California Free Press

Wake Up and Smell the Coffee

Dear friends,

     If you couldn’t see your coffee, would you know it was brown?  Take a sip with your eyes closed, it has no taste other than of hot water with a little flavoring.  Seeing the rich dark color seems to make it better. People have their favorite beverages but when asked to do blind taste tests they often pick another brand as the best tasting.  This happened with a group of folks who were devotees of a particular brand of vodka. They swore it was the only one worth consuming. In a blind taste test with several brands involved, they vehemently declared  it to be the worst tasting one!  They had a hard time believing the results.  They insisted they had been tricked.  Perception is very tricky.

     We can be so invested in a perception that we will fight for it even when it has been proven wrong.  Often we have become so attached to the idea that somehow our very self-worth gets involved.  “Wait a minute”, the mind argues, ”if  my beliefs about ‘them’ were completely false, what does that say about me?”   Fanatics will defend their position even when they no longer actually believe in the original premise. The question arises “what else have I been wrong about?” The ego mind does not want to hear the answer to that.

     Spiritual courage is revealed in the one who can honestly say “I got that all wrong.”  We are able to do it when we have a clearer perception of ourselves.  If our essential self is always intact, then our ideas do not define us. Therefore, we can change our mind and not fear the loss of anything real.  Ideas come and go. The I am remains. Perceptions are temporary. Updating them is always possible. That is the secret to emotional maturity and mental freedom.

Affirm:  “I let old ideas that limit me or anyone else, float away gently. No harm, no foul.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes  www.carol-carnes.com

Is the Pandemic a Wake-Up Call?

Dear friends,

Just when we thought it was safe to go back in the water…….!  You know I look at everything from the point of view that a higher Intelligence is always at work to bring about a greater good for all.  It needs our participation of course, but it does attempt to move us off previous positions that did not produce greater good for all. That said, we have been given the message ‘not so fast folks, you have just begun to see the problem that you could ignore when you were running around doing your normal life. Stay with the questions a bit longer.’

This pandemic is such a clear message from our collective unconscious. We want a more just and equitable society. We want a better relationship with Nature.  We want freedom for all. Our busy-ness, our pursuit of the dollar above everything else (subtly imposed on us)  caused us to be blind to the terrible chaos underneath our everyday experience. Now, with just a few months of having to stay out of the water….we have started to see what needs to be done.

This is a close encounter of the spiritual kind. It is sad and maddening that so many had to die. Perhaps compassionate leadership would have made a difference. However, now we also see the flaws there, too. Although those who mourn the loss of their loved ones would not see this and rightly so; it is becoming more evident that this has been a blessing. That does not lessen our sorrow for the fallen, but more and more of us who needed to be awakened now know for sure:

Black Lives Matter

Nature is our Mother

Leadership must be grounded in values that serve the Whole

We are our brothers and sisters keepers.

Our Power is really in our vote and what we support

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

We Are All Worthy of a Lovely Life

Dear friends,

Summer has arrived. We know it will soon be very hot. We know our utility bills will increase. We know we will not be traveling to tropical isles this year. Things are very different. There is not that feeling of being let out of school that often accompanies summertime. We are still somewhat confined to home and we will be asked to mask up in public places. It’s a new reality.  However, it is temporary.  It will serve its purpose, which is to unite us and make us more aware of how we interact with each other and it will move on.

Spirit never struggles. It moves into form with the ease of water flowing into the sea. This current event is our collective dis-ease in evidence. It is as if Spirit said “okay, here is what it looks like, now heal it.”  The virus is not separate from our issues with racial injustice. They are powerful forces that attack and sicken those affected. Both the racist and the one under attack are demoralized.  The great metaphysician, Neville, said, “no one deliberately does the wrong thing.” He meant we are motivated almost entirely from our own sense of self-worth.

The irony is that the one with the highest or healthiest self-worth will do no harm. It is the person with a damaged self esteem who takes it out on others. We are not looking for excuses, we are looking at Cause. Change the Cause and there will be new effects. It is no small thing to declare the goodness of all people. The Power that makes all things new is the power in or own imagination.

Affirm “Everyday in every way humanity is more loving, more compassionate, kinder to every one.  We are in this together.  We are all worthy of a lovely life.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The Energy that Brings Us Together

Dear Friends,

It is rather like living in a global jigsaw puzzle right now. There are key pieces that complete the picture once we take a higher view of what is coming together. It is quite fascinating to see the downfall of the patriarchy in many forms, as the balancing energies of kindness and compassion rise, bringing with them a guarantee of freedom and justice for all. Is that too big a vision? Am I being spiritually naïve to think those in power with capitulate to the softer demands of the young?  Well, as the late futurist Barbara Marx Hubbard taught us, the evolution of the species happens by leaps.  In the time /space dimension it may seem like a “long time coming” but in Reality it is no time at all.

We are fortunate to be alive right now as this stunning shift takes place.  Do not doubt that it will, because it is unfolding right before our eyes. The pandemic has forced us to stop, look and listen.  We came to a screeching halt in the direction we were headed. Now we see the effects of our previous actions. With more of us tuning in to the news from many different sources, we are gaining in awareness of what has been going on in our world for hundreds of years.  We will  not stand for it any longer.

The crumbling of a certain style of leadership is almost comical to watch, only because I see it as a key part of the reversal of patriarchy. Things are falling apart so that they can come together in new ways.  What is the power, the energy that brings things together that belong together and maintains them in harmony and balance? LOVE!  Ernest Holmes described spiritual love in that way. It is the force that is driving us now. Love of life, love of the planet, love for all of Nature, love of each other, love of diversity.  These are real; this is what is driving the marchers. They are not protesting as much as they are insisting!  No more war, no more hate, no more desecration of the world, no more injustice, no more bullying, no more poverty, no more hunger, no more waste and want.

Affirm “This world is a joy to behold; a place of love and peace. I know it, I see it, I feel it!”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Compassion for All Lives

Dear friends,

We would not be surprised by the compassion the Dali Lama shows towards his oppressors. We expect him to act on what he believes. We know he believes in the value of loving kindness.  We should not be surprised at the behavior of someone who believes they are superior to others because of the circumstances of their birth.  However, we are often shocked by their cruelty because we do not share their beliefs. That is righteous indignation. How can you be so ignorant, we cry. It becomes clearer by the headlines that it is beliefs that need to change.

People are prompted from within to display their personal take on Reality.  We then act accordingly. When a young person is in military boot camp, the aim of his trainer is to strip him of his beliefs and replace them with those of loyalty and patriotism above all. Once a battle weary soldier has had enough, his former beliefs might surface.  He might find it very difficult to shoot another young person who speaks another language but who is very much like him. Our core beliefs will eventually surface unless they have actually been supplanted.

Here we are in a Reality warp. Those who see difference as the enemy are running amok, causing our society to suffer from the loss of peace and camaraderie. The rest of us are trying to find ways to change their minds. That is what protests are all about. We want everyone to love each other, to respect our diversity, to cherish life, all life.  And so we continue to pray, march, chant. That being said there is something else we must do.

Check our own take on Reality.

Make sure we are clear of prejudices.

Put our beliefs to the test.

Engage with others who are very different from us. Read their stories.

Most importantly, declare the Truth;  One Life is being all life. What we do to the rest of us, we do to the Source and we do to our soul.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The Power of The Divine Feminine

Dear friends,

My dear friend Rev Dr. David Leonard said ‘the mind wants answers, the soul seeks meaning.”

I have chased answers all my life, but now at the age I am, I seek meaning in everything. There is always a deeper Cause running through our experience than what it seems to be. What if everything that is happening now is humanity’s way of seeking balance by bringing forth its own Feminine Power?  I am speaking of the spiritual feminine which has been denied, ridiculed, subjugated to the masculine. It has long been associated with the color Black (think witches clothing)  with ritual, rhythm and dance, with cycles and birth, with the moon and the mystery of darkness. The Divine Feminine is, in her full expression, a healing presence, bringing stability and protection wherever she is allowed to be active. She keeps us grounded in Mother Earth.

The Divine Feminine was perceived to somehow threaten the Power of the Divine Masculine, which has been allowed to run wild, building and destroying, conquering and inventing. He was not tempered by her wisdom and without it, the Masculine becomes toxic to the well being of the Whole. Men and women have denied their whole selves, even to the point of women acting like men to have any voice at all.  Men who have their feminine in partnership with their masculine are often vulnerable to attack or disrespect themselves. What I see as the meaning now, is that we are engaged in a kind of unraveling of myths that do not serve humanity in this day and age. Our Feminine is prompting us to awaken to our place in the creation of equality and justice. Equality begins in us. Do we value both aspects of our spiritual Being?

