This week I felt the impulse to share a very simple practise I use to lower fear and be with any anxiety that arises. First, a little background.

One of the things I appreciate about the writing of Jungian analyst James Hollis is how direct he is about the challenges of being human. In Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life (as well as in his other books) Hollis tells us that in order to find and fulfill our purpose in life, in order to really grow up, we have to expand our capacity to tolerate anxiety, ambivalence and ambiguity. Why? Because, given the unpredictable and every changing nature of life there is going to be anxiety, ambivalence and ambiguity. When we were children and relatively powerless we understandably developed strategies to lower or distance ourselves from the discomfort of anxiety: some of us tried to earn safety by attempting to do things perfectly (me!) while others sought to escape through fantasy or whatever numbing substance/activity was available, (food, television, computer games) while still others became combative and rebellious. The problem is the anxiety management strategies we developed as children don’t work well for us as adults if we really want to be present, live our lives fully and co-create meaning in the world.

On the surface, this can be a hard sell: read this book or do this work and you’ll be able to tolerate more anxiety? May not be the catchiest marketing method. But the truth is we cannot experience and be fully present with joy if we are armoured against or busy trying to outrun the anxiety that’s part of normal human experience.

And there are moments, even when we are fully committed to being present with whatever is, that can simply feel like more than we can hold, moments (or days, or weeks) when our anxiety goes through the roof. Our palms sweat, our hearts pound, we can’t articulate a complete thought and/or we are racing around doing a thousand things to avoid feeling the anxiety. In those moments, it’s helpful to have a way to ground and strengthen our capacity to be with what is. I want to share one such practise here.

This method for being with anxiety without letting it paralyze or send us running from the room is deceptively simple. It comes out of my experience participating in and leading sweat lodge ceremonies. Now, if there’s anything that can and sometimes does raise anxiety it’s going into a small, dark structure filled with hot steam and other people you may or may not know, to do a ceremony designed in part to help you send out prayers from the heart centre of your being. And in ceremony there is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, no distraction, no way to use old strategies. So, one of the things I have often done myself and have instructed others to do when anxiety arises is- breathe through the soles of your feet.

I know, it sounds crazy, but try it. Wherever you are reading this, put your feet flat on the floor and imagine the earth below you. It may be several stories below you, but wherever you are, it is there- same earth as the one that’s there when you’re sitting on a beach or hiking in the wilderness.

Then, imagine that you are breathing through the soles of your feet, inhaling up from the earth through the bottom of your feet into your body, and exhaling back down through your body and out the soles of your feet into the earth. The beauty of this method is that although it grounds and calms, it does not take us away from what is happening within or around us. It just helps us lower our fear enough to be with what is. And you can do it anywhere: in the middle of a business meeting or at the dinner table with relatives. The more you practise it the more you can develop what is called split attention where a small part of your awareness is imagining your breath flowing in and out of your body through soles of your feet, while you are clearly and calmly answering a question in a job interview or explaining to a relative why you don’t have a “real job.”

So take this along with you today. Give sole/soul-breathing a try, because the soul really can hold it all.

From The Green Bough blog (c) Oriah Mountain Dreamer 2010

Oriah is the author of the international best-selling books: The Invitation, and The Dance, and The Call (published by HarperONE, translated into eighteen languages.) Her much loved poem “The Invitation” has been shared around the world. Trained in a shamanic tradition, her medicine name Mountain Dreamer means one who likes to find and push the edge. Using story, poetry and shamanic ceremony Oriah’s deeply personal writing and her work as a group facilitator and mentor explore how to follow the thread of our heart’s longing into a life where we can choose joy without denying the challenges of a human life. www.oriah.org www.oriahsinvitation.blogspot.com https://www.facebook.com/Oriah.Mountain.Dreamer?sk=wall  

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Technorati Tags: anxiety, breathing, fear, grounding, inspiration, Oriah Mountain Dreamer, Reflection. Self Help, Soul Breathing, Spirituality, stress

Be yourself to free yourself: “If I had no fear, I would…”

#3 in a series of inspirational, motivational shorts.

Real people answering important questions from their heart.

For more information and the bi-weekly release, please visit ETN Studios at the link below.

Director.Cinematographer.Editor
Michael Sweeney

EVERYTHINGTONOTHING STUDIOS
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Written and Produced
G. Brian Benson
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Original Music: “Peace”
Bradley Dean
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Technorati Tags: fear, Happiness, If I had no fear I would, Inspiration. G Brian Benson, self actualization, vivid life

Carlos Galindo (Demián Bichir, right) and his son, Luis (José Julián, left), seek a brighter future in Los Angeles in the absorbing immigrant drama, "A Better Life," now available on DVD. Photo by Merrick Morton, courtesy of Summit Entertainment.

