Cara Lumen | Sing a Deeper Song

Sing a Deeper Song

Service

Who do You Serve?  

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As far back as Marketing 101, I understood how important it is to know who you serve.  Your target market, the people who’ll hear and understand you, the people who’ll want your product, the people you’ll want to work with. You can’t serve everyone.  You have to pick your tribe and serve it well.

What are they doing in their lives?

When I was becoming a Reiki Master Teacher we went around our group to say who we were going to help.  One person said she was going to help all the poor people.  In that moment I knew who I was going to serve – thought leaders who were already deeply in service so that my work would support them in flying higher and touching more lives.  And that has never changed.  I don’t want to teach “beginner” anything. I want to teach conscious, exploratory thinkers.

It’s important to know who you want to serve.

Why do you want to help them?

I am really self-focused in my choices.  I love to learn.  I have a burning desire and calling to explore the spiritual realms.  So my first reason for doing anything is determined by my own love of exploring the metaphysical.

And I also have a powerful need to explain what I figure out and share that with others.  But I no longer want to teach even the beginning steps of the exploratory work I’m doing.  My need to explore and figure out is first, and that is not a particularly good marketing strategy.  But my passion and excitement is contagious and there are those who are listening and reading and absorbing what I share. And that’s what I want.

Why do you do what you do?

It’s been very revealing to be retired, to no longer be focused on doing a job for the monetary reward. I find it both indulgent and expanding.  And I move rapidly and deeply into whatever I choose to explore. My focus is on learning more about the unseen world.  Not everyone wants to know about that, but those who do read what I write.

Your passion has been with you all your life

Whatever you’re supposed to be doing in your life, you have either been doing it all along or longed to do it all along.  Sometimes a gift shows you the way. I am a writer but the gift that makes the difference is my ability to quickly see the overview and make connections that others may not be able to see.  That helps me guide people toward new insights.

Many people are reaching mid-life and taking a hard look at their level of satisfaction, find it lacking, and go start their own business, or follow a more personal calling.

Don’t be afraid to change your life, wherever you are on your path.

You never know who you’ll reach

I did a podcast interview and the person who did the interview has shared with me some of the positive responses it received.  I know nothing about those people other than their responses.  But that’s enough.  I touched some lives. I made a difference. And I have no idea what I said or what idea touched them.

We often don’t know how we touch lives.  We just have to trust that we do.

Your calling is deep within

Go into meditation.  Ask your inner self for guidance.  Ask to clarify your passion and offer suggestions for its expression.  Then go do that.

To Sing a Deeper Song Consider

Are You a Conscious Elder?

Where toy Radiate Your Inner Light

What is Your Unique Purpose?

How do You Put your Spiritual Insights to Work?

Your Gift to the Future

Find Your Most Impactful Spiritual Practice

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I love to learn and I keep finding great forms of spiritual practice. However, as the day is not long enough, I need to make some choices. So how do we choose the elements that will most enhance our daily spiritual practice?

Active practice

To meditate and do shamanic journeying or to simply practice radiating light, I have to sit in silence.  I need to be present, I cannot be doing anything else. It can be only a moment of taking a deep breath and focusing my thoughts toward increasing my inner radiance. Or it can be twenty minutes spent journeying, or meditation, or moving my body in a mindful way.

I need to make daily choices that create an environment that allows me to deepen my spiritual awareness by being present and aware.

Choose the right ceremony

Part of what I’m doing is exploring and learning and making up my own version and combinations of mindful practices that deepen my spiritual connection.  The next step is to make some choices.  There’s a radiating light practice I’ve added to my daily spiritual practice.  I also love to do a shamanic journey every day.  They will both stay in my life.  That means I either get up earlier or go to bed later, alternate or let some things go. You can’t do everything; choose the action that offers you the most profound change.

Learn to “be”

Becoming more mindful is a constant focus of my spiritual practice.  I may need to set my timer so that when it goes off, I stop and center myself with a deep breath and look out my window and let go of my body suit focus and take a moment to bask in my inner world.

What about “tune in” time?

If you don’t contemplate your life, your changes, your new discoveries, if you don’t figure out how you want to adapt them to your life, nothing happens.  You must take time for contemplation, for being more self-aware, for feeling what’s aligned and consciously releasing what’s not.  That takes some quiet “me” time.

I happen to use writing to figure things out.  What’s the meaning of an idea? How will I use it?  The result of this inner exploration is posts like this. My introspection makes me productive as well as contemplative.

Sometimes I draw what I’m trying to figure out, using stick figures and arrows and big print and lines that link.

