Shining on the shadows

Lately, I’ve been doing these newsletters later in the week, but this week the angel messages began to flow late Sunday night and into Monday morning. It was strong, stirring within until I finally sat at the computer to channel, and then my fingers had to fly to keep up. It felt powerful, as if they were talking not only to all of us but to a world beyond. We hear, we read, and we transmit an energy even as we take it in. I have a feeling this is a message they want the world to hear: we are love.

I’ve had my own struggles with that which is less than light. It started years ago when I dated a guy who, unbeknownst to me, did drugs before we got together. In time, he told me, and I saw clearly why his eyes would change and his demeanor as well. Long after I broke up with him, the beings that possessed him showed up in dreams and told me they weren’t finished with me. I was finished with them. I imagined a bright light emanating from my core like a blast and sent them packing, once I learned that love is the only power.

I learned this again, more deeply, years later, when someone who was spiritually powerful but not all rooted in love became jealous of my friendship with someone. Physical storms pounded my home. I had nails in my car tires and was involved in accidents. I woke up from dreams in which beings that looked like they belonged in a sci-fi movie were trying to suck my energy. It was terrifying at first, but when I remembered the power of standing in a strong light, they could no longer manipulate me through fear and anger.

I actually had a conversation with one at long last. Me: “I know you’ve disconnected from Source and you need energy. Why don’t you stir up love? It is the most powerful energy in the world. Why do you stir up the lower vibes of fear and anger?”

The answer was scientific, clinical at best. The being answered as only one disconnected could. “Love is powerful, but humans don’t sustain it. If we inspire fear or anger, you keep it going for us.”

There you go. They’re after sustainable energy. And it is on us to stay in love and not provide the fuel that the lower vibrational energies are seeking. I now joke when I catch these energies skanking around me, “No fear nuggets for you tonight. No anger snacks for you. Shoo. Go away. I am light,” and then I turn away and focus on the most beautiful thing I can see and appreciate in the moment. I no longer fight the darkness. I look to the light in which the darkness can’t even exist. You can’t pick up AM when your station is set to FM.

Likewise with human beings, the angels have taught me to look at everyone as a pot of soup — with a multitude of ingredients. “Focus on the ones you like,” they told me, and you’ll see more good wherever you look.

This past week, I needed another home repair. I called a company I often use. You get whoever they send. A large man showed up, with the stature and strength of a medieval warrior. He looked like someone you wouldn’t want to upset. Appearances can be deceiving. No matter what the 3D lens reveals, looking through the lens of 5D reveals a different picture. Energy never lies.

He was very good at what he did. And when he asked what I did for a living, I felt completely comfortable telling him.  He looked at me and proceeded to share his experience with paranormal investigations, multiple timelines, and other far-out spiritual activity. I looked at him and saw the beauty of this soul. He shared that he felt he could have done more, but had anger issues earlier in life. As I marveled at his humility and honesty, I saw his radiant aura, which was a blazing white light, visible even to my 3D eyes. In that moment, he was not someone who had missed anything due to anger, but rather a radiant angel on earth who had forgotten from time to time, but in this moment, in this interaction, had stepped right into his soul’s center. It was a beautiful experience and a privilege to behold. I told him i saw his light. He grinned.

I get this all the time. People who have experiences with spirit show up in my life with all their light. Even though others get other sides of them, my willingness to look at and marvel at what is good often brings it forth. That doesn’t mean I’ll continue to dance with those who slide back easily into their shadows. I don’t have time or desire to hold up the world or any one individual, but as often as I can, I look for what is good in people so I can experience what is good in them. In some, it is easier than others. In some, it is worth it to me more than others. We get to pick and choose who we want to engage with, but when you must be around someone, why not look for the light?

Years ago, when I worked as an engineer, one of my coworkers was a complainer. He was the kind of guy you tried to avoid because you knew if he cornered you it was going to be a long, dull conversation about how right he was and how wrong everyone else was. Sometimes I even agreed, but I just didn’t want to listen to it. I asked the angels how to handle this. Often, I couldn’t escape. “Ask him what he does for fun,” they suggested. “Pay attention to his light.” So I did, and to my utter surprise, he turned into a different person right in front of me. He got animated, opened up, told me about his creative hobby, and the next day brought in a gift for me since I had displayed interest. From then on out, he didn’t complain to me but rather talked about the creative projects he was working on at the moment. It was astounding. I looked forward to our conversations.

So when you want to see more of the light in this world, look for it. Ask people what they’ve done for fun, what makes them happy, what they’d do if they could. And by all means, when you can get away from the ones who seem to constantly drag you down despite you trying to lift them up, give yourself permission to do it — but do it with love, prayers, and good wishes, because they, too, are trying to find the light.

There are a lot of folks lost in shadows. There are a lot of people hurting, fearful, and angry. And yet they are also trying to live happier lives. They may not go about it in the kindest way. I don’t invite them to tea! But I do pray. I do picture them as the beings they have forgotten they are, because I do not want to participate in the angry vibes that can only harm me and empower the shadows.