“A Better Life” (2011). Cast: Demián Bichir, José Julián, Joaquín Cosio, Dolores Heredia, Carlos Linares, Bobby Soto, Chelsea Rendon, Richard Cabral, Todd Felix. Director: Chris Weitz. Screenplay: Eric Eason. Story: Roger L. Simon. www.ABetterLife-movie.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt1554091/

So often in life we wonder why things turn out as they do. We ponder the outcomes we experience, especially when they have a significant personal impact on us. But, if we’re truly honest with ourselves, we invariably find that those results are generally driven by our beliefs and expectations, a theme explored in depth in the absorbing drama, “A Better Life,” now available on DVD.

Landscaper Carlos Galindo (Demián Bichir, right) and his boss, Blasco (Joaquín Cosio, left), work hard tending the gardens of wealthy Angelinos in director Chris Weitz's "A Better Life," now available on DVD. Photo by Merrick Morton, courtesy of Summit Entertainment.

Like many who make their way to the U.S., Carlos Galindo (Demián Bichir) desires a brighter future for himself and his teenage son, Luis (José Julián). He spends his days tending the gardens of wealthy homeowners in and around Los Angeles with his boss, Blasco (Joaquín Cosio). He works hard, but, as an illegal Mexican immigrant, he also keeps a low profile, ever aware that even the slightest infraction could get him deported in a heartbeat. He also keeps a watchful eye on Luis; as a single father, he’s concerned that his son might fall prey to the gangs that heavily recruit neighborhood youths.

Carlos’s hopes for a better life get an unexpected boost one day when Blasco announces plans to sell his truck, the primary asset of his landscaping business. Having achieved his business goals, Blasco plans to move on, but, before departing, he gives Carlos first crack at buying the vehicle and taking on his client list. Carlos is hesitant initially, but he realizes that, if he doesn’t make the purchase, he’ll probably be out of a job, since there’s no guarantee that a different owner would hire him.

Carlos decides to take a chance and become his own boss; he borrows money from his sister Anita (Dolores Heredia) to buy the truck and set himself up in business. It’s a big step, one with the potential to deliver great rewards, but one that also carries more risk now that he must assume a higher profile. And it’s not long before he discovers just how big a risk that can be; when he hires an assistant (Carlos Linares) to help him, Carlos quickly has his world turned upside down, threatening everything he’s worked so hard to achieve.

“A Better Life” provides an excellent illustration of the power of expectation in governing the outcomes we experience. As conscious creation practitioners well know, expectations are based on our beliefs, the driving force in what materializes in the reality surrounding us, and that concept is clearly on display here. The picture is particularly effective at demonstrating what happens when conflicting beliefs come into play. For example, Carlos genuinely believes that a better life is possible in the U.S., yet this aspiration is constantly burdened by the conflicting influence of fear that he’ll be exposed as an illegal alien, an element that not only sabotages his hopeful intentions but that also threatens to make his worst nightmares become self-fulfilling prophecies.

On the other hand, the film also shows the malleability of beliefs, that they’re always capable of being changed or rewritten and that even second chances are possible, provided we choose carefully. This is especially apparent in the relationship between Carlos and Luis. As Carlos spends more and more of his time working and Luis spends more of his time with questionable peers (Bobby Soto, Chelsea Rendon, Richard Cabral), we see a father growing progressively worried about an impressionable son, fearing not only for his child’s future but also concerned about the deterioration of their bond with one another. Since Luis is obviously the most important aspect of Carlos’s life, he creates circumstances that draw the two of them back closer together, though it’s a choice that carries potentially high-cost consequences and that may well involve subsequent belief rewrites – changes that, in themselves, may prompt the rise of additional new opportunities for second chances as well.

Hiring an assistant (Carlos Linares, left) proves a bigger challenge than new business owner Carlos Galindo (Demián Bichir, right) bargains for in the immigrant drama, "A Better Life," now available on DVD. Photo by Merrick Morton, courtesy of Summit Entertainment.

Given the subject matter of this picture, it might be easy to let political views color one’s opinion of it, regardless of which side of the fence one’s views fall on. However, I’d like to hope that audiences could find it in themselves to look past such superficial considerations and assess the movie on a deeper level, giving its profound metaphysical themes a critical examination. To be frank, doing less than that, in my opinion, constitutes “lazy viewing” on the audience’s part. Perhaps this is a pet peeve of mine, but I was sorely disappointed when many viewers did just that with the release of “Crash” in 2005, unfairly saddling the picture with a stigma based on oversimplified interpretations that it has carried around with it ever since, despite its critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including the Academy Award for best picture. I would hate to see “A Better Life” befall a similar fate.

