Rising heat

wild dog hill
Heat rises up in waves
from the rich red ground
shimmering, dancing, teasing
there’s no one around

Leaves hang almost motionless
just a subtle waver
a gentle breath of air
sensually savoured

The earth she has the rhythm
of the oldest dance of time
pulsating then resting
in natures sweetest rhyme

From her we draw our passion
as she drives us ever on
’til our hunger is sated
the last shuddering breath gone

Trish Johnston 13th March 2016

It’s NOT all about you! Is it?

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One thing I see constantly in my healing practice is people who constantly battle with the image they portray to others.  My response to them is usually along the lines of “Does it really matter?”  For many years I, as most people do, lived my life fitting into what I thought were the boxes I was meant to be in.  The ones that ‘fitted’ with where I was in my life at that time… the wife, the work colleague, the mother, the daughter, the sibling, the friend and so the list goes on.  I strived to be as ‘perfect’ as I could be in each situation and in doing so I created a reality for myself which became more and more of a battle each day. You see, what I never really understood is that it is not all about me!  In the words of the late Wayne Dyer “What other people think of me is none of my business”.

How others act or behave is a reflection of them and their stories.  We do not have to make it all about us.  If someone is hurtful towards us most often it is because they have unresolved issues around the situation.  When they feel the need to lash out or to undermine or control another it is usually because of their own insecurities in themselves.  There own limiting beliefs create their reality and they are attempting to project that reality on to those around them.  When we accept that reality and react as they want us to react we are then allowing ourselves to take on their issues.  Most of the time we are totally unaware that we are doing this. However, in doing so we are perceiving it to be all about us.

Many years of soul searching have taught me that all those cliches that roll off people’s tongues so easily really do make sense, however, it is not until you have accepted yourself that you are able to actually see that those who are the most negative in our lives are in fact the ones who need the greatest understanding and tolerance.  When I say this I do not mean that we have to tolerate their behaviour, it is entirely up to us whether we react to hurtful behaviour with hurtful behaviour or whether we chose to not become a part of that scenario.  If we are truly not making it all about us, we can see that there is something more behind this behaviour than someone wanting to hurt us…in fact it is usually more that that person is hurting themselves.  When we choose to react negatively we are validating their negative behaviour.  If we choose to not take part in it we are in fact not validating it and therefore it has no power over us.

Some years ago I and some friends were fortunate enough to meet a young gentleman from Rwanda whose family had been through the most painful and unimaginable times of genocide.  With what this young man had experienced he would well have been justified in being a ‘victim’, in hating the enemy.  However, his purpose in travelling in Australia was to teach people that the only way to stop these atrocities occurring is by loving and forgiving others.  He could well have made this dreadful story all about him, instead he made it about being an instrument of peace for the betterment of all.  I learned so much from the short time spent with young Yanik. Not least of which was… it is not all about me, unless I choose to make it that way and if I that is my choice I then have to live with the consequences.

It’s all about me… isn’t it? Part 1

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Ahhh social media. I’m so glad you came along. How else would I be able to know what my friend had for dinner or how many reps he or she pushed out in the gym today. How could my life possibly be complete without hearing a second cousin twice removed’s opinion on our current political leaders or what my friends granddaughter achieved at day care today? In this day of social media it is so easy to get caught up in other people’s lives. After all is that not what the likes of facebook, Instagram, twitter, snap chat and all the other social media applications are all about? As I scroll through my feed I see so much of other people’s lives there in front of me. I have to admit that much of the time I cannot help but think “What on earth were they thinking, posting that for all the world to see” but then that is only my opinion and as we all know we are all entitled to our opinions.

It also intrigues me that so many can and do become offended by posts and comments made by others. How on earth can people possibly be certain that the post was deliberately aimed at them? Were they tagged in the post? Did the ‘poster’ say their name specifically in the post? More often than not it is an assumption and this, my friends, is dangerous ground for as the old saying goes “to assume is to make an ass out of you and me”. When did we become so prickly?

If the shoe fits… In my observations it is most often those who are very insecure in their own worth who feel that every shoe fits them. Really people! Since when did life become so focused on you that you should become upset over a statement that without the help of social media you probably never would have seen/heard/read? Have our lives become so shallow that they exist only on a feed on your phone, tablet or whatever device you use for your social interaction? I wonder also how many have performed the simple exercise of using correct grammar, punctuation and spelling. Although from what I see in a lot of online interaction there is very little grammar used. I certainly don’t profess to be a grammatical expert however I can see that it can change the context of a sentence totally and completely. Because let’s face it, there’s a big difference between “Let’s eat, Grandpa!” and “Let’s eat Grandpa!”.

When we speak we use tone and inflections to deliver our words. When we write it is virtually a monotone. When we read this monotone we can place the inflections where ever we choose. This also is dangerous ground. Try reading “Oh thank you, that is very funny” with a smile and a happy lilt in your voice. Now try reading the same sentence dripping with sarcasm. Two very different interpretations, aren’t they? Do you see how an innocent comment could be easily misread?

