I have something wonderful to share with you.

After 40 years of doing every class of study I could get my hands on, and even teaching a few, I am blown away by a shortcut path called Akram Vignan. It is a spiritual science that takes you from climbing the many stairs we’ve all climbed to find lasting happiness, to an elevator that takes you right to your own beautiful Pure Soul.

Imagine, one step to reach the awareness we’ve wanted our whole lives.

They call this the stepless path to Self-Realization. In order to experience it you attend a ceremony online (most travel to India for this) and in just a couple of hours you experience your own true, incredible nature. You will never be the same after you get this. You realize the truth of who you are beyond all circumstances. You become the Self. Once you fully experience this truth inside of you, your vision opens to see it in everyone else. It becomes a profound gift to our families and the world.

It’s the last stop for me. I feel incredibly lucky to have been told about this by a dear friend. And, please know I am a beginner on this journey and wanted to make sure it’s for real before I sent this out. It's been seven months now and the changes in my life would fill another page. Peace and presence fill my heart in ways I never imagined.

For me, Akram Vignan explains everything I’ve always wanted to understand about life and didn’t.

In the beginning it might seem challenging on an intellectual level. I encourage you to listen to your heart over your head. You will feel it.

One thing I can tell you for sure is, the levels of clarity keep opening to bigger spheres of awareness as I continue. I am discovering an entire world of understanding and bliss that I never knew existed. This is the promise of this path.

By the way. it’s all free, completely.

This continues to amaze me. This endeavor to bring light to the world is run by love alone.

If you feel a nudge to check it out, please explore the Akram Vignan Academy.

For more clarity on how Akram Vignan
will enlighten your personal life and journey home...

Join us for a Sunday Webinar on zoom. Any question is welcome.
My friend Uwe has been on this path for over ten years and he is very happy
to share and be of service.

Sunday Webinars

January 24, 2021: 9 – 11AM PST
January 31, 2021: 9 – 11AM PST

Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89892733025?pwd=d0VVVjJFU05mVzlQWU84b1dkbzNuUT09
Meeting ID: 898 9273 3025
Password: dada

If these dates don’t work, please send me a note and we will figure something out.

I hope to see you very soon.

Much love,

This note is about you. All you. It’s about your ability to read these words and feel the intention in them. This note is about knowing who you are. I mean really are… beyond the personality, the dressing up, or the wanting to be or not wanting to be. Who you are before and after all of this passes.

I have a strong feeling about this.

It comes from what I saw, felt, and experienced as my body stopped working and I moved away from the crumpled form laying below in the hospital bed. I became so filled with love it is unspeakable. It was inside of me, outside of me, and extended out as far as I could travel in any direction. I call it love but really there is no word for it. And I’ll try anyway… unbound joy, complete, nothing left undone, whole with absolute awareness that this was the real me and the one below was temporary. Nothing was missing, NOTHING. I became aware in an instant of my true Self. Bliss filled me beyond what language can describe. I was perfect exactly as I was; somehow I knew this had always been there inside of me, that I had always had access to this as a human but didn’t know it. And, please trust me when I tell you, Holly was not by any stretch perfect or deserving of such a profound death experience. At least not in her mind prior to having it.

It’s the real us you guys!

The real you! It’s who we all are when we set down our costumes and let go of the past, the blame, and all the held-onto mistakes we’ve made. It’s who we are when we stop fighting over who’s right and who’s wrong. It’s the beautiful truth of our being and we don’t have to die to find this out. It’s available now, inside you. All it takes is the intention to feel it.

It’s who we get to be when we stop paying attention to a fitful mind or believing thoughts of an ego that loves conflict, winning, or beating another up to feel superior. The real you is filled with understanding and kindness for what we all go through as humans, the big you feels compassion for how we forget who we are and become so certain we are the costume we’ve been wearing. It’s a temporary thing, this costume.

So why not start accessing the truth of you right now? 

It’s not hard: have a strong intent and decide with your full heart to see the pure beautiful beings in front of you. See them as more than the rote words they speak, see them as more than what they protect or defend. Look a little deeper at your family, friends, and enemies and imagine them setting down their costumes for the last time. See them as more than that.

Nobody is left out of the coming and going that being human is. Your kind intention to see more clearly and truly will bring an unfamiliar strength. I am confident it will soothe and touch all who are near.

You have this ability or you wouldn’t be reading this.

Let’s join hearts and see this preciousness in our families, loved ones across the miles, down the street, and next door. They will feel it and perhaps be spurred to remember the truth. Please don’t forget to look in the mirror and give that one a wink and a kind smile too for all it is managing in today’s world.

Happy Thanksgiving Dear Friends. I am eternally thankful for you.

Much love,

We are not our emotions, we are so much more.

This is a challenging time for everyone and worry wears many faces… some people get angry while others are overrun with sadness or blame. There are the elderly and the fragile watching in despair while children are confused and parents do their best to help them feel safe. Regardless of where we are on the fear scale there is one thing we can all do to help… let go of the fear we are holding inside. How?

Allow whatever you are feeling to exist.

One minute of just sitting in what we feel, without fighting it, hating it, blaming it, or making it wrong, melts it. I know, I know, this sounds too easy. And I invite you to give two minutes of your day and test it. Here’s the trick though—most of us believe getting angry, crying, or ranting and blaming is truly feeling. It’s not! These responses arise NOT from allowing a feeling, but from resisting one.

It’s easy to discover this for yourself. In the midst of an emotion, ask yourself “What am I really upset about?” Be as specific and honest as you can when you answer. Under our initial response lies a deeper concern. Not to discount any emotion that may appear, however, when this underlying fear is faced, it’s like pulling the right string to open a big bag of dog food. It opens perfectly, all the way. This is what happens to us when we see the underlying truth. The stories, opinions, and judgments that grew out of that initial fear release right along with it. Honesty takes us to the right thread.

