The Game of Life

I'm thrilled that you have tuned in to today's podcast because last week I was guided to launch a pretty big topic and my ego was a bit concerned it might scare some people off.

If you missed last week's podcast and just happened to start listening in now, you might want to go back one week and give the previous one a listen first.

Assuming you feel you are in the right place, let's continue our discussion. What we started last week was really a paradigm shift – a different way of looking at the world as we know it. Opening your mind and seeing beyond the fear-based, limited version of life that has been widely spread and accepted, is not an easy thing to do, so congratulations for sticking with it.

In case you think I'm just placating you, let me speak a bit more on this topic – there are many, many people so afraid to question the status quo, rock the boat or even stand up for their own opinion…this is why it's so important we all reconnect with our power and remember how to stand in it confidently and proudly.

Their fear is not unfounded – in the past we know people were punished, killed and silenced in many terrible ways…and it's actually quite likely you experienced that in a past life (perhaps more than once), which means the memory of it is still there in your subconscious mind – it's part of your programming. I'm not telling you this to scare you, but so that you understand why you might feel fear, panic or anxiety as you continue on this journey AND there are ways to release those memories.

Thankfully, things have changed a great deal – at least in the Western World and it is time for us to take back what is rightfully ours and right the wrongs that have been happening. You might have heard that the Dali Lama said, "Western women will save the world." This sounds like such a big project, but really it's just about awakening, sharing what we learn so we help others awaken, and taking back our power – in loving and appropriate ways.

So today, let me start by sharing some of my path towards enlightenment.

My Story

My journey of awareness began when I was quite young with a really strong sense that there was more to life than was meeting the eye. My mom was a bit of a radical in her day because although she didn't act out publicly (at least I don't think she burnt her bra!), she did openly question things and still does. She read a lot of 'edgy' works at the time like Jane Roberts channeling "Seth" and all of Shirley MacLain's books.

Although she was a fully trained RN, she quickly figured out hospitals were too restrictive for her and started her own journey outside of the medical system. It was my mom who solved my migraines that the doctors said I'd just have to live with (even though I was only in elementary school), and it was also her that started me down the path towards fixing my irritable bowel syndrome rather than just settling and taking the daily sedative my doctor thought was the answer.

She practiced Reflexology and Myotherapy – which back then (around 30 years ago) was barely talked about in Western culture. My point is, I chose my mother well as she taught me to question, wonder and seek answers. She also challenged me to not just blindly follow something because it made sense, but to look at it from many different perspectives and even then to keep my mind open to new possibilities.

My dad taught me a lot of things, but two pieces really stand out as relevant now. First, he taught me that I could do anything I really wanted to do and secondly, he showed me what it felt like to be loved unconditionally.

Another aspect of my life that spurred me to look for big answers was my confusion around religion. My parents took us to church when we were young and taught us to say grace (actually we usually sang it) and gave us each a bible. I was baptized in a United Church, but beyond that was encouraged to develop my own understanding of God.

As a teenager I often slept over at a friend's house whose father was a born-again Christian and as a result an avid church goer. Often we were required to rise early (at least it felt early) on Sunday morning and attend their Baptist church with them. The conversations here seemed a little more punitive than I remembered from my younger years in Sunday School classes, but I wasn't sure if it was me, the kind of church or something else that had changed.

When I met my Roman Catholic boyfriend at 16 and started attending church with his family I found myself surprised yet again. Now before I offend anyone listening, let me quickly say, it wasn't the content of the service (this was all in French and I barely understood a word of it). What shocked me was the hypocrisy I was witnessing…like it was okay to be a mean, angry or selfish person all week and then to go church on Sunday and think all was forgiven.

Attending University further opened my eyes as I explored God and religion in a Philosophy course and then learned all about things done in name of the church throughout my degree in social work. In the second instance I was learning about a very punitive and small minded God and that did not work for me at all.

One final chunk of this puzzle fell into place when my husband and I bought a house in a small town with a very strong Mennonite community. If you've ever read the book, "A Complicated Kindness," by Miriam Toews, let's just say, I could understand it a lot better after living there and seeing some of it firsthand. Don't get me wrong – they treated us with nothing but kindness, acceptance and appreciation – it was just some of the stories of what was happening within their ranks that I found shocking.

