by Charles Lightwalker

 

Whatever our state of health and wellbeing, however hard we strive for greater wellness we might not realize we are neglecting our spiritual health. We may need to treat a spiritual illness.

  

Not long ago I received a message in my dream state. A message about death. Death can be a spiritual illness. I understood that my unconscious was telling me to explore the relationship between illness and the type of death we experience when we feel drained of joy, vitality and enthusiasm for life.

  

The death many of us worry about is physical death, an end to our mortal existence. Yet there is another death we should be concerned with, a slow death when we do not fully embrace our life today in the now! Yearning for the past, wishing for a better future is a sort of spiritual illness. We need to recognize the gift of today. If we cannot feel, we can’t transform ourselves. Accept this moment, whatever it holds. Doing so can help us shift our perception and appreciate what we have instead of what we don’t have.

  

Choose to find the beauty in some aspect of your life today. You might focus on your health instead of any aliments that reduce your mobility or cause you pain. You might draw your attention to an area of your life that is going well instead of an area of your life that you tend to be obsessed about. Why are you successful in that area of your life? What can you learn from your success that can be applied to other areas of your life?

  

Spend more time in nature and tap into its wisdom. Nature offers spiritual lessons if we are willing to slow down and observe what is communicating to us. A sacred tree with a few dead branches does not give up creating nourishment from the sun and sending it through its truck and surviving branches. It keeps the life force moving through it. Do you need to prune things away?  Can you let something die and not give it anymore attention? Is it time to focus instead on some aspect of life that is working for you and giving you nourishment? 

  

As I grow older and must deal with physical challenges, I’m much more aware of my mortality. It is easier for me to focus on my vitality and the potential for growth, healing and thriving if I remember to accept what is, shift my focus to where my life is satisfying and spend time in nature absorbing her wisdom. Time in nature can be a spiritual tonic, strengthening your spiritual immune system.

  

I also relate to death differently from years ago, I see that all is a part of the cycle of life. I let go of anything that reduces my excitement for life. I focus on the now moment.

  

I believe that where we put our attention, will determine what we experience. If you want to feel a sense of vitality, optimism and enthusiasm for your life lay the foundation for all of that by consciously choosing to focus on what gives you spiritual nourishment.

  

What if you were to make the time to engage in those practices instead of doing what you know drains you of vitality?

  

What if you were to spend more time in nature observing it as it observes you? What if you were to ask it to share wisdom with you?

  

What if instead of struggling to distract yourself from your sadness and feeling that your life should be different, you looked at how you frame what you have experienced and are experiencing and consciously chose to change the story of your life?

  

You have control over the meaning you make of the experiences you have had and are having right now.

  

Every time you wake up to another day, you have the potential to transform how you perceive your life. Make a conscious choice to focus your awareness on what gives you vitality. In doing so, you may be remedying a spiritual illness that has kept you from living fully.

  

Charles Lightwalker is a Spiritual Healer, Metis Shamanic Practitioner,

and teacher of the Metis Medicine Ways. 509-389-7290