I’ll share the underlying feelings I see most often when coaching people: helplessness, loss, loneliness, and fear of failure, losing control, and death. Understandably there are a lot of sensations stacked on top of these ideas. We tuck these feelings down, make them our enemies, deny they exist, pretend over them and don’t even realize we’re lugging them through life, until we let them go and experience how free we are without them.

Awareness increases with just a few minutes of inquiry.

Admitting, allowing, and breathing through the resisted sensations has us become source over how we feel instead of how we feel being source over us. Give it a go. If you feel like you need more guidance, here’s a free download of The Allowing Handbook which has the steps for releasing outlined in Chapter 4 (available for the next 30 days only). You can check it out on Amazon before you download it to see if it speaks your language. [Dear parents: the Catch & Release process is helpful with children of all ages. There are examples in the text of how to apply it.]

People often ask, “What does it mean to allow a feeling?”

It’s surrendering to sensations. It’s deliberately allowing the heaviness, dread, physical contraction, and fright that the worry stirs. Allowing is the willingness to feel what we fear and stop running from it, letting whatever sensation that is there to just be there. It’s getting honest and asking again after the initial opening, “What am I really afraid of feeling?” then opening to explore, discover, allow, and dissolve. 

Allowing a feeling is not about making yourself wrong for being vulnerable, angry, afraid, or whatever you might deem weak. Making yourself wrong for anything adds more density and inertia to what you are experiencing. Allowing ‘what is’ for a minute is healing. Having the courage to be real and to show loved ones that it’s okay to feel whatever they feel, is powerful and quite kind. Not being real, not allowing makes it more difficult for those around us to express themselves; it reinforces the idea that they should pretend too. It prolongs suffering.

This practice is about acknowledging that what you find inside is yours, and not the fault of someone else. (If you blame what you feel on another, you have to wait for them to change to feel better). When you own how you feel, you can release it. It’s not a small thing to be present and inquire like this. It’s a gift to your body and your loved ones to clear negative energy. Good things happen with this effort. We become more present, more aware, and definitely more healthy. Suddenly, there’s more space for intuition to guide our actions.

It’s a big deal to allow.

Don’t give up if you don’t feel completely clear after one release. Don’t be surprised if your mind tells you you’re doing it wrong, it won’t work, you’re nuts or something similar. The ego/mind loves conflict and upset. Don’t listen to it. Keep going. Let the proof be how you or your family feel after a few releases. We’ve spent a lifetime being told to stuff it, get back on the horse, don’t be a sissy, and so on. Give yourself a little time to relax and get real with yourself. Allowing is Magical stuff!

Thank you for reading and considering these ideas.

This is not an easy time. Please take extra care of yourself and lend a hand to others as you feel strong and safe to do so. We will get through this and come out the other side with our hearts more awakened to what matters. I hear about the planet healing, the sky clearing, waters being restored, people singing to one another, and families listening to each other in ways that inspire their hearts to do the talking. Let’s join in and heal what might need healing inside each of us. This is a lasting gift to the whole.

If you have any questions about what I’ve written, feel free to reach out. I will do my best to remind you how powerful your focus of attention is.

Please take a moment and flow some kindness to yourself and know how dear you are in this world as you stop, breathe, love, hope, and open to something greater than fear.

Much love,

How? By reaching deep enough to feel something beyond personal beliefs and blame. Consider for a moment what might become possible if we feel the thread that connects us all, instead of focusing on what separates us. This unmistakable connection that explains empathy, intuition, and all those times we think of someone and suddenly they’re calling or knocking at our door.  This energy that is invisible, yet tangible. It moves through all of us, and we all exist in it. What we think and feel is part of what composes it. I felt the truth of this when I left my body and died years ago, I was floating in it. 

Our ability to offer care to another being travels through this field of energy. 

Anyone can tap into this quiet place if they truly want to, whether they believe it or not. Deciding to become aware of this thread changes things. This intention wakes up more awareness of what matters to the whole. A flow of kind action takes place without effort, actions free of anger and agenda. We’ve all felt this flow before.

We’re all part of one planet, one world; even considering this right now, opens us.  One little tiny thread in the fabric, we are all intrinsic to the integrity of the whole cloth.  Each thread in a fabric has a unique and integral part. When a thread rips or gets torn, we’re all affected. The cloth becomes less stable, surrounding threads are pulled on more. We matter!

We have no idea how much our willingness to be present and connected affects the entire cloth. Energy matters. We have all experienced how the meanness and blame of one person can add suffering and harm to so many. Imagine what might become possible if we take the time to offer inspiration, a glance of compassion, or a smile of understanding to someone stuck in fear—without adding to the upset, agreeing with it or topping it with a sad story of our own. There are people who could use some help right now. Let’s extend a hand to give assistance… rather than to get something. 

We are all the keepers of this planet. We have very much to do with the shape our world is in. Yes, we are one little thread, but what might be possible if we all took a little more responsibility for what we say, share, and deposit into this fabric of life? We can offer powerful energy from wherever we are. 

Let’s grow goodness instead of feed fear.

I treasure the thread that connects us. Thank you for you in this world. 

Much love to you always,

Five minutes of willingness is all it takes.

If you would like to let go of some mind chatter and replace it with joy… these three steps have been easy and fast for clearing out criticism. I hope you give them a go so you and your family can feel the relief they offer.

Step 1: Think of someone you’ve hurt in your life. It doesn’t matter how long ago. It could be twenty years ago or ten minutes ago. As soon as you genuinely look, it will appear.  

Once you recall the moment, be with it for a second or two. Watch what you did to them with new eyes. See what happened from your heart. This may help, imagine the person you hurt in front of you and connect with them the best you can—not just with the physical person—with their beingness, their heart, some like to call it the soul. Just be with them and feel their life. You can’t do this wrong. Simply intending to open and see the heart of someone magically shows us the way.

