(B02C05) Chapter 5: Motherly and Brotherly

Reel to Real Projections

“TWO NOTES OF THE CHORD, THAT'S OUR FULL SCOPE. BUT TO REACH THE CHORD IS OUR LIFE'S HOPE.” – “THE WORD” BY THE MOODY BLUES

Up until the moment of birth, every child develops in the womb. During this time, the child is fed and protected, ensuring that it can grow into a state of purity that minimizes any eternal influences. When each womb is free from worldly stresses and resides in these ideal conditions, the child grows in accordance to the purest vibration. If, however, the mother experiences enough stress or impurities from food or environment, the fetus receives these vibrations as well, altering the way that they develop to account for these changes. Like the rings of a tree trunk, every child maintains a biological history of every single experience of its parents. The most visible rings, however, are those that are directly embodied in the child, after they are born.

From seeds to trees to fruit, history is maintained in nonlinear fashion. In the smallest corners of our genetic material is a memory, assuring that every child is empowered by every moment of history, all the way down to the creation of life itself. As we progress through the various gaming “levels” of life, we progress through these rings, healing every generation that preceded our birth. It is essential, therefore, to do all that we can to extricate ourselves from our external circumstances. This means that we are called to see beyond the external distractions and perceive our experiences through bifocal lenses of subjectivity and objectivity. The more we practice this, the more capable we will be to detach ourselves from emotional reactivity and merge with the purest energy that is quietly stored deep inside of our genetic material.

From the moment we are born, we depart from the “beginner level” of life's game—a womb of safety and sustenance. As we enter the external world, the variables slowly increase as time advances. During these tutorials, we are offered the opportunity to remain connected to our spiritual inheritance: the totality of our being (Brahman, Atman, or Holy Spirit). The more we can remain connected to our non-physical womb, the more energy we will have to manifest our Kingdoms in the physical (3rd) dimension. Empowered by our purest intentions to create interdependent unity within ourselves and our environment, this energy grows and flows through us. If at any moment we struggle with maintaining this balance on a conscious level, we are temporarily severed from the source of purity until we can reconcile the distance created by our irrational doubts and fears.

In order to strengthen the physical counterpart to our spiritual inheritance, we engage in these life situations—until there are none remaining. Our only goal, therefore, is to eliminate anything that will create or perpetuate the illusion of distance between us and the external world. The challenge is to be able to balance our empathy with our sovereignty; to be both in the world and of it, without allowing either polarity to affect our central source of life-force energy (Qi). At the center of our balance, we draw energy both internally and externally. We maintain this balance by not clinging to or repulsing any single source. While we are in this state of balance, we are fed by both sides of our experience (physical and nonphysical). While our candles are lit from both ends, we magnify our soul's experience, drawing the wisdom that feeds us and empowers every step we make towards divination in the human body.

No matter what has happened in our past—joy or trauma—every experience has been divinely introduced on our path as an offering for personal strength. The moment we are able to transcend our emotional responsiveness to our attachments to subjectivity, we are released into the ocean of infinite wisdom. While we surf the timeless tides of divine inspiration, we are led from miracle to miracle.

“I ASKED BOBBY DYLAN. I ASKED THE BEATLES. I ASKED TIMOTHY LEARY. BUT HE COULDN'T HELP ME EITHER. THEY CALL ME THE SEEKER. I'VE BEEN SEARCHING LOW AND HIGH. I WON'T GET TO GET WHAT I'M AFTER, TILL THE DAY I DIE.” – “THE SEEKER” BY THE WHO

Every event is a synchronous experience, guiding us from lesson to lesson. Under these ideal conditions, the mystery that inspired every universe is revealed to us. These moments are delivered in flashes, stored in the ether of spacetime. As we consciously withdraw our association with the physical dimension, the energy of these flashes are pulled through us. During moments of unconditional love and acceptance, we escape duality and merge with the light that preceded all of creation.

In order to transcend the “rings” of vibrational creation without weakening our own mind/body/spirit balance, we must not develop any dependency on a single method. We must combine our capacity of logic and structural creation with formlessness, chaos, and emotion. We use both of these polarities to eliminate our rational mind so that it stops attempting to reach balance; instead, it becomes balance. In a sense, it goes from master to servant. Instead of using our rational mind to circumvent and control our environment, we channel its power only to discern the difference between truth and authority—until it can reconcile them both with mastery.

