Sometimes pain helps you discover things about yourself that you would never learn otherwise. Pain was how I discovered My Wings, and subsequently, created this meditation for power and protection. For years I’d had chronic back pain around my shoulder blades. I came to refer to that area as “My Wings” to my massage therapist. One day when she was working on me she asked conversationally, “So, what color are your wings?” Now, anyone who knows me knows the answer to that question is black.

Black is my favorite color for clothes and shoes. Black doesn’t show dirt easily. And I love crows and ravens. So, of course, my wings would be black. (Perhaps iridescent for special occasions, like a grackle, but black nonetheless.) And as I opened up my mouth to say this, a picture flashed before my (closed) eyes. Oh. My.

Not what I expected at all!

They were white. Very white. Not eggshell, not ecru, not off-white, WHITE WHITE. Like a swan. Only with orangey-gold iridescence, like they’d been dusted with eyeshadow. I tried to say, “They’re… white… they’re not glittery, but they’re… sparkly,” but I was tongue-tied and thought half of it in my head. It came out, “They’re white… they’re not… sparkly…” to which my massage therapist replied, “Oh yes they ARE, girl, I CAN SEE THEM.” And she described them to me, down to the orangey-gold color. Now, had she not “seen” them, I probably would have dismissed the whole experience, but what are the chances we’d both seen the same, wildly uncharacteristic, incredibly random thing?

Just what does one do with one’s wings, pray tell?

Well, I started using them. They are big and powerful (about 13 feet across) and I meditated on how they could help me. Sometimes I would unfurl them to shield myself or loved ones from other people’s negative energy. I would take courage in the fact that if I was in a bad situation I could just fly the hell off. Once I was playing a gig and I felt someone come in the door. I didn’t know her, but it was palpably heavy, oppressive, negative energy. She walked right up to me… and turned her back to me! (” Ruuude!”) I wanted to poke her away with the guitar, (that’s how bad she felt,) but I remembered my wings, and this simple meditation that gives me power and protection in any situation. (I’ll explain further down.)

I opened them wide, and – “WHOOMPH!” – basically, um, fwapped at her. She immediately moved away, and stayed away for the rest of the show. It occurred to me that I might be on to something. So I developed this meditation to give me access to power and protection whenever I need it. And so I use them regularly now. I stretch them out whenever I think of them. It’s amazing how your breathing and your posture change when you are wielding 7 1/2’ wings. (And how people and situations bother you less when you know with just a “Whoomph!”, you can fly the hell away!)

Mama Trish: The Human Ampitheatre

(To the depths of Hell with thee, spell check! “Ampitheatre” is, indeed, a word, and I shall use Ye Olde English when e’er I wish. Good day, Sir. I said good day!)

A few weeks ago I was playing in a piano bar. I usually turn the piano so that I can see the audience, but the wheel hung up on the rug and it wouldn’t budge. As I am part cowboy (“Back to the wall, eyes on the exits”) I was not happy about that. And when a bunch of loud, drunken graduates came in and started playing pool and yelling – LOUDLY – with each shot, I was even less-so. I’d had quite enough, and was just about to turn around and tell them off, when I remembered My Wings… my Meditation… my Power…my protection.

I took a deep breath, and fluffed them. Feeling better already, I unfurled them at my back, more “up” than “out”. (I’d never done that before, it just happened intuitively.) Immediately I felt more powerful, more protected. Then I rounded them into a semi-circle at my back. I chuckled and though, “I am my own ampitheatre!”. I actually got louder, and clearer. The rowdies finished their game and left, and I hadn’t had to say a word. Power. And Protection.

Energy is a powerful thing. Think about people who invigorate you to be around, people who charge your batteries, people who, just seeing them across a crowded room ups your vibe. Then think about those who, with just one encounter, make you feel like you need a nap. Ever walk into a room where a fight just happened? How you can feel it in the air? Or have you ever seen someone get their feelings stepped on? How it made you feel sick, as well? Feelings and energy are invisible, but there is a lot of power in them. Your wings are invisible, (heheh… to most folk), but there is a lot of power in them. Use them. (This meditation is for power and protection, after all.)

A Meditation for Power and Protection (in 7 simple steps)

Step 1:

Take  a deep breath, starting at the base of your belly, moving up to the top of your chest. Exhale in reverse. (The lungs are pear-shaped, so there’s a lot more room at the bottom than the top. Bad posture and shallow breathing makes only the air at the top come and go. Belly-breathing helps you get rid of all the stale air sitting in the bottom.) When you get to the end of your exhale, push your abdominals in, forcing the last little bit of stale air out. 

Step 2:

While breathing, broaden across your collar bone. When we’re depressed, we round our shoulders and shorten our collar bones. Shrug your shoulders up towards your ears, then down and back. Feel the front of your chest open. Explore all that new space with your breath, filling it and emptying it.

Step 3:

Close your eyes and feel your wings. Fluff your feathers.

Step 4:

What color are they? You might be surprised at the answer. (I was.)

Step 5:

Are they big? Small? (NOTE: Your wings are powerful no matter what size they are.)

Step 6:

What are they shaped like? Are they Bird wings? Dragon wings? Fairy wings? Bat wings? Dragonfly wings? Duct tape and coat hanger wings? (Use your imagination! They’re your wings!)

Step 5:

Unfurl them. Stretch them out as far as you can. Note how this affects how you are holding yourself, your breathing, how you feel. (This is a meditation for power and protection, after all.)

Step 6:

Flap them. Whoomph! them. Fwap! them. Raise them in protection. Wrap them around you for warmth or protection. Do a power stance, legs akimbo, hands on hips, wings spread. Breathe deeply and mindfully. 

Step 7:

Close your eyes and feel your wings, from top-to-tips. How do you feel now in comparison to how you felt before the exercise? Pretty nifty, huh? Not bad for something you didn’t even know you possessed until a few minutes ago. Imagine how much help they will be when you get used to using them? Someone making you feel small or insignificant? Use your wings. Someone directing negative energy your way? Like water off a duck’s wings! (I, personally, will be reusing “ampitheatre mode” often.) 

Now just see how many chances present themselves to utilize this new tool. If you forget, don’t worry, the universe will provide ample opportunities for this meditation of power and protection. ‘Tis obliging like that.

Happy Fwapping! 

P.S. No sense me suffering alone. (Either you’ll hate me for this, or it will be a… umm… Pan-acea… heheh…)