Tacos and Tiaras

I'm just being all-zen-and-shit

Storytelling aka Blog

Shadow Advice from Lao Tzu, a Bird, MLK, and Elsa

Kindness, Love, Luceat Lux Vestra

“Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.” – Lao Tzu

This morning while I was half-sleeping and half-waking, the first thoughts I remember are, “…assertive, not aggressive… confidence…” Those words were independent of any context, but I figured the day would reveal their purpose at some point. I’m kind of glad I didn’t wake up with the usual, “What day is it?” (By the way, I just realized it’s Friday.)

When I sat outside to watch for visitors to the feeders, the first to come and hang out with me was a Carolina wren. I haven’t committed to memory any bird symbolism, so I had to google for some guidance on possible meanings. I felt happy reading The Mighty Carolina Wren because the author, Patty Servidio, seems to have a similar view on recognizing more in ordinary life events. She also used one of the words that woke me up today – confidence.

I remembered using one of my Carolina wren photos to share a quote, but I couldn’t remember if I wrote an accompanying blog post. After a little bit of searching, I found my Instagram post as well as my blog post, Kindness? Deal Me In, Please. I wrote it on 17 September 2019, which didn’t seem so long ago yet seems soooooooooooo long ago.

So then there was the other piece of my morning routine – oracle cards. I felt called to use both my Radleigh Valentine Fairy Tarot Cards as well as my James Van Praagh The Soul’s Journey Lesson Cards.

One card fell softly while I was shuffling the fairy deck. “King of Autumn. Compassionate. Accomplished. Charismatic. Gifted. Be assertive when it comes to what you know is right! Everything going your way. A good person or company to work for.”

The soul’s journey lesson card was inverted. “Love. I commit to the practice of seeing the good in all things.” So to me, the “inverted” lesson is fear. “Fear. I realize that I am testing my resolve to live in the energy of love.” One might think it’s “hate” but James Van Praagh states his thought that, “The outcome of all choices in life is determined by two emotions: fear and love.”

“Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”

– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Hate. A product of fear. Dr. King called us to a nonviolent approach to change. Love. Assertive, not aggressive.

We have to face our own fears, the shadows, the low vibrations. We have to reveal them, deal with them, and heal them. Not only the collective we, but also each of us as individuals.

Earlier this week, I felt called to do some of the shadow work that I had been avoiding. I even listed it as a “component” of Being All-Zen-and-Shit.

“I allow myself the time and space I need to recognize and deal with my own negative emotions and experiences. I accept that they offer me lessons and growth. We have both shadows and light, and we cannot ignore discomfort, pain, or darkness, but we also cannot stay there. I do the work, then I release them.”

– a bullet from the page, Being All-Zen-and-Shit

I knew that only good things could come of it, but for a while, I felt scared by having to revisit pain. I realized that “revisiting” is so trivial when compared to what others have in their current, daily experiences. I also felt aware that it might give me both perspective and healing in order to release parts of the past that serve no good in the present or future.

I finally let go of the fear because love allows healing, peace, and light. Our individual healing helps us to bring our authentic light to the world. Fearless and loving. And better able to bring compassion, empathy, kindness, and love to others.

Earlier today when I was thinking about love and fear in the context of Dr. King’s quote above, Disney’s Frozen came to mind.

“The heart is not so easily changed, but the head can be persuaded.”

– Pabbie Troll, Disney’s Frozen

SPOILER ALERT… although if you haven’t watched Frozen this many years after its release, I have a feeling you probably won’t watch it or simply don’t give a shit. Either way, it’s your choice if you want to read this paragraph. 😉 During the scene of the quote above, Elsa receives advice that her power to use magic can be beautiful but also dangerous, so she needs to learn how to control it. “Fear will be your enemy.” The king’s solution is to hide her power from everyone. Elsa’s control is “conceal, don’t feel” (opposite of what I wrote earlier about our fears – “reveal them, deal with them, and heal them”). In Elsa’s signature song, Let It Go, she sings of letting go of fear and the past. Ultimately Elsa learns the truth of using love to combat fear and control her power.

“Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.”

– Lao Tzu

Be kind to yourself and do what you need to in order to show up as a better person for your family and friends and even for strangers, but most of all, for yourself. Make peace with yourself, your shadows, and the past so you can let it go… Let go of fear… Welcome kindness… Welcome love… and bring your light to drive out darkness.

