This is the sixth and final of a six-part article. Part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4 and part 5 are all available for review – or reading for the first time!
Love and Relationships
Creating loving friendships is among the most wonderful things we can do as human beings. ‘There is no greater gift than friendship.’
If we wish, we can also create an intimate, lifelong relationship with one other person. The more self-aware, honest, and compassionate we are, and the more willing we are to commit to a life of complete sharing with another person, the better suited we will be to having such an intimate connection. There are many people around us with whom we can create this kind of relationship. We are not born into Earth with a one-person counterpart, our soulmate, whom we must find in order to fulfill such a desire.
We are each born with a strong desire to give and receive love. This motivates us to interact and share with others. If we are careful to not dampen this impulse with intolerance or the fear of pain or loss, it will lead us to many fulfilling experiences.
Treat those around you with respect. Be supportive and encouraging. We are all learning, so be patient and understanding whenever you are disappointed or frustrated by the actions of another. Be a calm teacher when you have the opportunity. If someone has been guided to you it is because you can be helpful to them in some way (and they to you). Savor the time you spend with those close to you, and aim for unconditional love in every relationship.
Be the best that you can be, then engage with the world and let your intentions be known. Be friendly, be open, and you will create many opportunities for sharing love.
Health and Death
We are far more than our bodies. But since our bodies are the vehicles through which we engage life in this time-space reality, it is wise to take care of them. Keep your heart and other muscles strong. Keep your joints flexible, but don’t overexert or strain. Stay fit gently and make it enjoyable. Keep your weight within the normal range. Eat well. Avoid recreational and unnecessary drugs, alcohol, inhalants, sugar, snacks that lack nutrition, and excessive salt and caffeine. Get a good night’s sleep every night. Take naps. Sleep is how we rejuvenate our body and mind. When we sleep, we leave our body and some of our personality behind to rest, while the essence of who we are takes time for a different kind of experience.
As you prepare to sleep each night, remind yourself that you are leaving Earth concerns behind, you are entering a period of great beauty, healing, and learning. It is not uncommon to have some self-awareness during sleep, which is one of the underlying explanations for the out-of-body experiences that are reported with varying degrees of clarity. Waking up is bringing all of our parts back together refreshed. Wake up each morning with loving feelings for yourself and a deep appreciation for being on Earth.
When the physical challenges of illness, injury, and aging arise, work with them while maintaining inner balance. You are not your body. Illness cannot harm who you are. It is not badness. Aging is not badness, but our attitudes about aging can color our experience of it. Fear of aging is not helpful. What is helpful is realizing that living more years creates more opportunities to learn and teach, both with our words and as an example.
Many have come to believe that aging means becoming unhappy and burdensome to our families and society. It would be more appropriate to recognize and appreciate the contributions that the older generation can make to our communities. Wisdom comes from years of thoughtful living. Balance, empathy, and an understanding of the nature and purpose of life come from paying attention over time. When older truly is wiser, everyone benefits.
The fear of becoming a burden could also use some clarity. There is much to be gained by those who help someone in need. Some mental and physical decline is natural, but with a slight adjustment to our attitudes about aging, we can create the best experience possible.
Death of the body is not badness. We have all died thousands of times. Death is simply leaving the body and not coming back to it. When you take off a beloved old coat you are still you. In the moments following death, we still identify as our human personality but, in time, our awareness expands through many layers of experience, and we rejoice in consciously joining our past personalities and soul. All of our human learning and growth is celebrated and integrated. There is no judgment of badness or failure. We lived the best life we could, and every moment of our life is appreciated in that context.
The time of our death and the circumstances surrounding it (accident, natural disaster, illness, or old age) are arranged by, or are agreeable to, us. Our human friends will work with their emotions and live through our death just as we work through the death of those we are close to. But we should all understand that we are never separated from the ones we love. We are always deeply connected. We can work with that understanding and feel comforted by it even when we are missing their physical presence. If we wish, we can be with them during periods of deep sleep. Feelings of separation are temporary. We do not truly lose our loved ones through death.
If we have conscious or subconscious beliefs about what happens at and after death, those beliefs can color our initial experience for better or worse. It is better to be open to letting the experience unfold without fear or preconceptions. Reading descriptions of near-death experiences might be helpful, but they describe just the beginning of the transition and they are shaped by individual traits and attitudes. It can take a little time for us to work through our shift away from time-space. Let the transition happen easily.
After our death, with wisdom and love we will decide what we want to do next.
The Future
The future of humanity is not predetermined. We will choose what happens. We are each choosing right now, every day, in every moment, how God will manifest on Earth. In what direction are our current choices taking us? Are we taking good care of ourselves, of the people around us, of the animals and plants we share the Earth with, of the Earth itself?
Oftentimes yes, but some indicators suggest we could do much better. We can make life on Earth harder or easier by our choices. We should not assume that someone or something will come along and fix our problems for us. There is no guarantee that humanity will continue to thrive as it has for so long. That is a possibility, but so is a future in which we have damaged the Earth and social order to the extent that life is more limited and challenging, temporarily. Our daily decisions determine what happens.
We human beings have invested quite a bit in this Earth reality. Maybe we should not be so quick to harm it. We, as souls, also have an interest, but we may or may not intervene directly at this time. The big picture is much bigger than we can imagine.
A Good Life
Living life well creates a sense of belonging and connectedness. We create and feel part of a loving community. Our feelings of inner strength, calmness, and groundedness grow stronger. We gain a greater intuitive understanding and wisdom about life and the people around us. We feel a deeper sense of purpose in the activities we take on, and we have a better appreciation for even the simplest things in our lives. We move along in a natural flow. Our thoughts and actions support the living world and the world supports us. Serendipity is everywhere.
Apply what you have read here to your daily life. Pay attention to what is going on around you, appraise it from different points of view: from your perspective as a human being; from your soul’s perspective; and from the perspective of the other people involved in the events – try to see what they see and feel what they feel. Occasionally, when interacting with another person, consider that they, too, are rooted in a wise, eternal soul, living their life as best they can given the circumstances that have led up to that moment. Expand your awareness of what human life is. Use your creativity and idealism to help others. Showing compassion to our fellow humans expresses love, expresses God, in a particular way that has never been done before, anywhere.
When we decide to leave Earth, we will have developed ourselves to a very high degree. A graduate of time-space is a highly regarded, wondrous being. It is said that if you meet a graduate, you will do anything you can, you will pay any price, to become as they are. You can feel good about choosing this path.
Consider Earth-life in the context of an infinite number of other possibilities. Contemplate these ideas occasionally, not as an escape from the challenges of life, but as a way to more fully appreciate your life, and to engage yourself in the experience while not becoming overwhelmed by it. Learn, but also just relax and enjoy.
This is the end of Part 6. If you wish, you may read the entire article as a free download at LifeInTimeSpace.com
