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Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781504397674 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Balboa Press |
| Publication date: | 03/29/2018 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 164 |
| File size: | 503 KB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Encounter the Light
What is the light within us? We are all beings of light. We were put on this planet to shine our beautiful selves toward each other, not away. We were meant to feel compassion, understanding, and love. We were placed on this earth to bring forth the beauty of our souls as we fulfill our unique purpose. We are all moving with light force to another plane, to another space in time that we can't even comprehend. We are battling the energies and gravitational pull of the dark side, but we must continue to be diligent warriors of peace, tranquility, and stillness within ourselves for love and positive energy to prevail.
Living in the light is a true spirit of the heart. It is who we are as individuals and as a collective community. Becoming increasingly more authentic in every aspect of our lives and honoring our truth is essential to moving in this direction. Treating each other and ourselves with the utmost respect and dignity, deeply connecting with our inner being, embracing who we are at our core, and moving in flow is the goal of this work.
How do we encounter the light? We take baby steps toward realization. We become more aware of our importance in this world. We are not guided by money or selfish pursuits but are in service to the higher good of the planet and all its wildlife, nature, people, resources, and energy.
When we are in the light, we accept that we are here to heal ourselves and to bring healing to the world. To nourish our minds, bodies, and spirits is of the utmost importance as we move into a higher space of consciousness with purpose, strength, and surrender. We ultimately know that we cannot completely control our destiny but that we are in partnership with the divine, guided and supported through the transformation that radiates more light from within.
This book of light is a compilation of stories of the remarkable experiences and timeless insights of encountering the light myself. It is also a workbook for you to ask yourself some of the questions I discovered to be useful on my journey. Through journaling, quiet introspection, contemplation, and listening to the clues within your physical body, you will be able to find your own answers to the questions presented, and then you will begin or continue on your path toward the light as well.
Everyone has the capacity to be a light unto the world. It takes patience and perseverance to move forward into this realm. It also takes understanding and the acquisition of knowledge, for knowledge translates into wisdom, and higher wisdom is the key to finding more peace, serenity, joy, happiness, and especially love within each of our hearts. I hope this book provides some higher knowledge and wisdom to help you move into a beautiful place of light, as together we bring about a better world and enjoy the richness of our existence as one.
CHAPTER 2Can We Repair the World?
Some years ago, I was entertaining friends at my home. I had bought a beautiful bouquet of flowers and was retrieving a large vase from my pantry to place the flowers in. I was standing on a small stool, reaching high toward the top shelf of the pantry, and I lost my balance; the crystal vase fell out of my hands and shattered into thousands of pieces of glass on the floor. I took a deep breath and thought, There must be something for me to learn from this situation. I stood still for a few minutes and gazed at all the tiny and larger pieces of glass surrounding my feet. Then it hit me! This experience was a metaphor for the bigger picture of the world and how we can repair it. Deep inside my being, I wanted to take all of the pieces of glass together and make the vase complete and whole again, but I could see it would take an enormous amount of work, and it seemed to be an almost impossible feat to accomplish.
Maybe we, as human beings, are similar to that beautiful and now-broken vase, and our souls, like the pieces of glass, have been shattered as well. Can the process of our individual and collective transformation put us back together again? In other words, can we, as individuals and the world as a whole, ever be repaired?
I believe we can.
Every time we go through a challenging experience and are able to create a new positive flow of energy around our experience, we alter our inner being and create a shift. When we do this soul work, we receive more inner strength and power and therefore restore ourselves. When we renew ourselves to a more natural state of being, our own souls and the world are greatly affected by this change. This life-altering transformation actually causes a vibrational shift that affects our glorious planet, along with the entire universe.
How do we make this shift happen?
We can take actions, many which are uncomfortable at times, but they move us through our fears and into the light. When we step into new realms of opportunity, with creativity, love, and understanding, we create change from within. Examples may include: being kind to someone we don't really desire to connect with, accepting your own vulnerability when it is difficult to own that feeling, being honest when we may want to lie, moving closer to others when we want to push away, eating nourishing foods rather than foods that primarily taste good, loving and honoring our physical bodies as though they were our sanctuaries, and respecting our beautiful, alive environment by becoming aware of the products we use every day.
