To me, everything has an underlying spiritual energy, so when I write, it is always from this perspective.

Each of us, all over the world, is being pushed to evaluate our patterns of beliefs, and the ways in which we hold so tightly to them. We are being asked to examine, by the very nature of the trauma around us, whether the core values we choose to wear as an invisible cloak should continue to represent our true self.

We are influenced from a very young age to follow inherited ways of thinking that help shape us into who we are today. Unknowingly, the roots of our personal identity, and assurance of self-worth, have actually been absorbed, without conscious permission, from the people and communities around us.

Our parents, grandparents, our entire lineage, have lived through times of war, poverty, subjugation, genocide, sickness, and fear. Much of what we place credence in, has been birthed out of someone else’s story. Perhaps the ideals we consider true, that have been unconsciously passed on from those around us, are more indicative of their own histories of suffering and fragility, even as they have been made ours in the present.

Consequently, these beliefs affect our perspectives on a personal level, as well as how we present ourselves outwardly to the world. They influence whether we trust we are worthy of living a life that is filled with unconditional love, abundance, goodness, health, and security, and whether we trust others deserve the same. These silent belief systems subconsciously shape everything we do, and the whys and ways in which we do them.

In this sense, I am speaking of identity that goes beyond gender, religion, politics, and culture. We must ask ourselves and each other: Are we willing to become more authentic versions of ourselves. What kind of world awaits us on the other side of this pandemic. What behaviors and thoughts will we continue to claim as our own, and what are we willing to leave behind.

To come through this crisis is only a gift if we honor it as such. We can’t possibly be the same people we were when this began. There has been enormous loss, both collectively and individually. Even our faith in humanity has been damaged. In my prior post, I asked you to tell me who you are deep inside, the real you. Maybe it’s time to release old habits and tired ways of thinking, to lessen the ways by which we struggle. Maybe we can shift our priorities and invest in new possibilities for positive change, to consciously choose what is more in alignment with our soul purpose, and create a world that does not fight against itself.

We deserve lives that fulfill us in a way that provides healing for us as individuals, benefits the good of humanity, and contributes to the wellness of our earth.

In Peace, Raven