Inventories and Choices

Inventory and Choices

Why is it no one thinks they can become a doctor or psychologist or plumber simply by “talking to Spirit” but the corrupt profit driven, ego gratifying New Age billion dollar Industry can sell the idea that one workshop can certify you to be some kind of New Age shaman?  Why do people buy this nonsense?  It is very difficult these days to find a True Teacher as everyone with money can get some kind of certificate in a weekend or online, even to become a Yoga teacher (not a real one of course). How to find a True Teacher has been discussed in previous articles, not to be addressed here, just acknowledged.  Can Spiritual Progression be done alone? You can in fact work alone, but that means ALONE, like in a cave in the Himalayas for a few years, alone with Self and Spirit in order to get past the ego and detach from lower body desires.  That is a very tough discipline.  

People often ask me how to make “more progress” on “The Path.” Unfortunately the sad answer is always the same, time, practice, dedication and money. MOnEy!! You say. Yes. Even in the days of tribalism, the Shaman was always paid. The community supported him/her so s/he could practice both on you and to keep their own Spiritual Practice current and vital (Spiritual Practice is a practice that takes time and continues until you cross over, and continues even then).  So yes, the currency of support these days is not bison, it is money.

As a professor in an Art College I observed the students that WERE artists practiced their art every spare moment. The students that wanted a career in art (for a variety of reasons) did all they could do just to get by (classes and training) so they could get to their “career” and get what they wanted and desired (which varied from money, to fame, to lifestyle etc.).  One is not better than the other by the way. This is about 1) Looking at what choices you truly make, not what you imagine. Take an inventory of where you spend your time, energy and money and then look at it and learn.  2) Own your choices so you don’t convince yourself or others that you are a victim.  By owning your choices, you will have the benefit of not manipulating others (either consciously or unconsciously) by presenting as a victim that must be taken care of and therefore cannot be held accountable for….. well, anything.  Not presenting as a victim means you will learn to ask for help and support in an honest and mature fashion, rather than singing a sob story to get help and support.  This does not mean by the way that you will not encounter pity parties along the way. You will. Part of growth is shadow work, feeling sorry for yourself, criticizing your choices in hindsight, wishing things had been different or better. That is different than functioning as a victim. Feeling like a victim will happen. Accept it, feel it, process it. That is part of being authentic flawed, humble, and human.  Then as you move through this processing you will progress into more Light, more insight and sometimes clarity. Definitely more inner peace and that will allow you to be better connected to your Higher Self which is your connection to Spirit.

If you want to progress or focus more on your “Spiritual” work make different choices.  This is not something dramatic like leaving your spouse or quitting your job, or moving to India. If you do that, your lessons will simply follow you to your new circumstances.  Study with a Teacher, take private sessions (as long as they are offered, those often disappear after a short while) as those are always different than classes, spend money, time, vacation time, on Spiritual workshops and retreats.  Or not!  Either choice is okay.  If you say you don’t have the money, take an inventory on what you spend on Starbucks, hair, nails, car payments, eating out.  Look at your inventory and then OWN your choices and either keep them and stop being a victim, or make other choices!  If you say you don’t have the time, again, take an inventory and look at it. See if you can make any changes and learn if you really WANT to make any changes or if you are using “I don’t have time” as an excuse. If it is the latter, change that from an excuse to a choice. For now.

Acceptance of where you are, choices you are making regarding time, money, priorities etc., and being honest about your feelings is the key to both emotional and Spiritual well-being and progress. You cannot move forward if you cannot look at, see, and accept where you are currently at.  Taking a victim stance (in other words saying you are a victim rather than processing your feelings of being a victim as a way to move on) prevents you from seeing where you are at and that will keep you stuck, in everything, not just Spirituality.  Once you are in acceptance, only then can you receive Guidance. When being a committed victim, you will be so busy selling your story both to yourself and others, there will be no room to hear Spirit, only your own voice telling stories.  The flip side by the way of holding on to a victim stance is to be unrealistically “positive”. Both are “magical thinking”. Acceptance, reality, is the mature middle ground. That means you are willing to face and learn the lesson you are currently in. Only after you have learned your current lesson will you be able to be different enough(energetically and emotionally), open enough, detached enough, to learn something new, to receive something new from Spirit.

A small reminder: Life Path Healings still offers private work. What will happen in those sessions? It will be different for each person and different each time.  Read some of the reviews on the website (MarieFeuer.Org) if that will help.  Ask questions.  If Spirituality is or has become a priority for you, make some choices around that. Take some inventories on your current habits to discover where your time, energy and money are going. Perhaps you will discover you really are not that invested in Spiritual Growth right now, perhaps being a grandmother or your career takes priority. That is a fine discovery. You can still grow Spiritually. Meditate, go to classes, share and practice (practice, not teach) with friends, read, and work on yourself.  Spirituality becomes full time when you practice mindfulness through self-awareness and through discovering and owning your choices.  Spirituality is meant to be integrated into your current human life for both learning and enlightenment. That integration will be different for each person and will change throughout your lifetime. Spirituality is not meant to be a means to escape your life, your feelings, your circumstances, your responsibilities, or as a replacement for honest work and effort, or as a career. Inventories will help you to settle your energy by gathering real data, facts, about what you are doing versus what you either think you are doing, or wish you were doing.  They will help you make choices by first accepting where you are now. Be here now.

Journey On.