What Do You Pledge Allegiance to? No, really!

I read this month’s newsletter from RoadNotTaken.com a few days ago and it made me really think. Author, Brad Glass wrote:

“What Are We So Afraid Of?

In a conversation over coffee recently, I listened as a woman said to me, “You know, Mary is such a close friend. We get along so well. We’ve just agreed not to talk about religion, politics, parenting, or men.” My reply, “Isn’t that interesting,” probably failed to hide my reaction to the paradox this brought up. In contemplating the conversation later on, however, I realized her comment was a common symptom of many of our conversations, along with many of our relationships, and many of our “societal structures” (workplaces, communities, families, etc.), and that perhaps it might be a good topic for exploration. So why do we avoid so many topics…?”

As I read this I thought of the many conversations avoided within my own family…I have six siblings including two Jehovah’s Witnesses and three Catholics….and one who refuses, along with me, to be labeled. Additionally there are 4 who might call themselves “conservative” and two who may be “liberals”. As for me, again, thanks but no thanks on the box; independent, free to think and question. My nieces and nephew’s beliefs and opinions also vary widely and this morning I got into a deep conversation with one of my nieces that might normally have been avoided had I not read Brad’s article.

It began with a discussion about the Pledge of Allegiance and her annoyance with the whole debate. I listened to her, understanding her point of view, and then invited her to go beyond it. I challenged her by asking if she really really believed in the words. She began to sidetrack off into explaining what she thought it stands for and I brought her back to the words…do you really “pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America…..”

Definition of ALLEGIANCE (Webster’s Dictionary)

1 a : the obligation of a feudal vassal to his liege lord b (1) : the fidelity owed by a subject or citizen to a sovereign or government (2) : the obligation of an alien to the government under which the alien resides

2: devotion or loyalty to a person, group, or cause

I asked her if she had to, would she be willing to kill me for the sake of the flag and country? OK that’s a bit much but NOW HOLD ON because I know at this point some of you are wanting to leave this conversation….thinking that I have taken a stand and you will be wanting to stuff me into a flag burning box. I LOVE MY COUNTRY and I have no gripes about the flag….I have never burned one, and I am not angry, just observant. Some of you have posted and reposted The Pledge challenging us who “have the balls” to repost it….and I have sat back silent and AVOIDING…..now I challenge you to “have the balls” to stick with this conversation.

What are you afraid of?

What do you pledge allegiance to? Do you really pledge allegiance to a government filled with corruption and greed? Do you really pledge allegiance to the pawn lobbyists and the handful of powerful players you and I never hear about that call all the shots, write all the stories and move all the players on the chess board of life? Do you really still believe that the President of the United States has any control or power? Did anyone else notice the look on Obama’s face the first week or two in office? Or do you really just pledge allegiance to freedom, to inalienable rights, to liberty and justice for all? Never mind even getting into all of that, what do you want? What do you want for yourself, for your family, for your country, for your world? How about PEACE, ABUNDANCE, FOOD, JOBS, HOMES??

Just asking…..

Is the world outgrowing nationalism? Are you tired of nation rising against nation? Do you think that military oppression is the answer? Do you really believe that Bin Laden did it? Really? Aren’t you tired of all the BS that the media feeds you? Do you even know that it IS BS? (I have talked to soldiers who have returned from Iraq who were shocked by the media’s portrayal of what was going on.)

Don’t you really believe that people are just people, all over the world? That we all just want the same basic things….including peace? Are we becoming one world? We are on the internet! Wouldn’t it be great if we lived in peace and abundance?  Do you realize that scarcity is manufactured so that the economic machine keeps going? Do you realize that we have enough food and resources to give an abundant lifestyle to all people?

You may say I’m a dreamer, but I ‘m not the only one…

My vote is to rewrite the pledge, and I do have the guts to say it….I believe in oneness, i believe in peace, I do have an independent mind capable of drawing its own conclusions through logic and observation, not through some story handed down, or force fed to me by some person, some church, some government or some anything….

“I pledge allegiance to the world, and the humanity of all the Earth, to the oneness of all people, one world,  within God, Source, Universe, living in peace, with liberty and justice for all.” 