It’s a good idea to regularly take time to simply contemplate what you’ve come across lately, figure out some ways you might incorporate it into your life and see what you want to explore further.

In that same period of self-examination, decide what you can let go.

Inner Work, Self-Awareness, Choice, Release

Do the inner work that shows you your options. Go exploring.  Try new things.  Play with the options that appear.

Use your self-awareness to decide what forms of inner work fit best with your personality and your time. Make choices that fit into your present life. Find a form for deepening your self-awareness so that your outer choices are aligned with your inner work.

Then release the rest.  That opens up space for you to explore new ideas.

Add those new choices to your daily spiritual practice.

How have you balanced your inner life with your outer life?

To Sing a Deeper Song Consider

What is Your Unique Purpose?

How do You Put your Spiritual Insights to Work? 

Your Gift to the Fut-1ure

Building a Transformational Community to Heal Our World-

Your Desire to Heal the World

The Guardianship We Hold

The Three-Year Promise

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three - rainbow

We overestimate what we can do in one year and underestimate what we can do in three years. What do you want in three years?  Are your goals about work, or relationships or health?  Are you thinking big enough?

What do you want to have accomplished in three years?

Stop. What just popped into your head when you read that? What do you want to have accomplished in three years?  That thought you just had. That’s it. That’s what you work on.

It doesn’t need to be particularly specific, but keep that goal in mind as we explore some ideas to make your goal a reality.

I was totally surprised to find that my three-year goal was that I wanted to recover some of my physical ability. Being a metaphysician, I don’t want to buy into the common idea that as we age our body becomes less effective. However, that’s hard because I live in a senior facility filled with walkers and stooped-over people on oxygen.

I work to see and feel my body as strong and supportive. But I have both inner and outer work to do and beliefs to change and things to learn. So I choose as my three-year goal that my body will be stronger than it is now.

What did you choose?

What would that look like?

What would that feel like?

You gotta have a plan

The first thing I realized was that I need to have a plan. A plan that I’ll stick to and improve on for three years – steps I’m willing to take, goals I truly want to achieve. I need to formulate a plan that’ll help me achieve the desired results.

You gotta have determination

You need to want this goal – a lot.

I have a friend who is sick. There’s stuff wrong with her but she is not helping. She’s not eating. She’s not moving her body. She’s not helping herself. This passiveness has been a pattern in her life. Not pushing through. Not taking charge of her own destiny.

I can’t help her. No one can. She is totally responsible for the outcome of this opportunity in her life.

As are we all.

What your life looks like now is a direct result of your choices and actions. What choices are you making in your life that are manifesting in what you see before you?  What do you need to change – about yourself – about your actions? What choices will you make in order to achieve your three-year goal?

Make a plan you can follow

I gave this idea of a three-year goal a lot of thought because my natural tendency is to work my mind rather than move my body. So I had to create a plan I would follow, either through determination or trickery.

I choose the number 21. It takes 21 days to change a habit. I would do whatever form of movement I chose for 21 minutes. I don’t think I’m going to do 21 different forms of movement, but you get the picture.

Trick yourself. I can add 12 (the number 21 reversed) leg lifts every time I stand at my kitchen sink. I watch The View every day and for one 15-minute segment I will stretch and move. I walk each day but may count 210 steps or walk for 12 minutes. I could climb 21 steps 21 times. (Doubtful). There are 16 steps in the hall by my mailbox so even one trip up and down would be a positive move.

Dancing is a sneaky way to exercise. Turn on some music and sing and dance with great enthusiasm. Get creative. Sneak in small steps.

I have discovered that the most productive time to sneak in a new habit is during television commercials. When I use that time to move my body, during one hour I may get as much as 15 minutes of movement tucked in. I could also use commercial breaks to dust or put stuff away or tidy my kitchen.

Whether you sit in your chair and stretch, or get up and lift some weights, or take some other action toward your goal, look for the hidden down-time moments that are organically built into your day.

If my three-year goal was around relationship, I would work very hard on changing me.

If my three-year goal was focused on a project, I would mind-map broad steps, divide them into manageable segments and begin.

Listen to your inner voice

As I make these physical choices, I have to learn to listen to the messages of my body. I have to learn to give it what it needs in the form and amount that it needs. And I get to notice whose voice it is that says “do three more steps” and to ignore the voice that says “too hard.”  They are both me, but I need to find the balance between pushing too hard so that I get discouraged and pushing just right so that I feel and see progress.

