Facing the Future & The South Salmon Beach Cleanup

Every year I try to commit to at least three beach cleanups. It feels important to me to go to the oceanside and do a simple service of picking up trash. The sand and the water are so beautiful. There is microlife that my human eyes can't even see, but my spirit feels it in the ocean spray and the roar of the sea.

Life nowadays moves so fast, it is far too easy to disappear into emerging technology and forget the simplicity and importance of remaining connected. I was at the coffee shop the other day and saw people sharing tables but they did not exchange even one word in the time they were with each other. It made me think we are moving into an era in which we are losing the ability to connect as people on the most basic levels. I look at the wax lined cups that go into that blue recycle bin, and the miles of non-disposable plastic straws, packaging, and coffee lids that go into the trash. I know that those things, even if they don't end up in the gutter right outside, will still end up in massive landfills. And for all of the people who think it's okay to throw a tiny piece of trash (a gum wrapper!) out the window or drop it on the cement, those flow into gutters, local rivers, and out to the ocean. There are swirling masses of trash miles wide in the pacific sea where the water is so impacted it is toxic and the animals are deformed or dying. I see that we humans are doing this. Our varying inability to take full responsibility for our carbon footprint creates this toxic death cycle.

I don't really believe in being depressed about the state of the world. Depression is easy to sink into, but if each of us took even one small action a day, then the world as we know it would change.  We all have different ways in which we are called to make change. For me, a promise to go to the beach that I love, to walk the oceans with conscious awareness, and to pick up trash that others have forgotten, feels powerful. 

A lot of the time, we slip out of our responsible roles due to overwhelm. I know that the 7-11 super gulp cup half buried in the sand could be from a mom with toddlers running so many circle around her that she simply forgot it there. I know that the fishing line tangled in seaweed may have come from an ocean animal who pulled free and broke the line in the process. There is no judgement in service, just love. When the service is done in love, then everyone heals. When the service is done in love, depression is transformed into hope. That hope touches others. It opens hearts and minds. It makes us even more aware, the next time we are on the beach or at a park that the grocery receipt that slipped out of our hands is really worth chasing after!

Our first beach cleanup of the year is on April 6th at South Salmon Beach. We will meet near the bathrooms and clean up the beach for an hour and a half. The data collected from the beach cleanup will be used by the California Coastal Commission to understand the trends behind pollution flow and create real solutions for the future. It is a wonderful way to spend the morning. We will be there, Rain or Shine.  I hope you will give me a call and join us to bring some conscious effort towards keeping our waterways clean!

blessings,

Dailey

Good Change

I don't have much to say this morning, haha. It is springtime, and with spring I feel alive with the possibilities of the moist season. As I spoke with the landlord about new flooring for the office, I found myself reflecting on the nature of change, and how it can stir up all sorts of emotions within us.

In the office, I often say that change can be beautiful. It can be painless and nourishing--like getting new durable floors to replace the old worn out carpet! Change can take us out of the hell of our own mind and deposit us on new shores. It can feel hard to leave behind the unhealthy patterns we know for the unknown, but it doesn't have to be horrific. It can be good-scary-- like your first Halloween.

Most of us don't linger much on the good changes, we only remember difficult transitions. We are deeply hurt by experiences that wound our core self esteem. We feel pain about who we are, and what we are--or are not--capable of being and receiving. Then, like animals trapped behind an electric-wired fence, we become afraid of any change because we don't want to be zapped again.

We have to re-introduce ourselves to the idea of good change, the kind of change that actually feels good as we are going through it. We have to stop thinking we'll get zapped as we cross into new territory! If our bodies and minds are still humming with memories from before, then we won't feel the goodness of the change we are in, all we feel is our own limiting fear.

Are you making decisions in your life based on lingering fear of what has happened before? Or are you fully in the present, greeting change with love and excitement? 

Breathe. . . 

