stairway to heaven

I wrote this piece in November of 2009. I came across it in my writings today and cannot believe how timeless it is.

L~

2009: Our Stairway to Heaven

It is 3 in the morning. I can’t sleep. Many thoughts are wandering through my mind. I am thinking about this year that is passing and all that has occurred with myself, the Earth and my dearest friends and clients. My inspiration for 2008 was the Red-Tailed Hawk. It’s beauty and splendor has flown over my life almost every day in the place where I live. This totem represents alignment with the original intention of the soul. That has been the work of this year. Aligning with your true purpose of coming into this body and onto this Earth. Many of us have felt the push, the squeeze from the Universe to do just this. ‘This’ has come in many forms; changing jobs, leaving relationships, moving and so on. For those not willing to make a change, an almost brutal form of change occurred; job loss, money loss, loved ones lost. It has not been easy. We have felt the many emotions that come with alignment or evolution. Moments have been filled with sadness as we watch others hurt, killed or suffering. Other moments are filled with elation and pride as a new President is elected into office. We feel fear; fear of the unknown and the unknowable. We wonder how we will survive in the gap of creation. This is the energy that we take into 2009. The energy of excitement and wonder as we set out on this great new adventure. The adventure of the Self. The journey of becoming one with our Great Creator. Coming home again to ourselves.

This is where my inspiration for 2009 comes to mind. It came to me several weeks ago when I was blasting Led Zeppelin on my home stereo. My favorite song, Stairway to Heaven, began to play. As I listened to the words, tears began to stream down my face. This is it. This is the journey for the new year. Even more amazing to me is that the image for the Stairway to Heaven poster is the Hermit from the Major Arcana of the Tarot. This card happens to be a 9...2009? Nine represents the end. The culmination of all the hard work coming into fruition. It is the end so that there can be a new beginning. What beautiful synchronicity, wouldn’t you agree? As we have focused for the last twelve months on re-aligning our Selves, these next twelve months will be focused upon assimilating this alignment so a new beginning will follow in the newly ascended energies in 2010.

The Hermit itself is described by Carl Jung as, “the archetype of the spirit…the pre-existent meaning hidden in the chaos of life.” The Hermit is a wanderer, yet he is no longer searching. He carries within him an inner wisdom that answers his very questions about the Oneness of the Self and Creator. The Hermit is content in the present moment. He can be described as a sage or wise one. A being who holds inner knowledge. The Hermit is more isolated, more introverted than his predecessors. His focus is his inner journey. He is content in his aloneness. He holds the light of truth in the lamp he carries and is open to sharing this wisdom with others if they only ask. If the seeker is open to his message, they will find themselves carrying their own light. If they are not ready to hear what he has to say they will misinterpret in a myriad of ways.
This leads me to the lyrics themselves. The proverbial lady in the lyrics is both us and them. We are One. There is a “lady we all know”. The song begins with where we have been.

There’s a lady who’s sure

All that glitters is gold

And she’s buying a stairway to heaven.

When she gets there she knows

If the stores are all closed

With a word she can get what she came for.

and she’s buying a stairway to heaven.

For years now we have been focused on the material. The United States as a whole is very rich and we have over-spent, over-indulged and taken for granted much of what we have had. We have collected ‘stuff’ and filled our homes and our hearts with it. To ease our guilt, we have given countless dollars to religious orders, charities and other organizations in hopes that we have done something right or good and perhaps have earned our trip to heaven.

There’s a sign on the wall

But she wants to be sure

cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.

In a tree by the brook

There’s a songbird who sings,

Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven.

it makes me wonder

Then something began to change. We began to question what we had been doing all this time. We realized that what we were experiencing was somehow just an illusion and that perhaps we have been missing the point all along. We began to question ourselves, others and the systems that we had put in place. We began to take note of nature in all its beauty and the philosophies long taught in the East began to spread in the West. We suddenly stopped to look at the sunset and live in the present moment. We started to awaken from our slumber.