We must challenge the old ways of perception

1.   Black does not equate with evil
2. We all have both Masculine Vision and Feminine Wisdom within our wholeness
3. We need both to survive and thrive

Affirm:  “I am a Being of perfect balance.  I think, I feel, I act, from the wisdom and the vision of my true nature.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com 

 for more on the Divine Feminine read Matthew Fox's book 'Meister Eckhart"

Updating our Collective Perception of Reality

Dear friends,

These cool mornings when it is very quiet, the sliders open, and I am reflecting on what to write, I realize that Life itself is perfect. It does not need improvement. It is not to be fixed or healed of anything. Life does not create ugliness, destruction, hate and violence. Humans do all that. Our power is immense. We can create Love and Peace as easily but our superstitions prevent us from fully accessing our higher nature.

There are those who actually believe that love will make us weak, that vulnerability is to be avoided. Some think they will have to do without if everyone has a fair share of resources. Others are convinced that killing each other in war  is the way to advance the species. We have been operating under the mistaken ideas of ancient people. They  are no longer appropriate. They cause great injustices in our shared life.

We need to update our collective perception of Reality. We have a Perfect Life to work with; a creative force that adjusts to our highest ideas. Think of the Good we could do with a collective belief in the Power that makes all things new as our God, our Source, our essential Self. What if we really believed that God is within, that the power is in our consciousness, that ideas precede all experience, shaping them in our image and likeness? Would we take inventory of our own interior dialogue?  Let’s get honest with ourselves.

What do I really know is true?

Affirm:  “I am open to change my mind about anything that is not spiritually true.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes  www.carol-carnes.com

The World is Ripe for Renewal

Dear friends,

Here is a little something from Marcus Aurelius.

 “At some point you have to recognize what world it is that you belong in, what power rules it and from what source you spring.”   In New Thought we know that we live in a field of consciousness, it rules everything and our source is infinite consciousness; meaning we are in charge of our world.

Today it seems appropriate to ask, are we living in the world that best suits us?  I don’t mean on planet earth but in the world of ideas, values, customs?  Do we belong where there is hate and ugliness and if it is part of our world do we have some responsibility to help it become where we belong?  If we do not belong in that milieu what are we going to do about it?

Who are our friends, and who do we spend time with, exchanging ideas?  Is our conversation on a high level of wholeness and possibility?  Aurelius challenges us to live with reverence and compassion.  He was a stoic, which is very unlike our modern world of instant gratification. But we can try to delay judgements and condemnations.  We can become more aware of what we are putting into our shared environment vias the avenue of consciousness.

The world may seem to be in turmoil, but it is ripe for renewal.  This is the paradigm deconstruction period that can be so painful.  What is unlike the world we want to live in will, by necessity, have to fall away, dissolve into the nothingness form whence it came.   We must say goodbye to racism and all the other divisive ideas we have learned to endure. They do not belong in this world of love and compassion, diversity and creativity. Goodbye forever to all the unnecessary notions of God.  Goodbye to superstition and dogma.  We are on the edge of a new world.  Let’s do our  part to make it real.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

No Justice, No Peace

Dear friends,

Emerson wrote “all thoughts of a turtle are turtle.” It is hard to change a mind that is convinced of its stance.  Often that person will have an inkling that you may be right, but they have thought the same thing for so long it feels part of their identity. They are loathe to let it go. Somehow their beliefs gave them a sense of power or privilege and to let them go is a sea change.

We are in a sea change in the world right now.  From religion to race relations to gender preference to politics and governing, we are crying for enlightenment. It almost seems as if we have been lulled to sleep by the old guard.  We know within our hearts, as youth does naturally, that there is no safety in an unjust world.  We know that we really love each other, deep down and we have been talked out of it. We know our future together depends on what we insist to be our rights.

No justice, no peace.  No peace, no creativity, no creativity, no prosperity. No prosperity, no vitality. No vitality, death,  The death of the joy, the love that are our most intrinsic states of being is something we cannot allow to happen. Stand up and be counted as one of the people who knows that past experience has no bearing on now or our future.  It can all change like the currents in the sea. We have come to a place where there is no going back. We know it and we are in the midst of proving it.

As Jean Houston said “Be not afraid. You were born for these times.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

We Are Not Observers, We Are Participants.

Dear friends,

Ernest Holmes said, speaking about humanity: “has learned all it should through suffering and pain.”

Have we? Have we learned all we need to know about lack and violence?  Since this time of isolation, what have we learned about ourselves?  How have we grown into better citizens, more compassionate and caring?  It has certainly been a time of reflection if we were able to use it that way.  I know young parents have had a different experience in this than those of us who are alone.  However, I would imagine there have been some wonderful realizations for them, too.

For myself, I feel like an observer of human behavior, almost as if I am watching a movie. There have been so many acts of profound kindness, generosity and compassion that it reinforces my belief in the higher nature of us. On the other hand we have all witnessed the most terrible acts of hatred and venom to make us feel perhaps helpless in the face of it.  But then, those things always went on, as did the loving kindness. That is the world we live in and must navigate.

Perhaps the single most important awareness we could arrive at, is that we are NOT observers, we are participants. We have to find ways to help each other stay safe and respected and well cared for. It might be in how we vote; which leaders we support. It will also be about how we interact with our own inner thoughts. Are we more positive today than yesterday? Are we more hopeful? Do we see more Good than Evil in the world? These were question Dr. Holmes suggestedthat we ask of ourselves when we wonder if we have made any spiritual progress by means of our New Thought teaching. All questions have answers. How we respond will help us move forward.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes  www.carol-carnes.com

We Are Greater Than Our Experience

Dear friends,

Marcus Aurelius:  “what stands in the way becomes the way.”

He was a proponent of taking what is in front of us and using it to launch ourselves beyond it.  I suppose that is a way of saying, we are greater than our experience as long as we know it. If we do not, we will allow it to run us. We will be victims of it, not creators within it.

If we think back over our own lifetime, we can see how victorious we have been! We are still here, the better for it and capable of new discoveries.  We have thrived despite what looked like obstacles to our well-being.  If we are still capable of love and compassion and generosity, then we are highly successful in being us! That is a great achievement and the only real goal.

There is a new saying “you do you and I ‘ll do me.”  I wonder if the current crop of youngsters know what a huge task that can be.  In a world that wants to make us mindless consumers, without a sense of self determination, we will do well to just “be me,”  That can mean a good deal of self-insight and self-reliance.  Those come from inner connection to our own original self. We do that through various spiritual practices.  Meditation is the most easily done and provides immediate results.  The feeling of “happy for no reason” which accompanies regular meditation, is the greater self, just saying hello.

Affirm; “I always have time to be with my Self.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Life is Beautiful and Bountiful

Dear friends,

 One of the saving graces of living where I do, which is just an apartment with a balcony, is that there is beauty around me.   There are very large trees and little ponds and grass and flowers. If I have color and something pretty to look at, I am fairly content. That doesn’t mean I don’t have issues to resolve like everyone else right now, but that I can remain somewhat calm while I consider how to proceed.  For me, Nature has always been my friend and the great equalizer. She reminds me of the natural harmony of Life and the bountiful Source that benefits everyone, especially one who knows how to interact with it.

The role of good architecture in a bustling city is to give the inhabitants some Beauty, some connection to the Real world. Think of the great cathedrals, one that comes to mind is St Patrick’s in New York City.  Walk in and you are transported into the realm of peace and calm; not because of the religion within its walls but because of the walls themselves. The extremely high ceilings, the way the light comes in, the arches that resemble overhanging branches, are deliberately constructed for our emotional well-being.   Euclid said “God is geometry.” So is architecture. God is also color and flow.

When inner city youth are taken into the great outdoors, some for the first time, they are transformed, regaining their natural relationship with beauty and its Source. Troubled teens who are given a horse to care for, are often healed of childhood trauma that, left unchecked, could lead them into detrimental situations. Truly, Nature is the great Healer. Nature in all her forms, and we are one of those forms.

Affirm: “The Beauty of God within me, shines a light all around me. I WALK WITH HEALING GRACE."

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The Highest Ideals and Most Loving Thoughts

Dear friends,

Sometimes the stoicism of Marcus Aurelius just hits the nail on the head. Consider this advice from him:

“Everything that happens is either endurable or not.   If it’s endurable, then endure it.   Stop complaining. If it is unendurable, then stop complaining. Your destruction will mean its end as well. Just remember you can endure anything your mind can make endurable by treating it as if it is in your best interest to do so. In your interest or in your nature.”

That about covers it. Of course, living up to his rigorous dictates is not easy. We have to have a higher view of how life happens to be that in charge of our experience.   Having said that, when we are in the midst of a very difficult situation, we either get above it or we fall into it. Doesn’t that seem to be the way for most of us? If we get above it, we become the master of how we are in it and that can make all the difference.

Is this the worst thing that could happen, or the best? Is it both? Is it the most significant and potent opportunity? We have been in isolation long enough to have had some serious thoughts on the subject. How we go forward will be determined by how well we have endured and by what we think this means. If we can love and bless those who have lost the most, given up their lives, even thank them, we will be able to rise to the occasion.   Now it is possible to rethink who we are together and how we can live in harmony with Nature and each other. Oh, it won’t be easy. It won’t happen overnight. But that is what is possible. Really, nothing less will do.