Check your progress

The only way I know to track my progress is to record my starting stats. Then I record my progress monthly. That progress may be in mental attitude, or in actual physical change. Decide upon the signals you can read that will let you become aware of your progress. Take time to reflect on this progress and make adjustments that will help you get more results.

I do a self-awareness check on my birthday. I check in with myself at the end of the year. I am also reflective at the time of the New Moon and at Full Moon. Pick what works for you but do record your progress so you can see it and you can tweak your plan.

Visualize your results every day

Each day in your quiet inner time, visualize how you will feel at the end of the three years when you have surpassed your own expectations. It’s awesome for me to remember the freedom my body used to afford me, the adventures we went on together. I want that back. When I visualize, I feel that way again and it inspires and motivates me. Your emotions are a better indicator of success than what things look like.

Allow room for change

Your goals may change as you change. As my body improves I may change my vision, my goals, even the action steps I choose.

What is your three-year vision?  Will you begin working on it today?  What’s your plan?

To Sind a Deeper Song Consider:

My Three Words for 2017

What Do You Need to Leave Behind

What Seeds Do You Allow to Grow in Your Garden?

The Shedding of Your Skin

Clean Your Inside Home

Why We Are Afraid of Change

Be the Story you Want to Tell

VLOG: Insights of a Deeper Song

PODCAST: Reflections of a Deeper Song

Your Gift to the Future

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future planet

I was on a webinar in which we took a shamanic journey to 200 years into the future. We were to see what descendants were there and to ask what our purpose is in this lifetime.

What does 200 years in the future look like?

In my inner journey to 200 years in the future I found that we were gathered around a fire. Not because it was all there was but because it was a connection with nature. The guide that was there for me is the guide from my past and present. Her name is Sage and she is a wise woman.

What do your descendants look like?

I gave a brief thought to the descendants I have in this lifetime; but 200 years down the line?  Is that four to five generations?  That could be a lot of people. It was a bit daunting to know that what I do now will influence the lives of a great many people in the future. It makes me look carefully at the actions I take today. The world has changed so fast in my own lifetime that it’s hard to imagine 200 years from now.

What gifts have you forwarded to the future?

In this internal, visioning journey, when I asked what my gift to my descendants was, the word “storytelling” leaped out. The idea touched me deeply.

Yes, I write. Yes, I figure things out and I think that helps other people, but a storyteller feeds the imagination of her people, she inspires and motivates them. The idea of passing forward ideas to people 200 years down the line is sobering. And it intensifies the focus of my work.

There are many ways we will pass our work forward. Some of our art will survive, our music or writing and videos will preserve a lot of our ideas, but it is the values and the insights that we share now that will influence, inspire and shape the choices of future generations.

So what am I doing now that will benefit future generations? What kind of impact do I have or will I have? That is a question for each of us to answer for ourselves.

In my spiritual exploration I continue to go deeper to explore, to interpret, to draw maps that others may follow. As I age, I work to figure out the meaning of life and how to be productive to the end. I offer insights and unique combinations of concepts that I hope increase self-awareness and help people achieve personal transformation.

What you do now affects future generations 

The biggest insight I received from this imaginary journey into the future was that the work we do now has the potential to touch someone and help them shine their light brighter. They, in turn, focus their brightened light toward another person and that light moves across and forward or backward to heal and balance and whole. It affects this lifetime as well as the life experience of future generations.

What gift are you leaving the future? See if you can understand what it is. Then do more of it.

To Sing a Deeper Song Consider:

How to Manage Your Subtle Energy

Our Work in the World

How to Hold the Space for the New Vision to Emerge

The Emergence of Collective Individual Spirituality

How do You Put your Spiritual Insights to Work?

VLOG: Insights of a Deeper Song

PODCAST: Reflections of a Deeper Song

 

On Spreading Yourself Too Thin

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woman frazelled

I’m feeling stretched and tempted and pulled and I have to draw a line. I have to make a choice. I have to determine what’s essential and begin there.

So, what is essential?

My temptation and overwhelm comes from taking several courses at one time. They, in turn, lead me to other courses. I sign up for a third course and then, suddenly, there’s too much. I have to decide what is essential and then see what else there’s time for. I dropped the third course before it even started.

“Essential” will change

Look at your big plan, your overall objective, the purpose that drives and guides you. My core objective at this point in my life is to expand my spiritual awareness and participation in the world. That’s my measuring stick. If something comes along that feels tempting, I hold it up to my measuring stick and do a reality check of my time.

And then I pass it by or start unsubscribing to things to make room for it.

