Stories That Shape Our World

Stories shape our lives everyday!  There is so much power in the way we tell stories, and power in the stories we are told in our media.

First there are the stories we tell ourselves about the very daily life we are living. We have so many stories, fueled by unexamined assumptions that go on in our minds constantly.  Stories about how we are not good enough, how we need more (of whatever), stories about the behavior or motivations of others that are totally fabricated by our mind and personal filters.  I just finished facilitating my first Pachamam Alliance, Awakening the Dreamer Symposium http://www.pachamama.org/engage, and in this workshop we spend time looking at some of the unexamimed assumptions that make up the stories we tell ourselves about life and how these unexamined assumptions are the fabric of the collective stories we are creating.

These small unexamined assumptions lead to the much bigger stories in our society right now, stories that involve what is going on in our world.  These meta stories we are involved in have a huge inpact on, and fuel the dream we are creating for the future.  Many indigenous cultures believe that we dream the future into being.  The Pachamam Alliance (link on the home page of this blog) helps to illuminate more about this, and addresses the "dream" of the western world, particularly the U.S. This collective dream we are dreaming is having devistating effects on the environment, the people and the creatures of the whole planet.  This dream is based on the stories we hold collectively and on our ideas of what is "normal" to our life style, totally asleep to the fact that we are literally destroying the environment on a global scale, or that our privileges come at the expense of other people's basic needs being met.

But there are new, meta stories arising by people all over the world.  Some of these new stories speak of these times we are living in as fantastic, incredible times of amazing change and transformation of our human presence on this little spaceship we call Earth.  One story that speaks to me is from Teihard de Chardin who, in the 1930's, wrote that there would come a time when the Earth would acquire a collective brain and nervous system, that we would have a mind-field around the planet that would connect all people.  He called this the Noosphere, and he said at that when the Noosphere came into form we would enter a totally new phase of humanity.  The Internet, as we all know, is this global brain of sorts, and it is helping to create the global nervous system of the planet as well.  When we hear of disasters, war crimes, and injustices of all sorts happening somewhere in the world within minutes of the event, and we feel the impact in our hearts or bodies this is the global nervous system developing!

Another story, or way to frame what is happening on the planet right now is that we are in a time of needing to consciously choose to evolve ourselves toward a sustainable way of life or else we will destroy the very systems that support not only our own species but countless other species as well.  This is the story of the Conscious Evolution of Humanity, where we will no longer be able to make choices out of our wants and desires, or out of our ignorance and unconsciousness.  Framing things this way reminds us of our need to evolve our collective choices, based in the awareness of our interdependence with each other and all other life forms. We must consciously evolve how we are using our incredible technological knowledge, how we are using the new powers we have, and how we are using the earth's resources.  (The U.S. consumes so many resources that we would need 4 earths to be able to keep up with the appetite that we Americans have become accumstomed to consuming).  There are growing pains and that are a part of this shift in consciousness and many are not willing to make the changes necessary.  However, millions of people all over the world are already feeling empowered and inspired to contribute to that new human presence on this planet and there are efforts and initiatives in the hundreds of millions going on globally.

Other stories about what's up on planet Earth can be read about on the Great Transitions Stories page at: http://www.greattransitionstories.org. Here you will find many other stories on the collective dream we are dreaming.  These are stories of a positive nature, that intend to empower us to be involved in the next unfolding of the divine plan, showing up as humanity, and where we can go from here.
The important thing that I know is that we must speak of the stories that help move humanity forward and help people to feel inspired to change and evolve. And what are we moving toward?  One way to phrase it is that we are moving toward "The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible" (a book by Charles Eisenstein).  This phrase leaves plenty of room for each of us to contribute in whatever way most calls to us, but it invites us into the playing field.  "For humanity to take that Next Step, we are going to have to violate what is politically practical, socially practical, and even technologically practical.  The same holds on the personal and relational level.  I have caught glimpses of the impossibe in all these realms and I am excited about what lies ahead."  Charles Eisenstein.

The Fuji Declaration is another piece of the changing collective story.  This declaration is a call to bring about a sustainable, flourishing world for all people, for nature and for future generations.  All global citizens are invited to sign the declaration and make a personal commitment to live in support of a more peaceful, compassionate and flourishing planetary presence. To add you name and commitment go to: http://fujideclaration.org/the-fuji-declaration/

May we tell stories that help us bring forth that more beautiful world that our hearts know is possible! Peace and blessings to you.

