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Independence Day is always a time when I pause and reflect.
Today, like many of us, I’m reflecting on independence and freedom and what both mean to me.
And hands down, without a hesitation, my sense of both is a mindset–established in, grounded in, and outpouring from thought.
My sense of freedom and independence today does not depend on the political system governing the land in which I live, nor the rules of authority controlling the home in which I dwell.
The sense of freedom and independence I practice depends solely on this: a comprehension of what is governing the universe and how–and where– we each dwell…in thought.
We tend to live our ideal, bit by bit, by degrees sometimes large sometimes small.
We don’t really know this when we’re growing up.
We tend to fulfil the role we believe we’re supposed to attain.
We obey and fulfil (or not) being a dutiful son or daughter, brother/sister, grandson/grand daughter.
We perform well and achieve (or not) academic expectations as we pursue earning our degree in high school, college, and graduate school.
We strive to please others (or not) until this proves unattainable or unmerited or unable to quench that deep yearning for acceptance while pursuing the next gradations: marriage, career, motherhood or fatherhood.
And all the while we may or may not be asking ourselves: is this what I really want?
Sometimes we brave answering.
Sometimes the answers make us scared and we run from them. Sometimes we spend years running.
Sometimes we stay in that cycle of role playing because we not only think it’s expected, it’s safe, comfortable and what else would we do?
Yet, we’re deeply deeply honest creatures and in spite of our attempts to play it safe, and fulfil the roles we think we’re expected to, that inner yearning ever beckons us to break the shackles and find out our deeper purpose, meaning, value…in short, find and live our why.
We are always on a quest for our why.
When I was 21, my quest for something more propelled me to take a course about spirituality and healing, about how to live life from a different view, a course which taught me metaphysics–how to apply the laws of Spirit and engage my life in a practical spirituality.
And more? That course gave me tools to learn how to pray for healing…for myself and others…no matter what the issue was.
For a decade or so after that course, I did my best to live life from a more spiritual perspective.
But it would be several more years tons of odd jobs and traditional ones from cocktail waitressing and temping, to cleaning houses and teaching middle school, before I felt brave enough to offer my services full time as a metaphysician.
Still several years after I opened my doors as a metaphysician, I’m ever mindful that none of us can ‘teach’ one another what true freedom is. We can point, lead, guide, hand hold, but ultimately, each one of us has to resolve to let go every ounce of fear that would suffocate our courage, and each one of us has to ultimately stand still and face our innermost yearnings, hear them and heed them, no matter where they lead or what they nudge.
Hear me: I’m not shunning any of the roles.
What an absolute privilege and honor to choose to wed a soul-mate, exchange a partnership and thrive in deep companioning.
And what an absolute treasure to choose to parent a child and raise an infant mind to evolve it’s own sense of right.
And what a total triumph to evolve a career that so weds deep interest and talent with offering.
Nothing we choose need imprison us, ever, so long as we are deeply aware of our “why” about that choice.
Freedom isn’t about a quick fix take a course and wham bam you are instantly transformed.
Freedom is a journey.
Independence is a collection of daily proofs, a collection of moment by moment checking into thought, seeing what’s steering and figuring out what you’re leaning on and why you are making the choices you are making, why you are living the roles or fulfiling the jobs you are choosing to.
We prove what we know at the pace we’re able.
Metaphysics isn’t about go about life until some kinda problem occurs and then tune into the laws of Spirit for a quick fix.
I used to live like that.
Now I know better.
Now I have a deeper sense, though I’m ever learning and growing, that choosing to live and prove spirituality is a state of mind, moment by moment, is a conscious choice to shift our view…to get behind our why for everything, to pause the mental steamrolling and drive to be sure we’re letting that gentle inner voice lead and not aggressive ego or human will.
I truly do not know where I’d be but for the view of metaphysical healing and spirituality I’ve gained studying the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and taking the course in Science of Mind-healing I did 20 years ago.
It gave me a foundation, a base, from which I’ve literally built my whole life.
I joy in knowing that because of the work of this great thinker, author, public speaker, publisher, lecturer, who would go on to create the Massachusetts Metaphysical College, who would birth a global movement in healing and being, who would found an international daily newspaper (The Christian Science Monitor) I am — and hundreds of thousands are — gaining a deeper view of how to live life from a spiritual perspective.
And that has been a source of freedom, independence and dominion that has made me the woman I am today.
“Pilgrim on earth, thy home is heaven. Stranger thou art the guest of God.” ~from Science and Health, Mary Baker Eddy