With that said, however, I must hasten to add that “A Better Life” is no “Crash,” either. It’s an engaging drama that tells its story well, despite some rather improbable plot line elements, and its narrative is heartfelt and moving, particularly where the father-son relationship is concerned. It’s well acted across the board, and it provides a probing look at a world that most us probably never see.

Impressionable teen Luis Galindo (José Julián, center) becomes a concern to his father when he begins spending more time with questionable peers like Facundo (Bobby Soto, left) and Ruthie (Chelsea Rendon, right) in "A Better Life," now available on DVD. Photo by Merrick Morton, courtesy of Summit Entertainment.

If you haven’t heard of this film, you’re not alone; it had a verybrief theatrical run at independent movie houses last summer, though, if you blinked, you probably missed it. However, the picture’s visibility has risen of late with its DVD release and with two well-deserved best actor nominations for Bichir in the Screen Actors Guild and Independent Spirit Awards competitions (there’s even talk of an outside shot at an Oscar nod, too). It’s certainly heartening to see a small film like this receive some noteworthy recognition, considering how easily its voice might have been overpowered by the noise associated with other larger, better-financed productions.

It’s been said that we should be careful what we wish for, because we just might get it. And therein lies the power of expectations in manifesting the results we experience, especially when powerful elements like fear and conflicting beliefs get wrapped up in the mix. “A Better Life” reinforces that notion, showing us that we’d be wise to choose those beliefs carefully in the first place – and maybe to even think twice before doing so.

Copyright © 2012, by Brent Marchant. All rights reserved.

Technorati Tags: "A Better Life", "Crash". stigma, "lazy viewing", beliefs, Brent Marchant, brighter future, choice, Chris Weitz, conflicting beliefs, conscious creation, consequences, Demián Bichir, DVD release, expectations, fear, Film, gangs, illegal alien, Independent Spirit Awards, José Julián, los angeles, Mexican immigrant, movie, Oscar nod, outcomes, pet peeve, political views, risk, Screen Actors Guild, second chance, self-fulfilling prophecies, single father

Join host Sharon Quirt as she chats with international best seller of The Conversations with God series, Neale Donald Walsch in a conversation that will alter your reality forever…

Neale Donald Walsch has been a newspaper reporter and managing editor, a radio station program director, public information officer for one of the nation’s largest public school systems, creator and owner of his own advertising and marketing firm, and a nationally syndicated radio talk show host.  He has now “retired” from his career in communications arts to pursue his vision of a world in which people no longer live in fear of God, or of each other.

He has written more than 25 books on spirituality and its practical application in everyday life, including the multimillion-selling With God series: Conversations with God, Books I–III; Friendship with God; Communion with God; The New Revelations; Tomorrow’s God; What God Wants; and Home with God. The titles have been translated into 37 languages, and seven of those books reached the New York Times Bestseller List.

Walsch is the creator of several outreach projects: Humanity’s Team, CwG4Kids, the ReCreation Foundation, and the Changing Change Network, all revolving around a “hub” organization: The Conversations Movement (www.TheConversationsMovement.com)

Neale has a home in southern Oregon where he lives with his wife, Em Claire, who is a working poet. ( www.emclairepoet.com )  They travel extensively throughout the world, speaking to audiences and sharing the messages of the Conversations with God material.  His newest book is The STORM Before the CALM, to be released October 1by Hay House.

For more information visit www.nealedonaldwalsch.com

See Neale Donald Walsch LIVE in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona Nov 03-08 at the Celebrate YOUR Life Conference!!!

Technorati Tags: Conversations with God, fear, insight, inspiration, Neale Donald Walsch, self help, Spirituality, vivid life

CALL IN Number: 646 200 3448 or TOLL FREE 877 903 1396

Part one of a series on preparing our energy field for the new frequencies of 2012. There is nothing to fear when we are in alignment with all that life has for us. Many new frequency shifts are moving in and our bodies, emotions and thoughts are calibrating to the New Energy. It’s time to clear out the old and make way for the new!

You deserve the best in life and it’s waiting for you when you are aligned and in receive mode. Jenn takes you on a journey to discover your first chakra where the energy to provide security and life necessities flow into your life. To feel safe and secure in life are the energy frequencies of the first chakra. Learn how your body tells you about imbalances in the first chakra and explore ways to shift the frequencies that will empower you.

Jenn will be taking your calls for reads to help you fine tune your energy and will conduct a distant energy healing session to clear and empower your First Chakra to receive the best of life in 2012.

