Diane to God:

Dear God, Nancy O.'s question about love gave me the courage to ask my question.

Just yesterday I noticed that when my cat Maya rested on my lap, I felt such peace and relaxation from being a physical container for her. Then I became aware of how much time I held Molly and how at peace I feel with a child on my lap. And how glorious I felt being pregnant! It makes sense that I conceived so many children. I know the Oneness in pregnancy and infancy.

Now what do I do? A menopausal woman with children leaving the nest (not to mention the lap) faster than I can deal with these changes. I am having many exciting ideas about what I want to do (which I will write about later) but what do I do about this physical craving for Oneness and the peace it brings?

I do have a lovely physical relationship with my husband, but it does not address the same need. I have thought of adopting a child. I have thought of getting a dog. I have spent time anticipating my grandchildren.

Help…

God to Diane:

As with everything, dear Diane, put your attention on what you have. That is what all My children must do. Otherwise, you feel deprived.

This is not to say that a child could not be waiting for your arms. A child could be. Perhaps you are reaching out together. Perhaps the child calls you. Perhaps what you are seeking seeks you. Or perhaps you are looking back and wanting the past to fulfill the present.

Menopause is not a lesser state than childbearing. It is not a cast-off state. Menopause is the beginning of another state of consciousness. Menopause has its own vibration. Everything in the physical has its beginning and its end. Everything is a death and a rebirth. The child becomes a woman. The woman bears children. The woman no longer can bear children. With each change comes a shift in consciousness. Each has its own consciousness. Each is a blessing of its own in its own time. Each is growth.

A grandmother's arms serve a potent function that no other can. Being a grandmother is a gift from Me. Having a grandmother is a gift from Me. Being a grandmother is not an irrelevant thing. A grandmother is not an idle afterthought. A grandmother can give what a mother cannot.

When you are a grandmother, the history of the child is you. You are like a profound wave of love. Your child, the mother or father, is another wave of love. And the grandchild is a wave of love. Each love has its unique sweetness and vibration. And its attention.

Or we could say that each generation is a new boat that rides the waves of the water. Each state of life as well.

Celebrate menopause. It is a beginning.

And, of course, the children you fill your arms with do not have to be your own.

But back to your empty arms, Diane.

Many arms are empty and long to be filled.

Just as there is value in being the child, the mother, the grandmother, the sister, the brother and so on, there is also value in not having your arms full. Being empty-armed is a reminder.

Diane, you are not a mother. You are not a wife. Those are not who you are. You may be those, but you are not those. You are not homemaker. You are not housecleaner. You are not cook or duster. Those are not your identity, My beautiful Diane. You are far more than those.

Being pregnant serves a wonderful purpose, but you are not more when you are pregnant than when you are not. You like it, but it does not make you more. It makes you feel like you are more.

You are not more with a babe in arms.

You are not more with ten children than with one or with none.

The thing with all the physical states is that they keep your mind off other things. They give you an occupation. What else is there to think about when you have a new baby?

All the relative life is a distraction from your wholeness. Even as the physical gives you a taste of Oneness, it distracts you from the true Oneness of All. For some, sometimes even to the thought: "I've got all this. Who needs God?"

All the relative life, necessary and wonderful, furthers you on your journey to Me. But no one thing in the world gives you everything. Something but not all.

The state of your arms is not your state.

Wait for Me a little, Diane.

Your desires are heard.

A puppy is a wonderful gift from Me.

Perhaps one will find its way to you.

But you don't have to have it.

There is nothing that you have to have.

That is the lesson.

Now, then, when do We hear your other ideas?