Tough Lessons

Just a quick note to say that I’m not dead, just sleeping!  Actually, not sleeping but resting and struggling through an entire series of challenges that timed themselves perfectly with the final days of the Mercury Retrograde period.  Funny how that works, eh?  The most recent was recovering from a sinus infection brought on by the incredibly dry weather here in the Midwest.  I’m happy to say I was able to knock it down through good ol’ fashioned remedies and stubbornness.  And yes, if it had gotten any worse then it did, I would have hightailed it to a doctor.  I’m not stupid, just stubborn!

The biggest challenge though was brought on by a serious mistake on my part.  The details are for me to hold.  It was one of those lessons where you’re much better off for it regardless of how much foundational shaking occurs.  This, on top of the aforementioned challenges, has been the main reason for not posting.  The subject of the lesson, in short, was life and the exchange of life.  What I learned, after a series of unfortunate events brought about by my own stupidity, was that if I was going to connect myself to the energy of Mother Earth, work with that energy and with her numerous spirits I was put on notice that I would be held to a higher standard.  I was not allowed to “take a break” from it and it should always, ALWAYS, be treated with utmost respect.  Not unless I wanted to imperil that connection after several decades of building it!

I understand a lot of that is vague.  I apologize.  My hope is that over time I’ll be able to process this lesson and be able to use it a teaching tool.  One of the other unfortunate side effects of this series of events is that my relationship with my dowsing rods has been undermined.  When I asked them for the location of a personal item of mine I’d lost during this time, they responded with trickery and deception.  There were multi-fold things occuring, of course, and I’m aware of them which helps.   A.) I was using them for a personal item that I was emotionally attached to.  B.) There was a hard core lesson occurring and it’s my belief that I wasn’t allowed any “easy outs” that dowsing would provide.  Regardless, I’m faced with nagging doubt whenever using them and will need to build my confidence with them over time.  I have no doubt that confidence will return.

The upside to this is that I’ve been working with the tarot and my other oracles much more.  It was incredibly helpful to me as I worked through the problem and gave me the insight to carry into the spirit and do the work necessary.  I realize I’ve drifted off of tarot cards and oracles and so I’ll be posting more readings and information as early as the next day or so!

Pilgrimage

My family recently took a trip up to the northern woods of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.  For me, this trip has all the energy of a pilgrimage.  This is because it was there where I had my first encounter with truly “wild” nature at the age of twelve.  I would go every summer with my grandparents who were avid rockhounds, bird watchers and all around nature lovers.  We’d comb the beaches for stones and agates, climb the copper mine slag heaps with metal detectors looking for copper pieces and sometimes simply sit and watch amazing sunsets while eating local ice cream.

Up there is where bears roam and the spirit of the land is incredibly strong, where the presence and power of Lake Superior puts you squarely in your place while awing you with beauty and majesty.  There are historical mysteries, Lake Superior, virgin pine forests and it has always been one of my “special” places where I travel to reconnect with not only myself but with Mother Earth.  Even before my wife and I confirmed the trip I was feeling the pull to go again.  It was an added bonus to share it for the first time with her as well as our three kids.  The trip was grueling since we decided to do it straight through but the end result was well worth it.

It had been over ten years since my last trip and this time I was not only bringing my dowsing tools but ten solid years of spiritual experience.  I was curious to see what I could find or encounter.  I was also interested in seeing what might encounter me!  However, once up there and with three kids in tow, it was a bit of a mistake to think I was going to get a large chunk of time to do any full scale, lengthy dowsing.  However, I did get in some but it ended up to be about far more then just doing some dowsing.  It was about reconnection and about a two way relationship with a beautiful, magical part of the world.  Overall there was not ONE story that stood out amongst the many so I thought I would just list the coolest of the magical experiences of the trip.

• On our second day out and the first on a beach looking for agates/beach stones, I saw something odd poking out of the sand near the top of the beach.  I’d seen that sort of thing before when I was younger and crawling the mine heaps.  Touching it I new instantly it was native copper and I pulled out the piece in full amazement.  It was about three inches long and a perfect specimen.  I knew instantly it was a gift to me from not only the spirits of my grandparents but also the land itself welcoming me back.  Later, while talking with a woman from the historical society I mentioned what I used to do with my grandparents, she nodded.  “Yes but no one is finding any copper any more.  The piles are all hunted out.  No one finds copper anymore.”   When I told her what I had found on the beach she was stunned, “You found some on the beach?  You’re joking me?”  Convincing her of what I had found, she confirmed it was an incredibly rare and fortunate find.  This was something I already knew before talking to her.

• One evening, a storm was blowing in from the west.  High winds had buffeted the area and thunder was rolling across the lake to the North.  The area felt like it was coming alive since it had been experiencing a long and unusual drought.  I stood outside the cabin and reveled in the energy.  The next night, a storm rolled through but not nearly as severe.  I awoke in the middle of the night and I knew not why.  What I did remember was that our folding chairs had been left outside and with the winds starting to blow I needed to bring them in.  I stepped outside and the energy was incredibly different.  What I encountered stepping outside was a spiritual and, honestly, frightening presence.  It was the full force of the Wyld.   The minute the door shut behind me I felt as if a presence was telling me, “Go back inside.  Right.  Now.”  The overall feel was that something very very big, powerful and dark was glaring at me, baring its teeth at me.  I nearly panicked but somehow stayed calm!  I folded up the chairs, offered a quick apology and headed back inside.  It was incredibly humbling.   Though I mentioned my experience to no one else, my wife commented on how the evening had felt at breakfast and none of my children slept well.  I still do not fully know what was going on.  I’ve only felt that way in three places on the planet so far; Scotland, The Olympic Peninsula of Washington and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

