OUR DARKEST MOMENT

Ram Dass tells us that the only reason for suffering is to learn we don’t have to. Does this seem like woo-woo folderol? Does this make sense to you?   Think about it.   There comes a time when a battered woman is beaten one time too many, and a wave of “NO MORE” energy consumes her body, and she is propelled to remove herself from the trauma. Perhaps an individual is addicted to some form of self-violation, and their wave of “NO MORE” energy propels them to a better state of mind. Our darkest moment can be our greatest gift.

My moment came when we lived briefly in the Hill Country of Texas, a vortex of energy to which many seekers are drawn. We lived just a mile or so from the late John Randolf Price, author of many spiritual books.   He and his wife, Jan, offered an angel workshop, and I signed up.    The workshop was divided into several segments, including a guided meditation to receive an angel gift. 

I  usually am not able to fully engage in guided meditations. This time – I did!   So we were led down some steps of our own design, and as we descended, 7, 6, 5, etc.. we went deeper and deeper, and then we were at a door that opened to a hallway with a series of doors, and we opened the door that felt right. Inside was an angel with our gift. There he was, my angel, who handed me a small, plain wooden chest, and when I opened it and looked inside, my gift was shackles. WHAT!!!!! Even though my mind was disengaged from my body, I could feel the flush of anger consume my body. (In my early life, my inner world felt like the energetic pall currently  over our nation.)  I lifted those shackles out of the box and threw them at that angel, shouting, “Here are your GD shackles. I have been shackled all my life. NO MORE!”

And then, I was out of meditation and at the table with my seatmates, who were also out of their meditation. I shared my dream with them and commented that I knew that somewhere in the room, someone would say their chest was jewel-encrusted and filled with wondrous gifts.   Sure enough, many someones received that ultimate gift. Our table erupted with laughter. Always the disrupter I am. Still,  after sharing time, the room agreed that rejecting the shackles had been the greatest gift. That gift of rejecting shackles was the powerful, energetic shift I needed to propel my life forward.   Rev. Pat