Serene Expressions

Reiki for Burns

2012-02-24T11:44:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, after boiling water in the tea kettle, I reached out to move the frying pan out of the way. What I did not realize is that the handle for the pan had been placed above the burner I had been using and as I reached for it, I scortched the skin running from my little finger to my wrist. A loud crash ensued as I dropped the metallic object onto the stove. Its contents flew everywhere, all while my voice projected a painful scream.

I took a breath and walked over to my computer. I knew butter and oil were the worst things for it, but those remedies that are remnants of familiar old wives tales were all that popped into my head. I wasn't sure what the best solution to healing a burn was, but I was determined to find out. As always, the internet came to the rescue to this damsel in distress.

I found Dr. Weil's site, from PBS fame, and ventured a look at what he had to say on the matter. After reading his article, I determined I only had first degree burns, which are the least harmful. However, it still hurt. I took his advice and dunked my hand in a bowl of cold water for ten minutes. The plunge brought forth another scream, but after the initial shock, it clearly helped in soothing the pain.

After removing my hand from the bowl, I observed that there wasn't any blistering. Nevertheless, the affected area began to hurt again. So, I wrapped a cold compress around my hand for another half an hour or so. It felt fine...except when I tried to remove the cloth. Unless I found a solution, my left hand was not going to be used for awhile.

While I would have used Aloe Vera if I had some, it wasn't available. So, Neosporin was next on the list. It thankfully numbed the pain. Unfortunately, this was only a stopgap measure. After a few hours, the burning sensation returned. I put more Neosporin on to numb it once again and then it hit me. I am a Reiki Master for goodness sake. Why don't I use some Reiki on it! Initially, I was so consumed with pain that I wanted instant gratification. And in truth, I feel that I did need the other methods I used to calm down the aggravated skin so that it wouldn't blister. Be that as it may, it was clear that for the long-term some more attention to my healing was required.

I put my hands in a ball formation sending the affected area reiki for an hour and half while I watched a bit of TV. By the end of the session, nearly all the pain was gone. I woke up this morning with only two very small red marks that are barely noticeable at all and my intention is to send more reiki to it today to complete the healing cycle.

There are so many avenues to take when it comes to our healing. Sometimes one or a combination of several different modalities are beneficial. We simply have to look within to find the answers.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Scientific Adam & Scientific Eve

2012-02-18T09:34:00.000-08:00

A long time ago, when humanity was still young, a small group of people lived in either the southern or eastern part of Africa. Living amongst these peoples were a man, known to scientists today as Scientific Adam and a woman, known as Scientific Eve. It is now understood that each male living today is descended from Scientific Adam and every person living today carries the gene from Scientific Eve. Even though there were several people alive at that time, these two individuals became the parents of us all.

What fascinates me about this revelation is that the Book of Genesis actually holds some truth to it. There really were two people at the root of our existence. Unfortunately, time and bigotry has skewed the facts. I have never seen a depiction of Adam and Eve where they weren't white, living alone in a garden meant just for them. When the serpent tempted Eve, she broke the rules and ate from the forbidden tree. She convinced Adam to indulge in her succulent prize too and because of this, God punished them and they were forevermore banned from their Eden.

In the scientific version of the story, as the population grew, our ancestors needed to branch out in order to find new prospects for food. We travelled to the Middle East, Asia, Australia, Europe and the Americas. It was through these migrations where our skin color and physical features began to change. In Africa, where it is hot, black pigmentation helps to protect the skin. As people moved up into colder climates, where sunshine was more scarce, it was imperative that this branch of our ancestry evolve. We need the important nutrients that the sun provides and the newly formed white skin helped to absorb the barely visible rays of light that were peering down from the sky. In essence, through time, because of their location, people began to look a bit different from one another.

However, even though our outward appearance may give us some clues into our more recent past, we still are all related. We are not simply energetically linked as quantum physicists have stipulated. We are not just linked at the Soul level. We can actually visibly see with our own eyes through test results that we are related on the physical level, as well. Since that is true, when we hurt each other, we are hurting our family. Exuding a bigoted attitude only harms that aspect in ourselves.

It is time to recognize that we are all brothers and sisters. Instead of promoting pain, we have an opportunity to offer compassion. When we recognize that each individual is our relation, we can then notice how they are a mirror for us in some way. If we become irritated by someone's behavior, allow the annoyance to take place as that is where we are in the moment. However, recognize how it feels in the body. Observe it from an objective place. Then breathe into the space and allow an undertanding of how that irritating aspect of that person reflects us. When we take these steps we can move into the space of forgiveness for the other person and forgiveness for ourselves for our reaction in the first place.