• We had the good fortune to visit the Estivant Pines which is a grove of virgin pine trees, many aging over 500 years in age.  Since childhood this had always been a magical place for me and, I thoroughly believe, my first encounter with a “magical wood.”  With my wife, children in tow and L-Rods in my pocket I led them on the full hike through the area.  I wasn’t able to do much dowsing but what I did do was startling.  As you might expect, the auras of these ancient trees are simply amazing and their energy lines moving away from them are huge.  As we walked along the path I asked for the rods to point to nearby power centers.  I was stunned to see my rods swinging left and right as we moved along the path.  Not only power centers but Fey centers as well.  I lost track but I know the rods pointed me to a minimum of twenty different spots and that was only in the last mile and a half of the hike!  Most seemed to be centered around two things, rock outcroppings or ancient trees.   I would have loved to have explored them further but I had tired children with me.  Perhaps another time?

• Interestingly enough, the battery in my Canon camera died quickly and suddenly while photographing a landscape shot featuring a lush and remote stream.  One minute it was fine, the next it had no charge.  Now, what I will say is that the battery was older.  I won’t discount it.  However, in my work on ghost hunts I’ve seen firsthand how a fully charged battery can suddenly have the life sucked out of it for no reason.  The battery refused to hold a charge afterwards and I was left to using the small camera on my phone to photograph the rest of the trip.  The paranormal or the normal?  Who’s to say?  The area WAS full of nature spirits though.

• This one may be a reach for some of you…  Early one morning I was working with my new system of using the L-Rods with an alphabet system.  (Much like a pendulum and a letterboard.  More on this in the future!)  Though I was hoping to get some information from a trusted spirit guide I’ve been working with but what happened was another entity coming through who claimed he was a spirit of one of the original native americans of the area.  Unfortunately, I had gotten up later than I had wanted, the session took a bit of time and I was interrupted by the pressing day and my family.  Interestingly enough, when I asked if I would be able to communicate with him once at home I was told, “No.”  When I decided to push a bit further because of that answer I was told, “No,” and then “Another time.” The session ended as quickly as it begun.   The name I received appeared to be a simple jumble of letters until, of course, I saw some Ojibway and other native names in a historical text later.

Speaking of history, I happened to stumble onto a limited edition book in a gift shop that focused on the prehistoric copper miners of the area that left large scale pit mines across the area sometime around 3,000 BC.   I was delighted because it gave me a first solid scientific look at something I had heard about since coming to the region.  There are several mysteries about these prehistoric mines and the copper they gathered and I’m not going to go into much detail on all of it since I’m not sure I believe much of the claims.  The bottom line?  Prehistoric miners came and in feats of engineering, endurance and strength mined native copper from the area for several thousand years.  The estimated total of copper is between 100 million to 1 billion pounds of copper over more than a 1,000 years.  No one is really sure where the copper ended up.  I’ve yet to dowse for more information because, honestly, I don’t think I’m supposed to.

The biggest gift received from the trip?  Clarity and connection.  There is something that happens to me when I connect with that particular land.  I go there in the dreamtime very often so when I am actually there the first few days are always a bit disconcerting.  It is a magical refueling spot for me.  All the extraneous things I’ve allowed to gather in my life fall away and I can concentrate on the golden thread of not only who I am but what I care about.  It’s invigorating and transformative.  I returned changed for the better and ready to begin a new phase in my work.

A Small Break

Sorry all.  This post was supposed to go out last week and it would appear I goofed up on the WordPress publishing tools!

I was gone for the past several days on an extended vacation into the northern woods of Upper Michigan with the family.  I had some great experiences there and will need to get them written out for all of you!  In the meantime, I’m still unpacking and dealing with some of the transformational changes that occurred to me on this trip.  The north woods are incredibly powerful as well as cleansing.

Give me a few days and we’ll be up and running in no time!

Invitation to the Four Sisters

Last Friday I had another amazing experience at the park featuring the KL Line.  Let me tell you a bit of background before we get into the story.  I’ve been coming to this park for almost two years.  Sometimes to just read, walk around, study nature, do some birdwatching or, on occasion, do tarot readings and do some dowsing.  Off to the side is a particular shelter house I go to when I just want to sit at a table, have lunch and either work or let the world go by.

Lately, over the past two or three weeks, I was beginning to notice the minute I started doing any kind of activities involving energy work I seemed to attract park workers and visitors.  Several times I would enjoy a few minutes of peace and quiet, decide to get my cards and then, wah-lah, the park crew shows up with a mower, a weed-eater or a trashbag to pick up the trash in the shelterhouse.  Park visitors would walk by, children from the small playground a decent space away would somehow “wander over.”  Was I starting to glow a bit TOO brightly?  What was going on?  One day I even did an experiment where I purposefully “summoned” park maintenance by opening my tarot deck.  After that I decided I needed to find “someplace” to do my work in the park that was not so much in the public eye.

This particular visit I was hunkering down in the shade of the shelter house and getting away from the oppressive heat wave as best I could.  I was working on a project.

As stated earlier, my first forays into this realm involved spirit contact and channeling.  When I first started dowsing, it was with a pendulum and a letterboard.  Using my knowledge up to that point, I was very curious with what I would get.  I was not disappointed but as I worked with the pendulum, I was dissatisfied with the slowness of the process and the letterboard.  First the pendulum had to recover from swinging towards one letter and then gain momentum to swing to the next.  After beginning work with L-Rods this Spring I realized they were much faster and so, for the past several months, I’ve been thinking of how to use the dowsing rods in the same way but also make it portable.