Sharon Gonzalez-Alei

Visions of the future

Traveling is always such a great stimulus for a new perspective, great insights and expansive inspiration, when I'm open to it. As I sit in an airport waiting for my flight I read this quote today:

A Vision for Truth

"We envision a society in which we accept our self and one another completely. A society in which we support one another in being the way we each uniquely are and in expressing ourselves fully and freely in an atmosphere of acceptance, allowance and appreciation for the unique manifestations of the universe that we each are, a society of individuals who tell the truth and a society in which the truth can be told, without blame or judgment.

By the same token, we envision a world where mankind has risen up and out of our need to be in opposition to others because we have seen, ever-so-clearly, that when we oppose another, we become just like them. With these two thought patterns having gone by the wayside, we now see a world where we no longer support anyone or any institution that advocates aggression, destruction, or harming others in any way. Now, we envision a world where people walk the sidewalks and roads of all lands freely and openly, where we smile at one another easily, work together in cooperation, and want only for the well-being and goodwill of everyone else; where all weapons are gone and we solve our challenges by negotiating, by compromising, and by helping one another to realize our dreams in an atmosphere of peace and unbridled creativity.

It is in this environment - an environment where everyone feels completely and utterly safe - that the peace in our hearts and minds has worked its way outward into our world as well; where all people enjoy their lives because peace - true peace - is both inside and outside of us at the same time."

--The Intenders of the Highest Good; Vision Alignment Project

As I look around and watch people of all types, races, sizes, and styles, I am aware that right before me, there is a version of this vision of the future in bloom. Of course so much depends on what eyes I am seeing with, but being determined to see the beauty in all people and remember our oneness, that we all are really just doing the best we can from whatever consciousness we are carrying around between our ears, I easily see that this vision is right here in front of me. It's not some vision of a distant future, a "maybe someday" future. It's happening, even with it's less-than-perfect faces at times. And it is happening in many places in the world.  Right now I am sitting in an airport where people are passing me by who have black skin, brown skin, white skin, of Asian descent, African descent, Indian descent and European descent.  Most smile at me if I catch their eye, they seem relaxed, safe, and mostly kind. This is part of what I see as our evolutionary process. As an evolutionary thinker I see that there is a much bigger unfolding happening on the planet, and that certain pockets of people on the globe are actually experimenting with this vision of "a world where people walk the sidewalks and roads of all lands freely and openly, where we smile at one another easily, work together in cooperation, and want only for the well-being and goodwill of everyone else." I'm so grateful that I am living in this world, and believing it into being.

I also know that the beauty, wealth and opportunity that abound here in the U.S. have come to us on the backs of our brothers, and from the resources, of so many other parts of the world. For many years this made me cynical about my homeland, criticizing our government for its hypocritical propaganda about the need to spread democracy all over the world while supporting oppressive regimes, because to do so has been in America's, or the extremely rich's, best interest. And on and on, I have seen our greed, walked across this beautiful homeland to protest nuclear armaments, and taken political action to help change our government and point out our blind spots. I have jugged our actions as a nation harshly and continue to feel the inner conflict that comes from being one of the privileged on this planet at this time, while knowing about and feeling the suffering going on in so many other places on this common spaceship we share. But as an evolutionary, I see the ignorance that we are still manifesting as equal to the ignorance of a teenager who is so taken with driving fast that he/she wrecks the car, or so interested in the thrill of a high that he/she ruins their body for a period of years. We too are working through the growing pains of 1) having so much, 2) being able to use so many of the world's best resources, and 3) not feeling the immediate consequences of our greed, actions or choices. We will have to mature as a human species before we find the same balance that comes with growing into an adult, who will temper their actions not because of some outside force but because time has taught the lessons that go with wreck less living.