We are given many opportunities to change our ways. Sometimes we need to take action and move in the opposite direction of what we are currently doing. Other times we need to reform or adjust the way we perceive our life, our relationships, and our surrounding experiences in the world
Like the broken pieces of glass, we are all individual souls with various life experiences. We each have different and unique stories that have moved us into this exact time in the world, and we continue to learn, grow, and connect to one another through our current relationships and life's experiences.
Currently, we are transcending into a new realm of being, one we have never witnessed before but one that is more aligned with the larger picture of the universe — a new paradigm that is healed and more complete and whole.
In my story of the vase, each piece of glass had a unique shape, size, and feel. As I bent my knees and reached down to pick up each piece, I thought to myself, I cannot put it all back together to be the same vase it once was, but maybe the glass can take on a new form? If we, as individuals, are able to transform ourselves, piece by piece, like the beautiful vase that was shattered into millions of pieces, we will be making huge strides in repairing our world and becoming whole again. The process of elevating ourselves and rebuilding is called renewal, or as I like to say to re-knew, a chance to gain more knowledge and intuition to help us be whole again. This collective positive energy and transformation can bring forth remarkable manifestations of light for all of us, one that is embedded with more connection, love, and peace.
CHAPTER 3What's in a Name?
We are all born into this world with a God-given name. What does that mean? Our parents choose us, and we choose them as we enter the world as souls on this planet. We are given to each other for specific learning lessons and reasons that, at the time of birth, we really don't know of yet. But as we grow from infants, to toddlers, to children, to teens, to young adults and then onward, we see that our lives develop as experiences. Through these experiences, we take on patterns that sometimes separate us from our true selves. When we are able to recognize these patterns and shift ourselves into a new and different light, we move into more freedom from the bondage that holds us captive and apart from a more natural state of being.
My birth name is Andrea Michal Lefitz. My grandparents on my father's side were Eastern European, and my last name was an outgrowth of the name Lifshitz. Somehow, through the immigration process, it was changed. My last name is a marker of where I came from, my heritage, family history, and ancestral lineage, but it is not of the true essence of my being. My current last name, which through marriage is Gootnick (also of Eastern European origins), is the story of my children and their father's name. I have kept this last name for practical uses but no longer use it on my journey and life path.
I have many more names, and as you read my story, it may create an opening for you to take a look at your own name. You may see whether it fits you, like a good pair of shoes on your feet, or you may keep your name in its true form because it feels perfect for where you are in the moment. Some of my names are fun and silly, but they all have true meaning to me and have been given to me through my healing process, explorations, messages from my angels and guides, and higher self.
The Samurai Spider Woman is the first name I will explain because it is close to my heart. I own a healing arts center called New Moon Wellness. It is a conscious community center that currently provides healing services such as lectures, workshops, book signings, sound healings, meditations, and sacred ceremonies.
One day a woman walked into the center and ordered a coffee. I noticed she had a beautiful tattoo of a female samurai warrior covering much of her back. On the same day, I witnessed, as I often do in my existence, several messages about Japanese products. In fact, as my store manager was describing these products to me, my girlfriend's brother, visiting from Japan, entered the center to see me as well. Because I do soul work, which is seeing the underlining energies and stories of people when the information is given to me, I am able to explain to clients who are open to understanding their past life experience how it relates to their present life or if it is relevant to their journey. In that moment, as all the information was shown to me in various ways, I experienced a revelation about myself. I realized, from the signs I was receiving, that it was vital for me to know that I was a female Japanese samurai warrior in a past life. Because I was open to this knowledge, it came to the forefront of my consciousness. For some reason, I needed to see the warrior woman in me. I believe it was for the purpose of continuing to pursue my path with conviction, as well as heal a wound that this specific lifetime had presented to me.
