The Moment of Truth

Only in the darkest night can the brightest light be seen. 

We are in our collective dark night of the soul. At every level - globally, socially, individually, and spiritually, we are facing our moment of truth.

There is a great contrast of energies: the impending doom of a world gone mad and the light from so many awakening hearts heralding in a new paradigm. Even as the darkness increases, there is reason to rejoice: The light will match the darkness, and the light always wins.

The world is at a crisis point. Whether you believe that global warming is caused by man or through natural cycles, the surface temperatures of Earth are moving at an alarming rate toward 2.0 degrees warmer than pre-industrial levels. NASA just released last month's data showing that February was the warmest in history - approximately 1.55 to 1.75 degrees Celcius above average. Some scientists say we are in a "climate emergency." Wild swings in temperature and weather systems are creating a thousand year floods and epic droughts.

Water has been in the news, especially how it has become polluted in Flint, Michigan. According to the UN, water use has grown at twice the rate of population growth in the last century. The bottom line from all of the numbers is that in 9 to 14 years, there may not be enough drinking water to sustain all of us.

The economy has been on a roller-coaster. Just last month Forbes published an article, "Cheap Oil Edging Us Toward Global Economic Collapse." China's and Japan's economies are tenuous. We may be in for quite a ride.

In June 2015, the journal, Science Advances, published an article saying that the earth is on the brink of a 6th mass extinction and man is to blame.

We are living in a cesspool. The radiation from Fukushima is still pouring out of the damaged reactors into the air and the water. The use of pesticides and herbicides has polluted our lakes and streams. Large oil spills such as the Deep Water Horizon spill have polluted our oceans. Factories and automobiles continue to pollute our air.

We now live on a planet with over 7 billion people. One billion of them do not have enough food or safe drinking water. The earth cannot continue to sustain these numbers in the way we have been doing it.

Our food supply is decreasing. This past El nino year created severe droughts and floods, both contributing to lower crop production. In return, the cost of food goes up while the quality of our food goes down.

We live in a dangerous world. Terrorist attacks happen too frequently. North Korea seems intent on annihilating the US. And the list goes on and on...

Why am I writing this? We need to see and speak the truth. As I wrote in my first book, In the Key of Life: An Activational Journey to the Soul, "What else is awakening but the opening of one's eyes and heart to what is. The truth has been hidden. Now it is time for it to shine forth."

While all of this doom and gloom is happening, we are awakening en masse and March is a key player in this collective alarm clock.

The month of March brought with it an energetic earthquake of the three e's: eclipses, equinox, and Easter. The two eclipses served to shake out whatever sludge had been buried deep. This subconscious rotor-router surfaced old patterns, beliefs, and toxic relationships that kept us from moving forward. Like a governor on a car, it limited the speed at which we did our inner and outer work so that when the time came, we could move full speed ahead. 

The vernal equinox is a time when daylight is equal to night and also signals a time of greater light. It serves as a balance point, an energy that can help us center and balance ourselves in our new light and life. With more light, we can see things more clearly. A new paradigm, a new way of life is born.

Easter is a time of death and rebirth. It symbolizes dying to the old so that the new can be born. The March eclipses served to clear the old and prepare us for the resurrection of our true selves. The days of crucifying ourselves over repeated old patterns are over.

After this cosmic cleanup and death and rebirth, we face our moment of truth. We see through the illusion and delusions we were fed and see what is true - for ourselves and the world. We can no longer live as the diminutive self we once thought we were. Our governors are gone. We are called to live in truth: our truth, the truth of who we are, and the bigger truth. That means seeing and speaking the truth, no matter how much it hurts.

What else can we do to turn the tide of these tumultuous times? Here are some suggestions.

Now, more than ever, we need to move out of our minds and into our hearts. Picture yourself packing all the stuff in your mind and watch yourself move it into your heart. Set up house in your heart because, as the saying goes, "Home is where the heart is." To live from your heart, you need to quiet the mind. Practice yoga, tai chi, mindfulness, and meditation. Living from the heart means you live in the present moment. 

