The stories are in reverse chronological order (most recent first).  You may detect a certain "progression" if you start at the bottom.

Manassas Battlefield, Group Healing - June 19, 2010 

In the inimitable way that Spirit has of ever expanding my possibilities and experiences, a recent excursion to Manassas proved to be everything beyond what I could have imagined.  So many sharings, so much healing – and a visit – from beyond our dimension.  Not like anything I could have foreseen.

 

The day started out normally enough, my feeling late and pressured and not a little nervous about leading my first group experience at a battlefield.  But I felt supported, as I’d received some great guidance earlier in the week after a meditation as to how the class would go, -- the framework of an agenda, what to bring, etc.  And the excursion was scheduled two days before the Summer Solstice; I had a powerful Gaia alignment working in my favor.  That morning, I’d reviewed my notes and managed to bring everything I’d wanted to – Fulgurite, blanket, water, snacks, sun block, pendulums, books, notes, notebook.  We met at Starbucks and the day got off to a great start with the four other participants (Lexi, Jamie, Meredith and Michaelle) introducing themselves and sharing their connections to this work during the ½ hour drive to the National Battlefield Park.  And so we arrived with a sense of excitement and expectancy.

 

Our first stop was next to the tree at which I’d had my first Manassas experience.  We laid down the blanket, I did my overview; we meditated.  A breeze kicked up, urging me to voice the prayer to Gaia going on in my head aloud. 

 

“Great Mother, provider of our sustenance, nurturer of our lives, we come here today even as we know you are suffering and purging yourself in the Gulf of the essence and effect of expediency and greed perpetrated upon you by humankind.  We honor you today as we come in the Spirit of Service -- to clear the land of the imprint of war, to help return the parts of souls lost here to their home, and to heal the trauma of those whose lives were touched by the battles fought on this land.  We ask that you accept this gift in acknowledgement and gratitude for your bounty and support in our learnings and development here with you. 

 

In faith and appreciation, we call upon the help of our guides and angels and ancient ones to assist us in this work.

 

Amen.”

 

The breeze had stopped while I’d spoken.

 

Lexi and I shared the Gaia Healing frequencies with the others in our group and the reactions were immediate and profound.  After a few minutes of play and getting comfortable with accessing them, we moved toward the creation of a ball of energy.  It all seemed to happen organically, as everyone’s willingness and exuberance created a unified field of love and caring.  Meredith seemed to take particular delight in what she was learning; her enthusiasm was the very best kind of contagious.  Then we directed the frequencies toward the center and just allowed the healing to unfold – eyes closed, in a receptive and meditative state – all the while just feeling the frequencies flow.  I was guided to call to the soldiers, encouraging them to come to the Light.  To drop their weapons, their fear and their grief, and to join their Sisters in circle who welcome them with love and honor.

 

We all seemed to open our eyes around the same time, feeling that that session was complete; then shared our individual experiences.  Two in our group felt brief kisses from departing soldiers – Jamie on the cheek, Lexi on the lips – in expressions of affection and gratitude.  Michaelle saw a soldier who held himself back, watching us.  Most of us felt that the work of clearing the souls had ended at about the same time, then we’d continued to heal the wound in the Earth.  At that point, I’d had a vision of Citrine, known to breathe new optimism and healing to stagnating and depressing situations.

 

We packed up to visit a building on the grounds – and a monument erected by Union soldiers shortly after the war in “Memory of the Patriots who fell at Bull Run.”  The interpretive sign affirmed what I’d intuitively understood just earlier that week.  We weren’t just there to help souls cross over and heal Gaia, but to administer to the emotional wounds of those who’d survived the battle.                          

I dowsed on our guide map for our next stop, which was off a horse trail near the Brownsville rest stop.  After a snack for replenishment in the heat of the unrelenting sun, we brought in the frequencies again, this time creating a circle with our hands, then directing them toward the center.  Michaelle saw her soldier “friend” again, noticing that he had a number of men behind him as he kept back for awhile, then told her that we was “going to get more”.  She wondered why the men kept behind him and why he hadn’t chosen to depart through our portal; I shared my understanding that typically officers wait for the last in their squad to leave the battlefield before departing themselves.  It brought tears to my eyes, that we would still see this kind of heroism, across dimensions.  It made it so much more real, so personal, for me.  Lexi and I both had felt that we’d brought this space into present time; as though it had been stuck in the 19th century.  I felt it “get current” in the clearing that we did.  Lexi and Michaelle both saw presences further out in the field, and we all felt a sense of family in this place, and of campfires. 