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Technorati Tags: 2012, alignment, Bodies, Emotions, Energy Field, fear, First Chakra, inspiration, intuition, New Energy, Spirituality, vivid life

We are living in an amazing time.

We are transitioning from one world age to another as we move toward the marker of December 21, 2012. For some this date feels scary and for others it brings great hope. Regardless we are in transition. Just look around your world and life to see that things are in an evolution right now. Systems are breaking down and this can be scary as we are often afraid of change. We are in a time when WE can choose and create new systems bases on values of the heart. Wow. This is power.

Many say we are in a crisis. I think we are in an opportunity so profound and so full of potential that this time really is a gift for us all. We are all here for a profound and meaningful reason – to finally access the most powerful force in the universe – love. Scientists have shown that the Earth and humankind moves through 5,000 year cycles and we are at the end of a 5,000 year cycle that began August 11, 3114 BC. The last 5,000 years have been frought with war, weapons and destruction. The era that is dawning is one of love, peace and prosperity – if we choose it. It is the day to day actions that we all take that bring about global evolution.

The most powerful force in the universe is the human heart. And moment to moment you can choose to express love or fear. These daily choices will determine your own life as well as the life of those around you and at a bigger scale the life of our society and even planet. Sometimes we think love is for that hippie guy or maybe just the very few people in your life who you call your friends and family. Love, I have come to realize can be the powerful force of connection, awareness and right action in every moment if I choose. It is also the most powerful force in my life and the universe. It can be yours too.

Little BIG Ways to Choose Love:

* The next time you are in line at Starbucks or the grocery store make an effort to actually make eye contact and maybe even smile at the person serving you. Put down the cell phone and actually be present to someone with openness and appreciation. This is love in action.

* When you are in traffic which is usually a stressful experience take a moment to smile at someone passing or imagine all the people in the cars receiving a moment of light and love from you as you wish them well on their way. This is love in action.

* Next time you have an argument with someone you love. Let it go. Let them be right and tell them you love them. This is love in action.

What’s your love in action power play?

Everyday we are faced with a choice: love or fear? What will you choose? These choices are the basis for our new world dawning. Let’s make it amazing together.

This video by Shawn Gallaway is powerful…Check it out.

Namaste

Shasta

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Choose Joy and Experience Love in One of the Most Amazing Places on Earth – Costa Rica

Join Shasta for an experience of delicious renewal and bliss at the Prana-liscious Yoga and Nature Retreat December 4-10, 2011 at the Blue Osa Retreat Centre in beautiful in Osa Peninsula Costa Rica. Enjoy lush jungle, first rate accommodations and inspiring practice that will enliven every cell and leave your heart singing. Limited capacity. LEARN MORE

And remember to tune into Shasta’s Vivid Life Radio Show Possibility 101 every Wednesday at 4:00 pm eastern standard time on www.vividlife.me.

Shasta Townsend

A celebrated transformational leader and a leading pioneer in embodied spirituality and Yoga, Shasta has inspired hundreds of people through her breakthrough methods for awakening and empowering your inner voice and divine power. Director, founder and senior teacher with Balanced Life Yoga, she delivers public talks, seminars and trainings on evolution and empowerment. She draws on a wide variety of techniques including Yoga, Shamanism, meditation, energy healing, coaching and the Law of Attraction. She is especially appreciated for her passionate way of allowing individuals to make sense of their world and embodied, holistic means to become the change they wish to see.

As early as in her teenage years, Shasta embarked on her journey as a spiritual explorer which led her to India, where she studied yoga, meditation and energy healing. She has studied with many remarkable mentors and she has undergone thousands of hour’s intense practice of meditation and spiritual studies. Shasta has taken every opportunity to become adept in her field through her own practice as well as through extensive training in yoga, group dynamics, meditation and spiritual counseling.

www.balancedlifeyoga.ca

Technorati Tags: 2012, Costa Rica, fear, inspiration, love, retreat, Shasta Townsend, shift, vivid life

What if fear no longer stopped you from your dreams?

What is it that you really want right now?

Not from your head or your ego, or what you think you should have to make you happy.

Go deeper.

To the place where real dreams,

dreams worth having and dreams that actually have the power to manifest in reality come from.

Go in to your heart.

Who already knows exactly what dream is raising its hand screaming, “Ooh! Ooh! Pick me!!”

Who already knows the first few steps you could take right now to turn it from dream to reality.

What does your heart have to say?

Can you hear her or him?
Okay, let’s do this together.

Close your eyes right now.
Take a breath and put your hand on your heart and ask,

“What is the one dream I have for myself that right now is most important to me?”

What does your heart say?

