“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
— Ephesians 5:14
I completed this piece on 11/22 at 2:22 p.m. I didn’t intend to choose such an auspicious time and date, it simply was. I had gathered the leaves over the course of weeks, about six weeks prior, and lovingly placed them between thick sheets of parchment with rough edges, under stacks of heavy books, including the Holy Bible that sits on my table, across from me during prayers and readings, and a copy of the Upanishads, lovingly translated in three languages.
I didn’t know what form the leaves would take. I didn’t know on what background they would rest. I only knew that I needed to create something in celebration of transformation — the change of seasons — the shuttering and hibernation of life until springtime — so beautifully captured in the changing colors of the leaves.
This is the second piece I’ve created using pages from a New Testament Bible gifted to me five years ago, just a few years into what I would describe as an awakening aspect of my own transformation. The first piece, The Great Om: The Cosmic Vagina (right), celebrates Creation, the beginning of all that is and will ever be. And now this newest piece honors the cycle of death and rebirth — intrinsic, eternal, inescapable — and the powerful transformation available to each of us through each and every cycle — even from day, to night, to day again. The power, of course, is within you, and your intent to reflect, change, grow.
After months (years, lifetimes) of my own deep reflection, I realized today, on Easter of all days, was the day to share this work with the world. Today, as Christians around the globe reflect on transformation and rebirth. The decision and innate need to share hit quite suddenly, after pages of inner reflection on my own transformation through this lifetime in my journal — where I now find myself, and my acceptance of all that is, and most importantly, of all that I am.
I set aside the journal and stood to take some extra photos of the Sacred Fire of Transformation, careful to work around the glares bouncing off of the glue I used to shellac it into place, when I noticed something quite astounding. Something that had always been there, a little Easter Egg from Spirit, here on Easter Sunday, hidden months ago as I put this whole piece together. There, next to the sacred fire formed by the leaves, was a most perfect Bible verse, speaking to all that this artwork represents:
“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
— Ephesians 5:14
A call to spiritual awakening and a reminder of the transformative power of Christ. Of Spirit. Of Source. A rebirth. Rising from the dead, just as Christians celebrate of Jesus on this very day. A call to move from a state of spiritual darkness to one of Light and action.
Oh, Beloved Divine, thank you. Thank you for this Gift. For choosing the perfect pages for this piece, for guiding me in placing each page and the leaves in such a way that your powerful and synchronistic message would shine through. And for delivering this gift, leading me to find this Easter Egg, today, on Easter Sunday.
How truly loved we are.
I feel ever more guided on my path, as it has been rolling out before me. My inner healing work has been moving from personal trauma to encompass a wider view. I feel that the space I inhabit at this point in my journey is witness to the cruelty, destruction and suffering of our brothers and sisters, the animals and trees and plants and humans around me, our Earth as a whole, our Mother. And in this space, I am learning to keep my heart open to bear witness to all of it, without overwhelm — to feel it fully, deeply, without looking away — and still have the strength and courage to speak up, stand up and fight for all of those without a voice.
Thank you, Beloved Divine, for this gift of Life, for the gift of Guidance and the Knowing that we are never alone. And that it’s not too late. I love you. Aho.
