Sharing is caring!

Learning from The Past

I have been traveling through Arizona and New Mexico on my way to Colorado to celebrate Mother’s Day with my daughter, and her mother-in-law; and I’ve been visiting fascinating historical sites like Homolovi State Park, the Petrified Forest National Park and a little-known Museum at Red Rock Campground that illustrate the ancient history of our planet and the people of our country. It’s been an amazing and humbling experience. 

I was surprised at the almost overwhelming sadness I felt as I learned more and more about our native people, their very spiritual culture, their ability to live in harmony with nature and the ways they were subjugated by Spanish treasure-seekers and European immigrants. 

The accounts of them being forced to leave their homeland and march long distances to locations chosen by the U.S  government, were particularly disturbing. And, then there was the establishment of the reservations and treaties that were not honored.

Using the DreamBuilder practices I teach, I have been able to restore my peace of mind. In cases like this, we use the practice of shifting our perspective through forgiveness. This is the way I have been able to experience deep peace, love and gratitude.

First, I thought to myself, “the damage has been done, it can’t be undone.” There is nothing that can be done to change the past. In order to restore my peace of mind, I will see it as the result of ignorance and trust that important lessons have been learned that will make us better people and prevent these kinds of things from happening again.

As a former school teacher, I thought, wouldn’t it be wonderful if parents home-school their children and traveled the country visiting places like these? What an amazing education their children would get!  It’s so inspiring to see the sites of our history live and in vivid detail. It’s more compelling than reading about it or being told about it; and, at the same time, it motivates us to want to learn more. Education is the key to preventing the repetition of past mistakes. 

I was reminded of the similarities to the Nazi atrocities in Europe and the inspiring books and interviews with Dr. Edie Eger that I shared in a previous blog post. https://dreambigandbloom.com/the-ultimate-life-mastery-mentor-dr-edie-eger-92/ 

Dr. Edie said that you always have the scars. The wound heals but the scar remains as a memory. 

I wonder if this is the case with the native people in the U.S. Have they been able to forgive, or at least release, the trauma of the past? I wonder about the treaties with the U.S. government. I wonder if there is still work that needs to be done to aid in the healing and their ability to create lives they love. Is there something I can do? I know I will find the answers soon. That’s the way the Universe works. “Seek and ye shall find.” 

In the meantime, I’m focusing on love and gratitude — love for the native people, admiration for their commitment to preserving their culture in spite of many obstacles, and appreciation for their willingness to work as consultants to share their insights with Archaeologists. I’m grateful for the museums that share beautiful artifacts and interesting stories, and for the public events where they share their culture. 

There’s an annual tribal convergence and Festival in Gallup every August and they share their traditional dances with the public. This year, they will be celebrating its 100th anniversary!

Happiness and peace are a choice. Working on changing our thoughts and shifting our perspective is totally worth the effort.

Do you have a story to share about how you have forgiven events in the past and used the lessons to improve the quality of your life today? I’d love it if you would share in the comments and inspire all of us.

Here’s’ to the transforming power of forgiveness!

Dream Big & Bloom!

Mardi

Sharing is caring!