Stay Gold
How to stay gold amid humanity's darkness.
I see you. I feel you.
This is not a message from a lofty tower. Our work is to end contributing to the low vibration of suffering that cycles and recycles through the Earth plane. I have learnt this through every step of the way and, at times, still need to remind myself to love, observe, speak up where I can, and not fall into sorrow or depression.
I wrote this over a year ago - and it feels timely to share it once again, modified with an expanded perspective of human suffering.
If this message resonates, please acknowledge it! A ❤️, a donation, a subscription, a comment or share.
I love that you are here and am blessed we share this journey.
Michelle x
The Art of Witnessing
Many of you will observe suffering in the world to either quickly click away or listen and sink into a funk. No judgement. It takes a special awareness to ‘see’ trauma without ‘falling into the hole’ with the trauma.
When we consider how those of us who are empaths have experienced the physical world, we understand that this heaviness is almost too much to bear.
How ‘Helping’ Might not be what it Seems
Diagrams 1 & 2 below When we notice suffering (1) and join the sufferer by ‘helping’, ‘fixing’, or absorbing their sadness (empath role) we lose our high vibration of joy (2).
Diagram 3 If we choose to stay out of their funk, love them, and believe in their ability to resolve the problems they have created for their evolution, we remain healthy. By energetically lowering the ladder of awareness and compassion for every experience others create to evolve, we support them to climb out - when they are ready.
The principle of Divine Timing always applies - we know ourselves that we only create change when we are ready. Does the person have the tools they need? Do they know of support services, resources, etc? If the answer is ‘yes’, then we must trust they will use them when they are ready.
Greater Understanding
David Hawkins developed the Map of Consciousness, a vibrational study of the energy of emotions. When we leave the vibration of love, for example, to sit with someone who is suffering in the Survival Paradigm, and take on their vibration of fear, we also attract fear and anxiety.
This is also true when we feel despair at events whether within our own country or globally. As you can see above, low emotions within the Survival paradigm (fear) manifest low vibration experiences.
So how can we be compassionate without becoming enmeshed in misery and adding to the problem?
A Better way of Helping - Individuals
It is our responsibility to not encourage others to stay ‘spinning their wheels’ in the same loop of situational drama. Think of repeatedly listening to others’ drama - the same offence or variations of - as allowing them to blow off steam, to justify their role in the situation they co-created. When we listen, the pressure is temporarily lifted, they feel better and go on with their lives. We, however, feel the debris of their low vibration, and may worry about their ability to resolve a situation. The ‘fix’ is only temporary because the underlying issue triggering the drama is yet to be resolved. It is only a matter of time until they create the next drama when the pressure will again build.
Insight from Indigenous Wisdom
In a process attributed to the American Indians, the support person listens to the other and allows them to fully express their hurt, the injustice, the betrayal - whatever it is a situation or person has ‘made them feel’.
The ‘hurt’ person leaves to process the event, and then returns to their support person, and again delves into the circumstances that created the injury or brings another, similar injury. They are encouraged to ‘unload’ and discuss all aspects of the event.
Once again, they leave to process. On their third return they speak of the hurtful situation. This time the support person responds with ‘I have listened three times and now wonder what you are going to do about this situation? I love you too much to listen to you replaying the pain. I believe in you and know that you will find a solution.’ In this way, the ownership of the situation is returned to the person who has manifested it.
They may ask for advice, or they may not. No matter how badly we want someone to resolve their experiences, they will only come to it in their right timing.
A Better Way of Helping - Further Afield
Let’s expand our view to observe some of the unhealed patterns across the globe. Repeated aggression, conflict, and suffering. As difficult as it may seem at times, when we view any situation beyond the physical, we are reminded that in this illusion called Earth, we are Divine beings in a physical body. We come from unconditional love. We are unconditional love.
To Consider
What are we willing to accept for ourselves in our interpersonal relationships?
Our relationship with our community?
Our relationship with our country?
Our relationship with the world?
And how do you view these relationships?
I’d love to hear from you…
The Higher Self
Can we trust that they too have a Divine life plan to learn, grow and evolve? That they have manifested this situation to learn from or to gain awareness of previously unrecognised strengths?
Regardless of our interventions, if an experience is to be had for their evolution, they will continue to manifest similar experiences and often in greater degrees. And it must work like this as the Higher Self completes its contract of bringing a certain learning into their awareness. I often think of our need to put our hand out and ‘save’ someone as enabling them to stay stuck.
There is no judgment needed about the roles we play. We learn in our Divine right timing, as does every person we interact with. Breathe and release any guilt that may arise - it is not needed.
Now we have a better strategy, we learn to apply what we have learnt. Sometimes this is easier than others. We have all kinds of patterns that make us believe we are responsible for others.
But truly, we are not.
The Mirror
Others are always our mirror. These are some prompts you may like to use to go deeper:
If their suffering is too much to bear, how am I being shown my own pain that I am covering up? Perhaps it is time to go within.
If I find it difficult to learn of fellow creatures like the whales suffering, how am I contributing to their suffering?
If I struggle to hear of a tragic event, where is my pain?
If I feel blamed by someone who wants me to be responsible for their suffering, how am I blaming myself? And where did this sense of responsibility begin?
Some of the above IS challenging for the egoic mind. Suffering can seem senseless to us but metaphysically, it rarely is. When we remember that we are infinite beings having a temporary, physical experience, we begin to understand how loved and protected we are. That each of us has a Divine life plan, moving in and out of lifetimes, having experiences that will grow and evolve ourselves and all of humanity. Some beautiful souls choose sacrifice to create awareness - you will find evidence of this many times from Christ to our whales in the earlier article, for example, and other creatures who suffer.
The healed Witness has the ability to hold unconditional love for all. To look at suffering as the consequence of experiences needed to ask us and all of humanity to choose something better. They trust that all is evolving as it needs to and that each of us is learning and growing along our individual Divine trajectories in Divine Right Timing.
This message of holding witness was so clearly conveyed in the film, ‘Mary Magdalene’, I highly recommend it.
The Blessing in Bearing Witness
Witness and honour each other’s paths.
Hold unconditional love and compassion for all.
Remember our triggers are invitations to go within.
To be a witness is a calling to create the shift to enlightenment through acknowledging all that does not resonate with the heart. Holding the ability to ‘see’ with eyes of love as we observe the human trials and tribulations. Evolved witnesses hold loving heart space, trusting each is having a guided experience according to their Divine path.
In effect, humanity is here to recognise the power of freewill.
The power to choose and through the consequences of our own choices, we learn to apply freewill for our highest Good and the Highest Good of all.
Blessed be
Michelle x
Michelle Cowles
Spiritual Leader/Teacher/Learner
Copyright © Michelle Cowles 2025
Disclaimer: The information on this page is general, lifestyle information and should not be used to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease. If this article raises mental health issues, please contact your General Practitioner, mental health worker, or Lifeline on 13 11 14 (Australia) OR find support by country at www.helpguide.org.
This is absolutely sensational. Thank you Michelle.