 

I dowsed again and we were off to Ball Cemetery, about 3 ½ miles away.  I felt a little squeamish, not knowing what to expect.  This was a very active battlefield in the Second Battle of Manassas.  But it was beautiful.  A lovely hill, covered with grass, a soft breeze blowing, trees nearby and in the distance -- very aware of our presence and the work we were doing.  In fact, for the first time, I saw angels – simply standing at the edge of the small family plot that was Ball Cemetery.  They were waiting for us when we arrived, oversaw our efforts and helped in the work.  This time, we didn’t circle, nor bring in the frequencies.  Each of us was simply guided to connect with Gaia in her own way.  On this beautiful June afternoon, under a clear sky with a cleansing breeze sweeping up the hill – we let go of our egos, our expectations and our present place and time and created a bridge – between the seen and the unseen and between Gaia and her caretakers, allowing all the hurt, the pain and sorrow to pass and be swept away on the wind to be transmuted in the swirls and funnels and thermals of the atmosphere and Light.

 

We gathered as I read the poem, Grass, by Carl Sandburg and then played the “IZ” Kamakawiwo version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”.  It seemed a fitting end, after all our work, to feel the relief and profound joy of release, for that’s exactly what we all felt.  Release and relief.  What a gift!  And what a powerful and moving day!

 

I was so grateful to have been able to share this experience and have so many of my intuitions validated – as we were affirming with each other the entire afternoon.

 

Jamie was our self-volunteered symbol scribe, directing our attention to points in our environment of particular symbolic significance.

Her list from our trip this day:

Numbers that kept repeating:

3 – The Divine Trinity; Past, Present, Future.
5 – Uncertainty; change.
11 (and its octaves) - New beginnings; Rebirth; Awakening; Justice.

 

Wildlife (meaning from Ted Andrews’ book, Animal Speak)

Grasshopper - Have faith; new leaps of happiness are coming; refusing to move creates problems.

Butterfly - New love and joy are coming; transformation; embrace the new beginnings.

Cicada - Happiness from your past is returning; Surprising gift or offering will touch your heart; explore past life connections.

Blue bird - Gentleness brings happiness; do not force transitions; allow change to come in the manner best for you.

 

Quotes from the Day:

It was indeed an incredible event and I look forward to hearing of other's perspectives.  – Jamie

What a cool experience!  I’ve never experienced any like that before!  – Meredith

Thank you Leslie for sharing this, it makes me feel so thankful and honored and weepy in the best way possible.   – Lexi, who said Sting’s Fields of Gold kept running through her head afterwards (Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCNJBopK25I )

Thank you Leslie very much for yesterday, I really enjoyed my self and learned a lot. - Michaelle

My Second Manassas Visit, or as it might be better known in these parts,

The Visit of Second Manassas (read why here) - Oct. 29, 2009

Before I describe the odd events of this evening, I’d like you to visualize something.  Imagine a very dark rainy night – so thickly overcast as to not let any star or moonlight through.  And wet, driving through alternating pockets of drizzle and downpour -- but I get ahead of myself.  Now imagine the reflection of car headlights on the road in the lane opposite you – two long gleaming lines running parallel to each other about four feet apart reflected in a haze of bright mist and droplets -- and that you’re driving up an incline as these cars are driving downhill toward you.  Effectively what you’ve got (if you can see this in your mind’s eye), is a bright white/yellow-light tower as cars are stacked up coming toward you, all waiting for the light ahead of them to turn green.

 

Now, to begin…

 

I was headed to a Party City store to finish picking up costume pieces for a Halloween party that weekend and decorations for an event at work the next day.  As is the way of Northern Virginia street nomenclature, my GPS and Mapquest showed two separate locations for the same street address.  Needless to say, I was confused, and quite unsure of myself as I set out from work.  The sun was setting, and it was grey and drizzling which only served to unnerve me as I don’t like feeling lost, especially in bad weather.  As I headed into Fairfax, I became more and more convinced that I was on the wrong track.  Surely, my GPS knew better than Mapquest; my unfamiliarity with the area only feeding my conviction.  So as I got to within about a mile of my Mapquest destination; I chose to rely on my GPS, hooked a right and just kept driving.  MILES I went, noticing that I seemed to be getting further and further away from civilization.  But no, my GPS told me three more miles, two more miles – maybe it’s over the next hill.  By now, of course, it was totally dark outside as I passed through showers and drizzle.

 

One more mile -- and I looked ahead for the telltale reflection of town lights off the low cloud ceiling.  Nope, more darkness, the occasional car in passing and yes, right by the place – in the middle of fields and brush – where my GPS told me Party City would be.  Ugh, ten miles out of my way and hungry, I looked for a place to turn around.  Why in the world did I do this to myself?

