Are You in the Right Place of Service?
Living Our Deeper Song
Ashe
(“Ah-Shay”)
The Creative in me honors the Creative in you!
My daughter’s job is making her sick – literally. It is a big job that she created in a reorganizational move at the company she has worked in for twenty years and it is working very well. But it is a big job and it is making her sick. I don’t know why. It may be that she cares too much. Maybe because she met with some resistance to change in general as they reorganized departments and combined some. It’s never very easy when the people you are trying to help resist and make it harder on themselves. She has had to fire some people which was very hard for her to do. Her job is literally making her sick. And at the same time, she keeps getting large raises because management recognizes the value of what she is doing.
Here’s the other catch. She is just a few years from retirement and the insurance coverage she needs. Plus, they keep giving her more money. There is motivation to hang in there. When I asked who she was grooming for the job, she said, “No one else wants it.” That says a lot.
Does your work still make you happy or are you simply hanging in there until retirement? Is your work rewarding and satisfying? What will you do if it is not?
We deserve to be happy and productive. Are you making choices that provide you with the depth of life experience that you want and deserve or are you locked into one facet of your life so deeply that you are giving more of yourself than you are receiving? That’s called burnout. And it sneaks up on you.
My work is certainly changing rapidly, not in what I do but in what I explore and share, the direction my exploration is going, and the new insights that are emerging. With the rapidly changing technical world, I think a good majority of people now working may not be able to change directions partially because of the unknown skills and knowledge that are needed in the new industries.
I don’t have an answer.
But after we retire, we have another 30 years to be proactive. Are you looking ahead? Are you learning what you need to know?
For instance, I have come to realize that the training and reasoning behind internet marketing that I have worked with for a lot of years may very well be not as effective today. Only a few digital entrepreneurs are actively exploring to discover how to build entrepreneurial businesses in the current environment. On top of that, we the people don’t know what is possible let alone what we want to choose from in this new smorgasbord of opportunities.
I don’t have an answer here, it’s more of a question. Are you still in the right place of service and if not, where do you want to be, and how to you plan to get there?
DEEPER SONG AFFIRMATION
I look more closely at where I am, where I am headed, and where I really want to go and I make changes to take me there.
DEEPER SONG PROCESS
- Notice how your work has changed. Is it still something you want to do?
- What new cause, industry, or need is calling to you?
- Go exploring and see how to do that work.
===INNER WORK===
Life is a Series of Options
In every moment you have a choice. Do this or not. Think this or don’t. What is the standard that you hold that helps you choose from the options presented to you? Do you choose what is easiest? Do you choose what nurtures your mind? Do you choose what nurtures your inner world? Life is a series of options. What are the standards by which you make your choice?
I Don’t Pray, I Connect
When I was in my 20s, I met a man who said he was an ex-priest and I said, “If I believe that God is within me, what do I do when I need help?” He said, “Dig deeper within yourself. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps.” That was a game-changer in my life and has made me a very self-sufficient person all my life. I am responsible for how my life unfolds. I am the one to make the changes I desire.
My belief system says that we are all one huge interconnected web. So I see everything as one energy. That means everything I need is within me. There’s nothing out there to pray to. I am responsible for my own outcome. What I do is go within to my Still Point and connect. And listen. And ask questions. And get answers. All by sitting still, going within, and listening. The guidance you seek lies within you.
===SELF-HEALING===
Release, Realign, Restore
In my own self-healing, I realized there were three steps I needed to take – release, realign, and restore. It looks like a pretty good pattern for life.
The first thing you have to do is release. Release all the layers. Release the damaging thoughts. We have to make room for new growth and new possibilities and new potential. How do we do that?
We stop doing whatever we’ve been doing that has contributed to the condition we wish to restore. What is crowding your life? What is keeping you from doing what you want to do or need to do? How can you release that? Or devote less time to it? We have to make room for self-healing.
The example that prompted this is my body which is slowly realigning. It is restoring its alignment, restoring its strengths. Slowly, but steadily. And not very comfortably. But it is realigning and that makes all sorts of things possible that were not possible before.
The second step is realigning. Have you ever emptied a room with the intention of rearranging it for your new needs? If you empty it out you have room to observe each new placement, each new choice of what to include. And you leave a lot of stuff out. Do that with your self-healing process. Examine the basics of your self-care and be choosy about what you bring back in.
Gradually, over time, the space you have changed is restored – not to the way it was but to the way it needs to be right now in your life to keep you moving in the new direction you have chosen.