Affirm: “I remain available to the highest ideas and the most loving thoughts. I am a force for Good.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Labor is Antidote for Too Much Sitting and Talking

Dear friends,

Emerson said he knew of no means of calming the fret and perturbation of which too much sitting and talking brings us, as perfect as labor.

Have you noticed that the best remedy for worry or fear is to get up and do something physical, strenuous or just productive? I can remember my grandmother saying “sweeping is good for what ails you.” So is gardening or brisk walks; painting a room or organizing the garage. Movement gets the mind engaged in the activity and allows the negative ideas to dissipate. There is that old-time tale about idle hands making it easier for the “Devil” to visit. The Devil is limiting ideas or the projection of worst case scenarios.

It is good to make things with your hands, too. There is something therapeutic about creativity.  Making something appear that did not exist before is quite empowering. Of course the highest course of action is to do something for someone in need, or perhaps just because you love them. Giving for no reason is good medicine, as is shared laughter and music. Virtual choirs are springing up on the internet, as they are in neighborhoods of apartment dwellers with balconies. People seem to have an inner drive to lift one another up. It is a lovely trait that perhaps this time-out from our usual lives has reactivated.

Much of our spiritual practice is about not doing anything, but sitting in silence. However, to get the full benefit, it has to be in balance with activity. In the current time of quarantine, we are learning that chosen activity, the kind we make a conscious decision to engage in, is the best of all. Choosing our actions opens the mind to ask “what can I bring to this to make it better or more fun or more meaningful?” It would seem we have been given a golden opportunity to think deeply about how we have been in the world, individually and collectively.

It might be useful to keep a journal of what you have discovered for yourself during this time of reflection. It feels as if we are preparing for something grand and glorious. I choose to think that and I will act as if it were so.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Cherish the Earth and Leave it in Good Shape for the Ones who Follow Us

Dear friends,

I read that certain redwood trees live 1800 years. I thought, why don’t they just keep going? Why do things have a life span? What is the purpose of death, anyway? It must be part of a recycling program. The planet would not survive if life forms did not leave and make room for new arrivals.  We like to think we return in a newly created body, and maybe we do, but that begs the question, “who are WE anyway?” Who am I that lives and dies? Who returns? Humans have devised various explanations. Most of them are likely to be wrong. Some expect to be told all the secrets once we are out of these bodies. Does that seem logical?

We keep waiting for either a Messiah or an Alien to come and explain things to us.   We project that image of the all-knowing One on leaders of all kinds. Our expectations of them are beyond rational thinking. No one can alleviate our existential angst but we ourselves. One of the best ways to do it is to be very aware of this now moment and all the beauty around us. In this time of social distancing, it is easier to do than when we are rushing around in the world. Practice noticing and appreciating color, sound, the breeze, the sun, rainfall, a child’s laughter. The everyday things are the most fleeting. One day they will be gone. What if this is it? What if this is the only life-time we have to experience them?

The obvious answer is to cherish it; to take care of it, to leave it in good shape for the ones who follow us. That would include what collective beliefs we want a child to be born into. A belief in a punishing God in the sky? A belief that we are basically evil? A belief that there is not enough of anything?   A belief that some are superior to others? Let’s be aware that what we think, speak and teach is part of the pattern of consciousness that will be our legacy.

Like a community patchwork quilt, we contribute to the whole with our personal awareness. Let’s make sure it is a gift, not another superstition to be overcome. We won’t see the effects ourselves, but we can know they are inherent in the Cause.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The Joy of Being Alive

Dear friends,

Consisting of only three letters, Joy is, nonetheless, a very big word. In fact most of us do not have much relationship with it. We can be elated, thrilled, excited, happy; but joyful? Filled with JOY? Not so much. What triggers our Joy response? We do have one, you know. The thing that we may have lost sight of is that Joy does not depend on any outer event. It is something we felt as tiny children; perhaps for no reason whatsoever, we had boundless enthusiasm for living. Enthusiasm for living without any change in circumstances is Joy.

In a culture like the West, where spontaneity is frowned upon, where people don’t dance, they plan to go dancing occasionally, where most sit on the sidelines; where playful behavior has no place in the office, where singing is usually for the few, where music requires years of practice, where squealing with delight will get you talked about…we lose Joy.   We are living without it. We are paying a high price, too.

Why are so many people addicted to drugs, food, sex and alcohol? Why is there a rise in depression among young kids? What is the root cause of all this anger we see on the news? We point to the effects, the injustices, the inequalities, the poverty and we say those are the reasons. But no, those are the effects of a deeper Cause and that is the loss of the simple Joy of being alive. What triggers the Joy response that is within us and is dormant?

Oddly, it is DOING NOTHING! Joy arises in us for no reason other than the experience of Being. That comes in silence. It arises in meditation. With regular practice, it begins to emerge in our daily life. Meditation is the source of enthusiasm. It opens the spaces in the mind where Joy can shine through. It is a simple formula for a healthier life. Go within, retrieve your natural Joy. It is still there.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Time for Positive Thinking

Dear friends,

It is interesting that we greet one another with “How are you doing?” and never ask “what have you been thinking?” If we deeply knew the creative power of our minds, that would be the most pertinent question.

What have you been thinking during this time of quarantine? Are your thoughts more positive than limited? Are you planning on what you might do once the restrictions are lifted? Have you been knowing the greater good for humanity is coming through? Do you welcome the changes that could be the result of this collective experience? Are you optimistic about our future?

One aspect of this whole adventure is the good effect it has had on the Natural world. That is a clear message of how our choices affect the balance in the natural world. We can right now be thinking of new ways to be in relationship with Mother Nature to ensure her well-being, and therefore, ours. As Emerson wrote, every tree and every vine in my garden shall soon show the treatment they have had.

Today let’s think about what we are thinking about. Let’s respect our creative minds. Let’s know that we are never powerless, that we are part of a universal system of the One becoming the many; that the One is within and ever available for the higher idea to be made manifest through us. This the time to think from the Rest of us, the Best of us, the not yet Expressed of us.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Be Still and Play

Dear friends,

Did you know that Henry Ford never had a driver’s license? Frank Sinatra couldn’t read music. Beethoven wrote music as a boy that he couldn’t play because his hands were too small. Who taught Shakespeare to write? Human Beings do all sorts of things simply by attempting them.   Often achievements are attributed to us that are not valid. ie: Jesus never started a church. Many were begun in his name, albeit without his permission. Look at the many makers of automobiles who followed Ford. One person can have enormous influence simply by following their inner guidance. They are actually saying yes to something that is alive in them.

     During this time of quarantine it might be wise to call up those old ideas that we may have tossed aside. We were too busy, had too many responsibilities, not enough money or maybe we thought we had missed the moment. It is never too late to find a way to express some version of an old desire. One desire that is common to us all but not necessarily acknowledged is the deep need to find our true self. It is a quest to feel One with the ineffable, as we did as small children. There is a longing in each of us to return to that state of blissful awareness. Now is a grand opportunity to practice meditation, the tried and true method to take us into the realm of the Self. It also serves to quiet the household. Regular practice brings a peace into the environment.

Whether it is writing your memoirs, painting a portrait of your beloved dog, doing yoga or dancing in the living room, including what your heart wants to do will stir the Spirit. Meditation will be easier and the benefits tenfold.

Today's mantra: Be still and Play.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Use Your Power Constructively

Dear friends,

There is an old saying that Power corrupts. It depends on what kind of power one is talking about. The Power to use the mind to manifest things can be corruptible if one does not understand what Power one is actually using. Once known, the temptation to oppress in any way, dissolves. The Devil is disarmed. The Power is not that we can make things happen with thought (we can). It is that thought is the local impulse of a universal Love & Intelligence seeking outlet into the visible realm of experience. It does it by means of us. When we understand that we are the way in for Love and Intelligence (taking the form of relationships, abundance, health, peace and creativity) to be made personal and real, then we need not use our mind for anything but Good.

Everything we call evil or degrees of evil, from greed and pettiness to violence and mayhem, arises in the mind of one who thinks Power is in short supply. The belief in Lack is truly the root of all evil. The one who believes in Lack will find a way to get what they want or need by any means possible. That is the Cause of corruption. It is the Cause of unhappiness, ill health, poverty, ageism, sexism, homophobia, the ruination of Nature; all of it comes from a belief in outer Power and inner Lack.

Humanity is caught in the trap of old thinking stemming from ignorance which became the core teaching of some religions. Those old paradigms have corrupted our minds into resignation of one’s lot (giving rise to class distinction), obedience to outer Power (why bother to vote?) and despair.(Let’s get drunk, high or go to war). Everything that is wrong with our world stems from the misunderstanding and therefore, the misuse of real Power. The answer is so simple. It is right here in our midst and can be heard clearly in most New Thought teachers. Not all. Some have succumbed to the need to sound like other religions in order to appeal to a broader audience. That is not what we ought to be doing. This is a teaching that is for everyone who has ears to hear. I am convinced most of humanity is ready. We have been playing with fire. Now is the time to use it to illuminate our shared path to an awakened world.

