Mary’s Time

For some Christmas is about the presents, the big meals or even seeing old friends and family…but for me, this is Mary’s time. I adore Mother Mary. Through her, I have learned to be a better me. Oh sure, this may sound trite, even a touch phony – but it’s true.

I did not always feel this way. I struggled with Mother Mary for years. I didn’t understand how she could just stand by and watch Jesus die on the cross. How could she not throw herself before the soldiers shouting, “Take me, take me instead?” What kind of mother was she? With time, I discovered, she was the best kind of mother.

Years ago when my own son was in a very real health crisis, I came to know Mary’s heart. Mary loved her son. She loved Jesus so much that she was able to stand at the foot of the cross as he bled and bled. She remained with him to his very last breath when he finally cried out to his father above. Mary stayed close by. She believed in Jesus and his own separate purpose.

Was it difficult? Unimaginably painful, just ask any parent of a suffering child. Some parents can’t stay though the suffering. Some parents runaway or reject seeing their child in pain. But many, many more faithfully stay and look for cures. Still others find grace when there are no cures. And there in the shadows Mary waits too, grace and peace swirl at her feet.

For Mary stayed – at the birth, in the raising of her precious son, at the feasts of celebration and sadly, at the cross too. As far as we know she did not try to sway Jesus from his purpose, she loved him. She trusted his boyhood days that found him arguing with the rabbis in temple when he should have been in the fields. She trusted in his many trips to the desert when he would came back ablaze with the divine, overflowing with new ideas. Such radical new ideas of faith…yet she trusted Jesus.

She also trusted in the unseen divine that sometime requires much…Did she not know herself the cost? The sting of judgment? Pregnant and without a husband, forced out by her community. Mary knew all too well the cost of faith…

Mary has come to me many times throughout my life. I am unbelievably blessed to have such intimate moments with her. The first time I experienced the presence of Mary as an adult I was overwhelmed. My first thought was I am not worthy, there are more important people/problems than me. I felt her outpouring love even more keenly at that moment and the words, “You are my beloved child, nothing is more important” boomed in my mind.

Words can not properly express the magnitude of this moment for me. The best I can say is my life split – before I was alone and after, I was forever held. Not only did I realize that I was held but that everyone was being held by unseen forces at every moment. I saw ways in my own childhood that Mary’s presence had been there even though I couldn’t see it at the time.

Here’s the important part – bad things happened and I am still the beloved child. I’ve made peace with my past. Even though there were certainly hardships, I know I wouldn’t be the person I am today without them.

Again, this may sound trite, too easy an answer, but it’s true. Peace is usually standing right next to you, but only you can truly believe you are worthy to partake in the feast…You’ll have to stop beating yourself up, judging your own failings – real or imagined, you’ll have to allow yourself to come down from your own self-imposed cross into the waiting arms of peace. For Mary is waiting there, loving you just the way you are, patiently waiting for you to come home…

Merry Christmas

Something akin to the hell found in the movie Groundhog Day.  Every day is spent making beds, cleaning bathrooms, freshening towels, vacuuming…I have either slipped into a twin 1950’s marriage or I am in fact in hell. 

More exciting than the hell of cleaning, is the buyers – who have discovered it’s a buyer’s market and some of whom would like to steal your home.  I never understood how the foreclosure market would negative affect the prices until now…

What I have discovered in the process of selling our home is responsibility.  Have you ever read the book, The Little Prince?  It is one of my favorite books because it speaks to the responsibility of taming or loving something.  Once something becomes yours, you are responsible for taking care of it.  If you can no longer take care of it, you must find a way for someone else to care for it.  That is our home.

If we were to accept one of these low-ball offers we would hurt the energy of our home.  Foreclosure houses tend not to have good energy – how could they?  Too much stress and anxiety locked inside.  Hence I have all these buyers wanting to buy my house at a foreclosure/avoid bankruptcy prices – they see it as the same house physically.  However they are not the same houses – you get what you pay for.  There are no deals, because you are buying a life.

Look at the history of a house – how many times has it flipped?  Foreclosure houses tend to flip a lot – the ‘deal’ the buyers got on the front end will be their problem on the other side.  It could be as simple as placement.  Is the house at the top/end of road?  Interestingly this is a horrible energy pattern – the energy of the road flows directly into the house constantly.  Hence the house/inhabitants can never get grounded enough to make it work…

Our house is a home.  It is energetically excellent with color, scent, layout, comfort and lush, abundant gardens.  It has been the support our family has needed to refresh, cradle and ultimately launch us into another adventure that is something akin to stepping into a fairy tale (more about that in a few weeks…) 

It was the same for the previous owners and I will not give this house less.  Our buyers are not looking for a steal, but a home that will cradle them.  In this safety, dreams unfold and manifest into reality.  Here in this house, our family began living an enchanted life, unbelievably blessed and magical truly (got the medical miracles and passport vacations to prove it!)  So we wait, knowing the new family is coming – we are just holding their place a little longer…Frankly I can’t wait to meet them, because I know what waits for them…peace, warmth, beauty, family, love, healing, laughter and abundance.  And so it is.

Spring is a great time to “smudge” your home or office.  “Smudging” or “cleansing the space of all negative energies” can be done any time of the year.  However, the Spring offers a certain kind of “forward energy” that can enhance any kind of intention or endeavor. 

 According to Eastern medicine, the energy of the Spring is “anger, a pushing through, sometimes even violent.”  This energy is required for new life to burst up through the ground – pushing the earth away, thus clearing the space for new life to grow.  Maybe you have noticed in your own life Spring is a time rebirth and renewal?  Maybe even new opportunities appear regularly during this season for you? 

 Smudging your home or office at this time helps to create more opportunities in your life today as well as setting an intention for the months ahead.  First, clean your home.  If you really want to maximize the positive effects of smudging, go through your closets and drawers too – giving away anything you have not worn or used in the past year. 

 Some people like to sell their old clothes/stuff – fine and beneficial, however, I invite you to donate the items if you can afford too (it is a tax write-off too!)  This act creates more positive energy for you because it activates a generous spirit and a feeling of plenty within. 

 What to smudge your home with?  I like to use Holy Wood just because I like the scent best – “brings the woods indoors.”  Some like Sage and others use rosewater, it really doesn’t matter.  It is the intention that is most important, not the scent.  Pick something that you have an immediate positive reaction to – that is the best indicator.

 Stand at your front door and begin saying something like…”I clear this room of all negative energies – to go back into the light from which it was born…This room now attracts love, joy, wealth, abundance, good health…”  As you speak these words, light your smudge stick and walk along the walls of the room.  The idea is to remove all negative energy from the room first and then replace these empty spaces with new positive energy of love and happiness. 

 When I “clear” homes and offices, this is when I “see” images that are stuck or blocking positive energies.  If this happens for you, just send these thoughts and images  into the light to be cleared as well.  You may even notice “solutions” to problem areas in your home as you smudge the rooms. 

 Don’t worry about your exact words you speak as much as the idea of clearing first each room and then setting the intention of what you want the room (your life) to attract.  

 Once you have smudged all areas of your home, you can also smudge the yard if you so feel compelled.  Otherwise go back into your house.  Play some great music.  Have something yummy to drink & eat and dream…Dream about the life you desire to unfold in your home.  See the love, hope, possibilities – all these for you, waiting for you to step into…And most of all – have fun.