Once you have a sense of this person, sincerely apologize to them. This helps open us so we are more willing to experience the hurt we caused them. Allow yourself to feel remorse for the pain you inflicted.  Sometimes it helps me to say what I did specifically. For example, I’m sorry I abandoned you and discounted your feelings. Or, I am sorry I criticized you, made fun of you, and gossiped about you. Then, I feel how that hurt them and I own how I put negative energy in their space. I take a minute and genuinely acknowledge the pain I caused and apologize for doing it. 

Silent thoughts transmit energy.

Step 2: Look them in the eye (the image in front of you) and tell them you won’t do this again. Truly mean it. Declare to your Self that you won’t repeat this mistake. This is powerful. Deciding not to behave like this again dismantles the habit. You will like the way you feel when you promise this and mean it. 

It becomes clear after just a few applications that our heartfelt energy and intentions travel perfectly to where they need to go.

Please don’t take my word for it… experience it for your Self.

Step 3:  While connected to this person, send them a blessing. Whatever this may look like to you. Send a beam of love, a prayer, a flow of care, or maybe a wish for them to have peace. This intention is powerful and I’m pretty sure this kindness touches more parts of life than we imagine. 

For me, this little five minutes has been very kind to my life. Understanding and compassion grow each time I apply it. I’ve done this with people that have passed away and it has been a treasure. It blows me away how my attention knows exactly where to go when I ask myself, “Holly, who have you caused any harm?” 

I find there’s always more peace on the other side of honesty.

Imagine us all catching our criticism this Holiday Season and replacing it with kindness. What might be possible without judgmental energy secretly pointed toward another in our midst. 

Let’s be kind and become more aware that everyone is trying to figure out this thing called life and everyone is going through something. We can offer grace to our neighbors, community, and world by serving something that will last forever at our dinner table… love.

Wishing everyone a love-filled Thanksgiving,

I was a mess.

The doctors called it Crohn’s disease but I was certain the pain in my intestines was a result of an emotional upset I was stuck in. A debilitating thought was just floating by in my chattering brain and I latched on to it. I believed it, I became it, and I started hurting over it. I swallowed it hook, line and sinker and put the self-defeating perspective on like a pair of glasses. The glasses fit so perfectly I didn’t even know they were there. 
 
These glasses colored everything I looked at with an ugly view from childhood, an experience I was sure I’d forgiven and let go of. I was angry that it was showing up again. I crawled into bed as though it would help me get away from reality. I was wrong. I stewed and resisted what I felt and the reality kept getting bigger and bigger with my disgust over it. Giving up was my physical response. My body started matching my vibration and began to shut down… right along with my heart.

The thought I merged with was  “I don’t matter.” 

A person that I love dearly wanted to take a break from our relationship and wouldn’t tell me why. I was devastated and left with no answers, so my mind kept filling in the blank with made up realities. None were kind. This happened right after my mother had passed away so I’d already been immersed in wondering what the point of existence truly was. The heartache left me with an emptiness inside that had me questioning everything.
 
With self criticism ruling my world, my attention started zooming in on what’s wrong with life. Trust me, this is not a healthy quest, because we pretty much find what we’re looking for. I started collecting evidence for the belief "I don’t matter" everywhere I looked. Self-sabotage at it’s best. I saw life covered with painful events and circumstances. Not just for me in my personal space, I was seeing the whole world through these glasses. 

My husband didn’t escape the investigation.

Thoughts like: he doesn’t care, I’m not appreciated, he’s too busy for me, and he only cares about blah, blah, blah, ruled my brain. My belief "I don't matter" was having babies. These ideas were making a nest in my head and proving how everything fit into them. It was like the energy of the thought had beckoned all its vibrational cousins to join the party. I was attracting a world outside to match my world inside.

Did the world change or was it my seeing that changed...

I became more and more ill. I had stopped eating and was totally malnourished. I felt like a victim with no way out. Eating hurt and not eating hurt. I became angry and tried to not care about anything. Pretense on top of all that emotion was a recipe for even more misery.
 
Then something happened that changed everything… a long-time friend nudged me to notice my vibration. The question irritated me at first; that was my method to help others. My ego was in the saddle and I was too embarrassed to admit that I was a mess. My energy was made of a pile of resistance covered over with pretense, the perfect breeding ground for dis-ease.
 
My friend was perfectly pushy and invited me again, “Is there something you can look at right now that you appreciate?" I turned and looked out the window at a tree in our yard that I’ve loved for years. As though on cue, it started waving in the gentle breeze. This majestic tree with multi-colored leaves had been my best friend for the past year of being ill. It was like a friend I trusted to love me no matter what (corny but true). I stopped everything in that moment and just watched its branches swaying like it was saying hello to me. I smiled and gratitude started to fill me. Slowly I expanded my view into the periwinkle blue of the sky. The quietness in my mind was allowing my heart to see. I let myself feel this love vibrating all around me and a tear rolled down my cheek. I swear my body began to smile too. My friend looked at me so lovingly in that moment, he felt it. The space filled up with the precious kindness of allowing. I felt a much higher vibration inside, I had let some sweetness in. It was a profound shift from being a thought to remembering who I was without it. I took those old glasses off. 

I am not my thoughts, I am the thinker of them.

With perfect timing my husband walked toward us and stopped right in front of me. He was loving me and I FELT IT! I let him in for the first time in a long while. I looked into his beautiful green eyes and started crying thankful tears. I saw him… I mean really saw him, without the filter of a critical thought. Gently he’d taken care of me through this difficult illness, doing things no husband should ever have to do. In that moment I acknowledged the amazing being he is. We connected in presence. Without any mean thoughts coloring my view, a new world appeared. What a blessing… so simple, so kind, and so real, being willing to see what’s in front of me without paying attention to the mind’s chatter. 

Love poured into me from everywhere. I giggled with joy. It was as though a brick wall had crumbled around me and life was flowing back in. I remembered who I am. My vibration rose to the stars and my body responded instantly. My dear pushy friend watched with love, knowing the release of this unhealthy thought was key to my healing.

A loving world suddenly appeared in the very same place the ugly one had been. As I made the choice to let love in, the whole universe seemed to show up and support me. And… that’s another love note, soon to be written. 

Seeing the good with you,

To release habitual thoughts and resistance, please enjoy a free download of Chapter Four from, The Allowing Handbook, and apply our 3 step Catch & Release process - FREE CHAPTER

Do we mean it when we say it?

Thank you comes off our lips so automatically that it often has no feeling or emotional vibe in it. We want to mean it, we wish we could really feel it all the time, but often we’re just in a hurry to get to the next item on our to do list and we say the words to be polite… an empty thank you with little impact.

Have you ever had someone thank you who deeply meant it? You can feel the words come right out of their heart. When we are willing to receive it, this sweet moment can touch us so fully that it brings tears to our eyes and can even make us blush, stammer, and become humble. A real “thank you” can change an interaction from closed to open and turn a disagreement into possibility. The energy of gratitude relaxes everyone so kindness and hope can appear. Pausing… and simply noticing something to appreciate makes way for what matters most in all of our lives.  

When sincere gratitude is felt, it loosens whatever is stuck.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! If we spend a day saying these two words with the intention to truly feel them, it will color our life with heart.  Quietly whispering… “Thank you for this day, thank you for my family, thank you for my companions, thank you for the beautiful bird’s song, thank you for this challenge that’s helping me become a better person, thank you for this amazing Earth, for the trees waving in the wind, the vast blue sky, the breeze kissing my cheek, for the ability to feel, love, grow and learn. Thank you for this life.”

And, thank you to you Dear Friend, for reading these words and letting them flow into your heart. For allowing them to touch you and perhaps overflow into your family, it’s not a small thing. When we stop and look into the eyes of beloved, our children, our friends, and parents and just say, “thank you” with our hearts, we realize something. It changes things. It touches them inside and moves us too. The vibration of thankfulness travels out from us like ripples in a still pond when a stone is tossed in and makes a huge difference in life. The grace of gratitude stimulates kindness in everyone. It stops the automaticity and invites a sweet moment that can profoundly impact our relationships and the world. Awareness wakes up in the midst of appreciation, we get out of our heads for a bit and true value blossoms.

Pause, see the wonder of life, notice the good.

Be brave, be vulnerable, and as you say “Thank you” this Holiday season, open your heart and muster up genuine thankfulness. Take a few minutes to notice your blessings and feel them so sincerely that this beautiful vibration overflows into family and friends. We can each make a conscious decision to see how each person at our table is hoping to be appreciated for who they are and what they do. They may not behave like we expect or wish, but as we sit down to our Thanksgiving feast let’s take a moment to see the goodness in each of those surrounding us. Let’s honor everyone’s journey of learning, and see beyond any criticism we may be carrying. Let’s notice how each person is determined to matter and feel important, and that they all have their own way of doing it. Most of all, let’s observe that what they really want in life is to be loved… just like we do.

Thanksgiving is the perfect time to look in the eyes of those at our table and be grateful they are still here with us.

I am thankful for you, your kind heart matters so very much in the world today. 

Wishing you a love filled Holiday,

As friends and family gather this year let’s bring something precious to the table by taking a moment to notice the goodness in each person present. Let’s share kindness instead of focusing on some memory or personality characteristic that doesn’t match our pictures of how a person should be. We can make a huge difference by noticing how everyone is managing life in the way they hope will work out. They aren't wrong or bad... they just see differently.

Thanksgiving... full of grace.

Genuine care blossoms when we relax and allow for these differences. Relationships deepen when we stop hoping or pushing for a person to suddenly see the light and become more like us. The Holidays offer a grand opportunity to be self aware and inspire our loved ones by showing them we can set down our old patterns and judgements, and be grateful for the blessings all around. Spending a moment to honor the paths everyone is traveling and learning from, is a kind act that opens the door to grace. We can help our family, friends, and the world, by bringing this light of understanding to our feast… how we feel moves out from us like ripples in a  pond and touches everyone. I am so thankful we know how to do this.

Imagine offering a serving of appreciation to each being in front of you by taking a moment to feel how everything is changing and that the perspectives we've held so tightly will likely come and go, as will the people we love so dearly. With our effort to honor those in front of us we begin to feel and see what matters most... the care that's there behind it all.

Sharing kindness at the table is not a small thing.

Offering care instead of criticism opens up a kind space that magically grows thankfulness. Perhaps this year as we look into the eyes of those around we can acknowledge them and offer something lasting to their Thanksgiving. We can refrain from needing to be right... about anything; the gravy, the garb, politics, religion, or the future. We can set our opinions aside for this short while and be present in gratitude for each other. Let's appreciate the diversity our loved ones perfectly offer and realize that each person at our table is searching for happiness in some way they have learned to.

People want to believe in themselves... just like us.  

We can join hearts this Thanksgiving and make a silent promise not to listen to our old stories and mind chatter. Instead, let's be in this brand new moment ready to make new memories. We can realize that everyone is dressing up in the costume they believe will bring them the attention or acceptance they long for. Let's become aware of how everyone wants to matter… just like we do.  

Let’s give our family and friends what they desire this Holiday Season and notice what happens in our own hearts as we honor everyone’s journey of hope.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your dear ones.

Love always,

A long time friend challenged me by asking, "What do you mean when you say I love you?" Gently she explained how she believed I overused the phrase. She expressed how she rarely spoke the words, preferring to save them for "the real deal."  It was a valuable conversation inspiring us both to explore our beliefs about love. We ended up in a pool of appreciation for our differences and for our friendship. I’d like to share some insight with you...

Every person has their own definition of love. 