Dailey

Reiki & Self Worth

Reiki & Self Worth

We often struggle to love ourselves. We put others' needs before our own because we are taught that this is a graceful, elegant way to live and be. Yet when we get on airplanes and we are told "Place your oxygen mask over yourself first before assisting others." We laugh and think "Of Course!"

In everyday life, I see a lot of people forgetting to "put their oxygen mask on first." They have overly-busy schedules yet can not say no because a good friend needs their help. They will scrape together the last of their energy to do something non-essential rather than resting and restoring their core being. It is natural to go above and beyond on occassion, but if we always do this without first caring for ourselves, we will eventually crash and burn. To me these boundary issues tie directly into our sense of self worth. 

Somehow we may have convinced ourselves that we are not worth anything if we can not help our friends, take care of things 'on time,' or 'be there' for others.  This faulty belief is sinuous and slips into the cracks of our being. 

If you commonly overpromise your time and find yourself breaking committments, if you are exhausted and can't seem to get ahead of yourself, if you are filled with guilt everytime you take care of yourself before handling other things, then you may be struggling with core issues of self worth.

One thing I love about Reiki is that it is unconditionally loving in nature. Have you ever had a Reiki session? So often, when I am receiving Reiki, I feel warmth, acceptance, and peace.  These are exactly the feelings I believe we should always be offering ourselves, rather than guilt, stress, and pressures to conform to some egoic standard we have created on the faulty foundation of old emotional wounds.

There are many ways to heal Self Worth issues, including the use of affirmations, flower essences, psychotherapy, EFT, and meditation, but one of my favorite ways is with Reiki. 

HEALING SELF WORTH REIKI MEDITATION

Sit comfortably with spine straight so as to allow a smooth flow of energy through the chakras. Place hands in prayer position to open your meditation, calling in Reiki Life Force or loving light. Sit quietly for 5 minutes, noticing the thoughts that arise, the feelings your body is holding, and the physical experience of simply sitting and being with yourself as your follow the rhythm of your natural breath.  Do you itch to check your cell phone? Are there certain nervous habits that come to the fore? Just notice.

Now bring to mind a belief that you have held about yourself, that you know to be inhibiting your inner flow of abundance. Sometimes we don't even realize these are beliefs we can change. We may view them as truths. 

Some common beliefs I have heard, seen, or experienced include:  I am not worthy of receiving the love I am seeking. I am not smart enough to create what I would like to create. I never even had a chance at (fill in the blank). If I don't do this for him/her, they won't have a use for me and I will lose their friendship because I am only as good as what I do; I have no inherent value. 

Many of these beliefs are laced with negatives; I can't, I don't, I never, they won't, etc. When you find yourself using these negative contractions, look at the belief system that follows.

Choose just one belief that resonates for you and the current challenges in your life. Say it out loud. Allow the feelings that are associated with that belief to flood your body. Notice those feelings. Breathe into them and through them so that you can own them rather than pretending these feelings do not exist. 

Where are these feelings being held in your body? ...Once you are aware of where these feelings are being held in your body, place your hands wherever on your body you feel that root source of energy. If you aren't certain where that source is, run your hands over your body until you come to a stopping place that feels good. Channel Reiki into that location. 

Let go of the language of the old belief. See warm Reiki light transforming that belief at its root. If there are old stories or life experiences attached to that belief, reframe them in your mind to be of positive benefit. Tell a new story. You can even do so out loud. Use your breath to release the old stories and welcome in healing light.

Allow Reiki to expand throughout your body until the old feeling connected with that belief is gone. 

In your spirit, see light emanating through your torso and all of your limbs. 

In your mind, affirm the positive truth, whatever that may be; I am smart enough. I am worthy. I have inherent value.  

If it feels too difficult or untrue to affirm such things, then simply practice self-acceptance. Just for now, I accept myself as I am. Leave space for the positive and joyful journey of continued growth and transformation.

When you are filled with a sense of positivity, end the meditation by placing both hands against the earth, offering this gift of loving energy into the ground. Allow any excess energy that does not serve your highest good to release into the earth. 

