolation” is good. It’s healthy, and its an incredible opportunity. Some people expressed regret when the lockdown began to ease. Myself included. Until I realised that there was no need to return to previous behaviours.
My own story
During lockdown I have planted enough vegetables to feed a village, improved off-grid self-reliance on my farm, supplied people with food plants and seeds, looked after various animals, supported people to start allotments and finish construction tasks like rainwater collection and so on. I have connected more deeply with nature and begun to appreciate what I have always had – myself, my place on the earth and my ability to respond and take care. I have shopped for others, smiled, shared, encouraged and generally grown into the person I have always felt I could be in response to the fear and despair around me. I have stood up to the police and spoken out against the removal of our basic rights. Going back to how things were before doesnt even cross my mind. And I have realised that no-one can make me. I’ve moved on. We always have a choice…
Letting Go
So what actually changed? I have been asking many people what they noticed and modified in their lives over the last couple of months. One of the main things that seem to have dropped away is an external compulsion. That feeling of having a gun to your head when you get out of bed to start your working day is part of life for so many. But actually it’s a gun you normally hold there for yourself. Dropping the gun allows space for a natural pace to set in, for more ease, wonder, and connection both within yourself and with the living world around you. People listened to birdsong. They tasted food. They made new food! It’s only when you relax and let go for long enough for this to become habitual that you can begin to override lifelong programming to do, to be, to achieve.
For many people, this has been possible because the drive to work has been taken away. Some people had saved money and so they felt safe enough to relax for a month or two. Other people had state aid. Still more lost their livelihoods and decided to get creative. Others despaired. And yet because this has gone on long enough the common denominator is that it has begun to make more sense to do what we want and to feel good than it does to stick to well-worn routines that feel responsible. And adult. Something has changed forever. And we all feel this. Money is no longer the only motivating factor. Kindness and the common good, as well as nature’s right to exist has returned into our awareness.
But what about money?
The drive to make money for survival has been a strong fear factor for many. This in itself is making people wonder… Is life really about money? Does money matter when you die? Can you eat money? If you can’t eat it then why is it so important? What does it mean if you can’t save your dying parent and can’t even fly to bury them? These are powerful experiences that shatter long-accepted and ingrained truths about life. So if these aren’t true, what else isn’t? And so the questioning has slowly filtered downwards through our cores. Many are realising that things including food may be in short supply. So they are taking action to plant food. These actions are empowering and create sovereignty, independence from authority. This can allow you space to reclaim your own.
Clarity and Simplicity
So what has really changed? When we let go we create space. If we can detach from external supports and just be in that uncomfortable unfamiliar space then we meet deeper parts of ourselves. The desire to make ice-cream has surprised me recently. Its sounds superficial but for me, the discovery has been profound. Enriching, uplifting, making me laugh out loud and incredibly joyful. I wonder what yours have been… I’ve had so many! My sense is that people are beginning to make choices based on their own happiness, their essential values, needs and their own wellbeing.
With less stuff, less activity and fewer options in the picture some core values are becoming clearer. We feel good when we include others and help them out. We love certain simple things like sunshine, good chocolate and talking to a friend and we need these in our lives. The winner of the undervalued commodity that is coming to the fore must surely be the HUG! What an amazing gift to be hugged and not let go of after two months without human touch.
Discerning Truth
This is not a political piece of writing. And yet I will say that when you begin to reconnect with your own inner needs, desires, joy and clarity some external things begin to look ridiculous. Policies, rules and regulations are so illogical and lacking in common sense that you do wonder if it’s the authorities that are insane or you are. This is only because you are regaining your own discernment. By discovering your own inner road-map you are then able to start to discern whether the outer world’s actions resonate with your own well-being and interest or not.
This is very very important. There is no such thing as good or bad, and I say this because all emotion, all action is part of a whole, which has light, dark and grey aspects. If you’ve done work on your own shadow or suppressed emotion, you will understand what I’m referring to. And yet there is such a thing as authenticity. In every moment there is something that is true for you, from the inside. It’s something that you feel, not something that you know with your thinking head. And right now many people are being forced to have the opportunity to feel deeper and to listen to themselves. This is partly thanks to the pantomime nature of what is being acted out on the global state which no adult with half an ounce of common sense can be asked to take seriously.
What to do about the news
I have found myself so confused in trying to get to the bottom of “news” and current affairs narratives, that I have had to let go. When science that we learnt at school about immunity is being questioned and dismissed, even about basic functioning of the immune system, when everything known is twisted and manipulated it doesn’t make sense to fight back. I let go and went into myself, and decided to connect more with the natural world around myself in order to preserve my sanity. Has anyone else experienced this I wonder? Is it responsible for the huge upsurge in happy gardeners in the UK and elsewhere?
What comes next?
People are asking what comes next. If you have discovered that you will be out of a job permanently or that what you were doing no longer makes sense to you, it may be that you are about to find what you’ve always been looking for… But didn’t’ even realise! We are so incredibly fortunate to be alive at this moment and going through this internal and external shift globally. I would suggest that what comes next is to keep stripping away the layers, to keep feeling, to keep exploring.
It’s not the time to jump back to any kind of routine or pick up the pieces. Leave them scattered where they are and step softly on and through. Or just stand and gaze at them a while longer. Whichever feels right to you.
The world has shifted, and so will you. Health comes from the inside. It is a self-generating principle of life. It doesn’t matter what you were doing before or who you were being. It matters what you are feeling now and what is emerging.
How do you realign yourself and your life?
We aren’t trained to withstand these processes at school, and mostly they aren’t mentioned. The reason why our governments are able to impose so many arbitrary rules that restrict our basic rights and freedoms right now is that so many people are disconnected from their inner power, and their inner ability to decide what is good for themselves. This gap in inner connection is where fear lives. And fear makes people vulnerable to external manipulation.
The antidote is to regain inner connection – the tools I use are craniosacral awareness, dance, walking, planting vegetables, tending animals and meditation. I’m sure there are many more. I am sometimes very afraid, but I never let my fear stop my action because I trust my body, and I know that I am connected to the source of all life. My impulses are aligned with life which is why things flow for me. When I don’t know what to do, I wait until the action arises. Or I put my body in motion and see what it does. These are two ways to approach the same issue from different perspectives. Just as you can approach physical health from the bodily or emotional/mental side. They both lead to healing, but if tackled together the result is often faster.
The Process of Realigning
The process I use develops through a conversation that takes you closer to your own truth. We can do this online or in person. It’s actually quite scientific as well as intuitive. First, we notice what no longer feels like it fits, what feels off or heavy or stressful. We put it aside. Then we use your emotional experiences and states to start to explore what you can move towards, what feels good. You can understand what you really want even if it feels far off right now. Sometimes we may also use the body through simple movement, breathing or visualisation exercises. The more clarity you gain about what really belongs in your life and what doesn’t the more you come alive. The energy feeds a positive cycle.
Next Steps
If any of what I have written resonates for you, and you’re not sure what your next steps are please get in touch. I offer a one-hour realignment session that gives you an overview of where you are now and what you need to get clear on and how in order to help you move forwards with ease. I’ve been working with people to help them connect with and live from their souls for many years. The emotional and embodied tools are simple to apply once you understand that your body and emotions are a compass to your place in life. Please let me know your experiences and insights, and feel free to get in touch. Each one of us counts and our contributions to the whole are perfectly individual… happy exploring.
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