To all my extreme friends and family… Take a rest!

Here it is, time to come clean; I am an addict. That is correct; you heard it from me before you heard it through the grape vine.  To my friends and family who might be wondering how they did not know this about me until now; I would have told you but I just realized…

…I had been invited by an inspiring friend of mine, Sylvia Nibley, to participate in the filming of something… I wasn’t quite sure what. I said yes because every time I hang out with Sylvia and her community, I walk away the wiser.

It was Friday the 29^th at 1 pm. I showed up to some familiar faces. Shannon Simomelli (The class/lady I wrote Dancing into my body about), as well as other people that I am sure I will be soon writing about, were there.

As it got started Dan Howard was introduced. I had seen him speak before and I was inspired by his calmness and sincerity. I also thought he looked very familiar. Come to find out I have known both of his sons for years (see you guys in Kamas and at echo this year!).

Dan started by telling us that the message he wanted to share would only take minutes. This caught me as strange since I was told we were going to be here for 4 hours. Dan was right, it only took a few minutes for his message… and then 4 hours to start comprehending the depth of it.

He explained what he calls Intentional Resting. Sounds simple enough, to intentionally rest for ourselves, right? He went on to explain how, because of the chaos/distractions of the world, we never let our bodies reach homeostasis, we keep our attention (and intention) so distracted that we very rarely have time to heal.

I am sure you are no stranger to meditation and have probably paused to send your headache some light, received a massage, spent a day relaxing to recharge, etc. This is in the same vain that Dan spoke about but his was a little simpler and for me it was a piece I have been searching for.

Just a week before I listened to Dan speak about Intentional Resting I was speaking to a friend about stress. I was mentioning how I couldn’t figure out why I was getting ill all the time. Yes I live a very active and stressful life (or so I am told, I think my stress meter is broken), but I take time out to relax, meditate, go on vacations, etc.

The person laughed and pointed out that even when I meditate, I meditate in an extreme way. They were joking but I got the message. I realized that my idea of relaxing was working on the house, cleaning, etc. My idea of meditation was using SyncCreation to remove energetic blocks and manifest things into my life, or take the Zen approach and send energy through me by actively clearing my mind.  My idea of going on vacations was to see and do as much as I could.

I realized that I didn’t know what relaxing was. I spent that night and many sense thinking about it as I lay awake (yes I even sleep intensely)…

Back to the class, here was Dan, telling me about rest. I had heard this word but it wasn’t part of my vocabulary. He told me that we can rest for our wounds. We can rest for our aches, we can rest for our bodies, our immune system, etc. and after telling us this he showed us.

He had us say, I am resting for my _____ now. I did it for my lower back because it was a little uncomfortable. He had us say I am resting into my ______ now. After I said this not only did my lower back feel better, I felt more present, but most importantly I felt true rest… that simple.

The more he talked about rest; resting for ourselves and others, the more I realized, just like my friend said, there wasn’t one thing I did that was actually resting! I have been told I was addicted to extremes before. But I wrote it off because I also relaxed. But I wasn’t relaxing and in fact I was just juicing up doing a less active way of using, creating and burning up more energy.

In that moment I got it and now I am okay with telling you. I am addicted to the highs of everything! Yes I know the power of affirmation. But if I started the article out with I now rest it wouldn’t have captured the addictive irony of this article.

My new affirmation is that I am a well rested person. I have the thought that the more rested I am the more I can be awake (I know there is a quote or something like this).  All last week I caught myself jumping from extremes to extremes. But now I know! And now I pause and rest!

All ready I have felt it affect my health, I have noticed it in my ability to be in tune with my body, I have even shared this with others and felt it bring whole rooms together and rested in minutes.

To all the other addicts of the extreme; take a moment, pause and rest… we could all use some! And imagine a world of well rested beings, present and peaceful… now that is the stuff!

Here is a side story. I was in Vegas last weekend to see Preston and Kimball (A.K.A. Fyzyk and Litmus One) play a show (hip-hop with a soul and conscious lyrics). Before the show I was sitting with Preston (one of my best buddies in the whole universe) and I was having a hard time connecting with him.

I thought it might be due to the long (but awesome) car ride or that we were just on different pages. Then it clicked that he wasn’t really there with me. He was 4 hours a head thinking about the show with nervousness. Some how the conversation got turned into a discussion about meditation and energy (happens all the time with Preston and I. If you don’t believe me listen to Preston and Kimball’s lyrics and read my other blogs).

He asked me to walk him through a meditation. I had been thinking about Intentional Resting a lot so I explained it to him and asked him if he would like to give it a try. He said yes so I invited him to close his eyes and repeat “I am resting for my body now”.

