Tag: courage

When Does the Spiritual Become Political?

if my spirituality is based on love and compassion for all of the earth, then I am called to speak out against injustice.

Goddess Inspired

July 17, 2024

Tagged courage, Politics, Speaking My Truth, spirituality

Full view here

All of my life I have been a good girl. Being a good girl means not rocking the boat, not questioning, not speaking out about injustice – in short being a quiet little mouse who is afraid of any kind of controversy, who is afraid of taking a stand. No matter what I thought internally, I would not speak out on controversial subjects. I still struggle with the fear that voicing my opinion will lead to ostracism by those that I care about.

I abandoned the religion of my childhood many years ago and replaced it, not with religion and dogma, but with a spirituality based on love, compassion, empathy, and kindness. As I move deeper into my spiritual practices, I am asking myself the questions, “When does the spiritual become political and when am I called to speak out?”

What does spirituality have to do with politics? When do the two intersect? Those are big questions for me – especially if the answers require more of me than spending time in meditation. What if I am actually called to speak out in a group that doesn’t agree with me? My fear almost made me bury these questions, but fortunately, my spiritual journey wouldn’t allow me to let go of such an important inquiry.

I wrote a blog in October 2021 entitled “My Heart is Cracked Open,” and I included it in my book, WomanSpiritSpeaks: 52 Weeks with the Divine Feminine (Balboa Press, 2022). At that time, I was beginning to feel the deep stirring that was encouraging me to speak out about injustice, to be firm in my convictions, and to become more involved in doing my part to bring about change. What I continue to realize is that injustice, in whatever form it takes, becomes political. Lack – of housing, medical care, education, food, respect, bodily autonomy – is injustice. The -isms – racism, ageism, sexism – are all injustices. Jesus himself called for what we now label as political – radical love and acceptance for all.

If my spirituality is based on love and compassion for all of the earth, then I am called to speak out against these injustices. If it is political to call for justice, then so be it. If I raise my voice in protest or if I raise my voice calling for change, and it is labeled political, then so be it. It is my Source, the bedrock of my soul, that is calling for me to be the change in the world that I want to see. So I am choosing to speak out for justice, to support those who follow the way of love and peace, to support those who live lives of integrity and those who put others above their own interests. I invite you to join me in speaking up for the changes we want to see in the world. When our hearts are cracked open, what will we do next to make a difference?

My heart is cracked open
When I see the man kneeling on another man’s neck
When a child is shot with a phone in his hand
When vigilantes chase down a jogger because he looks at a house under construction
When a handcuffed man is kicked in the head
When mass shootings occur everyday
My heart is cracked open.
When a child victim of rape is forced to birth a child
When a woman is forced to carry a dead baby to termWhen a victim is blamed for the actions of her attacker
When no doesn’t seem to mean no
When women and children are trafficked and sold
My heart is cracked open.
When I see the smoke polluted air
When I taste the polluted water
When species disappear
When the powerful continue to use up and exploit our mother the earth
When profit is all that matters
My heart is cracked open.
©2022, Barbara Garland

Blessings on your journey,
July, 2024

Using My Voice

We are all in this together, and by sharing our authentic selves, we help others to do the same. How do you want to use your voice?

Goddess Inspired

November 4, 2022

Tagged Authenticity, courage, Fear, Speaking One's Truth

Full view here

It is not always easy for women to find their voices. There are so many cultural messages when it comes to speaking our authentic truth and standing in our sovereignty. If I speak my anger, I am a bitch; If I share my grief, I am too emotional; if I am logical and rational, I am cold and unfeeling; if I share my knowledge, I don’t know what I am talking about. Think about those times when strong women speak out, when they call for change, or call out injustice. The media concentrates, not on their words, but what they are wearing. It is no wonder that I, and many other women that I know, have been afraid to use my voice throughout most of my life.