Clean out your inbox

I’ subscribed to more vegan blogs than I can possibly absorb. So, for the moment, I’m going to make a list of the ones I like, unsubscribe to most or all of them, and when I want to find a new vegan recipe I’ll go to my list. Voilà. A lot of emails are now off my plate.

When I was working on my books, I subscribed to a lot of book writing and book publishing blogs. Again, I will make a list and delete many of my subscriptions. That will also keep me from being pulled off course by being tempted to learn something from those sources — for now.

I get new opportunities. I love The Shift Network (www.theshiftnetwork.com), who are busy folk offering lots of opportunities But when my plate if full, it is full. I have to be discerning of my time.

Allow time to absorb and savor

When I sign up for a course, I want to immerse myself in the content. I want to attend the webinars, and do the homework, and practice what I’m being taught until I absorb the parts I want into my life. Savor. Absorb. It takes time. Are you allowing enough time to assimilate the step you just took?

Allow time to grow

Since we learn from everything we do, if I don’t have time to take a course that appeals to me it’s possible that I’ll learn what I need to learn from another source. We have to trust that our learning will continue on the path we’ve chosen and that education can come from all sorts of directions.

Leave space for new opportunities

An idea based on one of the classes suddenly expanded into something I needed and wanted to do next. Suddenly my plate was full of planning, creating, evolving and sharing this new idea.

But with that choice, something had to go.

Back to what is essential

The Deeper Song Community is my priority. But I’m a prolific writer and am way, way ahead in posts even though I put out two a week. I’m content with two podcasts a month. I publish a weekly newsletter. The rest of the time I can create whatever I want, more books, a new project, a video. Free time. My choice.

I keep flexible and let my life unfold.

Taking my cues from what shows up and how I feel, I am flexible enough to keep adjusting my schedule to find the most willing time of day to exercise — or tidy my home — or whatever habit I want to create.

Allow life to unfold

But life can’t unfold if it’s full up of “to-do’s”. What do you need to let go? What do you need to unsubscribe from?

Can you voice your primary purpose for this part of your cycle? Maybe you think in months or quarters or years. Or just moments. What’s your purpose?

When I was publishing my books, there was much to learn about the technical aspects. And that was a priority. Now that I know how to do that, learning the back end of publishing is no longer a priority.

I’ve absorbed and incorporated elements of the two courses I’ve taken. One has enriched my personal spiritual practice and the other has opened doors of opportunity for planetary involvement. Those are important to me. I have to make room to cultivate them. I prioritize and choose and decide how much time I’ll spend on each new project. It’s a choice — a choice about finding and keeping a balance.

Trim those distracting bright shiny objects

Look for the wasted time in your life. Look for those bright shiny objects that pull you off track. Trim them out of your life. In Feng Shui they suggest you begin with an empty space and then put in one thing at a time until you achieve the balance you want.

This is a form of Feng Shui for your time. Look at an empty day. Even when you put something in it, look closely to see how you can modify it or do it faster or better.

If I want more exercise, then I want to add five minutes of walking when I go for the mail or choose a regular time to put on some music that makes me want to dance and move.

If I want to keep my home neater, I will spend five minutes after lunch to tidy or clean.

Look at the time you’re not using wisely. I started to write time you are “wasting” but that’s a matter of how you perceive “using” time. We’re back again to unloading.

Pay attention to how you feel. You can’t do that if you don’t sit still and feel how you feel.

When you change tasks, check in with yourself. How do you feel? What do you need next? Do you need to stretch, take a short nap, go outside, call a friend? Play a run of Spider Solitaire? What do you need in the moment? Leave time for those unscripted, unplanned, tuned-into-yourself moments throughout your day.

Relax and re-choose

Begin to find your own rhythm on a weekend when you don’t have anything “scheduled.” On separate pieces of paper, write out your ideas about what you want to put in your life. Begin to place them before you as you think of them. Put some ideas in a “love to” row. These are the things that nourish you and make your heart sing

As you work, there will evolve a “have-to” row. Some of that will be caring for yourself, some may be caring for others and some might be ready to be put in the “do-not-do-anymore” pile.

Use these visuals to find balance. Use these visuals to prioritize. Use these visuals to unsubscribe to what’s no longer relevant in your life.

Do this process several times a year so you’ll never again spread yourself too thin.

To Sing a Deeper Song consider:

Accept Yourself as You Are
Why Do You Believe What You Do?
Feeling Powerless is Not a Reason for Inaction
Reserve Space For Yourself in Your Life
How to Design an Unfolding Routine