Though it may be painful to move away from the safety of our perfect womb, our lives can only begin the moment that we embark. Beyond our ability to control, we are ripped from the safety of our cocoons, broken free from our greatest sense of purity. This initial trauma, however, is an essential part of life's gift; without it, we would never be able to experience divinity through subjective experience. Basically, we would never know how blessed we truly are until we are severed from the source of divine love. All we can do—for ourselves and for others—is to continually develop the state of the Witness within us. We use every single moment to empower our ability to transmute evil to good—separation (sin) to unity. Instead of focusing on the details of any situation, we strengthen our ability to see beyond the details; finding purpose instead of blame or credit, we master the moment and receive the Truth that feeds our soul.

Man, Your Ground is Fertile Lies

“I DON'T KNOW HOW I'M GONNA TELL YOU, I CAN'T PLAY WITH YOU NO MORE. I DON'T KNOW HOW I'M GONNA DO WHAT MAMA TOLD ME, WITH MY FRIEND, THE BOY NEXT DOOR. I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT PEOPLE SAYING. YOU'RE GONNA LET YOUR HAIR HANG DOWN. I'M SATISFIED TO SIT HERE WORKING ALL DAY LONG, YOU'RE IN THE DARKER SIDE OF TOWN.” – “THAT'S THE WAY” BY LED ZEPPELIN

As long as we are capable of losing our balance, life will introduce us to situations that will give us the opportunity to experience these imbalances from whatever state of awareness that we attain. On every level, each singular perspective is painted with a different color. When all of these perspectives are combined into one—without favor or rejection—we become the Witness, receiving divine wisdom and Truth that nourishes our soul.

It is only when we change our energy source from our intuition to external validation that we begin to fertilize our fears with doubts which can never be resolved. However, until we get lost, we will never understand how blessed we are/were in our true “home” of Truth. In order to truly appreciate our “gift” of life to its fullest extent, we all have to be ripped from it and shattered so that we can perpetually experience the joy of returning. In each step, we are led blissfully by the energy of our wholeness—the source—back towards perfection; back to the ground of the spiritual, the ether and “dark matter” of Truth.

It wasn't long after starting public school that I was faced with the fragmentation of my soul's energy. During my first day of school, I experienced both polarities of unconditional acceptance and insecurity. From that moment, I expanded beyond the limitations of a singular perspective. In a sense, I was born into two separate worlds, one of light and one of darkness. In one of these worlds, I remained connected to the inner knowing that I was everything and everyone. In the other world, I struggled to identify myself as something. In one world, I was busy being born and in the other I didn't exist—physically, anyway. Because I was only able to occupy one state of awareness at a time, the energy of my being attracted people and situations into my life that would subject me to distance until I could proverbially “find my way back home.”

“THE MIRRORS THAT YOU SEE WILL BE HELD UPON YOUR FACE. CAN YOU DISTINGUISH YOURSELF, SEPARATE FROM THEIR CLAIMS? DON’T YOU FORGET, MY CHILD, THAT YOU WERE MADE UNSTOPPABLE. THIS NEW STORY WILL SURPRISE THEM TO BE WHAT’S IMPOSSIBLE.” – “THE FUNHOUSE” BY JD STAHL

Sure, I was occasionally able to return back to my kingdom. However, until I could maintain that state of awareness while being presented with life's challenges, I was gifted with an infinite set of subjective experiences—each one of them holding a key to my personal divination. Without the opportunity to create distance and expand, my soul would never have enough nourishment to grow to its greatest potential. Prior to this point in my life, I had only experienced the multitudinous fragmentation of my persona internally. Once I had mastered my ability to play through all of my archetypes to their greatest purity in every polarity, I was clear that I was ready to attempt the “impossible.”

Before I was able to project portions of myself into my external environment, I required real physical human beings to do so. This time, however, television and movie actors would not suffice. This time, I required real people—those who were capable of changing, growing, and developing in proportion to my soul's journey. In this way, I could progress through my “game of life” from level to level without ever changing my scenery. Instead, I would have to develop my ability to see beyond the physical world entirely, eliminating any and all variables and channeling my focus on the archetypal qualities. By doing so, I could create my own personal “womb” all around me, empowered solely by my ability to perceive the world through the same lens of unconditional love that I previously used to view myself and my familiar archetypes.

“SOMETHING TELLS ME I’M GAMING. ONE LEVEL UP, PLAYING THE NEXT. EYES ABOUT AND EARS WITHIN ME. FILLING UP THE BOOKS WITH CHECKS.” – “YOU, ME, AND GABRIEL” BY JD STAHL

As I transcended these life lessons (without losing my balance), I slowly progressed from challenge to challenge—from level to level. Not only would I grow, but every participant in my environment would also grow to their highest state of spiritual development. Those who could not remain cognizant by this growth—or would otherwise resist growth—would slowly but eventually be eliminated by divinely-orchestrated circumstances beyond their control.

