I’d like to share with you one of my poems. This one is very specifically chosen because of where we’re at here at Sunrise Ranch in the process of FSE (Full Self Emergence). We’re in Creative Day 2, which is the Virtue of Understanding. This poem is entitled “The Intersection of Understanding.”

We have a diagram that we use here—it’s called the Sun Cross. Imagine a circle with an even cross on the inside—a horizontal line and a vertical line inside of a circle. The horizontal line represents the connection between the mind and the heart, or mental and emotional, and the vertical line represents the connection between the spiritual and the physical. The mind, or thoughts, represents the elemental quality of air; and the heart, or emotions, represents the elemental quality of water. That’s important because it’s referenced as such throughout the poem. In the exact center spot where the vertical and horizontal lines connect, that is the space from which this poem was written.

It is my conclusion that the fusion of the realms of illusion with the truth and the love that the universe is made of
Is through the human, the man and the woman, by the life that they summon
Because the human is…as dunamis, the creator self in our midst, the truth is this, it’s our own pain or bliss
So many ignorant and aloof, mixing falsehood and truth since the early days of youth
We have a superimposed identity of a separate-self personality hijacking the duties of divinity
And ask yourself, do you know? Who’s really running the show, is it ego on the roam or is it love on the throne?
Might want to check and double check where the thoughts and feelings intersect, the human and the Being I Am connect, and live life with love and respect

Double Check, Intersect

There are thoughts that I’ve believed and concepts I’ve conceived, and eventually received
As building my creation, a direct correlation with the revelation of my own self-station
If I look I will find, I’ve allowed over time for them to hook and bind within my holy mind
Now I swear they are there, living in my air, waiting for repair by gentle loving care
And I must rely, ’cause they won’t die if I’ll only try without my sense of “I”
I, I, I, I… I AM the holy one, in the middle of the sun, at the center of the One
I AM the eternal one, in the middle of the sun, at the center of the One
I AM the infinite one, in the middle of the sun, at the center of the One

Double Check, Intersect

What about the motion of my emotion that causes commotion like a storm on the ocean
There must be some mastery to this temporal sea of bliss and melancholy that moves through me
Surrender must be the key because it has me kneeling to the tidal waves of feeling that reveal to me my ceiling
So I give in and learn to swim, again once again and let the “I” move in
Now I am riding the waves and their mighty power, no longer afraid that they will devour
Releasing the coward, with love for the hour and respect for its power, ’cause
I AM the holy one, in the middle of the sun, at the center of the One
I AM the eternal one, in the middle of the sun, at the center of the One
I AM the infinite one, in the middle of the sun, at the center of the One

Double Check, Intersect

I find that I’m outstanding when I’m simply standing within the understanding
So now my vertical tries on a balanced horizon, while keeping my eyes on
The spiritual nation, at the highest elevation of focused concentration
A never ending emanation, a sacred sensation of desired inspiration
That I may know thy will, and my cup may fill and flow over and spill
Thy Love into this world and Christ was unfurled once again to the world
This is our destiny, the one for you and for me and for all of humanity
It’s about becoming aware, conscious of water and air, and filling your world with care

We worship in the dome, chant to the Om, and invite people home
We’re on a journey together, no matter the weather, forever and ever
In Eternal Oneness… All for One and One for All… Aumen

I want to share with you what that poem is really about for me, the significance of the lyrics. There are a lot of encoded messages inside of there. But really, the whole poem is about two things for me. One, it’s about self-reflection; and two, it’s about orientation.

The vertical line represents the spiritual self and the physical self. One way to think about that is a heaven and an earth, because we have both of them in us already, right? We’re in a physical body. I’ve got this human, animal body that I’m in and a personality to go with it. And I’ve got this eternal, spiritual Being that’s also very true about me. So both are there. But the question is, which one am I, are you, are we, oriented towards? Which one are we sourcing our experience from? Because they’re both present. We have choice of which one we’re facing, which one we’re drawing from, which one we’re in response to. And that choice is revealed through the horizontal line, through our thoughts and emotions, our individual consciousness.

Now, see, I believe that this whole game—life, consciousness, creation—it’s all this crazy, wild game of mirrors. This magical, mystical, holographic game of mirrors, all through life. If we’re just looking at the outside world, we see all kinds of mirrors all around us that are reflecting back to us things that are going on inside of our own consciousness. In fact, I believe all of creation is reflecting consciousness. If you look at our world today, it’s a reflection of what’s happening on a larger scale in mass consciousness. If you look into your world, your own personal life experience, it’s a reflection of what’s going on in your consciousness. My thoughts are actually defining the intention of what I want to create, what I’m saying to the universe that I want to create, what I want or expect to have inside of my experience.

