As I enter the Christmas season, like many others, I vow to enjoy the holidays more. Part of doing this, means identifying things that I don’t enjoy and trying to change those things. I’m going to be mindful of a few simple things to help me navigate the Christmas season.

1. Take time for yourself.

To me, this is often the best gift of all. Slow down, even though the craziness of Christmas, is urging you to speed along crazily. Take some alone time, even if it is only 10 minutes every day, to quite your mind and you will feel much better.

The craziness of the season sometimes whips us into unconscious patterns without us even realizing it. A good way to avoid this is to take time to ground yourself when you feel yourself spiraling out of control. Picture yourself as a tree with your roots going into the ground. Breathe deeply to the count of 8, hold it for a couple of counts, and then do a long exhale. The deep breathing will relax you and ground you as well.

Being outside in nature is also a good way to ground yourself, and be by yourself at the same time.

2. Be in the present, and be conscious of what you are doing.
Being conscious and present for me, involves being aware of those unconscious patterns I have inherited from my own family. While I also inherited many wonderful Christmas traditions, one of my ways of honoring my heritage and myself at the same time, is trying not to re-create those unconscious patterns around Christmas which have wounded me and others.

I read an excellent article suggesting raising your energy, prior to going into family situations where old patterns might be unconsciously activated.

The article suggested raising your vibration prior to the event (this can be done even by singing a favourite Christmas carol). If you notice an old pattern surfacing, you can interrupt it. You can remove yourself from the situation, or speak positively about something in the other person’s life.

The whole idea is just to change the energy of the pattern, so you aren’t replicating the same pattern. Even if you just change the situation energetically by sending positive thought energy to the other person, you can raise their vibration.

3. Practice gratitude!!

It becomes easy to complain about the stress of Christmas. However, it is a good time to remember how much we really do have, and to be thankful for all of those good things.

Try to enjoy the simple gifts that Christmas brings, wherever you are. Pay attention to your senses, and bring yourself back into your body. Focus on the sound of the snow crunching under your boots, the smell of a freshly cut Christmas tree, the twinkling of beautiful Christmas lights, the sounds of carols or children laughing.

Focus on all the positive aspects of your life, even if you feel like you don’t have many. Even if your family is driving you crazy, you have family to make you crazy. Even if you don't like your gifts, you are receiving gifts.

If you are feeling lonely or depressed, you can still feel gratitude. It is amazing how helping others, or experiencing the misfortune of others can cure you of your pity party.

The worst Christmas I ever had was when my partner of 5 years left me right before Christmas, I hated my job, and my mother and sister were out of the country. I was very depressed, suicidal, and did not want to celebrate Christmas.

I came home from the city I lived in, to celebrate with my father. My father was single too, depressed, and had not thought about the need to prepare Christmas supper. As we discovered the hard way, no restaurants are open on Christmas day. As we drove around town trying to find a restaurant, we ended up at a truck stop for our Christmas supper. After observing the people around us, and listening to their conversations, I have never been so happy for what I had. I only had to endure my “misfortune” one day of the year, but those around me had virtually none of the options that I did. It really showed me how much I had in my life.

I hope these simple techniques can help combat some of the craziness of the season. Christmas can be a magical time, if you can keep in mind and follow what the spirit of Christmas means to you.

Merry Christmas! Enjoy!

Damselfly, Cuttlefish and Hobgoblin

I journeyed for P with the following question: “Why does happiness continue to elude me and what do I need to do to create, savour and share it though my life?”

I went to the side of the lake where I usually start my journeys. I could hear “On your mark, get set, GO!” I looked at “myself” in the journey (kind of an idealized version of how I look in “real” life) and I was decked out like the god Mercury. I had the silver helmet, silver winged shoes. On “Go!” I shot out of the starting gate and ran up into the sky. I ran and ran on smoke all the way up. (This haste symbolized to me that perhaps P really want to get the answer to his question.)

I reached the Upperworld, and was met by a blinding white light. In fact, the whole time I was in the Upperworld I couldn’t see anything – I was blinded by the white light which was bathing everything in light so brilliant I could make out anything. Out of the white light, white oblong shapes started flinging themselves at me, shooting out in rapid succession. I couldn’t really see what they were but when I asked the word “cuttlefish” was given to me. I could then tell that they were the cuttlefish husks used in bird cages for birds to sharpen their beaks on.

I asked for messages, but no one identified themselves to talk to me. I asked again if there were any messages for P, and a voice said “Not here, but try next door.” I went down a set of stairs all the way to the Lower World and entered the Lower World through a wooden door.

I immediately saw a little hobgoblin. I asked if he had any messages for P, but he said “No” then urged me to sit down. I was provided with a rocking chair, and I sat down next to some type of opening. As I sat there rocking, the ground was moving and it opened up into what looked like a woman symbol, then gradually made itself into a keyhole shape. I could see the Void (black space with stars).

