The Voice of an Angel...Andrea Bocelli...
my go-to place for heart connection!
Italian tenor and singer/songwriter Andrea Bocelli is
a very important part of my morning ritual. I am not by nature a
morning dove...rather a night blooming jasmine. But when this jasmine
awakens to (very slowly) acclimate to the morning, Bocelli's music is
what begins the process of my energizing.
I've
been listening to and loving Bocelli for quite some time. His voice
connects with my soul and though I studied a little Italian in
preparation for a beautiful encounter with Firenze several years ago,
the fact is I do not understand what this impressive tenor is singing.
And it makes no difference to me because it is ONLY the words I do not understand.
The FEELINGS expressed by his beautiful voice ARE the MESSAGE and they SPEAK to me. And they do MORE than that...they vibrate with the sweep of my heart.
And I am mesmerized by this vibration...it SUSTAINS me. This impulse tells me it is my HEART that is designed to direct the music of my life...not my intellect (though I dearly love to exercise it).
I believe this is true of everyone.
In some individuals
the heart may be sleeping...hibernating...because of unhealed pain,
protecting itself from life's countless and often unpredictable
adventures. But the desire to FEEL is a human need we all share.
And the OPPORTUNITY to feel and to have the feeling RECOGNIZED is a Gift of Life.
The Divine Universe
is unendingly creative in the way it sends its messages to us. Just
this morning I realized I had received another tapping of this awareness
a few days ago when I attended a planning meeting in Florida with David Webber, Chief Operating Officer of Practice Technology, Inc., who commented to me that he always reads his email for the FEELING of the writer, not for the words.
It is not the words of Andrea Bocelli that affect me so profoundly. It is the WAY he sings those lyrics. And it is not the words of an email that David Webber "hears"...it is the message of a heart.
Is your heart vibrating with emotion? Have you given yourself permission to feel this primal longing? And do you "hear" the HeartSounds of everyone around you?
Marie Helena
image of Andrea Bocellil from sonbab.deviantart.com
Andrea Bocelli by sonbab
It is inevitable that we will sometimes encounter experiences that are aggravating to our spirit. And when someone says or does something that is intensely annoying to us, there is a very powerful impulse to try to change their behavior so that we will not experience this kind of moment again. And this is difficult, draining work...all that explaining, justifying and pleading for what we prefer, trying to talk people into remembering in the future how we would like things to be. But the fact is there is not enough time or energy in the world to change ALL of the people whose way of doing things triggers us and to get them to do instead what makes us feel comfortable.
And yet it is SO tempting to try to do this...and it would make our life so peaceful, we think. And so we try...and try...and try...
and we suffer when it doesn't work.
But it is not our job to change people.
We can't really do it anyway. Change is an inside job...and that is where it properly resides. We CAN, however, do our own inside work...do the work on US, not them. Go the direct route, targeted for action and relief...a cutting edge move.
When we are triggered, the energy of the reaction which is kicking up inside us is lodged in our emotions and that is precisely where we need to direct our attention. We need to MOVE that energy out from where it is stuck and we need to TRANSFORM it before it moves. Help it to flow freely. We can transform the energy by offering compassion to ourselves and the other person for what we are both experiencing. Transform it into a gentle, straightforward statement...acknowledging the emotions we perceive are being expressed by the other person, acknowledging the distress we are feeling because of this and acknowledging the reason for our reaction (if we are aware of it). Then, explaining gently under what circumstances we could better receive the message they are sending.
Here's the critical point in this approach. We are not delivering OUR message with the intention of getting the other person to change (though this may happen), we are delivering it only to MOVE the energy through US...and to do it in a way that helps us respect ourselves.
MOVE THE ENERGY. Keep it F L O W I N G. Move it out and through us. Direct it onto a new and more enlightened path. Give it clarity and compassion. THAT is where the power is.
Similar vibrations magnetically attract each other. When we choose to communicate from a position of acceptance and understanding, that is what we will receive in return. (And, if the other party in our transaction cannot reach that same vibration, he will move away from us.)
Now we've turned the irritation into an OPPORTUNITY to step up into a higher version of ourselves and we've cleared out our inner static and energetic debris. We have also safeguarded our feelings of peace and calm, no matter what is transpiring around us.
This is also a powerful way to protect our own power, to decide for ourselves how we want to proceed when faced with an unexpected catalyst which has activated our own unhealed pain.
And, for our efforts, another elegant outcome cascades gracefully from our action: We become the change we wish to see. And, by becoming it ourselves, we create an oasis where we can reside while others work out the byways of their own individual journeys.
Marie Helena
image from wallpaperdisk.com.
The great spiritual teacher J. Krishnamurti said the highest form of
human intelligence is the ability to observe ourselves without
judgment. And this is no small task for we all carry an imaginary
presence inside of us which we automatically gift with authority and
respectability (even though its voice is a hindrance and not a help).
My sister calls the arrival of our guest "Here Comes Da Judge".
Imagine
our magistrate attired in formal black robe and the British judicial
white wig altercating furiously for air time in our consciousness. If he wasn't so annoying and didn't dredge up old feelings of unworthiness,
this creature would be quite amusing. But the fact is the appearance
of our judge introduces negative energy into our aura. Yikes!
What in the world can be done about this vexing creature?
I
am thinking this is the perfect time to call in the resources of our
Left Brain and turn this disturbing image into a Subject of Study rather
than a schlepper of suffering.
It's "white coat time" and,
though you will not be donning the pristine uniform in reality, at
least "white coat" your mental process and steer yourself away from
subjugating your psyche to the judgmental pronouncements.
Collect
data. Be curious. Experiment. Be a scientist. Watch how often your
"Judge" makes an appearance...and under what conditions and
circumstances. Look for patterns in the magistrate's behavior. Note
his verbal nuances and the disapproving posture and attitude.
Why
would Krishnamurti call observation without judgment the highest form
of human intelligence? Because we cannot attain wisdom (sense of or
understanding of something) while we are mired down with the weight of
self condemnation.
Instead, we need to be able to see the broader view
of what is transpiring, how it presents itself, what connections exist
within the issue, how we fit into the equation. We must be free from
self judgment for self judgment obscures our vision because of the heavy
emotional outlay and prevents us from ascertaining the energies at
work.
Once we can see those energies (expectations of society and
figures of authority, cries of the ego for attention, co-dependence on
others' emotions, etc.), we gain clarity regarding where we are giving our
power away and we can make choices regarding how WE choose to respond to
the opinions and expectations of others.
It is a natural, human
reaction to fall under the heavily subjective influence of our "Judge".
It is cutting edge to take an impartial look at how this magistrate's
leverage has materialized. And it is cutting edge to release this
figure's hold on our emotions.
Marie Helena
graphics from can stock.com
