photo by Lisa Z Lindahl

So I am a vibrational node.

Endings and beginnings – of years, of relationships, of anything really – are fertile times for reflection if we allow them to be. And I am a thinker, in my head naturally, so this time of year is a particularly ripe season for me. And this is what I’ve been thinking about lately:

Whether we intend to be or not, whether we are aware of it or not, we are each a vibrational node. We are picking up and sending and re-sending energy waves all the time. Sometimes these are energetic vibrations of anger, annoyance, or impatience. Sometimes it is on the other end of the spectrum: calming, loving, pleasurable, and generative. But always, it is something. We are senders, and we are receivers. I’m sure there are scientific studies about this, but frankly, I am too lazy at this moment to do the research; mine is just an intuitional gnowing. [not a typo. See the definition of ‘gnowing’ in Beauty As Action].

I bring it up here to discuss the question of our consciousness about this – the awareness factor. How much do we choose what we are sending? What we are receiving? This is not new. Much has been written about the power of positivity, the importance of being grateful, of mindfulness. The power of intention. But to think about these things as actual receipts and transmissions of power? … Hmmm. Perhaps I am just a bit dim, but I’d not thought of it – intention, mindfulness — just that way before. Just. That. Way: as power.

artwork by Lisa Z Lindahl

The issue of power has been much in the news these days. Specifically, the abuse of power, power over another. As a culture, we do not openly examine and discuss power. It gets mixed up with the idea of competition. The ethics of power get cloaked in the verbiage and trappings of sports, school, or workplace competitions. Its opposite is known as weakness or helplessness and failure and is frowned upon. Using our power in concert with another’s — cooperation, I believe, is the experience — seems far more difficult than competing against the power of another.  The subtle states between all the shades of cooperation and competition — between each “node” — are the fodder of great literature and penny dreadfuls.

Power itself is not a bad thing. It is “The Force.” The life force, literally. If you are alive you are a force, you have power. How much and how you use it is where free will and subjective considerations come in.

We are each a node of power, vibrating with energy. The kind of energy, the nature of our power…well, that is up to us, and we have the ability to be in great choice about that.

Meanwhile, I must confront myself as a vibrational power node. How much I am using it well (meaning productively), misusing it, or not using it at all (meaning avoiding my power)…well, this is what I struggle to stay aware of. I consider it a responsibility of being a human.

I am a vibrational power node, today wearing comfy jeans and a ratty sweatshirt, drinking a ginger-lemon probiotic drink, and spending too much time inside and inside my head.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us.”

                                    ~Marianne Williamson

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