That same week, part of the name came to me once more, as I was leading a hike with several women in the area in which I live. I was wearing my favorite hiking hat, a wide-brimmed hat that covers the sun from my face. As we were climbing up a hill, we came to an opening in the brush and took a short break to look over the expansive Santa Monica Mountains.
One of the women in the group looked at me and literally shouted, "Andrea, your hat is a spider web."
She took a picture of it, and I gently took the hat off to see myself, and what I witnessed astonished me! The hat was covered with spider webs in a perfectly intricate pattern all over the top and connected to every part of the rim. As I stood in awe, I laughed and said I could relate to Spider-Man in the original comic book series, but of course, Spider Woman seems more appropriate in my case. Like the Spider Woman character would be, I have many of the same intentions to save, or at least help, the community, city, country, and world from destruction and evil, and move into more beauty and light by being an inspiration to others. In Native American traditions, spiders are considered the creators of the universe, weaving their web of interconnection. So when you encounter a spider, it is important to look at yourself as the creator of your life. I decided to name myself the Samurai Spider Woman, the name being an expression of my warrior woman strength and the person I want to represent in this world.
My other character name is one I write under on the blog site The Intuitive Observer. I call myself the Shal-Om Shaman. The word shalom (Hebrew for peace) relates to the Jewish part of my soul, om the more yogic part of my soul, and shaman, the shamanic part of my soul, all combined into one. I will explain that as well.
Shalom: I was born Jewish and feel a deep and beautiful connection to my Jewish roots. My mother was a Holocaust survivor, freedom fighter, and pioneer. Both sides of my birth family were persecuted as Jews but traveled from Eastern and Western Europe and came to America through Ellis Island. I delved into Jewish traditions, rituals, and teachings from a young age through my involvement with our temple, the Jewish community, summer camp, and other educational experiences. My parents, Aviva and Leonard, did not speak of God or "spirituality" very much in our home, but they embraced their Jewish culture, especially the values that were given to them through the stories of our ancestors and the Torah (the five books of Moses). In my forties, I discovered the mysticism of Kabbalah, and although I did not delve too much into the Zohar, the books of the Jewish mystical realm, I understood it from an ethereal point of view. I knew I was moving in the direction of the more spiritual side of Judaism, rather than the more traditional aspect of it.
Om: I also became a bit of a yogi. A dear friend and I experimented together with Bikram yoga many years ago. We both didn't love the repetitive structure and the heat of this type of yoga, but my girlfriend pursued her passion and became a yoga teacher and soon opened up her own yoga studio, where she teaches vinyasa flow.
I started practicing with her and other teachers who taught with various intensities and styles. I now practice yoga on my own as well as take classes when I can. My healing arts center, New Moon Wellness, is an extension of these practices and is located right next to my girlfriend's yoga studio, so the people taking yoga classes can benefit from a space of spiritual and holistic healing as well.
Shaman: The last part of the blog-writing name Shal-Om Shaman is derived from the knowledge of being a shaman king or leader in a past life during the Mayan and Incan period on this earth. I have had dreams, visions, and messages that have helped me understand some of my past lives, and I have had relationships reappear in this life as soul mates. Being in touch with myself as a shaman is reclaiming myself in this present world.
As you can see, as I write as the Shal-Om Shaman, I am encompassing who I am as a giver of information and a teacher in the life I live today. I was also recognized with a spirit name of Ayaaahhh, which is a being of light from a master water keeper and spiritual guide from New Zealand in a ceremony that was performed at New Moon Wellness. I use this name only as an internal signpost to continue to do my work as a light worker. Through this name, I encounter the light and share it with others.
The name that I now use as my pen name for this book is Andrea Michal. My Spanish-speaking boyfriend and soul mate gave an accent on the Andréa, and Michal, my middle name, in Hebrew means, "Walking with God." These are the names I have chosen to write my book with.
Many of our sages, mystics, leaders, and heroes have changed their names in the course of history.