And if you were to ask

“What is the one or two steps that I can take in the next three days to move towards that dream?”

What does your heart say?

And wait, one more question…

“What is the one thing that will stop me from this dream becoming real?”

What does your heart say?

Okay, just one more…

“If I didn’t listen to fear but instead to the truth in my heart, what do I know?”

Whew! Great work moving past your fear into love… if you were really listening to your heart when you did this exercise, then when you asked yourself what would stop my dream from becoming real, you would have felt your heart contracting, fluttering or some kind of feeling that was BLAH! That’s because fear had the microphone!

And as an ambassador of Team Love, I’m just not going to let fear win over you and smash your dream. All you have to do is take the love dare!

SELF-LOVE DARE…

Take one giant step toward your dream!

1.  Write down the guidance you received in your journal, on a piece of paper, heck even a sticky note. Just somewhere you can see it.
2. Then write down, say out loud or share with a friend the one or two actions you are going to take in the next 3 days to take a giant leap toward

If you need some extra support connecting to your Inner Wisdom and her Team Love message about your dreams – you can download the video meditation I created.

Wherever this finds you today, read this knowing that fear only has the power you provide it and at any time you have a choice … To choose to have faith in LOVE or to choose to have faith in FEAR. I really encourage you to try on having faith in LOVE. And of course, that love starts with the love you have for yourself. Love yourself well today. You deserve it.

Technorati Tags: Christine Arylo, dreams, fear, self love

Corinne Miller (Vera Farmiga, right) and husband Ethan (Joshua Leonard, left) devote themselves to a life of faith in the new spiritual drama, "Higher Ground." Photo by Molly Hawkey, courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

“Higher Ground” (2011). Cast: Vera Farmiga, Joshua Leonard, Dagmara Dominczyk, Michael Chernus, Norbert Leo Butz, Barbara Tuttle, Donna Murphy, John Hawkes, Nina Arianda, Sean Mahon, Bill Irwin, Taissa Farmiga, Boyd Holbrook, Kaitlyn Rae King, McKenzie Turner, Taylor Schwencke. Director: Vera Farmiga. Screenplay: Carolyn S. Briggs and Tim Metcalfe. Book: This Dark World, by Carolyn S. Briggs. www.sonyclassics.com/higherground/

Often in life we’re asked to take things on faith, a practice for which we’re given no handbook at birth, leaving us to find our own way. That frequently makes for an intriguing journey, one that tests us on many fronts, especially when it comes to understanding and embracing that core issue of faith. But no matter what path we choose, it always helps to have inspiration to draw from, and one particularly thoughtful example of this is offered up in the new spiritual drama, “Higher Ground.”

Corinne Miller (Vera Farmiga) is a woman on a mission to find herself. Unfortunately, she spends much of her decades-long journey seemingly lost in a fog, often sincerely believing that she’s found the answers she seeks only to discover later—and repeatedly—that “truth” can be a rather elusive commodity.

Corinne’s odyssey is a largely spiritual quest. Having grown up in a household without much of a religious compass (her parents, Kathleen (Donna Murphy) and CW (John Hawkes), show little interest in the subject, especially after her mother suffers a heartbreaking miscarriage), Corinne is left to fend for herself spiritually. She grapples with church-related issues, first as a child (McKenzie Turner) and later as a teen (Taissa Farmiga), hoping that they’ll somehow magically fill the void in her life. She looks to the teachings of an affable local minister, Pastor Bud (Bill Irwin), for inspiration, but her enthusiasm is often lukewarm at best, as if she’s just going through the motions and not really grasping what she’s supposed to get out of the experience. Her efforts are further sidetracked by a healthy curiosity of worldly matters, such as interests in rock ’n roll, “questionable” literature and boys, particularly her beau and future husband, Ethan (Boyd Holbrook and Joshua Leonard, respectively).

The spontaneous act of praying in tongues brings delight to Annika (Dagmara Dominczyk, left) but causes frustration for her friend Corinne (Vera Farmiga, right), who's unable to experience it, in the new spiritual drama, "Higher Ground," an exploration of life inside a fundamentalist Christian fellowship. Photo by Molly Hawkey, courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

Corinne’s journey takes a dramatic turn, however, when a potentially disastrous personal tragedy produces an unexpectedly miraculous outcome, prompting her and Ethan to commit themselves wholeheartedly to a life of devotion, a vow that culminates in their initiation into a fundamentalist Christian community. Through this sacred indoctrination, it appears Corinne has finally found true happiness and contentment in her life. Or has she?