Next time you want a bit of light entertainment go to your chosen social media application. When you want real, honest communication have a real, honest conversation. Hear the tone and the inflections. No more confusion, no more being precious and getting hurt by things that were not meant for you directly or were taken out of context. Just honest to goodness conversation.

Sometimes it is not all about you. Sometimes it is just your perception.

Part 2 coming soon……

 

When love comes knocking

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When love comes knocking at your heart
there’s not much to be done
except just settle back
and enjoy what is to come

Some may try to fight it
some try to run and hide
but there’s no way to avoid it
once it gets inside

Love is special moments
that make you smile inside
its warmth, its joy, its pleasure
its sharing and desire

Love is lives joined together
hearts open and free
embracing the unique beauty
that couples always see

Love is not so complicated
as some deem it to be
its encouraging each other
to be the best that they can be

Trish Johnston 14th February 2016

The Looking Glass

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It stands there, the looking glass
Hoping to catch your eye
To show you all the blessings
That in you reside

It shimmers with the kindness
That with others you share
That firm but gentle way you have
Of letting others know you care

It glows with commitment
To a job well done
Of all those tasks completed
And many more to come

It ripples with unfinished dreams
of days within your past
Waiting to be drawn out
From that place they’ve been cast

It vibrates with the love
that your heart cannot contain
The passion being awoken
As you learn to live again

Look now into the looking glass
Gaze at the spectacular view
See everything that others see
The wonder which is you.

Trish Johnston 5th February 2016

Progress? Change? Or just simply life?

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Ever had that feeling that there is so much more to life than what you are currently doing?  It is something that I experience from time to time and it has only been in recent years that I have started to honour it.  I have had many ‘wise’ people tell me that ‘one day you will have to stop running away’.  It used to make me stop and doubt my inner feelings, make me wonder what exactly it is that I am ‘running away’ from.  These days I no longer listen to these helpful folk.  I know that what is within me is my ultimate guide. My wisdom comes from within and while there are times that I allow fear to dictate I know that I will find peace once I let go of that fear and do what feels right to me.

I do not feel that I am running from something, nor do I feel that I am constantly searching as others sometimes tell me I am doing.  Searching implies that I’ve lost something.  I certainly do not feel that I’ve lost anything, rather that each and every time I make another life choice I am growing and evolving on many different levels.

Several years ago I became the proud owner of a beautiful website.  A wonderfully patient friend produced some stunning art work for the site. The site was to showcase not only my healing modalities – Kinesiology, Reiki, Massage, Spiritual Guidance but to allow me to share my writing with the great big wide world.  At first, like most people I was very enthusiastic and posted regularly.  Then gradually I allowed the demands of life as it was then to change my focus.  Eventually I forgot how to even log on to manage the site so I allowed it to go where so many other websites go, that graveyard in cyber space!

Recently I had the urge to start up my website again.  In the intervening years from when I began my first site and now I have had so many experiences, some of which were painful, some of which were very extremely enjoyable, all of which culminated in the realisation that within me there is the soul of a gypsy, a wanderer, a free spirit.

As I progressed along my path experiencing life, I wrote many poems on so many different topics.  At times my emotions poured out through my keyboard, raw and revealing.  Some who are close to me find it too difficult to read about the darkness and anguish that plagued my life (or maybe they just really don’t enjoy my writing!!) but there were others, usually strangers who contacted me, telling me how moved they are to at last have found someone who could put into words the emotions that they themselves had been feeling but were unable to verbalise.  What a wonderful revelation that was to me.  To be seen as a ‘voice’ for the expression of the deepest feelings of not only myself but of so many others is an honour beyond all others.  Just as I consider it an honour to have an individual come to me for physical, hands on healing of one modality or another; to experience the level of trust that people place in me is truly humbling.

I have long been aware that my life purpose is healing.  There is nothing that gives me more pleasure than to be involved in the healing process of another, to facilitate the healing and hopefully sharing with them the tools which will allow them to take their own healing to another level.

Recently I have been experiencing many aches and pains throughout my body.  Of course, being in my early 50’s I was prepared to accept that age was catching up with me and that the dreaded arthritis was invading my joints.  Off to the doctor I went and fortunately he decided to send me to a specialist.  The specialist had no real opinion to offer one way or the other but did arrange for me to have almost every bloody test known to man.  After having 9 phials of blood taken for goodness only knows how many tests I eventually received the call from my doctor asking me to come in and discuss my results.  Guess what?  The results revealed that there is absolutely nothing wrong with me!  No signs of arthritis in any way shape for form. Xrays also returned with nothing visible. So what is this mystery illness?  Why am I experiencing pain daily, almost constantly?   My health according to science is extremely good.

The idea has been filtering down to me in various ways for a while now that maybe I am not doing what it is that I was put on this earth to do.  How can this be so?  I am a healer and for the past year or so that is what I have been doing.  I have my own little business with a wonderful client base, I have been living my dream. How can I not be doing what I am meant to be doing?  