Stay tuned in,
Carol Carnes

A Shared Experience That Can Bring About Needed Change

Dear friends,

It is extremely rare for humanity to have a shared experience, one that affects everyone of us in some way. A global event, or series of events, that together bring about the need for massive deconstruction of psychological, political and social structures that helped create the event, hardly ever happens. We are having one of those experiences with the corona virus pandemic. The necessity of quarantine or self-isolation is, through my spiritual lens, a call to the inner mystic. The way we have seen the world, ourselves and each other, will not suffice to rid us of poverty, hunger, crime, violence to the planet and despair. Our model for what it means to be human is deeply flawed. It has brought us to this point of no return. We are being called from within.

In other words, something wonderful is trying to happen! The Mystic knows that Life is always for itself, never divided against itself and forever available to itself. You and I are expressions of that Life and what it is. We cannot find our boundless potential by looking for it in the world. It cannot be found, but must be realized. This can be a life-long journey, and for most of us it is, yet there are moments of realization that lift us into a higher awareness immediately. We are not the same. Some of us had that experience in our first meditation. We may remember incidents from childhood that were unexplained, magical moments of oneness with Life. It has been said we awaken through desperation or inspiration, but awaken we must.

Isn’t it interesting that we have created a virus that threatens our existence if left to its own devices? It is like a virus in our computers that will destroy everything in it. As a metaphor, it is stunningly apt. As a real experience it is terrible. This may seem callous, I hope not, but when we see everything as a metaphor we are above it and able to use it to rise up. That does not mean we do not attend to those who need help. It means that we, within ourselves, give no power to the effect, but pay deep attention to its cause. Do you see how the lack of human activity has begun to heal the planet; how this experience is making us take a new look at our economic structures, our medical models, our arrogance?

This is the time and we are the people, so said Dr. Jean Houston. She knows that it is time for all of us to look within, find our Center and act accordingly. We each will find ways to begin. It won’t be easy. It will be messy, but creating a world that works for everyone will be the greatest fun we have ever had.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Hold on to Your Highest Ideas

Dear friends,

Today I opened the Science of Mind, by Ernest Holmes, and my eyes fell on this: (page 161) “We should be careful not to divide our mental house against itself. Having announced the law of liberty, we must not deny it. When we all shall know the truth, then the ways and means and methods will be found for the freedom of all.”

Prayers are offered and then torn apart by our fear, doubt and unbelief. He is asking us to hold onto our highest idea as if it were already in form and experience. It will then be self-evident in our world. “liberty and Justice for all” is a most high idea, one that has been finding ways to be realized in our culture since it was first conceived. We tend to think ideas are wispy imaginings, but no, they are energy vortexes that, if given serious attention, remain alive and on the move. 

This becomes obvious in a good relationship. If Love is kept alive, if it is the driving force between two people, then it tends to find ways to keep them together. The ways and means might be anything from counseling to spiritual practice to events than seem perfectly designed to facilitate commitment. It is the same with other ideas that we have declared to be essential in our own lives.

When we use New Thought techniques, we do not pray to ask for something; we infuse our mind with the quality of the thing desired. We attach our identity to it. We declare it to be alive and on the move. We allow ourselves to be changed at depth if necessary. New Thought prayer is a treatment of spiritual truth that we give our own mind. It is in that realm that “God” answers with a resounding Yes. Then it is our work to accept with gratitude and allow the fulfilled desire to have its way with us. Nothing new arises from old ideas unless they are active now.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

A New Awareness About Who We Are

Dear friends,

The old saying “this too, shall pass” is not about the passing of time but the withdrawal of agreement. Unconscious agreement with a limiting situation is fear or a refusal to find some benefits within it.   Collectively and individually, we create scenarios for our ultimate Good and we usually do it unconsciously. It happens with the help of a higher consciousness that sees the future unfolding. In other words, there is an aspect of Mind that seems to say “if I (or we) keep moving in this direction, there will be dire consequences.” It is like the alcoholic who gets himself to a recovery group. The higher self within knows the drinking person is headed for disaster. It is not the addicted personality that goes to the meeting. It is the one who knows.

When we allow that higher awareness to see through the temporary condition, we become the master of it. Things disappear in our experience that no longer serve us. “ Life is for us and never against us” is a very real and active principle. There is no Devil, no destructive, punishing power.   There is only Life in its eternal quest to become more love, more joy, more vitality, more peace, more abundance.   The Power for Good lives in us at the level of deep self-identity. The more we identify as victims of anything, the more the temporary circumstance will seem to have a life of its own. It doesn’t. It is simply there for our edification.

Having that said, what have you gained from this imposed isolation? What realizations about humanity have you had? Can you discern any possible awareness that is emerging in us? If we are to make the world a better place we will have to have a new awareness about who we are and what is precious to us. If nothing else, that seems to be something we are all experiencing right now. Once identified we ask ourselves, ‘what need I do to promote the well being of all that is precious to myself and humanity?’ The answers will come if we stay out of fear and activate gratitude.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

We're In This Together

Dear friends,

It is interesting how our behavior with others changes during a time like this. A man two buildings over, whose porch faces mine, now lifts his arm in greeting if he happens to see me. That never happened before, but now we are sharing an experience. We have become comrades of a sort simply because of circumstances. I wonder if this will remain after the crisis subsides and we go about the business of being highly individualized again.

We are always sharing the experience of living, yet rarely do we feel so connected as we do now. We have found ways to be together without being in close proximity. That is a testament to an aspect of our nature often overlooked. It is the need to be seen and known by others and to see and know them as well. What is the point of being human if not to share that experience?

We don’t consider the depth of the casual question “How are you?” It is like one soul asking another how they are managing in this earthly and temporary incarnation. What if our intention were to seriously inquire as to the well being of a fellow traveler? How are you managing to keep your soul intact? What do you do with the appearance of cruelty? Are you finding beauty everywhere? How do you deal with loss? No, we ask “what’s new?” and hardly expect an answer.

Personally I am optimistic that this time away from each other will serve to bring us closer. Moreover, will cause us to think deeply about how we are as a species on this Blue Garden called Home. I do not want to continue to support, albeit unconsciously, anything that does not encourage love and compassion for ourselves, Nature, the environment and future generations of intrepid souls who venture into this dimension. We are all in this together. Let’s live as if that simple truth were the key to our shared well-being .

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

United in Love

Dear friends, 

     

The days are flying by, which is surprising considering that not much happens in a 24 hour period when we are home alone. It has been a practice in self-discipline.  I make myself do chores, get dressed, read, write and go out for short walks around the property.  Of course I have had no visitors but there are others in this apartment complex walking around, so it is not like I never see another human.

  

I wonder if one day we will look back on this as a turning point. It is hard to imagine that everything will go back to the way it was.  Some of it will, of course, but we won't be the same. Perhaps we will have a deeper awareness of our oneness, our interdependence and our equality. That, of course, would change how we interact with each other, hopefully for the better.

 

It has been a long held vision of mine that we would become the people of planet earth, united in our pursuit of peace and the care-taking of our home.  I see us traveling to the far reaches of space, discovering amazing things we cannot now imagine.  But we will never get there if we hold onto old ideas that support our division and our fear of diversity.  Oneness implies diversity. Of course it does. The One becoming the many. That is the Law of the universe.

 

In the meantime, let's use our creating minds to uphold the highest ideas of what is possible for humanity. What we are knowing now will help to create what follows as this drama unfolds.

 

Affirm: " We, the people of planet Earth are united in love.  We bless each other in all we do There is peace and plenty for all."

 

Stay tuned in,

Caorl Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

 

Point of View

Dear friends,

Emerson said “prayer is the contemplation of the facts of life from the highest point of view.” Well, two things are apparent right now. We have the facts and we are encouraged to pray. The facts are simple: life as we have known it has ceased to be. Are we to pray for the return of how it was?   What, then, is the highest point of view possible? Could it be that this is Divine intervention? Is it an opportunity? Were we hurtling toward our self-created destruction as a species? The highest point of view is that we have been stopped from moving forward in the direction we were going!

     When I say Divine Intervention I do not mean an old man in the sky looked down and declared us doomed and arranged things so that we could think about things.   No, I mean our innate Intelligence, collectively, had the sense to manifest a possibility; but first we had to stop, look and listen. It may be hard to think we are in charge of this, but we are. Here is a wild idea and by offering it, I in NO WAY diminish the loss of lives inherent in massive shifts. It is inevitable. What if the gift is that we are forced to think about our relationship to each other, to the planet, to nature, to the cosmos, to the future? What if the highest point of view is emerging, first as righteous indignation, then as personal commitment and empowerment?