It is time for a change, the clock is ticking…it is time for all of us to STOP, THINK and to take responsibility for every word, every action, every belief. And to NOT be afraid to share with the world what we really pledge allegiance to.

I Love my country but I Love the peace of humanity more. 

NAMASTE

Nicki

 

9.9.11 Crazy in the Cosmos

Me and Rach in one of the 9 studios in her 9 story dorm! SUPER COOL!!

All the kids are off to school and work now. Rachel went Saturday to begin her first year at MassArt in Boston and Kelsie moved into UMass Amherst on Sunday. Erin went to SUNY Cobleskill the week before and Pete Jr is playing dodge the raging rivers while working in NY, VT and PA. Honestly…I have been having a hard time waking up in the morning this week. Thus no blogging. My back aches, my dreams call, and its starting to get chilly….so much easier to stay under the warm blankets. Flooding, solar flares, hurricanes, earthquakes, nuclear reactor meltdowns….everyday I listen to the weather channel, check in with Bill Ballard on FB and check the USGS site for the days latest earthquakes.(as I type this there is a 6.7 in Vancouver) I even have my phone set so that if at any time there is an earthquake of 6.0 or greater on the planet, I am notified. You know what they say…..someone has to do “crazy”….I signed up.

But…CLICK HERE …..to see that crazy is not all that bad….some amazing people were once considered crazy! And then there is the thinking that if you are not living on the edge then you are taking up too much room…..I can only do Nicki…crazy or not

Today is a good day. Erin came home last night because the flooding in NY reached the 2nd floor in her dorm! CLICK HERE to see what Cobleskill looks like! Knowing that extra help is here I slept in till 7:45 and had enough time to just milk, water and grain the calves, wash their bottles, milk cans and pails before heading off to Franklin Yoga to see three clients, all with 30 – 45 minute sessions of Selenite & Sound therapy.  As soon as my car pulls out of the driveway the calm centeredness sinks into my being. It is like walking through a doorway for me. One minute I can be full throttle in the physical 3D world filled with busy thoughts and doing and the next I am removed and serene. I feel my chakras open one by one as an orgasmic bliss infiltrates by body. I call upon my highest divine self, I call in my guardian angel and my spiritual guides, I call upon the Archangels and any Ascended Masters who would like to assist with the sessions today. I ask to merge with the Oneness of all, with God, with the Great Spirit. I begin to tap into the energy of my first client. I feel her issues, where she holds back but I do not know how to help her….I know that the words will come from Spirit through me to her as I set the intention to serve her greatest good.

Selenite on treatment table at home

The three sessions were all slightly different; each very powerful. We begin by sitting together and I explain what the session will entail and see if they have any questions. Then we stand and I say a short prayer, centering us both completely and fully into the room and into our selves, releasing every moment that has led up to this, calling upon our angel and guides as I did in the car and connecting to God, Source, Great Spirit. At this point I am linking fully with the client, reading and feeling their energy and emotions. They then go over to the treatment table and begin placing their hands on each of the four major stone slabs. As they do this they have a silent conversation with the stones and with Spirit setting their intentions into the selenite, as if they were talking directly to God or their Angels (or whatever framework they want to use to describe the power greater than themselves.) They set intentions for themselves and their lives (never for others in these sessions) while touching the stones and ask to release anything and everything that no longer serves their highest and greatest potential. As they do this I hold their intentions in the stones with my own intention to do so and by waving a selenite wand (helps to conduct energy more strongly) back and forth over the slabs. (for those of you who think that this sounds a little far fetched, may I remind you that 99.99% of everything you see, touch and are IS ENERGY. Our intentions are the force that creates and drives our lives….we are what we think we are.)

Selenite Wand

Then they get on the table laying directly on the slabs with a pillow under their head. I scan their body again, connecting with my own intention for assisting them in the session and then beginning with the crown chakra, I lead them through a guided chakra clearing meditation. Each meditation is similar but varies slightly depending on what the needs are. Sometimes I see images and hear messages which I share either during or after the session. Once I finish the clearing then we focus on grounding the energy down into Mother Earth fully anchoring in the intentions to the physical plane. As the energy is called back up into the body we invite Gaia to share her essence and communicate with the client.

