Secrets of Your Cells: Discovering Your Body's Inner Intelligence (38 page)

Keep Wisdom

Our cells are both sanctuaries and wisdom keepers—the latter topic we explored in
chapter 8
. The delicate designs of our molecules form patterns as sophisticated and beautiful as a Rembrandt or Kandinsky painting, a Tibetan thanka (Buddhist religious paintings representing deities, cosmology, or mandalas), or a native medicine wheel.

When we create a home, a friendship, or an altar, it is a sacred space that our cells enjoy. We carry our feelings of sanctity within.

When we take time to really open our eyes, what designs do we see repeated in nature, in our own homes, and in the sanctuaries we visit? Can we consider that everything may contain or reveal wisdom? Is it possible that the forms and patterns revered for centuries may reflect the shapes our cells assume?

For a time, I led cancer support groups I called the Spiral Journey. On the first day we met, no one in the group recognized the spiral design as having any special meaning or relevance in their lives. Only when their eyes were opened to the myriad places this shape could be found did they become aware of its presence. Some of the participants were surprised and delighted to find that the art on their walls or the patterns on their sheets—items they had selected because they were pleasing or
meaningful—contained spirals. Similarly, only when we look and
see
can we recognize the beauty, wisdom, and sacredness in each other.

REFLECTION

What carries and holds wisdom, within you and around you? Take some time to look around and notice the patterns in nature. Look at the leaves of trees, the petals of flowers, the shapes of rocks. Imagine the forms of your cells and their intricate designs. Watch a butterfly, a hummingbird, and a growing plant. Marvel at the designs we all share. What sacred forms do you resonate with?

Cell-ebrate

It is said that, in the end, how much we have worked, what books we’ve written, which scientific breakthroughs we’ve made are not important; what matters is how deeply we’ve loved and connected. I wrote this book to share the knowledge that we are loved by our powerful and magical cells, and I hope that you will pass this message along to others. We are never alone when we consider our cells are always with us, tiny containers of life reminding us of life’s sanctity. Our cells are always in the now. Enjoy their great wisdom and rejoice with them—and then put your cells in motion. We can change the future and transform the present by moving—dancing, singing, sharing, progressing—by offering blessings, and by taking action.

Now, cytonaut that you are, you understand that you
are
your cells. You know that if you emulate their wise actions and operating instructions you can unburden yourself of needless mind chatter and instead be transported to enjoy all the deliciousness of life. My mind can give me all kinds of reasons
not
to act—and I know that you know what I’m talking about. Yet when I really think about my cells with compassion, my mind relaxes its grasp on
no, can’t,
or
won’t;
my cells take on a greater dimension and prominence in my well-being. When I consider the consequences
of my habits for my cells, I make better choices. Doing so is not about “should”—for I truly want to care for my cells, vessels for the divine spark of God. Held in this light, making better choices is more about “can.”

May you find yourself similarly moved to honor and nurture the sacred spark within you as you carry your new knowledge of the secrets of your cells forward into the future.

Now, I would like to share a blessing:

Great spirit, mother father God, help me take better care of the trillions of sanctuaries that carry “me” in their hearts. Guide me to be aware of others, to see that we are all part of the sacred-hood, that we are all connected, and that we each do our part to care, to love, and to ensure, as best we can, that tomorrow will be here for future generations—that we, as their ancestors, will respond well and leave nurturing legacies of wisdom. Amen.

As with all blessings, hold this one with intention and presence. Stop and
be
with your cells as a spiritual practice, once a day.

When I let myself become lost and wander in the matrix of my molecules and strings, I was embraced by the endless possibilities that we are quantum beings who exist in an energetic vibratory space uniquely occupied by all our energy, molecules, and cells. Our energetic configurations are unique; there truly is only one you in the whole of the universe. How lucky you are to have the role of
you
in this lifetime. How do you want to play that role?

EXPLORATION

Lessons from Our Cells: Life’s Operating Instructions, as Easy as 1, 2, 3

I leave you with one final exploration, to explore now and to take with you into the future. Make a copy of the following list of instructions you have received from your cells, place it on a wall you pass by often, and each day see which lesson might be your teacher. Remember that you can always return to these lessons to mine the mysteries and teachings of your cells.

