Rattling the Bones

When we loose loved ones I believe it’s natural to go through the fear of being alone. It is certainly not the greatest feeling but it is a necessary contemplation. It makes us understand the value of umbilical cords and relationships. It also makes us realize “we are truly never alone and although it takes work to build strong and intimate connections it is well worth the time and effort.” I’ve often said: “I’ve had the good fortune in my life to connect with people at a deep level and feel what it means to love and be loved unconditionally. Often these relations have occurred instantly and with perfect strangers leaving me to become conscious of a collective reality beyond here and now. We have been journeying together (Creation) for billions of years. You would think we would know each other by now.” The idea of “knowing” for me stretches to the concept of “sacred knowledge,” a stone; which is recognized as an element in the east of the Medicine Wheel. Two days ago as I...

Full Moon. This weekend we celebrated the Moon of Welcome. You would think it would be the kind of Moon that is uplifting, filled with smiles and great intentions; but this year the vibe at our circle was somewhat morose. Many of the stories, that were shared were about death and the miserable feeling that’s attached to growing older. Strangely enough most of the women in our circle are in their early 30’s. It’s amazing how every year the Moon of Welcome offers a different facet attached to the theme of “welcoming.” For example this year, there’s no doubt the Moon of Welcome is asking us to explore the idea of “welcoming death.” None of us made any association to 2012. It was more about connecting to the moment and to the synchronicities. IL talked about some of the discussions; which occurred in her family between Christmas and New Year. She mentioned how many of the elders in her family were more expressive of their fears relating to death because one by one they were slo...

The longest nights are definitely from late October to late December. Some years offer a more challenging experience with darkness than other years. What is darkness? To most people darkness is just another word for horror, tragedy and fear; but for others it’s excitement, comfort, silence or peace. This year Fall seems eternal despite the few flurries this weekend. On Saturday ET and I went to Bromont. ET went to get his ski pass. It was a nice ride: A mix of clear sky, sunshine and snow-promising-clouds (cold, dark and menacing). I remember imagining the Gods of Winter when I was a child (at least that’s how I called them). They had gray silver skin, puffy cheeks with white, long beards and always appeared in early December hiding through these types of dark clouds. I hadn’t seen these Gods for a while and then, yesterday they were there a top the mountains predicting a good snow season. As if ET could see them too, he started to explain to me how important it was to h...

Have you ever noticed how people struggle with the idea of saying “goodbye.” People have a tendency of finding me abrupt when it comes to phone conversations or at the end of social events. The way I see it: “When it’s time to go, it’s time to go!” I don’t like the hesitation, the resistance, the fear and unease that people go through when it gets close to say “good bye, goodnight, or see you later.” From my point of view if people played around with the idea of “death” whenever it manifests in some shape or form in their life, they would eventually move beyond their limitations and gain so much from the teachings. People define death at something negative, something tragic and something they would love to refuse rather than surrender to. The fact of the matter is death is inevitable and as far as anyone knows “it opens up to an unknown”. Statistically speaking the divorce rate has never been so high. I’ve never met so many people who are not in relationships or who complain...

I recently went to a fund raiser for the Centaur Theater in Montreal and the key not lecturer was Marc Garneau a famous Canadian Astronaut. During the evening Mr. Garneau shared how it felt to prepare for a trip into space. I noticed that lots of what he shared wasn’t foreign to me even though I’ve never traveled to the moon (yet that may be debatable). Ironically lots of what he said resembled my story with chronic illness. I think there is more than one way to reflect on life and one’s mortality. Whenever we’re asked to face the unknown and surpass our fears we touch a part of our self that is God like. Whether we wait impatiently to be called to board a rocket ship or we wait impatiently to be called to take a 2 hour nuclear scan I think that for some of us the experience moves us to see more than the ego, the fears, the panic and to touch the mystery of life. I often tell people that what I find is lacking in our society is the knowledge and wisdom to prepare ...