When I began writing these blog posts two years ago, I was determined to use my voice. It is one of the life lessons that I must learn. Of course, I was terrified to publicly speak my truth. Each week, as I posted this blog, I was aware of a deep-seated fear. What would people think? How would they react? Would they reject me because I was writing things that were not main-stream or because they weren’t the same beliefs as everyone else’s?

This has been a profound journey of self-discovery. As I write each week, I am expressing my own spiritual struggles. I am expressing what I hope to become, lessons that I am continuously learning, and concepts that I am exploring. It is obvious that I am a work in progress, and definitely not a finished product. It is a messy process that can’t be wrapped into a neat package and tied with a bow. It is the real me, and it isn’t necessarily pretty.

Each time I hit the send button, I find myself filled with self-doubt, and more than a little fear, about how this week’s writing will be received. Is it good enough? Am I the only one who feels this way? Why did I say that? But each week, I find myself less and less afraid to stand in my own truth. Each time I step out, my voice becomes stronger, and I become more centered into who I am on the deepest level.

As you know, I recently published a book, which is an interactive journal, compiling one year’s worth of my blogs with questions designed to help the reader determine their own spiritual essence. I was terrified for the book to actually be published, but now that it is out, I feel more grounded and real. My true self is out there. The world hasn’t come to an end. My friends haven’t deserted me. I am here. I have spoken my truth.

Finding my voice has been a process consisting of a lifetime of baby steps. Each time I speak my truth, each time I use my voice, each time I offer my vulnerability as well as my strength – these times give me courage to step out the next time. While the fear is still there, it no longer rules me. Fear no longer has the power over me that it once had. I can speak my truth openly and unapologetically. I have found my voice.

As you find your own voice, remember that it is a process. It is one step at a time, and sometimes you fall back and have to begin again. Each time you speak is another step forward to having the courage to speak the next time and the next. We are all in this together, and by sharing our authentic selves, we help others to do the same. How do you want to use your voice?

Barbara Garland
November, 2022

The Pathfinders

During these troubled times, I believe that spiritually awakened women and men are called upon to be the leaders who help others to find a different way.

Goddess Inspired

September 24, 2022

Tagged courage, Support, Tipping Point, Wisdom

Full view here

As I drew from my Animal Spirits oracle desk this morning, I was aware of how devoid of ideas I was. I have been trying to write a blog for several days now, and no ideas have been forthcoming. When I drew the Wolf-Pathfinder card, my prayers for inspiration were answered.

The wolf is seen as a teacher, the leader who helps others find their way. They are collaborative and live in a pack, each individual knowing their place and fulfilling their individual role as teacher, nurturer, or hunter. Their power comes from cooperating within the pack structure.

During these troubled times, I believe that spiritually awakened women and men are called upon to be the leaders who help others to find a different way. So many are waking up to the idea that our cultural norms are no longer working. We are facing real existential crises, crises that can’t be solved using the old paradigms. As we explore new ideas and new ways of being, the old guard is reacting with increasing violence and hatred. The old world is in its death throes, and a new world is being born, but in that process chaos and confusion abound.

I believe that we are called to model a new paradigm of cooperating within our groups. We are the pathfinders. We must firmly but lovingly call out lies and injustice. We must bravely stand for the rights of all people, not just the wealthy and privileged few. We must speak truth and be allies with and for those who cannot speak for themselves. Just like in the wolf pack, we are called to protect those who are weaker and defend the integrity of the pack.

I have spent a great portion of my life feeling that I wasn’t good enough, that I didn’t know enough, and that I didn’t have the expertise or experience to speak out. I also was afraid of speaking my truth. As I continue to struggle with these internal barriers, I am coming to realize that it is imperative that I speak, in spite of these perceived limitations. I have gained a certain wisdom by living a long life. It is my job to share that wisdom with those who will listen. It is my job within the collective to do whatever I can in my own little corner to make a difference in someone’s life.

Lately after my morning meditations, I have been writing down how I want to be as my future dream self – the person I want to be this time next year. However, I am writing as if that dream self already exists. I find that each time I write I become stronger and less afraid to speak out when I see injustice. I become more confident as the powerful woman that I am. I no longer feel the need for approval. I stand in my hard-won wisdom. And I am not alone. I am surrounded by other companions on the spiritual path who are working with me to make the world a better place.

