The second contribution to our series of reader’s stories comes from Paul and Ariel who live in the town of Mount Shasta in Northern California.
Greetings! We are Ariel and Paul, both 73 in body and young at heart. We are both very healthy and don’t need prescription medicines. Spirit has taught us to love and cherish life’s experiences by taking care of ourselves first, and the pathway of Love is our joy in living.
On the earthly, practical and balancing side we stay grounded by walking, camping, swimming and wildflower photography. We go drumming in the forest and send blessings of Light and Love to humanity and dear Mother Earth. She has given us this marvelous and magical living theater to stage Life into experiences for our awakening.
After many years of being non-conformists and truth seekers, we found each other 11 years ago. The Love and Light we share has grown substantially within us. Our goal has always been ascension as the reunion of our True Selves returning to our heavenly home, and in the ever-present arms of Divine Love.
We are both singers and we met in the Fall of 2003 at the forming of a Peace Choir in Ashland, Oregon. I had the sheet music duet for “The Prayer” with me, at a choir rehearsal, and a tape recording of the song with me. I was looking down the row of 18 sopranos and wondering which lady to ask about singing the duet with me.
Then Ariel turned and smiled at me. I went and knelt on one knee and asked her if she had ever sung any solos or duets. She said yes. Little did I know that she was one of the premier soloists in the Rogue Valley. We started rehearsing once a week in the afternoons while enjoying dinners together at Ariel’s cottage.
We quickly realized that we had a lot of values in common. We were attracted to each other, and it felt like we were twin flames. There was a Love that was pure.
Before we left to retire together on the Oregon Coast we had the opportunity to sing our song, ‘The Prayer’, for the 150 members of the Peace choir. We surprised them with our quality performance and received a standing ovation of applause. It was a thrill to feel such appreciation. We have been able to share that song a number of times now, and continue to sing when we can.
We arrived in Mt. Shasta about three and a half years ago. The snow capped ‘Ascension’ mountain had called to us. We had, one year earlier, discovered the three Telos books in a Mt. Shasta store, which teach a simple meditation of the “Seven Sacred Flames”. Each day a different color brings a focus to the God qualities and actions of that color’s energy vibrations. We meditate and go to the etheric temples to experience each color of Light energy, and it always feels good. We know this is part of our ascension process as we awaken to our Oneness within our Creator God.
Ariel graduated from college and became an elementary school teacher for 8 years. She was not happy with the school systems methods of teaching. She quit and moved to Nevada City in California and opened an herb shop. Within a year she found the One World Family commune. She was with the Family for 5 years where she met her husband, with whom she had two children, a son and a daughter.
She and her husband parted ways after 18 years. She has always enjoyed drawing, airbrush painting and prisma colored pencil art. Now she has moved up to oil painting and has finished a number of pieces depicting her grand daughters in costumes. Ariel is also a fine cook and an excellent seamstress.
I was a Xerox technician in a factory for 10 years and then worked as a self-employed field tech for 6 years. I married at age 24 and had a son and a daughter. I also was divorced after 18 years and moved to South Oregon. Once I retired from work, I could enjoy archery again.
I had lost two good bows, by fire, when I was in my early fifties. Now a good bow cost over $300, so I decided to try making my own bow and I sent for a bowyer book of instructions. Within the last 9 years I have made 106 long bows of five different kinds of woods. I had been a left-handed shooter before, and now had to learn to shoot right-handed in order to test the bows for accuracy. It was a test of my skills, discipline, and mastery to hit the bull’s eye mark.
This is where I discovered the metaphysical art in archery. I intuitively realized that the upper bow limb could be masculine energy, and the lower bow limb feminine energy, with both joined at the handle center balance point. The bow string represents Spirit and the arrow is our desire or intention to make that perfect shot into our target or goal.
The archer learns through trial and error how not to shoot an arrow through intention. The ego can get in the way by “trying too hard” to reach the goal. The archer learns to slow down the process, by being poised in the stillness as in a meditation. Only when Spirit, the string, releases the arrow of thought intentions or desire, does it fly true to the mark.
This longing for perfection is our desire to return to our multi-dimensional Self, and the heavenly place within our Oneness. These bodies, with our experiences here on Earth, may only be about 10% of all that we truly are. The other 90% of us already dwells in our Perfection at Home within Father/Mother God. On the other side of the veil, we are whole and complete.
Last week while I was shooting, I made a huge discovery. I was testing a 26# bow at 30 feet of distance and not having a lot of success. I had shot about 140 arrows. The next day I used the same bow, but this time the distance was only 13 feet from the target and I could really see [know] the target mark. The first arrow went into the nickel-sized spot I had placed on the target. My thought was ‘Very good, the bow is good…can I do that again?’ I pulled the arrow out and went back 13 feet to shoot again.
I carefully repeated the aim, draw, and slow release of the arrow, and it went into the first hole. Wow! Senior eyes can lose ability to see clearly at longer distance and I could see better up-close. But the third arrow missed by one inch. Oops! I refocused, with concentrated vision, on the center inside of the arrow hole.
The fourth, fifth, and sixth arrows went into the very same one hole. Amazing! This taught me that we miss the mark when we fail to, or forget to focus ‘up close’ with concentrated vision and really ask for the perfect life we want to live. To believe in God is to be Living In God through the knowing of Love in our hearts.
This brings me to a final realization that I would like to share. Our perceptions change as we awaken to All That Is.
Through the Seven Sacred Flames Meditations, Ariel and I have been experiencing a rainbow of colors and seeing their significance. Symbols and colors vibrate at different energy octaves to communicate with us in the non-verbal pathways – music does this also.
The concentric circles and the colors of the archery target face awakened me and taught me a new perspective. On the outside there are two white circles and two black circles that could represent yin and yang. Next, two blue circles could represent God the Father, the all-powerful, protecting and providing energy of goodwill.
Then we see two red circles that could represent The Divine Mother, the all-present and unconditional Love. And finally, in the center, two yellow or gold rings with an X in the center representing us as the Sons and Daughters, the Christed Ones of God. We are the Holy Children [images] of our Father/Mother God.
We are always surrounded by God’s providence and love. Our Heavenly Home is our inheritance and where we belong. I feel it and I choose to re-member the True Self of WHOM I AM.
We have been so blessed. Ariel and I look forward to the great awakening into full consciousness and our complete knowing of Love. We look forward to Peace, Love and Joy being expressed fully on our Earth Mother. We look forward to sharing in community with all humanity as a common unity of the global one family; in the Perfection of Oneness NOW. Let us all bring Heaven down to Earth.
Namaste and Many Blessings,
Ariel & Paul
Ariel’s art can be seen at https://www.artroster.com/projects/ariel-morgan-untitled-oil-canvas/