Prologue
"Nothing comes unannounced, but many can miss the announcement. So it's very important to actually listen to your own intuition rather than driving through it."
-Terrence McKenna
If you are a stranger to the idea of consciousness, communication with the deceased, or the idea of life after life, be a stranger no more and give it welcome. I will share with you some of the amazing and poignant stories that have been gifted to me, as well as my personal experiences, my views, and beliefs about consciousness, the nature of reality, death, and the afterlife. There is much to appreciate and explore about the magical and mystical aspects of the Self that lie deeply in the dimensions of the soul.
As you read the pages of this book, I hope to lay a well-rounded foundation of how life and death are so beautifully and intrinsically intertwined with one another. My hope is to inspire you to look deeper into your own interior wilderness and expand your understanding of consciousness and how it remains immeasurable and untraceable by the scientific communities. In unsullied spiritual terms, by the communications I and others have had with the deceased, there are clear paths and doorways available to you within your own unlimited consciousness that continuously seeks expression-whether in bodily or spirit form. The beauty, richness, and texture of our inner environment transcends all physical limitations, which are free of, and do not obey, the scientific and medical frameworks that demand evidence-evidence that is based solely on accumulated research, data, and analysis in a society that needs proof for everything. We have insisted upon and kept alive the fable of "seeing is believing."
I invite you to use your imagination to explore your own consciousness and enhance your understanding of how consciousness is the driving force of The Whole of Existence-the life force of all creation.
As a medium and death doula, I see the blending of life and death. I am open to the opportunities that exist not just for myself, but for all people-and that means to communicate with, understand, and allow those who are deceased to bring forth information and messages. Life is about being a medium, and death is about being a medium. They cannot be separated. In life, you determine everything by your beliefs, desires, emotions, intuition, and imagination. In death, the same thing applies. No matter who you are, or where you are, you are always using your imagination and intuition. Always.
Understand that you are, as you are right now, consciousness. You might be thinking to yourself, "What does that really mean?" Because you are consciousness, you create everything that you know in your reality. There is a force for creation no matter where the creation is to take place, no matter what the force might be. There is also a force for, and of, destruction; the same thing, but the force is used in a different way. If you consider yourself the focal point of your reality, and that reality is all of what is real to you, then consider yourself as being the focal point, a force, and your reality a mirror of you. Everything in your reality is a mirror of you emotionally.
You create reality with your desire and motivation as well as with thought, the intensity of your emotions, beliefs, imagination, and intention. But looking at yourself as a force, you create that reflection of you that you know to be your reality and everything and everyone in it. So, you are the force that drives all things in your own reality and in your own private universe. Every time you express yourself emotionally, you create another piece of your life and reality. Everything exists in the imagination-everything. All that you have learned about life and death comes from imagination. Essentially, if you can imagine something, you can create it and experience it.
Life is art. Life is the canvas upon which you express yourself emotionally, physically, and psychically. The canvas is the foundation of your individual life and reality. Your thoughts are the different types of paint you use to create your masterpiece. Emotions are the colors of the paint and how you as an individual express yourself emotionally, which will determine the outcome of your masterpiece-your painting, your life, your reality. The painting can only respond to the type of paint and colors you choose to use.
Death is also art. There is no death. There is only life after life. Physical death is often seen as an end, but in truth, death is nothing more than a continuation of life in another form. As a star reaches the point of super nova, it does not die. It continues as a new form of energy as does two dying neutron stars that can collide to form a magnetar-it continues as its own identity throughout time. The same applies for human beings. At death, elements of the identity and personality of an individual remain relevant only for a time, but in a different form.
If we took the time to contemplate and see more than what we commonly see in life, we might begin to gain a deeper understanding for the finer points of evolution and cooperation in nature and our connection to it. Eco systems are formed by communities of organisms that interact with the physical environment. Flowers and plants attract insects, birds, and bees by their color, composition, smell, and pollination sources. Bird nostrils are called nares that allow a bird to breathe, smell for food, and use smell to navigate. They also use taste, touch, sound, and sight to survive. The spreading of seeds is commonly accomplished by wind, bird droppings, animal scat, and on the fur of animals.
Thanks to many devoted scientists, we now know that trees care for one another in a community of below ground networks of communication through mycorrhizal fungi as well as other above and below processes that create and support life. If we could see all life down to the tiniest of networks and symbiotic relationships, we would understand the fundamental nature and taproot of all living things, and that, my friends, would give us an appreciation for life in a more sacred way. The exploration of our inner environment and the development of inner intelligence will give us a greater understanding of consciousness and an understanding of who we are, what we are, and why we are.
By living in truth, being straight with oneself, owning one's own life story, and following natural impulses, instincts, and intuition, it is possible to live in a healthier and more meaningful relationship with your inner world. Many people fear their imagination, instincts, intuition, and inspiration, often fearing life itself and their own beingness. A great deal of emotional pain and suffering would be abated if people would allow themselves to be vulnerable enough to appreciate and embrace their pain and their unique place in the universe. Becoming intimately aware of how nature flows through everything, we can unfold the inner knowing that life is consciousness, energy, and everything is in a constant state of change. Everything is alive, even in death.
By now, we should all have the basic scientific knowledge that everything is energy, which cannot be created or destroyed; only transformed. Again, the one constant in the universe is change-life is continually in a state of fluctuation, and the self that we identify with, the self that we perceive as who we are, is only a fraction of who we truly are. All structures, constructs, and systems of life are self-organizing. Meaning, they create themselves over and over again to form their own design. The unfolding and flow of life allows structures and systems the simple recognitions of their own life processes. Nothing in life is static-but rather, it is in a constant state of reorganization.
Sometimes, humans move toward new ideas and concepts kicking and screaming. It takes people a tremendously long time to warm up to new discoveries, ideas and, frankly, anything that may challenge treasured assumptions and beliefs such as natural selection and competition instead of symbiotic relationships and cooperation. People are stubbornly faithful to their assumptions and beliefs because they form a framework that helps them function psychologically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually in a safe way that can ultimately disconnect them and cause them to distrust their own nature. The German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer said, "All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident."
New ideas, new concepts, and change can frighten people-people need to feel safe, and change means an alteration in their identity. Change can make people feel vulnerable, and if we are disconnected from our emotionality, it can be terrifying. When changing, whether we are changing our mind about an idea or a belief or having an experience that other people cannot relate to, we can also run the risk of rejection by family, friends, coworkers, and society.
We are social creatures who desire and need love, acceptance, validation, and to be seen and heard, but people will reject you if you do not align with their beliefs. We also happen to be experts at categorizing, labeling, judging, and compartmentalizing life, because we have been taught that this is the safest way for us to maintain our life and lifestyle. Many times, we go along to get along. The good news is, slowly, we are moving in the direction of lifting...