When he said it the room went still and so did his jitters (twitching leg, etc). I then asked him to repeat “I am resting into my body now”. I felt all of his energy that was somewhere else come and settle in his body. I got goose bumps! I looked around the room and I could tell by the expression on everyone’s face that they felt Preston arrive.

He went on to rest for his brother Kimball and the crowd that would be at the show and then sat in the rest for a few minutes. The rest of the time before the show was beautiful, everyone there felt connected, present, and in the moment and it set a beautiful tone for the evening.

As for the show later that night; ask anyone there and they will tell you that Preston and Kimball were the 2 most present people that performed. The energy flowed through them like water. There crowed was connected and engaged. It was beautiful, powerful, inspiring and fun as heck!

What an awesome experience of resting!

Soul Battery Recharged

I believe that each of us have a battery inside. This battery, (spirit/soul/energy as some might call it) is what charges our physical and spiritual activities.

Have you ever had those days where you don’t want to talk to anyone so that you can save the last drop of energy left to get you home and in bed? Well last Tuesday (the 24th) started out as one of those days.

It was 2 pm and my battery had already been sucked dry. I doubt it even started out fully charged and I still had one more appointment to go. Even though my battery was empty and I was dreaming of skipping it for a nap, this appointment turned out to be the mega outlet to that which recharges batteries.

I showed up to my appointment at the peacefully inviting Web of Life Wellness Center to meet with Cathy Patillo… one hour early.  I didn’t notice I was an hour early until I sat for 10 minutes waiting for Cathy and decided to check my calendar for her contact info…

…Yup, the appointment was supposed to be at 3:30 pm and here I am at 2:30. I share that to emphasize the lack of battery power going to my time receptors…

A quick preface:

As you might know, one of the companies I work with, SyncCreation, has given me an awesome excuse to meet some of the most inspiring people in the valley to record their message and post it on our website for their clients and our’s to see (coming soon, still editing the video).

Now to jump forward to the appointment:

I showed up to the meeting with Cathy expecting to interview her using as little of my empty battery as possible, then hurry home to crash… but she had a better idea!

Within five minutes I was on her massage table. She decided to give me a taste of several of the different modalities she offers (and there’s a lot) by combining craniosacral therapy, reiki, some guided imagery/hypnotherapy, and a crystal grid activation/clearing.

As she started at the top of my spine with some CranioSacral it was as if she was finding all of the frayed ends of my power cord, wiring them back together and plugging them in.

On a side note; as I was going through the process I fell into some of the deep stages of meditation I have only experienced while using SyncCreation.

I found it amazing that even though she was the conduit for this energy download, the only energy I picked up from her was one of nurturing. This was especially significant as it has been necessary to put aside my needs for awhile as I have been focused on supporting and nurturing the nurturing women in my life, (my wife who is eight months pregnant and my Mom who has just lost her dad).

It was as if Cathy saw the inner child that I had been neglecting and energetically cradled my soul, as a cosmic mother figure, while whispering, in a voice that only my soul could hear, “it will be all right, you can shine”.

I could geek out with all of the mechanics of what she did but I am going to jump to the end. After the session I sat on a chair as she gave me a glass of water and asked how I was doing. Remember I came in on an empty battery. But now, I was so charged up I could barely find the words and muttered a half audible “excellent”.

Have you ever seen a painting of an aura? As I sat there it felt like my energy field (aura) was expanding to the point I could no longer contain it. Then in a burst my aura would jump out past its regular field to dissipate in the ever-expanding space. Then a new one would swell, jump, and dissipate as the pattern dissipated. A painting of my aura would be a ripple of ever-expanding auras. Instead of my empty battery, I was pulsating enough energy to run a small city.

Cathy and I spoke about many things after the session and I was impressed with how real she is. I have talked to some healers who have the air of perfection, like they have everything figured out. With Cathy I felt that she was there to support a beautiful experience and her gifts did not require perfection from either her or me.

What happened after I left, between last Tuesday and today, one week later? I have had more energy for the past week then I have in the past eight months, (eight months ago my life multiplied in stress with a pregnant wife, a new house that we rehab’ed, the death of my Grandpa, additional work… etc).

Even though this past week was Thanksgiving and I usually only eat, drink, and sleep, I had so much energy I could barely contain it, let alone sit still (this is the kind of energy I usually have, but have not had for many months, until now).

Here are some left brain results to the energy created: I got my house wired, I took loads to the dump, I piped the dyer vent, I winterized the boat, I picked up a wood burning stove, I pulled out all of the nasty shrubs in the front of the yard, I got my satellite working… and these are just the big things I got done.

Even with three family food events, I completed all of the things I have been saying I will do someday… with energy to spare.