Embrace sanctuary

Recognize self and other

Listen

Choose

Attach and let go

Sustain energy

Create purpose

Learn and remember

Keep and know wisdom

Connect and “cell-ebrate”

connectIon−cell-ebrate 209

Acknowledgments

T
he people I want to acknowledge for guiding my way to this book encompass a lifetime of teachers, artists, scientists, colleagues, family, and friends. You provided me with insight and curiosity, and sometimes unwitting support and encouragement for my inner explorer. It has indeed taken a lifetime to reach this point. I have a deep and abiding gratitude to you all.

Thanks to the scientists upon whose shoulders I stand. I have reached into your work to find mine: my spiritual “grandfather,” Albert Einstein, as well as Christian de Duve, Watson and Crick, Donald Ingber, and all the biochemists who dug deep into our cells to discover how they work.

And much gratitude to the bridge builders who brought together science and spirituality: to David Suzuki, PhD, who merges the knowledge of the First Nations and cell biology with the wisdom of nature and native knowing; to David Sobel, MD, and David Spiegel, MD, who showed how mind, social support, and our senses are part of the healing path; to Dean Ornish, MD, who put together ancient healing practices for modern medicine, and Mark Wexman, MD, who included me in a team engaged in the healing of hearts;
to Bruce Lipton, PhD, who looked at the cells as intelligent teachers and made cells friendly to nonscientists; and to Deepak Chopra, MD, who first took the cell into the deeper realms of consciousness and energy—to all of you I am indebted for the body of knowledge you have contributed to all of us.

To Larry Hershman, who brought me into the magical growing world of plants and the sanctuary of the garden; to Kristi Moya, who invited me into her life to learn about the healing power of shared meals; and to my parents, Natalie and Perk, who nurtured me with their love, food, and family and bequeathed Perk’s writer genes to me.

Thanks to my teachers

To Max Rafelson, PhD, no longer earthbound, my science mentor and graduate advisor as I struggled in the lab to learn biochemistry at the University of Illinois College of Medicine. Thank you for helping me find my way as a researcher and learn to ask questions.

To Marshal Kadin, MD, now professor at Harvard University, who taught me how to use a microscope and look at the human cells that changed my life and perception of the world.

To the National Institutes of Health, the American Cancer Society, and the University of California for funding my medical research. You helped me discover I was actually a scientist.

To Anna Halprin, the first teacher who helped me learn that the body can express emotion and experience healing through movement, sound, and art.

To the aikido community of George Leonard, Richard Heckler, Richard Moon, and Wendy Palmer. You helped me get into my body in the first place, to become more than a “head.”

To Tomas Pinkson, PhD, for decades of loving support and guidance in exploring other ways of knowing and teachings of indigenous people. Thank you for walking your talk and showing me the truth of being a heart warrior. To my friends at Wakan who shared the shamanic path with me in our journeys to become whole.

To Eli Jaxon Bear and Toni Varner (Gangaji), who on those early mornings in Bolinas taught me tai chi chi kung and the value of a daily practice in community.

To DaJin and Charlotte Sun, who opened me to the deep experience of qi and helped me know that there was, in fact, an invisible energy force.

And to Shirley Dockstader, who taught with me, helped me teach from the heart, and asked questions about our cells that made me think about them in ways I had not before. This book comes from our sharing knowledge and learning together.

Thanks to my dear, supportive, and loving friends

To Elson Haas, MD, whose Preventive Medical Center of Marin provided me with the first space in which to explore working with adult patients, and thereby to discover more of who I am. Your friendship, and the financial support by having me help you with your books and educational outreach, gave me the support I needed to write this book. I couldn’t have done it without you.

To Mark Krigbaum, for our ongoing conversations and for being “called” to the work of our cells. You have produced incredible video and photography, and your encouragement and friendship have meant more than you will ever know.

To Jacki Fromme, Marilena Redfern, and Marcia Starck, whose years of friendship have sustained and nourished me, especially during times spent in isolation completing this book. I look forward to more celebrations and play. To the other Queen of Hearts, Beverley Kane, and to Ruben Kleiman, who shared many a “cell-ebration,” editorial review, reflection, and wine-and-food adventure.

To Bethany Argisle, who has been a dear friend and a coach in getting the first round of this material done a decade ago, and who had me as a houseguest whether we wanted it or not. Words can’t thank you enough for your continual encouragement and prayers, for making sure I was safe when I was scared, and for being my walking buddy. Thank you.