So it’s important to self-reflect and look at the thoughts, because they are truly the revelation of your own self-station. There are paradigms and beliefs and perspectives going on about how we see ourselves, how we see the world, how we see other people, which are defining what type of experiences we have, or how we show up and relate with our world. All of these things play a significant factor in how we experience reality.

Then there’s our emotional realm—our emotional realm is all about energy. It’s showing us what type of energy we’re bringing into the world, what we’re communicating energetically to the world around us. It’s also clueing us in to our thoughts and where they are in relationship to the orientation—to the world, to other people, to ourselves. High vibrational “good” feelings are showing us that our thoughts are in alignment with a reality of love and oneness (service). Lower vibrational “bad” feelings are showing us that our thoughts are aligned with a reality of fear and separation (selfish). They are revealing to us our orientation in that moment.

I have an inner God. You have an inner God. And yet I live here in the world. I’m creating my experiences, and I take responsibility for that. If it happens to me, it’s because I called it forth. And how do I know what it is that I’m calling forth? I look at my thoughts and feelings, and I gain understanding through that.

This is what the “double check” is all about for me. It’s about taking a moment’s pause to check myself, and then do it again: double check. Where are my thoughts? Where are my feelings? What’s going on inside me right now? And where’s my orientation? Am I living out of separation and seeing the world through that view? Or am I living out of connection and oneness, and seeing that? Am I in judgment? Or am I in love and compassionate understanding? I check into my thoughts and feelings and then do it again, going a level deeper to see what else is there.

It’s all right there, encoded within our thoughts and feelings. We can look in and intuit into our feelings to have a sense of knowing of what’s going on inside of us. We can look at our thoughts and find out what’s driving our perception of how we see ourselves and our world.

I don’t really believe that we can change the world. I believe the world can change, but not because we change it. I believe the same thing about other people—can’t change somebody else. They could change, but not because I tried to change them. I can change myself and that’s all. For me, it’s the inner work of double check: Where am I at? What’s going on in here, in my mind and my heart? What am I feeling? What am I thinking about? What am I putting into the world? What am I responding to?

Asking the questions and seeing the answers is the work of understanding and becoming more conscious. The next part of the inner work is consciously and intentionally directing my thoughts and feelings where I want them to go. Once I know where my orientation is, I am able to make a new choice if I so desire.

I want to be in the world but not of the world. And if I’m responding to earth instead of heaven, I’m of the world. I’m just another human being going through my daily motions and actions in my life situation. But if I am in response to something higher, a spiritual presence of love, then I’m not just in the world; I’m bringing something through me into the world. I’m actually living in a realm of possibility and potential. I’m seeing what could be, rather than just what is. If I’m only ever seeing just what is, there’s a good chance I could be in judgment of it. And if I’m in judgment of something, there’s a good chance I’m just looking in a mirror.

Because it’s all mirrors! Life is simply reflecting back what I’m bringing forth and putting out and saying I want to have as my creation. When I see something in somebody else, that’s a reflection too. And depending on how I feel about it, it has nothing to do with that other person. It has to do with what’s going on inside here, in me, in my heart and my mind. And that’s where I want to do my own double check, take a moment to pause and get clear in here. Then whatever I bring forth will be clear and land out there.

You see, the easy thing is to look out in the world and look at other people and see what’s missing, and then label it as wrong or bad. However, when we do that, we’re in a place of judgment that blocks the ability for true understanding. If I judge out there, I’m judging in here. And once I’ve made a judgment, it becomes difficult to see what else is present because I’m focusing on and feeding what I see as wrong or that which is missing. It becomes a great distraction from doing the inner work and looking within myself to see what’s out of place.

That’s the easy thing, just seeing and pointing. The difficult thing, the work that causes a rise in consciousness and greater awakening, is inner. It’s in my heart, it’s in my mind, it’s in my consciousness, what’s going on in there. Because if I want to change my experience of reality, I have to change those things. I have to look at it, question them, and then intentionally choose where I want to be with that. What do I want to be thinking of, if that’s not it? What do I want to be feeling and bringing into this moment, if that’s not it already?

What I’m saying is we have the power, each one of us, to wake up, step up, get conscious and get intentional with what’s already going on anyway. We’re already doing this, we’re already creating our experiences—we’re just unconscious of it most of the time. So take a moment’s pause, double check yourself: Where am I at? And then look at the intersect: What am I responding to? Is it what’s missing and all the problems or things I don’t like? Or is it what could be there, and what I see as possible? What am I focusing on, and choosing to see?

Then bring it all back home. Because the greatest teachers and masters have told us the universe lives inside of ourselves. So when you change what’s going on inside, then you get to be a different example in the world, and the world changes around you in response. It’s one big inside-out game of mirrors. Double Check, Intersect.