Luceat lux vestra.

Come As You Are

Change, Compassion, Gratitude, Happiness, Hope, Kindness, Luceat Lux Vestra

Baltimore Oriole – a rare sighting for where I live in central North Carolina

This morning, I was sitting on my couch, recording my daily guidance in my journal when I saw the yellow-orange color flash past my window. I knew it wasn’t the American Goldfinch – I saw just enough to recognize a different color and size bird – so I grabbed my camera before I even went to the door to see who it was.

I felt so much joy in snapping a few shots before he flew away, then I used the Merlin app to confirm he’s a Baltimore Oriole. I googled its symbolism – summer is coming and positive changes are on their way. I felt even happier to find, Oriole: Weaving New Sunshine, by Nadine Marie. She and I have too much in common for this to be anything but divine orchestration, so now I’m following her blog.

Thank you, Mr Oriole, for visiting and encouraging me. I am so grateful for your help with staying in my lane and finding another light on a similar journey.

My life has become magical, metaphorical, and mystical, and as the oriole reminded me, much of it comes from reconnecting with and continuing to heal my inner child. I’ve carried forward all of the things that brought me joy as a child. After many life and soul-journey lessons, some that made it easy for me to lose my way from my path, I’ve been working on learning, healing, and creating my future as I’ve always dreamed it.

We face so many illusions that may make us think we’re unable to attain our goals and dreams, but when we find the maps and guides that make sense for our journey and consistently use them, we travel more easily and encounter fewer illusions. Nothing is too far fetched for the universe when we are aligned and grateful and sincerely believe in every way that we will receive whatever we envision and ask to receive. One of the speakers in The Secret simplifies it as ordering a cup of coffee at a restaurant. We expect to receive the cup of coffee. It’s that easy. And it may take time, but our energy of believing we will receive what we ask for as though we already have it is what attracts it.

I feel so much gratitude for those who shine their light so brightly from their path that their light illuminated my path too. I appreciate their leadership and courage in going first, their encouragement and support in helping me move forward on my path, so that my light shines for others to see their own unique path. The world needs us all to embrace our own uniqueness and align with our authentic selves; we need to show up as who we are meant to be in order to live our roles in creating peace through justice.

This is likely to be the last time I directly address anything that currently is going on in our world. If you read my blog regularly, then you know my calling is a storyteller, lightworker, healer, sacred rebel, priestess… Therefore, my purpose is to stay with the bigger picture so that it helps you to be who you are meant to be and come as you are to working for change.

Working for justice and creating peace is like building a house – some pour the foundation, some erect the frame, some install wiring, plumbing, drywall… Everyone has a job for their expertise or simply what they’re good at doing by nature. We need everyone to fill their role the way their strengths, talents, and skills bring out their best. We need everyone to bring their authentic self.

“Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality.”

– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

We are all affected by any injustice in this world.

Encourage others to do what feels right for themselves. We have no time for judging each other or trying to make each other fit into our own perceptions or expectations. “Life is very short and there’s no time for fussing and fighting, my friend.” – The Beatles

Reminder – we do not know what someone else is going through, which is all the more reason to not judge others.

Let no one be shamed for doing their best to be the change by being authentic and doing it to the best of their ability.

Your life is still happening and when you have good things to celebrate, share them! We still need good news and you still deserve a celebration.

Stay focused on what YOU are doing and how you are contributing to POSITIVE actions and interactions to attract positive changes and positive behaviors.

Come from a place of love – for humanity, for yourself. Let go of the negative, low vibrations of fear or even hate and anger.

With all of the noise, be open to hearing other perspectives – ego aside, removing yourself from the picture – and try to understand and learn.

If you need a reminder about being nice and how kindness breeds kindness, listening to others, finding your purpose, building your tribe, and other guidance on working to what you want in this world, please find 12 minutes 40 seconds to hear it from Kristen Bell when she delivered the commencement at address at USC School of Dramatic Arts in 2019.

“When you listen as fiercely as you want to be heard, when you respect the idea that you are sharing the earth with other humans, when you lead with your nice foot forward, you’ll win. Every time. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, but it comes back to you when you need it.”

– Kristen Bell

Luceat lux vestra.

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