$1801 Out of Nowhere

$1,801 Out of Nowhere

They blamed it on Wall Street. They blamed it on housing. They blamed it on cheapmortgages. And they blamed it on the lenders. In 2008, the entire world was caught in the grip of the "Great Recession." As banks failed and corporations closed their doors, middle class jobs evaporated. When the jobs disappeared there was no way to continue paying for the dream of home-ownership. Foreclosures soared 225% in 2008 with one in 54 homeowners receiving a notice.

This is the backdrop to a remarkable true story of courage, belief, and awe in the abundance of the universe. Let's call her Mary! Mary was the model of success. She traveled widely. Had a good job, owned her own home, and kept a decent savings account. Then 2008 happened. She lost her job and then the market crashed. She took the last of her money to return to school, then the real estate market crashed and her home of 20 years was foreclosed on. She had no where to turn.

 

She decided to move out of the area to live with a friend in another state who had offered her a place to stay till she got back on her feet. Anticipating the move, she made a list of all her financial obligations that had to be met before she could leave. The grand total was $1801 - an insurmountable figure. She told me, she practically fell apart in tears as there was no way she could borrow or get that amount of money. So, anticipating homelessness and in despair, she let it go and began cleaning out the last of her possessions.

A few weeks later she was going through a stack of mail that had been sitting on a table. There was an envelope with no return address on it. She thought it was junk mail and was about to throw it out when something said, "open it." Inside was a check in the amount $1,801. The check was electronically signed saying "Signature on file with the bank." She kept looking for some small print explaining this was really "junk mail" and not a check but it looked legitimate.

Finally she found an 800 number on the check and called what turned out to be a "check writing service." They confirmed it was a real check but would not give any info about the sender, telling her to cash the check. So she did. Several days later she remembered the list of obligations she'd made and connected the dots to the check.

She was determined to find out who sent the check so began her search. It was an odd amount for a "good Samaritan" to write, especially when she'd told no one about her needs. She wondered if there was an old account from her husband, or stocks she didn't know about. So she wrote a letter to the name and address printed on the check. The letter came back, "Return to Sender - Wrong Address." She looked up the name and city and tried to call. There was no phone listing for the name.

Mary told me she could not have settled her obligations nor made the move to another state without that check. How the exact amount came into her hands from out of nowhere continues to perplex her. When we talked about it I asked her whatshe'd been feeling. She said utter desperation and hopelessness. Then something came over her and she just released and let it go. She detached from everything that had happened since 2008 and heard the words, "What will be will be" in her head.

It was shortly after releasing her fears, that a check in the amount $1,801 From Out Of Nowhere, resolved $1,801 in financial obligations so she could begin her life anew. The abundance of the Universe, and her need for resolution came together in the realm of Quantum Physics known as The Field of Endless Possibilities.

 

Jo Mooy - April 2015

Calling Mother

Calling Mother
 

"Mama!"  It's the first word a child says.  And, it doesn't matter what country the child is in.  For the baby-babble term for mother is the same in China, Poland, Africa, Peru, Russia or the US. When a baby wants something it cries out for Mama.  When it's anxious it sounds Mama.  When it's happy it beams Mama.  For the child, Mama is the center of its world.

On a recent foray to the grocery store I was watching a year old baby interact with its mother.  The baby was content to chew on a toy, but every so often she looked up to insure that connection with her mom was still there, by saying, "Mama!"  Each time, her smiling mom bent down to the child replying, "Yes, Emma" which elicited a giggle from the baby.

It was a simple interaction, but one that caught my attention.  What was this gentle checking in with mom?  What memories or needs were being activated in the baby?  And why was the mother being summoned and not others around the baby? I recalled the teaching of a Sufi mystic.  He said look beyond what was appearing and you would find what was actually transpiring.  So I did.

What was appearing?  A baby was periodically calling to its mother who was answering it.  But what was transpiring?  It was trust.  The mother was the source of the baby's well-being.  The mother was the individual with whom the baby identified, called it "Mama" and she trusted that Mama would hear and tend to her needs. But something else was transpiring.  The baby's connection with the mother was a metaphor of humanity's connection with source.   

Somewhere between childhood and becoming an adult many have forgotten how to Trust in the Mother Source.  They've also forgotten how to contact it.  Sadly, when we most need it, they've forgotten how to contact Her.  This disconnection is especially true given the nightly news barrage of misery around the world.  On an evening walk my neighbor commented that everything she saw on the news was so upsetting it was making her sick to watch it. I asked her if she could do anything about what she saw on TV.  She didn't think so.  I suggested she pray for everything to work out.  She thought about it and said, "I forgot I could do that."

There is great healing in Trusting. It's an emotion that causes us to believe things will work out and get better.  It empowers us, helping us to feel safe no matter what we're experiencing in life.  Trust teaches us that it's going to be better in the morning.  So when we see these horrific things on TV that inscribe fear or pain in our hearts, we can Trust in the Divine Mother's care.

The great Bodhisattva Quan Yin, Mother of Compassion, gave up nirvana until all her children were saved.  She is the ultimate "Mother of the Universe" or "Mama" that we can call and who promised to hear our cries.  This Great Mother said no matter the trial or tribulation, if her children called her she would take the form needed and come to their aid.  And so the stories of her help are documented all over the world.

