Down the Rabbit Hole: Alice Discovers the Rulebooks

There was soooo much to discover, Alice realized, as she blinked repeatedly, wide-eyed at the strange goings-on in the rabbit hole.  



The bizarre behavior she encounteredfrom the various creatures chattering and buzzing about made no sense to her UNTIL she realized that it MADE SENSE to them.  And that was the very secret she uncovered that helped her to understand and navigate this bewildering territory.  

 
Apparently, each of the characters in the rabbit hole had his or her own Rulebook.  And each Rulebook was different from all the others.  It seemed these Rulebooks were not easy to come by and one had to experience some perilous adventures to earn this achievement.  And, furthermore, she discovered, the precepts written in the Rulebooks might magically disappear at any time to be replaced with new prescriptions.  It all seemed to depend on the actions of the characters, she observed, though she wasn't sure that they realized they had this power.

The Rulebooks seemed to be especially important to Alice because they helped her make sense of the thespians' behavior.  Alice began to pay close attention to the interface of the characters' actions and what she deduced was written in their Rulebooks and things began to make sense to her.  She realized that the Rules were there to protect each character.  They appeared in the Rulebook as needed and could be changed or even erased depending on what the character learned from his experiences.
 

Not every character down the rabbit hole was ready to learn anything.  Many of them seemed agitated and anxious; some were totally convinced they already knew everything.  The behavior they exhibited often tried Alice's patience but, over time, she realized they were stuck in a default loop that kept repeating itself.
 

What was Alice to do?  At first, she tried to argue with them; later, she avoided their company as best she could.  But Alice was not happy doing this and she WANTED to be...even if she WAS smack in the center of the rabbit hole.


One day Alice was in an especially happy mood and she decided to try to be VERY patient with the mad hatter.  She listened patiently while he hopped in circles, talking incessantly, trying her best to be attentive and understand what he was saying.  Then, a funny thing happened.  The Mad hatter began to notice that Alice was paying attention and he was NOT used to anyone REALLY listening to him.  He began to look at Alice every few seconds while he was chattering and, then, an amazing thing occurred.  He began to speak slower and slower and before long he slid onto a toadstool near Alice and stopped talking completely, watching her face for a response.


Alice was amazed.  No one had EVER slowed down the mad hatter before.  What was happening here, she wondered.  As Alice continued to give her rapt attention to him, she saw a light began to shine in his eyes.  The light grew bigger and brighter.  Soon it spread to his whole body.  Oh my, thought Alice...he is GLOWING.
 

Alice thought about his new behavior.  She had been very sure that the Mad Hatter's Rulebook stated that he should keep moving and chattering away as that is what he always did.  Now, it seemed to Alice, that his behavior had changed and, therefore, his Rules.
 

How did this happen, Alice wondered.  She had not tried to talk the Mad Hatter into doing things differently.  She had not argued with him nor tried to persuade him to make a change.  In fact, she had done her best to honor and respect his frantic behavior.  Alice felt the erratic movements of the Mad Hatter must have been prescribed in his Rulebook and that the Rule must have existed for some good reason even if she didn't know what it was.  What she had done now was just give the Mad Hatter her interest and care...and he had noticed...and it had circumvented his usual pattern.

THIS was something VERY significant, Alice thought and wondered about the powerful transformation she had witnessed.  The Mad Hatter was still sitting quietly and he was still glowing very brightly...so brightly that many other creatures wandered over to see what had caused this transformation. 

Alice theorized that if the Mad Hatter was sitting still, then a new Rule must have appeared in his Rulebook for he looked very relaxed and happy.



Suddenly, Alice noticed that the Mad Hatter was beginning to look lighter and lighter.  Soon he seemed almost luminous.  Alice thought he might drift away but instead he began to share his glow with the creatures standing near him.  
 



Alice was amazed and delighted and, most of all, she felt happy.  And that is when the Rules in her Rulebook changed.  She sighed contentedly and plopped onto a nearby toadstool.
 

Who was it, she wondered, who had created the Rulebooks and had mysteriously given each creature the power to change the Rules.  This, she thought, would surely be a great question for one of her next, fabulous adventures.

