What are you looking for? This is a very important question because what we see invariably depends on what we look for. In the month of April many of us look for new life; for budding branches, flowering trees, new relationships, flowing rivers and a host of other things that have been hidden in winter. Some of us even look within ourselves to see new beginnings, an awakened presence that comes alive as we’re prompted by the same invisible energy that awakens new birth throughout the whole of creation.

The word easter, estre or eastre comes from an ancient Spring festival celebrating the  new life that appears annually at this time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. It was adopted and adapted by the early Christians to commemorate the life, death and resurrection of Life as manifest in Jesus of Nazareth who embodied the Christos, the anointing and blessing of Divine Presence bestowed on all of humanity. It’s an ongoing remembrance of the beauty and interconnectivity of Life shared by all Beings.

The vision of Easter celebrates the ongoing birth, life, apparent death and new life that springs forth whenever we awaken to it from the very depths of our Being. It’s the perennial flow of True Nature within us, around us and flowing through the whole of creation. It’s the renewal of Life that’s eternally inspiring us to engage the creative impulse that fires the imagination and awakens the inner realities to grow, change and rearrange the patterns of our lives. It’s what enlivens us and soothes our soul.

The gift of Easter vision transcends our parochial perspectives and invites us to look for the beauty in everyone and everything we encounter. It invites us to ‘see’ with new eyes, to look through the forms into the very substance, Essence of all that binds us together. It awakens us to new perspectives, allowing us to practice the alchemy of turning whatever we see as lead into gold. What are you presently seeing as lead that wants and needs to be turned into gold? What’s the transformational catalyst for you?

So much of the time we want to change what’s ‘out there’ without the insights that direct changing what’s ‘in here.’ We want the change without recognizing that our beliefs act as lenses that determine what we see. Our perspectives block us from seeing the parts of reality that wait for us to change rather than doing the necessary inner work of awakening to our blurry vision. We become victims of our own blindness. Does any of this register as truth to you? Are you ‘seeing’ the wisdom of this new vision?

Presently I’m struggling with my old vision. I”m having difficulty making the transition from seeing the worst of what is to seeing the best. I’m projecting this difficulty on things that are not going ‘my’ way. My ego is reacting to the dissonance in the world and rather than changing my perspectives, I’m wanting to change others. The insight is that our soul has ways of seeing what our minds can’t comprehend. This shift in focus allows us to see the beauty in spite of the beast. It’s a transformative enterprise.

Life is easy when things go our way, when everything flows as we want; but it’s an illusion we create rather than a reality that is. Easter speaks to us about a new vision that transcends yet includes what we must let go of. It’s the vision of a new way of being in the world that asks us to focus on Life’s eternal rhythms. It promises ‘new life’ by transforming the dullness of lead into the beauty of gold. It opens us to new possibilities of what is essential yet invisible. Easter vision changes what we see and how we Be!

• As you navigate through Life’s waters this week, notice what you see. Pause when you think of it and see through the outer manifestations into the heart of the matter. Look for the beauty. See the beauty. Notice how this transforms you and the moment.
• Notice the moments in your day when you are seeing and feeling the lead of life. When you notice them, stop and engage the Anacrusis, the silent upbeat or pause you can orchestrate between what was, is and can be. Allow this to become a practice that allows you to become an Alchemist. Notice the process of turning lead into gold. . . .
• Practice this mantra all day every day and notice what happens: See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty. . . See the beauty!