Nelys the Alchemyst. (Photo credit: Brian Froud)
Nelys is a serene scientist that works with Faery alchemy. Rather than transforming physical properties into something new or different, Nelys works with the soul. She spends her time studying living things and helping them from one transition in life to the next. Nelys sees to our progress in life and either incites progress or brings us to a halt so that we’re forced to deal with an issue before we go any further. This isn’t out of any wrongful act that we’ve committed or anything. Sometimes, we just need to stop looking so far ahead that we forget where we’re at and that right here, right now, we might have some glaring flaw that needs to be addressed first.
Often, we get in the way of our progress. We think we should be further along in some areas. Maybe we’re too scared to move forward. We might be pushing ourselves in a direction that’ll only lead to a dead end. Nelys tries her best to gently guide us to where we need to be, to remind us of where we are and what we’re actually doing.
I spent so much time limiting my knowledge by doing things the way everyone else did, trying to have the experiences they had. I read more about spirituality than practicing it for myself and what I couldn’t explain, I let scientists and studies explain it to me. I thought I was intelligent, in touch and experienced because I learned through vicarious means. Of course my meditation goals would fail. In the end, I gave up meditating for about a week. I essentially sulked and brooded over how much I felt like a failure.
I decided, after my week of angst, to try meditating like a beginner. I had childishly told myself that if I couldn’t get to the same level others had reached that I would just go back to the beginning and start all over again. I relearned how to meditate and what worked for me. I took small steps, meditating for a minute and building up to ten minutes. In a month, I moved up to meditating for a half hour. At the end of the month, I decided to try meditating and just relaxing in that state rather than “trying” to meditate or treat “meditating” as a verb, an action. I just wanted to stop pushing myself and let everything wander and explore itself. When I did, for a brief moment, I had my first true spiritual experience within meditation. It was so profound that when I came out of my meditation, I decided this was what I wanted to do with my life: Pursue the exploration of meditation and see just how far the mind can travel beyond the physical realm.
If you had to pick a song that embodies Nelys, it would be “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” by the Rolling Stones. She encourages us to stop and listen to her wisdom. In essence, if you try some time, you just might find, you get what you need.