So I mentioned a couple of posts ago a long held intention to write on the theme of “embrace your face”. And here and now, unexpectedly, but, it feels, perhaps somehow fittingly, it finds its time and place, and an unexpected form.
In the pagan tradition in the Southern Hemisphere, Samhain has just passed. These seasonal celebrations resonate with me, so I try to make space to honour them, however it fits at the time, without making it another chore of a busy world, so that it is an act of reverence. Samhain marks the Celtic New Year and at this time we are heading into Winter, into darker times, into within. The veil between Life and Death is thin.
It feels right to be honouring this right now, and also honouring our Ancestors, and the Elements of Nature. I do not live on the land of my ancestors, but the Wadawarrung people of this land honour also their Ancestors and the Elements, so it feels right to honour Ancestors and the Elements here, even if the seasons of this land are different to those celebrated in the pagan tradition - that part honours my ancestry. There are some things about the seasons that are also the same here, and this time feels to me definitely a time of slowing down and going within. And then of course, in these times, even the seasons are changing. This is a time of shifting.
And then these times we are living through right now I feel are calling us all even more strongly to within, through enforced distancing and isolation, through slowing down, being in one place more, by ourselves more, with our selves more, alone or with just those closest to us. These times through many means are calling us to review what is and to reflect on what we value, what is important, what is essential, what is necessary, and what is not. Calling us to choose what it is time to release and what it is time to renew and what it is time to rebirth.
In the pagan tradition in the Southern Hemisphere, Samhain has just passed. These seasonal celebrations resonate with me, so I try to make space to honour them, however it fits at the time, without making it another chore of a busy world, so that it is an act of reverence. Samhain marks the Celtic New Year and at this time we are heading into Winter, into darker times, into within. The veil between Life and Death is thin.
It feels right to be honouring this right now, and also honouring our Ancestors, and the Elements of Nature. I do not live on the land of my ancestors, but the Wadawarrung people of this land honour also their Ancestors and the Elements, so it feels right to honour Ancestors and the Elements here, even if the seasons of this land are different to those celebrated in the pagan tradition - that part honours my ancestry. There are some things about the seasons that are also the same here, and this time feels to me definitely a time of slowing down and going within. And then of course, in these times, even the seasons are changing. This is a time of shifting.
And then these times we are living through right now I feel are calling us all even more strongly to within, through enforced distancing and isolation, through slowing down, being in one place more, by ourselves more, with our selves more, alone or with just those closest to us. These times through many means are calling us to review what is and to reflect on what we value, what is important, what is essential, what is necessary, and what is not. Calling us to choose what it is time to release and what it is time to renew and what it is time to rebirth.
Dedicated, with deepest respect, to all of those who have died, and to those who have lost loved ones. Dedicated also to the ways of living that are becoming ways of the past, passing easily, or struggling yet to hold on; to all that is dying, to all that dies, to all that has died. And dedicated also, to all that is birthing; to all that is born; to all that has borne; to all that is being reborn; and to all that lives; to Life.
Birth. Life. Death. Rebirth. The cycle continues. A world dies. A new world begins. This is the true nature of things.
And in our faces, the story of each of our lives, from our birth, to our death. Stories to embrace. And with that...
And in our faces, the story of each of our lives, from our birth, to our death. Stories to embrace. And with that...
Embrace your face
I am not beautiful
Or maybe I am
Can you see
The love in my heart
Through my sadness,
My pain,
My concern,
My quest to understand,
My anger,
My grief,
My despair,
My anxiety,
My worry,
My curiosity,
My care,
My calm,
My compassion,
My happiness,
My laughter,
My joy,
My face tells a story.
My face tells a story
Of my spirit
Of my spirit
Of my soul
Of my self
Of my self
Of my life.
My face does not lie.
It reflects the truth of my life
My love
My feelings
My story.
And it reminds me,
Sometimes,
That one day
I will die
And that is ok.
All is born
All will die
And between
There is the story of a life
And that is beautiful.
Embrace your face
Show your love
Show your life
Lay bare your truth
To the world.
You are infinitely connected
Never alone
And always yourself.
Love your self
Love your pain
Love your guilt
Love your shame
Love your suffering
Give compassion to your heart,
To your spirit,
To your soul,
To your self,
To your self,
To your mind,
To your body,
And to your face.
To you, in all your complexity.
Love you,
truly, madly, deeply, unconditionally
For you are alive
And you are worthy
Find your joy and your love
In your pain
In your sadness that falls like rain
That cleanses your soul, your being
In the heaviness that hangs
Like an ominous cloud
Threatening
Find your light
Ever glowing
Within
Find your centre
Find your stillness
Find your radiance
And shine it out
Brightly, gently, clearly, quietly, courageously
With your life
Show your soul to the world
You are precious
You are needed
You are beautiful
You are you
I am me
We are us
Life is beautiful
Birth is beautiful
Death is beautiful
You are beautiful
I am beautiful
Embrace life
Embrace birth
Embrace death
Embrace failings
Embrace healing
Embrace release
Embrace growth
Embrace change
Embrace it all
Embrace life
Embrace me
Embrace you
Embrace your face
Love