I went through the giant keyhole and was hanging weightless in the black space Void. I asked if there were any messages for P. After I waited a bit, a creature which I first thought was a butterfly came over. It had butterfly-like wings, so I asked “Dragonfly?” Wordlessly it answered, “No, damselfly.” It confirmed that it was P’s power animal.



I asked the Damselfly if it had any messages for P. It said “She has to follow her spirit.” I asked “How does she do that?” The Damselfly said “She’ll know. She has to release her fears.” The Damselfly started flying, and I followed. It progressed from the black and starry void into a lighter, whiter area. Soon it was blinding white light again, like the light in the Upperworld. I asked her “What is this place?” She said “Happiness.”



I saw a large black millipede curled up into a spiral, but I didn’t get any immediate responses about what the millipede meant.



I asked if there was anybody else that had any messages for P. A white traditional looking angel came gliding out. He was very shy and very mysterious. He didn’t speak and just held his hands in a prayer position. He smiled and said “Surrender.”



I thanked the angel, and the Damselfly and I went back the way we came. When I asked the Damselfly what the white place we were in was called she said “Happiness”. (So I’m assuming that the white Upperworld was Happiness too.) As we went back into the black void, I asked the Damselfly what this black void represented. “Possibility”, she said.



When we entered the Lowerworld again, the hobgoblin was jumping up and down. “Do you have something to say to P?” I asked. “No,” he said, “I’m just so excited for her!” He was smiling from ear to ear. I retraced my steps and thanked the guides and power animals and came back to ordinary reality.



Analysis
In speaking to P, she couldn’t think of any immediate connection to the god Mercury. I asked her to think about her associations with language, magic, communications and/or intellect. She did say she always enjoyed using words and language.



We talked about the cuttlefish. Cuttlefish, after they die, continue to provide by having their bodies used as sharpening devices. Because of this some of the traditional suggested meanings of cuttlefish are: a legacy to future generations, or something that is being held back for you or alternatively some type of family legacy (history, heredity). There were no connections to cuttlefish in her life, that P could think of.

P had no reference for hobgoblins, or the reason there was a giant woman’s symbol opening up into the keyhole to the void. I asked if she could think of any issues specifically pertaining to being a woman. She replied that she didn’t.

Damselflies are similar to dragonflies (I couldn’t find any meanings specific to damselflies). Some of dragonflies usual meanings are: transcendence, wisdom and enlightenment. The dragonfly inhabits two realms, air and water. As dragonflies they age they go through metamorphosis and take to the air. As a power animal, a Damselfly therefore can give a person balance between emotion and thought, as water represents the emotional body, and air represents the mental. As P didn’t have any conscious connection to Damselfly, I urged her to try to connect by having a photo or artwork of a Damselfly to help connect with its qualities.

A spiral, or as represented in this journey, a millipede, often personifies a labyrinth, which invites us to look inside ourselves for our inner wisdom. It speaks to the link between the outside material world and the inside spiritual world. I suggested to P that it was likely asking P to focus inside, on her inner, spiritual life.



I told P I believed the latter part of the journey, was quite literal so P could understand the message clearly. Her angel told her to “Surrender.” I suggested that it appears that she has to get to happiness by releasing her fears, going through “possibility”, and surrendering. This ties into the meaning of the millipede, which was also inviting her to go inside herself and pay attention.



Since Mercury rules communications and language and the arts, I suggested that perhaps P needed to discover her inner world through writing or the arts. “Coincidentally” P had just bought a set of watercolor paints, even though she had never painted. I was excited for her, because this sounded like exactly what she needed to do to connect with her inner world. I urged her to suspend any judgment of her creations, to turn off her brain, and just create and see what came out.



Bringing the cuttlefish in as well, it may be that P’s legacy to future generations may lie in her finding her own happiness.



Later I thought about the hobgoblin. Hobgoblins are traditionally associated with working mischief on humans. Since the hobgoblin seemed to be a guardian of the entrance to her “unconscious” – the void – and was a cheerleader for her, perhaps her mischievious unconscious side really wants her to succeed in finding her happiness.



I thank P very much for sharing her journey which contained some very unique creatures I have never seen in a previous journey!

I have one opening for journey prior to Christmas, however if you purchase a journey now (for yourself or someone else) you receive the 25% December Discount, and the journey can be done in January!

Kara

Thanks to David for use of the photo which was posted on his site: http://theatavism.blogspot.com/2009/11/sunday-spinelessness-damselflies.html

Also, his website explained the difference between a dragonfly and a damselfly:
"You can probably tell just by looking at Xanthocnemis that damselflies are related to dragonflies, in fact the damsels and the dragons are two infra-orders in the medievaly themed order Odonata . You can tell a damselfly from a dragonfly thanks to the way they hold their wings - damselflies fold them up over their body when they land while dragonflies hold them open ..."