What if we decide to be grateful for the discovery of just how fragile our so-called security really is; how quickly we went from supermarket lines to lines to receive free food; how much more involved in civic matters we need to be; how precious life really is? Most of all, the highest point of view of the facts is gratitude.   That is a leap to be sure but if we make it together, we can do amazing things.

“I am grateful to be awakened to the power of Mind.   I use my thoughts to create a world that epitomizes freedom and justice for all.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Staying in Touch

Dear friends,

How many weeks have we been in isolation? I have lost track but yesterday was the first morning I questioned even getting out of bed. I had to make myself dress and put on a bit of make-up.   It has become a spiritual practice to remain calm and centered, optimistic and present during this time.   Spiritual practice is often dull and boring. I have had to make myself meditate on more than one occasion over the years. At other times it is easy. It would be naïve to expect to not have differing emotions during this time. We have not experienced this before. We want to notice it all, perhaps even write about it, but try to remember, “right now I am alive and well and life is good.”

Staying in touch with family and friends is necessary now, just as it was before. Talking about things other than the situation is important. I had a lovely video talk with my son the other night, mostly about music. My daughter and I share ideas about everything from how to play the ukulele to how to make a good soup. We do not limit our time together to the situation we are sharing, albeit at a distance.

When I am alone I like to picture how I will be living once the restrictions are lifted. I am in a place of uncertainty as far as my career is concerned. At an age when normal people retire, I am seeking ways to take our teaching out into the world. Likely I will be doing online classes and gatherings. I will need a new computer and so I am researching those on the internet. It is good to be present in our current reality but not to the point of being mired in it. It will all change as things always do. It ill be different but we will be the same; that is, creative, intelligent, gifted, loved, needed and with a wonderful possibility open to us. Do your spiritual practice and include everything in it.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

 

The Willingness to Do Without

Dear friends,

If you were a sailor of olden times who had been tossed out of his bunk one time too many by the roiling seas, perhaps you would have created the hammock. It made life so much better. The automobile was an improvement over horses for many reasons; faster, cleaner and more efficient. Roads were built to accommodate cars and our highway systems are the result. Everything we take for granted from umbrellas to shoes, came from someone wanting to improve our experience. At the same time, there are some inventions that should never have seen the light of day; such as the Atomic Bomb, certain plastics, pesticides and a long list of chemicals and pharmaceuticals, machine guns and weaponry of all kinds.

There are beneficial aspects to each of those, yet we seem to lack some discernment in choosing which ought to be widely in use. Just as every piece of music or art is not a masterpiece and would intentionally not be shown publicly, so would many things we use daily have been better left un-produced; but just try and convince us to get rid of them! If they are faster, less effort or can produce multiples quickly, we are loathe to let them go, even if they are polluting our world or are dangerous to our long term health.

We need discernment and it is sorely lacking in this modern world. The willingness to do without something for the greater good is the indicating trait of a spiritually mature mind. Knowing we are greater than anything we create, we can be more discerning in what we allow to see the light of day. Much of our careless behavior is rooted in superstitious religiosity. There is some discernment needed there, too. Religion is our invention. Perhaps it is no longer a viable image of the universe and our place in it. Perhaps it is even harmful to the psychological health and in some cases, the physical safety of those who are afraid to let it go.

Stay tuned in, 

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Evolution No Longer on Auto-Pilot

Dear friends,

We talk of going out to be “in Nature” as if we were somewhere else in our homes and offices. They are, as Emerson stated, as much a part of Nature as trees and meadows. Life is forever “groping towards consciousness.”  We have become conscious of ourselves as citizens of a global village. We are beginning to realize this and at some point we will act accordingly. It is our Nature to adjust our way of living to the demands of the moment.

It is strange to be aware of awareness!  That is where we are right now. We have become conscious of our own evolutionary impulse; that driver inherent in us that pushes us to improve and build and enlighten ourselves in the process. It is also our nature to release, to let go of or even destroy those things and memes which no longer serve the village. Some will resist the changes necessary for the good of the whole, but that is merely fear of loss. If the more progressive of us can convince the others that what is perceived as loss is an opening for gain, then we will move forward in a healthy way.

Ernest Holmes as well as futurist Barbara Marx Hubbard, said that once we become conscious of evolution, we then must direct it. It is no longer on automatic. We must come to know that the Creative God is within us. Have we reached that point? Are we not aware of our own bad choices and our previous tendency to believe that some Natural Power would take care of us and ensure our survival?   Emerson would say that we have within us that Power, and we must intervene on our own behalf. For those who fear the loss of faith, consider Jesus’ own words, “the Father is within.” We are well-equipped to make the world as we would like it. It will not be as simple as it could be, but it will be done.

Affirm: “My thoughts and actions support the natural prosperity of humanity. I begin with myself and share what I know, believe and have proven. I am naturally drawn to those who are capable of real and lasting change. Together we lift the consciousness of the whole.”

  (That is the real purpose of Church.)

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Support the Feminine!

Dear friends,

It is possible that we, as a species, have never been more aware of the natural world; how she functions quite well without us, how much we affect her, how we compromise our own health and well -being by not respecting her. The Mother shrugs off those who do not cooperate with her laws.   She is indifferent to the pain and sorrow we cause for ourselves. However, if we act in accord with her purpose, which is to produce Beauty and Bounty, we thrive.

Beauty in this sense is harmony, balance, a give and take system. Beauty is delight and enjoyment. It is love and goodness. Bounty is supply; everything from rainfall to volcanoes that produce more land. Bounty is our daily bread and our clean air.   Beauty and Bounty, these are what the Mother has to give. That is all we need, but we have made the terrible mistake of thinking we are smarter than Mother; that we have dominion over her; that she is ours to do with as we choose. This attitude has extended to include any species, gender or type we deem expendable.

We are living in the day of reckoning. Either we wake up and get in tune with our Source and It’s visible representative (Nature) or we will eliminate ourselves from the ongoing evolution of Consciousness. If we continue to behave like marauding pirates, we will feel her sting and it will be swift and shocking. Our salvation is the rise of the Feminine in us, that aspect of every Sentient Being which does no harm. It is trying to happen right now. Let it be. Let our own higher nature become how we perceive reality. See through the eyes of awe and wonder. Pay attention to the gifts of Nature and be grateful. That is where we must begin. SUPPORT AND vote for the active Feminine wherever you see it.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Look For the Silver Lining

Dear friends,

The most important power we have is not mitigated by our surroundings. It is the power to choose what we think about, what we do with our minds, how we react or respond to our own memories, what weight we give them. In times like these, when we have fewer distractions or perhaps different ones, we might be more aware of our thought processes than we would be in normal circumstances. When life is repetitive and predictable we often do not notice our internal reactions. We move through the day on autopilot. Right now we have an opportunity to get above our own tendency to justify our thoughts as normal.

     Even though we are house-bound, we are not exactly alone. We have several devices that connect us to our loved ones. We have input from television, yet how we relate is different from touch, from feeling the energy of a living, breathing human. We are more likely to be aware of our own human-ness. Here we are away from the sensual world, in our own little realm, alone with our thoughts.

All the while, the universe is still in business. Nature is reclaiming her dominion. The planet is recovering a bit from our bad choices. Is it possible to think about this time as somehow contributing to our greater good?   It is not easy to be so optimistic in the face of the death and suffering this pandemic has caused. It is however, necessary. The old song “Look for the silver lining, when ever a cloud appears in the sky” is appropriate. What have you learned about yourself in the past few weeks? What have you found to be no longer necessary to your well-being?   What will you do differently when this is behind us?

There is some underlying Intelligence at work here. Let’s use it to our advantage so that we can be more fully alive and better prepared to contribute to our shared well-being.

Affirm “I take this time to relax into my thoughts,   I release the ones that do no good.   I create new ones that elevate and heal. I am still the one Spirit intended me to be. Nothing is lost. All is well. “

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

We Need to Renew Our Lives

Dear friends,

Spring is all about new beginnings. Life reappears as the bleakness of winter gives way to the eruption of green. What was underneath the hard, cold ground peeks its head out and suddenly there are Tulips and daffodils. Spring is not a metaphor, it is a statement of Truth.   Life is forever becoming itself in a cycle of revealed diversity that never ends.

The Christian holiday of Easter was originally a festival to celebrate the Spring Equinox and the arrival of new life. Humans have an intuitive sense that we are not unlike the Tulips; that we are recycled, as it were, and are forever becoming a new version of Love/Intelligence. The account of the death and resurrection of Jesus is one way of speaking about this grand realization; we do not die; we resume living in a newly revealed form.   That is not folklore. It is real. We are not hoping it is true, we know it is true.

Here we are, as a global family, having the very real experience of gestation. That may seem like an exaggeration but when have we all been involved in a shared experience of this magnitude? We are not at war; there is no famine; we are simply cocooned, somewhat forced into introspection. Yes, many are suffering more than the rest of us, but those folks are also on the receiving end of our care and concern. The best of us is being expressed through the distribution of food and supplies. We are having the first hand experience of just how much we are our brothers keeper. This does not negate the best aspects of capitalism, rather it tempers the greed inherent in it.   We can have a both/and society if compassion and love are allowed to be the drivers.

