As Flicker pulled an insect from the tree, I admired Nature’s efficient clearing system. Then, I wondered what this bird might find eating away at my essence?
And what keeps you from wholeness and freedom?
Is it resentment, repressed anger, envy, egoism, people pleasing, a victim mentality, harsh judgment, greed, a need for approval?
Maybe you admit issues to yourself, but stop short in welcoming what they have to teach you. Would it make a difference if you knew those same emotions, issues or traits hold valuable messages?
That thing you are unwilling to examine, may be an informant just waiting to set you free. Take resentment, for example. You told yourself that hurt is a part of life and to protect your moral superiority, you stuffed it in the deep recesses of your psyche.
That hurt, however, didn’t go away. Instead, it turned into resentment and grew until it was too strong to contain. Perhaps it came out sideways as cynicism. Again, you let it go, but it returned.
What if resentment has a message for you? Why not consider that your soul will speak through anything? Just as poetry can be both tranquil and dark, so also is the soul’s language.
I turned to Flicker and said, “Scan me; tap, listen and when you hear the sound of something eating away at my core, pluck it out.”
Flicker replied, “All right, if you promise to observe and listen to what it has to say.”
“How precisely do I do that?” I asked.
Without hesitation, Flicker responded, “Sit with resentment, repressed anger, envy, etc., as you would a person. Apologize for refusing to listen, in the past, and then ask it to speak to you.
Be patient. If you do not hear anything right away, invite it to walk with you. When you realize that your need to push against it is, in fact, pushing against your soul, you will have taken the first step in facing your shadow.”
Flicker, as a spirit guide, went on to say, “Take heart. Sacred within will light your way.”
Making Spirit Flesh*
What if resentment wants you to revisit the devastating hurt you experienced long ago, but this time with a trusted friend? Now that time has passed, your soul wants you to learn from the tragic event, without being defined by it as a victim.