Here are some examples from the Bible:
"Abram" to "Abraham" new meaning: "Father of many nations" (Genesis 17:1–5)
"Jacob" to "Israel" new meaning: "Someone who prevails with the Eternal" (Genesis 32:24–28)
"Sarai" to "Sarah" new meaning: "Princess or Noblewoman" (Genesis 17:15)
"Hadassah" to "Esther" new meaning: "Bride or Queen" (Esther 2:7)
These names were from a long time ago, but we are now witnessing a resurgence of people wanting to create a new name for themselves. My wish for all of you is that you step more into your power and feel comfortable with your given name or through your transformational process, you rediscover yourself and choose a rightful new name.
Ask Yourself the Following Questions
What does your name mean to you?
How does your name feel to you?
If you could rename yourself, what would your name be?
If you could be a superhero character, who would you choose? And why?
CHAPTER 4Being a Spiritual Warrior: Moving toward the Light and theFightto Do So
I am a spiritual warrior. Wow, sounds impressive, but it is not. We all can be spiritual warriors. First, let me define what a spiritual warrior is.
A spiritual warrior, as I know it to be, is a light worker. But defined even more in our day and age, it is a person who is moving toward becoming an enlightened being who is placed (rather has chosen to be) on this planet to help raise consciousness and awareness in others. In other words, being a spiritual warrior is going a bit rogue, being different, authentic, and yourself in your true form. Choosing to be a spiritual warrior is quite a challenge and sometimes a hardship or battle within yourself and with the forces that pull you in other directions. Negative forces such as greed, overindulgence, an inflated ego, negative power, anger toward others, addictions, laziness, and many more are creating a war inside all of us. Being a spiritual warrior is recognizing our shadows and making an effort to overcome them, looking at our humanness each day in the mirror and seeing what we want and need to change to become more actualized. It is the awareness of our surroundings and how we interact with others and ourselves that brings us more into the light each day.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Encounter the Light"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Andrea Michal.
Excerpted by permission of Balboa Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Introduction, vii,
Encounter the Light, 1,
Can We Repair the World?, 3,
What's in a Name?, 6,
Being a Spiritual Warrior: Moving toward the Light and the Fight to Do So, 12,
Going Against the Grain: Marriage, Friendships, and the "Perfect Life", 19,
Love over Money?, 24,
From Darkness to Light: Why We Need the Darkness to See the Light Within, 28,
Dis-ease of the Mind, Body, and Soul and the Power of Healing, 34,
Being Alone: Why It's Important to Find that Space, 40,
Compassion for Self Leads to Compassion for Others, 45,
Giving and Receiving, 54,
Guilt and Shame: How Do We Forgive Others and Ourselves?, 59,
The Perfection in Rejection, 65,
Epigenetics, Trauma: How We Overcome It and Alter Our DNA, 70,
What Is a True Soul Mate? Soul Contracts and Past-Life Connections, 77,
The Moon Cycle: Setting Intentions on the New Moon, 84,
Wanting What We Want, but Getting What We Need: We Plan, God Laughs, 90,
Colors of People, Colors of Nature: Why Did God Create Us Unique and Different?, 95,
Longevity and Well-Being, 99,
Can a Leader Show Vulnerability and Still Be a Leader?, 105,
Patience Is a Virtue: The Challenge of Taking One Step at a Time, 110,
Never Say Never: We Don't Know What Is around the Corner for Us!, 115,
Synchro-Mystical, 118,
The Conscious Revolution and Collective Consciousness, 121,
We Can All Be Sages: The New Paradigm of the World, 127,
How to Spiritually and Physically Protect Your Light and Give It to the World: Be an Angel on Earth, 132,
The Universal Language of All: Increasing Your Vibration through Sound, Music, and Meditation, 137,
Influencing the Influencers: My Own Story, 141,
Caterpillars to Butterflies: the Amazing Metamorphosis of Wounded Human Beings into Love and Light Bearers, 144,
An Epilogue: Falling (and Rising Again), 149,
Glossary of Words, 153,
Acknowledgements, 155,