Prosperity never made anyone a money grabbing crook. That is the result of a belief in Lack as a fundamental truth.   Knowing that we are part of an ever renewing system ought to elicit the relaxation response in us. As long as we participate in the giving and receiving cycle with gratitude and generosity, we will be more aware of how alive we really are and shall always be.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Use This Time to Connect with Humanity

Dear friends,

You have heard that when a rubber band is stretched, it can never go all the way back to its original shape. We will not be the same after this pandemic disappears. On the one hand we might be more cautious about touching. Perhaps we will not automatically hug without asking permission, which might be a respectful way to interact, anyway.  Maybe we will be more grateful for the freedom of moving about as we choose. Perhaps we will take more conscious steps to protect our freedoms. Our personal relationships could be more precious to us and our desire for deeper, more meaningful connections a motivating influence in how we relate.

When I first moved to Hawaii in 1960 and discovered what it meant to live on an island where everything was brought in from the mainland, where prices were exorbitant, I discovered quickly how much I could live without and how resourceful I could be. Perhaps in these times we are finding that for ourselves. We may have realized how wasteful we have been, throwing out leftovers which could have been a perfectly good meal, as an example.

On a spiritual level we may have had our beliefs tested. We might have come up against our unacknowledged fears. Or perhaps we were surprised to learn just how much we trusted this Intelligence we call God.   Surely we must have had the experience of feeling more connected to the rest of humanity. There is nothing quite like shared experience to create community. Some of us could see a bigger picture unfolding; one that would bring us all to a higher level of living. The key to thriving in any situation is the realization that disease and lack are caused by humans, not God.  Our power to make the world a place that works for everyone is real. Let’s use this time to sit in silence, find that inner reservoir of Peace.

Affirm: “ I choose to take the high road. I choose to know the Truth, no matter what the appearances may be. Spiritual thought force is greater than any temporary manifestation of human ignorance.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Solitude and Transformation

Dear friends,

Two Doves have come to breakfast on dried bread crumbs which I put on the balcony railing yesterday.  It is nice to have the company, to see living Beings nearby. Isolation has its benefits but I think we are all learning the value of balance. Consider Tibetan monks who might choose to live away from humanity high up in the mountains in a cold dark cave for years on end. That is not a luxurious existence. That is a sacrifice. To deny oneself the company of other humans is probably one of the most grueling of spiritual practices.

We need each other. Human interaction is about sharing, whether that be a laugh, a milestone, a time of grief or some good news. Being alone affords us the opportunity to re-discover our deeper selves. But then, what do we do with that information? If we have found more love in us, what's the point if we cannot show it to someone? The whole purpose of self-discovery is to reveal it in the world of human experience.

If I were a famous dancer I imagine I would find some reward in being in the studio by myself, but it would be in preparation for a performance. This time of imposed isolation could be a potent time for us if we use it wisely. We might start with this question; what about me have I been withholding from the world? What do I have plenty of that I could share? When I go back out in the world what new gifts will I take with me?

I want the world to be different, but will this time have been wasted if I have not been transformed myself? Transformation can be subtle, a simple shift in our awareness can have enormous results. Let's take the time imposed upon us as a collective creation, much needed and perfectly timed. We can make the world a better place when we take seriously our place in the world. We are co-creators, the master of our fate.   What we bring with us is what we shall experience.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes

www. Carol-carnes.com

All of Us Have Some God in Us

Dear friends,

The trimmers worked all day lopping off the higher branches of the trees on our property, leaving them starkly bare. Two days later I noticed little green leaves sprouting from the cut edges. I thought, Mother Nature is a bad ass! She relentlessly does her thing, pushing new life through what looked like the end of it.   No one could have seen the inner workings of the trees that made those green leaves come out, but they must have been both pushed by the Life Force and pulled by the Light of the Sun.

Don’t you wonder what is trying to come through us right now? My sense is, the Light is pushing us through the darkness, which is temporary, so that we can be together in new and wonderful ways. Humans have pushed individuality pretty far. It is a good thing, of course, even necessary to our evolution, but when we become so self-absorbed that we can ignore the pain of whole groups of people living in anguish, or the destruction of our planet, then something new has to be born in us. If the species is to survive and thrive, we have to acknowledge the errors of our ways.

We will never be true human partners until we realize we are all spiritual equals. No group has more God in them than another. We are all the visible evidence of Love and Intelligence pushing through the invisible realm of potential, coming into this dimension as equal players in this amazing Game of Life. Our individuality is necessary to the whole but the whole has equal value and now is the time to get it together.

Affirm: “I am part of the grand equation. Humanity is God revealed in infinite variety, all good, all born from the Light.”  

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The New Normal

Dear friends,

Since it is Sunday and we are not going anywhere I felt the need to write something. Not a sermon but a few thoughts on isolation. It is always a good thing if we choose it. If it is imposed it feels more like punishment, however, we can still choose it and therein lie the benefits. It is good thing to occasionally withdraw from the world of doing and buying and going places. In fact, I think it would be a great thing if we all decided to do this one day a week after this current crisis is resolved.

One day a week to not drive the car, not create waste, not spend money. A day to be free of expectations either coming from us or at us. A day to rediscover our inner core as many of us are now doing. A day to simply do whatever we are led to do in the confines of a self-imposed retreat. People spend a great deal of money to attend retreats when all we have to do is stay home and use the time for meditation, contemplation, music, yoga, or cooking or writing or whatever comes to mind.

It seems as if this current retreat is resetting some of our internal clocks, so to speak. It would be almost impossible to not notice the finer impulses of our personalities in these situations; anything from irritation to anger to deeper patience, to our ignored need for beauty, to forgotten creativity, to a dawning realization of our own intactness.

This is the perfect opportunity to recharge our love of life and our natural optimism. This current crisis will get resolved. The new normal will be us being more conscious, more aware of our oneness, more eager to put things to rights, to get in accord with Nature, to serve the higher good.  It is often true that one has to withdraw from the problem in order to see through it to the other side. Could this be what is happening now?

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Love is the Activating Energy

Dear friends,

In these times the one thing we want to hold on to is enthusiasm. It is all too easy to fall into the doomsday trap, which is after all, merely an opinion, a limited perception. Enthusiasm for our shared future, despite the horrible choices humanity has made, is key to fulfilling the promise of our boundless possibility. We are either the co-creators of our world or we are the victims of happenstance. If we believe the latter, we believe in a world with no intelligence behind it, no love in it and no reason for it to be.

It is apparent in Nature that Love is the activating energy that causes life to become visible. It is also obvious that it does it intelligently. Everything has a purpose and a rightful place in the support of the continuance of revealed forms. Emerson talked about how a revelation is to become enthused, that is, filled with Spirit, with the knowing of our true nature; to be so aware of being the answer to any question. In other words, the answered prayer is within us.   What we desire is revealed to us as part of our very Being. That is the power that moves our feet and makes things new.

We will not create a new world without participating in the transformation. We begin with ourselves. Don’t think for a minute that you do not matter. You are a key player! This time of isolation is a much needed break for all of us from how it has been. We can use it as a spiritual retreat. It is a way to tap into our own deeper knowing, to bring up the enthusiasm that will lift us out of fear into cheerful expectation.   Not to say we are without compassion for anyone directly affected by the dis-ease, but to hold to a higher vision for us all. It is never an either/or choice. Enthusiasm for the greater possibility is simply seeing through the appearance to the emergent Good.   It is not easy but it is essential spiritual practice. As a wise person said, we are now to hospice the old and mid-wife the new.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The Changes We Face May Not Be All Bad

Dear friends,

Do you feel as if your life is in limbo? Unable to travel as freely as we might like, told to stay home and keep our distance from other people, we are not exactly moving forward. We are in a holding pattern. Perhaps that is not a completely negative thing. With great compassion for anyone dealing with the virus firsthand, can we also see how quickly Nature rights herself when humans are not active in the same way? The waters of the Venice canals have cleared up; dolphins and fish are swimming in them!   I read that the polluted air of Bejing is clear and the blue sky has returned. With factories and businesses closed, we are having an observable lesson in just how much our daily activities corrupt the environment.

There are social benefits too. People are reaching out to one another in new ways. In Italy, the apartment dwellers who are isolated, go out on their balconies in the evening and sing together. Spiritual services have become internet events, reaching more people than ever before. In addition, the spread of the virus is showing us just how connected we actually are. This global event is an opportunity for us to reconsider how we are in the world. If we claim this as a turning point, perhaps we will make some new choices that will put us back in accord with Nature.

I apologize if this sounds cheesy, but the truth is this: Mother Nature loves us as denizens of her kingdom. Perhaps she is attempting to bring us back into the circle of life. We have   pitted ourselves against her with dire consequences. Now is the time to embrace all living Beings as our family. We have to consider everyone in every choice from the tiniest insect to the planet itself.

