The Gift of Parenting

Dear beautiful souls,

This weekend is one to mark down in my journal, for yesterday was the official day my son, my first-born moved out of home. Left the nest, so to speak. As any passionate parent may understand, it is a huge event in one's life journey, as much as giving birth, getting married, or unmarried, my child's 1st birthday, 18th birthday and 21st birthday.

Even more so when my children have always been my good friends as well, and share laughter and tears, ups and downs, and healthy connections.

Whenever one of my children leave home for a holiday, there is always a 'hole' for they are so much a piece of me, but in a peaceful way I also send them away with love and protective blessings as I embrace and welcome with them, their journey of growing and exploration into their own world. "You're the first one to leave the nest..." I said to my son this week, happy to share the excitement of his new venture. "But we've all been away and traveled lots before mum..." he replied. "Yes but you're the first one to take your bed with you!" I added.

This kind of milestone in my children's lives always heightens the reality of how quick, brief and transient our lives are. I always get a flashback of the span of their lives from then till now, and how that was almost just like a blink of an eye.

Let us always realize and remember that being a parent is a gift, a gift of one of the greatest services in a lifetime. In the past when I have had moments of "Oh I would love to be like a Mother Theresa, to be able to give my life up in service, by helping to feed the hungry and destitute of the world" or "Oh I would like to achieve incredible feats like summit Mt Everest." Then Life would always bring me to my knees with the profound realization that, I am already living one of the greatest services, as a parent, in bringing up 3 beautiful human beings, to be in a position to mold them and evolve together with them as souls.

Our true purpose in this life journey is to evolve as a soul. This short span of physical existence is most significant but just a blink. Our children are a gift to us as much as we are to them. Sometimes they are more evolved souls than we are, as such we are here to mutually learn from each other. Sure, as a parent we have the responsibilities to help equip them with knowledge to survive and function in this world, but as soul parents, are we also bringing them up through our heart center? where they too learn to love not just others but themselves unconditionally, where they become human beings that connect, have joy, passion, wisdom and the ability to give. Or are we just parenting frantically in keeping up with the Jones', to bring them up so they can meet those school grades like everyone else, get that supposed prestigious jobs like everyone else, have a home with the picket fence and the two and the half children, like everyone else. Do we parent from the wholeness of our hearts or from the limitations of our heads?

Children learn from what we are and what we do, not from what we say and teach. If we want respect, we have to show them respect. If we want love, we have to love them. Do we connect with them on a soul level, or do we know how to? I have personally found that as I have grown and changed in the course of my life journey, my children have grown and changed magically on their own accord too, it seemed less effort. Abuse of our children does not just mean the obvious physical and sexual abuse that we all deplore, but abuse also sneaks in with the guise of unconscious parenting, if we parent without unconditional love. For our role as a parent is to unconditionally love. For it is in doing so that our children can remain in their core of unconditional love, for themselves, which then grows and branches out into love for others, and the ability to thrive in their world.

Unconditional love means to love them for who they are, to take time to nurture their beauty and to guide them through their pains; to make the efforts to say those special words "I love you" "I'm sorry" and mean it. To know when to let go and allow them the freedom to explore and to learn from their own mistakes, to be there without expectations, judgements and demands, to know when to reach out and when to give them space. Parenting is the hardest task one can ever undertake, it is a continuous dynamic balancing act. That is why it can only be done most effectively and is most rewarding when we ourselves do so from our heart center, our center of connection with our higher source of wisdom.

So treasure your children. And realize that those exhausting sleepless nights, challenging toilet training, tiring school runs and sports events, teenage hormones, worrying late nights, and ups and downs of life are very brief windows for you to connect, help shape and grow with your child's soul. For before long, that window will be gone, and your gift and privilege will be gone. As parents we form their family base and roots for establishing in this physical life and world. As with any plant, without its foundational roots, there will be no ability to grow, let alone flourish, bloom, flower and bear fruits. They will take with them into the big world whatever has been molded into those formative years. Let us treasure this privilege and honor our role.

Here's a great video I shared recently, a powerful reminder for us parents, to stay conscious that "Our children learn most from what we are and do, not from what we say, teach or expect.


Love, Light and Blessings to you,
Patsie xo
Would love you to connect with me on my fb page www.facebook.com/AwakenOurSpiritWithin and coming very soon on www.spiritpond.com

Patsie Smith is a spiritual author of the book Awaken Our Spirit Within  avail on all online bookstores or through www.patsiesmith.com. She is a spiritual guide and speaker, bodyworker and energy healing facilitator, meditation and yoga teacher. She lives in Perth, Australia.