Millions of people around the world are working toward a new world paradigm – a world where there is enough for everyone, where justice is truly blind, where love and compassion are operational norms, and where peace prevails. Sometime soon there will be a tipping point where the old gives way to the new. I invite you to join the pack and do your small part to change the world by living out your best self and sharing your wisdom.

Barbara Garland
September, 2022

Breaking Through Fear

Today I am celebrating my freedom, not from fear but from letting fear stop me!

Goddess Inspired

September 17, 2022

Tagged courage, Fear, Freedom, Self Actualization

Full view here

Fear is a funny thing. On the one hand, it keeps me from running toward the lion or jumping off a cliff. On the other hand, it prevents me from speaking out and from being my true self with the people around me. While it can protect me from danger, it can also block my growth as a fully actualized human being. What I have discovered recently is that once I face my fear and act in spite of it, I become free.

I have always thought that by the time I reached my seventies that I would no longer care about what people think. I thought I would have left my fears behind. However I realize that there is still some small part of me that is afraid of losing people I care about if I show up as who I truly am. There is a fear that I will be rejected because of what I think and believe. For me, it has been a lifelong struggle to speak my truth to the wider world.

Writing this blog over the past two years has been a courage builder for me. It has been the first platform in which I publicly speak my truth. However, my readership consists mostly of folks who are on a similar path to mine, people who are open to looking at the world in an unconventional way. My readers. While they might not agree with every premise, are generally open to the general spiritual concepts that I write about.

Launching my book, a book that lays bare my deep spiritual struggles, is a difficult thing to do. It raises all the issues of speaking my truth, of what people will think, and of my fears of rejection. It was a huge step, and one that I agonized over. My book is my baby, and I had all kinds of fears that someone might call my baby ugly. So when I announced my book on Face Book last week and sent out invitations to my book-launching party, I finally let go of my fears of showing up to the world as a deeply spiritual, but non-religious person. I felt liberated and proud for acting in spite of my fears – those real, but mostly irrational anxieties that aren’t always even conscious.

And guess what? The world didn’t come to an end. My friends are excited that I am a published author and are happy to celebrate with me, even if they might not agree with me from a religious standpoint. And I am finally free of worrying about what anyone thinks. I stand in my truth and am proud of who I have become. While fear has not gone away, the next time it will be easier to act in spite of it.

Today I am celebrating my freedom, not from fear but from letting fear stop me! It has been a decades long journey that has never been easy, but after facing my fear and pushing through it, I am finally free to be the soul I was meant to be.

Thanks to all of you, who have encouraged me along the way.

Barbara Garland
October, 2022

An Interconnected Life

As we live our lives in this interconnected web, it is helpful to remember that we are not alone. Our vibrations make a difference to others, just as theirs make a difference to us. We are called to boldly share our vulnerabilities, our love, and our hearts during our time in these earthly bodies. What part of your vibrations are you willing to share?

Goddess Inspired

February 26, 2021
2 Comments on An Interconnected Life

Tagged courage, Interconnectedness, Sharing, Unconditional Love, Vulnerability

Full view here

Grandmother Spider
She who creates the web of the world
Weaver of lives, of hopes, of dreams.

Beautiful Goddess
Come to me as I weave the strands of my life
First this way, then that – over, under – weaving together beauty and sorrow.
Creating a strong place to lie – an interconnected realm
Where the vibration that is me travels to the whole,
Where my actions reverberate for myself and the many.

Grandmother Spider
Teach me to love each strand in the web.
Each strand has its place.
Each strand contributes.
Teach me to weave the lovely and not so lovely strands
Into the whole tapestry that becomes my beautiful self.

