ANCESTORS

Ancestors..that word says a lot, and yet not enough.  For many it can mean immediate family, to others it can go a long way back in the lineage.  Still others pull in ones that they didn’t/don’t know personally yet are included in their lives.  I am a mixture of the three.  I’ve had family that have made the transition beyond the veil(brother, father, mother), others in the lineage going back, grandparents, great-grandparents(I am named for my great-grandmother and miss her dearly), and then there are family members that I didn’t get the chance to meet as well as the guides that I pull into my path as we work together.  I honor them all this time of year.  My altar has mementos of them, pictures, art work, cigars, rum, incense, flowers of the season…Things that represent them and myself.  So it’s no surprise really that I am receiving visitations of spirit while the veil is thin.  I start this celebration of soul on Samhain, which usually begins with trick or treaters on Halloween..the little people here love the dressing up and treats.  Also its appropriate because it was my mother’s birthday and she loved that part of her day when kids showed up at her door and she got to gift them with candy.  My bonfire is on the second day, Dia de los muerte…all soul’s day.  I write down things that I need to remove from my world in order to gain positive, and throw it all into the fire to be destroyed and the ashes lifted to the winds to carry on away from me.  Nice practice.  I will work privately but those rituals are not for publication.   It’s similar in fashion to New Year’s resolutions which for many of our path, this marks the beginning of a new year.  So on the third day I  speak to  the ancestors, thanking them for the guidance I receive and the love they filled my life with.  Three days I pull together, commit to, because I feel its important to remember where we come from.  Without knowing that foundation, we have no roots in order to grow.   Family, no matter how long ago that was, gave us the roots to become who we are, gifted us with flight so that we soar as we seek higher enlightenment.  We might not always appreciate the lessons as we are going through them, but when we end up looking back, we can certainly see where they helped us grow into who we are now.  We are stronger for going through things that would cause others to hit their knees and stay down. We gained knowledge at the side of some who gifted us with a knowledge of nature, and the universe that others only hope to gain a glimpse of.  We are granted access to guides who take our hand and lead us on a road that fulfills us spiritually and gives us new insight to ourselves and the world around us.  It is our responsibility to use this knowledge and further its use.  We are the light, the change that we wish to see in the world around us.  We cannot sit idly by and allow others to think for us, to demean us or try and change us from what we we are destined to be.  To whom much is given, much is required.  That statement along with others from my Gran resonates with me.  I think on it often when I am asked to help someone, whether its to do a working or just share knowledge  that I may have access to.  But I also temper that with responsibility.  If I feel someone hasn’t the wherewithall to use said knowledge properly, I don’t give it up.  Nor will I work for someone just because they want revenge…I limit that to personal issues,lol…just a joke..don’t go telling people I’m a kick ass witch..on second thought do that…it might keep the asshats from getting in my face.  🙂  Taking the time to remember the ancestors reminds me that sometimes its necessary to clean out our “closets” so to speak.  Remove that which is worn and no longer useful, check the attitude and see where we can tweak it to be a little more positive, look over those past life lessons and see where they fall in the chapter of our lives in which we find ourselves now and see if we can let them go back into the memory book..not to be forgotten but to be used just as a yardstick of how we have grown from that particular time and place.  There will also be people in our lives that serve no purpose as well.  They bring negative into our lives, and cause drama…life is too short to allow that, so sometimes its necessary to cut them loose and move on.  Although some of those people can be held onto just to serve as a reminder that we refuse to allow ourselves to become like that.. judgmental, bigoted, demeaning and small minded.  They are lessons, and even though they can bring chaos, remember that to create, one has to sometimes have destruction.  Our ancestors know this, and its why when the veil thins they come to make sure that those who honor them remember that our of chaos brings new growth.  It’s natures way of renewing itself.  It’s OUR way of reaffirming that we are survivors of life’s storms, dancers in the rain, blooms in the sun.  Strong enough to handle anything.  I am grateful to those who went before me, shared their love and energy and showered my life with knowledge and courage.  Síocháin a thabhairt duit.