Sometimes Corinne seems genuinely filled with the spirit of Jesus and the Divine Creator, but, at other times, she appears utterly perplexed, as if she’s missing out on something she believes she’s supposed to be experiencing. This is especially true when spending time with her friend Annika (Dagmara Dominczyk), who frequently lapses into tongues, a spontaneous personal prayer language that fills her with bliss. Needless to say, Corinne feels left out, longing for the same elation her friend so thoroughly enjoys.

But things don’t stop there. Over time, Corinne increasingly becomes filled with doubt about her faith. She recalls past tragedies, like her mother’s miscarriage, and then lives through new ones of her own, such as witnessing the anguish of a dear friend who suffers a debilitating brain tumor. She can’t help but wonder where God is when such dire circumstances arise, especially since He was there for her when she suffered her own misfortune. Reconciling this glaring contradiction causes her much confusion and heartache.

Corinne's life as a teenager (Taissa Farmiga) is filled with confusion as she attempts to reconcile secular issues and spiritual matters in "Higher Ground." Photo by Molly Hawkey, courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

While the film overtly deals with religious and spiritual considerations in a Christian context, many of its underlying themes are applicable to other sacred and metaphysical traditions as well. Chief among them is the issue of faith, that steadfast trust we each place in our relationship with God/Goddess/All That Is (or whatever other term best suits you). It’s a subject that raises a host of questions, such as how committed must we be to it? Can we implicitly trust the deity in whose hands we pledge our devotion? What are we to make of situations in which our prayers seemingly go unanswered or manifest in “distorted” ways? And what are we to do if disillusionment sets in?

These questions are not exclusive to Christianity. Practitioners of other belief systems often grapple with these issues in their own particular spiritual or philosophical milieus. It’s not unheard of, for example, for conscious creators to find their intents going awry, either materializing in unexpected forms or not at all, making them wonder what their divine collaborator is up to. These incidents are not unlike what Corinne experiences, and such episodes sometimes are enough to evoke questions about the strength of one’s faith, no matter what tradition that devotion is based upon.

In these instances, if we have concerns about the path we find ourselves on, it’s a sign that we must examine the beliefs we’re putting out, for they drive what we experience. To that end, are we being clear with the Universe about what we really want? Are we allowing secondary considerations, like doubt or fear, to undercut the manifestation process by sending mixed signals to our divine collaborator? Or, perhaps most importantly, are we inherently mistrustful of our collaborator, believing that it’s behaving capriciously or not in our best interests? The presence of thoughts like this will invariably affect the quality of the outcomes we experience and the satisfaction we get from them.

Those who truly understand this divine relationship, be it in a conscious creation, Christian or other context, ultimately know that we dwell in a “Safe Universe,” one that operates with our best interests at heart, even if we don’t always readily recognize that as such. This is where the issue of trust comes into play, something that frequently requires considerable effort to fully grasp and embrace. In fact, getting to this point is often a process, something that we grow into over time as our understanding deepens, making it ever easier to recognize, acknowledge and accept the character of this intimately collaborative relationship. Indeed, it’s often said in conscious creation circles that we are each “in a constant state of becoming,” a notion that aptly sums up the progressive nature of this revelatory journey. Corinne experiences this for herself firsthand in the film, personifying a process that many of us will likely go through during our lifetimes, no matter what tradition we’re engaged in.

Charismatic preacher Pastor Bud (Bill Irwin) helps shape the spiritual outlooks of young Christians in director Vera Farmiga's debut production, "Higher Ground." Photo by Molly Hawkey, courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

Corinne’s saving grace in this is that she’s cognizant enough to know when to raise questions about her faith and not to follow it blindly, especially when being cajoled by others who insist that her thoughts and practices must follow prescribed forms. Anyone who genuinely understands the nature of faith realizes that the Universe provides us with the means to fulfill our intents in the ways it deems most expedient, even if we don’t always comprehend its methods or if its manifestations don’t match our preconceived notions. Yet those who zealously subscribe to established religious traditions often demand strict, unquestioning adherence to their dogmas, liturgies and even costuming, insisting that their way is the only “right” way, a conviction that, ironically enough, flies squarely in the face of how All That Is fundamentally operates.

For her part, Corinne isn’t afraid to raise questions about her community’s spiritual and secular requirements and even her own personal faith. She seeks the truth, with her ultimate goal being an understanding of her relationship with God, not those who claim to speak for Him. In fact, it’s through such questioning that her own understanding deepens, showing her that spirituality is something more than just what happens in church or a closed-off community; it’s about how one chooses to live one’s life in the world, the one that she and All That Is have co-created in both its secular and spiritual aspects, and not about adherence to the arbitrary preferences of a group that believes its answers to life are the only ones that anyone needs. In this sense, then, Corinne comes to discover that secular and spiritual questions are not mutually exclusive, as many would contend, but instead are intrinsically intertwined, a realization that comes from true faith and not from rigorous obedience to subjectively adopted theological trappings. Any notion of separation between the two is an illusion (and a manmade one at that).

