crystals

When I started to experience my initial spiritual awakening circa 2003, I'd never heard of crystals. I had no clue how they were used. Yes, as a child like most children I collected sticks and rocks and other little natural trinkets that made me feel a certain grounding thrill inside, but I never knew why.

One day when I was super excited about finding glittery spots in a stone on the ground, my Dad said to me, "Oh, that's just quartz. Actually, it's the most common kind of rock." I had no idea that this sparkly treasure was actually all around! I was stunned by the idea. It seemed so rare and special... and this was the most common thing?

**In doing a bit of research, I have found that yes, quartz is the most common mineral in the continental crust. When you think about the properties of quartz on a deeper level - that is, the little bit we know so far - this is yet another bit of hidden-in-plain-sight proof that this world is more mysterious and connected than we often realize...**

About a decade after that initial conversation with my father, I tentatively walked into my first ever metaphysical store experience. It was a shop in Orlando, Florida called The Spiral Circle. This was where I met my Reiki teacher, and where I was opened up to the realization that there even existed enough books to fill up a bookshop containing info on the subjects that made me voracious for more. 

I'll never forget that first moment of walking in to the converted house that was then The Spiral Circle, door bell jingling as I came in, the smells of incense and sacred smudging smoke filling my nose, so familiar and foreign all at the same time, the sounds of ambient music filling my ears, and people who seemed strangely sane smiling and greeting me from behind the counter. 

(Up until this point, by the way, I didn't believe in anything spiritual or esoteric. I was an agnostic/atheist then, and would have remained that way had I not experienced a multitude of direct, intense events that showed me beyond the shadow of a doubt that the unseen world was, in fact, very real, and whether or not I chose to admit that I was aware of it, it was definitely aware of me...)

Somehow, that day I met the woman who would become my Reiki teacher. Under her tutelage, I learned about many aspects of the unseen parts of our world and other worlds. She had logical, straightforward, reasonable answers to all the questions that had stumped me for years. She also showed me how to use my own intention and strength of will to act on the energetic part of our world to create effects in the physical part of our world. She also told me afterward that she'd never had a student who was so hungry for information. I didn't need breaks, or food, or time away from lessons. I wanted to know everything that I possibly could. Finally, these parts of myself that I'd been muting and ignoring had a place to go, now that there was someone helping me navigate them! (If you're curious about the longer version of this process, it's all included in the first book of the Starseed Trilogy, Journal Of A Starseed - click here to read the first two chapters.)

After a few weeks of working together and my world changing to encompass and welcome the subtle nuances of awareness I'd never had time, space, or guidance to acknowledge before, my Reiki teacher and I met again at The Spiral Circle to pick out some tools for me to use.

The one that stood out to me was a small sphere, an inch or two in diameter, that was a pale yellow color with golden filaments inside, shaped subtly like a pine tree in their natural arrangement. My teacher picked it up, did that thing she did where she zoned out for a second to receive otherworldly guidance, and told me that I and this little smoky citrine had worked together before.
At the moment, this felt really intense but afterward, in the following years when I worked with the crystal, using it to massage the energies in my reality to bring healing, peace, focus, and the reality that I wanted to fruition, I realized that of course we would sometimes be called back to the same stones life after life. They live for so much longer than we do. The idea of them just so happening to be in our paths over and over makes sense. 
That crystal is long gone... it was stolen in a backpack that I held with me on a hiking trip with friend to hot spring pools one night. More than the phone, the wallet, and the other objects in the bag that went missing, I mourned the loss of my little crystal sphere the most. I still miss it, actually. But I'm sure that whomever stole my bag somehow needed it more than I did, and I wish them well. I know I'll run into that crystal again, sooner or later, in this life or another.

To be aware of the effect of crystals, it's necessary to spend time and energy focusing on your own subtle awareness of your inner spaces. This can come from paying attention to the tension and relaxation in your body, or your emotional moods. That's usually how you can perceive what crystals do, at least at first. It's a little shift in the way things feel in and around you that, over time, creates big shifts in your world and reality.

When using crystals, there are ways to cleanse them, program them, and keep them functioning optimally. An easy way to greet a crystal is to run it under cool water or sit it overnight on a pile of salt in a dish (as some crystals dissolve under water - do an internet search if you aren't sure.) As you place the crystal in the salt or run it under water, set the mental intention that you're doing the equivalent of clearing its hard drive. Any energies it's picked up along the way that aren't beneficial to you can be rinsed away by the water or cleansed out by the salt. Then, once clear, you can hold the crystal in your hand with the intention to program it with the energies you choose. Each crystal has different properties which can be easily researched online. My favorite book for this is Love Is In The Earth by Melody. This book is always on my shelf and has come in handy for years. As you are holding the crystal, notice your body heat warming it up. With that shift in vibration (since heat makes things vibrate faster,) your program of intentions imbue the crystal. Once it feels complete, set it in a sacred place, keep it in your pocket, or wear it - crystal jewelry is fantastic for this. Every so often, rinse it or salt it again, and on the full moon, sit it in a window where the moonlight can charge it up like a battery.