I have just returned from a week in Rotorua, New Zealand.  The trip literally fell into my lap and was totally unexpected.  I invited a girl friend to join me and away we went.  I do not believe in coincidence, my belief is that the Universe lays things out before us and it is up to us to either recognise the synchronicity or go on ignoring the signs.  Whilst in the wonderful Rotorua I attempted to make appointments to see local ‘spiritual healers’ in the hope that they may have some revelations for me.  I was unable to lock down appointments for various reasons so I decided to just book into a spa for a 30 minute massage while my friend had a treatment.  Thank you Universe!  Here, in the surrounds of this very lovely but quite commercial spa I found my spiritual healer.  She took one look at me when I walked into the treatment room and started lecturing me.  Why am I carrying so much pain belonging to others?  Do I not realise that the pain I am experiencing is not my own but that of my clients and most likely many others as well?  Of course, being a spiritual person I am fully aware that this is one of the dangers of being an empath and a healer.  We had a lovely discussion and the beautiful Marji massaged away the pain and the weight of what I had been carting around with me believing to be my own.

Also during the trip my friend received an email from her publisher with suggested cover designs and type fonts to choose from for her soon to be published novella.  It was so special to share this exciting time with her.  I know how much writing means to her as it is a passion we have shared since meeting.  As we sat and talked late into the night for many nights on our holiday we spoke of our dreams and explored possibilities of what might lay ahead for each of us.  At one stage I found myself telling her that she had no need to pursue a career in healing as her particular healing gift was in her ability to write.  Hello? Where did those words come from and were they only for her?  

A culmination of so many things which have occurred in the past couple of months has given me the awareness that my focus must return to my writing.  My healing does not have to be only in the form of getting people up on the table in my little clinic and soothing away their woes.  My healing can and will be also through my words, my ability to express from my heart whether I am writing of my own experiences or others.  How many times does a light bulb have to go off before I listen to my inner self and do what I am truly deeply passionate about?  Yes, I love my little clinic but it does not have to be my only focus.  I must embrace ALL that I am, allow my words to flow and trust that those they are meant to reach will through one channel or another find them when they will do most good.

So, is this progress?  Is this change?  Or is this just simply life and the Universe leading me to my ultimate Utopia?  Keep an eye on http://www.indigowisdom.com.au to see where this journey goes.

Until next time, which I am expecting to be real soon!

Take care,

Indigo (aka Trish)

Proud Australian

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I am a proud Australian
I wear my heart on my sleeve
many come to visit her
and then they never leave

Her beauty it seduces them
her diversity enthrals
she entices them with wonders
she has so many lures

Some aspects of her history
make me stand tall and proud
others make me cringe in shame
of what was then allowed

The very first Australians
have not been treated well
we all must work to change this
and not on bygones dwell

Lets look forward to the future
let all our mobs unite
all the diverse cultures
work to together to get it right

I am a proud Australian
I am sure you are too
lets all join hands and hearts
for we have much to do.

Trish Johnston 26th January 2016

Dark to Light

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When you can’t look on the bright side
I’ll sit in the dark with you
I’ll be right there beside you
To help you make it through

With my heart I will support you
With my courage give you strength
In my silence I’ll give you solitude
I’ll go to any length

I’ll never try to push you
Nor demand what you can’t give
I’ll accept your uniqueness
Your life is yours to live

When the light at the end of the tunnel
Illuminates your view
I hope that you’ll allow me
To share in it with you

Trish Johnston 4th January 2016

Living in the Moment

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There’s a joy in living
That we don’t always see
Sweet and precious moments
That set your spirit free

Awaking to a new day
Knowing it’s just the start
Of the rest of your life
And yesterday is past

Put this day to good use
Live it, don’t pretend
Be right here in this moment
And your joy will never end

Trish Johnston 10th November 2015

Black Dogs Bite

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I don’t want your sympathy as I battle the old black dog
though I’m not sure if you’re aware that I wander through this fog

There are those who understand for shadows stalk them too
they know that dreaded feeling that strikes out of the blue

In my mind I’m never worthy; self-esteem is low
as the light within struggles, just a pathetically feeble glow

No, I can’t just snap out of it as the intolerant urge
It doesn’t have a switch, it is something I must purge

Darkness will settle over me I feel as empty as a tomb
I’m not even sad in this hollow womb

Externally I function, day to day I still get by
live on automatic pilot without the strength to fly

I live here in my solitude untouchable, alone
I seek those who understand who call the same place home

It is a small part of me, does not my life define
a glitch in my makeup, a brush stroke gone awry

Life is about choices; at least this is what I am told
I choose love and warmth not this overwhelming cold

I do not choose depression or invite the black dogs bite
as those who do not live with it seem to think I might

I have learned to control it, to keep it locked up in its cage
though sometimes it defies me and engulfs me in its haze

It is difficult to describe it to one who has not ventured there
think of hollow, empty, numbness mixed in with despair

I do not wallow in it, regardless of what you think
inside it’s a constant struggle to pull back from the brink

If you see somebody struggling, please be tolerant and kind
or at least do not judge them harshly, offer well-meant advice

Remember you too have afflictions, imperfections of your own
rather than judge another it’s best to just leave them alone

Trish Johnston 18th July 2015