Love from another person's point of view can be entirely different than what we believe it is. It's good to know this. When we say I love you, and someone puts the concept through their filter, I bet they feel our words mean we will love the way they define  love, and that we will behave accordingly.  This is rarely true.

Pat (my husband) and I have found it fascinating and sometimes frustrating how diverse  our ideals of love are. However, after a good dose of exploration and sharing we always come to see how we value and prioritize differently... and still love each other madly. 

I discovered my definition has changed a lot over time. At this juncture in life love includes appreciating where someone is on their journey and honoring what they’re experiencing, instead of judging it. As I've aged I feel love is a stand for kinship and care. It's being kind. And, if I latch onto some idea of how a person should be, or fall into the right and wrong game, love is instantly replaced by resistance and disconnection. 

Perhaps the treasure of life is being able to love.

Maybe love can include trusting that we’re all doing the best we can and that sometimes we just blow it and make mistakes. When I trust what is happening with another and don't interfere (not an easy one for me), everything flows into place. However, if a person asks for help and will allow me to remind them how dear they are, I’m on it like bees on honey.

My dear friend’s question had me realize I'd gone though life wanting to get approval and attention as though this was love... and my worth depended on it. Now, it's more about what's coming from me than what's coming to me.

I heard something the other day that made tremendous sense to me, it went something like this: Our lives are spent trying to collect love so we can be happy, when happiness is actually the result of giving love.  

I felt these words ring true in my heart. What a relief, I thought to myself, I can do this!

I don’t have to hope someone else will make me happy and fill my life with meaning. I can love, I can flow love, and my joy is being able to do this. The truth is, I love the vibration of love and I get to feel it whenever I slow down and decide to.

How... when I pause and look at the trees waving I feel it, when I appreciate the vast blue sky I feel it, when I listen to a bird’s song or look into my husband’s green eyes, my heart fills with it. And the coolest part, we all have the privilege of loving someone or something any time we choose to. 

How we feel moves out from us like ripples in a still pond when a stone is tossed in. We can touch another, no matter how far away they are. Let's offer something kind to our planet by taking the time to muster up this profound feeling inside. 

 I'm grateful for you.

With love,

You don't need to schedule it.

You can do it while driving, eating, walking, or standing still.

It's super easy to feel as water washes over your face in the shower.

It touches everyone when you share it on a plane, train, or while waiting in line.

It magically melts negativity.

You can feel it every time you think of a dear friend that's traveled life with you. 

Or by simply noticing you have shoes on your feet. 

Feeling grateful always raises your vibration. 

So you know when it's real or when it's fake.

And you can learn how to do it all by yourself, without ever being graded.

Forgiveness happens from feeling it.

A natural awareness of the goodness in yourself comes with practicing it.

It doesn't cost anything.

It dissolves loneliness. 

Solutions suddenly appear.

Your four legged friends love it when you feel it. 

It washes away fear.

It helps heal a broken heart.

Every time you feel it, a wave of kindness touches all near.

Creating the vibration of gratitude allows you to change your world.

Let's join hands this Holiday Season and blanket our country, world, and each other with care.

Wishing you a heart full of love,

As though he knew he was leaving, Dad and I were together a lot during his final days. On this particular afternoon, he was acting very strange. I'd never seen him so uneasy and scattered. Something was stirring his insides and we was not comfortable. He started hinting about a feeling he wanted to create and allow... but couldn't. He asked me if I would coach him (a first), so he could release what was blocking him. I was grateful to help as he was always the one helping me. We'd been exploring consciousness a lot the previous few years, he was set on teaching me that I could do anything. They were the best years of my life with my Father.. 

Before I explain what happened that day, I have to give you a little background. Dad wasn't always a nice guy. He had a past of alcoholism, cruelty, and a lot of disappointment. Honestly, he was more a monarch than a Dad. I left home like both of my sisters before me, as soon as I could drive a car.

Becoming best friends with my Father is one of the miracles of my life. 

The feeling that Dad desired to experience was a big one... in spite of all his mistakes and the many years of abuse to our family, he wanted to feel that he'd had a great life, full of satisfaction and accomplishment. As he spoke his desire to me, tears started rolling down his cheeks. 

Dad had been working on forgiving himself for many years and had become kind and clear, at least in my eyes. Yet, I had a feeling this final quest was going to free him from anything that was left. I felt this endeavor was more important than anything we had ever experienced together.

You know that stillness that happens in side when you become highly aware? When you feel like your awareness expands... and you can hear a pin drop? That's what was happening in me as Dad spoke. I felt my heart open and start talking without my mind getting in the way, I invited him, "Repeat what you're wanting and just notice any thoughts or conclusions that appear to stop you from feeling it."

We did this long enough for Dad to discover and own some heavy beliefs he was still carrying around. As the old ideas appeared, he softly recalled believing them into solidity. To do this together was quite powerful for both of us. He released them all and as the last cluster of energy dissolved, he became very quiet. Feeling so much love for him I sat still. After a couple of minutes he raised his head and with tears streaming down his face he whispered, "I kept them all there to punish myself." I started crying with him as I felt the weight of his words. His honesty felt like a reach through time that somehow was healing both of us from a tortured past. I will treasure this moment forever. 

To watch my Dad release the energy blocking him from freedom, and to feel his kindness toward himself before he died, changed my life. We were so present and connected that we both felt the negative energy moving out of the space. I will never forget what happened next. Sitting knee to knee he looked me deep in the eyes and spoke from his heart, "I do have a great life, full of satisfaction and accomplishment." He felt it so fully that it vibrated a wave of love that blanketed us both. Covered in goose bumps, I got to experience my Father giving this gift to himself. 

Forgiveness was complete.

Through the most vulnerable and kind eyes I've ever seen on my Dad, he said, "I feel the goodness in me." He stood up slowly, speaking more to himself than to me and stated, "I need to go for a little walk."

We were sitting in a field surrounded by grandfather pines. I felt they were hugging us throughout the process we were in. I watched my Father walk, peacefully taking each step, as though drinking in life. That was the moment I knew he was leaving.

