Meditation

Growing up I was taught to pray daily, or I wouldn't make it to heaven, according to my grandma. It was programmed in me to pray before I went to sleep at night, eat and pray for others. I grew up with a grandmother who didn't play about Jesus. He was the answer to everything, and we must give God all the praise and glory, daily. I can remember my grandma Almeter giving me a dollar every time I recited The Lord's Prayer correctly. Still to this day, I know that prayer verbatim and find myself saying the pray when I'm trying to calm my nerves. I also had another grandma, Odessa who was married to my preacher grandpa. She wasn't as strict about praying, but she did lead us in prayer before we ate. Odessa was a first lady, but she enjoyed her rum and James Brown records! She kept them hidden in the house. I can remember her asking my sister and I to let her know when the van pulls up, so that she can hit her records. My grandpa who we called Big Daddy, didn't allow secular music to be played. The religious rules were different with the grandparents!

I still pray, but I do it a little differently. I burn candles, and give offerings to my ancestors, angels and spirit guides. Yes, I'm one of those!

Praying is basically talking to God and feeding your soul. It is a powerful tool that is used by people that believe in a higher power, to ask for blessings protection, or forgiveness. There is a deeper side to my prayers where I visualize the things I want, need and receive answers to questions. Meditation is the practice of allowing God, ancestors, angels and spirit guides to speak back to you. I quiet my mind, take deep breaths and allow my inner voices speak to me

Learning how to meditate is how I began my spiritual awakening. I grew up a Christian, but I can't say that I have been extremely religious, my entire life. Especially during my teen years and into adult life. I tried to do, what I was told to do: Go to church, tithe, and obeying the ten commandments. Honestly, I have never met anyone that has obeyed the rules of the bible 100%! We have all sinned, and later asked for forgiveness. The one thing I never got right, was taking the time to download the messages God was trying to tell me. My third eye was blocked until about 3 years ago. My life had gotten so chaotic over the years, I couldn't think in complete sentences, while praying. I had a lot of negative energy around me and full of distractions. I knew I had to do something fast to fix my spirit. By the end of 2020, I started to distance myself from the people, places and things that represented negativity.

In that moment in time, I did some intense shadow work and got closer to God.

Meditation saved me, and I evolved into a more calm, secure and spiritually gifted woman. It became a lovely process getting in alignment with the universe, which lead me to a better connection to the creator. I saw angel numbers all day and wrote them down and used them as affirmations. I fell in love with nature and watching animals again, like I did as a child. The sun became my best friend. Living in Georgia, I have access to sun, and I would sun gaze while praying. The energy from the sun feels like therapy to me.

This is why I started to take the art of meditation more seriously. I felt more alive. I started to appreciate jazz and meditation music, and create my own words.

I can remember learning about the Shaman's while taking a humanities class in college, many years ago. Shamanism is a religion where they communicate with the spiritual world and gain power through trance. My professor was a hippie who had crystals piled on his desk, while a dream catcher hanged behind him over the chalk board. He was really into spirituality and always discussed the power of meditation. One day we watched a video in class that explained how the Shaman's did their religious practices. The Shamanic meditation consist of connecting with spirit guides, ancestors, gods and goddess, angels, etc. Shamans are also healers for the sick, and they would use drums to help conjure up the spirit to help heal. Drumming is referred to as the heartbeat of the earth. I can remember thinking to myself that they're just praying like we all do. After doing my own research on the method they were using, I understand the difference between praying and meditating.

I was also introduced to burning sage and saying affirmations, something I've been doing for over 10 years now. It wasn't until about 3 years ago I realized that I wasn't removing the negativity around me. You can't just burn sage and expect things to go right. You have to ask for guidance and protection from the higher power. You can't keep negative people around, expecting positive results, because they bring that energy with them. Energy transfers easily, so I am now careful with who I exchange energy with.

Meditation taught me how to manifest the life and emotional stability I needed and deserve. I have watched things happen that I prayed for and never expected to happen so easily. This practice allowed me to put the mirror in front of my face and get serious about healing. The healing and the peace of mind that I have today helped me surrender to my feminine energy. I have been able to remove negative thoughts and people. Now that I am in complete alignment with God and the universe, I am able to focus on my purpose. I am a natural healer and want to help heal others.

Meditating on a consistent basis has helped me grow spiritually. I am calm and understanding. I don't get upset over minor things, like I use to. Especially things that I don't have control over. I allow people to be who they're without trying to change them. I don't entertain negative energy or match energy. I instantly follow up bad thoughts with a good ones. I understand the importance of protecting my spirit from the things that promote negativity. Social media, the news, movies and music all have the power to control our emotions. The best part about meditation is that it helps us manifest the life we desire, by setting our intentions. I also understand that I have to put in the work to receive my blessings.

HOW I MEDITATE

I prefer to mediate first thing in the morning, so that I can set my intentions for the day. After a challenging day, it is a good way to relax with meditation. Most of all, I give thanks in advance for the blessing I am about to receive and blessing from the past. I light some candles, burn sage to clear out any negative energy. I then I burn palo santo to bring in the positive energy. I sit with my legs crossed in the lotus position, with my neck, head and spine aligned. My hands are relaxed on my lap, with my palms facing up. I take a few deep breaths, inhale through my nose, and exhale out of my mouth. Sometimes I use a guided mediation, or just music. You can find some really good ones online, music streaming channels or YouTube. I get into my zone and clear my mind. I strongly recommend meditation as something people do daily. A five minute meditation daily can change your life.