There’s a feeling I get

When I look to the west,

And my spirit is crying for leaving.

In my thoughts I have seen

Rings of smoke through the trees,

And the voices of those who standing looking.

it makes me wonder

As this awakening occurred, many of us realized that we no longer wished to live in a state of illusion. We suddenly could feel home and wanted nothing more than to go back there. A longing grew in our hearts and we began endlessly searching for answers. Some of us began to acknowledge sight beyond the veil and suddenly we were reconnecting ourselves with the Sages and Spirits that had been waiting for so long to hear from us and share their wisdom.

And its whispered that soon

If we all call the tune

Then the piper will lead us to reason.

And a new day will dawn

For those who stand long

And the forests will echo with laughter

As this great awakening continued and we were pushing into higher energies; we began to experience a squeezing. We began to feel torn between our old illusory world and the new disillusioned state. Some of us were too uncomfortable with the change and reverted to old ways. Our ego Self clinging to old patterns of the past. The logic of the ‘piper’ taking us back into the old world. Others had an inner knowing driving them to hold strong and ‘stand long’. They knew that a great peace would wash over them as they continued to hold true to their soul’s journey.

If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow

Don’t be alarmed now,

It’s just a spring clean for the may queen.

Yes, there are two paths you can go by

But in the long run

There’s still time to change the road you’re on.

And it makes me wonder

2008 we experienced a great ‘clean-out’. Those of us that had awakened fully in the last year began to make space for new energies, new jobs, new relationships. Those that reverted to the illusions of life were forced to let go through the process of disillusionment. However, there is nothing to fear, nothing to doubt, nothing to regret because the greatest gift given to us is free will. If we don’t like where we are, we can choose a different way, a different path. Whatever you choose right now truly can be changed if it no longer serves your soul and its highest function. If you are just now ‘seeing’ your own truth, it isn’t too late. There is “still time to change the road you’re on.”

Your head is humming and it won’t go

In case you don’t know,

The pipers calling you to join him,

Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow,

And did you know

Your stairway lies on the whispering wind.

Now that we have opened the doorway and the veil is thinning. Now that we are ‘awake’. The information, messages and thoughts will flow into your mind like a TV playing 100 channels at once. The wanting of the Ego to cling to the past will overwhelm you. It will take everything we have to let go and ascend. The importance of shutting off, turning in and listening to the very sound of the wind as it whispers your truth will become ever greater in 2009. The art of meditation will become a critical behavior in order to clear the mind and listen to your own Self. Many light workers on the Earth will notice a strong focus to teach others how to ‘connect’ and ‘listen’ to their own inner voices and to heal the blocks that hold their clients and friends back. Great doors will be opened, and we have only but to walk through them. The gate has always been unlocked. Now is the time.

And as we wind on down the road

Our shadows taller than our soul.

There walks a lady we all know

Who shines white light and wants to show

How everything still turns to gold.

And if you listen very hard

The tune will come to you at last.

When all are one and one is all

To be a rock and not to roll.

As we ‘wind on down the road’ in 2009, there will be many challenges to face and overcome. The shadows of ourselves and of our society will be forced upon us; testing our faith in God and the Great Universe that serves us. We will be forced to look within, to deal with the dark ugliness of the Self and the Ego. We will be asked to heal those shadows within ourselves and integrate them into our Being, bringing balance to the Self. This will allow us to own who we truly are and bring a great sense of peace to our hearts. Allowing our soul, our light to shine brighter than any shadow. This lady we all know; ourselves, our friends, the Siddhas, Masters, Guides and Great Beings, Creator, this lady has only the brightest light to share. This light cannot be put out or hidden away. It will open us to the Oneness of the One. All is still gold within our hearts. And yes, “if you listen very hard”, your path will come to you at last. All is one and one is all.

And she’s buying a stairway to heaven.

Written by Lisa M Gunshore