Unfortunately, my young mind was not yet capable of maintaining the (conscious) balance between these two perspectives. My rational mind in its youth was quite often focused on pleasure-seeking or avoiding difficulties. This, of course, kept me dependent on ideal conditions. In this way, my abilities to love were conditional, causing me to create distance with any unfavorable person or environment.

Without learning to develop balance having boundaries and unconditional participation, we can only ever deepen our codependency on our preferences. In balance, however, we are consciously interdependent, living in two dimensions simultaneously—without favoring or refusing either of them. If I were ever to develop enough resiliency to survive on my own without relying on something or someone else to protect me from external circumstances, I would have to place myself in the proverbial lion's den until I could establish enough resiliency to maintain sovereignty in any given environment.

In Light of the Shadow

“TURN OFF YOUR MIND, FLOAT DOWNSTREAM.  EMBRACE THE TEN-THOUSAND HORRIBLE VISIONS AND THE TEN-THOUSAND BEAUTIFUL VISIONS. EMBRACE LIFE. GO THROUGH IT. EMBRACE IT ALL. BE ONE WITH IT ALL.” – RAM DASS

In a trinity perspective (light, shadow, and shape), it was my shadow that was severed from the light of awareness. The light, therefore, was shining brightly, projecting all of the character aspects that I had gathered from my established archetypes. In the middle was the “shape” of preservation: the Witness. The identity of the Witness is only timeless when it remains in balance, canceling out the opposites between positive and negative, good and evil, masculine and feminine, external and internal, micro and macro, etc.

If we still require the satiation of certain conditions—in our environment or in other people—to maintain our authenticity, then we are unable to consciously transcend the limitations of the physical to receive divine truth (natural law). More simply, we will be blinded by biases and favor until we can recognize the absolute perfection in the balance of all things in any given moment.

It was only when I felt absolutely safe that I could commune with my internal Witness. When I didn't feel safe or was busy processing irrational fear, I became a puppet to whatever environment I struggled to transcend or establish boundaries therein. In order to establish sovereignty, we have to maintain our connection to the “voice” and guidance of this Witness, else we will only ever develop our conformity to external variables.

Releasing our emotional reactivity to such things as world famine, war, poverty, etc. can be quite difficult. To embrace both creative and destructive elements of our physical reality without losing our composure or wishing things would be different is exactly what we are challenged to do the moment we take our first steps and participate as a member of society. Unfortunately, unless we are able to remain conscious through our experiences, we will disconnect from the Witness (actor/director) and identify entirely as the character in the play/movie. We are imprisoned by our own mind's inability to transition from character to character, mostly because our fears are so intimately linked to our physical identity. The presence of these favors, opinions, and other proclivities for control/predictability are what prevent us from achieving the necessary balance for our soul to grow.

Can I Get a Witness?

“PAINTED IN THE NIGHTTIME, THROUGH THE BLACKNESS. WITH COLORS BLED LIKE THE EBB AND FLOW OF GLORIOUS PAIN. DON’T BE CRIPPLED BY THE CONSTANT CALLING AND THE CHARACTER IN THIS STORY YOU’VE BEEN MARKED TO PLAY.” – “GHOST WRITER” BY JD STAHL

In order to be able to follow the “voice” of the Witness's guidance, we have to release our favor for sensory pleasure or physical comfort. The voice of the Witness that speaks is the motivator, introducing experiences of both pain and pleasure into our lives until we can return to the perspective where all polarities cancel out. Once combined harmoniously, every moment reveals its graces. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to remain attentive to this calling while we are awake and attached to our physical identification with the body and rational mind. For this reason, it is often while we are asleep that we are offered the opportunity to confront that which we refuse to attend while about our normal day. Whenever we enter our dream-state and our brains clear the synapses with DMT, we are temporarily separated from our physical body and perceive our memory primarily through our astral body, unrestricted by irrational fears.

While we are no longer tethered to the limitations of the physical dimension, we are able to participate in certain themes that offer us the ability to edit our own neural pathways. These pathways determine the primary IF, THEN, ELSE statements that guide our instinctual and primal reactions to certain stimuli. In a sense, it's like participating in therapy by watching a movie rather than experiencing these experiences first-hand. Our dreams allow the Witness to be able to process these fears without our physical rational minds becoming too reactive, causing us to sever the ties to our subconscious mind where these edits can be completed.

