Rebirth in the New Year

As many of you know, I am taking a brief break from the healing work with others to rest and recover my voice.

As the gray clouds hovered over the past few says, I reflected on the sweetness of this time of the year. The change of the calendar year brings new resolutions and hope, with energy to build in new directions.

At the same time, the change of the energy year still awaits us on Feb. 3, 2011. So, it is a time to take care of loose ends, cleanse, renew and prepare for a new energy in our bodies, minds and spirits.

It is a time of letting go, which always has a component of loss. Sometimes the loss of one thing is a sign that rebirth is occurring but we have to give space to losses in order to allow the energy to consolidate and build to a new beginning.

Last week, my parents beautiful black Shepherd, Sam, decided to let go at age twelve. This beautiful animal suffered the lost of his companion, Lisa, a white shepherd who raised him, over a year ago.

For days after Lisa’s death, Sam walked about the property with tears streaming down his face and deep sighs emanating from his expansive chest. For months, he needed “cottage time,” time in the country studio where he contently sat at my feet while I answered emails from clients or mixed herb teas. Sometimes, I’d put on a movie and spend the length of the movie massaging him with my feet.

Slowly, he sighed less, cried less and became happy again, yet changed. A new mellowness emerged along with a gentle playfulness, such that if it were not for the gray hairs on his chin, you’d never suspect he was eleven years-old dog.

After the hubbub of the holidays, as the weather turned even more chilly, Sam simply found, after a morning of being playful, that it was time to let go.

He put his head between his huge paws and returned to spirit peacefully without struggle or pain.

Although we miss him, there’s a rebirth occurring–somewhere in a spirit realm where animals dwell, there is a reunion of two innocent animal spirits, smiling and playing amid an eternal field of flowers.

As humans, how can we be more graceful in letting go and transitioning into new phases in our spirits and lives?

(1) We can meditate and let ourselves feel the glory of God and peace each day. When you are aligned with God, it is easier to tap into his higher will to help you overcome negative patterns or habits.

(2) We can be willing to engage in deep self introspection. Sometimes negative habits become so much a part of who we are, that we forget we can be something different.

(3) We can build our faith and let go of ego. Ego has a way of blocking our faith in our higher selves and in God. Ego is that voice of doubt that limits us or puts us into boxes. Visualize the ego as a more primal and young version of yourself, and melt that self away when you hear the egoic voice creating self doubt, anxiety, or low self esteem. Believe in the best parts of yourself.