In my angst-filled moments, I often forget all the good things I believe to be true about myself and my life.  I do actually believe there’s an abundance of goodness around me; that I have great capacity to love and that it is safe to do so; and that I am loved.  But my fear and anger usually drive away any helpful recollection of these truths.

In an attempt to remedy this temporary forgetting, I have written a personal creed: a reminder of the things I know to be true, and a heart-felt prayer asking for help to shift me into a different, deeper consciousness.  I aim to have it close at hand – in my bag, at my desk, etc. – to pull out in such fearful, angry moments!  I also aim to read it every morning, so it becomes a stronger part of my inner knowing.

This is my creed:

Life is not fair (to my ego).
I will feel misheard, misunderstood,
ill-treated & disrespected.
I will experience pain in my body
at all these things,
and I will feel unutterably alone.
In ego, I am alone.

But this also is true:
that I am held in a sea of grace
which knows no boundaries
and has no shores;
that I am CONNECTED, to Spirit,
and utterly all around me.
Every beauty I perceive is a reflection
of the divine beauty within.
Every joy I perceive is a reflection
of the divine joy within.

Life is an INITIATION.
Things are not as they appear.
I seek to see with the shaman’s eye,
perceive everything on its head,
every insult and hurt as impersonal,
every accolade and worldly success
as impersonal.
The test, the initiation:
how wholly can I surrender?
how faithfully can I love?

I seek not to be heard
but to hear with my deepest self.
I seek not to be understood
but to understand with my deepest self.
Crow! Grant me your cross-eyed vision
to perceive the hidden truth,
the deeper need!
Bat! Grant me your inverted wing-cocoon
within which to rest & transform!
Midwife me to a new consciousness!
Butterfly! Ground me in this present moment,
in the knowledge that this is all there is!
Porcupine, teach me to play!

Spirit! Fill me with your infinite love
which casts out all fear,
so there is nothing in my heart but love!
Great Mystery! Remind me of all the things
I do not know and cannot understand!
Please help me ACT on love,
and to know you
as the silent lake
into which all things may fall,
as my inner beloved.

Awake! Out of ego, and into love!

I am fully AWAKE and present to the
abundance and love all around me.

I accept that I already have everything I need.

Life is an INITIATION.
I am an acolyte.
I tend. I heal.
My deepest desire is to transform.
To heal. To move in grace.
Axe!