Even though my heart was aching with the awareness of what was coming, some part of me understood... everything was as it was meant to be. I soothed myself by believing... I still had time. 

After 63 years of making himself wrong, he finally saw the good in his heart. 

Dad passed away 13 weeks later. The day before he died he dropped by the house and handed me a cassette tape with recordings of him reading poetry. He set his briefcase down on my desk and instructed me to split his belongings with my sisters if anything happened to him. I was silent, scrambling for something I could say that would change his mind. I looked up at him and begged, "Dad, please don't go." His eyes welled up with tenderness. I felt him love me so much in that moment that it continues to last throughout time.

The very next day Dad made it twelve holes on the golf course before he sat down, gently laid back, looked up to the sky, and was gone. He was with his best friend. 

The profound treasure... my Dad was able to experience that he had a great life full of satisfaction and accomplishment, before he left. Being present when he allowed himself to realize this has been a gift and a lesson that continues to unfold.

Let's allow a little of this feeling in our lives... I have a great life full of satisfaction and accomplishment.

Endless love,

The three steps of Catch & Release are outlined in The Allowing Handbook, available anywhere books are sold. 

As I allowed a sensation I’d been afraid of… it morphed into possibility.

We had a training last week on how to use many new technical avenues I’m not savvy in or even aware of when it comes to owning a business. The people I was with are brilliantly astute in geek world, a gene I’ve been slow to wake up. Mesmerized by their talent, I felt my self shrinking. I noticed an old identity in me... the one afraid of not being good enough. I Caught this identity saying things like, “You don’t need this info, just do what you want, write when you feel like it, post on your own schedule, inconsistency doesn’t matter… la la la.” I even became critical with thoughts like, “I’m glad I’m not like them, this isn’t fun.” As though I was superior for not knowing what they knew. I laughed at the old voice, understanding that an ego loves comparing and trying to prove its worth… especially when it feels stupid. 

I decided to get honest. I surrendered to this feeling of being confused. I stopped fighting it and let the discomfort be there instead of stuffing it down or pretending. I acknowledged what was present. I felt… stupid, inferior and disconnected. Oh well, I’ve felt worse sensations, so I invited all those lovely realities to exist. I surrendered to a big wave of ineptness. Boom, childhood memories of not being as smart as my classmates came alive. I felt that too. I even had a soft wave of understanding move through me. In less than a minute my awareness started morphing from closed to open. The disturbing feeling  was diminishing with my willingness to experience it. Suddenly I could hear better.

Allowing is a powerful tool for learning.

I’m okay with hurting for a few minutes so I don’t spend my life being afraid of a feeling. To me, that hurts much worse… and for much longer.

I love realizing that regardless of how painful events have been in the past, so far I’ve survived them all… and I’ve had some doozies, as I bet you have. I think it's helpful to look back and notice how we've made it through heartache and kept going. It strengthens our willingness in a powerful way. We see how relief can come quicker by inviting a feeling for a couple of minutes instead of fighting it for a lifetime.

A feeling has no power to destroy us. It’s our belief that it could… that we're in a war with.

The coolest part of surrender is that it clears the mind. The chatter finally stops. When we allow a feeling we've been opposing, the mind has loses it's ammo. Catching thoughts like, I don't want to deal with this or feel this, offer a potent opportunity to retrieve precious energy that's been trapped in resistance... so it can be used for manifesting dreams.

In joy,

Catch & Release is changing lives. Check out Chapter 5 in The Allowing Handbook to free up energy trapped in avoiding, disliking, or criticizing. 

When we focus on the good, the good gets better.

As we own our power to change how we we feel, something spectacular happens. Not only do we attract circumstances and people that match our energy, our experience of life becomes our creation. I believe taking responsibility for our vibe is a skill we develop forever... so no giving up. Every drop of effort is making a difference. Expecting to be an expert is self-sabotage.

Making yourself wrong for not being perfect is the ego’s attempt to stay in conflict - don't buy it.

Look back at where you started and see all the hurdles you've jumped, notice the pain you've lived through and the mountains of hope you always offer to others. You matter so very much. 

All my best always,

7 ways to raise your vibration

1)   Find something and appreciate it for one minute… the sky, the waving trees, your hand or the shoes on your feet.

2)   Whisper, I accept the love of ____________ (use a person or animal’s name) as you inhale. Repeat 3x.

3)   Pick a sensation you like, neutrality, joy, peace... and recall how it feels to enjoy it.

4)   Take a slow deep breath to the count of 7, hold for 7, and whisper, “I release tension,” as you exhale for 7.

5)   When driving, practice flowing kindness to a fellow commuter. Notice they are dealing with life just like you are.

6)   While waiting in a line practice noticing the good, find something to compliment about each person in front of you.  

7)   Do something kind for another.

7 ways to lower your vibration

             1)   Resist what you feel.

             2)   Blame someone else for a feeling you are having.

             3)   Criticize yourself or another.

             4)   Focus on an obstacle instead of a goal.

             5)   Repeat your story of ‘what’s wrong’ over and over. 

             6)   Seek to hurt or punish another.

             7)   Complain.

NEW... NEW... NEW!  

Allowers from all over the world can now join in for our Monthly Gatherings!

Two hours of honing your Catch & Release skills, empowered by the energy of amazing beings.

Open, discover, own, and be happy!

I want you to know how grateful I am for who you are, for all you've shared with me, and for being my friend on this journey called life. 

Although sometimes far apart our connection never faltered. It didn't matter how much time passed between talks, your care was steady. Even when you didn't agree with what I was up to, you still encouraged me to go for my dreams. I've learned a lot about friendship with you by my side.  

Thank you for listening when I was confused or afraid, you brought clarity just by being there. You never agreed with my self criticism. I see now that you always believed in me when I didn't believe in myself. The feeling that 'I'm okay' has grown in me from this seed you planted years ago and watered throughout time. 

