Imprinting…I’m printing…’I AM’ printing
‘After the rain’ flickrcc.net
Into your womb,
one day soon,
there will be my passing.
One that takes me into question now,
one that will take me out then.
Foreign to the press of my logic,
there is only certainty
in the wave of oneness
reaching unmistakably into my roots.
As my feet lay down upon your back,
you call me to answer,
“What will I leave of me?”
Dying, decay, death. They are words that we often shun; uncomfortable to consider, even more difficult to appreciate. Perhaps our resistance to these ideas generates inner conflict because they ask us to confront our commitment to our living, awakening and birth.
Living and dying – I feel their rhythm in the planetary energies as the destructive forces cleanse the paths for transformation. I know them in my own experiences of releasing unsupportive tendencies as I recreate my life more attuned to the truths of my soul. I see the cycle around me in the recent downshift of nature’s eager activity. I even speak of their relationship in conversations with friends.
Yet, despite the fact that the dance of living and dying is so evident, and that it is as intimate to us as the inhalation and exhalation of our breath, we sometimes need delicate reminders of this impermanence to strengthen our resolve in making the most of our time here on Earth. This time it was a single maple leaf that directed me to look within.
In the dawn, after a night of pounding rain, I walked the village sidewalks. As I passed one building, I noticed soggy leaves flattened against the base of the wall. The stains of their recent journey were just inches away. Like a fine, delicate art print, reds, oranges and burnt yellows left their impressions on a pale, stone backdrop. Nature always serves as our mirror when we care to look, and this moment was no exception. It pulled at me to ponder how I was leaving my mark on this earth. There’s been much talk lately of our ecological footprint, but I wondered about my soul imprint; “When I leave this life what will I have pressed into the minds and hearts of my community? Will I have given freedom to my soul? Will I have come to authentically own who I AM?”
When we claim our ‘I AM’ presence, we embrace our individualized God self, the creation of Self in the image of God. Giving our attention to the almighty I AM PRESENCE activates a liberation of our dissonant energies, and ignites our true Self. It gives light, substance, power, intelligence and activity to our physical body, through which we express our essence-ial gifts while on this earth.
This sacred expression, our brand if you will, is unique to each of us and life-giving when it flows. Arriving at the deep knowing of what genuine form this is for us can be as instantaneous as a single, intuitive dawning. For most it is a life-long series of revelations. But at any time our truth is accessible. If we look back from the present and soulfully reflect on our experiences, we can see their purposeful contributions to our lives. Our choices and learnings are no mere coincidences. For the seeker, they can be like a trail of breadcrumbs, each offering a clue to our fullest and most natural expression, which would make us see with crystal vision, sing with bliss, create with passion, and thrive with ease.
Consider for example the value of your family. With a little effort, mapping your family tree can expose the unhealthy, emotional and mental patterns that can repeat themselves through generations if left unhealed. However, you can also uncover the positive gifts in having chosen this soul group. When I reviewed the consistencies in the generations before me, I saw a prevalence of hardship and an obvious absence of art appreciation. But in me, there was a persistent attraction to the emotion, colour and magic in the arts. The contrast was enlightening, and having chosen a conscious path, I certainly wasn’t going to carry forward a legacy of pain. This awakening served as just one, but a profound insight into the understanding of my personal mystery. So it wasn’t a complete surprise to one day later feel all the pieces of my past fall into Divine order as they did. In a surreal flash of a life review, I saw that everything I had learned, everything I had dabbled in, everything that had taken my interest, was exactly as it had needed to be for me to arrive at that moment; I knew that my soul flourished in creating joy through dancing, drumming and chanting in sacred ritual. Quite simply, in this I felt the radiance of love.
Often however, once the knowledge is captured, we feel most challenged giving ourselves permission to expand our soul through action and grow into its most beautiful expression. For it is with each layer of rebirth, each claim to our new-found Self, that we must allow the disintegration and decay of the old self. It is an ongoing process and there is no destination in its unfolding. But the greater we feel the ‘I AM’, and the more we live in the truth of who we are, the greater our imprint on others.
Just last weekend I facilitated a Kirtan celebration. A group of twenty of us became one, wonderfully contagious pulse of joy with our voices, our movement and our rhythm. I felt such deep gratitude for having found my truth and having created the opportunity to share my joy in this way once again. But my own liberation was not the full extent of the grace in that room of fellow revellers. The following day I received an e-mail from a participant. She let me know that the next morning, upon awakening, she had an unquestionable, clairvoyant vision of her rebirth. She explained that musical talent notably and gracefully vibrated through generations before her and ever member of her family, except one – her! Or so she was told. But in experiencing the heartbeat and harmony of sound, movement and community, she claimed her roots – she found her voice, her beat and her joy!
When we freely give what makes us most joyful, we leave a valuable and impressive mark! So today, take the time to acknowledge the longing of your soul. Seek to unveil the purpose in your experiences as you hone the subtleties of your highest potential and most joyous Self. And ask yourself, “How am I living now? How will I leave my ‘I AM’-print, my love?”
Namaste.
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