All of this encouraged me to do a lot of soul searching – quite literally. To create my own understanding of what God, Creator, Source, Universe means to me and how I can use that information to help me be the best possible version of myself while still being accepting and understanding of the beliefs of others. It was an interesting journey of acceptance, rejection, understanding, reconnection (with a paradigm shift), intense spiritual development and so on.

When you really acknowledge that our journeys are unique you suddenly realize that labels like right and wrong, good and bad (or better yet good and evil), Christian or nonbeliever… are not really relevant, much less guidelines for life.

The more I searched, the more I came across people like Sonia Choquette, Ellie Drake, Wayne Dyer, Louise Hay, Neale Donald Walsh, Lisa Garr, Greg Brayden and so many others…I would be remiss not to mention Jennifer McLean and her internet show called Healing with the Masters which introduced me to so many of these people.

As I connected with my higher self and intuition, I could sense myself remembering. More and more amazing people arrived in my circles (mostly my inbox) and as I started listening to psychics and channelers like Bernadette Koroscil (I did a weekend workshop with her where we cleaned up energy from several past lives), Eva Gregory (Theos), Esther Hicks (Abraham); Kari Samuels (who has a direct line to our spirit guides and the Arch Angels) and the like. The more I opened my heart and mind the more I remembered…the more awake I felt…the more I tuned in and eventually found I could do some channeling myself.

I also left a really great job that I loved, but that was totally draining me. I think this was because I never would have delved so deeply into my topic if I had stayed working there. The job was in the school system which is limited by government, community, health authority and so much more. By now I was tuned in enough to know it was time to move on.

I recognize that what I am sharing could have a very eccentric ring to it that could almost make one think of cult-like behaviours…so let me just say, that none of this is about brainwashing, limiting free will, controlling or creating 'sameness'. Awakening happens in your own life, on your own terms, at your own speed with you firmly in charge of every aspect of your journey.

Throughout all of this I was still living my life, dealing with challenging people and situations, worrying about money, wondering if I was making everything up and trying to figure out how to live my passion and get paid for it. In full transparency…I'm not there yet. Yes I'm living a life I love, I'm filled with gratitude, compassion and (most days) am pretty understanding. But my journey, like your journey continues to push me to grow.

The Game

Regrettably, in order to properly play this game called life we have to start by forgetting everything we know about why we are here, what life is really about and how connected we really are. Apparently we've tried to do this other ways (while staying connected), but this did not provide a quality human experience so we started again with these new rules in place. Bernadette Koroscil talks about this in her book, The Learning Curve, in case you are intrigued and want to find out more.

As a result, a big part of being here on earth is affected by the fact we have to deal with all the confines of being human without the knowledge that we can be anything more. We feel pain, we fear the unknown, we are limited to linear time and, unless we make a point of doing things differently, we are governed by our ego's.

I tell you this so that you can come at your life from a place of compassion and desire to awaken. I guarantee you are already started on this journey or you would not still be listening. You are not late or bad for not tuning in sooner…you're timing and the place you are at in your journey is absolutely perfect.

If you are in the middle of a difficult part of your journey, that too is divinely inspired and your awakening is meant to help you make your adventure more fun.

Exercise:

Let me share a little exercise you can do if you are chomping at the bit, ready to awaken and getting tired of just listening to me talk. Once again you might want to pause the podcast once you understand what you are supposed to do and return when you are finished. You are also welcome to just listen and save it as a task to do later.

You might have noticed I talk a lot about self-awareness in my podcasts and that is because this is where awakening begins. You must tune in if you don't want to be tuned-out. Over the next week (or perhaps from your recent past), start noticing the sign-posts. Anything that comes up more than once is worth noting, three times is definitely a pebble – so if you want to avoid getting a rock chucked in your direction you should start to investigate.

The investigation…

There is no right or wrong way to do this, simply recognize the sign and figure out a way to look into it some more. Here are some ideas for how:

• Tell the Universe you've seen the signs but are unclear what they mean. Ask for the next signal to be super clear and include guidance for how to proceed. Then – pay attention! If a neighbour comes over and starts talking about something that seems totally disconnected from your previous conversations, rather than write him off as rambling, start looking for possible connections. If a certain ad keeps popping up on TV, in your magazine, in the margin of FaceBook, explore if there could be any connection there and look into it. Remember you are still in charge so you do not have to follow the path the Universe is offering, but you do need to go off autopilot and recognize that some kind of action will likely be required.

