Alahandra -
A Gathering of Spirit
This is a gathering place
for all those interested in spiritual growth and healing. If anyone
wishes to share insights, experiences, knowledge and/or has a
question, just e-mail
What Is Spirituality?
To me, Spirituality is a
way of being, of living, of feeling. It is a way of creating a
whole new life for yourself. A way of truly knowing yourself.
How Do I Practice
Spirituality?
Unlike belonging to a religious
group, spirituality has no set rules or practices instituted by
others before us. It is a journey within oneself to remember our
spiritual nature and then expressing this spiritual feeling in
a sacred way. Treat yourself in a sacred way and then bring the
sacredness to your daily life. All is sacred -- the people you
pass in the street, the ground below your feet, even the work
you perform.
How do
I Grow Emotionally and Spiritually?
Following this path is
not without struggle. It will mean looking at how you perceive
yourself and others. Letting the hurt feelings come up that have
created these perceptions, examining them, seeing where they originally
came from and then releasing the feelings. In most cases, these
perceptions were conceived in childhood -- some all the way back
to your birth into this world. Allow your child within to grieve
and to release these feelings. When the perceptions were created,
they were necessary, in most cases, to survive. Even what you
perceived as your role in the family was created by the child
within.
When I started on my journey
to break free of the perceptions I created, I was happy to find
a psychologist who had many spiritual gifts. One who understands
and has her own spiritual relationship with God. Her name is Brenda
Morgan. She guided me in my quest to learn about myself and to
help me change my life. I am very happy to call her my friend
even to this day. Be sure you get the support you need to help
you through this time. It can be a friend or companion who can
allow you to feel and express yourself. If you have the support
of a psychologist, counselor, etc., be sure he or she has gone
through their own letting go. Many people go into the "helping"
fields without dealing with their own issues.
Be gentle with yourself.
Remember how you felt as a child when you had hurt feelings and
the adults around you just dismissed your feelings as if they
did not matter. Listen to the child within and let that voice
finally be heard. There are no trivial perceptions. To a child
everything seems like it is life or death.
I remember not too many
years ago sobbing like a 4 year old over a lost cat. I had given
one of my cats to a friend and the cat was lost, suspected of
being stolen. This event triggered feelings from my childhood
of my cat, Lucky, becoming lost in New York City. At the time
it happened, I do not remember crying. I remember feeling upset
inside that my brother could not get my cat back but my outside
child felt numb. I perceived I was supposed to just accept it.
Can you imagine holding those tears inside for over 40 years!
Inside me was still that 4 year old child upset over my lost pet.
I finally allowed myself to grieve.
Don't despair. The letting
go does get easier. One of the fears that often comes up -- "what
will fill the spaces left after I let something go." You as a
spiritual being have been tucked away all these years. Fill the
space by allowing your true self to grow and stretch your wings.
Let the bird come out of the cage. When you want to fill the spaces,
visualize going within and locating the child inside. Explain
to your inner child that now there is more room to grow and that
it is safe. You as the adult will protect them. Allow your child
to decide. When the feeling is positive, visualize your child
growing and expanding and getting stronger. (This exercise can
help repair the hurt child and help build trust in you as the
adult. For each experience that caused pain, your true child became
smaller and smaller decreasing in trust. As you look at and release
the painful experiences, you are removing at least part of the
obstacles to your child growing. And remember no incident is unimportant.
It is how the incident made you feel inside.) Take your time.
Give yourself a break. You don't have to do this overnight.
Another struggle you
will encounter is pressure from outside. Usually there are many
around us who do not want to look at their own hidden feelings.
It is easier to let them lie deep within themselves. Your journey
will be a threat to them. They will pressure you to stop whatever
you are doing. Seek out those that will support you.
You will probably also
go through a time trying to change the people you love. I remember
having discussions with my mother. I was trying to get her to
change, to be the mother I needed. The discussions only caused
my mother tears and a perception that I thought she was a bad
mother. This passed for me when I realized that I could not change
anyone except myself. I was then able to speak with her and accept
her as my mother the way she was. Spiritually we were connected.
After she died, I remember during my sleep state holding and comforting
her as she sobbed. I don't know where we were but I believe I
was with her.
Accepting And Loving
Yourself
When you were born into this world, your
connection to God was still fresh in your mind. You knew yourself.
When you began to interact with those around you, you were confused
about the messages you were receiving from their body language and
what you saw in their eyes. You were feeling and seeing their issues,
their fears, their lack of love for themselves but you thought something
was wrong with you. This is where the perceptions began and you
started to put yourself aside. "I need these grown people to take
care of me, I must be better, I must be prettier, I must be skinnier,
I must be cheery all the time..."
It is now time to see your true reflection
in God's eyes and you are beautiful. As brand new as when you
were in spirit before you were born. God loves you unconditionally.
God sees the "who you are". It is now time for you to see it too.
It is now time to love and accept yourself as God does.
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