APRIL: Relationships… Guilt… Forgiveness
WHAT DO THEY HAVE TO DO WITH
REAL VISION AND LIVING A HAPPY DREAM?
This is the third of 3 Newsletters in which I share what it means to me to awaken from the dream—while learning to make this illusory life a happy dream.
Real vision is not seen with the body’s eyes. The Mind is the only source of real vision. Real vision is looking within, rather than without.
In this insane dream of life, the purpose of my thoughts is to project whatever I do not like by seeing it outside my body—and projecting it onto someone else. This projection of separateness is the insanity of the ego’s dream.
However, when I am joining what I see in the world with what is in my mind—then, everything in my dream becomes symbolic of what my own mind has created.
Holy Spirit can then use everything in my dream to “jog” my memory to awaken to everyone’s innocence, and to see the holiness that lights up the world. But—without real vision—this holy purpose is beyond my limited range.
My Epiphany
Hello dear friends,
I am so happy to share with you the perspectives that have come to me ever since my visions at twenty-two set me on a search for truth. It’s a path many of us are seeking, and from many sources. I love the term my son uses as he describes himself as being in “The Church of HUH.” 😊 So, what are our specific lessons to be learned that lead us to happiness . . . be it through symbolic sight, revered spiritual teachings, our relationships, or the hard one—trial and error?
I have realized that when I am in joy and peace that it’s not about changing the dream. It’s about changing my mind— the mind of the dreamer. In a Course in Miracles, real vision results in miracles. A miracle is a correction—a shift in perception from fear to love, and the lessons leading to that can be seen with one underlying purpose: to let go of guilt in all forms.
As I mentioned last month, I’ve learned that spiritual growth comes by letting go of fear out of past guilt—and collective guilt (which I did not know I had), by realizing that all of my relationships have a purpose, and by learning how to forgive—but not in the world’s way of forgiving. (The following is my overall view. I will address specifics in future newsletters.)
The path to knowing our true self requires looking at unconscious guilt we all carry from our past---when we identify and unwrap layers of trauma holding us in place, we are peeling away layers of the onion, and without our doing more of our true holy and loving self will be revealed to us.
For example, it’s as if we are born in a house with many rooms filled with sunlight. Then one day something terrible happens: we are abused. And so, we close the door to that room. In another room we are abandoned, and so we close that door, and so on. Until we one day we find ourselves existing in one little room of this magnificent house.
“I began to understand that those horrible memories remained lodged in my subconscious until that time in my life when I subconsciously sensed it safe enough to confront them… I had come to understand that facing my fears, rather than resisting them, could actually help me to release them. Then the relief came.” TGIC p. 321 – LINK TO TGIC
Holding onto fear and the past is being a victim. There isn’t any power in being a victim. When we decide to open those doors again and let the sunshine in, we see what we thought happened is not real. The world is being done by us—not to us. It’s a message of forgiveness from you, by you, to you. We heal with right thinking by making a conscious decision to let go. The last step is to ask the Holy Spirit to heal our mind.
Then there is the collective unconscious guilt we all carry for thinking we made the decision to be separate from God in the first place. (see February newsletter) This hidden collective unconscious guilt is responsible for our thoughts of not being enough, “worm in the dust,” and “I’m not really worthy of happiness.” It’s just not true! The key is to simply stop in that moment when you feel it, recognize this is collective guilt that the ego wants you to believe—and let it go. Accept your natural state of joy now. . . But again, we can only do this with the Holy Spirit’s help.
So— “How” you say, “can I forgive that #$&* who did me so wrong? Literally everyone we meet is our temple of learning. We are constantly finding people we need to grow with. Remember, everything in the dream can stir some part of the truth in us. Relationships trigger psychic wounds, and can become a path to consciousness if we are willing to look within. They are part of an on-going curriculum of planned learning experiences. Whatever stirs emotion or anger in us is all about the lessons we are learning. To not forgive is to reject our own growth. Relationships with my brother are my ticket to sanity, and my awakening to our oneness.
True forgiveness is to make the decision to see only the innocence in the other person—which is also me. This is positive denial. We forgive, not because we are being good, but because what we are seeing isn’t really there. I realize that when I let go of my resistance to forgiveness, I shift into alignment with my true function. Just as nature has coded the chick in the egg to hatch, or the caterpillar to become a butterfly, the sanity of love transforms me as I surrender to my inherent happy Self.
So, you might want to say—don’t tell me this is all a dream! I have to put food on the table, gas in my car, and bills to pay . . . I’m not saying that this is not our experience—I’m saying our experience is not real. ACIM teaches us how to learn to live what it calls “The Happy Dream”! “Happy dreams come true, not because they are dreams, but only because they are happy.” And so, they must be loving.
“Salvation can be thought of as a game that happy children play. It was designed by One Who loves his children and Who would replace their fearful toys with joyous games . . . His game instructs in happiness because there is no loser.” ACIM WK BK L 153, 12, 1-3
We don’t have to be a victim of life. We are not asked to give up anything of the body! We are asked to shift the purpose of the body, which is we are training our mind to practice forgiveness at the same time. We can be normal 😊 I don’t have to feel guilty about being successful, having money, or sex, or possessions. It’s a win-win! We can have a good time, and actually enjoy life more . . . play, dance, laugh, and do it all—but do it in LOVE, and without guilt.
All the while we are becoming more aware of the Real Self, and that the Kingdom of Heaven is within us, not in our bodies, but in the mind eternal that enables our true sight. This new vision can show me the holiness that lights up the world.
“Who would attempt to fly with the tiny wings of a sparrow, when the mighty power of an Eagle has been given him?” ACIM M-4. I. 2:2.
We can live in the sanity of gratitude especially as we glimpse images of beauty—like enjoying a laughing baby, your dog bounding up to greet you, taking in fields of beautiful flowers, or gazing upon the great power of the ocean at sunset.
When we rise above the battleground by seeing the bigger picture, we are also reminded of the sanity of laughter! I led an ACIM class for nine years, and I chose to tell a joke to begin each session.
This is one of my favorites: 😊
There was a monk who lived in an underground monastery, who was an expert in deciphering ancient writings and verifying their true meaning. One day he went bounding up the stairs where a group of the church’s most revered dignitaries were in session, and with book in hand, he began shouting . . . “We got it all wrong—we got it all wrong! . . . it doesn’t say celibate . . . it says celebrate!”
It was no accident that my response to the kaleidoscopic light was laughter. When we can laugh together at ourselves and the absurdities of our lives, it unites us, and returns us to the SANITY of love. To know that I’m crazy when I believe in the insanity and mortality of the dream-- is to actually begin to know the joy of my Real Self.
Love, joy, and laughter to you all,
Grace
So until next time,
When you find yourself staring into the headlights of fear, I hope you can stop . . . allow yourself to laugh at your temporary insanity . . . and say, as I often do, THANK GOD I’M CRAZY! 😊
***** SEE ONLY LOVE FOR THAT IS WHAT YOU ARE *****
Thank God I’m Crazy available in paperback and e-book on:
Thank God I’m Crazy includes pictures of places which took place in Grace’s life, as seen in her visions. Grace Avalon, teacher and intuitive counselor, has taught A Course in Miracles for nine years. She gives presentations, seminars and workshops for anyone whose known abuse, thought they were crazy, or wants to live a joyful life.
*** Marianne Williamson, (NY Times bestselling author, teacher, and internationally renowned speaker) , has said, “Grace Avalon inspires all of us to trust the wisdom of our hearts. Here is spirituality in practice.” ***