I hit on an idea and it was those supplies I had spread out in front of me at my picnic table.  I was delighted to see the heat had driven everyone indoors, even the park workers.  I had just begun the initial test run when the wind picked up.  I arranged my papers, weighted a few down and started again.  The wind blew again.  I stopped and the wind died down.  I tried again and the wind blew as if on cue. I stopped.  The wind disappeared.  I took a deep breath, began again and this time it blew so hard that the L-rods were useless.  I sensed something was playing with me so I stopped what I was trying to do.  Sure enough, the wind stopped.

“Are you trying to get my attention?” I asked whatever it was and my dowsing rods crossed into the “Yes” position.  Are you a wind spirit?  No.  Are you a spirit?  Yes.  Are you a local spirit?  Yes.

Through a series of yes/no questions I dowsed that “Whatever It Was” was wanting to show me something and that I should follow where it pointed.  I packed up my things and with a single L-Rod in my hand instructed, “Lead on, MacDuff.”

The rods pointed southward and toward a line of pine trees.  I began strolling that way and watching the L-rod for any deviation.  It was straight on.  I walked about another 50 yards and I saw it was now pointing to a maple tree left standing in the long row of pines.  The maple was tucked up near the park fence and its canopy connected to other trees that were on private property.  And it was no ordinary maple tree! Though not large it was a four trunked tree.  I’d seen many two and an occasional three trunked one but to see a healthy four trunked maple tree was something I had not seen before.  The area was shaded, level and looked wonderfully peaceful.  I used the single L-rod for yes/no questions.  Moving to the left meant “no” and to the right meant, “yes.”

“Are you trying to show me something here?”  Yes.  “Are you wanting me to see this place?” YES!   Finally getting to the area and seeing that it was a small depression in the ground I realized that between that,  the screen of small pines and the thicker trees on the private property, I was nearly invisible here!  It was shaded, cooler and large enough for me to walk around.  It also gave me a wonderful view of the Eastern sky.  “Did you lead me here so I could do work here?”  Yes.

I was then hit with the sense of happiness and peacefulness.  I felt like I had been given, yet again, a special gift.   I gave thanks and began dowsing for more information.  The area was filled with a strong female energy which was coming, mainly, from the four trunked maple tree.   I asked if any of the trunks were male at all and was given a “no.”

“So, you’re four sisters?” and my rod literally spun around in my hand!

I also noticed there were small grey feathers around the place.  Throughout the visit I found six, five from one species and one from another.  I collected them and gave thanks for their owners sacrifice.

“Are you the spirit that blew the wind.” No.  “It was someone/something else?” Yes.  “Are you connected to it?” Yes.  “Was it a human spirit?” No.  I asked several more questions and got negative answers.  I was actually starting to get stumped and then, like most riddles, it popped into my head.

“Was it the Genius Loci, the spirit of the Place?”  Yes.  “The spirit of the park?” YES!  It felt like confetti was thrown and, literally, a summer breeze rolled over me.  It’s really hard to describe the level of connection that occurs when these things begin to fall into place.  Of course, I had that moment of “Oh, so this is what going mad is like!” but because of that level of connection I really didn’t care.  As I like to joke, “Going mad feels pretty damn good!”

I spent the rest of my time there simply finding a powerful spot to sit and taking in the energy.  I had been given a spot to work.  I was elated and honored.   I left a small pile of tobacco there.

Now, if the heat would just let up I could actually enjoy it.

Into the Sun

I took a walk yesterday.

It was a calling that came from deep inside and it was the first urging I’ve felt since my companion’s passing.  The signal was completely clear.  I was to go to the nearby park at lunchtime and walk around the wooded path near the K1 Node.  I didn’t even know where I was to start or where I was going.  All I knew was to go to the start of the path.

Even a temperature of 98, a heat index of 110 and a blazing sun did little to sway me.  There was little choice.  I was going.

I stepped out of my car and, following the instruction from my rods, I got started.  The heat was oppressive in my business clothes but I strolled slowly onward.  I didn’t ask too many questions.  I just listened and went where the rods pointed.  I knew, in my core, I was just here to receive information.  They pointed to the beginning of the path which I already knew would be my starting point.  Once there, however, they took me in a direction I had not expected.

The first stop was an open meadow with no shade.  I grumbled at first because I was already streaming sweat.  However, I paused and stood where the rods told me.  I relaxed, trying to let the heat flow through me.  Then, as I relaxed and centered, the meadow opened up to me.  Butterflies.  Butterflies, unaffected by the heat, were everywhere. I think I saw six to eight different species including my favorite, a monarch which fluttered out of the woods at me and flew within inches of my face.  Suddenly, the heat disappeared and I was mesmerized.  I stood in the baking sun, feeling the sun soak deep into my skin, my muscles, with butterflies dancing all around me.  It was wonderful.

Then, I felt something fall off of me.  It wasn’t physical.  It was a chunk of something, something stuck to me since my weeks of grief and stress.  I lifted the rods again and asked if I should stay here longer.  They now pointed down the trail.  Time to keep going.

The rods took me around and back again into the woods.  I relaxed and strolled.  A breeze suddenly played in the treetops and then pushed down the path, coming up behind me and over me.  Even a warm breeze was a relief and I let out a heavy sigh to accompany it on it’s journey eastward.  Something else fell off of me.  I noted it, said my thanks and moved on.  As I walked the loud drone of the cicadas were almost hypnotizing.

The rate of feeling something release off of me increased.  What has been sudden breaks and chunks now became a flow of smaller particles all floating off me, drifting away in the sunlight and sinking into the earth.  In my mind I pictured Pigpen from the Peanuts and his constant trail of stuff trailing behind him.  All the strife and grief was falling away and I asked for it to sink into Mother Earth instead of leaving it laying around.

