In the prologue my fictional author, CR Rozier, ponders: Is it possible I wrote my life into existence? Is reality simply a construct of the imagination? Once written, are my characters real? In the voices of East Tennessee, the mystery of the Smoky Mountains, and through events in the life of her protagonist, Celia Rose, we are led to accept as real what at first glance seems impossible. Perhaps we can change what we believe to be our reality if we allow the extraordinary to become the ordinary. In other words, believing is seeing.
On my decades long journey from professional musician to intuitive healing facilitator, I unknowingly followed strategically placed breadcrumbs along the way which eventually led me to my purpose in this life: to learn to be of service to others. That would have been a tall order in the ego-centered world I began in as a performer/entertainer, so it took every one of the mental and physical traumas and weird little twisty curves to get me past who I thought I was, to the woman I’m supposed to be. And though I’m still on the trip, the road is straighter and much easier to navigate now.
My sweet daughter Ashley, who has heard nearly every one of my funny, crazy, and unbelievable stories never faltered in her constant nudging to write a book. Without her belief in me, I’m not sure I could ever have mustered the energy and the years it took to type all the words necessary for the telling of Celia’s story. And while many of the events in Celia’s life also happened in mine, I will admit to softening the rough edges of the facts somewhat. After all, Mom must save a few surprises for another book. (wink, wink)
I also wrote this book for every person struggling with chronic illness and circumstances you may feel are beyond your control. You are not alone, but I know how it feels to believe you are. After I descended into dark times, summoning the will to re-emerge into the land of the living was overwhelming at times in the extreme, but it can be done. And while your path and mine may be very different, and I can’t save you from heartbreak, or disappointment, or the abuse that perhaps is unfortunately part of your path, maybe I can help you get through it. Maybe this book can help you believe that whatever your circumstances are, you don’t have to stay stuck in a past which doesn’t serve you.
Do you believe what you see, feel, and touch is real? And what does ‘real’ mean to you? If we were sitting together in the same room, our perception of everything there–the furniture, curtains, pictures on the wall, rugs on the floor–would be very different. We would focus our attention on things that the other didn’t notice simply by sitting on opposite sides of the room. We would attach different levels of significance to the same conversation or to a random comment made by the other person.
Imagine if we based our beliefs and view of the world entirely on our experience of sitting in one spot in that room. What a small box, some would say a prison, we would create for ourselves. This self-induced confinement could keep us paralyzed and trapped in situations that we may have the power to change if we switched to another perspective, or simply moved to another chair in the room.
We are products of our childhood, which forms the foundation of our beliefs. I grew up in East Tennessee and although I have lived elsewhere most of my life, I still hear those voices. I hear the familiar, odd turn of a phrase probably originating in the Appalachian Mountains generations ago from Scottish-English ancestry. But I also hear baked into the language, prejudices that I knew even as a child were wrong. As I traveled and lived in different parts of the country, my perspective began to change–that is, I changed my chair in the room. Baked-in beliefs aren’t immovable, but how we react to them is until we dig deep enough to identify the root of each one.
My life has always been one of extraordinary highs followed by extraordinary lows. But it was only in hindsight that I was able to sift through all the accumulated emotional baggage to see the bigger picture. The lows weren’t a string of failures but opportunities to pivot toward a more positive outcome. Even hurtful, heartbreaking events were proper and necessary to uncover what I needed to change to finally get to my truth. But my hope for you is that you will find yours more easily.
What if that which you view as is–or what you see, feel, and touch–is simply a vehicle in this physical world to evolve in consciousness as an eternal spirit who has chosen to have this physical experience? What if you can travel together with other non-physical beings in a dimension of perception beyond time and space, with the freedom to explore new ideas, different points of view, and novel experiences? And what if it’s as simple as being open to the endless possibilities offered in a realm where thoughts become things and love is the prime directive?
Please read these words as a gentle nudge to re-imagine your life. If you’re unhappy, try letting go of past unhelpful memories that don’t serve you. Change your thinking about your situation. Thoughts are more powerful than you know, so try sitting in a different chair in the room. Open the door within yourself to the possibility that what you may think is absolute and immovable, isn’t.
You are one spark in the infinite totality of All that Is, Source, The Divine Power, The Universe, The God Consciousness. The answer is not ‘out there’ but inside you, inside all of us. Close your eyes. Ask a question. Prepare to be surprised!
RE-Group 