Grizzly Bear and Crystal Mushrooms

I did my usual journey preparations, and set my intentions about journeying for Z.

I looked at “myself” who was waiting on the side of the lake where I go to do my journeys. She was dressed in cowboy chaps, she had an Iriquois mohawk hairstyle, and a Western-style long-sleeved shirt on with wild roses embroidered on it. She landed on one knee like a Ukrainian dancer. (This was a clear indication to a question Z had asked about where she would be living.)
“I” got ready to go, and twirled up and up and up into the Upper World. I asked if there were any messages there for Z. There were not, so Iwent down a staircase that started out straight, and ended up sprialing down into the Lower World.

I had to squeeze through a tiny wooden door into the Lower World. When I was inside I saw lots of mushrooms arou nd. I asked if there were messages for Z. A Grizzly bear showed itself to me, but didn’t really want to come out. It finally came out but indicated that it was really annoyed that it had to appear because it was hibernating. I asked if it was Z’s power animal and it indicated that it was.

I asked the bear if Z should get a job or volunteer. The bear grunted “job”. The bear indicated that it wanted to go. I asked if it was grumpy because Z should be paying more attention to it, and the bear indicated yes, and then went back into hibernation.

When I asked if there were any more messages, a tiny mouse came out. She jumped up on my hand, and tried to squeak her message into my ear, but I couldn’t hear her. She “showed” me her message, by making tiny higgledy-piggedly patterns around on the ground, that were very cute. She indicated she was also Z’s power animal. Her message to me seemed to be that if Z revealed her inner adorableness, everyone will find you adorable. The message felt like that if Z revealed her inner “adorableness” it would improve her personal relationships.

I asked if there were any more messages before I left. The brown mushrooms I had seen growing before, showed themselves to me again. The message seemed to be that Z should be out in the mountains more, looking at things like mushrooms. Then the mushrooms told me “Look for the crystal mushrooms”. I think this might have a metaphorical meaning for Z, for when she is out hiking, as to inner wisdom that the mushrooms can share with Z in the wild, that Z needs to be out in the wild for some reason. I also think it might mean that Z might see some “crystal mushrooms” that she should buy/obtain, to have as a decoration or something to look at in her house.

Journey Analysis:It was interesting speaking to Z, as she mentioned that her partner has a great affinity for Grizzly bears. I told Z that the Grizzly’s grumpy mood seemed to indicate that Z really knew what she had to do for herself, she just had to do it. I told her that I got the feeling from the Grizzly that she was supposed to hibernate herself for awhile, to go inside, slow down, and figure out what it was that she wanted before she ventured out into the world again. I told her I thought she needed some solitude and self-reflection time.

I told Z that the message that Mouse was trying to give her was a message about strength through vulnerability. Mouse seemed to indicate to me that if Z gave more room to her adorable side – sweetness and cuteness – that it would improve her relationship with others. Z wasn’t crazy about doing this, as she didn’t think it would come naturally to her. I reminded her that even though it might not be in her nature, Mouse had come at this time to remind her of something to be gained in her relationships with her family, by remembering and revealing her natural adorableness.

Z mentioned that she didn’t at this time, feel any particular affinity for the power animals of Bear and Mouse. I told Z that if she wasn’t getting any personal meanings from her power animals, that it might be helpful to have a photo or a figurine, or some kind of visual reminder of her power animal(s), close by to somewhere she would see them quite often. Calling upon the characteristics of these power animals, at whatever time they appear in our lives, can help us deal with the situations that arise at the times the animals appear.

We discussed the appearance of the mushrooms. Z said mushrooms didn’t really have any personal meaning for her. I discussed the fact that mushrooms could be symbolic of a tool for her to retrieve messages from the Divine, since shamans had long used mushrooms for that purpose. Along with the hibernating bear, the mushroom symbol was likely about retrieving her messages from within.

I told Z that I thought she would likely see a “crystal mushroom” figurine when she was out and about, and that if she did she should acquire it. Crystals in general are able to structure, store, amplify, focus, transmit and transform energy, which includes matter, emotion and information. From the intention the mushrooms gave me in her journey, it seems that Z is supposed to be looking at the crystal mushrooms for some reason. Sometimes these visual symbols can trigger deeply held memories, or help retrieve messages that one has forgotten or are from the Divine or even past lives.

Thanks to Z for letting me publish her journey here!

Journeys are on sale for 25% off in December. I still have 2 openings to perform Journeys before Christmas. You can also buy a Journey for another person as a gift (pay in December, Journey can be performed in January). Email me at conduitofjoy@hotmail.com!