Over the years, I have received guidance from the realm of spirit in many ways, but this was a first. Related to nothing that had happened that I could discern, I suddenly had a song stuck in my head; not just any song, but one that every schoolchild my age from long ago knew by heart: “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.”

And it was a very persistent earworm (not sure if I can call it that since it was not inspired by recently hearing it on the radio or internet). Instead, the song sprang out of seemingly nowhere and took up residence in my head on a continuous loop.

I finally decided that I should ask my guides why, not really expecting a response, and received an immediate reply that I needed to gather two of my shaman buddies and that we should sing the song together. I was like—let me get this right—you want us to form a shaman choir? “Yes.” Why? Still reeling from the idea of gathering other medicine people to SING a patriotic song, I was even more bowled over by the answer: singing this song would help to wake up the Land and All My Relations which was needed to help in the fight for democracy and freedom.

And when I “heard” that simple sentence, I also felt the power inherent in the singing of that particular song—the possibilities. From a shamanic perspective, it made perfect sense to engage in an action that blended consensual reality, mythic, symbolic, and energetic.

“My Country, ‘Tis of Thee”, also known as “America”, is an American patriotic song whose lyrics were written by Samuel Francis Smith. The song served as one of the de facto national anthems of the United States…before the adoption of “The Star-Spangled Banner” as the official U.S. national anthem in 1931. The melody is adapted from the de facto national anthem of the United Kingdom, “God Save the King”.—from Wikipedia

It was especially notable that the melody was deliberately repurposed in resistance to the idea of rulership by a king versus democratic governance by We, the People.

Once again, I recalled something that one of my former shamanic teachers said: “When you get something completely unexpected, that’s when you know it is real.” And this sure fit the bill since, despite having been forced into the choir in Catholic school, I have never considered myself a singer. And a part of me laughed at the idea that now I would be doing so as a trio of medicine people. Spirit truly has a sense of humor.

I contacted shaman Claudine Records first, and she embraced the idea immediately, despite adding that she is not a singer. And she shared the information that in Celtic mythology, there are stories about battles that were won because one side called upon the spirit of the Land; whoever won the Land over, won the battle. I felt my heart chakra expand in awe, and tears sprang to my eyes—a sign (for me) of Truth.

And fellow medicine person Patrick Corrigan agreed to join us (I knew that he could sing, so maybe we would not be too bad).

So, on May 7, the three of us joined our voices and our shamanic allies to sing “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.” It was both powerful and chaotic.

At first, I tried to match my cadence and voice to my fellow shamans, which did not work. I realized that I had to let go of trying to control and harmonize and just focus on singing my part with as much heart as possible.

When we compared notes afterward, Claudine and Patrick shared that they had struggled with the same thing before allowing, and that they felt the energy expand when they did. Claudine also shared that she experienced tears (for her, a sign of the power of the energy flowing through), and that a small lizard had approached her just as she started singing (she’s in Florida) and was still hanging out with her afterward.

Claudine, Patrick, and I agreed that the experience felt powerful and beautiful, and Claudine’s cockatoos must have agreed since they were singing and dancing along.

Spirit told me that it was okay that we were not in synch, because the other people who would be singing this song would be singing on their own. It would be like all these voices together, even though we are separate. We share a common purpose, but we all march to the beat of a different drum (or rattle), so individual expression was perfect. I was further told that the time lag that we experienced was deliberate. I decided not to explore that one too far. Spirit physics is beyond my pay grade.

When I asked if there were further steps we were supposed to take, Spirit said that we should write about what we had done and tell others. To let them know that they can sing this, too. They can join their voices to the cause of awakening the spirit of the Land we call America. We need the People to raise their voices, each where they are.

So, go outside if you wish, but it is not necessary. Sing to the Land and connect with your feelings of love for this beautiful country we call America (we used this reference for the words). You do not have to do this daily, but each singing of the song strengthens that coming together, that healing, that awakening.

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A WILD WAY TO HEAL
Rose De Dan, Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing LLC is an animal communicator, Reiki Master Teacher, shamanic energy healer, and author of Tails of a Healer: Animals, Reiki and Shamanism and Out of the Darkness and Other Animal Tails. Her classes, sessions, and ceremonial work are inspired by wild and domestic animals who have issued a call to action for personal and global healing.