All in all, I was instructed to walk a figure eight path which took me again through the small central meadow again before heading to the western side of the walk.  Again, in the small meadow, butterflies danced around me.  I was instructed to stop again.  I did and this time the sun surrounded me, pressed into me.  It was like a sauna but it felt comforting, supportive.  Sweat streamed down my face, into my eyes, down my neck.  I closed my eyes.  It felt like I was shedding my skin and I stretched in the heat.   It felt so good I started crying and the last of all the bad pieces were obliterated, sharding off of me in all directions and, suddenly, the world opened up to me.  It seemed information was downloading into me at a rapid rate so fast I wasn’t even able to really comprehend everything coming in.

Suddenly, it was all okay.  All of it.  I started moving again.

Letting my hands drift over the top of the high grass I moved onward in a blissful state.  Near the end of the walk, a dragonfly with delicate wings of lightning landed directly next to me on a grass stalk.  I paused and looked at him.  He was beautiful.  From the Medicine Cards –

“Dragonfly medicine is of the dreamtime and the illusionary facade we accept as physical reality. The iridescence of Dragonfly’s wings reminds us of colors not found in our everyday experience. Dragonfly’s shifting of color, energy, form, and movement explodes into the mind of the observer, bringing vague memories of a time or place where magic reigned.. Have you tended to the changes you have wanted to make in your life?”

I stared at him a long time and admired his wings which he had no trouble showing off to me.  I heard the message and gave my thanks.  The minute I did so he flew off and a breeze once again blew down the path.

Two steps later, a garter snake danced across the grass in front of me.  Transmutation.  An act of converting base metals into silver and gold.  More confirmation on the shedding of an old skin.  The snake paused briefly to look at me.  I said, “Hello,” and he too bolted for higher grass.   Once again, message received loud and clear!

Again from the Medicine Cards –

“Their initiation involves experiencing and living through multiple snake bites, which allows them to transmute all poisons, be they mental, physical, spiritual, or emotional…there is a need within you to transmute some thought, action, or desire so that wholeness may be achieved. This is heavy magic, but remember, magic is no more than a change in consciousness. Become the magician or the enchantress: transmute the energy and accept the power of the fire.”

I knew at that point, I was finished with my walk.  The end was also heralded by two crows (I’ve mentioned the crows, right?)  that suddenly launched themselves from a tree further down and flew towards my car.  What else was there for me to do at that point but to give thanks for everything I had been given and follow them?

At the end of the walk I checked with the rods to double check I was, indeed, finished?  Yes was the reply.  I smiled though because it didn’t feel like I was done at all.  It felt like I was just getting started!

As I walked, I reviewed everything.

• Butterflies – transformation, beauty, grace.
• Cicadas – help in transformation, rebirth-renewel-regeneration.
• Dragonflies – Dreamtime, Illusion, Guide to transformation
• Snake- Shamanic/magical power and transmutation.  Also of note is that Snake has been my totem for dowsing work since I first began working with it.
  
• A Figure 8 – Infinity, resurrection.
• The Sun – Solar energy. Powerful cleansing.  Forward movement.  Fire.

All of it occurring in under an hour.  If I couldn’t muddle my way through those symbols then I wasn’t really cut out for all of this, now was I?  And, the final point which struck me as I left the woods and felt the sun’s heat encase me again?  It had been exactly two weeks to the day since my dear companion’s passing.

Message received loud and clear, old friend.

Losing a Friend, Gaining a Guide

Pardon the absence lately.  I had a bit of a foundational shock and am doing my best to come back around.

Here’s what happened…

Two weeks ago, on Tuesday July 20, I was overwhelmed in the afternoon with a cloying feeling that something was about to go horribly wrong.  The feeling would not leave me alone and no matter what I did I could not get solid details or rid myself of it.   It was if the signal was overwhelming all other intuition, like an overpowered radio signal.  If you’ve ever left the house and had that feeling that “something” was not right or that you’d left something behind, you  know what I mean.  It was exactly the same feeling except taken up several notches in strength.  I had trouble sleeping.  I became paranoid.  I started looking at larger, global things and got focused way too much on the Gulf oil spill and the approaching tropical storm that occurred at the end of the week.

It reached its peak around Wednesday the 21st and then eased in annoyance factor.  By Friday, the feeling lifted a bit but never, really, disappeared.  I should have blogged it here.  (I know that now and have learned my lesson.)  Instead, I opted to not look like an overly paranoid nutter and I internalized it, trying to make sense of it.  My tarot card for that period of the week was the 10 of Swords so I tried, very hard, not to make too much of a deal about things and to stay out of the victim mentality.

However, several of my friends also were having similar experiences, a discussion popped up on a form board I watch and, all in all, I was convinced something large and global was about to take place.  However, every time I tried to track it down it continued to elude me and at other times it felt incredibly personal.  Regardless, I had good reason for thinking it was global because the last time a sensation had bothered me to this degree it had ended with the events of 9/11.    As far as I know, something did occur somewhere but, regardless, the weekend went by without any horrible disasters.  (Though, I noted that a massive series of earthquakes occurred in the Phillipines.  All of which were deeper than 500 kilometers down…)  Small update – I still believe something is going on.  Maybe it’s the cardinal cross alignment or the solar storm or who knows.  I do have a deep sense that “something” is changing and transforming in the world around us.

The weekend played itself out and the sensation was still around but very faint.  I chalked it up to something I might never know.