Maybe we can turn this shared experience into a blessing.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Is an Invisible Life Form Our Immediate Teacher?

Dear friends,

We are having a world-wide shared event; something that affects each of us in some way. How we react or respond to it says everything about our deepest beliefs and consequently the story we tell ourselves about it. Is it a tale of woe, a horror story, a high drama? Perhaps it is a story of how our collective unrest tends to out-picture in our environment. That is a story that can be put to the test. In our own individual lives we might have had some experience with the effects of regular meditation. We can point to how much calmer, more centered, relaxed and clear our mind is now. We might even see the more peaceful energy in our family since we began to meditate. Our consciousness tends to extend beyond our physical form. That discovery is monumental!

Everything is better when our inner life is restfully alert. We will have a sense of what is the best course of action for us. We can often see through the appearance to the cause behind it and make corrections, thereby influencing the outcome.   The story I tell myself is simple: Life is always trying to bring forth the greater good. How it does it can be upheaval but often that is the only way to get our attention to what needs to happen to clear the path. It is rather like the addict hitting rock bottom. Then the way up is possible. Have we humans hit our lowest level of consciousness? Well, if we look at what we have done to our planet; at the human trafficking, the abuse of children, the violence in our cities, the homelessness, the poisoning of our food, just to name a few examples, then yes, we have hit rock bottom.

One aspect of cleaning up our outer environment has to do with the realization of our oneness, our connection, our shared field of consciousness. We are not us and them, we are just us, the people of planet earth. In 1999 we asked HH the Dalai Lama what was the most important thing for humanity to know at the entrance into the 21^st century. He said “the fact of our oneness, our interdependence.” If nothing else, we can have that realization because of an invisible life form that is perhaps our immediate teacher.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The People of Earth Are All Together on This

Dear friends,

There is something wonderful trying to happen right now. It is coming through those of us who refuse to fall into fear. That wonderful something has to do with our oneness, our immediate connection through the field of consciousness and our power to make this a world an experience of peace and plenty, health and joy for everyone. It begins again in the worst of times as it always has. From ancient times to now, there is always a breakdown prior to a breakthrough. Humanity is being tested right now, not by some outer power, but by its own deep level insistence that we make this world a better place.

We have been crying for justice, for equality, for equity and for an end to all the hate and violence for as long as we have been on this planet. What is happening now is simple. We have a deep choice to make individually, that will contribute to the collective. We either succumb to the old beliefs or stand up and declare we are the ones who create our shared experience.

We have made victims out of ourselves by falling into the consumer trap or the religion trap or the we-are-superior trap . We bought the program that told us to shop ‘til we drop. We ignored the starving children, right in our own midst. It took something that seems to threaten everyone to potentially wake us up to our unified field of Being. An invisible microbe has become the instigator of a potential global transformation.

I know it sounds crazy, but what if we say thank you, see it with the eyes of gratitude and make it our friend. The truth is as active now as it has always been. No little virus can change the trajectory of consciousness; no, it follows it. We must change our minds now and keep them changed. We are one people, the people of this earth. We are spiritual equals. Everyone is deserving of a good life. We work together to make it real.

Start with this declaration:

“I am a vitalized center of spiritual power. My body and the body of my affairs prove that to be so.”

Stay tuned in,   

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

As a Species We Are in a Time of Healing

Dear friends,

What is a metaphysician to do when the world is in a panic? Deny that the virus exists? No, we do not deny facts. What we do is affirm “I am always in the right place at the right time to fully realize my natural vitality. My health is assured wherever I may be.” We know that consciousness creates everything, so what we see in the world right now is a continuation of the revealing of a systemic dis-ease.  

It may be hard to believe, but we as a species we are in a time of healing. The poison is surfacing; the light is pushing it out. Just as an infected wound will get worse before it can be properly treated, so our hidden ugliness has risen to visibility. We must treat all of these symptoms properly. That is, with calm, centered, stable and loving thoughts. Keep affirming; “ we humans are rising up to new levels of mutual love and respect. Our future is clean and bright. We do amazing things together. We are taking a leap out of the dark into the glorious light of Love.”

To some, those words will seem silly or uninformed. They are not. Those of us who live our lives from the inside out, will know how powerful collective consciousness is. We must contribute to it in the way we know to be stunningly effective. Repeat those words, or ones like them, all day long. The world needs clear thinking now more than ever.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

The Coronavirus - a Signal From the Environment?

Dear friends,

It is easy to profess our spiritual beliefs when everything is going our way. It is in times of great upheaval or apparent threat that we find out how deeply rooted our beliefs actually are. Without being arrogant or reckless, we as New Thought adherents, believe we are greater than any experience. If that were not so, we would never overcome anything, not even a cut finger. We also know that consciousness creates everything and so this temporary manifestation (whatever it may be) has a Cause in human consciousness; that which we adhere to as a collective. In these times we must seriously Think For Ourselves!  

Your experience of anything is yours alone, not dictated by what others are declaring to be inevitable. Our responsibility is to be very diligent in regard to what we are allowing our mind to consider to be true. As Dr. Bruce Lipton has so eloquently stated, disease is the result of a signal from the environment. The most potent signal is thought; the most powerful thought is Love. This current virus is susceptible to Love in the sense that if we see it as a way to fully realize just how connected we all are, how one with nature, how powerful is consciousness, we will no longer be “plagued” by the effects of hate, indifference, anger and fear.

Start this day with loud professions of Love. Love for all people. Love of Nature. Love of Life itself. Love of Source, however you may see it. In New Thought we do not “pray” to get rid of a condition. We declare our power over it. That Power is inherent in every one of us. When we succumb to fear, we are spreading disease.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Relief from the Coronavirus

Dear friends,

The famous words attributed to Jesus, “be in the world but not of it” have perhaps never been more relevant than they are right now. On the one hand, knowing that consciousness precedes all form and experience, we take extra care to monitor our own thoughts at this time of sweeping fear in the collective. On the other hand we also know we are not completely separate from the field of consciousness that is made up of human beliefs. Having said that, we do want to make sure we are not being mired in the drama that fear produces.

To paraphrase Marianne Williamson (who was referring to Aids) we seem to have more faith in a microbe to make us sick than we have in our own spiritual power to remain whole. Our bodies are energy systems which respond immediately to signals from our mind. Fear is the great inhibitor of vitality (health) than any other factor. Now we must ask ourselves what we really believe about our own physical well-being. Are we one with the Source of all life or not? Are we greater than the world of experience or not? Are we things or Beings of spiritual origins?

Yes, while we are here in the flesh, we are in the world of effects; but we remain in the field of Cause. That is what we want to remember at this time. Follow our inner wisdom. If it tells us to get more rest, consume certain foods and vitamins, meditate longer…whatever is coming from our inner guidance…then we do that. Viruses are not out looking to take us down; they only seek a breeding ground. Like seeds taking root in fertile soil they cannot enter the field that is not prepared to receive.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

I Am Always in the Presence of Goodness

Dear friends,

Perhaps it would be good to give a New Thought perspective on the current experience we are having regarding the coronavirus. It is controversial, for certain, to say this, but every living thing is God (Intelligence) in expression. Some living things have more use of Intelligence than others. Those Beings that do are in charge, whether they know it or not, and usually they do not. The virus does one thing, finds a receptive place to grow and to express its nature. Fear is the great attractor and receptor. The other is a belief in disease that is stronger than our belief in our natural wholeness, vitality and resilience. Swept up in mob psychology, anyone can become ‘infected’ with the fear of a microbe or for that matter, an imaginary enemy.

In New Thought our whole aim is to infuse the field of consciousness with the stabilizing force of Truth. We give our own mind a treatment of spiritual truth. It is all too easy to fall into the collective pandemonium. Here is a sample:

Knowing there is One living Field of Love and Intelligence behind everything visible and invisible, we invest our mind in remembering this simple truth, moment by moment. Humans, made in the image and likeness of love/Intelligence, are greater than any experience they have created, consciously or unwittingly, individually or collectively.

 Our Power is inherent in us. It is stronger than fear, greater than the effects we see. We announce our wholeness as if we were the creative force in the universe. “I am always in the presence of goodness." There is nothing in this world that is seeking to lessen my power or attack my wholeness. I am always in the right place at the right time to experience health and well-being. There is no wrong place to be. I declare myself free of all false beliefs that have no good reason to live in my world. Grateful for my health and prosperity, I simply know. And so it is!

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Take the High road

Dear friends,

There is an old song suggesting that taking either the high road or the low road will determine who gets there first. I suppose it depends on where we want to get to, but in spirituality we would say the high road is always the fastest way to achieve anything. In today’s world (which sometimes seems as if we are all in a giant therapy session) we need to stay on the high side of perception. People are working out their suppressed emotions, their fears, their unexpressed angers. Not only on the world stage; this energy has trickled down into our personal relationships. The proverbial stuff has hit the fan.