An Interconnected Life

In my spiritual imagination, I am floating blissfully in the cosmos, soaking up the unconditional love of the Infinite Source. I am filled to overflowing with such a vast love that I cannot fully comprehend it. I am also aware of an infinity of souls which are connected by the threads of this love. Most of these souls, however, are not conscious of these threads of love which bind us all together. In my spiritual imagination, I send out love along those threads. Through my own awareness, the threads of love vibrate and move. Some souls are awakened by this vibration. Some stir a little and go back to sleep. I am not the only one in this web who is aware. There are countless others who are awake and who are also sending loving awareness to others.

Since I began to write this blog and put it out into the world, I have become aware that sharing my struggles and my vulnerability with others acts much like that silken web in my spiritual imagination. The vibrations that are released into the world become catalysts for others to birth their own struggles, their own ideas, their own epiphanies into the world. My “Dance of Yes,” opens someone else to their own “Dance of Yes.” My vibrations help others to awaken, just as the vibrations of others have helped me to become more conscious.

We are all intimately connected by invisible strands of love and by shared (but many time unspoken) experiences. We are more alike than we are different. Each of us is a spiritual being having a human experience, and our experiences tend to be universal. We all desire love, acceptance, security, food, and shelter. We all long for connection with something greater than ourselves, although we are not always conscious of what we long for.

Many times, all it takes is someone courageously sharing their own story to create a spark of recognition in me. A book, a phrase, a song, a painting, a conversation – these can all be aha moments which move me to greater understanding and deeper awareness. I, personally, have been blessed by many such moments in my own life. These moments have allowed me to see that I am not the only one with doubts and struggles. I am not the only one who feels lost and alone. I am not the only one who thinks the way I do. And in that realization that I am not the only one, I am encouraged to stay on my path, to be brave, to stand in my truth, to claim my own inner strength, and to share with others.

Barbara Garland
February, 2021An Interconnected Life

The Courage to Be Authentic

Is there a part of your deepest self that you are hiding from the world? Where can you show up bravely and with courage?

Goddess Inspired

February 12, 2021
8 Comments on The Courage to Be Authentic

Tagged Brene Brown, courage, Fear, Perfectionism, Showing Up

Full view here

The Courage to Be Authentic

Last week I wrote about my own shadow of perfectionism. As I have pondered this lesson, I have realized that being a perfectionist has helped me to cover up my fears. And there are oh so many fears! I am afraid of being judged as less than, of being seen as incompetent, of being seen as unworthy of love because of who I am, of truly being unworthy, of being wrong – I could write pages of words about fear. So I cover these fears by never venturing into an arena in which I might fail, by keeping myself small and invisible, or by not speaking out when by doing so, I might be criticized. An example is this very blog. I haven’t distributed it to anyone who I think might be critical or who might not appreciate my journey toward the Sacred Feminine.

A by-product of this fear is not showing up in the world as my true self. I can never BE LOVE in the world if I don’t love my own self fully and completely. Brené Brown says, “Because true belonging only happens when we present our authentic, imperfect selves to the world, our sense of belonging can never be greater than our level of self-acceptance.”

So it comes down to courage – courage to allow myself to love the full range of who I am and who I am becoming, to then share myself fully with those around me, and to stand in the full power and truth of my deepest self. When I am too afraid to express my full and true self, I deny others the privilege of knowing my depth or sharing my struggles (which may in fact be very similar to their struggles). It is when I share myself fully, heart to heart and soul to soul that I finally begin to understand and have compassion for another. This kind of sharing requires vulnerability, openness, and, yes, great courage.

As I look at the great teachers and leaders throughout history, I believe that they all had one thing in common – they had the courage to show their true selves to the world, and in that courage they acted upon their convictions to speak the Divine truth that flowed through them. They acted in spite of their fears, and some paid the ultimate price of their own lives. However, if they had not shown up, the world as we know it would be a sadder and less enlightened place.

To quote Brené Brown once again, “The willingness to show up changes us. It makes us a little braver each time.” When I do not allow myself to be who I truly am out of fear, no matter what that fear is, I diminish myself and become small. I deprive myself and the world of my true essence and don’t allow the Divine to flow through me. I cannot BE LOVE in the world if I am not BEING LOVE to myself.