“A dog has the soul of a philosopher.”  Plato

Exactly one week after the feeling came to me my life was turned upside down.  My wife called me upstairs to come check on my 11 year old canine best friend and soulmate.  When I arrived at his side I knew immediately something was very wrong.  He was laying wrong, breathing hard and completely unresponsive except for the way his eyes moved to look at me.

It was heart wrenching.

A long night followed.  At midnight we were driving to the emergency vet where the worst was confirmed.  Something, most likely a small growth which had gone undetected in his previous vet visit a few months prior, had burst and he was internally bleeding.  At his age, the vet was concerned he would not survive stabilization let alone the surgery.  There was little else we could do and it was with a deep shaking sadness that I and my wife sat with him while the vet eased him to the other side.

It was then that something very odd happened.  There was a “pulse” and a feeling of relief washed over me followed by another of sheer exuberance.  The feeling continued and I opened my eyes to see my wife obviously responding to the same thing.  We shared a look and then she smiled.  At that moment the vet looked up at both of us as well and started to cry also.

The evening proceeded and through it I felt that my canine buddy was actually running about the place.  It was almost impossible to ignore and when it came time to leave the room, I patted my leg for him to follow as I had for almost ten years.  The vet caught my movement and then related a story to me about her own encounter with a spirit dog which jumped in her car.   We joked that she would completely understand if I lifted the back gate of my car and motioned for an invisible dog to jump in.  She understood.

Since that evening the physical grief has rolled over me several times bringing me, on more than one occasion, to my knees.   I’ve dealt with death several times in the past two years but nothing I’ve experience prepped me for losing my soulmate brother.  The space in the house is no longer filled with a lounging lazy labrador-mix and there is no longer the padding of feet when I rustle the bag of snacks.  There’s no more gentle old dog smiles when its time to go for a walk.  There’s no sitting on the front step and watching the world go by with him.  It’s these things that bring me to tears.

However, it’s tempered with the simple fact I know that he’s still around.  I can’t explain it nor do I really want to.   I know not because of my own experiences but that of others as well.  I’m able to sense when he is around and several times my wife points directly to where he is without me saying anything.  Even my daughter had an experience where she felt something warm and fury press against her bare feet, something she had never experienced him doing.  What she didn’t and couldn’t know was that when he was younger he would do such a thing all the time.

As the physical grief fades it’s almost like the spiritual connection grows.  Even now, as I write this, I know he’s lying next to my chair simply being who and what he has always been to me; a companion and a helper.  He had, lately, been unable to join me on my outings because of his arthritis.  On a recent walk at the end of last week, I could feel him tagging along with me.  I sat down under a tree with my dowsing rods, calmed myself, grounded myself and asked if he was with me.  I got an affirmative.  I asked where he was and the rods swung to point directly to my side.

He walked with me through the past eleven transformational years of my life.  He and I were a team and I’m deeply honored with the gift of not only being able to walk with him for those eleven years but also because he’s chosen, it would appear, to continue to be with me for a little while longer.

“Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies.” Aristotle

I’ll be getting back to my regular posting soon.  I think you can understand my need for the pause and regroup.

A Lesson in Intuition and Synchronicity

Friday night, my wife and I grabbed a small bite to eat at a local favorite restaurant.  Sitting outside I discussed with her some of the theories I’d been introduced to by Raymon Grace. A friend had mentioned there was a discussion on dowsing and water energy somewhere in town this week and wondered if I had known more about it?  I had not but after some internet searching I found that he was, in fact, stopping through town on an unscheduled talk.  Not really knowing who he was or what he had done, I left work and went to the talk.  It had been some fascinating and thought provoking stuff.

Those theories is what I was catching up on with my wife while we sat outside and enjoyed a light summer meal on a beautiful evening.  Afterward, with no kids in our custody, I wasn’t feeling like heading home and I told her as much.  She agreed she felt the same but added that she didn’t want to go somewhere with lots of people.  No bookstores or downtown strolling or anything like that.

“I dunno,” I said, “I’m just feeling we need to be outof town, maybe out by the water?  I’m not sure why…”

We both agreed on that and, so, I headed us towards the nearby Lake Monroe.  I followed my intuition and drove us to a lesser known lake  ramp.  We got out of the car and decided to walk the small bit of shoreline there.  We noticed a black SUV parked to one side of the ramp and a couple inside talking about something.  To each their own and so we moved along the water.  After only a few feet of shoreline, my wife  said, “Look, a snake!”

There, moving right at the edge of the shore, was a three foot long striped snake.  I moved to get a closer look and then quickly moved back to give it some space.  Being a native of the area and no slouch when it comes to bush knowledge, I was pretty sure it was a copperhead.  I told her as much and I pointed out the hourglass bands before it bolted into the deeper water.  She asked me if I was sure since neither one of us had gotten a good look at it’s head.  “Pretty sure,” I muttered and kept looking for it to surface.  Then, a few moments later, it resurfaced, looked at us and started coming back towards us.

That’s when I knew it was definitely a copperhead.

When I was younger and running around the southern Indiana hillside I had a handful of encounters with copperheads.  One, in particular, was on a fishing trip when a copperhead decided it took a liking to the three bluegill fish I had on my stringer.  As I watched, it approached and firmly bit one of the fish.  It then backed off before striking one more time.  Thinking enough was enough, I smacked a stick in the water, drove it off and proceeded to take the poisoned fish off my stringer!  Except, the snake didn’t like that idea and kept coming back.  That’s when it hit me.  The snake knew it had a poison bite, was hungry and it knew that fish wasn’t going anywhere.  Sure enough, if I simply left it alone, it returned back to the fish and began to eat it.

