Not having posted since December 2024, I’m so surprised to see people following me and subscribing. Just feels strange. So, to those readers who may know me personally and those who don’t, I want to say a genuine and sincere thank you, and at the same time extend what I’ve come to identify as a “virtual heart-to-heart” hug. (That’s a left-to-left side versus right-to-right side hug - feels like a different exchange of energy to me.)
Thanks to and recommendations for sub-stackers who make a difference:
David Michie - the individual who led me to Substack in the first place.
Prue Batten, Janice Walton & Ramona Grigg, who all welcomed me to Substack in the earlier days of my engagement.
Donna McArthur - with continual, consistent and supportive “food for thought”.
Dee Rambeau - with ongoing encouragement and kindness for those inside and outside of his own “circle”.
Dan Blank - with a recent statement of “What if you just undertook to write just for ‘one person” which influences me to continue.
Mark Nepo - in my world for a few years but recently joining Substack. An authentic and caring individual with a huge heart.
Jeannie Ewing - always giving expression to my own thoughts and graciously and lovingly modelling “how to live life on life’s terms”.
Jenna Newell Hoitt - has recently captured my interest with her love of, and expertise in, Tarot.
The Dash in relation to the fourth quarter
Linda Ellis published a poem titled The Dash, on January 1, 2005, and while I don’t recall exactly when it crossed my path, I do know that it carried quite a weight at the time. (Her YouTube reading is here if you’d like to listen.) From whatever that impact date was, life continued unfolding, and the “story” I’m here to experience skipped decades. And, suddenly here’s this “poof”, and that linear timeline (The Dash) has shrunk exponentially.
Back in November 2022, it seemed the universe (and some of my grandchildren) thought it might be an idea to start writing a “blog”. On reflection, creating a website and engaging in this new experience required a willingness to move into a substantial learning curve. The first two posts were about “the fourth quarter” in an effort to try and make sense out of having lost my husband and with no comprehension of who I was or might still become. I joined Substack in April 2023 and can clearly see there has never been the same consistency that was initially playing out at my website.
I know I’m not alone in trying to figure out how to embrace both the loss AND aging process.
, and are just a few shining examples of how to do it with grace and dignity. I continue to insist that all of us are “Perfectly on Time” in every given moment - it’s just something I do. However, it’s still startling to review the first three quarters and now be introduced to an upcoming change in decades. Thus The Dash.Why do I want to re-engage?
Well, that certainly seems to be a catch-22 over here. I want to write, and then I don’t. I want to engage with you in person, and then I don’t. I want to learn about a new software option, and then I don’t. I want to explore mediumship and then I don’t. I see an example of an elder embracing the aging process and think, “Aha - maybe I can be like that too”, and then I don’t.
And then my colleague and dear friend, Erika Jackson, who has recently joined Substack, writes People are Complicated and shows me one more time that we are all “Perfectly on Time” and at the same time still trying to figure out what this Earth School story is truly about.
Has something changed?
With an understanding that “change is the only constant,” there has been an unfolding of some sort these past four months. Some of it subtle, some not so much, but then that’s the nature of change, I suppose.
My morning practices, designed for well-being and self-care, include:
Reading
Daily inspirational approaches to help create a level of balance (emotional, mental, spiritual) through reflecting on ideas created and given to me by others.
Guided Meditation
One is the “Flow of Love” meditation available from davidji at the InsightTimer App. There’s a line he speaks near the beginning that has nudged me to take a closer look at that word “perception”.
“In the words of the mystical poet, William Blake, you are cleansing the doors of perception”.
Journalling
On a great day, this exercise seems to flow forward with minimal effort (via keyboard or a type of automatic writing). I’m often surprised when I look back a week or two later and see words that appear to have come from “elsewhere”.
On a less-than-great day, the entire process may get somewhat skewed with ego jumping to the front of the queue and taking over centre stage. However, even on those days, a “gem” can suddenly appear and give me cause to stop, take a breath and consider what my “perception” might be. And voila! Gratitude for a new view or assessment about an old idea that was attached to some old BS (belief system per Suzanne Giesemann LOL).
This newer morning routine has shifted from a “need to do” attitude and instead turned into a “want to do” approach. As in, moving from a discipline to a desire. And the recognition of that movement seems to have opened another “portal” of sorts into the heart and soul attached to this human-suit.
A journal entry example
Question. What is required to speak or write from my “heart” in every “Perfectly on Time” moment?
Trust? Faith? In what?
Belief that a “source” of love, goodness and compassion resides in the heart attached to this human-suit and that this “source” may relay thoughts, feelings and ideas to be shared with others. That the passing on of those thoughts, feelings and ideas to other human-suits (who may have arrived at their own “Perfectly on Time” moment) will unfold at EXACTLY the moment they are ready to hear or read the words.
In the same way this writer has had the exact same experience of receiving verbal or written expressions that have encouraged and supported: making a change, forgiving myself, loving you more, being less fearful, being more courageous, being kinder, being more compassionate … the list is long.
Pluto into Aquarius and Neptune into Aries for such extended periods of time and the potential for “revolutions” and “spiritual evolution” to be unfolding in parallel. History and astrology appear to support this information and at some level it resonates with me as I “hear” scuttlebutt.
David Michie’s Substack post on “compassion” somehow tying into all of this by reinforcing those ideas of “not feeding the negative energies by engaging with them and letting them occupy my own thought processes because in doing that I’m actually helping to create more negativity”.
All of this feels like deep philosophical exploration and part of my “mind” says who on earth do you think you are to try and put these thoughts to paper because I’m not educated enough but then my heart seems to jump into the mix with the idea of “why not”.
Which is exactly why I decided to include it here in this post.
Where to from here?
I had a thought recently that seems worth sharing. “When I am left alone in my head for too long I become a crisis waiting to happen”
But here’s the thing readers. I really don’t want to become “a crisis waiting to happen”. I’d much rather continue to:
dance;
write;
share my perspective as it continues to change; and
connect with others as we journey through our respective “stories” here in the Earth School.
Last year I told my family they had permission to just strike that day of birth from the calendar and instead just celebrate with me every day for the ones I have remaining. Not to be morbid, but I do think it’s a good thing to remember that we all have an exit date - unknown, of course, but there nevertheless. So while I have the wherewithal to “live life large” I think I’ll try doing that.
In February I travelled to New Zealand with a good friend and was gifted with experiences that will not be forgotten. Part of “living life large”? Perhaps.
If you have a question, would like to engage or just want to leave a comment, I will respond. My mentor Gladys, whom I wrote about a year ago after she passed, was a strong proponent of “being connected”. I’d like to embrace that notion as well.
Welcome back Marilyn, it’s great to see you writing again💕 I think it’s great how sometimes you do and other times you don’t - you are walking your talk and trusting the process.
Also thank you for the lovely shout out!
You are indeed a “wise woman,” and the fact that you consider yourself to be still “in training” makes your word-gems even more delightful to enjoy. I love your reference to the body as a “human-suit,” and your use of it to dance through life!