Follow the calling of your heart. Get used to feeling what is best for you and allow yourself to really feel each emotion. Give yourself the time and space to do this. Notice when you feel love and amplify the feeling by saying to yourself, "This is what love feels like to me and I choose to feel love." Take some time to feel the nuances of love through your body.

Do the hard self work of clearing and cleaning out your worn beliefs and patterns closet. Take time to go within each day and assess your progress.

Do what brings you joy. Be in joy for joy resides in the heart. It also stabilizes the nervous system. Turn off the TV, tablet, cell phone, and radio and just be. 

Go out in nature. Breathe. Notice the life that surrounds you and feeds you.

Feel appreciation. Feeling gratitude brings your heart into coherence. For more information and tools to assist you with this, visit heartmath.org. Participate in the Global Coherence Initiative that is part of the HeartMath Institute and assist in harmonizing the planet.

Finally, claim your divine birthright. Live your moment of truth and the truth of who you are in each moment. 

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Each of us is a step on the journey to a new world, a new life, and a new paradigm. Let's walk it together. Now.

2016 - Back to the Future to Break Free

I don't usually write predictions for the coming year and for 2016, you don't need to be psychic to somewhat accurately foretell this year's coming events. What's different about this forecast is that it is somewhat based in science, some in esoteric knowledge, and some in metaphysics. 

"Sometimes you have to go backwards before you can move forward," I was told by a woman who owned a metaphysical store shortly after I returned home from months on the road traveling across the country. Her insight is perfect for what 2016 has in store for us.

For those of you who know all too well about mercury retrograde energy, be advised that 2016 will host not three but four mercury retrograde periods. We will be forced to review, rethink, revise, and most importantly, re-vision our path and purpose. What makes this retro energy more interesting, is that the cosmos is providing us an opportunity to view a supernova event that occurred back in 2014. It is said that we are currently living what we envisioned in the past. Certainly, the light we see coming from the cosmos is years old. Think back to what significant event(s) occurred in 2014. You may be revisiting that this year. Keep in mind that we will be able to see the light from a supernova so what is revealed this year will be huge.

Continuing with the cosmic theme, 2016 is the last year the earth will be in the galactic alignment zone. The past 36 years have been powerful and pivotal for humanity. As the earth moves through the last vestiges of the galactic equator, we may experience a "break free" type of energy, like the recoil of a gun or the snap of a slingshot. It offers us the opportunity to break free from the past. How appropriate, then, for the year to start in mercury retrograde. January rapidly returns us to look at what has been our biggest challenge over the past several years. It is a time of reflection, review, and re-evaluation. 

On a global scale, this recoil energy will bring copious amounts of charged particles from the galactic center and the sun. Expect more wild weather and severe Earth changes. The west coast of the US may be in for more and larger earthquakes due to the increased amount of weight on the plates from water and snow from the recent storms. Add to that the movement of the crust via mudslides and there could be a whole lot of shakin' going on. Volcanoes will be also be more active in 2016. Not only will the crust be moving, but the Earth's poles may take several giant steps closer to reversing. 

As the rifts within the Earth widen, the rifts between races and people may widen this year. All the shaking on Earth will be felt within each of us. Many of us will finally be able to shake free from anything that has kept us stuck in the past. Expect things to seem upside down this year. What worked in the past, will not work now. Even though it may seem like we are doing a lot of rework and re-visioning, it is not the same as living in the past or working with things the way we used to. 

2016 is a nine year and how appropriate, then, to have a new ninth planet again in our solar system. Poor Pluto was downgraded from planet status several years ago but still nonetheless powerful. Pluto is still in Capricorn so expect more of the same upheaval in social structures, especially in the monetary system. Wall Street had its worst January opening and I think there will continue to be big swings in the economy. Since nine is about completion and fulfillment, we will complete whatever needs to be completed in order to evolve. Nine energy will also be like a healing balm: It is highly spiritual, humanitarian, compassionate, tolerant, and unity consciousness. It may serve as the salve that soothes our sore selves and helps us to rise above the chaos.