This year I have committed to saying ‘yes’ to the nudges of the Divine. I have committed to listening to that still, small voice that leads me to my deepest, truest self. But I have to be willing to show up, step up, and speak up – to be my true and authentic self in every circumstance and with everyone, whether or not I think they will approve. I must not allow my shadow-self, full of perfectionism, fears, and doubts, to keep me from shining my Divine light into the world. Today I will release this blog to a wider audience of friends and acquaintances who do not know this side of me.

Is there a part of your deepest self that you are hiding from the world? Where can you show up bravely and with courage?

Barbara Garland
February, 2021

I Am a Priestess Warrior

Yesterday I was working with Modern Day Mystic, Carrie Asuncion. As we talked, she told me that I had lived at least fifteen lifetimes as a priestess of the Goddess.

Goddess Inspired

October 2, 2020

Tagged balance, courage, goddess, past lives, Priestess

Full view here

I Am a Priestess Warrior

Yesterday I was working with Modern Day Mystic, Carrie Asuncion. As we talked, she told me that I had lived at least fifteen lifetimes as a priestess of the Goddess.

FIFTEEN LIFETIMES! No wonder I have felt this call to HER my whole life. Considering how women have been treated over the last thousands of years, no wonder I have been afraid of openly admitting that I follow the Goddess.

Following that session with Carrie, I listened to a past life regression with Dr. Brian Weiss. In that regression I saw myself as a priestess of the Goddess, somewhere in ancient Greece. That priestess’s life ended when invaders came to destroy the temple, and she stood to defend it.

This morning on my walk, the words priestess warrior came into my head. When those words popped into my thoughts, I viscerally felt as though I had been called to be a priestess warrior throughout those 15 lifetimes. But what is a priestess warrior?

As I pondered this question, it came to me that a priestess warrior is the perfect balance between the Sacred Feminine and the Sacred Masculine, the balance between Yin and Yang, light and dark. A priestess warrior connects receptivity with action and compassion with fierceness. A priestess warrior is like the mother who protects her children fiercely and lovingly. She is ever vigilant, fierce, wise, beautiful, open, and alert.

A priestess is a teacher, wise woman, practitioner of faith, keeper of mystery, encourager, storyteller, and healer. It is through her lineage that our species learns how to relate to the great mother Gaia and to all of the natural world.

A warrior is a fierce defender, protector, fighter, and one who bravely faces the enemy, even when she is afraid.

When the world is in balance a priestess does not negate the warrior, nor does the warrior negate the priestess. When they are in balance, they are in perfect harmony. Together, they become the image of the Goddess herself.

I am called to be a priestess and a warrior.
I am called to protect and defend the altar of the Goddess.
I am called to teach the ways of the Goddess and her message of balance and wholeness.
I am called to be the keeper and protector of the Great Mystery.
I am called to be strong – to be brave in spite of my fear.
I am called to be a fierce encourager and a mystical healer
I am called to speak the truth as it is revealed through the Goddess.
I am called to be wise – to re-member the stories of the Goddess through the ages.
I am called to be filled with ‘fierce grace’.
I am called to restore the balance between Sacred Feminine and Sacred Masculine, between the Priestess and the Warrior, so that balance may be restored to the world.

I am quite sure that many of us who follow the Goddess are priestess warriors. We just have to remember who we truly are.

Barbara Garland

About

New blogs will be added to this post every Friday.

Contact Me

womanspiritspeaks48@gmail.com

Name *

First

Last

Email *

Comment or Message *

About Me

I am a seeker of truth, a truth teller, a lover of the Divine Feminine, an aspiring writer, a mystery, an open book, a work in progress. I have lived a long and varied life, and now in my seventies, I am being called to share some of what I have learned over the years. I hope to share the wisdom of the deep Feminine that is being channeled through me.

If the Goddess has ever whispered to you, I invite you to join me on an incredible journey of love and discovery. May you hear Her wisdom through these words.

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts