Finding Love After Loss

Today's story, from Shelley Hyndman-Cumberbatch, is a deeply personal one that tells of the sudden death of her beloved husband. But the love story doesn't end there. Get ready to hear firsthand the miracles that can happen when one keeps their heart open to Divine Love, especially in the face of unimaginable loss. Here's Shelley in a recorded talk at the Temple of ECK here in Chanhassen.

to have 23 incredible years with

my late husband, El. But a little before we met, I finished my master's degree, I was looking to start a new career, and the New Year rolled around as it has now, and I began thinking of what goals I'd like to set for myself. And suddenly it occurred to me that there was only one goal that really mattered to me. More than finding that job or writing that book, I wanted to remove the

blocks to love in my life. I'd had a couple forays into the world of relationships, and they had not turned out as I had hoped, and I had this sense that it was something in me, in my attitude or state of consciousness, that was blocking the love that I wanted to have in my life. So I sat down and I

did a spiritual exercise. I went into contemplation, that conversation with the most sacred part of yourself, and I asked my inner guide, the Mahanta, to please help me remove the blocks to love in my life. Over the next seven months, an amazing journey unfolded. I was guided to people who would share helpful perspectives about relationships, and books that gave me new insights, and articles about self love. And then one day, I went to a movie

with a dear friend. I went to see Titanic, and at the end of that movie, I was sobbing in the theater. Not because of all the people who lost their lives in the icy waters. Because Rose and Jack found love, and they lost

it. She lost it. I felt

devastated. A couple days later, I had a dream. In the dream, it was a different time and place, and I looked different, and I was so in love. And then I lost that love, and I was utterly bereft, to the point of not wanting to go on with my life. And the Master stepped in in the dream and showed me that this was a past life, and that in that life, I had made a very strong decision. I decided that it was better not to love than to love again and risk losing.

And this decision, he showed me, was still affecting my life today. And when he showed me this, that decision and its effects on me dissolved and I became truly ready to open my heart to love. The Mahanta, my spiritual guide and friend, had helped me raise my spiritual IQ. And another thing happened in that moment when the past

relinquished its hold on me. I became the perfect partner for the Soul who was going to become my husband, who I was going to love with all my heart, and who I was also going to lose. A few

months later, I met El, and we

began our beautiful love story. It was filled with growth and sprinkled liberally with miracles throughout. We got married right here on this stage in the Temple, and had two wonderful children, bought a house, built a life, traveled extensively, and eventually moved from Canada to Minnesota here so that I could accept my dream job. And our lives were

filled with love. And any time we had a challenge, we would do just as I had done, go into contemplation and connect with the divine love within, listen to God's answers. We were both students of ECKANKAR, and we shared that deep love for God. And we saw ourselves as spiritual partners who had agreed to help each other on our journey home to God. And we did just that right up through the very last weeks

that I had with him. And in those weeks, everything, everything that was not pure love fell away. It was one of the most beautiful experiences

of my life, profound and life

changing. And my spiritual IQ was raised again. But I'll be honest with you. The first years after he passed away were unbelievably painful. It was such a shock. He was literally the most healthy and fit person I knew, and that gave me a bit of a clue that there was a bigger picture to what had happened. And sometimes I could glimpse that bigger picture. And, you know, El came to me in a dream and he told me, "Shelley, it's more amazing than

I ever even imagined." And I knew, I understood that he had completed his spiritual mission in this lifetime. But other times, I felt utterly lost as I focused on helping our children to navigate this loss and make their way forward into

university. And it was in those

times of profound grief that I heard the Master whisper to me, "Soften your heart. Open it wide and receive all the love I'm sending to you." And this was difficult for me, because I was much more comfortable giving. I didn't want to be a burden, didn't want to put anybody out. But suddenly there was so much love coming in. Friends in the ECK community delivered meals to our house. Neighbors came and raked 41 bags of leaves from our