In the face of all of this the path of Evolutionary Spirituality invites me to refuse to feed the fear, the suffering and the negativity going on by not putting my energy into bad-mouthing "the enemy", by not corroborating with others when they want to complain about how horrible certain things are, and by not demonizing my own government or the ignorance of my own culture. It even reminds me to not get depressed or immobilized about all of the pain that others are experiencing across the planet, because there really is something much, much bigger unfolding that I don't even have a clue about. So I choose to offer gratitude to the refugees, those in war-torn areas, and victims of oppression in all of its forms, for what they are going through, for what they are enduring, for their strength and their courage. I tell them, through the great non-physical Web that connects us all, that I am sending them love, energy, support, and that they humble me as they continue to even live through such hell. If tears come to my eyes they are tears of great appreciation, humility and love. And I let them know that I am so rooting for their survival, courage and an end to their suffering. But it is important that I do this from a place of heart-prayer that has the vibrations of love and gratitude, not those of pity and sadness. It is this subtle but significant shift in my own consciousness that I offer to the greater evolutionary journey of my fellow humanity. For in order for us to fully experience the Vision of Truth that I started this article with it is my understanding that we need to start broadcasting much more love and gratitude for all of it, for all that we are all going through. I am still required to speak up and to be a catalyst of change when and where I can, but I must do it from a different place than I did in my younger years.

My attention goes back to the passers-by in the airport, wondering about the life experiences of a woman who just walked by, appreciating the amazing unique journey that each one has signed up for on some level, and appreciating this moment. I not only believe in the Vision shared by the Intenders for the Highest Good, I am experiencing a part of the manifestation of at least some of it, and I am reminded that there is just a whole lot more going on than I know, and that's both expansive and hopeful!

Sharon Gonzalez-Alei

Winter Solstice Prayer 12/21/14

On this day when night is the longest, this Prayer calls in,
and honors, the medicine of the black animals from across the planet.

Oh Great Winds of the South, medicine of the Black Monkey (Africa)
We open to your strengths of playfulness, trust and innocence
in the dance of life. We open to the quality of flexibility, ease and the
willingness to stretch when moving through challenges or difficulties.
Teach us to walk in love and touch everyone with joy.


Oh Great Winds of the West, medicine of the Black Bear (Americas)
We open to your strengths of reflection and turning within at this time.
We open to the qualities of strength and balance that we may live in harmony
with the seasons, and to honor silence and times of seclusion for healing and renewal.
Teach us the way of peace and to create a world that nurtures the children.


Oh Great Winds of the North, medicine of the Black Leopard (Asia)
We open to your courage that we might live fearlessly in protecting this
beautiful Earth, letting go of selfishness and expanding our spirits.
We open to the qualities of power and wisdom that we might
lead with clarity and humility in the new era.
Teach us the way of no nations or boundaries, and no enemies.


Oh Great Winds of the East, medicine of the black Eagles (Europe and everywhere)
We open to your strengths of vision and seeing the wholeness of life
so that we can honor all beings and creatures in the great web.
We open to your qualities of soaring above our own smallness
and connecting to Great Spirit to be a messenger for higher consciousness.
Teach us the way of stewardship, that we may serve something greater than ourselves.


Oh Great Mother Earth, Sweet Mother,
We thank you for your clean air and your running waters. We thank you for the
great mountains, deserts and plains, for the stone people, the plant people,
the winged ones, the four-legged, the finned and the creepy crawlers.
Teach us to honor and respect everything, for all help to support life on this
beautiful little spaceship.


Father Sky, Grandmother Moon and all the sacred Star Nations
We open to our place in this great Universe and to play our role in the
evolution of the Great Unfolding that we are participating in. We open to
other life forms in the galaxy and beyond, to other forms of intelligence that
have moved beyond war and conflict.
Teach us to welcome contact with others in our celestial neighborhood,
that we might know the evolution of our Earth.

by Sharon Gonzalez-Alei
Adapted from a prayer by Alberto Villoldo

Golden Innovations

Golden Innovations, as named by Barbara Marx Hubbard, refer to any project, business, organization, program or effort in any of the twelve sectors of society that are evolutionary in nature. The twelve sectors of society include Health, Spirituality, Governance, Justice, Media, Relations, Infrastructure, Art, Environment, Education, Economics, Science/Technology. Golden Innovations are aimed at the conscious evolution of culture and they support some aspect of three main areas: 1) Environmental Sustainability, 2) Social and Economic Justice, 3) Spiritual Fulfillment and Cooperation among all people. There are millions of great projects all over the world and many of them can be considered Golden Innovations, or Evolutionary Endeavors.

The main characteristics of Golden Innovations, or Evolutionary Endeavors, include:

1) Supporting a sustainable, regenerative economy, supporting restoration of the environment, preservation of species, and enhancement of human creativity and community.

2) Supporting socially responsible business with investment enterprises that have three bottom lines, planet, people and then profit, in that order.

3) Supporting a more uniting, spiritual, loving, whole-centered perspective.

