“Relationships are never about power and one way to avoid the will to power is to choose to limit oneself- to serve.” – Wm. Paul Young, The Shack – Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity
As Mercury Retrograde come to an official close today (July 20th), many of you may be breathing a sigh of relief; this has been a month of trials, tests and emotional curveballs. Psycho spiritually and soulfully we have again been through what I refer to in my book as: A Dark Night of the Soul (see page 79). The roller coaster, acceleration process of healing continues to gather momentum and we no longer have time to catch our breath in between our deep learning, so extra effort and consciousness is needed to find time to pick out the wisdom in daily events. It feels like an intense process of purification; we are being pushed through a sieve in order to have just the goodness of ourselves come out the other side. To paraphrase another client who used this analogy to describe what it was like to be out at my herb farm: this Universal cleansing process is like “putting our soul through a washing machine.” With no time to dry in between cycles!
All of this cleansing, healing and releasing is exhausting; it feels like we are swimming against the current. Especially since humans naturally resist change when we must let go of old beliefs and shift our perceptions. This new paradigm of living, which is demanding sacred love, impeccability and transparency, continues to drain us as much as enlighten us. I noted in June and July that all my clients were more exhausted than usual at this time of year – we should be more naturally recharging in the spring/summer months. The rising energy and warmth of the spring/summer season spontaneously increases our energy levels. Normally I pare down natural health protocols over the summer, instead this summer I needed to put most clients on extra immune and adrenal products so that they could have more support to build their energy reserves over the next two months.
It is important during the intense cleansing time of Mercury Retrograde to release as often as possible – this usually means through tears so that all the heavy emotional baggage can fall away (for other symptoms see below). You may have noticed that events seemed magnified; that anger flared more easily, you cried more and that you needed to find more compassion for others so that they too could cleanse. The most important lesson of this time period was to yet again surrender to forgiveness and more compassion – we fell into a deeper layer of unconditional love for ourselves and others. This allowed us more personal power, spiritual growth and a lighter soul.
The power of forgiveness should not be taken lightly; it liberates us from the poison of anger and bitterness, and the weight of guilt and blame. Not only does forgiveness keep us physically healthy, we are also able to fully love again. Personally my whole month has been about forgiveness of the masculine; I had many significant events unfold that gave me the choice and opportunity to forgive and love more deeply. I needed to forgive certain men in my life for various reasons and I was blessed with a profound releasing of past wounding and hurt. It was not an easy process but now I can move more fully forward into my future because the past is healed. One individual in particular released me from 16 years of pain by simply saying: I am so sorry I hurt you, please forgive me. I cried for five whole days afterward; the weight that was lifted through this act of release was nothing short of miraculous.
As we head into August know that we will still be emotionally releasing on and off for the next couple of weeks, the chance of forgiveness will be offered up to us and we will need to have patience with ourselves and others. Non-Judgement and detachment from drama and outcome are essential so that we can keep our balance with all that is unfolding around us. Divine timing is at play and the next phase of our lives will not be lining up completely until August or September. The human pieces on the cosmic chess board are slowly being moved around again for a new game. So now is the time to rest and build our energy, continue to look at creating our lives through enjoying the process of living, not end goals. If you need a reminder of how to enjoy the process please read my past blog on Creating Your Life.
Remember that every great accomplishment is fueled by patience, love, impeccability and support from others. It is not what you do, but how you do it. This theme of service dove tails into part 2 of my blog which is about the Mystic Archetype – Being called to Service. The world’s patriachical power structures continue to crumble and rearrange themselves and internally we are shifting from “power over” to “in service of” in our second and third chakras. We are slowly building a world with a co-creative, healing undertone, not one of corruption, narcissism, apathy and destruction. With this is coming greater responsibility to play a part in changing the world around us. Yet many of us are still ignoring the universal taps on our shoulder or resisting and sabotaging where we need to step more fully into ourselves, our work and our talents. For now recognize that you just went through A Dark Night, survived the test from Spirit and proved your worth. Give yourself a pat on the shoulder or ask for a big hug! As my grandmother used to say: What does not kill you will make you stronger! So relish your victory over your Lower Self. Know that your Higher Self is emerging from Mercury Retrograde and will now add more light to the world.
Blessings,
Samantha
Physical Symptoms during the rest of July and August: While the persistent viral flu seems to have finally died out, we are now very tired and our immune systems compromised. As I mentioned in my last blog the immune support from Reishi, Cat’s Claw, Astragalus, Lapacho and Echinacea are perfect for rebuilding our energy levels during this time. Also build your immunity by still taking Vitamin C and D versus taking a break in August. Our digestion will still be touchy – gas, bloating, acid reflux, constipation (holding on to past) and rapid bowel movements (finally letting go). Emotionally we will still have mood swings of anger, depression, apathy and lethargy through till the end of the Mercury Retrograde cycle (which cycles out by August 3rd). To help your sense of purpose look to activities that connect you to nature and creative projects that feed your soul.
Plant Spirit Allies that will support you to emerge into your Higher Self: Marshmallow Root – to digest food and your reality and soften your sense of power into service. Also allows one to release toxins, blame and anger through the kidneys. Hawthorn – to allow events of the past month to soften into loving wisdom and heart centered learning. Calendula – to balance the masculine and feminine, to maintain personal boundaries, relieves depression and grief by bringing warmth, joy and hope to the soul, calms stormy emotions. Echinacea – supports the Mystic archetype, integrates and elevates the vibration of the second and third chakras, strengthens the immune system. Senses of the Soul products: The Warrior Elixir, The Sovereign Elixir, The Lover Elixir, Goddess Tonic Tea, Sacred Union tea.
Important Cosmic dates for July and August:
New Moon: August 6th
Full Moons: July 22nd (although it will appear full on the evening of the 21st) and August 20th
(pictured below: Echinacea Plant)