                                                                                   
                                                                                             
                                                                                                          Marie Helena 




  image from commons.wikimedia.org             

The Acceptance of Grief

Whenever we experience a loss...and, especially, a significant loss...we are thrust with great impact into the work of GRIEVING.

The process of grief can occur quite naturally for us if we have a clear channel open to our emotions.  

Hopefully, we have been fortunate enough to learn by instruction, example or experience the importance of letting ourselves feel and express our emotions...such a significant lesson to learn for our happiness and health.  

And, because we have learned this lesson, we are able to allow ourselves to experience the natural expression of our pain and distress.

This reflection is not about that process. 

 It is about what happens AFTER  we grieve.  

We may be able to express our emotions freely whether it is through words or tears or sensory experiences of the body.  But where that grief takes us NEXT is worth pondering.

The grieving process can leave us with a heaviness and sadness...permeating our day as we carry it through our every thought, word or action.

The process can color our day so strongly that it seems impossible to get out from under this storm.

Or...

This process can free our spirit 

as the rain opens the sky to the sun...

as Mother Earth nurtures the seeds which have been planted on her terrain...

as the crying baby responds to having its needs met and now sees the world with eyes of beauty and wonder.

The process of grieving is truly beautiful...

representing our connection with another,
our treasuring of the gifts of that connection  

and, because we enter directly into feeling the experience, it represents our ACCEPTANCE of the natural unfolding of the Divine Universe.  

This unfolding carries the truths of the universe, some easy to embrace, some more challenging. 

There is nothing for us to do but BE in this moment.

Like the underside of a work of embroidery, our lives can appear to have many loose, chaotic strands, but when we turn the fabric over the beauty that is intended emerges.

In our earth journey we mostly see the haphazard strands with no clear pattern emerging...but our spirit knows the beauty of the work of art that is our lives and the way in which that art is unfolding.

An awareness of and a faith in this process help us to know on a soul level that the acceptance of our expression of grief is an affirmation of our humanity.

It is a gift...a cleansing...ultimately nurturing and preparing us for whatever work lies ahead in our journey. 

It is an important part of the rhythm and music and pace of LIFE itself.

                                 Marie Helena 

A New Year’s “Light” Show

After the magical days of Christmas holidays…when pine-scented boughs and cranberry candles perfumed the air and glittering lights whispered their grace-filled secrets into our happy hearts…decorating our spaces with joy and celebration…

after these magnificent days have passed and things have grown so very quiet and restful the steady, sure-footed march of the New Year alights on our doorstep, enters our homes and slides into our hearts.

It’s time…to renew and redirect our energy to the wonderful life we have imagined and make the changes that were placed on hold as we made merry and felt merry and loved the "merry" of the holidays.

Now, there is a NEW JOY that awaits us and it is born of reflection and inspiration and discipline…our New Year’s Resolutions.

Much has been said and advised about NYR’s…suggestions that we examine our lives, compiling a list of every changewe can imagine…suggestions that we make NO resolutionsand not place ourselves under that kind of stress... even a suggestion that we only try to improve ourselves by one percent in the category we identify as “most needed” or, even better, “most desired” and, thereby, let our accumulated steady, slow progress become its own source of motivation.

This morning in the quiet moments when I found myself awakening a different thought occurred to me.  

I had been searching for a simple resolution…one that would be easy to hold onto and yet would change my perspective and this is what arrived in response to my request:

As you go through the day and encounter many moments…some relaxing and some difficult and challenging…as you go through the day, just take a moment and imagine how your Higher Self would respond to what is happening. Do not put any pressure on yourself to do what Higher Self would do. Only imagine it and take note.

This sounded wonderful to me…and it feels instinctively that just choosing to put myself in the place of imagining a Higher Response would do some subtle, behind-the-scene work for me even while I went busily about my day, impressing my consciousness with a more beautiful, more loving, more joyful way to navigate it…and, most importantly, a way to be my own SOURCE of happiness and satisfaction.

And it actually sounds and feels quite practical, too, to become, on a continuing basis, the ANCHOR for my joy.

So I am going to give it a pop! This means I may pause a few seconds before I react and respond to what is going on…allowing myself the time and perspective I need to call up a Higher inspiration than what would automatically appear on my default button.

It will be very interesting to take this journey and, no doubt, it will have its own BRILLIANT LIGHT SHOW as I enter into this universe!