The Sacredness of Tears and Pain

Dear beautiful souls,

In the course of my work I am very honored to have been given the privilege to work with many clients through their healing journeys. In helping to facilitate their own inner awakening and guiding them in their healing journeys of their mind, body and soul, I almost always encounter in them the blockage of resistance and withdrawal from facing one's own sadness, grief or pain. These are undoubtedly very intense human emotions that tear us to the core, especially when facing an intimate loss, end or empathy. Along the way we have also allowed society and our life conditioning to somehow imprint upon us this notion of unworthiness and subtle shame or even disdain at being sad, depress, low, down and hurting. Unconsciously, we have generally grown up being told to "toughen up", "stop being a baby", "don't be silly"...... etc. I've even witnessed some parents throw a big smack onto their toddler's backside for crying. These days it is not uncommon for adolescents, teenagers, young adults and adults who decide to consult a medical doctor when experiencing extreme sadness, only to be immediately prescribed with antidepressants or sleeping tablets. Could it not be that perhaps it is simply as simple as allowing ourselves to feel and process through our sadness, pain, depression? Have we allowed and given ourselves full permission to honor and release those emotions?

All emotions are simply energy at the very core. Minus the thoughts attached to the energy of that emotion, it is simply energy. Sadness and happiness share the same intensity on the scale of magnitude, only differ based on the thoughts attached to them. Energy can flow and is dynamic if we allow it to flow, so it arises,comes, and passes. But if we grip it by attaching or block it by resisting out of fear, we prevent it from flowing, processing through and clearing. Fear is dominant for we fear the vulnerability, exposure and openness of our heart. We fear we may totally crumble to bits like Humpty Dumpty and not be able to be put back together again. That may be the case for awhile if one is a lost soul with no inner awareness of self beyond mind and body. But if one has an awakened inner awareness, the anchoring and trust in our higher reality allows immense growth and transformation to emerge after the storm of sorrow and pain passes. Life will show us and teach us, insights and deep peace will reveal if we remain open, seek and learn.

Crying, sobbing, heaving and curling up in a ball in utter sadness and pain, in our own aloneness allow us to shed all the hardened layers of our inner self. I have heard a beautiful saying once, "Crying and sobbing is decalcification of our Heart". The heart is the seat of our soul, the center of unconditional love for our self, and others. Not love only when we are happy, chirpy, all hunky dory, up and skipping, but also love for when we are soft, hurt, in pain and breaking up on the inside. Tears are like the buff that polishes our soul on this journey of life. Every tear we shed goes toward polishing us on the inside to allow our inner glow to shine.We should honor and be proud of every tear we allow ourselves to shed, if we could bottle them, they would be worth the glow and growth of our soul.

Trust in your life's higher purpose, anchor in your inner spirit of love and compassion, and the weather will change. It always does. Nothing remains the same. The sun will shine again, but the wisdom and peace comes from allowing yourself to embrace the rain too.

With Love, Light and Blessings,
Patsie xo
Namaste !

Patsie Smith is a spiritual author, guide and self-healing facilitator, energy healing practitioner, meditation and yoga teacher.
She lives in Perth, Australia.

Learning to Receive

Dear beautiful souls,

For some of us, a major lesson in life is to learn to receive. Our cultures, morals and religions have all taught us to "freely give" and such is noble and should be cultivated. But realize also, to receive is an art we should learn to honor and embrace. Receiving, not in the selfish and greedy sense but receiving in the graciousness and gratitude sense.

There are a few reasons why some of us may have a blockage with receiving:

1) In general, most of us have had an upbringing of being instilled into us the importance of giving, so much that we may unconsciously have fallen into the notion of feeling guilty and wrong if we receive, for subconsciously we have come to perceive and equate giving = good, receiving = bad.

2) Our life circumstances and upbringing thus far may have been one where we have always had to play the role of 'giving', hence it is an ingrained pattern that we have learned. We simply don't know how to receive for we have never been in the position to receive.

3) Our life experiences may have been such that every time we have been given something, people have always expected something else in return. Hence, we refuse to receive as we do not wish to be obligated or in debt.

4) We may have grown up with lack of self-worth, as such both consciously and subconsciously feel totally unworthy to receive anything of beauty, worth, joy and abundance.

