Michael on Intimacy Part 1

"Michael on Intimacy"

Michael: We will begin today by addressing the issue of validation. It is useful here to share personal information which can be elaborated and offered to this group for discussion, for indeed all fragments here present can utilize such information for self reflection and comparisons. To clarify by comparisons we do not mean to suggest that fragments will hold themselves up one to the other but rather that it is useful to understand the process through which validation occurs. And it can be in the most simplest of matters, such as the artisan's comments being told today.

We think many times fragments are reluctant to share personal insights for fear of personal judgments, criticism, and the like, and that the chief feature's interference is more than negligible and in fact can become persistent and all-encompassing. We would recommend for those fragments here present, especially those relatively new to this work, that you might expect some chief feature interference, for the validations and perceptions which are available to you at this time could, and we underline could be life changing.

The introduction of Universal Truths into an individual fragment's life can either be embraced, denied, or left discarded without due attention. Therefore you might wish to consider today's information in the light of the following weeks rather than under the guise of potential misinterpretations by fear.

Intimacy is a Universal Truth and is one of the primary mechanisms for progress of the individual soul through the levels. There is much misinterpretation of the term specifically related to requirements which are often based around potential encounters and exchanges, and which of course often times prevent true intimacy. It is in the simplest moments that true intimacy occurs. For it is in these moments that fragments one to the other are able to let down their barriers and allow for the penetration which occurs when they meet essence to essence. This is not necessarily a sexual experience although this can occur of course. Essence contact begins to occur more readily in the later levels of the soul evolution when there is much experience under the belt for the evolving fragments. And there is less need for expectations and pleasantries of the sort, and when such structures are discarded and fragments are more willing to be in the moment rather than in the past or in the potential future, then opportunities for true intimacy become more easily accessible.We would remind all here present that some discussion can occur here today having to do with the exchange of perceptions having to do with intimacy, including those times when such occurred, times when fear prevented validation, and times when fear prevented the experience. Homework for those so inclined might include making a personal inventory which could then be studied and reviewed for greater clarification and understanding."

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Your Daily Tolle

"Acknowledging the good that is already in your life is the foundation for all abundance."

Eckhart Tolle from Oneness With All Life

The 9 Needs: Security

As I started on this blog, my intention was actually to write about freedom as a need but no matter how I tried, I couldn't wrap my mind around a definition that was satisfying to me. No wonder, freedom is my last need on the list for me!  But security.... now that I can talk about :)

Those with security as a need want to feel safe and snug, all tucked in without a care in the world with all the monsters outside the door. Security often takes the form of collections of people and things which create the false sense of stability and security- of course, true security only comes from inside but try to tell that to someone with security as a need! This need tends to stockpile with loads of tangible goods- houses, money in the bank, a financial "plan" which includes saving for retirement, a need to know that everything is "ok". Folks with this need often play is safe, unwilling to risk their safety net for the chance of a pie in the sky adventure or thrill.

Security also plays out through relationships as this need seeks stability in marriage and long term partnerships. Remember the Tortoise and the Hare story? The tortoise was slow, stable, patient, and grounded. Yep, that's security. The Hare is a risk taker but not our Tortoise!

Security likes to build its nest and save for a rainy day. Better to be safe than sorry might be it's motto.
Or something about a penny wise and a pound foolish.....

It's the Same Doorway

This week we heard that a longtime friend of John's died July 4th of brain cancer. She was 49. Yesterday I spent the day at the hospital with my (unofficially) adopted daughter Holly who is pregnant and due any day now. 

Sunday I was blessed to facilitate a ritual for Holly, her mother, two close friends, and a baby honoring the upcoming birth. How amazed we were to find a large cave which was perfect for our birthing ritual and just steps from the ocean. A ritual to welcome the new soul coming soon. A Goddess cave.

There will be another ritual of transition but this time honoring the life of Marsha. Friends will gather and stories will be told, stories of her life and of her passing. A life lived in contrast to the life about to be lived.

Both of these souls are entering and leaving through the same doorway. The Gateway of souls through which all of us pass.

Artwork by Daniel Holeman

Your Daily Thoreau

"Let us spend one day as deliberately as Nature: and not be thrown off the track by every nutshell and mosquito's wing that falls on the rails".



Henry David Thoreau

When Will You get out of Your Boat?

"After you row your boat across the river, get out!"    

