Greetings all,
What a week. I got back Monday and hit the ground running. I've been editing the chapters of my book this week. I'm happy to say that I have completed the chapters and now I just need to go through the afterword, resource page, and table of contents. Then it is on to generate a book cover image.
Editing and revising are an interesting mindset as they bring back to me the initial creation of a piece of writing. Sometimes I see it differently when I circle back around. I will see things that I missed from my initial read through. Certain concepts which sounded clear when I wrote them down, now sound odd when I read through them again. My editing process has been running parallel to an astrological alignment, specifically the Venus retrograde.
Retrogrades in astrology are often interpreted as times of review. They are opportunities to rethink a strategy, project, or in the case of Venus, relationships. It's funny I have been running into people I haven't seen in years. Sometimes it was with people that I had a sharper disconnect with, others just faded out. What is interesting is how different we are now at this point in our lives. I am curious to see if old some old acquaintances will turn into more close friends. On the other side of this revisiting energy has been the concept of the turned page.
Like a book our life has chapters. Some characters appear early on and we never see them again. Others weave in out of the chapters of our life. Still there are characters, some of whom may have been major story arcs in our definitive chapters, that have their run with us and then that's it. We have in a sense turned a page that we can't turn back. I like most people have had relationships that were intense for key points in my life, and like most people I thought that meant forever. It is not always so. I can tell you the most suffering I've endured is when I have tried to hold onto a relationship when it has passed its expiration date. When I do finally let go that chapter is closed, done….over. The pages can't be turned back if I wish to move forward with my own story.
Now on occasion, people come to me asking if I might consider reopening a closed chapter. Some well meaning, others just curious, and there are of course the others whom I call pot stirrers. I've actually had people so persistent to drag me back into the past that I had to close their chapter as well. It all finally crystallized into a saying that has since caught fire on Facebook. "Some relationships we just outgrow. Asking us to renew them would be like asking a butterfly to crawl back into the cocoon." No butterfly in their right mind wants to become a caterpillar again when they can fly.
So what about you? Have you been revisiting the ghost of relationships past this month? Do you reread the chapters in your life instead of writing new ones? Have you ever clipped your wings to crawl back into a cocoon that no longer fits? Well while it is sometimes nice to rekindle old flames, it is equally good at times to bury the ashes. Ask yourself if who you are now can fit your wings into the picture with the people that are popping up. If not you may just need to fly a little farther.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
Musings
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Not My Business
Greetings all,
Yes it is early this week, but I am leaving once more for the open road. I won't have a way to blog. I've had something rolling around in my head of late. So I will process it here and maybe help you guys too.
I've done a pretty good job the past few years detaching from opinions as they are expressed on Youtube comment threads. For the most part I couldn't care less what some person hidden behind a screen thinks of me. Don't get me wrong it pleases me when people leave encouraging feed back, but I don't take it to heart when someone decides to insult me on the internet. This is good. This is progress. Where I still struggle is out in the big wide world. I do worry how I am received.
This I understand is a natural human concern. We evolved living in small groups and communities. We depended on each other for our physical well being. With all of our modern toys we may be less aware on the surface of how interdependent we are, however when we get down below that veneer our social standing is often a strong motivator for our actions. We are all keeping up with the Jones' in a sense. Now the form this takes varies among groups and individuals, but all of us (barring sociopaths) are invested in what esteem our social groups have for us. Now the degree to which this dictates our actions and behaviors also varies among people. Some people just don't care what others think of them…unless it is their family doing the thinking. For others it is their friends or their romantic partners which generate the most anxiety surrounding their self image.
Don't believe me? Think you are above all that? Well try this little thought experiment. Imagine someone you hold in very high regards, someone you really respect, someone you love. Now imagine how you would feel if this person was absolutely disgusted by you. Imagine they are repulsed by your appearance, your voice, your hygiene, your choices, your behavior, and your interests. Does that idea disturb you? Well welcome to the human race.