Yes, you drove me crazy too, telling me to be tough and keep going, when all I could think of was giving up. You wouldn't stop until I admitted what I was capable of. Thank you, you've shown me that care wears many faces. 

You... I'm so glad you're always stubbornly you. Finally, I can appreciate the opposition you often expressed. Each disagreement drove me to learn about forgiveness and to discover the relief that comes with choosing love over being right. I'm getting this more and more as I age.

And, thank you for all the times you challenged me to explore what mattered most inside my own heart. You were ruthless at pointing out how adopting another's certainty, without inspecting it, is a reach for approval and an obstacle to overcome. This has been a profound gift in my life. 

As I look back at the path we've traveled, I treasure every step. The talks, the laughter, and all the ups and downs. Our friendship has been a journey of what's possible in a relationship when love and understanding guide the way. 

So before you or I leave this life I must thank you for our dance... for without you, I would not be me. 

Endless love,

Have you ever noticed how we always want to be better? Better at loving, better at being kind, better at winning, better at losing, parenting, manifesting, better better better, at being human. It's terribly inspiring to take a minute and acknowledge... we are reachers!

Have you ever tried not to reach? It's a funny thing. The inertia doesn't last long before we desire to be something more. For those of us that like to be skilled at most everything... we event try to get better at not reaching (that's funny). Noticing how we are always looking for a new and improved technique to mold life into our dream is worthwhile. When we understand there's no end to this quest we can relax a bit more, enjoy the process we're all in, and reduce our gnawing attachment to the outcome. 

It's very kind to notice how you never give up. And holy cow, haven't you been reaching for a clean conscience for as long as you can remember? Appreciating this is powerfully sweet.

Reaching is innate.

Life is our classroom and we love having the answer.

It's helpful to recognize how our loved ones just want to be happy and that whatever they're doing right now, is what they believe will take them there. Seeing this as their learning process instead of judging them or constantly pointing out how wrong they are, opens communication. They may not manage life the way we want them to, but they are traveling their unique path. 

One way to genuinely encourage another is to remember where we started... how we used to behave, how we used to be more self centered, how we believed we knew everything, and how we softened as we aged, realizing we've been reaching to be good people all along.

Thank goodness we could change our minds... they often needed changing. 

Do we all make mistakes?  Oh my gosh yes.

Do painful and unexpected things happens and confuse us?  Many times, yes.

Do our loved ones reach to be happy and hope they matter? Do you know anyone who doesn't?

Let's rename mistakes and call them growing spurts.

Imagine talking to someone who blew it with the intention to encourage them. Speaking without any need for them to feel guilty (guilt blocks receptivity). Imagine inspiring this person by guiding them to see what's becoming clearer to them about their path through life... compassionately asking, "What's important to you, what do you want to experience?" Oftentimes this simple question awakens their heart and ignites more passion for their goal. 

Consider the gift we can offer others by looking into their eyes and believing in them as they stumble through the mistakes that come with being alive. Imagine the space we would provide by sharing... I've made big mistakes too. Yes, they're painful and can be tough to admit. I released guilt by committing to do better. I had to get honest with myself and think about what I really wanted in life, and the result of my genuine answer to this question was always profound. With each upset I became more determined to have peace inside. I learned to forgive...

And by the way, I love you.

Peace in Peace out,

Manifesting can be so much easier than we've been making it.

Most of us have been trying to change the people around us or fix some exterior condition in hopes that this will finally make us happy. The satisfaction is usually temporary and man, a lot of people suddenly appear that need changing (I say this laughing). As soon as we fix one condition that's driving us crazy... another five appear. Life becomes about changing external circumstances and people so they will fit our pictures. Believing that when we accomplish this, we can finally have a good feeling. When do you think you'll be done?

Ready for some really good news... when we deliberately create a satisfying feeling instead of hoping for it, life changes.

Painful life circumstances TRANSFORM when we TRANSFORM. Here's why.... people and circumstances that match our inner feelings come toward us. That's why pretending to be happy doesn't fool the universe. We're made of energy. We attract reality by what we vibrate into the world. Have you noticed reality doesn't respond to our words as much as it's matching our mood, our attitude, and our hidden feelings? If we want to know what we're sending into the world, we need only look and see what's coming toward us. I know, I know, it's not always easy to admit this, but it's worth investigating.

Life endlessly shows us to ourselves.

This becomes a profound gift (instead of a curse) as we gain skill in cultivating a feeling of choice. Success in every aspect of life becomes inevitable. Once we experience the truth of how our feelings attract their match, we can't deny that what's in front of us is coming from inside of us. Thank goodness, we are the ones in charge of what's inside! A few examples: money and opportunities flow toward us when we genuinely acknowledge our own worth (Pretending we have worth attracts something very different). The acknowledgement we desire from bosses, co-workers, family and even strangers shows up when we genuinely acknowledge ourselves. Health improves as we release the need to change those outside of us and simply create a kind feeling inside. Trusting life becomes easier as we own what we feel and it's astounding how trustworthy people appear as we genuinely trust ourselves. 

So, what feeling are you after? Would you like to have some? Can you take a minute and feel your amazing determination... your kind heart...  and notice how you are always reaching to do your best? You are amazing! At the very least can you acknowledge how you never give up? Now notice if you just created a feeling. That's not a small thing! Heck, why not begin and end your day taking charge of how you feel and have a yummy feeling with your coffee or tea! These sensations inside will summon an outside to match.

Become the amazing artist of reality you are meant to be!

If it sounds way too simple, I get it. Perhaps like me, you've learned that you must struggle before you deserve any happiness. If you swallowed that idea as a child like I did, I bet you have difficult and straining circumstances all around that require your constant attention. Have you ever considered that your commitment to managing so much chaos is evidence of your strong determination to be good, do good, and prove your worth. This old way of thinking requires that we hurt or suffer a bit before we can allow and deserve true joy.