Last summer I met Gaia for the first time. I had been doing specific meditations using Kundilini breathing and bringing earth energy up my spine when all of a sudden I connected with her. Up until this point I did not really accept that she was a being/entity in and of herself, but that day, I felt her and I knew she was! I felt her deep yearning for all humans to connect with the Divine. It was as if she had been apart from her lover for a long time…the yearning and need was so deep, so strong and so passionate….waiting for us to wake up fully and bring forth heaven on earth. I wept with her. Her love for us and her beauty was so breathtaking all I wanted to do was to go outside and lay prone in the grass hugging her with my whole being….committing to her with my life and my love. Three weeks after this I was working at the Angel Room during a Reiki share and a young boy had come with his Mom to receive. He was on the table and I was imagining myself standing in a column of light connecting divine light from above and Gaia’s energy from below bringing both into my heart and out my hands. All of a sudden images of the boy came into my vision and I heard Gaia telling me how much she loves this little boy, how he picks up trash all the time from outside and has a whole recycling system set up at home. He cares so deeply about her and she wants him to know that she so appreciates his efforts. When I asked the boy and his mother about it they both confirmed that indeed he was a super recycler and did exactly as I had seen…we were all deeply touched and amazed by the connection. She is real!

Crystal Singing Bowls

Then we open the first Soul Star Chakra (located 12″ above the body) which assists us in creating deeper and clearer connections with the divine. Last summer before I went to Egypt I was working with Reiki on a colleague when suddenly a parade of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses appeared to be walking into the room. They were beautiful and so regaL….they surrounded the table and led me to open two chakras above my friend’s head. They showed me their tall headdresses and explained that the reason for wearing them was to signify that these chakras were activated. (I later researched and found that it is believed that we do have two additional chakras above our heads though in Kudilini practice they only speak of one….I never found anything about the headdress connecting though.) So I work with this chakra in my sessions. After opening it we call in the client’s guardian angel, the being who has been with them since their beginning. We invite the angel to merge his or her energy with the client’s and wrap his/her wings around the client. We set the intention to have the angel assist in integrating the sound of the crystal bowls (which can be very strong) gently into the cells of the client to clear and release anything and everything that no longer serves his/her highest and best good. And I play my bowl set. The sound feels as though it travels through the selenite slabs into every inch of your being accelerating the vibration and cleansing each cell. It feels as though pure joy radiates through your body. Then we close by giving gratitude to all and everything. We sit for a bit after to share our experiences and messages while the client holds some hematite to reground.

got milk?

After three of these sessions, I can’t help but have an amazing day! Pure Bliss! I LOVE my work. My clients leave lighter, clearer and more joyful…..it’s a beautiful thing.

Back to the cows…..and then to the chocolate : ) …balance is good!

Namaste

(the light within me honors the light within you…in that light we are one)

Nicki

 

Welcome!!

Me and the girls

Thank you for visiting my blog “Cosmos, Cows & Chocolate! I hope that you find enjoyment, inspiration, insight and/or support here.

I live on a beautiful dairy farm (thus “Cows”) in Mendon, Massachusetts with my highschool sweetheart (Peter), his dog (Ovi), 250 or so cows, sometimes his two children (Pete Jr and Erin) and sometimes my two children (Kelsie and Rachel). I am an angel and spiritual artist and a healing practitioner by trade (thus “Cosmos”). I am an intuitive and specialize in creating angel & spirit guide paintings and in facilitating energy work (such as Reiki) and Selenite and Sound sessions. Ever expanding and never boring, in recent years my life transitioned from stressful with moments of bliss to blissful with moments of stress. This happened by my first getting clear on my desire for inner peace (believing that by being peace-full am helping the world be such) and making a commitment to it, then by making difficult choices, changing my environment to one that better supported my commitment and then by creating inner change, disengaging from my ego and deepening my ability to love myself and others (thus “Chocolate”…to me it is the taste of pure Love),

With courage and vulnerability I open the book of my life in order to support you on your journey…as I believe that we are all moving along the same path.