Sunday, May 17, 2020

Positive vs. Negative


Cosmic Energy
“My prayer today is not to be negative about anything for one day. It is so easy to be disappointed, critical, cynical. Nothing is easier than to be a negative person. It takes effort to be hopeful and positive…If we all waited for perfect conditions in life before we felt hopeful, we would have very few days in life to celebrate. Perfection is rare. Hope means no matter how bleak, all things can and do change in the blink of an eye.”
Carline Myss
          Today, I should be driving back from the east coast where I had just spent a week in silent retreat. A writer’s conference with Carol Henderson was planned and I was even willing to drive for 12 long hours with my friend Ellen from Birmingham to Emerald Isle, NC to attend. And then coronavirus pandemic hit; in the blink of an eye, all plans changed everywhere in the world. Caroline Myss would say that this is the Divine at work. She believes that nothing happens on a scale like this without the direct involvement of the power we call God. Prayers for her are not like the ones we read in the Book of Common Prayer. They are more like conversations with a friend. And she is… well, religious about it. Everyday, all the time, in every circumstance—she prays.
          I saw a sign online that said: “Prayer is the world’s greatest wireless connection.” I have to say, I need to pray a lot right now because I can’t seem to pull myself out of negativity. I’ve had conversations with a number of other people who are experiencing the same difficulty. Admittedly, I grew up in a negative culture in the mountains of NC, where most people worked hard for what little they had. People who live in perpetual poverty feel that they have little to be happy about, and even less to make them hopeful. Hearing about multi-million-dollar salaries for CEO’s of large corporations tends to dampen hope among folks who are just trying to make it. For several layers of society, negativity is like mother’s milk—the only thing flowing in a world that has changed in the blink of an eye.
          So, we’re left with prayer. Which is enough. Caroline Myss says that as soon as you pray a truly heartfelt prayer, it will be answered. From that moment on, you should assume that everything that happens is the answer to that prayer. You may get an answer you had not anticipated, but that does not invalidate the prayer. It only means that the answer to the prayer and your notion of what the answer should be are different. Don’t stop praying just because you didn’t get the “correct” answer. And try not to let the answer that does come drive you into negativity. Whatever cosmic event is taking place on planet Earth is being governed by something greater than ourselves. Just keep praying.
          I try to remember that what I put out—the kind of energy I generate—adds to the energy of the collective. If what I’m putting out with my words, thoughts and actions is negative, then I am fueling negative energy. And if they are positive, I am adding to the reservoir of positive energy on this planet. That’s the one I’m aiming for this day. Let’s stay positive and hopeful today. Prayer is needed.
                                                  In the Spirit,
                                                  Jane

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