Projects

ABOUT MICHAEL GRIMES

Launching this site feels like the completion of a major cycle. It’s been a long time in the making,

Creating conscious content gives me a feeling of aligned energetic flow, thats inspiring and up lifting.

…it’s a stoked type bliss.

The last time I had this feeling was creating and launching SOUL Charter School. My Co-Founder and I created a revolutionary model of education that became the first school approved by the San Diego County Office of Education in the past 15 years. SOUL is based on a spiritual foundation and entrepreneurial focus, that connects students to an understanding of who they are and who they want to be, while giving them the tools and skills needed to live the life of their dreams. It’s a beautiful school.

I was living the dream. I was married to a gorgeous woman, with two angels of daughters, living blocks from the beach, serving as CEO and Co-Director of my dream school. I had good friends, was full of self love, and was grateful for my strong spiritual practice. I was hosting the Saturday Celebration and Ocean Beach Junto on a monthly basis, operating the Front Yard Brewery -which I opened in 2016- and enjoying a few vacations a year. 

Much of this was created through the practice of setting intentions and taking inspired action.

I HAD BEEN SITTING IN THE DRIVERS SEAT, CREATING MY REALITY, EVER SINCE THE AWAKENING IN MY EARLY 20’S.

I was living my dream. 

But it was hard work. I was working 80 hours a week while only making a baseline teacher salary. I began to experience stress for the first time in my life. Work was hard.

I was giving all I had to help the school thrive, while trying to be loving, helpful and present to my wife and daughters. I was hardly ever home, yet I didn’t make enough money for my wife to stop working. She had to keep her job teaching, even though she was doing most everything around the house. 

It was hard.

I LOST BALANCE AND LIFE GOT INTENSE.

My temper worsened. I was passively mean. I raised my voice and treated some people badly.  

I thought I had done the work after my year of hell earlier in life. I read the spiritual texts, understood the concepts, and had a daily meditation practice. I was on my path, applying the concepts, seemingly thriving. 

That was, until I was pushed out of SOUL and it all start started to crumble. After leaving the school I was knocked down for the first time in years. 

It gave my wife the confidence to tell me how upset she was. I tried to heal things but it was too late. We had to separate. Around this same time, my dad was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer. 

My dads funeral was on the day my wife moved out. 

OVER THE COURSE OF TWO YEARS, I WENT FROM THE HIGHEST PEAK I’D EVER STOOD, TO THE DEEPEST VALLEY I’D EVER FALLEN.

I now acknowledge how little I know. I see how flawed I still am, and how much work I still have to do. I now understand the concept of Spiritual Bypassing. 

I never thought I bypassed because I meditated every day. I was continually reflecting and taking time to ground. I read dozens of spiritual texts and embodied many of the concepts. I was doing great! Thriving. 

But my meditation failed to find some of the built up anger, trauma, and pain that was still locked inside me. There was negative energy hidden deep within my body. I did a decent job of managing it for 30 plus years, but when life got difficult, it reappeared. The harder life got, the more apparent it became.

I’m now back to doing the work. I still meditate every day but I’ve added new modalities. I’ve asked for feedback from a dozen close friends and did a mens intensive retreat. I started going to therapy. I’ve done independent sessions with coaches, counselors, and psychics. I’ve had mushrooms ceremonially. I microdosed. And experienced Kambo and DMT. I changed my diet to become plant based. I deepened my inner work. Created new healthy habits. And the list goes on…

I’ve owned my part in the struggles. I’ve done a lot of apologizing and am working hard to fully heal. 

I want to get back to where I thought I was at. 

But I want to be there for real. 

I want to move all the negative energy through me, clear the past, and live fully in the present, aligned with source, in a high vibrational state.  

I’m committed to the journey. I’m committed to learn and grow, do my work, and positively qualify my energy.

As I continue on this journey I’d like to invite you in. I’ll share the experiences I have and the lessons I learn. I’ll share the thoughts and feelings I experience, the sights I see, sounds I hear, and lessons I learn. 

I’ve been a teacher by trade for 20 years. I love so many aspects of teaching. One benefit of teaching is that we retain about 80% of what we teach. Teaching is one of the best ways to learn.  

My hope is that in sharing what I learn, it can help me to integrate the lessons and embody them more deeply. And maybe in the process I can help others on their journey.

Together, we can climb to the light. 

With Love,