 

Then I saw the familiar zig-zag of old split rail fencing.  Oh my gosh, I’m out in Manassas again.  How did I ever get here?  I didn’t have to see a map or find a street sign (all the road names were just numbers out here anyway); I knew exactly where I was.  And oh thank you, an intersection with a stop light at which I could turn around.  Hallelujah.  I couldn’t be mad at myself, and I was no longer afraid of being lost.  I knew that I was exactly where Spirit needed me at that moment.  As I waited at the light, turned left, and made my K-turn on the small side road to head back, so many thoughts were racing through my mind.  I’m here to help more soldiers pass through; how will they know that I’m here?; is there anything I can do to help them on their way?; does anything I do actually have any effect here?  I “heard” that if I imagined a shaft of pure white light coming down from the sky that they might be drawn to it and that it was as best a fair representation of what was actually happening in spiritual dimension as anything else.

 

I turned right at the light to start my way home.

 

Can you guess what I saw – on the wet pavement, facing the headlights of a lineup of 15 or so cars up an incline in the rainy dark?  Yes, it was a shaft of light about 50 yards long – straight before me, bright and powerful, captured in that incredible moment.  I nearly drove off the road when I saw it; it was so brilliant and such an immediate manifestation of my beautiful thought, that I was quickly pulled back to the reality of driving my car on an unfamiliar road in Virginia on a dark rainy night.  The moment was gone -- or was it?  I “checked in” with Spirit and heard that “200 souls” were able to pass in those seconds; realizing as well, that this was three days before Halloween, when cultures all over the world acknowledge that the veil between these worlds is thinner at this time of year than at any other.  Yes, I was certainly called to Manassas.  Soldiers were going home and I was on my way back to Party City where my auspicious detour began.

Manassas Battlefield, Sept. 24th 2009

“A tomb.”

 

These were the words I heard driving into the park when I saw the silent cannon pointing to the Manassas battlefield.  The words had a weight and resonance to them that lingered, yet I felt a strong sad emptiness as well.  Juxtaposed as they were against a beautiful early autumn afternoon in northern Virginia, I wondered how different the scene must have looked during the two battles of Bull Run fought here in 1861 and '62.

 

The soldiers were lining up.  I didn’t see them; I just knew.  Apparently, so did they.

 

I situated myself in the crux of a nest of trees, laid down my Fulgurite stones and meditated.  A few people walked by, most didn’t see me.  I drew in the essence of the place and tried to expand my awareness to the outer boundaries of the battlefield.  When I was ready, I directed Reconnective Healing energies toward the Fulgurite in front of me and in a few moments I heard the following words:

 

“Rise up and join your heavenly Father.

 

It matters not to Him the color of your skin or your rank of service.

It matters not to Him now rich you are or your creed.

It matters not to Him how you worship – on your knees praying or singing with arms flailing in the air.

It matters not to Him whether you’re poor, smart, the clothes you wear, bearing weapons of fear or anger or hatred, where you’re from or what you believe.

It matters not to Him which side of this battle you’re on.

 

He loves you all.

Every single one of you is worth His blessing and His love.

Come to Him.

Let Him surround you with His Light and warm loving embrace.

 

Rise up those of you laden with fear and grief.

Rise up those of you who cannot walk.

Rise up those of you who wish to serve.

Rise up those of you trodden by the weight of war and your own anger.

Put aside your weapons and stand.

 

Come to Him.

 

Feel the loving embrace of the One who has already risen.

For Jesus is here to take you Home.

See His light.

Feel His loving embrace.

Touch his Angels of Mercy to guide you on your way.”

 

I felt a loving presence behind and to the right of me, all the while feeling – sending – a warmth from the heart that was very profound, yet feeling inadequate to what I sensed was such a greater love than what I could possibly ever take in and express.  Embrace didn't fully seem to capture its essence either, for what I sensed was more an enfoldment, an immersion, an enrapturing in such a loving presence (field?) that anyone who was able to access it would immediately be present to Love and Love alone.  All else fell away in that sensation.

 

It was with this warmth that I felt I was transcending barriers – of physical to the non-physical, past the anger, fear, guilt and hatred I now much more fully understood, and through the nearly 150 years of time that had passed since the bodies of these men had died on this land.

 

When the words stopped flowing and I felt it was time, I asked the Trees in which I was nestled:

Me:     I want to reach the farthest aspects of this place so that they all can hear.

Tree:  They have come.

Me:     Is there anything more I can do?

Tree:    No, you have done enough.  They are here and they are grateful.  (Me now:  Who are they?; Spirit smiles)

          May God have Mercy on your Soul.

          In Love and Light.

          Your friend, the Arboretum.

And that was it.  I felt profoundly grateful myself.  I don’t know what’s actually “happening” when I do these things, but I know that something is – and that it’s profound and that for some reason, someone is grateful that I’m doing it.  And so I’ll continue.