                               Marie Helena

A New Year’s “Light” Show

After the magical days of Christmas holidays…when pine-scented boughs and cranberry candles perfumed the air and glittering lights whispered their grace-filled secrets into our happy hearts…decorating our spaces with joy and celebration…

after these magnificent days have passed and things have grown so very quiet and restful the steady, sure-footed march of the New Year alights on our doorstep, enters our homes and slides into our hearts.

It’s time…to renew and redirect our energy to the wonderful life we have imagined and make the changes that were placed on hold as we made merry and felt merry and loved the "merry" of the holidays.

Now, there is a NEW JOY that awaits us and it is born of reflection and inspiration and discipline…our New Year’s Resolutions.

Much has been said and advised about NYR’s…suggestions that we examine our lives, compiling a list of every changewe can imagine…suggestions that we make NO resolutionsand not place ourselves under that kind of stress... even a suggestion that we only try to improve ourselves by one percent in the category we identify as “most needed” or, even better, “most desired” and, thereby, let our accumulated steady, slow progress become its own source of motivation.

This morning in the quiet moments when I found myself awakening a different thought occurred to me.  

I had been searching for a simple resolution…one that would be easy to hold onto and yet would change my perspective and this is what arrived in response to my request:

As you go through the day and encounter many moments…some relaxing and some difficult and challenging…as you go through the day, just take a moment and imagine how your Higher Self would respond to what is happening. Do not put any pressure on yourself to do what Higher Self would do. Only imagine it and take note.

This sounded wonderful to me…and it feels instinctively that just choosing to put myself in the place of imagining a Higher Response would do some subtle, behind-the-scene work for me even while I went busily about my day, impressing my consciousness with a more beautiful, more loving, more joyful way to navigate it…and, most importantly, a way to be my own SOURCE of happiness and satisfaction.

And it actually sounds and feels quite practical, too, to become, on a continuing basis, the ANCHOR for my joy.

So I am going to give it a pop! This means I may pause a few seconds before I react and respond to what is going on…allowing myself the time and perspective I need to call up a Higher inspiration than what would automatically appear on my default button.

It will be very interesting to take this journey and, no doubt, it will have its own BRILLIANT LIGHT SHOW as I enter into this universe!

                               Marie Helena

        

Santa and the Phone Booth

The Divine Universe is always sending us beautiful messages and often through the most amazing avenues. This Christmas I received an exquisite gift. I did not realize how truly extraordinary it was until a few days after I opened it.  It was a facsimile of Santa Claus standing in an elegant phone booth (which, in itself, is an interesting concept). However, the breathtaking thing about this gift is that when turned on, the phone booth immediately flooded with  infinitesimal, dazzling gold lights which circulated unendingly  throughout the booth.

A couple of days after Christmas I placed this curious Santa on the top ledge of a high bookshelf built into the wall where it overlooked several other beautiful lights arranged on the shelves below:  alabaster fir tree candles, a three dimensional figure of a yoga with a lotus flower adorning it and several small battery operated candles in lovely shades of pale blue and green. The  effect of the luminescent ballet was stunning but my eyes were constantly drawn  to the top shelf where Santa in his phone booth continued to shimmer and glisten in Aurelian splendor. 

After a while I realized something extraordinary about this gift.  Santa, of course,  is a symbol of generosity and love.  And the glistening lights in the phone booth were clearly there, I realized, on special assignment.  They were drawing my constant attention in masquerade, a celestial reminder of my Higher Self, I realized, always there connected to my heart, available for  consultation and guidance.  Whether I can see her or not, my Higher Self  is clearly shining brightly through every moment of my day.  

   

There have been some  challenging  moments for me this holiday season and now, for Christmas, I have found myself being given the gift of remembrance of what is already waiting for me

EVERY time I have looked up at Santa in the phone booth I have seen it glisten and sparkle.  There is no question in my heart that I might be left in difficult moments without heavenly resource and support.

I am wondering...Is there something glistening on your metaphorical bookshelf or perhaps tucked away in a subtle corner of your life  that can help you also remember the   energy that is circulating so vibrantly, ready to envelop your life with the wisdom and beauty of love.

What a lovely reminder I have been given with this gift:  MY Higher Self is always present, energized, sparkling… ready to share its glorious energy of love.