-Byron Katie

Yesterday my husband John reminded of one of Byron Katie's best reminders to not only do out internal work but then to apply it to the way we live. It's one thing to discover our personal truths which range from how we feel about our current relationships to the way we cut our vegetables, but another thing entirely to make the changes that bring our insides in alignment with our outsides. Say you have been in therapy for years, talking about all the difficulties of your relationship with your mother, the demise of your marriage, all the choices you have made. And in the course of your work, you also find that you are in need of a career change, a major relocation, or just a few adjustments, but rather than making those changes, you stay in your little boat where you experience what is known to you. You know so well the comfort of your safe harbor, the grooves along the sides of the boat which are worn well over time. You identify with them. Looking outside of your boat you see sand which you have not walked on before- will it provide solid footing or will I sink as I walk? We can't know can we? But what we do know is that staying in our boats will not provide us with the opportunity to apply what we have learned about ourselves.

Alice in Artisan Land

"I wonder if I've been changed in the night? Let me think. Was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I'm not the same, the next question is 'Who in the world am I?' Ah, that's the great puzzle!"   Alice from Alice in Wonderland


Last night I watched the new Tim Burton film "Alice in Wonderland" or, as she so often says in the film,
Onederland.  How delightful to see artisans at play!  Director Tim Burton collaborated with fellow artisans Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter to create a (somewhat) modern version of the Charles Dodgson (writing under the pen name Louis Carroll) classic complete with a blend of acting and animation which helped to create a new look at the magical world of Wonderland. Burton continues to look through his cynical lens, offering a darker version of the 1865 book as Alice explores all manner of fantastical creatures and landscape while seeking to understand who she is and perhaps more to the point whether she can find her lost "muchness" in order to slay the Jabberwocky. Oh, and possibly not be so mad after all.

Complementing the trio of artisans you will also find as the Knave of Hearts Old Sage Crispin Glover from Back to the Future fame (George McFly), Sage Ann Hathaway as the White Queen (with black lips) and the voice of Alan Rickman as the Cheshire Cat. All of this might seem a bit campy, but if you look at this film through (my) 1st entity eyes and interest in Groundbreaking Work in the Fine Arts, then you will see a new vitality in this entertaining and highly creative film. How IS it that Burton creates a Red Queen with such an enormous head? Alice is smaller, then bigger, then smaller again; you all know the story I'm sure. Have fun tonight and bring expression polarity home while you watch Alice. You won't regret it.

The 9 Needs: Communion or Life as Temple

COMMUNION

Middle English, from Latin communion-, communio mutual participation, from communis

Date: 14th century

1 : an act or instance of sharing
2 a capitalized : a Christian sacrament in which consecrated bread and wine are consumed as memorials of Christ's death or as symbols for the realization of a spiritual union between Christ and communicant or as the body and blood of Christ b : the act of receiving Communion c capitalized : the part of a Communion service in which the sacrament is received
3 : intimate fellowship or rapport

Communion is one of the 9 needs psychological needs according to the Michael teachings and this need has to do with creating connection with others which can be met through one on one contact, with groups, and, in the larger sense, with the Cosmos or God. Communion is not the same as conversation which tends to be more like the exchange need where information is traded back and forth, but is experienced as a blending of energies, a release of the individual personality and an opening to one-ness.  Group rituals including music, drumming, and dance can be gateways through which the communion need is met as is sensuality and sexuality where the mind is set aside in favor of feeling and movement.  Communion is all about feeling!

The quoted definition is partially aligned with the Michael definition in terms of feelings of rapport, but not in terms of religious affiliation which is not at all related to the Michael's definition of communion. The original intention of the sacrement of communion is similar in that the ritual was designed as a way for the individual to interact with the Divine, but in most cases the scripting involved did little to allow for a pure experience to occur. We have the opportunity now to experience communion on a daily basis by expanding our conscious awareness of our connection with all that is, by feeling our breath and the sun and moon on our skin. Open your awareness!

The 9 Needs: Expression

Those of us, myself included, who have chosen expression as one of the three primary needs need to find ways of expressing ourselves in order to maintain psychological health. With expression in the lead position or one of the top 3, it is important to allow for personal expression in as many ways as possible and which could include

* Artistry in the life  Any number of ways to express in daily life such as how you dress both yourself
and your environment
* Creative outlets   Music, Art, Drama, Writing, Dance  These expressive venues can include both doing them yourself or going to hear music and other expressive arts.
*Verbal expression   Yes, those of us with expression as a primary need seem to need to talk alot!  It's ok, it's just part of who you are.

Question: What are the ways you choose to express yourself?

Art by Brendan McCarthy