From the current NOAA predictions, it looks like El Nino is going to make himself at home in 2016. Also, Saturn will be square Neptune for most of the year. Look for searing temperatures and tempers, violent storms and more violence. Also look for heart-opening emotionally-challenging events that will ultimately assist us in our evolution. 

This will be a year of rolling up our sleeves and geting our hands dirty as we embody our multidimensional selves. The picture I get is going from "white collar" (divine) to "blue collar" (mundane). With Saturn square Neptune for the majority of the year, it is time to get real with our spiritual ideals. We are in a human body on Earth and we need to deal with the physical using our spiritual principles and intuitive flashes. Time to walk our talk.

2016 will be a year of looking back in order to move forward to create our future - a future that is based in spiritual principles born of years of hard work and tears. 2011 through 2015 was a time of rebooting. 2016 is a time of re-visioning and reworking our dream, and in this age of Aquarius, it will be done together to benefit all of humanity. May it be so.

Much love, joy, peace, and prosperity in 2016. May we live and create from our hearts.

Betwixt and Between

My energy lately has been like an autumn leaf. I have gone through so many stages of change in a matter of weeks it’s no small wonder I am still functional.

Autumn is a time of letting go and dying to the old. A maple leaf knows when it is time to die to the old and stop functioning in the way it is used to. It stops making chlorophyll and when it does, a strange and beautiful thing happens: It shows its true colors. It puts on a brilliant light show in the crisp blue skies of autumn as if to say, “Look at me! This is my true beauty!” When the fall winds come, it lets go of the old without hesitation or regret and gently floats to the ground – a foreign place to the leaf. For a while, the leaf lies on the ground, wondering what its next job is. As it surrenders further, the leaf begins to decay and becomes food for the tree it once called home. Through the winter, it prepares for another cycle of life to come in the spring.

Similarly, I know it is time to die to the old. The old way of being, thinking, and doing is changing. My former function is about to change and when it does, my true colors will show. Who I truly am and why I am here will be revealed in a new way.

As I was walking yesterday, I meditated on how I have been feeling lately. I am not in this world and not yet in the next. I feel like the leaf that is gently floating between worlds. Like the leaf, I know that I will soon ground this new energy. This winter will be a time of integration of the new in the physical so that by spring, I will be ready to enter into a new life, different from any life change I have experienced.

While I am in this betwixt and between state, I feel disconnected from everything. My energy cannot tune into the frequency of the world around me like it used to. One day I feel incredible joy and the next I am in an indescribable state trying to get the joy feeling again but I can't. It is like going through a rolodex looking for a number and it’s not there because the rolodex can no longer hold the information for this vibration. You have to access it from your smart phone.

I am unplugging from one world and have not yet plugged into the next. It is like upgrading to a new operating system and until the upgrade finishes, I can’t access any programs. Patience and trust are needed now.

A friend of mine I hadn’t heard from in a year called me a couple of weeks ago. She said she had a message for me. Her first words were “Nothing is as it appears.” No truer words were ever spoken. I am seeing everything in my life with new eyes and with a new mind and heart.

This new operating system downloads through the heart. I feel more deeply than I ever have and I can access the power of my heart’s field more easily. Like a child on Christmas Eve anticipating the arrival of Santa, I am excited about what this upgrade may bring. I have a feeling this download will be complete by Christmas. If you have been feeling similarly, look for some extra goodies in your stocking this year!

Until then, be gentle with yourself, rest when needed, and stay in the moment. Surrender, sleep, and synthesize during this sacred season.

Would you like to learn more about using your heart’s electromagnetic field to create your desires? You can purchase my book, Hardwired to Heaven: Download Your Divinity Through Your Heart and Create Your Deepest Desires here.

Rise Above

Every challenge of the past week has asked me to rise above the situation and see it from a new perspective. Things really aren't the way they appear, or rather I should say, the way they appeared. My old thought patterns of "expect the worst" and "everything is a battle" were confronted with a new mosaic this week: things will work out with ease and grace if I stay in the moment and stay positive.

