There is a door in front of us — all of us — here and now. We are being invited to walk through.
It's scary to walk through a door you've never walked through...
A dream can be awesome, or awful. Sometimes we're relieved to wake up. Sometimes waking up can be disappointing. But a dream is always just that — a dream. When we wake up, we wake up to what is.
One thing about dreams: they are created by us. Dreams can be powerful glimpses into our own subconscious, But they can only take us to the edge of our own thoughts. In a way, this makes dreams safe. Nothing completely "other" is likely to happen in a dream. They're sometimes super weird, but not beyond ourselves. (I do believe God can speak to us through dreams, so that is an exception, but more rare.) When we wake up, we wake up to what is.
What is — that could be anything! What is is more than we can wrap our minds around. What is is beyond ourselves. What is is infinite. So there is an element of scariness.
We can deal with this scariness in lots of ways. One way I tend to deal with it is to keep dreaming, To shield myself from the infinite uncertainty of what is with a (smaller) world that I create with my own thoughts, ideas, opinions, dislikes, grievances, perceptions. Even the pursuit of my calling in life can be a shield. This doesn't actually make me more safe — what is still is — but it can make me feel like things are more under control.
Still, a dream is always just that — a dream.
I want to be awake. Don't you? Maybe it's just me being a hammer and looking for nails, But I feel like I perceive an enormous population in our world longing to wake up, even though it may be scary.
I've heard it said that we are an image of God. Or a reflection. But I would go further to say that we are an emanation of God. Like the sun's rays, The rays are not the sun, but they are not separate from the sun, either... they are an emanation of the sun. We are rays of light, We are not God, but we are not separate from God, either... we are an emanation of God.
As we begin to awaken to what is, we become receptive to so much more. This is why it's scary — it's so much. And we no longer feel in control the way we do when we live in our own thoughts, opinions, and perceptions. This is also why it's exciting. There is so much more here for us, Infinite amounts of light, ready to flow into us — to the darkest corners of our being.
This doesn't have to be — and shouldn't be — just a metaphor. We can practice receiving the light right now: Look up. (Really, take a moment to look up...) There is so much light. It's being given to you right now. And again in this moment. And in this one. Seemingly infinite amounts of light, color, and beauty. Incomprehensible amounts of it. No one is taking this from you. No one needs it. The person sitting across the room is being given their own infinite supply. This is all for you. Take, receive.
You can practice this. And this practice is allows you to leave the world of metaphors, ideas, and trying to believe unbelievable things... Just look up, if you're fortunate enough to have vision. Just because we can see does not mean that we see. There is something we do internally — tied to intention — which allows the light in. We can choose to receive. When we do, it can feel overwhelming. There is so much here for us. Yes, it is overwhelming. And this is just one of our five primary senses.
The same can be done with smell. Taste. Touch. And, my personal favorite, sound.
This is not just a metaphor. Listen. Listen further. Further still. The more you listen, the more you hear. Even in a quiet room, the sounds are seemingly infinite. In every moment. Beautiful music comes from musicians... also from the wind, trees, birds, bugs, waves, traffic. There is so much here for us. Yes, it is overwhelming.
I believe there are other senses we can explore, but even just our five physical senses — even just one of them — can fill us to the top, every moment of our entire life.
There is so much here for us.
And that makes me wonder: Are we really waiting for heaven? Or is heaven waiting for us?
What does one do with infinity-per-moment, when the next moment of infinity comes? Logically, one would have to release the first infinity in order to receive another infinity. Every moment would be an opportunity to receive infinity, and to release infinity.
The sun's rays light our world. With every moment is a new ray of light — the ray which lit the world a moment ago is long gone. And in the next moment, there are all new rays again. It never stops. And it lights the entire earth. It seems to do this effortlessly.
We are emanations of the Source of Light. We are the light. You are the light of the world.
Heaven is here. And we are the delivery system.
As the sun rises, the world begins to awaken. Gently. We are not being jolted awake. The sun rises slowly and steadily. Its light softly tickles our eyelids, Inviting us to open one eye, then the other, Squinting at first, Eventually opening more.
A gentle invitation to be awake. To receive the light.
We have some work — good work — ahead of us. The exciting work of learning to be more alive. Learning to more fully receive all that is being given to us, And learning to fully let it go, Letting the light shine through us and into the world, naturally and effortlessly.
I don't have a roadmap for this work — I'm on this journey the same as everyone else. (I will just keep writing words and music as I learn.) But I do believe that a good place (the only place) to start is here. I don't think it has to be complicated, philosophical, or theological. We are made for this. We are the light. So we can start much more simply than all of that...
Look up. Listen. Smell. Taste. Touch. (So very interesting how many of these were taken from so many of us over the past couple of years.)
Can you begin to let these in, one at a time, one moment at a time? Can you add another moment? Can you receive during a difficult moment? During an argument? When you feel wronged?
We have some work to do. But it's practice — it will get easier and more natural in time.
We are learning to be alive. We are learning to be what we are.
You are the light of the world.
Heaven is here. And we are the delivery system.