I have realized that I still worry a good deal about what the people around me think of me. I am likely projecting my own insecurities on them and playing out my own fears of rejection. The thing is, experience has taught me that I am a poor judge of what people think of me. In other matters, I'm actually really good at gauging motivations, but every intuitive has a blind spot when it comes to themselves. The other thing I have realized is that it really isn't my business what people think of me. I mean don't get me wrong I work very hard trying to make it my business. I am not quite sure why I think I am entitled to know what goes on in other people's heads. It isn't like the information gives me any sort of peace of mind, it is rather the opposite.
So what about you? Do you feel entitled to know what people think of you? Are you always concerned about what is going on inside the minds of our fellow humans? I think you'd be quite shocked at how seldom we cross the minds of others. What would happen if when these worries surfaced you reminded yourself that it isn't any of your business what goes on in other people's minds? Would that free you up? Would that let you relax a little bit more? Try it out and see.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
Yes it is early this week, but I am leaving once more for the open road. I won't have a way to blog. I've had something rolling around in my head of late. So I will process it here and maybe help you guys too.
I've done a pretty good job the past few years detaching from opinions as they are expressed on Youtube comment threads. For the most part I couldn't care less what some person hidden behind a screen thinks of me. Don't get me wrong it pleases me when people leave encouraging feed back, but I don't take it to heart when someone decides to insult me on the internet. This is good. This is progress. Where I still struggle is out in the big wide world. I do worry how I am received.
This I understand is a natural human concern. We evolved living in small groups and communities. We depended on each other for our physical well being. With all of our modern toys we may be less aware on the surface of how interdependent we are, however when we get down below that veneer our social standing is often a strong motivator for our actions. We are all keeping up with the Jones' in a sense. Now the form this takes varies among groups and individuals, but all of us (barring sociopaths) are invested in what esteem our social groups have for us. Now the degree to which this dictates our actions and behaviors also varies among people. Some people just don't care what others think of them…unless it is their family doing the thinking. For others it is their friends or their romantic partners which generate the most anxiety surrounding their self image.
Don't believe me? Think you are above all that? Well try this little thought experiment. Imagine someone you hold in very high regards, someone you really respect, someone you love. Now imagine how you would feel if this person was absolutely disgusted by you. Imagine they are repulsed by your appearance, your voice, your hygiene, your choices, your behavior, and your interests. Does that idea disturb you? Well welcome to the human race.
I have realized that I still worry a good deal about what the people around me think of me. I am likely projecting my own insecurities on them and playing out my own fears of rejection. The thing is, experience has taught me that I am a poor judge of what people think of me. In other matters, I'm actually really good at gauging motivations, but every intuitive has a blind spot when it comes to themselves. The other thing I have realized is that it really isn't my business what people think of me. I mean don't get me wrong I work very hard trying to make it my business. I am not quite sure why I think I am entitled to know what goes on in other people's heads. It isn't like the information gives me any sort of peace of mind, it is rather the opposite.
So what about you? Do you feel entitled to know what people think of you? Are you always concerned about what is going on inside the minds of our fellow humans? I think you'd be quite shocked at how seldom we cross the minds of others. What would happen if when these worries surfaced you reminded yourself that it isn't any of your business what goes on in other people's minds? Would that free you up? Would that let you relax a little bit more? Try it out and see.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
Friday, August 14, 2015
Changing Roles
Greetings all,
I write again from the far far away. The frantic pace has slowed now until my return home. This weekend I've helped to set up a booth at a fair, break it down, and taught my first all day workshop solo. Tonight is for despacho ceremony.
This weekend if nothing else has shown me a glimpse of the role of teacher. It's funny that I don't necessarily view myself as much of a teacher because I do teach classes every week on tai chi. I've simply been doing it for so long it appears a natural part of my life. I've taken my fair share of workshops and seminars on shamanism but this is really the first time I've been the teacher. I have co taught workshops before, but this is the first time I've been the person in charge. It was just me and spirit.
I must say spirit did all the heavy lifting for the weekend (apart from moving some big crystals at the fair breakdown). The drum sang, apart from its steady beat I heard voices chanting. So did some of the workshop participants which was quite exciting. I have been hearing the voices in the drums for years now, but to have people new to it be able to experience that from the start was amazing. I was quite relieved at how the day went because as I was preparing for this workshop I realized I actually never took this workshop from my teachers. I did of course consult them for their advice, but a great deal of the workshop was provided by spirit.