“I WILL LEARN BY STUDYING THE LESSONS IN MY DREAMS. SO TURN OFF THE TV, 'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT OTHERS SEE.” – “TROUBLEMAKER” BY WEEZER

The Witness watches the human experience with absolute objectivity, like one would watch a movie. In our memories, these movies are stored with crystal-clear purity and total recall. The more we draw back the veil of duality, the more we are able to recall these visualizations and experiences. As we withdraw our reverence for physical sensation, we feed the clair-essence senses (clairvoyance, claircognizance, clairsentience, and clairaudience).

Peeking over the spacetime boundary, we become the audience to our own personal movie. Every stage and scene is essential, each one contributing to the best possible ending. However, because we must balance our free will with destiny, there are so many possible timelines that exist—each one of them eventually converging at the same end point. As long as we are locked into a linear idea of spacetime or otherwise believe in the existence of things like mistakes, accidents, or coincidences, we will be blinded by doubts, fears, and shame. Having unconditional faith releases the tension that prevents us from engaging and strengthening our clair-essence senses.

We are only able to “see” or experience divine truth when we practice blind faith. Instead of lending credence to external validation or the perspective of others, we recognize that no matter what we do (or what happens around us) we will eventually be led to where we are supposed to go. The less we “go against the grain” and try to control things to suit our favors or preferences, we can shorten the distance that is required to reach our purest state of being. When we reach this state of purity, we are washed clean of the illusory projections we have made in the external world.

Instead of idolizing external examples or characteristics in others, we develop from our own unlimited potential. As long as we believe that we are limited in our potential, we will be. As long as we require external validation, competition, or comparisons to help us achieve our desired state of being, the distance remains, perpetuating the illusion that enslaves our soul's energy. This is one of the main reasons that we call our environments to present us with challenges such as trauma, addiction, violence, poverty, and other difficult circumstances. We call these things upon us because we are limited by them. When we are no longer limited by them, we release the energetic interdependence that causes them to manifest. As a result, our soul is no longer feeding its energy to power the illusion.

Diehard Battery Prowess

“YOU'VE GOT YOUR MOTHER IN A WHIRL. SHE'S NOT SURE IF YOU'RE A BOY OR A GIRL.” – “REBEL REBEL” BY DAVID BOWIE

Up to this point, I mostly spent time with my sister and my female cousins. In fact, there really wasn't any other boy my age that I felt could exceed my identification as a feminine perspective of who I should be. The problem with that was, of course, that not independently establishing a masculine identity would prolong any emotional dependence to my mother or other females. Constantly living a life where I was only a being “in respect” to a female presence would prevent me from developing enough strength to realize my full potential. I would have to achieve balance within both gender energies, independent of external references or comparison.

Essentially, if I was ever meant to establish a stronger, deeper connection to my soul or progress from the outer rings of my trunk towards the inner rings, I would have to be able to combine both linear logic (masculine) AND abstract poetic curvature (feminine). It was only through this marriage of order and chaos that would allow me to “dance” towards the center of my being without favoring one polarity or the other. Leaning towards or favoring either part of this dualistic identification would eventually cause me to develop into one of two dominant personalities: some type of ungrounded spiritual battery or a loveless reptilian alien. In order to master myself, I would have to learn to balance and preserve them both, in combination.

Dutch Doppelgänger

“WE USE TO COMMUNICATE BANGING ON THE BONGO. WHEN THE VILLAGE WAS MORE MOTHERLY AND BROTHERLY. AND THE DUTCH CAME THROUGH AND KILLED THEM OFF FOR THE RUBBER TREE.” – “FISHERMAN” BY RZA

One Saturday morning, while I was with my mother in the front yard, I looked down the street and saw a woman walking. Beside her was a young boy who looked very much like me. I assumed that he and I were the same age. Both of us had the same color and length to our blonde hair too. For a moment, I got very excited. It wasn't soon after that I stopped, looked at my mother to see what her reaction was. Since my mother appeared calm, I followed suit and engaged my curiosity. She made her way towards the woman and child walking down the street and I followed.

As my mother and this other woman became familiar with each other, I stared at this other boy. I was very intrigued by his appearance. More than that, there was something about him that gave me a sense of comfort. After spending time with other children my age with who I could not establish common physical ground, this new boy's appearance eliminated my normal process of discrimination. He was so similar to me that I was “stumped.” Instead of processing his appearance, I resigned to not knowing. As a result of this release from control, all of the unknown possibilities excited me.