Affirm that you will return gently to a clear and functional waking state, in this new vibration of self-worth and love.

May you find many blessings in this work!

Dailey Little

Laws of Maat: A Brief Introduction

In Ancient Egypt there are a few particular spells from the Book of Coming Forth By Day (also known as the Book of the Dead) known as The Declaration of Innocence. In them, the speaker visits a great tribunal of Gods and spirits in order to promise, in a poetic series, to be in complete alignment with the law. Similar to the Christian Bible's Ten Commandments, these 42 declarations that are listed express ways of behaving in society. The are called the 42 Laws of Maat.

Maat is a goddess of balance and truth. She is an early forerunner of the Roman Goddess of Justice

who holds the scales of justice. Maat's process works by placing the truths in your own heart on one scale, and her feather of truth on the other. The heart should be just as light, or lighter than the feather.

So often we go through life experiences in which we may feel regret, guilt, or other emotions that destroy our sense of personal freedom. When we feel that oppression, we are "not in Maat." This is a way of saying that our heart is so heavy it is out of balance with the natural laws of the universe.

When we are out of balance, we must find ways to clear our hearts, taking the actions that will bring us back into good standing in our communities, with our loved ones, and most importantly, with our ourselves.

The Laws of Maat function like guidelines. Though the laws are fairly concrete, we can look beyond the dogma of what they express and ponder what they trigger within us. For example, while one law may say, "I am not stealing," the law itself begs us to ask on a much deeper level, "What is theft?"

If we become caught up in the jargon or language and think only of this law in terms of our day, we may not think that breaking the law means walking into the corner store and taking a wad of cash.  When we look deeper within, we may find that a part of us is unsettled by the statement, or even overly vehement. We may find that although we have not broken the law in letter, perhaps there are other ways we have taken unfairly. Maybe we ate a piece of cake in the fridge that belonged to our roommate, or we pirated a song from the internet. If the declaration as we speak it sits heavily in our hearts, we know that maybe we have work to do. The work may be simply making the declaration and absolving ourselves from that moment forward. But it may also include promising ourselves to find healthier, lighter ways of moving in the world, or taking corrective actions (buying more cake? apologizing?). 

"Weighing of the Soul" by Christine Knopp

For many years I have recited the Declaration of Innocence & Laws of Maat in a variety of formats and translations. Each time, I am struck by the wisdom of simply naming the many parts of our own internal justice system. Like an automobile diagnostic, the recitation allows me to check in with myself to see where I feel compromised, and where I can come more deeply to personal wholeness.

There is a Neter, or Force of energy (or God) who oversees each law. They are there to enforce it. In the greater picture, if someone deceased makes their declarations but their heart is too heavy, then they are declared unfit for the afterlife and they are eaten by a composite creature, Ammit. She is a soul eater! In movies and Egyptian documentaries the narrator always makes this sound like a horrible thing. In fact, I think it's great. Have you ever tried living with a heavy heart for long periods of time? It is a relief to have those energies washed away, to have the old paradigm of your thinking and being stripped or destroyed. It is a relief to be returned to pure light.

In some esoteric traditions, the Laws of Maat are recited as a way of creating balance and cleansing the energy field. They are also a powerful invocation of the guardians of order and the neteru (forces) who open the way to our own inner world of shadows, fears, and other powerful inner growth mechanisms that we humans tend to work with.

Soon I will post the laws of Maat for you to enjoy. Blessings!

~Dailey
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© 2014 Dailey Little. Art: Winged Maat from KV11. "The Weighing of the Soul" ©2005 Christine Knopp. The art is for sale at Deviant Art.  You are welcome to reproduce this article provided you do so in its entirety. Dailey Little is a Reiki Master and active practitioner. She teaches Reiki & other fun stuff through her private practice in Santa Rosa, CA. Join her joyful community for ReikiShares, Free Clinics, and eco-activism by signing up at her website: www.SantaRosaReiki.com