Silence has allowed me to know what I want because I’m finally listening.
Silence exposes my bully within so we can sit down and have a heart to heart.
Silence is a gift that keeps on giving.
Silence helps me make heart-centered choices.
Silence becomes fuller with practice.
Silence is the key to filling my inner void.
In gratitude for silence, I offer up this prayer by Reverend Thandeka, who was given the Xhosa (Kow-sa) name Thandeka, meaning "beloved," by Archbishop Desmond Tutu in 1984.
Dear Ancestor Spirits: Please hear our prayer.
Remind us to breathe deep in each moment, touching our lives from within, as we honor you there.
Remind us to reach back to you who were here long before we began counting time, or needing labels to describe ourselves as human beings.
You goddesses, warriors, and kings; healers, priests, shamans, two-spirit; family and friends; share with us your wisdom, that we may know the power of community, and understand we are already ONE, we need only self-love and compassion so that we can truly let each other in!
Dear Spirit/Creator/Higher Power/Goddess/God/ Universe/Mother Earth… You who are calling us forward: Remind us that we are deserving and there is enough! Enough space in this world, in the hearts of this world, and in our communities, for All of Us to be, do, and have All our heart’s “true” desires: To be safe, Loved and happy as our authentic spiritual selves!
Dear Spirits, Collectively: We call on All of you at this time, to come and breathe with and through us, as we walk our paths towards equity and freedom. Remind us that each breath is not just for this moment (the most important one), it’s also for our future! With you, we remember that no matter where we are, when we can be truly present, we can and do create our future.
We give thanks to you Dear Spirits for bringing us this far; for calling forth our authenticity so that we can be free to clear the hurdles in our paths for our own taking, and also for our youth, and seniors, those of us at higher risk of inner and outer harm, the lonely. With your guidance, we can work together to create a more just and equitable; safe, strong and healthy life experience for those within, and beyond the transgender spectrum; for all beings.
In remembrance of our sisters, brothers and others lost to violence in all forms, Please Hear Our Prayers! Ashe! Aho! Amen! Blessed Be!
Participants’ Reflections:
I’m glad you talked about ancestors today because there are a lot of traditions around ancestors this time of year. And I was thinking about our ancestors and they are great to call up to right now because they have survived many things through history, like the 1918 pandemic and all sorts of political uprisings. Not just in this country but beyond because many of our ancestors came from other places. And the strength we can gain from them to address what we are going through right now, seems to be important to call in all the supporters you can. This is a good time to do that.
I couldn’t help thinking in terms of ancestors about my grandmother. I had the best grandmother. The number 222 reminded me of her favorite admonition to us was to keep your balance. She was a such an amazing person. I think of her more and more in these troubled times. She lived through the pandemic of 1918. She is a beacon of light to me. In my family, if you are a woman, you have to have her name.
It didn’t dawn on me that I was reading about ancestors til the reflections started. I did it because the prayer moved me. It’s incredible how synchronicity works.
Thank you for the reading, it was an incredible prayer. I loved the line “we need only self-love and compassion so that we can truly let each other in.” I think it’s a key. Compassion and empathy for others allows us to accept and listen to other people. And our self-love is to treat ourselves with respect, which reflects on how we treat others. I just wish everyone could hear that and do that. It would be such a different world, if people had both things. Instead of fear and demands. You can tell I’ve been reading the news.
My mind is all over the place. I can’t seem to settle down. I did hear the word ‘gentle’ instead of incriminating myself for not being able to settle down and relax. To be gentle with myself about that. I’ve had a few times where I have been able to meditate. Hopefully, this group will go on for a very long time, and everyone is so kind and wonderful. So even if I can’t settle down, it’s a source of comfort and inspiration because I feel it from everyone.
It’s a buoying community that holds the space for however anyone comes to just sit in it. That’s the purpose of a community.
What came up for me during the meditation was the word ‘beloved.’ Then I put it together with ancestors as well as this community.
I’m struggling with calling on my ancestors because I don’t trust that they were good people or good spirits or good energy. I’m almost afraid of them. I don’t feel like I can call on them. But I’m sitting here, outside my window this morning, I see a tree, and right near my window, I’ve seen a woodpecker, a red cardinal, a finch, and another bird. They’ve all been coming up and fluttering around. And I said, I claim you as my ancestors.
I agree. I don’t call on my ancestors of my biological family. I call on my ancestors that I admire and look up to, those that have gone on. Those are our ancestors because we are all one. That’s where I get my strength. I go beyond my circle. I extend my circle.
Thank you. Beautiful reading, thank you for your reflections. The other evening, I was watching my granddaughters while their parents went out. I was trying to get them all to bed, it was a bit of a challenge. I attribute the meditation to my being able to stay calm. That keeps them calm. At one point, I had one who was teething along with the five-year old. As they were trying to settle down, I grabbed one of their fingers with my mouth. I used to do it with the five-year-old. It soothes them. Then the five-year-old did it with the baby. And at that moment, I had this overwhelming feeling that one day, my little five-year-old will be a grandparent doing it with her grandchild. Me and her mother will have been long passed. It brought a tear of sadness and joy at the same time. It reminded me that when my husband passed, a shaman was able to comfort me. She said that the depth of my sorrow enabled my husband to go very far, very fast. When everyone else was saying, “he’s here, can’t you feel him?” I said, no, he’s not here, he’s gone. He’s out there. One of the things she said to me is that you’ll see him again as a small being. At the moment, I interpreted that as a baby. My daughter was trying to get pregnant. And then flies would just land on me. We never know but we are all connected. What I believe in is the Native American belief of seven generations back and seven generations forward. And when we heal in this life, we help them heal seven generations back and seven generations forward. So the work we are doing now makes a difference. Especially with my mom. When I cut myself off from my mom because it was too painful, I also cut myself off from all the gifts. And when I was able to open myself up to the fact that she wasn’t perfect, and that some of the things she learned were skewed and distorted—when I was able to open myself up to that, the gifts came. And when I’m with my little grandchildren, I am the best I can be. I have to love all of them that way. I have to love everyone that way. It’s such a challenge. That’s the work. In this incarnation, back and forward, that’s the work. Omni-directional.
Thank you, each of you for spending your precious time in silence and sharing your words and heart with us as we sit in this community that is buoying us. We stay steadfast. We stay balanced. We stay steady as we go forward. I hope you have a gentle day.