When I envision seven generations from now, I see humanity emerging from this current transformation from fear and isolation into unity and interconnection with one another and with the planet.

Following the pattern of cultures who have used the benefit for seven generations to come as a guide to their actions and plans, I seek to do the same in the work I do each day. I add my love, light and energy to the Sacred Life Force that moves through all things. I offer healing to trauma and fear that they may not escalate into hatred and abandonment.

And I offering these reflections as a gift in that process.

Sovereignty holds a central place in the healing of humankind and of our relationship with all living creatures.

First, comes recognizing our own inner authority, responsibility and capacity to honor our own truth in the way we live our lives. Then, we can extend it out as honor and respect for the sovereignty of every other human being on the planet. Each person is worthy of that honor, simply because we are all here.

Finally, there was an invitation from a mountain lion to acknowledge what the members of the animal kingdom already know: every creature on the planet is sovereign and worthy of honor and respect.

We are living in a time of very potent potential for the transformation of humankind and our connections with All of Life. One step in this process is a willingness to be vulnerable and to acknowledge that what needs to guide us now is not our mind, but our soul.

I do not know where the next steps will lead any of us, but I sense that each step is an invitation to a leap in transformation into new ways of comprehending the unity, harmony and mutual nourishment of all of life.

Honorable Closure is a simple ceremony that I first learned from Sandra Ingerman. I was reminded of it last night during an Autumn Equinox drumming circle as one of the women reported a journey of using it in relation to the recent fires in Northern California.

She envisioned herself standing at the edge of an area where fire had destroyed all of the layers of life throughout the landscape. In the ceremony, she honored and thanked all of the expressions of life that had added so much to that area, and then wished them a loving and joyful journey home – back to the pure Light from which we all come.

I have long known the importance of ritual to establish a space, time and mindset in which to do sacred work. Creating an atmosphere to quieting the mind, and the focus of attention has always made sense to me.

Recently, I learned that ritual also serves as a container for the flash of insight, the gift of a word, image or message received from a higher level of wisdom and grace. Ritual provides a place for these to be grounded into this tangible reality. When the ritual is complete, the connection is closed with the Unseen world, but what has been given remains available to for my daily life.

Passion is the energy of enthusiasm, excitement, commitment and intensity which fuels our progress along our path of transformation and discovery. As we move out of old habits and patterns which no longer support our personal evolution, we need the fuel of passion to empower us. It helps us keep moving from the familiar, through places of fear, and into the unknown of new possibilities.

There is the natural ebb and flow in our spiritual lives of returning to the quiet, still place within where we feel stable and at ease, and then being propelled forward along our path. Passion gives both energy and focus as we move outward to discover all of who we are.

Many of our traditions teach us that there is a separation between the human and the divine, between the tangible world and the spiritual realm. They can offer us practices and beliefs to help us leave one and visit the other, but they do not recognize that these two realities have never been separate. We have always been, and will always be expressions of sacred energy flowing in, around and through this human form and throughout the Universe.

My journey now is remembering how to live in both realities. The energy that activates all of the chemical and electrical processes of my body is the same energy that fuels the stars. My life is part of the Life, Light and Creative flow of All that Is.

Discernment is a process that unfolds to bring clarity and inform right action. First, we connect with a stable and calm place within, where we recognize that we are safe and free to take our time before we respond to a situation. From there, we sense what part of us is most reactive, and what we may be projecting onto those who are going through the experience. Finally, we see those involved in the broader context of their lives and their capacity to meet this challenge. This leads to a clearer sense of what is actually going on.

Discernment is very personal, revealing what is true for us and how we can best send our blessing, support and honor to all of those who are directly involved.

Remembering those first photos of the Earth from space, we are reminded of the planet’s natural contours, and the artificial nature of boundaries and borders. This perspective on the world helps feed my sense of the intrinsic worthiness of all people and the interwoven nature of this world.

Imagine standing on a mountainside, looking to the next ridge of mountains or the next shoreline on the horizon. Unconditional blessing flows as you offer the energies of healing, love and transformation to all the expressions of life across this broad landscape.

The sacred geometry image for today is “Consciousness.” The design is intricate, weaving together hexagons and circles, stars and petals as it invited us into the ever-changing nature of reality.

I was still thinking about “consciousness” when I went to the swimming pool this morning. As I was swimming my laps, I watched the play of light on the water and found here another expression of the dance between my own focus of attention and the energy of Mystery inviting me to perceive Life in new ways.