February, 2022
It’s been a very busy time to us here at Psychic Horizons, as we’re working on pulling together our Fundraiser Gala on March 5. I hope all of you will join us at 5:00 pm Pacific, on zoom meeting ID 415-643-8801.
This past year has been full of uncertainty
There is still much uncertainty and anxiety around because we still don’t know how things will shake out around covid and how things might be different in our everyday lives. Will we be going back to work at a workplace or work from home? Is it really safe to eat out in a restaurant? What about my income? Is it safe to travel or should I just stay home? How will things be different when it all shakes out? And so forth.
I have noticed that drivers are more careless (I’ve almost been run over twice while walking in a crosswalk across the street), people are more irritable, and there are fights on airplanes. Some of this is from feeling that normal life has been upended, some of it is being tired of the see-saw changes around covid, and some of it is from the intolerant judgements that some people have for others. That animosity used to be more hidden, but now it is very apparent.
In order to handle our own selves, we can pay attention to the compassion and acceptance that we have for ourselves, and for those around us. An example of this for me came a few years ago when we were in Chicago for a wedding of a nephew. My whole family was there. I hadn’t been around my whole family for many years, so it was really interesting.
There was me and my partner Katie of 27 years (now 31 years), and since my parents died, I’m the oldest of my immediate family. My next-oldest sister has a son who’s gay, and he came to the wedding with his partner. My youngest sister’s son was the person getting married, and his brother has transitioned from a male to female, so my nephew now has a sister instead of a brother. She had married a woman when he was a man, but is now divorced with two kids, and she is now living her woman partner.
My brother-in-law, the father of the nephew who was getting married, had his family there as well, including his mother, in her 80s, and his great-aunt, in her 90s. They and the rest of his family, all of whom were there, are from Ohio and Michigan, very Midwestern people.
The nephew with the wedding married a Chinese woman who came to the US when she was 16 or 17, and knew no English. She said she could learn English relatively quickly because she already knew everything she was being taught in school, so she could focus on English. She now has a masters in biochemistry.
The wedding included a Chinese tea ceremony as well as the rehearsal dinner, the wedding itself and a dinner afterwards, and dancing, including a Chinese dragon running around. The officiant of the wedding was a Jewish rabbi. That wasn’t because anyone getting married was Jewish, but because he was a friend of theirs.
There were about 150 people at the wedding, including some of the bride’s family, both from the US and China. Those from China didn’t speak any English. They had a translator for those folks.
Resistance to Change
I know that my sister and brother-in-law, the parents of the transgender daughter, were in tremendous resistance to this change and had to do a lot of soul-searching and personal growth in order to accept her transition. But they did and they have.
So everyone in the family, on both the bride and groom’s side, and their friends, have had to adjust to a family with gay people, a transgender person, and now Chinese folks in the family. Everyone was totally accepting of everyone else, with no undercurrents. There was no animosity, no resentments, nothing. It was really amazing and wonderful to see.
Whatever animosity there is in the world is part of our own growth.
So from my perspective, whatever animosity there is in the world, is part of our own growth. We need to own what’s happening in the world, even though it can be difficult. Because we have similar things happening within ourselves.
There is a direct parallel between your life on earth – your everyday life – and your life as spirit. In other words, you cannot really separate your changes and growth in your body from your growth as spirit. What is happening in the world reflects that.
In Matthew 12:25, it says: “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.”
Everyone on the planet is in a huge growth period. And you can acknowledge that growth period, and your own individual changes. But you don’t want to resist these changes so that you don’t become divided against yourself, and so that you don’t become more divided body and spirit.
You can accept your changes as well. You can be grateful because you are being given the opportunity to own the part of this planetary shift that is yours. You can own your own individual changes and body and spiritual growth. You are being given the opportunity to heal yourself, especially in these times of covid. This is a tremendous gift, and you are not alone. The planet is changing, as usual, but the populations of the world are changing also. This is not new, but is what we are doing here.
We have all chosen to be here in this time
Acknowledge that you are part of this. These changes are separate from you, but they are not separate from you. We have all chosen to be here in this time and in this place together. Say hello to your ability to have your own sense of compassion, and love and acceptance for others as well as for yourself. This is our answer for non-acceptance, and discrimination and divisiveness.
Say hello to this as a gift, an opportunity, an opportunity for your individual growth and healing. Also say hello to the energy shifting of the world and of the planet. Then pull your energy out of it, and back to yourself. Say hello to yourself, and allow yourself to be grateful for your changes, grateful for your own love and compassion, and for where you are at this time and place.
As always, thanks for supporting Psychic Horizons & the Church of Natural Grace with your sustainable giving! It truly makes a difference, both for us and for you.
Best regards,
Rev. Laura Hopper