It would have been easy for the characters in this film to be portrayed as caricatures, but, thankfully, that temptation was effectively resisted. Credit the writing and, especially, the skillful direction of first-time filmmaker Vera Farmiga for that. The movie depicts its characters as individuals, not stereotypes, allowing their layered, complicated natures to shine through. This balanced approach makes the story and its players engaging to watch, in both moments of drama and humor, drawing viewers into the characters’ spiritual sojourns and warmly welcoming them to come along for the ride (and what a ride it is).

Faith is something we’re all tested on at some point, and “Higher Ground” provides an effective guide to help prepare us for such occasions. Watch closely; you’ll be amazed at how much you can glean from it, information that will stand you in good stead when times get tough and help elevate you to unimagined heights of enlightenment, no matter what your spiritual or philosophical leanings.

Copyright © 2011, by Brent Marchant. All rights reserved.

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Gwyneth Paltrow stars as a young mother who succumbs to a mysterious disease in the new disaster drama, "Contagion." Photo by Claudette Barius, courtesy of Warner Bros.

“Contagion” (2011). Gwyneth Paltrow, Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet, Marion Cotillard, Jude Law, John Hawkes, Elliott Gould, Bryan Cranston, Jennifer Ehle, Demetri Martin, Anna Jacoby-Heron, Sanaa Lathan, Chin Han, Tien You Chui, Larry Clarke, Randy Lowell. Director: Steven Soderbergh. Screenplay: Scott Z. Burns. http://contagionmovie.warnerbros.com/index.html

We’ve all heard about videos and other internet phenomena that have “gone viral.” They spread across the web like wildfire, getting into email boxes and social network walls everywhere, with an almost infectious efficiency. Beliefs can work like that, too, for better or worse, in the reality they help to shape, an impact seen in myriad ways in the new disaster drama, “Contagion.”

Filmed much like a documentary, “Contagion” explores its subject from multiple angles, providing audiences with an overview of different aspects of a global epidemic. In doing so, it takes (ironically enough) a sort of “clinical” approach to its material, presenting its story from more of a detached, rather than a highly personalized, perspective. In that regard, the film doesn’t readily evoke the kinds of deep, heartfelt emotional responses one might expect out of a contemporary drama, but that’s not to suggest it doesn’t have a powerful impact on viewers.

Matt Damon (right) and Anna Jacoby-Heron (left) play a father and daughter who are immune to the effects of a global epidemic in director Steven Soderbergh's "Contagion." Photo by Claudette Barius, courtesy of Warner Bros.

Several significant story threads run throughout the film:

*  A suburban Minnesota family is torn apart when a young mother, Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow), quickly succumbs to the disease at the beginning of the outbreak, leaving her stunned—and apparently immune—husband Mitch (Matt Damon) and step-daughter Jory (Anna Jacoby-Heron) devastated.

*  Officials from the Centers for Disease Control seek to get a handle on the mysterious new disease. Dr. Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne) tackles the crisis from a management standpoint, while Dr. Erin Mears (Kate Winslet) researches it in the field and Dr. Ally Hextall (Jennifer Ehle) studies it in the lab. They coordinate their efforts with independent investigators, like Dr. Ian Sussman (Elliott Gould), who diligently look into understanding how the suspected virus functions. For all involved, the main concern—officially at least—is the public welfare, but, when personal considerations become involved, conflicts of interest arise, and priorities can become compromised, potentially undermining efforts to fulfill the primary objective.

*  Overseas efforts by the World Health Organization are spearheaded by Dr. Leonara Orandes (Marion Cotillard), who visits Hong Kong, the region where the disease was believed to have originated, to determine how it got its start. While conducting her investigation, however, she encounters elements that would resort to desperate measures to get assistance for those who are in peril of becoming infected.

*  The internet lights up in the wake of the epidemic, particularly when provocative, independent bloggers like Alan Krumwiede (Jude Law) begin posting pieces with potentially explosive ramifications, particularly those involving alternative, but untested, cures.

*  Money can always be made, even in a crisis, and the raging epidemic depicted in this film is no exception, especially when a hedge fund manager (Randy Lowell) looks for ways to cash in on it for his clients.

Laurence Fishburne (left) and Kate Winslet (right) portray Centers for Disease Control physicians investigating a global disease outbreak in "Contagion." Photo by Claudette Barius, courtesy of Warner Bros.