Wearing the role of teacher is strange. In Chinese the term Sifu means either teacher or master. I was named a Sifu back in 2003 and it felt weird to me back then. It took a couple years of teaching tai chi to beginners for me to become comfortable with that identity. It is interesting to note the dual meanings of the word and it gives a nice glimpse into the lens with which the teacher role is viewed in another culture. In our culture we sometimes think of teachers as low paid child minders with summer vacations. There is a great lack of respect. Shamanism is all about respect. People make a fuss about respect. They think it is about bowing and kowtowing to others judgment, but it is simply treating others with compassion and acknowledging their sacredness.
As I switched gears the day after my workshop to help out in a friend's crystal booth I got a second chance at trying on the teacher role. Someone recognized me from Youtube. They were telling me how they struggled to access the zero point field of possibilities and I showed them a quick trick I'd picked up from another quantum consciousness teacher. They were amazed at how they instantly sank into their heart space. That was really gratifying for me to see. I am usually surrounded with so many gifted teachers and practitioners that it is easy for me to forget that I have a lot to offer others as well.
How about you? Do you pass along tips and tricks for smoothing out life's journey? Do you keep your knowledge hoarded unsure of its usefulness? Do you know your stuff until someone tries to put you in charge? Why not try stepping into the teaching role here and there? They say the best way to truly learn something is to teach it to another. We are all teachers whether we know it or not. Some of us teach consciously others simply by example. Be generous with your knowledge for we are only here a little while and if we fail to share our knowledge it dies when we do. So pull out your blackboard chalk because school is back in session.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
I write again from the far far away. The frantic pace has slowed now until my return home. This weekend I've helped to set up a booth at a fair, break it down, and taught my first all day workshop solo. Tonight is for despacho ceremony.
This weekend if nothing else has shown me a glimpse of the role of teacher. It's funny that I don't necessarily view myself as much of a teacher because I do teach classes every week on tai chi. I've simply been doing it for so long it appears a natural part of my life. I've taken my fair share of workshops and seminars on shamanism but this is really the first time I've been the teacher. I have co taught workshops before, but this is the first time I've been the person in charge. It was just me and spirit.
I must say spirit did all the heavy lifting for the weekend (apart from moving some big crystals at the fair breakdown). The drum sang, apart from its steady beat I heard voices chanting. So did some of the workshop participants which was quite exciting. I have been hearing the voices in the drums for years now, but to have people new to it be able to experience that from the start was amazing. I was quite relieved at how the day went because as I was preparing for this workshop I realized I actually never took this workshop from my teachers. I did of course consult them for their advice, but a great deal of the workshop was provided by spirit.
Wearing the role of teacher is strange. In Chinese the term Sifu means either teacher or master. I was named a Sifu back in 2003 and it felt weird to me back then. It took a couple years of teaching tai chi to beginners for me to become comfortable with that identity. It is interesting to note the dual meanings of the word and it gives a nice glimpse into the lens with which the teacher role is viewed in another culture. In our culture we sometimes think of teachers as low paid child minders with summer vacations. There is a great lack of respect. Shamanism is all about respect. People make a fuss about respect. They think it is about bowing and kowtowing to others judgment, but it is simply treating others with compassion and acknowledging their sacredness.
As I switched gears the day after my workshop to help out in a friend's crystal booth I got a second chance at trying on the teacher role. Someone recognized me from Youtube. They were telling me how they struggled to access the zero point field of possibilities and I showed them a quick trick I'd picked up from another quantum consciousness teacher. They were amazed at how they instantly sank into their heart space. That was really gratifying for me to see. I am usually surrounded with so many gifted teachers and practitioners that it is easy for me to forget that I have a lot to offer others as well.
