A Journey to Remember

One of the most important things I've learned working with clients is that you can’t want things to change more than they want it for themselves. Change is a difficult thing for most people, even when faced with a life threatening illness. The reality of that first hit home when my brother was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (which actually turned out to be undiagnosed Lyme’s disease). In just 3 months his symptoms were reversing by aggressively treating the Lyme’s disease with alternative therapies. The protocol was intense; it required many lifestyle changes including a complete nutritional overhaul. We would soon realize that mentally my brother was locked into the diagnosis given to him by the MS doctor and it wasn't his reality that he could get better. Having to let go and allow him to walk the path he was choosing was a difficult but enlightening process.

Eight years ago my father was given a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. I was hopeful for a chance to have a different outcome than that of my brothers. We started down the path of alternative therapies but gradually that path was washed away by allopathic medicine.

After a phone conversation with my mother in August of 2014, and hearing how overwhelmed she was with everything, I began to have visions of assisting them on a journey of transformation. I started seeing them healthy, active, enjoying their retirement like they had planned to. I began writing thoughts and ideas down as they would come to me. I knew how intense and difficult the process would be for them and I was also reminded that it isn't something I can want more than they do.

During a two week visit with my parents in October, 2014 I personally noticed a significant change in my father since I last saw him 6 months earlier. The drugs on the market for Alzheimer’s are experimental at best. These drugs don’t change the underlying disease process, are effective for some but not all people, and may help only for a limited time. Like so many pharmaceuticals, they come with a long list of dangerous side effects. Ironically these side effects can mimic the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, such as depression, mood changes, confusion and hallucinations. I scrolled down the list of medications asking why he was prescribed each one. Most of them were for “known symptoms that people with Alzheimer’s get” but yet he wasn't exhibiting any of those symptoms at the time they were prescribed. And of course there were the usual MD favorites, cholesterol, blood pressure and ulcer medications. To top it off, his latest checkup revealed borderline diabetes, bringing the total number of medications to eight.

When I looked at the list of medications he was on, I felt angry, disappointed, sad, then ultimately became inspired and determined. Before I left to return to Miami I had lunch with my mother. I put it all on the table. I was willing to come and help improve the quality of their life, but she had to want it more than me.

Fear; a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined. Fear is an interesting emotion. If you suddenly found yourself in the jaws of an alligator, that would represent a threat that is real and trigger your fight, flight or freeze response, which would serve you well in that situation. If you experience fear in an imagined way (your thoughts) you also trigger the same fight, flight or freeze response because the body doesn't know the difference between a real life threat and an imagined threat. This can create the feeling of being ‘stuck’ in your life – freeze response.

Two months after the conversation with my mother, she called me to say she was ready. So far my personal journey of self-discovery has been incredibly empowering, but my life is not absent of fear or doubt. I can easily create the freeze response by over thinking the fact that I am quitting my job, moving to another state (again), attempting to reverse the symptoms of a disease western medicine hasn't been able (or willing?) to, and a host of other thoughts that came up the minute my mother said yes. But I know by stepping into the shadow of fear, some amazing pathways have opened up in my life. I always trust and move forward, rather than fear and freeze.

This journey is bigger than me, bigger than the fear that arises from risking everything for an unknown outcome. This is a journey to remembering. Remembering family, remembering love, remembering happiness, and remembering our vulnerabilities because it will be raw and painful but on the other side of that awaits an entire lifetime of memories.

To follow our journey, you can follow my blog.

Our Life Is Like A River

Rivers are flowing bodies of water. Rivers generally start at a source, like a snow melt or a natural spring. At the source of a river, the water is relatively pure.

Our body is up to 75% water. Our soul originated directly from source or the creator of all that is. The soul is a divine spark of source energy that is pure.

As a river continues along its course (which is always changing), the surrounding terrain flattens out and the river expands. As the water flows downstream, it picks up silt and minerals from the soil and rock in the river bed. Rivers often meander and follow a winding path along their middle course. Tributaries flow into the river, increasing the river's volume. Sometimes a bend forms in the river because the land becomes more resistant to the flow, like when it hits rock, and this sends the river into a different direction. There is also a natural vibration to water flow that will cause banks to erode and form new bends.

As we flow through our life we pick up valuable information. Our soul expands through tributaries of knowledge obtained through experience as we meander on a winding path along our middle course. Our surrounding terrain (which is always changing) affects the way our natural vibration allows us to flow. When we come up against resistance, we continue to flow around it while slowly eroding any obstacles from our path.

The course of a river changes over time as erosion caused by the flowing water and sediment sculpts the landscape around the river which is then carried downstream towards the sea or lake it flows into. This kind of erosion can even form canyons, waterfalls, and other formations.

The course of our life changes over time when we allow flowing energy to erode our programmed beliefs and sculpt the landscape of our thoughts. This kind of erosion allows our soul to experience an increased flow of life force energies from its spiritual self, which is connected to the creator of all that is.

Starving our rivers. The damming of a river alters the pattern of disturbances on which the plants and animals of a flowing river depend. The life of organisms downstream depends on the constant feeding of the river with debris. This debris includes leaves, twigs, branches, and whole trees, as well as the organic remains of dead animals. Debris not only provides food, it provides hiding places for all sizes of animals and surfaces for phytoplankton and microorganisms to grow. Without flooding and without a healthy riparian zone, this debris will be scarce.

Starving our soul. When an obstacle in our life cuts off our ability to flow we become lifeless. We cut off our connection to the universal flow that feeds us. The terrain around us becomes stagnant and void of the nutrients our organisms rely on to thrive.

Rivers often have increased volume and water speed in the spring, as snow at the river's source melts.

Spring is a time to engage in uplifting and creative activities that expand our energy and consciousness. It is a time to push through our self-imposed boundaries, seeking personal growth and expansion. Everything is full of life and new growth in spring, it is a time we should engage in activities that put our determination, creativity and innate intelligence into motion.

Most rivers end when they flow into a large body of water. The end of the river is called the mouth. At the mouth, there is usually a river delta, a large silty area where the river splits into many different slow-flowing channels that have muddy banks. New fertile land is created at river deltas.

When we allow emotions to flow out of our mouth, (throat chakra) the silt can flow freely into channels of creativity allowing us to use our energy constructively and not destructively. Eventually the soul will clear out enough distortions within its energy flow and raise its vibration to such a point that it will be able to merge with its spiritual self and have the experience of oneness with all living things. That is when we return to our original state of unconditional love, compassion, and oneness.