As the saga unfolds, viewers witness how these individual stories progress and ultimately become interwoven with one another, all set against the backdrop of panic and a crumbling civil society. It paints a chilling picture of what can happen when things quickly get out of hand. Because of that, some may question what value there is in a story with such a dismal and depressing narrative. But, from a conscious creation standpoint, there are a number of significant lessons.

For instance, the concept of connectedness—and the role it plays in unifying all aspects of our consciously created reality—takes center stage in this film. Simple gestures, such as people touching staircase railings, exchanging money or giving one another hugs, take on heightened significance (especially once the outbreak spreads), clearly illustrating the inherent interrelatedness of all things in our world, not just in terms of superficial physical acts but also in terms of underlying metaphysical intents. Attention is deliberately drawn to these considerations in the cinematography, with camera work that purposely follows the flow of such otherwise seemingly inconsequential movements, pointing out that they and the potential implications that come with them are all connected—and not as supposedly innocuous as one might think.

The intrinsic profundity in this, of course, is present in every context of our everyday consciously created reality, not just in situations where public health is on the line, yet connectedness is something we so often we take for granted that we rarely, if ever, give it a second thought. In that sense, then, this aspect of the film’s narrative could easily be viewed as a metaphysical wake-up call to pay more attention to connectedness matters (and their consequences) in daily life, not just when our survival is threatened.

As one might expect, one of the core emotions depicted in the picture’s story line, of course, is fear. And, as the plot unfolds, it spreads as uncontrollably as the virus itself. However, it’s also apparent that fear, like all other emotions, is driven by beliefs, the underlying creative force responsible for shaping the reality we experience. As more and more victims fall prey to the viral epidemic, so, too, do more and more victims fall prey to the epidemic of fear.

The World Health Organization's investigation into a global epidemic is spearheaded by Marion Cotillard in Steven Soderbergh's "Contagion." Photo by Claudette Barius, courtesy of Warner Bros.

Under these circumstances, one could argue that such reactions are understandable and “only natural,” but they also need not be automatic. Clearly there are those in the film who don’t buy into it, such as those who are immune to the disease and those who are on the front lines actively managing public health concerns; they’ve obviously chosen to embrace other beliefs, even if they’re not “consciously” aware of having done so. Their experiences thus illustrate why it’s so important that we monitor our beliefs, for they shape the outcomes we experience, some of which could be vastly different from those of others (and from “expectations”), responses that might allow us to let cool heads prevail at a time when things are falling apart around us. Indeed, the words of Franklin Roosevelt—who had himself been afflicted with the debilitating effects of an epidemic disease—that “we have nothing to fear but fear itself,” take on added meaning in a scenario such as this.

The public’s responses to the crisis portrayed in the film also spotlight the role of the mass consciousness in reality creation. A wide-scale co-creation, like a global epidemic, has many aspects to it, and each participant plays a part in how it unfolds, as if each were carrying out a role in a theatrical production. In that respect, then, the movie draws attention to the role that the mass consciousness plays in the wide-scale co-created human dramas that unfold in our own everyday lives, events that themselves are not unlike what one might witness taking place on stage or, in this case, on the screen.

To be sure, many of us may not be experiencing situations as dramatic as those taking place in this picture, and many of us may not be readily aware of the roles that we play in the unfolding of events like global climate change, the worldwide economic collapse or the wars in the Middle East, but our involvement in them is there to one degree or another, whether it’s engaging in activist programs to draw public attention to them or even in seemingly “passive” acts like ignoring them and the impact they have on our lives. It’s important that we recognize our roles in scenarios like this, because, if we dislike the mass events we’re witnessing, then it’s apparent we need to change our participation in them—and the mass consciousness beliefs that underlie them. When it comes to events like this, we need to ask ourselves, “What line of probability do we want to see play out?”

The internet lights up in the wake of a public health crisis, thanks in part to provocative bloggers like Jude Law, in the disaster drama, "Contagion." Photo by Claudette Barius, courtesy of Warner Bros.

“Contagion” is by no means an “uplifting” picture, but it gives us plenty to think about, both practically and theoretically. If it chills you, on no matter what level, it’s obviously getting though to you. That’s made possible by capable writing and acting, as well as excellent direction and production values, all of which show what could easily happen if things were to get even only slightly out of balance.

Think about that the next time you shrug off a major world event as being something that’s “not my problem.” You just might have a very different reaction.

Copyright © 2011, by Brent Marchant. All rights reserved.

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Neale Donald Walsch Discusses The Emotion Of Fear

Technorati Tags: Conversations with God, fear, insight, inspiration, Neale Donald Walsch, self help, Spirituality, vivid life