So when you're watching the nightly news, or see something that distresses you on TV or Facebook, or anywhere you go, think about "Calling Mother."  She said she would hear every cry.  You can Trust that promise and for that matter, Trust that everything will work out.  For as we look at what is appearing, something much greater is transpiring.  Behind it all, the Divine Mother is working her promise.  It may take a tad longer than we think it should, but Mama hears our prayers!

Jo Mooy - November 2014 

Next Year Things Will Get Better

Next Year Things Will Get Better!

  

At the end of each year it's a Rite of Passage to look back on the predictions made at its start and see which ones were accurate and which failed to materialize. I was especially interested in 2011 because it was supposed to be the transformational eve for the major prophecies about 2012. So I took a journey into the history of predictions and was surprised where I ended up.  

   

Annual predictions have been part of every culture on earth far longer than recorded history. Geologist found star systems mapped out on cave walls dating over 25,000 years showing that ancient people looked to the stars for some sort of guidance. The movement of the constellations dictated the building of temples, the planting of crops, or the start of a war. So, I followed the trail from ancient times to the present to find out why predictions seem to be such an important part of our collective heritage.  

It's a natural behavior to contemplate the end of one season while preparing for the next one. Animals, birds and even the elements do it - storing up food, migrating to greener or temperate environs, air and temperature changing from hot to cold and back again. But humans add one more aspect to the process not evident in the other kingdoms. That aspect is Hope. It's an inherent trait evident in our species. Hiding behind the obvious prediction, humans assess their current situation but are generally hopeful things will get better the following year.      

Well publicized predictions through the ages are easy to find but not so the more subtle evidences of 'hope'. While preparing to write the December article a story found me. It's depth and scope was heart-warming. It was a story that showed how Hope remained kindled in the hearts of a group of men for more than 70 years even as their numbers dwindled. Their story is an indicator of human patience, conviction and finally justice. It's evidence of humanity's belief that "it will get better next year." From that perspective all the predictions of 2011 came into focus.

Most have heard of the Tuskegee Airmen, a squadron of African American pilots who served in World War II. But there were thousands of other African Americans who joined the elite Marine Corps whose stories were kept under wraps until 2011. "The Montford Point Marines" as they were called for the segregated boot camp they trained in, faced discrimination from the time they signed on until they were discharged. In the racism of 1941, the commandant of the Marines, when ordered to enlist the black recruits, said he would "rather take 5,000 white soldiers over 250,000 blacks."

  

The "Montford Marines" were sent to different boot camps from the white soldiersand kept in segregated units. When deployed, they sat in segregated trains. If the "black cars" were full, they had to wait for the next train, even if the white cars were empty. Their service was restricted to support services like defending the base or hauling ammunition to the front lines of battle. In the South Pacific these Marines carried their injured white counterparts back to safety while others readily picked up the weapons of the white Marines who were killed in battle. They stayed and engaged the fight before being ordered back to the rear at the conclusion of the battle.   

  

At the end of the war they faced more humiliation and discrimination when they returned home. The Red Cross routinely set up Welcome Home Stations with music, banners, coffee and sandwiches at the train stops for the soldiers coming home. Yet when a train with black soldiers entered the station locals closed and shuttered the food booths until the train left the station.  

  

Because they were not encouraged to remain in the service, the "Montford Marines" quietly exited the stage of national consciousness feeling unwanted and unrecognized.  But none of them ever forgot they were once "proud marines." For 70 years, though the Marine Corps refused to recognize them, they met every year to honor themselves, always hoping that "next year it will get better."   

  

Amid all the financial, political, and environmental predictions about 2011, no one paid any attention to the dwindling number of Montford Marines, now in their 80's and 90's.  That is until the current Marine Commandant heard about them and looked into their story. It so captured his attention he wanted to rectify the wrongs of the past.  He ordered that all new recruits be taught the history of the Montford Point Marines along with the rest of the Corps' legacy. He incorporated their story into the curriculum of advanced classes for senior officers. Then he went a step further.   

  

He rounded up the remaining "Montford Marines" some in wheelchairs, others using canes, to Washington D.C. where they were feted at a banquet hosted by the commandant and served by young marines in crisp blue uniforms. They watched a parade in their honor with the Marine Corp commandant and other military dignitaries. They met black officers who were now commanding the Marines. In a rare showing of bipartisan support, the US House of Representatives unanimously approved the Gold Congressional Medal for all the "Montford Marines" formally recognizing them for their proud service to the country.

   

The outpouring of support overwhelmed the aging veterans. One, struggling with hisemotions said, "At last I feel like a real marine!" When their bravery in the jungles of the south Pacific was mentioned, one said, "We did everything to prove our mettle, but it never seemed to be enough until now." One of the Montford Marines told a black officer "I feel so much pride seeing you in that Marine uniform. It's enough to make an old marine cry." The officer responded, "I owe it all to you, Sir!  I stand on your shoulders."

  

It took a stodgy military seventy years to make things right. All the while, the dwindling "Montford Marines" kept hoping that "next year things will get better." Then in 2011 a shift in consciousness occurred and things did get better for the remaining Marines. It was just a matter of patience and hope. 

Jo Mooy - December, 2011