I was conditioned to believe that life is hard from past experiences, family, and past lives. Notice I used the word "past" twice. The past is past and the way we lived and our beliefs are also passe. We are literally creating our experiences in real time now. We have always been co-creators of our reality but the lag time between our thoughts and heart desires and their manifestation was so large, we couldn't see the connection. All of that has changed now and we can't miss the connection or synchronicity.

Synchronicity is increasing. All we need do is pay attention and we will see it everywhere. A couple of weeks ago, I had a line of the song "Landslide" playing in my head. I turned on my car radio and the exact line played in its entirety. What are the odds of that? Let's start doing the math: take the number of radio stations I could have tuned into and multiply that by the number of songs that could play on any of those stations. I think you get the idea. Or that a friend of mine, who lives 2500 miles away, went to a pre-scheduled dental appointment at the same time I went to an emergency dental appointment on the same day for issues on the same tooth? It is undeniable that we are all connected and live in an interwoven web of consciousness that we can finally tune into. Our frequency has sufficiently increased to catch Source's signal. That's huge. That's life-changing. That means we can now use our hardwired connection to Source from our hearts and download our desires with a high speed internet connection!

In the blink of an eye, we can change our world and our perception of it. We can manifest our heart's deepest desires more easily. Our biggest challenge now is to watch our thoughts and to be centered in our hearts - our connection to Source. Ask what your heart desires more than anything. Take a couple steps in that direction, stay positive, and watch the Universe respond in ways you never thought possible...until now!

"To Thy Own Self Be True" - Especially Now!

Life can make you crazy. Let's face it. Things are pretty messed up right now - people shooting people for no apparent reason, freak accidents, and weird weather, not to mention the influx of charged particles from our sun and the galaxy. The intensity of the energy bombarding all of us is increasing and we see the effects of it all around and within us.

Even those "on their path" can occasionally get lost. Take me for example. I veered so far from my path that I completely lost my way for a while. It happens to the best of us. All we can do is stop and get back on track without self-judgement. Easier said than done.

Shakespeare was right. We must be true to ourselves above all else. That still small voice can get pretty still and very faint at times. Our hearts may not be sending the clear signals we were used to. After all, all of us are being bombarded by high frequency energy while the earth's magnetic field is decreasing. Even Scotty can't increase our shields enough to protect us from this barrage. It's enough to make us want Scotty to beam us up at times! So how do we tune into to our hearts while immersed in galactic static? 

In my book, Hardwired to Heaven, I provide a meditation to help us remove the static charge around us and bring us back into balance. It is a useful tool during these challenging times. Here is my meditation for dissipating and balancing energy:

1. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, arms out at your sides, and with your palms facing up.
2. As you inhale, imagine feminine energy entering your left palm and continuing through your left arm to your heart. Feminine energy (yin) includes allowing, receiving, nurturing, passivity, intuiting, unconditional love, and creative imagination.
3. At the right palm, imagine masculine energy entering and traveling through your right arm into your heart, where it meets and crosses at the sacred coordinate [a special place near the center of your heart] and continues up into the brain. Masculine energy (yang) includes acting, giving, inner strength, courage, and rational left brain activities.
4. The masculine energy now enters the left hemisphere of the brain while feminine energy enters the right hemisphere, each of which is their respective homes, since each hemisphere controls the opposite side of the body. As the energy continues to the crown, hold your breath for a moment and visualize the two energies crossing paths, producing an arc of neutrality.
5. As the energies continue through the brain, [down the neck] and into the heart (where they become balanced) exhale, expelling all the air in your lungs as you visualize the energy moving down through your spine, through your legs, into your feet, and finally into the ground to literally ground the energy.
6. Continue the meditation until you feel more balanced and at a peace. 

© Joan Cerio 2014

Once your energy is clear and balanced (at least for the moment!), bring your attention to your heart and ask it for guidance. Pay attention to how you feel, what you see, what you hear, or what just comes to you. Your heart is connected to the Universal mind. When you follow your heart, you are always on your path. 