It's a new world guys.

The good feelings we've tried to do enough or be enough to earn, can be felt NOW. Imagine the possibility of enjoying life as you live it. Imagine the people and opportunities you will attract when you feel peaceful as you go through your day or when you allow yourself room to learn and embrace the ever changing. Waiting for happiness to happen after we cross some finish line, isn't working. If we want to heal now, love deeper now, and create a peaceful family, community, and planet now, we need to take responsibility for the sensations we're carrying inside. How we feel is a silent energy that touches all near... it circles the globe.

Peace comes from inside.

Yes, trauma happens. Yes, sadness is real. Yes, loss hurts deeply. And, yes these feelings can be tucked away and block our ability to let love in. However, we have the ability to let them go and replace them with a choice! We can offer something profound to this new moment we are in by releasing the belief that we need to struggle as payment for joy. We can be free of limiting ideas with the simple steps of Catch & Release, Chapter 4 in The Allowing Handbook. It's time to enjoy life and let our hearts sing their beautiful song into the world. 

With love,

PART 1  |  PART 2  |  PART 3  | PART 4

Scenario: You are in a children's classroom. You are their teacher. 

You have just asked if there is any viewpoint anyone would like to make more real about a fire that has occurred in their neighborhood.

One child, being funny, announces that he would be keeping his attention on the idea that everyone is doomed and there is no hope. You recognize this as a beautiful opportunity to invite all of the students to explore the possibility that people will choose this viewpoint in life sometimes. 

You ask if it would be OK with them for someone to chose this viewpoint to experience. They respond in many different ways, all saying a variation of "Each person gets to decide which way they are going to experience the fire!" 

The children were fast becoming aware that everyone was choosing their own viewpoint... and that each choice came with a specific feeling. They got excited realizing they are the ones in the driver's seat and that where they put their attention has everything to do with how they experience an event.

They became wise little beings in such a short time!

A viewpoint from the front of the room

This series has been based on my many experiences introducing the Principles of Allowing to teachers and young children in a classroom setting. In response to the student who wanted to feel doomed, I suggested he tell his parents that he had decided to suffer a bit over the fire and to please just let him do it. Everyone laughed and he loved the idea of being able to feel doomed if he chose to.

I also asked around the room for other viewpoints that had been decided on about the fire. I asked if I might add one of my favorites to the circle. With their permission, I wrote "Everything works out perfectly!" I shared how this viewpoint is calming and can be helpful with regard to many circumstances in life. I then invited them to take out a small piece of paper and write down the viewpoint they decided to experience regarding the fire. I suggested they put this note by their bed and take a minute right before sleep and upon waking to focus on their choice. "Read it, feel how it feels and let it soak in," I explained. I told them after just 3 days, they would be amazed with their ability to create an experience of choice. They were excited about this!

As the exercise came to an end... after about 20 minutes total... I asked the group if they would like to see something really cool. They chimed, "Yes!"  Then I took an eraser and replaced the word "fire" in the center with the word "school." Everyone became wide-eyed... especially the teachers who were watching the demonstration. 

After we explored what viewpoints they were holding about school, I asked them if they wanted to continue to make that idea more real... or pick a different, more fun perspective. You should have seen their faces, I could almost hear their brains understanding what this could mean.

One last nudge, I erased the word "school" and asked them to place their name in the center of their circle, inviting them to explore what viewpoints they held and made real about themselves. You could hear a pin drop. They got it! I was deeply touched by their willingness to take responsibility for what they felt. 

These tools also work in life... they may be used by anyone, anytime, anywhere... on anything... with equally profound results.

What would you like to make more real in your life?

Tally Ho,

We’d love to hear from you. Let us know if you have any comments or questions on specific applications with the exercise. We love sharing!

PART 1  |  PART 2 |  PART 3  |  PART 4

Scenario: You are in a children's classroom. You are their teacher. 

You have just learned that your students' attention is on a recent destructive fire in their neighborhood. 

You say, "Fire. Let's play with our attention and the fire."  (You write FIRE on the board in the center of a circle). You ask the kids to give examples of a feeling or idea that they have about the fire. They offer ideas like:

• "It was scary and I felt doomed."
• "I was angry."
• "My family totally freaked out.."
• "I cried and felt angry."
• "I thought it was exciting."
• "I got sick and threw up."

As an idea is expressed, you write each different viewpoint around the circle with a line going to each idea. It looks like a sun with ideas at each point about what is in the center. 

The children are noticing how many people have very different ideas and experiences. 

You ask, "Which idea is true, which idea is right or which idea is wrong?" They look around at each other, unsure. 

One child says, "They all are true." You pause and let that soak in.

"Very interesting" you comment. "So it is true that the fire was exciting, scary, and that people felt all those different ways?" A child answers, "I was not excited and I don't think it was exciting at all. I think it was horrible."

You then ask each student to take a moment and look to see which viewpoint is true for them. You ask them which viewpoint most of their attention is on. You ask again for the room to share which viewpoint they have decided on. It becomes very clear that the viewpoint being held by the students are all different. 

The viewpoint with the most attention flowing to it is the one they consider most real. 

They are amazed and experientially become aware that other students have their attention on different ideas and are experiencing the event in unique ways. You repeat the earlier question, "Where does your attention come from?" In unison they say "Me!" 

You continue, "Who directs your attention?  Who decides where it goes? In unison and in excitement they say, "Me!" You nudge them a bit more, "What makes things more and more real in your life, like the bottle of lemonade got more and more real?" With clarity they announce, "Our attention!"  

Next you invite them to deliberately choose a viewpoint that they would like to make more real about the fire. After giving them a moment to feel their options, you ask, "Who has decided on a viewpoint they would like to make more real?"

Find out what viewpoint they pick... in Part 4 coming soon. 

Adding self-awareness to every viewpoint,