Do I have to have any special skills or knowledge to do this work?
The short answer is: no, not at all. It is our birthright to be in connection with our ancestors. It is not something that is only reserved for those who might consider themselves to be mediums or psychics. We are innately designed to know and access our connection with our ancestors.
In fact, one of my teachers was fond of saying that we have a relationship with our ancestors whether we want it or not; it’s simply a matter of deciding to become aware of it. We can choose to turn towards them and intentionally cultivate a relationship, which, again, takes no special abilities.
We don't have to already know how to talk to the dead, nor do we need to know our family trees to any extent. All of these skills and knowledge will come to us as needed once we begin doing the work.
Practice widens the path
I know it's not anyone's favorite answer, but being able to relate with “the other side” simply comes through practice. It’s a lot like learning a new language. The more we use it, the more fluent we become. It is also through practice that we learn to trust in the ways we connect with the ancestors; we learn to stop questioning what arises or thinking that we just made it up.
Getting this practice is one of the built-in benefits of the Sacred Roots class. As we go through this journey together, we ease into this expanded way of relating. With each step of the process, we get to work our perceiving muscles a little bit more and so by the end of the year it will be second nature to us.
The art of allowing
In addition to practice, I’ve also found that connecting with the ancestors is more fulfilling when I have a mindset of allowing rather than trying. It’s simply a shift towards being receptive to connection versus reaching out for it. The healed, vibrant, wise & well ancestors are already reaching towards us. All we have to do is open up a little bit and allow that connection to come through, knowing that whatever it is, it’s enough.
All kinds of wonderful things start to happen when we allow for these connections in our lives. One of my favorites is when we learn the origins of some of those repeating patterns of struggle we’ve been enduring over and over again. Through allowing, we come to see how these wounds have been passed down from generation to generation, that they are inherited and not of our creating. We can then set down the burden of blaming ourselves for these wounds. Many aspects of healing can come through the simple act of allowing the collective of vibrant ancestors to be integrated into our lives.
This journey is not about needing to become something more, but about returning to who we have always been—beings deeply connected to those who came before us. As we step into this work, we do so not just for ourselves, but for the collective of our lineages and for those who will come after us.
In the end, the invitation is simple: to allow, to connect, to relate. It is through these acts that we honor our ancestors and ourselves. And it is through these acts that we begin to heal the wounds of the past, not through any special skills or knowledge, but by simply being open, curious, and willing to show up.