As we backed up from the shoreline, the copperhead hesitated a bit as well.  The couple in the SUV rolled down the window after seeing us retreat.  “What is it?  Is it a snake?”  I told them it was a copperhead and that got their attention.  As the copperhead moved down the shoreline but refused to get out of the water, they got out and came over as well.

“I think it has food around here, probably near the water,” I commented, “Or, alternatively, babies.”  That was fun because I got to watch everyone take about five steps further backwards.  The snake had completely left at this point, turning to deeper water and then reappearing about 40 feet away near a rock overhang.  From there, I watched it watching us.   I also judged the couple.  They were the type that liked nature, most likely loved nature, but obviously not overly experienced with it when it was poisonous and swimming a few feet away.

Keeping one eye on it, one eye on them and one eye on the shore, I found the food in short time.  It was, what I guess to be, some kind of buttom sucker fish about 4 or 5 inches long though, to be honest, it resembled more of a leech.  I’ve seen a lot of fish and have no idea, for sure, what it was.  It had two puncture holes near the tail, was right at the waterline and it was near death.  I lost track of the snake (I only have two eyes after all) but did not see it nearby.  I wasn’t too worried.  There had been lots of noise and I was sure it was just going to wait us out.

About that time the couples’ children appeared from around a point paddling a 2-person kayak.  This explained why the couple were parked there and I watched as they beelined the kayak directly to where the fish dinner was waiting.

“Don’t put the boat in there, ” yelled the Dad.

“Why not?  It’s where we pushed off?” came the adolescent return cry.

“There’s a snake!  A copperhead.  Go in over at the ramp.”

Lots of noise followed, paddling, yelling, questions and thumping the boat against the concrete ramp.  The snake, I was sure, was more than happy to just snuggle up under a bush somewhere.   The family told the kids, the kids thought it was cool and then wanted to see everything.  The kayak was put on the SUV and they all drove off.   I watched from the rocky overhang and kept looking around for the snake.

About three to five minutes after peace and quiet returned, it’s head broke the water about ten feet from where I stood on the rock.  He was swimming his way back to his kill.  I pointed it out to my wife and we watched as the snake poked around trying to remember where he left his dinner.  I wanted to help him find it but my wife was starting to get a little stern about my antics.  I gave up trying to convince her it was alright and we headed back to our own car.

“You know, the only thing those kids had on were flip flops,” she mused at me as we walked.

I nodded.  “I noticed that.”

“If we wouldn’t have come here, if you hadn’t followed your gut, those kids would have put in right on top of the copperhead.”

I did the time delay in my head.  “Right on top of it while it was eating…”

We both shared a look.  We both ran the scenario.  “Pretty cool,” I said.

“Pretty cool, indeed,” She replied and once again proved perhaps she should be writing this blog instead of me.

We drove home.  On the way home the Universe rewarded us with a killer sunset that was so amazing I pulled the car over so as to better watch it burn.

Pretty cool, indeed.

Marking the KL Ley Line

Earlier this week I braved the heat and the mosquitoes to head back out to the KL Line and the KL Node.  I was on a mission, eating my lunch in the car, parking in the shade, leaping out of the car and dashing into the woods with a quick application of bug spray, my GPS and my rods.  My goal?  To get a series of solid GPS readings so as to get a solid fix on the KL line and how it went through the park.

I was thwarted at the node spot as the mosquitoes battered through my flimsy defense of bug spray.  In the few minutes I was there after battering through underbrush, I picked up about four bites.  Fun times.  I was there long enough to note my crystal was still there, the crow feather I had left was battered up badly and to get a solid fix on the angle of the line.  Luckily, I was a quick hand with the GPS and I literally ran to get out of the woods since the bloodsuckers had found their way past my eyeglasses!  I really have not seen a swarm like that in some time but was assured by the rods they were just mosquitoes doing what mosquitoes do best.  Ah, Nature!

Over the course of the next thirty minutes, I walked through the park and guerilla dowsed the line and points along it.  The bonus?  Unlike myself, the mosquitoes knew better then to go out into the blazing hot sun!  Once on the line I would record the point with the GPS and move onward.  I would purposefully move off the line and then attempt to find it again with the rods.  When it was found, another quick click with the GPS marked it’s position.  The line took me through areas which were closed so I had to guestimate as I went.  I never assumed the line was a straight line through the park but, in the end, that’s exactly where it was.  Moving in a zig-zag through the park,  I got my first big surprise.

In the early days of the park, a city park official had build a small place for a bonfire near the center of a large physical bowl in the earth.  The fire pit was encircled by small stones.  Realizing that may not be the best of plans, the fire pit was covered over and larger limestone blocks were laid in to mark, yes, a circle of flat rectangular blocks.  In the past few years the circle had been left to overgrow.

Of course, the line went right up to the circle though not through it.  I checked this several times from different angles but the KL Line ran just to the western edge of the circle before heading on to the south and out of the park.  Unfortunately, the park was busy even with the heat and I did not feel comfortable dowsing the stones.  A project for another time!

The questions that came to me on this – Was this an odd coincidence?  Did the placers of the original fire pit somehow subconsciously sense it was a good place for their fire circle?  The same with the stones?  Or, did the large depression in the ground which created a kind of amphitheatre effect make for a good spot for a fire and a circle?  Was the line simply following a cave system evidenced by the depression being a minor sink hole?   More questions then I could answer in the time and conditions I had.

Back at home the second surprise surfaced.

I wanted to expand the line on Google Maps.  I began by using the line I was able to draw with the GPS points.  Google Maps or Earth does not let you make a line and then move the line as one unit.  You have to move one end point or another and doing this causes the line to move and the angle you’ve originally drawn to be lost.  Scaling out and getting the precise angle over a larger area of land is nearly impossible and immensely frustrating.   Using the experience of laying an extended straight edge from my artist days, here is what I did.

