Inspirations are also fleeting moments and then life comes back to reality again. It’s a bit difficult to hold onto that inspirational feeling for a long period of time, especially when work, kids, and other responsibilities come into play.  Herein lies the dilemma: Inspirations can truly inspire us. And that inspiration can be a fleeting thought or a euphoric feeling. What do we do when the inspiration wears off?

If you are running solely on that inspiration to make things happen, you may find yourself spinning your wheels. Action is the key ingredient to help yourself along to making that inspired dream a reality. Say you are having a difficult time, and you are looking for a way to uplift your spirits. You talk to a trusted friend and upon leaving you feel so much better. You feel a sense of relief. Someone else understands your plight and they may actually have some words of wisdom to turn on a light bulb inside of you. But what happens when that feeling of relief wears off and the bad feelings return? Or it just doesn’t seem that you can get your life together? You still have problems and that sense of peace that you are looking for was small compared to how you feel on a daily basis.

Real change is necessary to making your dreams a reality. Those feelings of low self worth, plummeting self esteem and restlessness are not going to go away by inspiration alone. Eventually, you will get back to what isn’t healed inside of you, and you will go through the cycle again. A euphoric week could turn into a depressive month. And then you may turn on yourself, asking yourself, “What am I doing wrong and why can’t I GET this?” “Why does the other shoe seem to drop?”

The answer lies in one corroding emotion: resentment. A resentful heart will not be able to fully love, accept or be at peace. Resentment keeps us in the dark. With underlying resentment comes all sorts of emotions such as anger, fear and bewilderment.

Another key ingredient is Compassion. Compassion is necessary to truly be able to form any intimate relationships - whether that be friendship, love or defending a cause. Compassion means having true empathy for another. Resentment is different, it revolves around the self — and usually fear comes deeply into play.

Within a resentful state, compassion is no longer accessible. Nor can your intuition be fully accessible to the universe so that you can be inspired.

To be truly at peace, healing of the heart is a first priority. Compassion is the bridge to that healing. How can you have compassion? Forgiveness is the key element, and mainly the forgiving of yourself and your own short comings.

However, character defects and fears will not erase themselves through self knowledge alone. No amount of “will power” will increase your self esteem. You can never really forge any true spiritual relationships without first being honest about your darkness. We are truly helped when we humbly ask both for universal help (from our guides, higher power, or those that have passed) and for Earthly help. We are supposed to grow spiritually by helping one another.

Never be afraid of your own darkness, because on the other side of it you are a great light. Some say those who are able to transcend great darkness will be able to offer others great wisdom. Do not be afraid that you are not perfect, because those imperfections can also be your greatest assets. True strength is accepting your weaknesses, not disguising them. Shout what’s not so pretty from the rooftops, so that someone else doesn’t feel so alone. Maybe none of us are really that unique. To be whole, to be integrated, to be wise, you must first accept yourself in your entirety. Allow others to see you as you really are. How can we really be true to ourselves and to others if we are only projecting only the side of us that we want others to see? That’s a lot of hard work.

In my field, I have to give guidance to people on a daily basis. I seek to offer spiritual insight and strength to my clients. Every month, I hope to provide a little bit of inspiration. However, I do not live my life in perfect spiritual alignment. In fact, some days are a struggle! There are days that I am full of fear, resentment and anger. There are days when I get stuck in a rut, and whine on the pity pot. There are days when life isn’t “treating me right”. I’m no different than anyone else. And I’m sure you don’t think any differently of me because I also have my bad days. Many years ago, I did not have the tools to deal with these feelings, and it caused me a great deal of distress. Today, I do know that I can ask for help, because without getting the help I need, I cannot help you. Show others who you really are, and maybe it will be the inspiration they need to change! Look in the mirror and embrace you!

You are a beautiful spirit of the universe and you are here to grow! I wish you a great June!

Best,

Marisa