Above: Vija Celmins, Starfield 2010
2021 was a catalyst for destruction: every wall that was protection has turned to mud and is being rebuilt and molded into its strongest purpose. In many ways the mud still sits in its own regenerative passing and therein lies every possibility for physical expansion. Every imaginative inkling is now become alive and emergent. And this is the energy we all must evoke and honor within ourselves for 2022.
I offer a metaphor rooted in radical unlearning... expanding as a tree, in which growth is directionless and situated simultaneously upward as branches and downward as roots, but also through oxygen-giving breath that is limitless in form.
Throughout 2021, these analogous destructions allowed for unlearning... so that I was no longer bound to the ways which kept my mindsets small. Through each season I kept unraveling these layers of myself, so much so that I am still wandering, sifting deeply through the uncertainty and unknowing. Yet there is so much power in this uncertainty because it calls for awareness that is rooted in liberation. The power that exists in the questioning of our own conditioning arrives the first time we seek clarity on who we are outside of our ego, outside of others' expectations, and outside of a consciousness chosen for us, not within us. I invite you on this continual path, where you do not desire to build or to add, even in the context of your own 'healing,' but to unlearn, so that you can invite in a new paradigm for living that is based on your own authentic code.
2022 is a portal year, meaning it will give us greater tools for our ascension and growth and an opportunity to master our inner transformation. Situated both within and outside of us is a portal: an angle-less and formless mirror that is a fractal of our universal consciousness. We are all fragments of each other; separateness is an illusion. Everyone I meet on this journey is a reflection of myself as perception is bound through the lens of the self. In the process of unlearning, I have expanded my self-portal to one of unconditional love. I aspire to arrive in the next year of learning with more unconditional love for myself and others. When we see ourselves as the embodiment of unconditional love, so much dissipates... the negative self talk, the inner critic, scarcity mindsets and unworthiness, while so much else emerges...joyfulness, play, inner child connection and vibrant gratitude for being alive.
The portal is simply inner awareness, fluctuating and evolving with each day and each opportunity, struggle, lesson, and outcome. The portal is a metaphor for the unknown, as it exists without finite boundaries. While we may assume this portal to have edges, a space in which we can 'jump' in and out of, we realize that even those boundaries are a product of our perception. The more we unlearn, unravel, and grow, the more we see everything we do as a portal to a new conscious experience. Absolute truth does not exist in this universe and the more it evolves, our perspective shifts and changes. There is no end goal or final destination and to assume we reach a point where all has been accomplished is a falsity; especially in regards to socio-cultural frameworks that pervade our need to perform, succeed, or abide by expectations that do not fuel our creativity as humans.
However, as contradiction, as much as our portal expand and as universal consciousness evolves, some things consistently remain theoretically grounded in truth: honoring our humanness through self-love, gratitude and aliveness for our Mother Earth, connectivity to nature and the land, love, friendships and connection with others. I love the sense of duality within our humanness: the sensory experiences and the polarity of pleasure and pain which is at once a biological function and simultaneously a reminder to honor the desires of being human.
In 2022, I call in deep dialogue as context for a paradigm shift for connectivity. Dialogue with others in ways that recognize the continual evolution of humankind. It is through the language of affirmation that the pulse of our earth is generated. Our earth is a container for the human experience inhabited within our bodies and our thoughts construct how we symbiotically relate to our earth. We must exist with a framework of hope, despite the continued atrocities, traumas, and tragedies that the pandemic, the economic disparities and systemic inequalities fueled by corporate entities and institutions have created. I will continue to call for everyone's spiritual or contemplative practice to be intersectional: first addressing and educating, then seeking to dismantle problematic injustices that devalue others. We cannot ascend without uplifting all inhabitants of the earth. As we construct opportunities for deep dialogue, we can enrich our relationships with others based on the notion of interconnectivity: that we are all here to learn and grow from each other.
My last intention for this year is to see magic in everything. Seek aliveness and through it all...deeper clarity and understanding for our purpose here on earth. See everything through a more gentle lens and framework and honor the subtleties of our sensory-bound experience on earth. Fall in love with everything that surrounds you, most importantly your pain because once you can transform that energy into love, you have it all: complete happiness and liberation awaits all of us, in 2022 and beyond.