Take a moment and check in to the beauty and wonder of the season.  Perhaps you, too,  have been a messenger this Christmas of an important message or even a recipient of a very special delivery just for you.                                                                                    

                               Marie Helena

image:  Original watercolor painting "Telephone" original painting,collectible postcard,red phone booth,snow in town,sidewalk

The Creative Spirit

It is my belief that the creative spirit within each of us is the medicine necessary for our own healing.
  
    Julia Cameron


When all of our chakras or energy centers are open and flowing freely, we experience the gift of gloriously radiant health.  When those energy centers are blocked, however, this beautiful body of ours cannot complete its life circuit through the chakras with ease and grace. 

Fortunately, we do have the ability to achieve this state and heal ourselves and we do this by opening these very powerful passageways in our body.  Julia Cameron tells us that the most important part of keeping ourselves in this space of openness comes through accessing, recognizing, enjoying and delighting in our creativity.   Underlying her belief is the premise that we are made to create, we are designed to do this.  Our souls cry out for this opportunity to dream and do and are joyless and bereft without it.

It's the difference between mechanically walking through the motions, sitting in the back seat and letting others drive you around or blazing your own path and feeling totally alive and vibrant and it comes from the spark of your brilliantly loving soul.

Your soul has a mission:  to sing its "song" and it will not be happy nor will it be satisfied until it steps up to unselfconsciously delight in expressing that awesome "melody".
 
Each of us is here because we have a unique interpretation of life and we are called to grace the universal consciousness with that melody.  We do this by speaking our truth and caring enough to hear the truth of others.  We do this by the way we express our love language through words of affirmation, quality time, gifts, acts of service and touch.

We do this when we sigh or hum or whistle or bravely give voice (and, therefore, life) to a beautiful song.  We do this when we tap our feet, clap or get right out there on the dance floor.  We do this when we pick up a brush and paint a picture or play a musical instrument or write a wonderful story or poem.  It's all about the way we choose to connect with the world, the way we are engaged and present to what is going on and the way we receive and respond to the messages coming to us.

It is our spiritually courageous choice to be fully and authentically who we are that animates us and gives strength and vitality to the body, that heals it from its imperfections and vulnerability. 

The decision to express ourselves authentically (and, therefore, creatively) is really an imperative to our soul.  As Julia Cameron says, it's the medicine needed for our own healing.

                                                                                         
                                                                   Marie Helena

 
image from www.ikedaquotes.

Dolce Far Niente

In the midst of the holiday season when so many preparations are being made…Christmas trees bedazzled with shimmering lights, ingredients assembled for an array of culinary pleasures, on-line shopping planned to catch the latest sales, spotlighting of porches and roofs with illusionary reindeer…

In the midst of all of this, does it seem strange that I would wish you Dolce Far Niente... 

The Sweetness of Doing Absolutely Nothing!

And yet, what more perfect time to just BE in the midst of all of these treasures?

Time moves so quickly now as we hasten to finish our self-appointed tasks for the holidays and, if we don’t pause to take in the ambiance and flavor and spirit of these moments, they will be gone before we know it. We will be left with crumbled Christmas wrappings to clean up, dishes to wash from the fabulous dinner we have prepared and an exhausted body for our reward. 

So let’s imagine another dimension to our celebration.

I invite you (and myself as a reminder as I write this), to not miss a single breath of this breathtaking season. To allow the brilliant red poinsettias to nourish and sustain us with their glorious color and powerful presence. To honor the trees populating our landscape outside as they abide winter’s passing and keep their spring secrets warm inside their roots for us. To enjoy the delicately flavored herbal tea and gingerbread one sip and one small and succulent bite at a time as delicate snowflakes descend outside our windows. To watch the faces of the young and young-at-heart as they embrace the magic of families gathering and the waves of joy layering the room as gifts expected (and surprised) are revealed.

Let us all fully embrace the beauty of this season, honor its festive and joyous rhythm and reverence the  MAGNIFICENT MOMENTS  being given to us!

                                Marie Helena                                                                                             

For our experience to feel whole, our body must be allowed to permeate our experience, BE our experience, entirely. And our awareness must be released from living in our heads and allowed to flow into EVERYTHING.

Meredith Murphy

EXPECT WONDERFUL