How about you? Do you pass along tips and tricks for smoothing out life's journey? Do you keep your knowledge hoarded unsure of its usefulness? Do you know your stuff until someone tries to put you in charge? Why not try stepping into the teaching role here and there? They say the best way to truly learn something is to teach it to another. We are all teachers whether we know it or not. Some of us teach consciously others simply by example. Be generous with your knowledge for we are only here a little while and if we fail to share our knowledge it dies when we do. So pull out your blackboard chalk because school is back in session.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
Friday, August 7, 2015
Travels
Greetings all,
I am on the road. I've been traveling since Wednesday. Tomorrow I teach my first out of state workshop. The day after that I will be at the Celebration of Life Expo in York, PA. Right now after setting up in two different towns and getting my workshop notes rewritten and reorganized I'm pretty beat.
It strikes me that just a few generations back travel was much more laborious. Before the 1950s and the interstate projects cross country travel was much more time intensive we can do in a day what may have once taken weeks due to the state of the roads. With air travel, we can be somewhere in hours where once it may have taken our ancestors months or even years.
Travel has gotten immensely easier, and yet it still seems tiring. There is something about the road that is draining. Maybe it is the attention it takes for us to navigate safely at such high speeds which taxes our energy. Maybe it is the preparing and packing. Maybe it is the change in the energy of the land beneath our feet. Jet lag is a good example of this. We can travel so fast now that our bodies don't naturally synchronize to the rhythms and times. We used to be limited to the pace of our own walking or that of our horse. Then came the railroads, automobiles, and planes. We don't have the slow recalibration as we zoom past the landscape any more. Now we physically race along and then our energy bodies have to catch up.
Right now I am playing catch up. I'm out of my normal place on this earth and off my normal schedule to boot. So this is a good time to tune into my body and listen to what it needs. At this moment it is saying finish up this blog so we can take a short lie down. So I guess I will make this a short post.
How about you? As you move physically through the world are you conscious of the effects of that rapid moment on yourself? Do you have a method to reset your system when you travel or do you just wait till you are home again? As I embark on more traveling in the next few months I'm finding it even more important to find ways to settle down once I reach my destination. Feel free to share your tricks for finding peace amongst the movement.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
I am on the road. I've been traveling since Wednesday. Tomorrow I teach my first out of state workshop. The day after that I will be at the Celebration of Life Expo in York, PA. Right now after setting up in two different towns and getting my workshop notes rewritten and reorganized I'm pretty beat.
It strikes me that just a few generations back travel was much more laborious. Before the 1950s and the interstate projects cross country travel was much more time intensive we can do in a day what may have once taken weeks due to the state of the roads. With air travel, we can be somewhere in hours where once it may have taken our ancestors months or even years.
Travel has gotten immensely easier, and yet it still seems tiring. There is something about the road that is draining. Maybe it is the attention it takes for us to navigate safely at such high speeds which taxes our energy. Maybe it is the preparing and packing. Maybe it is the change in the energy of the land beneath our feet. Jet lag is a good example of this. We can travel so fast now that our bodies don't naturally synchronize to the rhythms and times. We used to be limited to the pace of our own walking or that of our horse. Then came the railroads, automobiles, and planes. We don't have the slow recalibration as we zoom past the landscape any more. Now we physically race along and then our energy bodies have to catch up.
Right now I am playing catch up. I'm out of my normal place on this earth and off my normal schedule to boot. So this is a good time to tune into my body and listen to what it needs. At this moment it is saying finish up this blog so we can take a short lie down. So I guess I will make this a short post.
How about you? As you move physically through the world are you conscious of the effects of that rapid moment on yourself? Do you have a method to reset your system when you travel or do you just wait till you are home again? As I embark on more traveling in the next few months I'm finding it even more important to find ways to settle down once I reach my destination. Feel free to share your tricks for finding peace amongst the movement.
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Once in a Blue Moon
Greetings all,
I solemnly swear I am not ranting this week. I've been gearing up in preparation for the blue moon which was also a super moon rising on Lammas eve. I've also been getting ready for my upcoming trip to Gettysburg to teach my first out of town workshop. I've been doing my flight of the bumble bee impression between collapsing into semi coma states. Yes apparently I still haven't found the settings dial for me, I'm either on or off.
