"Wren, your honesty reaches the depths of my soul, takes my hand, pulls me toward you. I, too, surrender now to all that shall be shared between us."
"I am touching the gateway, carrying flowers in my heart. As I open my crown chakra, the Supreme Presence flows through me to bless you with the gift of love. I am the messenger, bringing you all that you desire. Receive."
"All of my doors fly open upon seeing you, divine male whom I have chosen to be my God-man. Your gift is received as my pleasure. Deposit your treasures inside me. I will take them as love, as inspiration, as unity with all kin. Merge with each of my chakras. Let our lights be companions enjoying every level of bliss. Taste me. Feel me. Hear my sighs. Gaze with the long look of appreciation of all of my form, for each part of me wishes to be recognized and to know you in return. Let us begin."
At the Grave
All the tents glow like fireflies in the distant dark below the hillside where Grandmother performs her ritual. Her timeless hands caress the ground, feeling the dirt like soft skin. Earth, this Sacred Mother, holds her beloved, Tha, for this Time, taking in his physical body and reading the stories it has to tell.
It is a private time, once called "death," in which the Sacred Mother embraces her human-born child again, listens, sings to him. After the long, slow telling, she kisses his wounds, applies her herbal ointments, and rocks him to rest with her night lullaby. She does not hurry to awaken his soul again, allowing the body to completely release all that it took in and could not share.
Sacred Mother imparts to Grandmother that the life womb can be prepared for the time when a new physical vehicle will be needed. Grandmother begins by calling the Water. "Come, be ready to surround this soul again, to nourish new cells, to bless with your current and move him onto his life path. Come, Fire, generate heat to ignite a new start, to supply the vigor and flare it takes to begin a new life. Come, Air, breathe all around him until he feels your subtle wind over his nostrils and must take it in.
Mother Earth. Mother - material. Mater - real. Mother - made real. Your body is my body. Your elements are my life. You shape us. You share us. You claim our remains. I cherish each form you provide. If it be within the Great Will, I shall again cherish the living form of this one, Tha, whom I have loved so deeply in many, many lives. So be it. Ho!"
Grandmother strokes the ground. "I am here, Tha. I shall never leave you." She begins to sing, to rock and sing as she sits cross-legged on the ground. Deep below, the Sacred Mother hears her. Two women weep together softly in their knowing, in their love for life, in their deep, abiding love for every form of life.
Molten lava flows hidden beneath the surface, gold is formed, bones are made into stone; everything has a chance to change, to become something it never imagined it could be. There is a fierce raw power in Sacred Mother's cauldron. She stirs carefully. Grandmother feels this heat rise up her spine.
The energy travels through each of her chakras, centers of consciousness, pausing in each to bring new vision before bursting into the sky to blend with angel wing clouds which will carry it to exactly where it is needed. She kisses the ground good night and walks home.
Entering the Garden
All of the flowers Grandmother planted feel her approach. Though this is their time of rest, they still emit their feeling of welcome as she enters the yard. The old studio sends out a small ray of memory. The stairs to the house recognize her footsteps.
"I love you," she says to everything here. "Thank you for your beauty and inspiration. I will see you in the morning. Time now to sleep." The creek ripples gently through her awareness. All the night creatures chirp and peep in their summer concert imparting the healing harmonies to all who listen.
Grandmother feels the spirit of Tha as she lays her body down and takes the breath coming into her window into herself. "This is the subtle wind that unites us. The breath of God. It flows through all beings and is, therefore, you my love. I feel your closeness even without your physical form. You comfort me still." Tha thanks her for her prayers and lays his spirit down beside her in the way he always did.
The four monks stand by assisting Tha in his communications with her. "Focus. Observe. Listen," they say. "There is a moment just before sleep when you can lift her up to join you for the night. As long as she wants you, you may bring her through the realms far enough to dream well together. Take her to the Temple of Love. We will instruct you there. She feels you now. Reach out. Take her hand."
The Temple of Love
It is a strange place, old, overgrown with vines. Massive stones, some broken as if the place has been long abandoned. But, I can tell it was once beautiful. The monks in orange robes say, "It must be rebuilt. Now is the time."
"I think they are talking to us, Tha. How are we to rebuild it? You and I live now on two different planes of awareness. Can we accomplish this?"
"They will show the way, I am sure. Since I have been here, I have learned so much. And yet, what I have learned is what I already knew. It was my Earth life which gave me the experiences that utilized my knowledge and made it an active part of Ultimate Reality. It is as if I were a royal and protected child who had been tutored by the wisest elders. Then, when I felt capable, I took upon myself an Earth life.
"The Earth life challenged all of my skills and cunning. I have told you the stories many times. When I left my Earth body, I returned here to our Divine Family and began the retelling so that I could see from many points of view.”
"Tell me, Tha, what you have learned." Just as Tha began to retell some of his life stories from his new perspective, Grandmother drifted off to sleep. Tha's voice is so soothing to her, that its comfort caresses her into a state of quiet bliss. But, Tha continues, knowing that the stories will rise up to consciousness as she goes about her day.
By the River
Yaro liked to walk at night and to find places with a special feeling. In these spots, he would sit a long time, opening to the sensations, noticing what came to mind, wondering. Yaro loved to wonder. How would it be if...? What was it like when...? Who might I bring to this magic that is right here and now?
"Shhh, don't talk," he said to Saffi when he introduced her to this turn of the Shemaya river. "Don't decide anything. Let the categories fall away. Do not even be yourself. Just sit here on this log with me."
"Okay."
Crisp air carrying smells unidentified. Moving shapes, a flutter, leaves, the warm close body and cloth of many kinds. Who sits here with me? Who lives inside this body? Only God. Perhaps, only God. Who moves in the darkness, smells like grass, sounds like the groan of an animal. Only God. Perhaps, only God.
"Are you cold, Saffi?"
"Yes."
"Take my jacket."
Cloth. Many kinds. Warmth. Who gives me this? Only God. Perhaps, only God.
Nature's View
"I will continue singing to the two humans who came tonight," said the river Shemaya. "It is my way. Once they open themselves to my sounds, I enter their consciousness and will always be available to them."
Sycamore replied, "Yes, the humans have forgotten our friendship and wisdom, but it enters them nevertheless. All it takes is a little time and a state of attentiveness."
Raccoon joined the conversation, "They will be back soon. I have been watching them. I sense their intention to learn from nature. They just do not quite know how yet."
"How unfortunate," said EC as she approached them. "I can't keep all of this in order without human cooperation.