As we continue to ride this wild energy, let's remember why this is happening. The energies are helping us to remember and awaken to who we really are so we can truly live Shakespeare's words: "To thy own self be true."

You can download more tools to maintain balance for free on my website. I also provide two other meditations in Hardwired to Heaven. To download the free tools or to purchase a copy of my book, please visit hardwiredtoheaven.com.

                                                                 

Cosmic Gift

Today is the final Pluto Uranus square in a series of seven that started in 2012. This celestial event will not occur again (thankfully) in our lifetimes. What these two outer powerhouse planets (why isn't Pluto still a planet?) bring us is transformation (Pluto) and awakening (Uranus). The energy of this final square asks us, "What patterns have we not yet purged? What are we still holding on to that no longer serves us?" 

In just a few days, we will also experience a total solar eclipse in the very last degree of Pisces, on a super new moon, just hours away from the vernal equinox. This is one power-packed week. I have been feeling this intensity since last week. It hasn't been pretty. Healing usually isn't. 

Yesterday, I delved deep into my soul and asked why I continue a certain behavior. What I found is that the behavior was passed down from my mother who probably received it from one of her parents and so on. The past patterns of our ancestors can be inherited by subsequent generations unless we are aware enough to identify and change the behavior.

My mother was a perfectionist and she expected no less from her children. No matter what I did, it was never good enough for my mother. "If you got 98, you could have gotten 100 on your report card," she would say. Slowly but surely, I took on the energy of "not good enough" and what comes next? Low self-worth and self-doubt, of course. To counteract this, I created scenarios where I thought I had to do more and be more than anyone else - the quintessential overachiever. I had worried that if I didn't meet my mother's expectations, she wouldn't love me. That was the story I told myself. Eventually, not good enough turned into not worthy of love.

So here I am writing about the heart, the symbol of love, in my book, Hardwired to Heaven: Download Your Divinity Through Your Heart and Create Your Deepest Desires. "Your greatest wound shall be your greatest strength," my astrologer told me years ago when speaking about Chiron. In Greek mythology, Chiron is known as the wounded healer. As I heal my own heart, I am able to heal other hearts.

My journey to the depths of my soul revealed a pearl. It was always there, waiting for me to acknowledge it. My gift. My raison d'etre. I am loved and lovable. We all are for we are never separate from the love that created us. May this week of once-in-a-lifetime energy, bring you a cosmic gift and unearth your pearl. 

2015 - Living Our Heart's Desire

I wasn't surprised when I heard that the most used word in 2014 wasn't a word but the heart symbol also known as an emoji (http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/word-2014-word/story?id=27900799). I wasn't surprised because I had named 2014 the year of the heart back in February (scroll down to read my 2/15/2014 blog). We commonly associate love, compassion, emotion, passion, and joy with the heart. The heart also symbolizes wisdom and intuition, both feminine qualities. What makes the use of the heart emoji so significant is that our focus has changed from head-centered living to heart-centered living. The world has declared the importance of the heart and all it represents.

If 2014 was the year of the heart, 2015 may be known as the year we finally get to live our heart's desire. The heart regains its rightful place as ruler of our souls and destiny. What our heart wants, our heart gets. As each of us follow the promptings of our hearts, we fulfill our role in "heartmonizing" the planet. We create a harmonious new world based on love.

We can't just think our way through the enormous problems this world faces - we must let our hearts lead the way. "What the mind cannot comprehend, the heart already knows" is a quote from my book, Hardwired to Heaven. Our hearts are hardwired to the cosmic intelligence and know more than our brains could ever imagine. The Institute for HeartMath has conducted research to show that our heart receives intuitive information well before our brain. Our heart is really mission control, but we have let our brain, the "space shuttle" of our body, set the course. 2015 will bring major societal and individual course corrections to align us with our heart's truest desires.

The earth has been aligning with the center or "heart" of the galaxy since 1980. This process of passing through the galactic alignment zone will be complete in 2016. It is time for us to align our hearts with the One Heart that beats for all. At the heart of the Universe is a spiraling intelligence called love. This year, we get to tap into the infinite power of the heart and create our deepest desires.