What do you need to release in your life/body/relationships? What does that newly cleared space allow you to realign and make room for? And what balance is gradually restored in the new space you have created?
===OUTER WORRK===
See The Gifts in Others
Pause a moment and think of someone who adds to your life. Three that immediately come to my mind for me are the staff here where I live who keep the building and grounds repaired and clean and organized. It is a lovely place to be. The second is my new friend and homemaker Shelly, who loves to clean and is making my life possible at this point. The third is my cat Sebastian who is my friend and companion and cohort. So my question is when was the last time you thanked or acknowledged or even thought about the people that add so much grace and beauty and thoughtfulness to your life? Look around. Offer your gratitude to those who are making a difference in your life.
What Are You Avoiding?
It’s easy to put off the hard things for another time that has yet to be decided. But all that does is keep the hard things staring you in the face. What are you avoiding that you need to handle that would make room for a whole new door to open?
I could use more movement in my life. My body would be happier if I did. So I have to think up clever and entertaining ways to move my body. I may put on some jazz music and wiggle. I can put in pauses to stretch as I move around my apartment during the day. I can walk the halls more often and go on a little further. I can practice and get better on my four-wheel walker “Adventurer” so when the weather gets nice again I can go outside more. Then there’s always room for more Qigong.
What do you need to do that you are avoiding? And what steps will you take in order to move forward?
Meet the Challenge
I had really been putting it off. It was hard to do and I know it was good for me. The day I pushed through it all sorts of positive changes happened. What are you putting off doing that you know would be good for you?
I have a small set of portable rotating foot pedals that I can sit in a chair and pedal that would be good for my hips. However, it is hard to lift my legs to get my feet in the pedals. I’ve tried several methods. I finally figured out a way to use a strap to lift my leg into the stirrup. Once I was paddling, I was aware of how much good it was doing my hips. The result was pretty immediate as far as how I felt and how I was able to stand. And still, I keep putting that off because getting started is hard for me – a bit of a physical challenge to get my feet in place. But the change and the gift it brings is tremendous. What are you putting off that is a bit challenging but you know if you do it it will have a major impact on your life? Do that.
Qigong Video Recommendation
Qigong for LongevityVideo with Robert Peng. Easy- quick effective. Everyone can do Qigong.
===DEEPEN YOUR SPIRITUAL PRACTICE===
Keep it Simple – Sit in Silence
We can get so enthusiastic in our exploration that we clutter up our spiritual practice with too many choices. Pause in your spiritual practice and pick the one thing that moves you the most. Try simply doing that one thing for a few days and see how you can deepen the experience. Experiment with form. Experiment with timing. Experiment with intention. Focus on one aspect of your spiritual practice at a time. It could be meditation. It could be vibrational work. It could be Qigong. It could be reading deepening material. Do one spiritual practice at a time for three days, see how it deepens and how it resonates. Explore another spiritual practice by itself for a few days to expand your awareness of its gifts. Continue to explore and experiment to create the most balanced spiritual practice for you right now. Be flexible in your spiritual practice and keep it simple.
Find Stillness
It takes just a second to take a deep centering breath and move into stillness. You just have to remember to do it. As you move through your life, notice when you start getting rattled or too busy or stressed, and pause, take one deep slow breath, and let stillness seep into all parts of you. Move into that stillness of your mind, take a second breath, and anchor that centeredness.
===HOW TO BE A STRONG CONTRIBUTING MEMBER OF THE DIVERSE CIRCLE OF LIGHT BEINGs===
Are “What-If’s” Stopping You?
The interesting thing about trusting your inner voice is that you learn not to question it. You learn to trust it. You learn to explore what it suggests. You may want to imagine how it will play out, but make certain the “what if’s” are not stopping you. What if this happens? What if that happens? What if they don’t? We don’t know how something will play out until we step on the path and explore it. I can’t tell if I’m going to enjoy a book until I start reading it. I can’t tell if I’m gonna have a good time at a party until I go and start interacting with people.
I am diligently and actively looking for my role in the unfolding of the Divine Feminine. What will I miss out on if I don’t explore that next option? I would miss out on a whole adventure. Know that in each moment there is a door opening and step through until you see what it leads to.
===BROADEN YOUR HORIZON – EXPAND YOUR VIEW===
An Informative Interview
Years ago in New York City I learned about an informative interview. You literally call up a business and say you would like to understand your business better and the opportunities it contains and its requirements. May I please have an informative interview about your business? It works will small business owners.
