“There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique.
And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and be lost.
The world will not have it.
It is not your business to determine how good it is, nor how valuable it is, nor how it compares with other expressions.
It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work.
You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate YOU.
Keep the channel open.” -Martha Graham
We are taught to believe in ourselves if we want to “make something of ourselves,” and yet, here we have the magnificent Martha Graham suggesting that “you don’t even have to believe in yourself or your work….”, in order to allow this vitality to be translated through us into action.
I invite you to consider that the plan that the Universe/ God/Spirit, has for you is far more vast than your local, fear-based ego could ever imagine.
It may not have anything to do with a solid retirement plan, and yet, the failure to fulfill that “higher” plan could leave you with a deep sense of unease. In fact, the following quote from the Gospel of Thomas, Verse 70, expresses a deep, all-pervasive truth for most human beings: “If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you.”
At one time that sounded so ominous to me, and now I want to share from a very hopeful and learned perspective of possibility that says you are never far from your true self, and thus never far from bringing forth what is within you. It’s so close you could trip over it, or minimize its impact.
There truly is a heartache when you hear that call to bring something uniquely you forth and refuse to heed it. You block the spiritual energy that would be released if you did. When you do connect to this spiritual energy, you connect to a bigger intelligence—the Global Heart—and begin to feel the pain of the world.
The call is the call to find your way of flowing infinite love toward the world—toward all of life. You become intimate with all things—with life itself. You become sovereign, and a mighty force of good, in your own way.
The American poet and theologian Frederick Buechner says, “Where our deep gladness and the world’s hunger meet, we hear a further call.” When you heed that call, you connect to the “sweet spot” of your calling.
Coming to know and embrace that sweet spot is the journey of a lifetime, and many people struggle in a big way with doing so. Being able to “make a living” is also a reality we must reckon with, and the ideal would be to bring the gift and the joy to what is needed in the world, and make a living from what you receive. This is a blessing beyond all blessings and is far from the norm in our present culture. Though it can certainly be done within a traditional structure, many people become entrepreneurs and artists to realize this. At the center is an aliveness that contributes to a new and vibrant culture of prosperity.
Though you may make money fulfilling your calling, it is in living as your calling that a holy channel is opened up for all kinds of prosperity to enter, including money if that is what is desired. This is key: you must decide to receive it, but when you seek only money, you forfeit the sweet spot, and close the channel.
Many indigenous societies believe that we all possess original medicine a kind of personal power that is ours and ours alone. It is true that no two people possess the exact combination of strengths, talents, and challenges.
To discover and live your original medicine, you must throw away the yardsticks from “the authorities” or aspects of the culture that keep you tethered to old molds that have nothing to do with you or what the world needs now. You must commit to remaining and open channel and live in the enormous freedom that comes when you refuse to measure yourself against others. You begin to feel the joy and pleasure in seeing the spark of original medicine in everyone and everything.
You can do this at any age, and it truly has nothing to do with your profession or how you make money. As a grandparent, for instance, if you remain an open channel, you will pass on a wealth of love and wisdom to your grandchildren, that only you can.
As a teacher, if you remain an open channel, you can plant seeds of a love of learning in children who are open channels themselves.
This capacity to remain an open channel is a quality of your soul inherent in who you are. Its source is your loveseed, that kernel of infinite vitality and goodness with you. It is the insistent urge of the Divine to express itself through you.
May I be humble enough to listen to the call from my soul.
May I be courageous enough to allow the vitality of life to move through me as me.
May I be gracious enough to receive the blessings that flow in return.
Love this post Kathleen. And so love that I read it today after a gushing of poetry came through my heart this morning.
That’s what an open channel allows! Beautiful!