Most of Life is Above My Pay Grade.

Adventures in Synchronicity, Divine Guidance, & the Mystery of Being Alive.

Michael R. Smith, Ph.D.

Oh, Great Mystery. Your vast wonder is too unfathomable to comprehend.

“I like calling the ocean ‘the Sea’,” my client Denise said, as we barreled our way up Highway 1 in my Subaru Legacy toward Point Reyes Seashore, one hour north of San Francisco, on the morning of the recent weekend vision quest retreat I was facilitating for her. The Sea. Not the Ocean. Indeed. There’s a difference. A meaningful one.

The crystalline morning was imbued with a certain moodiness, a haunting mysticism inhabiting our auras, as well as the landscape itself. I remarked about how Marin county looks and feels so similar to Ireland - and she agreed, showing me photos of her recent trip. As for me - let’s just say it’s probably been a few centuries, or more, since my feet last set foot on those majestic hills.

Road trips do the Heart good. I love the reciprocity of unguarded conversation - in this case with Holstein cows leisurely grazing as the backdrop - that lead to confessional revelations and discoveries. Since my medicine retreats are half sacred and half profane - one part lucid, and one part ridiculous - of course I had to share with her my bitterness over being prevented from being high school valedictorian by having my only B occur in Driver’s Education. Because I failed parallel parking - something for which I am now known as having a freakish talent. At which point Denise suddenly stared into me - not at me - with astonishment. Wait, you too? Turns out she too was prevented from being valedictorian by a single B - from gym class. This from a woman who received nine - yes nine - varsity letters. Absurd synchronicity. I can hear Spirit laughing.

Revelry aside, soon it was time to arrive at South Beach, the site of her vision quest experience - and as we got closer to the site - the energy changed from irreverence to sanctity. The day, and the primordial Point Reyes landscape were awash in dramatic hues. I felt like the bespectacled lighthouse-keeper that I probably was in a previous life. Lots of wind - ferocious at times - some constant rainy drizzle, and the clouds were cloistered in dark bunches everywhere the eye could see - too numerous in number for any hope of sun to emerge. This was a sight that would induce panic in any mariner.

But not in the heart of this mariner. For weeks leading up to this moment, I had asked the cloud people to put on a show for Denise - to reward and oblige her humble prayers. I believed it would happen. I saw it happening. I knew and trusted - with every fibre of my being - that an epiphany would emerge.

After intentionally entering the silence, we exhaled our breath in unison, and I carefully arranged her circle. Intentions - spoken aloud. Corn meal - lovingly sprinkled for protection. The Great Horned Owl feather - a gift from Spirit to symbolize rapid manifestation. A handmade necklace, the image of a leaf, gifted from a previous medicine retreat client ("you’ll know who to gift this to”). She was seated on blue fabric (the guides were adamant). That’s a new one - but I do what I’m told. And four turquoise stones, placed in each of the four directions around her.

Almost there. I stared off into the drifting clouds for a moment. What Else? The answer came on the familiar frequency of my bat sonar ears. They’re trained to pick up on the subtlest of cues - and yet the silence was so loud that it became symphonic - a wordless lullaby arising from the land itself. Faithful ones, thank you for your Service. It is our Great Joy to Dance with you. Please begin.

Placing my consciousness under the Earth - I asked the energy to rise up Denise’s spine and into her crown. And then I took a small, soft step to exit her circle - a step so silent that a deer wouldn’t notice.

As I reverently pilgrimaged toward my own nearby power spot, using my feet as dowsing rods to sense where Spirit wanted me, Spirit pulled back the curtain on the clouds. The Sun - bright, solid, strong - spilled across the land, dazzingly. At the exact moment that I left her circle. Can this much goodness really be my life? I raised my hands to the sky with glory and praise.

Only after a few minutes of communing with all my relations around me did I realize that I unknowingly was sitting right next to a piece of driftwood perfectly formed in the shape of a female sacred pipe (channuppa). Of course. Denise wants to create her own channuppa. Real time magic.

A few days before she arrived, I ‘accidentally’ discovered the Earthquake trail on sacred indigenous land in Olema, just 12 miles from where I live in Marin county in Northern California. I love energetically scoping out locations for my clients before they arrive. I feel like Sherlock Holmes - asking the questions of Spirit - “where do you want us? What do you want us to see?”

The moment I stepped onto the trail that day - literally the moment I walked through the gates - I got an alert on my phone that a 6.6 earthquake happened in the Pacific.
And then, just as loudly - Saint Isidore introduced himself during my walk. In my channel, profoundly, loudly, the equivalent of a handshake accompanied by a loving sonic boom. “Nice to know you Michael.” That introduction took 54 years, but who’s counting? Not I.

And then, on day 1 of her retreat, literally the moment Denise set foot on the voluptuous energy vortex known as the San Andreas fault, she had a lightning bolt revelation and affirmation about what she’s seeking. The specificity of the message felt rapturous, and that propelled us to gleefully skip down the trail as the giant Oak trees accompanied us in our song.

In 2004, my first spiritual mentor, a Canadian shaman who we simply called “Bro,” explained the terms of my contract with the Divine. “You’ll always have a horse,” he said. Seeing the look of puzzlement on my face, he explained for my white man brain: I’ll always be taken care of. Okay, sounds good. Let’s do it. So I pledged my life to the Divine.

And now, 20 years later as the retreat was ending - my bones ache, my back flares, and I fight off the urge to take half a Gabapentin - being reminded by my Guides that to do so would dilute the quality of energy that Denise receives. So I instead take a little liquid L-theanine and settle in for the night, which feels like the smell of dirt. I project my consciousness into the redwoods outside my window. How lucky am I to do this work with you?

I exhale and sigh forcefully. Another ceremony down, thousands more to go. As my head is engulfed in the contours of my memory foam pillow, I acknowledge that there’s no end in sight for the Magical fairy dust that gets showered over those of us who work for the Divine.

So, I soldier on. And until such time as I take my last breath, I will be convicted - absolutely convicted.

That the Universe is benevolent.
That the Divine is unconditionally loving.
And that those who serve Spirit with humility are showered with blessings.

Everything else is above my pay grade.

There's a reason we call Spirit ‘Great Mystery’. Most things are not meant to be understood.

Great Mystery, how fond I am of thee. And in the quiet, still, reverent beating of my heart, I am reminded, yet again, that …

Your vast wonder is too unfathomable to comprehend.


Michael R. Smith, Ph.D.

For 20 years, Michael Smith, Ph.D. has served as a medium, channel, shamanic practitioner and spiritual guide. His programs, retreats, and mentoring classes for aspiring lightworkers can be found at EmpathConnection.com. Information on Michael’s medicine retreats can be found here.

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How does this piece resonate? Leave a comment and let me know your own adventures in synchronicities, wonder, and Divine guidance.

I am grateful for your presence in my life, and welcome your questions on my work.