After a brief introduction, I overheard my mother and this other woman talk about the possibility of me and the other boy getting together to spend time together. My mother agreed, and then we went our separate ways again. I was so consumed by all of the possibilities of our meeting, that I could feel both aspects of fear and excitement intermingle with various subjective perceptions. The good and the bad emotions that I felt were completely independent of the fixed variables. My experience, therefore, would be entirely guided by how I chose to perceive the future event. In order to be able to settle my mind, I chose to channel the energy into excitement, thinking of all of the possibilities for the future playdate.

Mothership Connection

“YOUR MOTHER’S AN ADVOCATE OF YOUR INNER TRUTH. AS WE WASTE AWAY THE TOXIC ASSAULT, IT’S MORE THAN SICKNESS INSIDE THE DARK VAULT. COME AND GO WITHOUT A SINGLE SOUND. BELOW GROUND, THEY FIND A LIVING FEMALE SHRINE.” – “JD'S DREAM #519” BY JD STAHL

The difference between my states of fear and excitement were entirely dependent on how I identified myself with my environment. Whenever I was with my mother, I identified as her son; and so, whenever I was with her, I played that role as impeccably as possible. However, as soon as this new boy approached me, I could sense another part of me scratching at the surface, bubbling with excitement and curiosity to erupt from underneath my role as a “momma's boy.”

This (new) part of me was daring and lacked formal composure. It was clear that there was a part of my personality that I had not yet explored beyond the realm of codependency. This persona was formless, borderless, and chaotic. Without being able to rely on any subjective comparison, it was still limitless. Both positive and negative possibilities went without measure; without a mirror, none could be defined beyond formless potentiation of enthusiasm. There were no rules to this new game. I would have to build this new avatar from scratch—without relying on a feminine authority figure to supply me with the energy of inspiration or concrete validation.

“HUSH NOW BABY DON'T YOU CRY. MAMA'S GONNA MAKE ALL OF YOUR NIGHTMARES COME TRUE. MAMA'S GONNA PUT ALL OF HER FEARS INTO YOU. MAMA'S GONNA KEEP YOU RIGHT HERE, UNDER HER WING. SHE WON'T LET YOU FLY BUT SHE MIGHT LET YOU SING. MAMA WILL KEEP BABY COSY AND WARM. OOOOH BABE OOOOH BABE OOOOH BABE. OF COURSE MAMA'S GONNA HELP BUILD THE WALL.” – “MOTHER” BY PINK FLOYD

For many of us, we can be our true selves around the parental figure with whom we primarily identify. The more we mature, we proceed to continue to identify certain people who can allow us to continue these dependencies so that we can validate ourselves via comparison. These people can be our friends, siblings or family members, coworkers, or public figures. They can be people we like or people we don't like. We can identify one or base who we believe ourselves to be based on a composite of multiple comparisons. Each and every person we use to define our character—in comparison or similarity—can be considered a “parent” to our personal identity (personality).

For better or for worse, we are very protective of these “parent” identities. Any time that we credit or blame others for our emotions their actions, we feed them our energy. From these subconscious energy attachments, they grow and expand the boundaries of their own potential—in whatever form we choose to project upon them. This is, of course, if they are capable of being nonreactive to the projections sot that the energy can be transmuted into its raw form.

Energy is projected upon all of us—for better or for worse. Fortunately, we have the capacity to consciously transcend the conditions of these energetic “gifts' when they are not harmonious with our present state of self-identification. When we are distracted by fear, desire, insecurity, or confusion, however, many of us can become dependent on the projected energies, causing us to slowly transfigure into the roles. Again, this isn't always positive or negative. Either way, both polarities must eventually be sacrificed so that the truth of our authenticity can be resurrected from underneath. In states of either excess potential OR negative misrepresentation, we are imprisoned by the external world until we can find the strength to erupt from them both with absolute truth. In order to return to our own Kingdoms, we must reconcile all possibilities and favor or refuse none of them.

Each one of these projections are—through the lenses we choose—physical manifestations of the true reflection of divine light within us. In order to master these projections so that we can fully accept their presence in the Ark to our fullest capacity, we experience them in the physical world. We will remain on this merry-go-round, clinging to the “horses” of our egos, until we can reconcile them all.