• Access information through meditation. Get in a comfortable spot where you will (hopefully) not be disturbed for a few minutes. Sit comfortably – preferably with a straight spine, close your eyes and breathe deeply into your belly. Quiet your mind as best you can by focusing on your breath. Ask your spirit guides of only 100% pure light to join you and share some more information about the signs you've been noticing. Relax and breath and see if you see anything, hear anything, sense information…ask questions as needed and enjoy the experience. If you don't feel anything coming ask your spirit guides to help you translate the information they are sending and breathe some more. Whether you receive anything right now or not, when you feel like you are done, breathe deeply, thank your guides, wiggle your fingers and toes to come back into your body and open your eyes. If you received info, make a note of that, if you didn't carry on with life and see what comes up in the next day or so.

• Take the sign you've been seeing and write it, draw a picture about it, created a story about it or say it aloud. If writing, take a clean sheet of paper, write the word (or description), empty your mind and just write anything that comes. Don't worry about it making sense, just write and see what comes. The task is basically the same for drawing, painting or creating story – just let things flow. The word breakdown involves saying the word aloud and allowing it to morph as you speak it; the word might alter, turn into a different saying, become a chant, turn into a jingle – before finally revealing itself to you…see what comes up.

Awakening does not mean everything will suddenly be easy and there won't be any more bumps in the road. Even trying these simple tasks in the exercise might seem like a heck of a lot of work. Do not force the issue – when you are going with the flow, things move along easily – so if you feel like you're paddling upstream, you are quite unlikely to find what you are looking for. The hardest part will be going off autopilot and being aware. Most of us do not have access to 'magic' in this lifetime – because it would rob us of the human experience that we came here to live.

I also don't want you to think everything is destiny and we have no control over the route we take – this is totally untrue. Free will allows us to choose our path…if it somehow connects with the one we have come here to fulfill things seem to just fall into place. This doesn't mean everything is rosy…it just means you don't have to search for where to go next.

It's also important to note that there is more than one way to reach a destination. We have come here to explore, to create, to clear things, to inspire each other and to find answers. You could be way past the simple exercise provided above, but my guides are suggesting this is a good place for many to start.

It is a great idea to search for guidance – those who can help you remember, realign, release and reconnect. Not because these people have all the answers, while you don't, but because that is how the game is meant to be played. It is a team effort – where we share our wisdom and tools; help others who are ready to hear what we have to say; use our relationships with others to evolve and do what we have come here to do for the good of the whole.

Something to keep in mind…even those who have come here as guides with gifts to help others (psychics, channels, energy healers, light workers…) are still here for a human experience and while they might seem more connected to the bigger picture they are still evolving (ouch) and limited by human restrictions.

Kari Samuels talked about this in her Soul Salon in a way that made such sense I just have to share it here – I touched on it last week, but it's worth repeating. She said, we are all at different places in our soul journey – which doesn't make things right or wrong, good or bad – it's more like how a child in kindergarten is not expected to have the same knowledge and understanding as a student in grade 12. We don't think less of the Kindergarten student because of where they are, we simply recognize that is where they are at and support them in moving to the next level.

AND while we are on this topic, we all are here to guide and help in some way. It's not just a chosen few who have come to save the day – this is a group effort of very evolved and savvy souls. You are part of this group – simply because you are here.

If you're wondering about your own gift – I guarantee you have at least one (maybe more). Seek out your passion and your gift will find you.

Since you are listening to my podcast I believe I have something to share with you that will help you move to the next level in your game. What that is, I don't know, but I'm ready and willing to explore the path with you.

I'm surprised to find that I still have more to share on this topic. So next week I will share why the time is right to take action and talk about some simply things you can do to start taking back your power – at least I think that's what I'm being guided to share.

If you've enjoyed this podcast please like it, share it or write a review. Your words help guide us too! With much respect for you and the journey you are on… This is Debbie Pokornik, wishing you a vibrant and powerful day.

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