Journey 96 - Finishing the Job

9/13/04: A most extraordinary night last night. Just before going to bed last night, I pulled a now-rare Medicine Card..just to check on my relative Spiritual State as seen by my Guides. I got upside-down Lizard, the key meaning of which is that I am having or about to have nightmares that must be listened to for either upcoming events or for unfinished business. I haven’t had any real nightmares in a while, and so I assumed it was a general message. Little did I know what was about to unfold about 4 hours later. I was in the midst of a totally benign Dream in which I was sitting down at a circular table with some friends. I believe the fellow directly across from me was a co-worker. He interrupted a totally fun story I was telling to ask me the following question: “Do you have the feeling something bad is about to happen?” The whole table fell silent, and I took stock of all my feelings and impressions of the area, and had just said “Not at all,” when suddenly I was attacked from behind by the most powerful Dark Force I have ever felt. It grabbed me from everywhere it could in back, and was literally squeezing the Life out of me. Everything went black as my friends and the room we were in disappeared. I was gasping for breath, feeling myself being crushed into a smaller and smaller being. Pressure was coming in now from all around, and I could see to my left four tiny vertical lights crossed at the bottom at right angles by 2 or 3. An upside-down Cross. I was in such duress that I did not call on my Helpers or Guides or begin to chant. I merely washed my hands from front to back, over my head, again and again, begging my Aura to protect me..protect me..protect me.. I soon realized that I had awakened and was in my bedroom, still alive, but quite unnerved. Any sense of satisfaction that I had having gotten out of this fix was overwhelmed by the overarching question..what was that about!? Was it my old Nemesis coming back, or something else. I knew this could not be answered without a Journey, and since it was 2:30 at night, I could not take my traditional Journey with CD and Candle and Sage/Sweet Grass. I would have to go in as I have done in the past 2 weeks..a mental cold-start. And so I did! I asked Owl to meet me outside, and I found myself with him amongst many Campfires of the Spirit Beings. I could see their shapes and glowing eyes sitting around the Fires. Some were Smoking the Pipe, giving me Comfort that there were Prayers being said, and thereby filling the Air. I asked Owl to take me above to discover the reason for this attack. As I looked up, I saw Stars swirling in the Dark Sky, and up we went through this Tunnel to the upper World. When we arrived, I was taken into a replay of my recent vacation. I could not understand this at all. I went through quite a bit of it, scene by scene. I even came out of the vacation imagery long enough to visit with Eagle Claw on his Ledge in Space. He told me that the attack was due to unfinished business..i.e., the recent visit with the Spirit Being that had been so angry and then began to cry. I never really got a resolution in that Journey, if you’ll recall, but merely thought my floating in my room at one point reflected a Healing for this person. I now found out is was not. And so I was taken back to my vacation spot. It wasn’t until I saw the replay of the young Eagle fluttering over the rocks on an island that I realized this image looked just like what I saw last evening, just as the light was really dimming: a rare Hawk, flying tree top level, from my back yard toward the west..the Spirit Camp. I had found it strange last night that I should see a Hawk that late..this was the latest I had ever done so. Now, in my Journey, recognizing the tie-in between my actual sighting last night and the image of the young Eagle at Bar Harbor, I realized the Hawk visit last evening was an announcement, very similar to the large Black Bird that flew over me as my Shaman’s Dream began several years ago. It was a portent of a powerful Dream to come in the following sleep cycle, just as the large Bird overflight had been then. I then searched the scene further and realized I was to take with me a Stone Person from under where the vacation spot Eagle was flying, and return to the Street where the Sufferer without a Face and his Dog had been glaring at, and then crying out to, me. Back I went, and all was as I had left it: the Spirit was there with his burnt Face and yellow eyes in near total Darkness. I took out my Rattle and opened up Sacred Space around us by Rattling to the 7 Directions. I recall feeling Courage as I turned my back on this entity. I then realized I had before me the Sanctification Elements of Shaman’s Tools: Fire; A bowl of Water; Air, represented by Smudge; and a bowl of Mother Earth. I was to anoint the Spirit with each of the Four Elements, and so I did. Throwing Fire at the Spirit caused his Face to clean completely, and the Darkness around us to totally vanish. And there, in broad daylight, stood my daughter's old boyfriend who had committed suicide. So THAT’S who it was! I then blew Water on him, and anointed his forehead with Earth. He was very much at Peace, and disappeared, having finally been released from the Astral Plane. I then found myself walking toward my Five Stone Altar in my backyard and placing the Stone Person I had picked up at Bar Harbor in the midst of the Stones. At this point, Owl brought me back through the Tunnel and into my room. End of Journey. I had finally set the boy free, to go into the Spirit Camp. And even as I write this over 12 hours after the event, I find myself totally amused at how he had gotten my attention..and how! Moreover, it is amazing to me that I had only just started non-drumming Journeys within the past few weeks, and yet that technique proved to be vital last night. There is no way I could have relaxed without knowing the source of that power grab from behind.