Using the original line created by the GPS points, I started another line of a different color so it matched the angle over one half of the existing line.  The other half that extended should, by all theory, be along the same angle.  Once done I had a slightly larger line and placed yet another line of another color over it’s last third and extended it outwards again.  Constant zooming in and out was required but, in the end, after several more line additions and a few cups of tea, I got a line that came as close as possible to matching the correct angle and which ran throughout the state.

That is, of course, on the theory the KL Line continues on a straight track.

To the North, I’ve not taken the line much past Indianapolis though, interestingly, it does come close to the center circle of the city, missing the mark by less than a mile.  Given the distance I mark that up as a “close call.”  IF the line continues in a straight track, it looks to go up towards Fort Wayne and then into Michigan.  I’ll build it further and see where it ends up.

The second and larger surprise, however, occurred as I stretched the line southward.  Down near the Ohio River, on the southern border of the state, exists a large ancient structure and village called Angel Mounds, a location known to be inhabited by the Middle Mississippian culture somewhere around 1100 AD.  (Whose to say what was there before they got there?)  When I  first saw the angle of the KL Line I saw it was close to lining up to Angel Mounds but after earlier experiments with it on Google Maps, I decided it went down “that way” but did not, in fact line up with anything.

You can probably see this coming.  As I lay my straight line down in smaller segments and continuing it across the state I discovered I had been completely wrong.  The KL Line went directly into the settlement area of Angel Mounds and, by Google Maps, missed the main mound by around 500 feet.  This has, as you might have imagined, played with my head a little bit.  The predominant thought I have now is “What did I stumble across here?”

Rationally, I’m willing to say that my subconscious was able to give me a line on the ground that it knew would “magically” line up with Angel Mounds which, of course, I already knew the location of.  However, if this is true, this shines a light on the utter power of the subconscious mind!  Even more so when we consider I found this initial KL Node on a lark!  Regardless, I choose to believe I’ve found an honest to goodness ley line and will proceed forward in trying to mark it’s exact location.  I’ll also start investigating what, if anything, can be done with it!

It would appear the adventure continues!

Keep It Open

Last week we got the news my wife’s grandfather passed away.  It was not a shock since he had been in hospice since late last year and had, very recently, stopped eating.  This would make the fifth passing in two years with the other four being my own grandparents.  During two of them I had the great honor of being at their bedside when they passed.  Those two events changed me on a fundamental level.

Although knowing a loved one is close to passing, knowing he is in hospice, knowing the end is on it’s way, the news always surprises you.  One minute you are getting ready for work, for a normal day, and thirty seconds later everything is different and all your priorities change.

When you hang up the phone the world is a much different place.

The card for the end of my week last week was the six of swords.  A man is leaving by boat, a new journey is underway and a transition is occurring.  Though depressing or sad, the card marks a time of change and/or travel.  At the time I wasn’t sure what it meant.  I had my thoughts but had decided to wait it out.  The minute I heard my wife’s voice answering the phone I knew and I rushed to be by her side.

Funerals are spiritual times and, dare I say it, magical spaces.  We want magic to be sparkly wands, candlelight, and happiness.  Unfortunately, or, well, fortunately, there is a balance in all things and magic is also Death.  The catch is remembering that even though it’s death it is just as amazing as birth.  It is a transition.  Unfortunately, we are taught from an early age that it’s unavoidable and oftentimes a bad thing.  It is THE END.  Because it is the greatest unknown our initial primal move is to move away from it, to fear it, to not even look at it.  However, in my experience, this is not necessarily the case.  For the soul departing, particularly one in pain or discomfort from old age, it is a happy time.  I am much more prone to follow the lines of the New Orleans wake than a dour, grim funeral.

Regardless, what we feel on this side, the grief, the emotions, the confusion also remember that those hectic, draining, grieving days of funeral, as well as the days following, are a transitional and communal space for both the living and the recently passed.  It becomes a sacred space.  If you stay open to them, if you can ground yourself and put the often overwhelming grief to the side, messages are sent and received.  The interplay of synchronicity, personal emotions and the spirit of the loved one play themselves out in a intricate and touching dance.  They are transitional, foundational and beautiful moments in time.

The best advice I can give anyone who has been thrust into these turbulent spaces is “Keep your eyes and your heart open.  Keep it all open.”  I’ve had things fall off of walls, doors locked that shouldn’t lock, people saying things they never would have said normally, amazing sunsets, and animals appearing out of nowhere and oftentimes out of season.  These magical spaces and rituals are a time where communication takes place but it’s rarely as we would expect it.

During his funeral, I took my own advice.  I wasn’t sure what I was looking for but I was keeping my eyes open, not only for myself but for what others in the family might miss.  I was being purposefully and full bore open to anything.  The wall behind the casket was all window and a beautiful blue sky shone through it.  I felt compelled to keep my eyes locked to that sky though I did not know why.  I watched the clouds move along and I watched, I listened.  I held my wife’s hand.  I kept the tissues going and kept an eye on the kids.  I cried but not for the man but for his family’s grief.  I didn’t cry for her grandfather because I knew he was in a much better place.

After the service and just before the casket was closed and military rites began, I saw it; a butterfly.  It fluttered outside the window, bounced a few times against it, and then flew rather purposefully directly above the casket.  It flew there for moments while completing a handful of circles, occasionally drifting down towards the casket.  I don’t know if anyone else saw it.  I nudged my wife and she nodded quickly.  Then, it flew up and away from the window.  In a flicker it was upwards and out of site at the precise moment the naval officers flanked either side of the casket.   Taps was played.  No other butterfly flew by during the entire event.