Thank you, Cathy, for the beautiful experience.

Sweat Lodge and Grandpa – Part 2

Today, Friday the 13^th, 2 days after the sweat lodge. I did not write this yesterday (or post this until today) as I was letting the experience sink in as I reflected upon it. Today, the day of my Grandfathers viewing, I am ready to write. Before I poor my heart out about one of the most powerful experiences of healing I have ever had I must share something with you.

I have many people ask me why I write. Especially, why do I write such vulnerable personal feelings and thoughts and put them out so others can see them? I will go into this in much greater depth in a future article but I wanted to touch on it briefly here.

I John C Rogers believe in living life on the out side. I believe in the beauty of a world with out secrets, a world where each person openly shares their joy, pain, love, and passion so that all might see, gain strength, learn and be inspired from one another. I believe this so much that I have often found myself baring my soul to complete strangers. I believe this so much that I share this moment with you.

Wednesday night at 6 pm 5 members of the Campbell clan and 2 adopted members (my dad and My Brother in-law) showed up with an open and trusting heart. We had all been asked to come with an intention for the evening. Mine was, as I said in my previous article, to let go physically of my grandfather and to forge a bond with him spiritually.

I went into the start of the event with a belief that my clan was going to be a mess of tears and wailing from the pain of losing our grandfather. I would like to share with you my experience of what happened that night. I will respect the experience of the others that were there, as well as the ancient ritual, by sharing my experience only.  I am going to share it in the form of a letter to the men in attendance and extend the message to all of Grandfathers’ family.

Brothers, Campbell’s, clansmen, I come before you humbled and in gratitude for you. During that night as I was given the opportunity to connect and reflect I found myself in complete awe of you.

During the moment when I was invited to reflect on the masculine I took pause and reflected on Grandpa and the physical things I will miss; his smile, his solid hug, his toothpicks, him walking around trying to get us to eat more food, the way he told powerful stories and made them seem like the great events were done with ease, they way he spoke with certainty and more.

I shed some tears as I acknowledge such a powerful physical being as Grandfather. As I felt deeper into the moment and Grandpa’s strength I found myself noticing and feeling the souls of each of you there with me.  Here I was surrounded by some of the noblest of men I have ever met. My tears became tears of gratitude for Grandpa and for you.

Later that night as we were given the opportunity to connect with our ancestry, I felt grandpa so strong that I could see him kneeling down in front of me looking at me with wisdom and love in his eyes. I had the thought I should be crying. This was the time I thought all of my family would emotionally lose it. But I was not crying.

Instead I found myself yearning to speak to grandpa. I thanked him for the lessons he taught me, I told him I was going to miss him and I promised him I would carry him in my heart for ever. Upon whispering that, I stopped and my mind started to analyze what it would look like to carry him in my heart forever. I had the fear come up that I might forget, that I might forget how he looked, how he spoke, what his message was.

As I started to analyze deeper, my heart jumped back on line and I once again noticed grandpa. He leaned over to me and put his hand on my shoulder and I could feel the gratitude in his heart for me. I could feel the gratitude in his heart for the other men there. And amongst my fears of forgetting him he said “John you don’t ever have to forget, if you ever want to remember look at your brothers, look at your cousins, look in the mirror”.

At that moment I realized that Grandpa had stood so tall that he had inspired us all to walk in his foot steps. That we his children and grandchildren, are living examples of grandpa and his messages. Each of us in our own way carrying on a part of this great man.

Instantly I saw a flash of each of the members of his clan, OF OUR CLAN and I saw them through grandpa’s eyes.

Phillip, with your heart the size of the universe and beautiful tenderness.

Josh, your thrust for knowledge and the courage like that of a commander and leader of men.

Adam, with your strength and certainty in God and acceptance that is so strong you are willing to stand as a bridge from your religion to the world.

Casey, your absolute loyalty and love. A man who even with the world on his shoulders can inspire others to feel peace and at home.

Grant, your open acceptance and willingness to be a support for others, even a complete stranger.

Ryan, the nobility that can lead a kingdom by example and heart alone even in the toughest moments.

And I saw the rest of grandfather’s posterity there with us that night and I felt a pride and honor that I will never forget as grandfather once again whispered “you will remember”.

In that moment I became aware of the calmness around me; instead of the sobs of loss I felt a sea of love. I found the peace and strength to carry on knowing I will always have grandpa in my heart and more so then ever in my life I felt proud to belong to a heritage of honor, love, and leaders. Who each in their own way carry on Grandfathers message.

I stand here as a witness to each of your greatness and the greatness of our grandfather and heritage. If you ever feel alone, if you ever start to think that you don’t remember just look around… and remember. I love you all and I love you grandpa!