I had an informative interview with a film distribution company in NYC. Well, it was more of a film distribution person but it was his company and he had a really good time telling me about how his business works. I learned, he shared, and it was a good exchange. I left knowing I had no desire to go into the film distribution industry but that was my gain – I had new knowledge that would guide me on my career path.
I think we could do the same today with the new industries that are unfolding. I would think that the person in charge of hiring new employees might be a person to ask for an informative interview about the demands and needs of their business so that you might better assess if your skillset has a place in that field and what new skills you need to acquire. I wonder what you would learn. You would learn the skills you need. You would learn the functions of the various jobs. You would learn the culture of the company. And who knows, maybe you’ll get a new job. Go exploring in this day of change and see if there’s a new path for you to embark on.
===OUR EVOLVING FUTURE===
Dismemberment
Sandra Ingerman had an interesting idea in her latest newsletter – The February Transmutation News. She suggests that this is a time of dismemberment for us so the Sacred Feminine can emerge. “For dismemberment happens by some destructive force breaking up life as usual so something new can be reborn out of the death of the life we once knew.”
So this is a healing process we are going through, but just as a boil must erupt and a wound must drain itself of the infection, it seems as though the negativity and divisiveness in our world are making sure that we know that negativity is there so we can choose not to let it be there anymore. Awareness plus choice equal change. This is a time of becoming aware and each day we must make conscious choices for the highest good of all in order to manifest the change we desire. Look for the healing. It is there. Nurture it.
======THE UNFOLDING DIVINE FEMININE=== ===
The Divine Feminine in History – Sekhmet
There are not many female role models among the Gods of Ancient History, Sekhmet is a great one to begin with.
The Egyptian Goddess Sekhmet was depicted with the body of a woman with a lion head wearing a sun disk. She is best known as the Eye of the Sun, the violent, dazzling, and protecting aspect of the creator god, Ra.
That’s a very big, responsible job. She was seen as the protector of the pharaohs and led them in warfare. When she was in a calmer state she would take the form of the household cat goddess Bastet. Sekhmet was associated both with disease and with healing and medicine.
She seems to be a woman of eclectic interest and powers. A good example to explore.
I have begun the book Sekhmet: Transformation in the Belly of the Goddess by Nicki Scully
I plan to connect to Sekhmet through shamanic journeying to gain insights on our role as guardian of our planet. More to come on this new adventure.
=== DEEPER SONG PHILOSOPHIES ===
===REFLECTIONS OF A DEEPER SONG PODCAST===
Spiritual Practice
The Two Vital Sides of Your Spiritual Practice
Listen to my
Reflections of a Deeper Song Podcast on
Apple / Spotify / Google
and the
==== DEEPER SONG EXPLORATION ===
Changing of the Godsis a very powerful documentary about the universal forces that effect our planet today. Sign up to watch the documentary on 2/22/22
Shift Network Breath Summit Free speakers February 7 -11.
===CARA’S CORNER===
Heeding the Call
In our exchange of emails, my friend and international author Deng, Ming-Dao wrote, “If you write a book about the Divine Feminine, I would read it.”
Now I had not thought about a book. I have been exploring the emergence of the Divine Feminine in this newsletter since for several months but one other prompt had crossed my path when a friend commented that I had already had a lot of powerful interactions with the Divine Feminine in my life. Looking back that would explain some of the bold and unusual and dramatic choices I have made in my 89 years.
I know how to create books. I have a few on Amazon. I know I like a short form. There are tools to make preparing them for self-publishing easy although I will have to learn the new versions. So I have begun. And I will complete this project because writing is how I figure out things and I want to figure out my role and perhaps our role as the Circle of Light Beings in helping the Divine Feminine take her rightful place of leadership.
Listen to the nudges and calls that come your way and go adventuring. That’s how you learn what you are to offer the world.
===SING A DEEPER SONG ===
The nudge was not subtle, it was more like a bop on the head.
The nudge was not subtle, it was more like a bop on the head, but it set up a resonance I could not ignore.
The nudge was not subtle, it was more like a bop on the head, but it set up a resonance I could not ignore. I heeded the call, stepped onto the path and began my new journey.
– Cara Lumen, February 2022
We create our future with every thought we think, every action we take. Move forward mindfully as you sing your Deeper Song.
Namaste,
Cara
Come Sing a Deeper Song
I help adventurers who are ready to explore the new possibilities in the emerging energy of the Divine Feminine to align their dreams and choices with what is emerging as possible today so that they go beyond their own expectations.
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