Much has happened since December 2020. For many of us, it seems that monumental changes have occurred, or will do as we continue to navigate and transverse these new energies and indeed different times. Moving countries, moving to gentler environments, relocating to more supportive communities and equitable societies seem to be on the minds of many. Changing jobs, relationships – a time of endings and beginnings.
In the words of a young professional who had relocated to a regional city. “Jumping off the treadmill to a more sustainable way of living.” Many have questioned how they had been living, caught in the thinking of “more is better” and transitioning to one of sufficiency. Many are still caught in the former. It is not that money in and of itself is bad, but wealth without health is really not wealth. Lynne Twist has been challenging us for years to consider money as energy.
Her questions last week in her blog were insightful:
You are the creator of the next world. What will it look like, and how will we live?
What is your dream for those who come after you?
What are the values you want to amplify in the new world?
Otto Scharmer of The Presencing Institute, also continues to challenge the short-term thinking, evident in many cultures, and asks us to look at how we can “lead into the future”. The GAIA journey 2021 is directed at ‘rethinking’ what role we all individually play in the health of our future, including redefining wealth and its distribution, and also the opportunities provided by the path forward if we are courageous to walk it.
COVID-19 continues to test us around the globe, with some countries and continents faring better than others due to the choices and hard decisions made early in the pandemic. Taking a “if we don’t have health, we cannot have wealth approach” has served these countries well, with minimal disruption to their way of life. This thinking, however, is more than a governments responsibility. It is a personal responsibility – a sense of ‘other oriented’, respecting a bigger picture rather than just me, my rights ie. self orientation, which is detrimental in these situations.
We need to constantly question; “Are my actions serving others, the greater good or is it causing harm and discord?”
Unfortunately I have seen and experienced the latter, more often than I would have liked – even in a society, which to all extents, has managed COVID extremely well. Yes, there have been economic impacts on some businesses with lockdowns, which Dr Katrin Kaufer, raised in her excellent webinar session on “Just Money: Mission-Driven Banks and the Future of Finance”. This webinar highlighted the re-imagining of finance, the re-democratisation of the financial systems and the fact that the opportunity to reset starts with innovation at the margins. A new iteration of banking! Let’s look at the margins.
The bigger question however is “What can I do?” This is where we individually need to be courageous and not fall back into old patterns. I hear so many politicians and business leaders, focused on economic recovery, yet they are falling back into old ways of doing, instead of creatively looking at the situation from other perspectives, and innovating.
If we did this then we may well find our path.
As Lynne Twist constantly reminds us, the first myth is “scarcity”. From the paradigm of scarcity we create a you OR me world which will always create more division. From a paradigm of sufficiency we create a YOU and ME world, this will always foster unity.
These times are not for the fainthearted, but they are for the open-hearted.
What myths are getting in the way of finding your path?
10 years ago this year, Christchurch experienced a 6.3 magnitude earthquake with185 deaths. It was a global event as many foreign students were killed in the CTV building collapse. Their countrymen, with earthquake expertise, came to help in the recovery process. Doctors visiting the city for a medical conference were called on to perform procedures they had never before performed. It was a time for action, a time for quick response and working together. Was it perfect? No, but the lessons have been well documented. When the Mosque killing occurred on March 15th, 2019, the emergency department at the Christchurch hospital quickly put those learnings into action. In many ways this past year has been about learnings. Our personal ones, our collective ones and those we are still yet to learn. Pivot became a common term as we adapted, and adjusted. Many of us reviewed our choices or chose a different path. It required personal responsibility.
Pointing the finger in blame is easy. With social media so prevalent these days, we seem to have all become so called ‘experts’.
The ability to step back and discern the truths, if you like, the facts from fiction, to know that the current path is one that may not have been trodden before, and we are all learning on the job requires a certain degree of empathy, understanding and compassion. Allowing for those whose intentions are for the greater good or the health of the people, a nation, to make ‘wise’ choices in an environment that is constantly evolving and changing requires an open heart. That is not to say we cannot question. But nor is it about abdicating responsibility.
Have the wisdom to ask: what is it I know, don’t know and would like clarity on?. This is what finding our path entails.
This is not an easy process as we wrestle with our conscious and unconscious biases. When we see the truth and resolve the fractures within our own selves, that’s when we can make a difference and have an impact as we take our stand, out in the world.
It is time for all of us to stand tall. To review what we are Doing and more importantly how we are Being.
– How are you reviewing your narrative for these new energies?
– What inner work is supporting you as you align to your path?
– How are you leading into the future?
Walking Your Luminous Path
“It takes powerful inner resolve to manifest a deep sense of the rightfulness of existence at a time when we’ve been conditioned to fear it.” With all the chaos, misinformation, or should I say ‘dis’-information distributed from mainstream media sites, plus the overload and misuse of Social Media, it can be difficult to discern the…
The Path Ahead – Finding YOUR Path.
Much has happened since December 2020. For many of us, it seems that monumental changes have occurred, or will do as we continue to navigate and transverse these new energies and indeed different times. Moving countries, moving to gentler environments, relocating to more supportive communities and equitable societies seem to be on the minds of…
Re-tuning to the Energies
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Winds of Change
“ Honour the space between No Longer and Not Yet” Nancy Levin A friend of mine told me “2020 is best described as being a rickety bridge between Epochs beginning in one Era, and ending in another. It may not feel particularly safe or inviting, but it’s the only way across. I thought that was…
Fight for the things you care about
These times are calling us to take a stand and fight for the things we care about. Twenty years ago, Sydney celebrated the “best games ever”. Well, according to those who attended. Over this past month there has been a literal trip down memory lane, recalling how, as a collective, everyone came together to help…
Conversation – the bigger picture, a bigger purpose.
Conversation – real conversation, where reflection, respect and deep listening occurs is something I feel is needed at this pivotal time in our lives. This has been a recurring theme for me as I, and many of us, navigate these uncertain and yet very opportune times in our respective lives. And then last week, a…
Roots of Connection – Heightened Attention.
“Beware the stories you tell yourself for surely you will be lived by them” – William Shakespeare In these unprecedented times I am noticing how easy it is to get caught in the ‘story’ if one is not operating with heightened awareness. One day can so easily morph into the next and the next. The pulse…
Seeing your shadow as a source for Transformation
Recently I am noticing a lot about ‘shadow’s – most notably my own, but also those of society. Shadows of the past, which seem to be coming up to be redressed and, in many instances, healed. Otto Scharmer, The Presencing Institute states: “What I have learned from various conversations and reflections on our blind spots…
The Path Ahead.
It will have direction and shape – IF you have done the work! “There are times when you have to take bold steps. Make up your mind; know where you are going and never waffle. Many wonderful opportunities are missed by those who are indecisive. In times when you have to take bold steps; take…
The Re-Write
“You are the sky. Everything else – it’s just the weather”. Pema Chodron. The past 4 weeks may have seemed like an eternity for some, and for others, a time pressured haze of days. It is all to do with context, personal circumstances and focus of attention. Is your attention on the sky or has…