Lesson to myself today; let people shout and moan. Stay real and present. Tell the truth, not to them, but to yourself. Although it is difficult to hold in mind, the fact is, we are not the target. Perhaps we have family connections and shared experiences but still, the other person is feeling only what they have invented as the right way to see things. If we have stated our apology, our forgiveness, our love, then all is well with us.

Bullying is nothing more than fear of rejection acted out inappropriately. The same is true of name-calling, labeling, finger pointing. It is all a psychological problem for the one doing the naming and blaming. Our part in the healing that is trying to happen, is to know for humanity a higher truth.
‘We are not victims of the past. We are not results of experience. We are the living expression of Love and Intelligence. As such we re always greater than any experience. Humanity is awake and alert to its original wholeness.’ That is the high road. Taking it gets us where we want to be.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

 

I Am Lovable, Capable and Beautiful

Dear friends

Take up, in mind, that person you have been blaming for your current life and say to them “my limitation is not your fault.” I know. It seems counter-intuitive when you know how badly you were treated or how betrayed. But the truth is, like our inability to get love from another, it is also impossible to be diminished by them. Our reaction belongs to us. While it seems crazy to think we have not been affected ( we have been), it is insane to think the damage is inevitable and permanent. It isn’t.

I heard a minister give a great talk recently about creating space in our hearts and minds for those we never want to see again. He was speaking of the advice attributed to Jesus, “love your enemies.” It is all about self-care. We do not want to have pockets of anger and hatred in our “system.” We are each an emotional, mental, spiritual system of creative power. We are the ones who must keep our best interests in mind. Unfortunately we have been taught that experience creates us, and that is the biggest lie of all.

Sure, in the moment, especially when we are children, we are temporarily "damaged.”   The reason good therapy or spiritual practice can lift us out of that limiting self-image is because we are NOT really damaged. The only thing that suffers is our self -image, and that is something we can raise to its original level. You were in love with being you the moment you were born. You have every reason to revive that natural state and you have the power to do so.

Start with a simple affirmation:

“I am who I have always been; lovable, capable and beautiful. No one can take that from me.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Keep Yourself Current

Dear friends,

Every need for apology brings the past into now, robbing us of the perfection of this moment. The friend who is likely to chastise us for not visiting more often, the subtle hint of hurt, must be seen by us as their need, not ours. Emerson said “be and not seem.” He was referring to this tendency to drag yesterday into the immediate reality. It does not belong here; certainly not emotionally.

Another way to not be here now is to remind others of how they were last year or twenty years ago or even last week. Let them be who they are now. Can we do that for ourselves? What if we feel the need to apologize to another? Is there a way to do it that keeps us current? What if we said something like ‘I feel very differently about things today. I would respond to you from a new perspective.’ People generally are growing and learning all the time. Let’s give them, and ourselves, credit for evolving. Most of us have new ways of seeing and doing things, proof that we have moved forward.

Emerson wrote “a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds; with consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do.” When we hang on to the past, with anger or hurt feelings, we are not involving our higher self and certainly not able to tap into our higher purpose. We are revolving, not evolving. Like being caught in those circular doors, we will miss the opportunity to free ourselves from repetition and mediocrity. Let it go! Get in the flow of Life that is moving on and up. See how much lighter you feel, how astonishingly perfect is this moment.

Affirm: “I keep myself in the Current by being current.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

We Are the Unfolding Story of the Universe

Dear friends,

Forgiveness is too small a concept to describe what happens when we step out of our old story. It is just one of many benefits that attend a leap from the past. Renewed joy and eagerness to live our life in a new way also belong to those who are willing to write a new story. It is a great moment when we realize our personal happiness, success and well-being have nothing to do with any other person, at all. Our story belongs to us alone. Having said that, of course we care about others. We might even offer advice or silently know the truth for them, but the details of their story do not rob us of what is truly alive in us.

We ought to claim our wholeness every morning, noon and night and all moments in between! Meaning, of course, that we develop a consciousness of our true identity and keep it uppermost in our mind. We are spiritual beings expressing in human form, backed up by a universal awareness that knows us as its own story unfolding.  

Imagine that you are a character in a sweeping saga of life on planet earth. You have a distinct part to play. You are perfect in the role. You have been given permission to improvise your way through the plot. In fact you can change it if you choose. The story is bigger than your part, but your part is necessary to the whole. You come to realize that you really cannot get it wrong. Remember that one line in that very old story, “you are my beloved in whom I am well pleased?” We thought it was meant for just one person. But no, it is for all of us.

Let’s tell a new story together. Let’s change the ending that seems inevitable. 

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes   www.carol-carnes.com

What is Normal is Always Changing

Dear friends,

Today was one of those computer rebellion days. Nothing would boot up. It took hours before I could get back online. I had the realization of how dependent I am on this thing. It really is a wonderful tool for staying connected to friends and the world in general. It is hard to remember what it felt like to not be instantaneously in touch with whomever we wanted to be. Of course I can recall telephones that were connected to the wall, and letters in the mail and waiting for that phone call. However, I do not remember what it felt like. Maybe that is because it was just what was normal.

Normalcy is something that changes in our lifetime. In mine, it has changed many, many times. I can remember when girls had to wear dresses to school and our fathers wore suits and ties all the time. Our mothers did housework in high heels (well, mine did!) We wouldn’t go to a nice event without gloves and stockings and probably wore a girdle, which even us skinny girls were required to wear. Nothing could move or jiggle. That was normal.

It was normal in the sixties and seventies for men and boys to grow their hair long and girls to iron theirs. It was considered okay to show your navel and go without a bra. Nowadays it is normal to insult people on the internet, to name call and taunt. Bullying is common and children talk to their parents as if they were on a TV show. Electronic devices are a constant and so is homelessness and drug addiction.    

Yet underneath all the new normal, in any age, there is the changeless Reality of this universe. There is One something being all things and endowing all things with its powers; love, joy, peace, supply, creativity, intelligence and vitality.   It is normal for us to use those energies to create our very own experience. Yet, we are prone to fall into the cultural norms and forget what is real. It takes daily spiritual practice to remember what is really the norm. Then we can appreciate all the latest gadgets, or be centered amidst the changes, knowing they will come and go but the Power of the One is ever present and available in our normal lives.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes

www.carol-carnes.com

Love is a Pretty Word

Dear friends,

Love is a pretty word. There are no sharp edges, no staccato. It flows. It has a soft sound and It means what it sounds like. There is a vibration that it carries. That is the essence of word power, the vibration it carries. Where does that vibratory quality begin if not in the intention of the one speaking? The word itself has its own energy but when it is expressed by a person, it changes shape. It becomes individualized, giving the speaker their own experience of the meaning, unlike any one else.

Consider the energy of the words ‘I am.’ The original vibration is universal; of Spirit, wholistic and unbounded. It is the Word referred to in some scriptures as that which preceded flesh (physical form). Our intention when we begin a sentence with those two words is to express something or make a declaration. We seldom think about the power of those words and how they shape our reality. We can be rather reckless with them when we forget that they precede all experience. They are the way we give shape to Infinite potential.

“I am Love” is a super-charged statement of a universal truth. There is no Love without us. It remains a possibility until we become it. Relationships that are built on our need to ‘get’ love, will not last. We cannot get anything from another. We may feel our own love in their presence, but it is our love. If that were not true, we would only be able to love once. Well, we all know that is not the case! Can we raise the vibration of what we mean by ‘I am’? Yes, that is what spiritual practice is all about. Meditation, silence, solitude, study and joyful play help us to remember the sound of our own name and to speak it with intention.

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com

Freedom and Justice

Dear friends,

It is hard to know what to think these days. Or rather, it’s harder to think what we know we should think. In the face of unbelievable events, do love and compassion still hold their power to transform? Are we mere observers or do we hold the keys to our shared reality? Have we lost access to new ideas, to vision, to the quantum field of boundless potential? What has changed in the past few years has to be our belief in the commonality of our desire for peace and justice. We may have become swayed to the notion that half of us want open warfare or a state that dictates our every move. No, we have to remember that in our hearts we all want freedom.

Humans crave expression. We are hard-wired to love each other. We are the users of an Infinite Intelligence. We have everything necessary to create a world that works for everyone. It will be the effects of our collective voice, standing first in mind and then in fact, with s singular idea; ‘We are One, we are free, we are the masters of our fate. We rise up again and again and again.’ When we are in our car or on the bus or diapering the baby, those are the times we need to be chanting in mind “we are free, we are free, we are free." Freedom and justice for all.

We may only have one vote but it is a mighty voice in itself. We may not know how freedom shall be our forever experience but we must think it anyway. We are creating the future with our thoughts. Of course action is necessary but actions are driven by ideas. We cannot make our feet do what our minds do not believe is the right thing to do.

Chant this throughout your day “Humanity is free, prospered and alive in love.”

Stay tuned in,

Carol Carnes www.carol-carnes.com