By this point, most of us know that crystalline technology is used in many of our devices, including out timepieces, phones, computers, and so on. We've only just scratched the surface of what's capable in this area, and most people don't realize that the fact that we can use crystals in our still-clunky and pretty primitive tech means that they can also be used for so much more.

(**Weird theory alert: I have the belief that one of the reasons the Bermuda Triangle exists is because of weather control crystals sitting broken on the bottom of the sea where Atlantis was once located, after their purpose was twisted to weaponry during the fall of that great civilization. One of these days I'd love to get out there and see what I can feel from close by. It's on the list...**)

Here are some of my favorite types of crystals and what I like to use them for:

Rose Quartz. This one is one of my all time favorites. Rose quartz is pretty easy to find, inexpensive, and gentle on the nervous system (some crystals, like moldavite, can be pretty intense and not always helpful depending on what your goals and needs are.) 
Speaking of the pricing thing - one of the great jokes I am entertained by in the current world is the fact that often, the most powerful stones are the ones that are negligible in price. I've experience clear quartz, moonstone, and rose quartz, not to mention amethyst or selenite, to be way more powerful energetically than more pricey diamond, rubies, sapphires, and so on. I think it's hilarious that these precious objects are so easy to get in the common world, and I think it's one of those hidden riches that we don't even realize we have...
Rose quartz is gently protective, and I travel with a little cloth bag of about 13 raw chunks of it (one of which is in the image above) that I place around my space when I move in. My life is pretty nomadic, so I may be staying in a space for a night or a couple of months, but either way, one of my settling-in rituals is placing the rose quartzes at ever entrance, as well as at least one in each room. As I place them, I imagine a huge pillar of rose quartz energy reaching down deep into the earth and up into the sky centered around where I just placed the small stone. This is a subtle thing, but I can always feel a marked difference in a space that I have "gridded" with the rose quartz pieces. 
Rose quartz is also great for the skin, so I use a gua sha tool made of rose quartz every morning as part of my beauty routine. I read about this property and first experimented with it on one of my long drives. I had a little piece of smooth rose quartz in my car and gently rubbed it over my face as I was driving. I 100% noticed a difference in the smoothness and soft clarity of my skin. After that, I got myself proper facial massage tools and have used them ever since.
​

Citrine. Citrine has a bright, sunny energy and it is one of the crystals that loves to be charged up in sunlight. It also is said to bring abundance, so many people will have a chunk of citrine near to where they do business or exchange money, like by the home computer or in the cash register at work. 
Like the below crystal selenite, citrine is one of the types of crystals that cannot hold negative energy and, in fact, can actually be used to clear other crystals. So if you are in a high stress job like the health care field or other places where there are lots of energies flying around that can knock you off your flow for a bit, I recommend keeping a piece of citrine on you while at work. It is a lovely trick to staying clearer, recovering faster, and maintaining a more positive outlook throughout.
​

Selenite. I really love selenite. It's one of the stones that I enjoy giving as a gift. Like citrine it can't hold negative energy so often, I'll store my crystal jewelry near a piece of selenite to clear it from whatever gunky energy I may have picked up in a day of normal living. I also hold selenite sometimes to meditate, and if I'm feel foggy or low energy, I'll sleep with a piece under my pillow. 
Selenite is sensitive to water, so if it is in water for awhile it will start to erode. This can be kind of nice, because it is a way to smooth off rough edges on the crystal, but it's something to be aware of. I like to keep selenite on my windowsills too. And when I'm at events like music festivals with lots of energy, I always keep a piece handy. At more than one Burning Man, I've carried a big chunk in my boot. It can't hurt - and it does make me feel brighter, clearer, and more impervious to any energies that may be swirling around that I don't want to pick up.

It's also an easy one to find. 

Ok, thank you for coming on this crystal journey with me! There is so much more to say about this, and if you have questions, please let me know in the comments. I'd be happy to expand on techniques or questions in future blog posts.

Thanks again for reading! Have a beautiful day and remember to enjoy nature, and let it enjoy you, too. We're all part of this Earth and remembering that more often will benefit each of us.