The thing about blue moons is that to our ancestors they really weren't all that special. A lot of the old world calendars were lunar so there was never more than one full moon a month. In the past ten years I have become more interested in the lunar cycles and do my best to work with the celestial energies. I was once told in a meditation that I would follow the path of the moon. I mean come on my name is Mooneagle, that silver orb is bound to have some significance for me.
As I look back blue moons have actually coincided with some pretty pivotal moments. I received my first Reiki attunement on a blue moon. I moved into my office space and called in the wards to seal, empower, and protect it on another blue moon. I've been away at workshops that have altered the entire style of my artwork during them too. So while there may not be a big mystical meaning there is great personal meaning for the blue moon in my life. Now to be truthful I do scour the calendars looking for significant correspondences. I'm all for taking advantage of any energies that will boost my goals a bit.
There may be some value in this. By choosing a time and making it sacred I give myself one of those permission slips to my unconscious mind. This loosens up the restraints I have on what I believe can be accomplished. This is Dumbo's magic feather (without racist crow cartoon characters). It doesn't even matter that I know that I'm doing it, because I still feel like it is special. The feeling is what counts when we're working with the subconscious. Stuff gets labelled as important when we have strong feelings associated with it. That's pretty much a ticket to long term memory storage. It's nice when we can get that to work for us rather than against us.
So how about you? Do you find the moon, the stars, or planets to be partnering up with the Fates for you or against you? Do you have a season that tends to be yours in terms of moving forward and making strides in your life? Maybe the month of your birth is the turning point for you, maybe it's a holiday. Maybe it is when the light changes and the first green returns to a cold gray land. What would happen if you made use of that association? What if you planned your moves to get your subconscious to give you a boost? Maybe you could make new associations, maybe you could even choose a new time. Why not? Why wait around for once in a blue moon?
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
I solemnly swear I am not ranting this week. I've been gearing up in preparation for the blue moon which was also a super moon rising on Lammas eve. I've also been getting ready for my upcoming trip to Gettysburg to teach my first out of town workshop. I've been doing my flight of the bumble bee impression between collapsing into semi coma states. Yes apparently I still haven't found the settings dial for me, I'm either on or off.
The thing about blue moons is that to our ancestors they really weren't all that special. A lot of the old world calendars were lunar so there was never more than one full moon a month. In the past ten years I have become more interested in the lunar cycles and do my best to work with the celestial energies. I was once told in a meditation that I would follow the path of the moon. I mean come on my name is Mooneagle, that silver orb is bound to have some significance for me.
As I look back blue moons have actually coincided with some pretty pivotal moments. I received my first Reiki attunement on a blue moon. I moved into my office space and called in the wards to seal, empower, and protect it on another blue moon. I've been away at workshops that have altered the entire style of my artwork during them too. So while there may not be a big mystical meaning there is great personal meaning for the blue moon in my life. Now to be truthful I do scour the calendars looking for significant correspondences. I'm all for taking advantage of any energies that will boost my goals a bit.
There may be some value in this. By choosing a time and making it sacred I give myself one of those permission slips to my unconscious mind. This loosens up the restraints I have on what I believe can be accomplished. This is Dumbo's magic feather (without racist crow cartoon characters). It doesn't even matter that I know that I'm doing it, because I still feel like it is special. The feeling is what counts when we're working with the subconscious. Stuff gets labelled as important when we have strong feelings associated with it. That's pretty much a ticket to long term memory storage. It's nice when we can get that to work for us rather than against us.
So how about you? Do you find the moon, the stars, or planets to be partnering up with the Fates for you or against you? Do you have a season that tends to be yours in terms of moving forward and making strides in your life? Maybe the month of your birth is the turning point for you, maybe it's a holiday. Maybe it is when the light changes and the first green returns to a cold gray land. What would happen if you made use of that association? What if you planned your moves to get your subconscious to give you a boost? Maybe you could make new associations, maybe you could even choose a new time. Why not? Why wait around for once in a blue moon?
Peace and Blessings,
Thomas Mooneagle
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