4) Supporting efforts that lead to greater freedom, both from deficiencies and toward self-actualization and life purpose.

5) Having the core values of integrity, sustainability, inclusiveness, nonviolence, gender balance, and win-win solutions.

6) Having the potential for major social impact, assisting in positive transformation of the social body.

7) Are more cost effective than other projects over the long term and in the short term.

8) Are sustainable, replicable and not dependent on one charismatic leader.

New Meme - Spiritual Wealth is More Desirable Than Material Wealth

As we enter the 3rd Millennium there is a growing new meme that has been picking up speed over the past 40 years, since the 1960's, and it is a meme that supports the growing spiritual awakening of humanity.

Up until the 1960's we were living in a world where the dominant meme was that more of everything material, in the external world, was better. Through television and media the message was reinforced over and over that more money, more material goods, more luxury, more cars, more clothes, more boats, more real estate and more gadgets were what made life meaningful.

But the post-modern world that was gaining strength back in the 1960's and 70's began to introduce a whole new perspective of what is valuable. At that time there was a strong minority of people who started turning away from that meme of un-ending consumption and introduced a "back-to-the-land" influence into the culture. It was during the 1960's that we saw people waking up to a more global consciousness and it was in that decade that the civil rights movement was birthed, Amnesty international, and the Peace Corps were all created, just to name a few consciousness-raising organizations. Then continuing into the 1970's we saw the birth of Earth Day, the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency and a growing consciousness of concern for the environment and for people's rights all over the world. This started a movement in the social conscience away from materialism and toward the environment, and a broader, more holistic view of our world. And in spite of the media's continued insistence on perpetuating the old memes, memes of consumption, materialism and accumulation, over the past 50 years there have been significant changes that we are finally beginning to see trickle into the dominant culture, changes that support the good of future generations.

One of these changes is a new meme among many people on the planet currently that is aimed more at spiritual wealth than material wealth. Millions of people now are taking a whole variety of spiritually nourishing classes on-line, through tele-seminars, webinars and higher education institutions. There is an increasing thirst to explore our inner world, our emotions, our beliefs and the meaning of our lives through practices such as meditation, counseling, therapy, classes, conscious travel, and quality time in nature and the wilderness. Through evolutionary eyes, one could say that more and more people are choosing to evolve beyond the deeply seated concerns of the reptilian brain and the first three chakras, toward the collective concerns of the community and the upper four chakras.

This new meme of valuing spiritual wealth over material wealth is crucial in order for us to move through the challenges that we are both facing and creating on the planet currently. The environmental crises are the most obvious challenges we are facing, and these crises are the result of the high consumer economy and material appetite of the first world, in addition to the increasing world population and the accompanying increase of resources that will be needed to sustain that population. But the other challenges we are facing on a global scale, including economic, social, political and religious conflicts will all call for a new level of consciousness, a new perspective, a new set of values in order to find the solutions that take into consideration the next seven generations. And Conscious Evolution is all about taking into consideration the next seven generations and beyond! It is not about us staying stuck in the self-oriented narcissism of our current social ethos. It is about waking up to new innovations that are grounded in environmental stewardship, social and economic justice, and spiritual fulfillment for all people on the planet.

And so it will take spiritually open people to bring tolerance and non-violence into a world of chaos. It will take spiritually literate people to create new documents and forms of government that foster social and economic justice across the spectrum of humanity. It will take spiritually concerned people to love and care for the environment enough to pay for new sources of energy and new technologies that provide healthy, whole, organic food to the masses. And it will take spiritually rich people who have the power of Love, as Jesus and many others did, to manifest the miracles needed for the healing, renewal and transformation of humanity to it's next level of development. I propose that it will be the spiritual heroes who will take humanity to it's next phase of evolution. The next revolution is the spiritual evolution of humanity, and it has already begun!

Enter Universal Humanity....

Written by Sharon Gonzalez-Alei


P.S.
There is a cartoon drawing where there is a flight of stairs going up and on each of the lower stairs is an ape that increases in height and intelligence with each next step. Then about the 6th step is a man, dressed in a suit. The next cartoon, the man is looking down at the apes, then he is looking up at the next several steps above him which are empty. The next slide is him with a very shocked look on his face, having realized that it doesn't stop with him. The ape on the step below him says, "I was wondering when you'd notice there are more steps ahead of YOU". (Unfortunately I couldn't find this cartoon again when I went looking for it.)