property and mowed the lawn. My best friend showed up on my doorstep to help me get the house ready for sale. My sister flew down from Canada to help pack up the house. There was so much love, and I was learning new lessons in receiving love. And I also found myself in the position to give love and support to other people who were going through a similar experience. And during that time, another

friend who I'd known for 32

years, Jonathan, reached out and became a lifeline. I had actually met him back in university, years before I'd met El. And back then, I thought I'd actually wind up with him, but our timing was always off, and other things went awry. And yet, here he was listening as I grieved, reminding me of my writing dreams that I'd had in University, encouraging me to pursue them. And I found myself remembering and reclaiming parts of myself that I had put on the

back burner for years. And after about two years, gradually, a new love story began. As you might imagine though,

this was difficult at times for

my children. Things hadn't unfolded in the ordinary way, because I lived here, he lived in another country, my daughter was going to university up in Canada, so we hadn't had the ordinary opportunities to get together. And I remember one day my son turned to me and said, "I don't know Jonathan, and I don't think I ever will." And I understood and gave him all the love and spiritual freedom I could. And I said, "I understand, and that's your

choice to make." Well, that night he had a dream, and he called me the next day to tell me about it, and he's given me permission to share it with you today. In the dream, his father was with him, and El put his arm around our son and told him, "Give Jonathan a chance. He's a good man. He loves your mother. She deserves that, and I want

that for her." And the next day, Sebastian, our son, texted Jonathan, reached out and began a conversation and started to get to know him a little better. And when he told me this, my heart overflowed with love and gratitude to El, this remarkable Soul I had had the opportunity to share my life with and who was working with us and loving us still on the spiritual planes. The love had not died.

It continued still. It was more expansive than the role of husband and wife that we had played in our lives together. It was deep, deeper, this intense, pure love we shared still Soul to Soul. So this past summer, Jonathan

and I got married, and - thank

you - and I am continuing every day to raise my spiritual IQ and learn new humbling experiences

and lessons in love. But the thing that strikes me most about all of this is that every part - the Mahanta's love for me and helping me to remove the blocks in my life to love all those years ago, the incredible love story I shared with El, his love for me and our children, and the new rediscovered love with Jonathan - each part is part of a bigger picture, a larger love story, and that is the love story of God's love for each of

us as Soul. For me, that is the most beautiful and all-encompassing love story, and every relationship in my life is an opportunity to give and receive divine love and learn what it means to truly love as God loves. Thank you so much for listening.

This sacred sound, an ancient mantra, is simply a carrier of divine love between the creator and Soul. That's you! HU has helped countless Souls heal a broken heart, restore calm, and so much more. With everyday practice, it can help you too. If this is interesting to you, you may want to check out the free HU app. For me, it's my daily stress relief app. Now obviously, no one technique is right for everyone. It's really the practice of keeping an open

heart that's most important. HU is just the best way I've ever found to let love illuminate you and spiritualize the heart. It's a calming, healing sound, and we'll play a recording for you where 1000s of people are singing. It'll play for just under a minute, so you can feel free to sing along or just listen. Here we go. Huuuuuu . . . Now, the HU is one way to work with divine spirit. There's so many ways creatively that you

can connect. Shelley shared one exercise that she came back to again and again. This one is called "Collecting Joy." It's from the book The Wonder Within You, by Sri Harold Klemp. And the exercise is so simple and kind of fun. You just fill yourself with the love you have for a person, a pet, an experience, and just let that

love flow. Now, in your imagination, gather it all up and then rise above the timeline of your life and sprinkle this happiness on your present and on your future. Now leave it there for divine spirit to bring you its gifts of happiness and love, both now and for the years to come, kind of like planting seeds. Finally, I'd like to leave you with these words from Sri Harold Klemp, the spiritual leader of ECKANKAR. He says, "Life gives and takes, but

always gives again. Be thankful for wisdom. Be grateful for existence. Life is precious. Love it and it will return unfoldment to you a thousand times." That's the show today. Thank you so much for listening, and all the best on your journey wherever it may take you. See you next time.