It isn’t easy. Sometimes people are so hurtful that we hurt and become hurtful. That is when it is time to return to intense self-care, self-nurturing, being around positive people or nature, or animals that uplift.When you’re sick or hurt, the best cure is self-care. When your spirit feels sick or hurt, the best cure is self-care. Then, after you refill your own cup, get up again and look for what feels like love, because while some souls can’t find it or share it. Happily, many others can — and if you look for it, you’ll see it in so many places.

Here are a few tips to help you turn to the light and disempower the darkness:

1.  Look for random acts of kindness.

I see love in the grocery store. A mother talks to her child. A husband and wife discuss the best salad dressing for their gathering. A clerk speaks cheerfully to the person they are checking out. The guy stocking the milk hands me one, with a smile, from his refrigerated post behind the shelves. Another clerk notices I’m pondering the different apples and gives me a primer on the varieties.

If you look for love, you’ll see it in so many little ways, and the more you look for it, the more you’ll see it.

The more you see it, the more you’ll believe in it. The more you believe in it, the more beautiful our world will become as we empower and dignify the light while withdrawing energy from the shadows.

2. Encourage the light where you can

Parents do this all the time with their cranky kids. They distract them with something interesting or good. They speak kindly. They encourage. Not everyone does, of course, but many do. We, too, can be the ones who speak kindly, encourage, and soothe.

I get stuck in line behind someone who wants to bend my ear with their grievances about life, the world, or politics, and I have a pretty standard answer that works nearly all the time: “Well, at least our homes aren’t floating down a river or burning up on the mountain.” That isn’t true for everyone I know — some of my dear clients have had their homes burn to the ground — but when I say this to someone who is complaining about the world, I’m not “dignifying the darkness”; I’m counting my blessings, right in front of them. Nine times out of ten, the answer is something like, “True, I guess it could be a lot worse.” They calm down.

We change the discussion. I use humor. And suddenly the shadows are gone.

3. When you can’t find the light, or encourage the light, seek it elsewhere.

You can’t fix everyone. You can’t save everyone from their own stuff. There will be people on the news and peoplein your life who are not open to a kinder way to live. As Jesus said, “Turn the other cheek.” Turn away from bad behaviors. Don’t let them fester. Know and honor your own boundaries, whether or not anyone else does. We can’t make people comply with our rules and standards. We can’t make them all respect our boundaries, but we can respect ourselves enough to uphold them. <br /><br />

Years ago, after a difficult relationship, I wrote “The Ten Commandments of Ann.” I was pretty fired up at the time: “I will not suffer to make someone else feel better.” “I will not make excuses for why I stick around for abusive behaviors. I’ll walk away.” etc.

Although I’ve long since lost the sheet of paper and forgotten my exact wording, I remember the vibe:

I will respect my own light, whether or not anyone else does it for me.

I will look for the light in others, but I will no longer take responsibility for ensuring they step into it.

I will be as loving as I can be to everyone else, but if I must choose, I’ll love myself first, for only in that space can I stay in the light and be of any use to anyone else.

Honor your light. Look for it where you can in others, but when it is too hard to see, encourage, or sustain, look elsewhere. Don’t dance with shadows. Step into the light.

The angels have taught me that no one else is responsible for my feelings other than me. They have taught me the power of focusing on what is good and the perils of focusing on, and thus chaining myself to the things that drag me down. These are hard words to live by at first, but eventually, it becomes second nature to honor the light within. I am very aware of what is going on in this world, both light and dark, and while I do not know all the specifics, all the players, or all the plays, I know the eternal dance of light and dark and the light that lies beneath it.

To the best of my ability, I focus on the light and empower it where I can. I strive to withdraw my energy where I cannot — except to pray and ask that all souls, regardless of whether I like them, agree with them, or even want to be around them, be raised into a greater light.

No one wins when we dance with the shadows. No one wins when we argue with the angry, hate the prejudice, or fear the fearful. We empower the darkness and forget our light. But standing strong in our own ability to focus on what is good and light and true, we all win. In the light, we all thrive.

A single candle is more powerful than the deepest darkness. Tend kindly to your spirit and keep your light burning strong. It is not selfish. It is the love of the greater Self that lives within us all.

I love you all. You inspire me. You give me reason to stand strong. And together, although a small fraction of the souls on earth, our light and commitment to love, even when we wobble, is a beautiful, brilliant beacon on this earth.

Feel the love on this list, the family that we are. Even though we have different lives, beliefs, and ideologies; even though we will never all meet, we share something beautiful in common—we care. We care about our own happiness. We care about others. And we care about this world. For just a second, shut your eyes and know the solidarity you have with millions of souls beyond this list who have a commitment to love. It is so much stronger than the shadows. It is much brighter than the darkness. And love will prevail.