Rattling the Bones

I've been looking through old journals and doing a bit of spring cleaning. G refuses to let me get rid of some of my old journals because he says "they are brilliant." I've seen my daughter read some entries especially out of the journals that are closest to her birth date. My son wants me to gather them all together in one big book so it can be some kind of manual on Shamanism, Indigenous Dreaming and the Medicine Wheel. He'd like to learn more on the topics. By the way, he's not the first person to make that request in the last decade. Everyone seems to get something out of those books whereas I get a glimpse of the past and some undeniable need to let go of it. When we went to the Mayan ruins in January of this year, the anthropologist and guide explained to us that the pyramids were built in such a way as to show that every 52 years the past would be returned to the earth and renewal would take its place. The head of a household would literally build over ...

           Have you ever seen this movie?   I’ve seen it quite a few times and each time it’s inspired me.               This movie, the Bucket List, is about two cancer patients who make up a list of things they would love to accomplish before they die, and set out together to make it happen. This story is about the journey into hell that death offers each and every one of us:   A Divine Comedy.   It’s about growing up and realizing what is most important in life – the people we love, the earth that nourishes us, and the wonders of our planet both natural and man-made.   I’ve struggled with chronic illness (diagnosed) for the last 25 years.   During this time I’ve had surgeries, lost organs, died three times and discovered that life and death aren’t separate realities but actually two spinning ribbons within the same spiral.   There were moments where I wished to die; other instances where I feared it; and the rest of the time it’s as if death is just a looming shadow cocooning...

I’d like to be able to leave an entry on my BLOG every day but one thing leads to another and I realize that there are some days where there isn’t enough time.   When my son was little (5-6 years old) he used to say that there was a CT in the past, present and future.   He believed that there were three parts to him living life in three distinct realities.   He would explain to us that a part of him self was actually dashing towards the future and that if somehow he (in the present) changed his mind on what he wanted to do tomorrow, he had to run after this CT (in the future) to stop him before he lived through the next 24hours.   We would giggle at his understanding of time; but at the same time understood quite vividly the impressions that he was describing.   Later on CT (10-13year old) would tell us that when he was happy and full time would move faster.   He would explain to his sister who often had bad days in school that it was a simple matter of controlling personal moods ....

    My daughter needed to get a prescription filled this month (thank Creator – she is not sick); but she couldn’t get to her doctor (specialist).    She has two months left of the medication but the doctor’s appointment isn’t before 6 months.   So we decided to visit a local clinic and see a GP (general practitioner) in order to get a new prescription.   Would you believe that most clinics were full up by 9:00am which means that they couldn’t take in more patients.   They were FULL for the day. I was told that patients line up outside the clinic between 6:00 and 8:00am, rain or shine. The clinic only opens at 8:30. The CLSC will actually refuse you if you are not from the region.   Now let me paint you a picture --- not being from the region implies for these people that you are not from the two towns that they’ve chosen to give services to.   In actuality the region is composed of 5 towns that were recently reunited together by the Government because they thought it would be eas...

              It's raining today.                              Like Eric said this morning with a lot of humor: "The meteorologists lied .  My blackberry predicted only clouds not pouring rain... Those bastards!" I shook my head with the usual retort: "Are you kidding - it was obvious that we  were getting rain today.  All you had to do is look up to the sky rather than the phone..."               I find it amazing how many people completely depend on their computers or blackberry now-a-days.  My children are always texting and my hubby is always reading e-mails (working) with the help of his blackberry.  It's a portable desk and files for him.  Personally, I would find it difficult to always have my mind focused on a small black box that knows everything about anything.   "What ever happened to discovering?"I often tease my technology-dependent family and friends.                   We don't realize how much technology defines us as individuals...

“When trees get to a mature age (50 years old +-) they begin to sing and for those of us who are sensitive we can actually hear their song.” EC – Passamaquoddy Elder                When I was pregnant with my children I spent a lot of time being attentive to my heartbeat.    I believe that it was because of this awareness that I had so many lucid dreams one of which saved my son’s life.   In Shamanism the drum is a sacred tool that is used for ritual but that is also believed to have healing powers.   There is nothing more powerful than the heart beat of a mother, the heart beat of a family, the heart beat of a community and finally, the heartbeat of a nation.   The idea is that the heartbeats of people who love and care for each other will synchronize and eventually make sacred all that is dear to these people.   Obviously, if you pay attention to your heartbeat when you are pregnant it brings you to connect to your unborn child.                 After my children were born a...

When SO decided to do her thesis for her master's degree she planned to write about "wellbeing" and it's importance in our Shamanic community.  She discovered while interviewing members that wellbeing wasn't so much of a central theme.  After reading her thesis, all 98pages of it, I realized that wellbeing was indeed an important topic but never really the goal for any of the participants.  It seemed to me that even though the focus moved from Sacred Circle Tradition, to dreaming, to inter-relationships, to initiations etc... every attitude, choice and behavior or action was done with wellbeing in mind.  I do believe that whomever commits to Shamanism wants to be well which means wants to be healthy, to be whole, to be at peace.  Yet, it's true the shamanic path isn't the easiest path to take and so in many ways the difficulties of dealing with issues, with old programs, with past lives, with ghosts, with negative energy etc...  doesn't exactly spell o...

It’s been raining all week and already we are seeing the benefits of it.   The trees are no longer bare; the grass is thicker and green ; we have flowers ; and the plants everywhere are vibrant with sprouts. It’s only a matter of days and the lilac trees will be in full bloom and delivering the sweetest perfume.   It’s clear that rain is the food of choice for plants beyond sunshine.   Like humans the vegetation needs lots of water to be healthy.   I’ve always been fascinated by trees ever since my grand-father told me as a child that trees didn’t only need sunshine and rain to survive but also magic.   One of the trees in our back yard had died and my father had cut it down.   My grandfather showed us (my brother, sister, cousins and I) that you could tell the age of a tree by the rings drawn inside the bark.   He explained that along with sun and rain the Little People, invisible, magical creatures from an other reality, would dance around the tree to create rings of light who ...

If someone approached you and told you « to prepare for hardship » would you listen or would you wait until you were caught up in struggle to say « I should have believed him or her? » If it were true that people couldn’t predict the future then, why would the Jewish and Christian Church have wasted space, time and paper to give sacred books with countless stories about seers, dreamers and healers who could advise the kings and people of what’s to come?   Why would the Mayan people have bothered with prophecies surviving even their own empire?   Are we so arrogant, so fearful or so mistrusting that we are not able to see that the visions of the ancients are manifesting as we speak?   And why haven’t we yet figured out that perhaps the Prophets of yesterday cared enough for the people of tomorrow to send them word of what was to come so « that they would prepare. »    What have you prepared for lately?    In the last month I’ve watched people prepare for dates; prepare for exams; ...