It wasn’t the first butterfly I had seen in connection with death nor, I was certain, would it be my last.  For me, it’s not the cloaked man or the raven or the owl which is the symbol of Death.  For me, after the death has occurred, the butterfly is that perfect symbol of transformation.  A butterfly goes through immense struggle as it completes that final transition from knobby caterpillar to beauty and grace.  As it hangs drying its wings it’s at its most vulnerable point.  Then, the wings spread and it’s flying.  A butterfly at a funeral is a simple and ecstatic message for me.

“Hey, everyone, look!  I made it!”

It is best to keep your eyes and heart open.  You may be surprised by what comes to you.

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Afterword – I sent this to my wife after I had written it.  Since it involved her and her family, I wanted her approval to post it.  After reading it she sent me a small reminder of something I showed her once and I wanted to share it here.  It’s a parable from the Taoist Chaung Tzu.

Once upon a time, I, Chuang Tzu, dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to all intents and purposes a butterfly. I was conscious only of my happiness as a butterfly, unaware that I was Chou. Soon I awaked, and there I was, veritably myself again. Now I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly, dreaming I am a man. Between a man and a butterfly there is necessarily a distinction. The transition is called the transformation of material things.

Retreating to the Line

I’m not sure why I thought it was a good idea to take my lunch break yesterday, wander over to the nearby park and check out the power node I found there last year.  Maybe it was the crow feather lying on the path in front of me as I took our puppy on its morning walk.  Or, perhaps, it was the house wren sitting on a branch six feet from my head and looking at me during that same walk?  See previous posts as to how these birds fit into things.  Maybe it was just that feeling in my gut saying I needed to go?  The question of “why?” comes up only when you consider the fact it’s brutally sunny and 92 degrees outside.  Add that to the fact I was wearing dress slacks and a work shirt and you truly have the thoughts of an insane individual.

However, I’m not one to ignore gut hunches.  So, off I went!  Speaking of gut hunches, I’m a little leery to talk about this power node’s particular location even though it’s located in a public park.  To be honest, I’m not sure why.  I think, initially, it comes from wanting the location to not be tampered with.  Perhaps in the future I’ll be willing to give it’s absolute location but, for now, I’m following that intuition.

To be clear, this is not the spot where Grandmother Tulip is located.  To delineate from the others, I’ll simply call it the K1 Node.  The ley line that runs through it I am now calling the KL Line.

After parking, I headed off to the path but discovered something that brought me up short.  Mosquitoes.  I paused briefly to double check some things with my dowsing rods and I was swarmed.  I started moving forward again and further down the path tried again.  No luck.  This time they were worse and doing their best to come at me from all angles.  I double checked with the rods.  Were the mosquitoes acting as a barrier to me?  No.  Were they just being mosquitoes?  Yes.  Would it be possible to return tomorrow or the next day?  Yes.  So, with no repellent handy, I beat a hasty retreat.  Checking quickly at my car I came up empty for any spray.  I was at a standstill.

I decided to drive elsewhere in the park and finish up my time in the shade of a shelter house.  I stopped at one which actually sits close to the KL Line as it came out of the woods and ran southward.  I figured if I couldn’t work around the node, I’d work around the line which runs through it.  After eating a quick lunch, I was able to dowse the line in between avoiding the occasional park-goer.    I marked two quick spots which would help me elongate the line’s angle on Google maps with a bit more accuracy.  I then retreated back into the shade for a round of questions.

The line itself was now dowsing at an 8 on a scale of 1 – 10.  Previously, in the Fall and Spring, it had been around a 7.  After asking about the difference, I was informed it was stronger in the Summer.

Here are other details I dowsed:

• The line dowsed for male, female and neutral energy.
• It was powered by solar energy.
• The energy on the line was beneficial.
• It could be used for Communication.  I asked “between humans” and received a “yes.”  However, I also asked about the Spirit Realm or Otherworld and received a stronger “yes.”  The only other category that gave a slight response was Healing.
• It’s associated color on the spectrum was Yellow.  This surprised me since with a higher power line I expected a color like blue, indigo or violet.  However, with it’s connection to solar energy it does make sense.
• It went straight for some distance and there were several “sacred places” along the line.  The nearest place still within our county was  to the South but not accessible to the public.  (I’ll have to check Google Earth on this one but understandingly, the sacred place may not be a physical building.  Maybe some more map dowsing?)
• Interestingly, I asked if anyone had known or utilized the line and the answer was a “maybe.”  The rods started to cross but would not.  I broke my question down and was told that one other person has known of the line in the past but that no one has ever intentionally utilized the line’s energy.

The last series of questions slowed me to a stop so I took a break to mull over the information.  As I sat, meditating on the question, I had a flash of inspiration.  I had the thought of drawing a tarot card which would signify the energy of the line.  Having my cards with my, I spread them on the table and decided to let the dowsing rods pick a card which best represented the line.  The card?

The Lovers.

What a fascinating draw!  So many different possibilities from this card!  I’ve sat with this for some time and think I have gleaned an answer.  I believe this is talking about the interconnectedness of the male and female energies within the line as well as the connection of that energy to the world around it.  The KL line is about passion, about connection and, from the previous dowsing, communication and communion.  Two separate energies working together in a perfect union.

And, really, I think that only scratches the surface.  Does something else possibly come to you, the reader? I’d love to hear it!

Shortly after drawing the card and sitting with it, I was overheated and I was also out of time.   I still feel the gut urge to return to the K1 node itself and a quick check with the rods confirmed this.  With storms moving in today, I’ll have to wait and see how things go.