The Cold

Before enlightenment, having a cold meant ten days of misery, getting through the details of congestion, stuffiness and breathing difficulties, seeing a doctor and taking prescribed meds.

After enlightenment, having a cold means ten days of trying to figure out what emotional difficulty this dis-ease was caused by. It means guilt for not being the perfect enlightened being or spiritual enough to have prevented it. It means trying to figure out what’s wrong with you. It means having ones enlightened friends suggest reasons for your emotional distress. It means taking herbs and following non traditional healing modalities in addition to allopathic medicines that seem appropriate.

It means friends offering healing tips and tinctures. They are very kind and very well intentioned. They recognize we are all one and can help each other to heal. It feels loving and nurturing. It reminds me of my wholeness.

We have come a long way from those pre-awareness days and still need to go a bit further. Enlightened colds mean I just say yes to the process; just relax into it. We are probably quite aware of the reasons for the emotional congestion causing the cold as its basis is very recent, not like some illnesses that take months or years to develop.

I came back from a holiday with a lovely cold. I know its causes. There are several. It’s not just one simple thing. We are complex beings and the source of this congestion is complex too. That doesn’t mean it’s difficult to figure out, just that it has many sources. So I cancelled appointments and get-togethers and simply stayed home, slept, took herbs, drank liquids and nurtured myself. At these times my body craves good foods: greens, wholesome liquids, and complex carbs like nuts and grains. I listen to my body. I nurture it and feed it those things it needs. I don’t always follow exactly what it says; I still have my preferences and little food addictions, but I do listen more closely. I ask myself, do I want this food or herb and then wait for my body and subconscious to answer. For the most part I pay heed.

The most important thing is that I relax into the experience and don’t resist it. I no longer do the angst thing berating myself for not being more spiritually aware. My body is just talking to me and I listen. The manifestation of a cold has occurred in the physical body since I didn’t listen well to my spiritual and mental messages beforehand. The body wants me to finally get it and pay attention. I must remember I created this experience, not because I’m dumb or unenlightened, but because I am choosing to go through it and get a message from my higher self. Now here comes the interesting part; I don’t have to know why. I don’t have to analyze it. I just get an opportunity to be aware, conscious and loving to myself. I get down time. It is a time for me to focus on me.

The more I love me during this experience, the more love emanates from me, surrounds me and helps heal me. I love me by taking herbs and remedies that will strengthen my body’s immune system and help me move through this experience in the best way. I love me by simply aligning with the experience. I do not resist it. I refrain from getting angry or upset with my body’s responses.

I remember that I am not my cold. I am much more than my cold and I bring those higher aspects of myself into me. I focus on the healing color green and visualize it entering my body, healing me. I visualize the highest possible, perfect remedy, not even knowing what it might be. I see that remedy infusing my body, healing it. I let go and relax. I can just be with this thing I have created. What an interesting journey to watch it as it moves through my body. I know on every level of me that it is just perfect. I don’t have to know why, just align with knowing that it is.

This is my second cold in two months. Prior to that I hadn’t had a cold in years. I thought I was pretty good, had gotten it; understood how to stay healthy. Oops! So two colds in two months is a big sign for me. I know we are living in a time of massive energetic shifting. Our DNA is changing. We are becoming the missing link that future archeologists will wonder about. Viruses are one way we change that DNA, so I like to think that I’m using a gentle virus, just a cold virus, to do that shifting. I like my little story line; it makes me feel better. I get to see my cold in a positive light and that’s the best way to heal.

I don’t have to know THE reason for these colds. Perhaps it was just so I could write this article. It doesn’t matter. We all know it’s the journey that counts, so it’s how I move through this experience that adds love to the world or fear.

I choose love. This is a great cold. I must remember to thank it.