All of our angels and demons must be accounted for and acknowledged so that nothing remains in darkness or otherwise lacks our conscious awareness. It is only in the light of consciousness that we can take full responsibility (holy authority) for our sovereign power and spiritual inheritance. We require the full power of our soul in order to wash ourselves clean of external idols and be restored back to the purest state of our being. In a sense, we will be “reborn” and resurrected by Truth, no longer imprisoned by the world illusion or time.

Wedding Cake Mixer

“EACH OF YOU, AN ABSOLUTE PRODUCTION OF PURE SERVICE. TRUTH IS, YOU WERE CREATED ON PURPOSE. BUT THE BRANCHES ALSO GET NERVOUS. THE DISTANCE FROM YOU TO THE TRUNK IS EXACTLY THE JOURNEY YOU’RE MADE FROM. LIKE A VIDEO PRODUCTION. A GAME OF SUBCONSCIOUS CONSUMPTION, TO RAISE THE BIRTHDAY CAKE IN YOUR OVEN. BAKED BY ONE OF A COVEN. CALL IT A SOUL. OH WAIT! I’M SORRY. DID YOU THINK YOU’RE IN CONTROL? IT’S OK. WE ALL DO.” – “INTELLIGENT DESIGN” BY JD STAHL

In a similar way that a cake is made, all of the ingredients must be combined before it can be put in the oven. Though it is easy to see the separation of things when they are in different containers or have not yet been mixed, we are unable to make a cake without blending them all together. Alone, many of these ingredients can be difficult to eat. However, when combined, they make a very tasty treat. Similarly, when all of our internal and external ingredients are combined, it creates a perfect balance. The more we accept this mix without favoring one thing or the other, we receive the necessary sovereign power to bake the cake, causing it to rise.

The physical ingredients, therefore, must marry the non-physical warmth (spirit soul) in order to complete the cake-making process. Though it can be painful to engage our blind faith towards vulnerability—even though it's possible to be “burnt” to follow our hearts (reaching in the oven)—unless we release control, we will not have the necessary patience. As a result, our cake could fall. Once we open our hearts and engage our vulnerability without fear or hesitation, the batter will rise and fill with the spiritual pockets of warmth, leaving an impression of growth—the fingerprint of the spirit soul.

“FOR YOU DO NOT DESIRE SACRIFICE, OR I WOULD GIVE IT; A BURNT OFFERING YOU WOULD NOT ACCEPT." – PSALM 51:18

Alternatively, of course, we can also lack boundaries and end up leaving the cake in the oven too long, causing it to burn and turn black on the outside. In order to develop the perfect recipe within ourselves, we create time until we can master the process. We must eventually use our intuitive wisdom (ingredients) to mix the perfect cake—not for anyone else but ourselves. Only we know what we “love” the most, absent of anyone else's suggestions or preferences. We gain nothing by sacrificing ourselves and staying in situations longer than necessary, only to cause suffering. To avoid any burnt offerings, we must create boundaries that we can maintain while still being able to leave the oven on and the door closed. This requires trust and self-confidence.

Before we can love anyone with our whole heart, we must be able to establish this type of trust, unconditionally. When we are able to recognize that both love and trust are essentially the same, we can “ice” our cakes with our truest display of authenticity. When we are unable to trust ourselves in such a way, we live in a perpetual state of dependency, altering who we are just so that it appeases others. So many people believe love is equal to obedience; however, obedience requires conditions, negating trust or acceptance. True unconditional love is absolute—no exceptions. In order to be able to recognize it, we must establish it within ourselves, under any and all circumstances or conditions.

Though many of us believe we need another person to achieve this perfection of unconditional love, we don't. In fact, every external example is just another test to guide us towards the love that will lead us to our truth: unconditional love and acceptance of the person in our mirror. When the body marries the soul in a state of true equality, both are carried across time's threshold and consummate their joy in the kingdom from whence they came. This is how we have our cake...and eat it, too.

Me

JD Stahl (08/10/2016) I've built this world to contain me. I've made these homes to confuse me. I wrote these songs to remind me. I've lied all these times to convince me. I've stumbled so you could help me. I've risen so I could fall again. And in this body which often enables me. My friends are all here to humble me. I've created my whole life. In your mind, I can create you. I've grown these flowers to excite me. I've solved all these equations to save me. I have defined time to measure me. Love and pain exist to define me. Within you, within me, we travel on. All around us, we can say the war is won. I've willed these eyes, so we could see me. And in these certain times, I speak. I've fallen so I know who you are when weak. I've died and risen to realize life is the dream. Now I know that each breath is for you. Keep on living, keep on building—for you All my brothers and sisters—love for you. Without you, there would be nothing around me.