Some people may find themselves in positions of constant lack and dissatisfaction, viewing life as unjust for they never have enough to eat, love, create and enjoy. Examine closely, is one's lack  because we have not allowed ourselves to receive? The universe is abundant and if we are in tuned and flow with the infinite source, there is more to receive than we can ever imagine. We are wholeness and worthy as we are the manifestation of the Divine here to experience, enjoy, create and thrive. Receiving is part of the karmic cycle of flow, as much as giving is. To receive with a gracious heart the good things, events and people into our lives is to honor this cycle and allow its natural flow. When we receive graciously from another human being, we are honoring their privilege to be able to give, so they too will be able to receive from the abundant universe. Giving and receiving do not necessarily entail a linear passage where giving by one entails a debt and a return to the same other, but rather large infinite cycles of giving and receiving with everyone in the universe through our connectedness.

We freely give and offer thanks, services and prayers to the Universe/God but do we allow ourselves silence and an open heart to receive love, healing, lessons and directions, and hear answers? Let us never be afraid to allow our hearts and minds to be open, and our soul to blossom, as we receive graciously and with deep gratitude, for "The more we receive, the more we can give." Such is the joy and privilege of this human journey.

With Love, Light and Blessings,
Patsie
www.patsiesmith.com
www.facebook.com/AwakenOurSpiritWithin

Patsie Smith is an energetic healer, spiritual author, remedial massage therapist, meditation and yoga teacher.
She lives in Perth, Australia with her three young adult children and a dog, a tortoise, 2 birds and a fish.

Soul Living

Dear beautiful souls,

Most of us have been conventionally brought up and conditioned from early childhood, throughout  adolescence, teens and young adulthood in the typical belief and value system of our current social, education and economic model. This idealized model is growing up fitting into the expectations of a society that is geared toward the conventional system of education - preschool, to primary to high school, college, university, then get a well-paid job, get married, have a home, a mortgage, the picket fence, family wagon, the average two and the half children, a loving spouse, more successful income, retirement and live happily ever after. Thrown in amongst all that, of course we must always make sure we keep up with the Jones'. But then what? Perhaps for some this may be their life purpose. Some souls however, become conscious of this trance of limitation earlier in their life journeys and try to opt out. They may tend to make different choices, have different outlook and head down different paths. Others may come to some kind of awareness at mid-life crisis point, and sadly many others get to the end of their lives before realizing the futility of a model that is unrealistic and empty, that do not follow their soul path and purpose - their reason for being here in this world as a human being. 

Regardless of where and which point you are at in life, it is time to look within. For that is your whole purpose for being here. You are not here to be a daughter/son, parent, grandparent, friend, lover, teacher, butcher, baker, candlestick maker. These are your roles in this play and journey of life, for you to grow, learn, experience and evolve as a soul. When you know and honor your soul path, life naturally flows with joy, magic and purpose.

Q: So how do I know my soul path? How do I know my purpose?
A: By knowing your inner spirit.
Q: How do I know my inner spirit?
A: By being awakened to it.
Q: How do I awaken to it?
A: By returning to that silence deep within yourself, that powerful silence that has no name, but that you know.
Q: How do I know whether or not my spirit is already awakened?
A: As a human being we do feel a whole array of emotions, part of the whole beauty and tapestry of life. So we are not referring to emotions. When you are sad, unhappy, exhausted, unwell, are you still at peace? When you are well, are you at peace? Does your heart smile and dance on the inside? In general, do you feel your heart and spirit soaring with love and connection for all living beings and this journey of living?

When you know your silence within, and it is fully awake within you, you can't help but transform. A living spirit will naturally flush waves of change, healing, growth and learning into and through you, bringing with them excitement, new frontiers, possibilities, spontaneity and purpose.
Similarly, when you come to forks in the road on your path in life, check in with that silence. Put the mental brain on the back seat for a short while and listen to the intuition and silent wisdom of your heart. The right path will reveal itself and you will know, for you will have peace and feel a soaring within. Spirit resides in the heart, not the head.

Thank you for connecting.

With love, light and Blessings to you,
Patsie
www.patsiesmith.com
www.facebook.com/AwakenOurSpiritWithin

Patsie Smith is a spiritual author, health and healing facilitator, energetic kinesiologist, remedial massage therapist, meditation and yoga teacher. She lives in Perth, Australia.