Hello and welcome back to Positive Pagan.
I'm Lisa Wagner,
Author of the book Positive Pagan,
Staying Upbeat in an Offbeat World.
Offbeat doesn't even begin to cover it,
What's been going on with this planet and this world the last couple of days and weeks.
So I thought today I would cover my favorite,
One of my favorite chapters in my book called When It Gets Dark.
I pride myself on how clear I've been in my journey in talking about positive paganism with how dark it can be.
There is a balance to light and dark.
We're not all positive all the time.
Let's get that clearly stated here and now.
The balance to light is dark and you should know and you probably have experience that finding the light in the darkness can be a monumental challenge sometimes.
So I thought I would share with you a couple of things that I do to get myself back on track.
I certainly have been there.
I have been overwhelmed.
I have been stagnant.
It can be hard to get out of bed.
It can be hard to do anything.
I can be filled with negative thoughts and anxiety.
There are so many ways that the world can be overwhelming and definitely past the point of being offbeat.
A small caveat,
Of course therapy and medical doctor visits are always recommended.
So what I suggest are just little physical things that you can do to get you back on track with a little touch of magic thrown in.
So when it gets dark,
You know,
Gratitude lists sometimes aren't even enough.
It's not about being endlessly positive no matter what happens.
And then if you're feeling bad or negative that you are hard on yourself about it,
Just don't do that because just know you're in this moment for a reason.
Take a deep breath,
Ground in center.
Do it now with me actually because I forgot to do that today.
Ground by placing your feet firmly on the ground.
Imagine roots growing out from it.
Imagine those roots going down past the floor,
Past the flooring,
Down into the dirt,
Deep,
Deep down into it.
If it helps,
Imagine wrapping those roots around some boulders to get a little more heft to it.
But just feel those roots and feel the groundedness.
Now imagine a light above you.
Whatever you call that light is up to you.
And then let the light shine through your body from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet.
Bottom of your feet.
That's centering and grounding.
Just trying to get back to center.
Add a couple of deep breaths.
Stay hydrated.
Drink some water and then see how you feel afterwards.
I also like to add a few crystals like hematite,
Sorry,
And tourmaline.
Both of those are really,
Really helpful.
If you don't have those available,
Whatever crystal calls to you is fine.
Follow your intuition.
Sometimes rose quartz saves the day for me.
So you can definitely do that.
So one of the rituals that I like to do is called the powerful I am ritual.
I find this ritual so powerful I actually have it tattooed on my arm because the two simple words of I am,
Whatever follows can affect you.
So sit there in a comfortable space.
And if you want to do this later,
Just make note of how to do it.
And it's really easy to do.
Get to your comfortable space,
Light a candle,
Hold on to a rose quartz crystal if you have one.
And if you don't,
Again,
Find whatever works for you and get a paper and pen or use your journal.
And then sit there and take three deep breaths.
Visualize the words I am and see what comes up in your thoughts.
Think of all the things that you are,
The essence of you,
Your favorite attributes.
Envision a warm glowing light around yourself,
Sort of like a comfy light blanket.
Write down the phrase I am and come up with at least two or three ways to complete that sentence and say them to yourself as a mantra over the next few weeks.
Stand a little taller,
Straighten your shoulders with your chest out and take deep breaths as you say to yourself,
I am.
A few examples I like to use.
I am strong.
I am compassionate.
I am healing.
I am resilient.
I am powerful.
And do this as often as you find necessary.
It is really helpful to do it after you center and ground because you might feel too scattered to write these words down.
But give it a try and try to incorporate that into your routine.
You can even do it daily to start out with,
But if it seems too much,
Try it once a week,
Especially when you're in a comfortable space and see what follows.
The other part of being a positive pagan and ways to get at least out of the darkness or away from the heaviness that this world can put on us is acceptance.
I know it's a simple word to accept yourself.
It seems like a no-brainer,
Right?
But even if you're low maintenance,
Which I pride myself on,
But I'm probably not,
Even if you have simple needs,
You might not be accepting of yourself.
For many years,
I wouldn't look in a mirror directly because one time I was told I was not attractive and it took a lot to break through that mindset and to be really comfortable with myself and to look into a mirror until I am comfortable with myself and with what I see.
So this is another exercise you can do.
I like to do it in the morning because usually that's when I'm in the bathroom with the great mirrors and the great lighting.
And you just stand in front of a mirror and you look at yourself and you hold your gaze and you don't look away and you don't start going down the list of critiques of,
You know,
My hips are too big and my belly's too flabby and all the stuff we tell ourselves.
Just look at yourself.
You are a powerful,
Powerful being.
You're a magical being and hold that gaze and be friends with that beautiful person that you're looking at in the mirror.
The other really simple thing that you can do,
Especially,
Especially if you just feel overwhelmed and sad,
Is just to draw an imaginary line wherever you are.
It can even be at work in your little cubicle.
Draw an imaginary line and put your feet up to that line.
It could be a broom.
It could be a piece of string.
Take a deep breath and jump.
Jump over it.
What you left behind was your past and all that negative thinking and you're jumping forward into changing energy,
Into making things different.
So try some of those examples and let me know how they do for you and I will be back with some more suggestions on when it gets dark.
And again,
This is Lisa Wagner,
Positive Pagan.
Thanks for listening.
I hope this helps.