Remember that we are all One and we are all Divine. The rainbow of colors, shapes and sizes that we all display show off our common historical bonds. They are like a roadmap to our past and a representation of our present...and we are all beautiful.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

**To learn more about the study done regarding Scientific Adam and Scientific Eve or if you would like to be a part of this study to find out your genetic links to the ancient past, please watch National Geographic's documentary The Human Family Tree.

Opening with Gratitude

2012-01-31T07:59:00.000-08:00

With modern day life being as fast-paced as it is, we often have a tendency to look at our daily experiences from a negative perspective. With the laundry list of necessary to-do items we must endure, it is certainly easy to follow the path of the complainer. Even if we don't state our irritations to our friends and family, when we focus on the doom and gloom aspect of any given moment, we are simply creating more of the same in our reality. Who needs that? Thankfully, there is an easy solution. It's called gratitude.

Now, I am not talking about the auto-pilot frenzy of thank yous we regurgitate throughout the day. Don't get me wrong, saying thank you for all the niceties in life is a good thing and a wonderful practice to get us into the groove of genuine gratitude. However, the most important aspect of gratitude is actually not the saying of our thanks, but the feeling behind the gratitude. When we allow ourselves to experience the joy of gratitude, that is when the shift in consciousness is made.

Yes, I am thankful when someone passes me the salt, but when I stop and notice where I am in the moment of the salt passing, recognizing the fact that a web of our community is involved with one another, it allows me to have a greater sense of the Divine flowing throughout the Universe. For example, I am not only grateful that someone was kind enough to pass the salt, I am grateful that the salt is such an amazing mineral that flavors my food so that my pallette can enjoy each bite. Additionally, the iodine in the salt helps to maintain my healthy body. Of course, the fact that someone had to harvest the salt so that I could enjoy it; and someone else had to deliver it to the store; while the store itself was able to carry it so that I wouldn't have to go through the harvesting process myself makes my life so much easier. It frankly takes an army of Beings (including the salt itself) to get the salt to me and for that I am grateful. And frankly, these are just a few examples of how I am grateful for the salt. It is when I recognize all these beautiful gifts behind the salt passing where I become aware of my part of the unifying whole of our Universe, and that is when I feel the Light within.

In last night's class, Karen Hager and I explored the idea of Opening through Gratitude. It is in the space of genuine gratitude where we open up to the magical wonders of the Universe that are waiting for us at any given moment. We share exercises, meditations and of course stories to make this telecourse a fun exploration into Self. The good news is that this class was recorded and can be taken at any time. So, if you are feeling called to join in the Gratitude goodness that was shared, please visit my site at http://lisatunney.com/telecourses.php.

Thank you so much for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Dancing with the Flow of Life

2012-01-24T10:05:00.000-08:00

I love watching nature shows. It is an opportunity for me to see animals in their natural habitats. We can see how a gazelle gracefully dances through the plains; a butterfly prances around flowers; and fish swim through waters with ease. Are their movements all in a straight line? Of course not. Rocks get in the way, predators are on the hunt and a whole plethora of reasons exist why their movement is not in one direction alone. When we look at animals we can see that we too are animals. We were never meant to travel in one direction either.

It's funny how as Westerners we pride ourselves for the way we deem order in our lives. We have calendars and smart phones as reminders to keep us on schedule. We demand that everything is "just so". There is only one problem with this way of thinking—life throws us curve balls all the time, from little nuisances to seemingly catastrophic events. Let's face it, we have a choice. We can either get angry or upset at the chaos or we can take a cue from the great humpback whale and simply go with the flow. It may seem to be a daunting task to escape the conditioning most of us have had. Yet, that is why Spirituality is called a practice—we are practicing!

I know in my life I have had my fair share of disorder. Last night while teaching the telecourse Dancing with the Flow of Life with my co-teaching host Karen Hager, I was moving the class through a guided meditation. Right in the middle of my calming words, I could hear screaming children in the next room over. While I am fairly certain the people on the other end of the line did not hear any of the escapade, it was unnerving for me. For the first ten seconds or so, I complained in my mind that this was not how I wanted things to go. I wanted perfection! Then, I took a breath, calmed down and realized that this is perfection. These little quirks are what makes life interesting.

During the break, I could have gone out and screamed at the kids for their behavior, but instead I told them that I loved them and reminded them that I needed it quiet. I asked them to take three breaths and afterwards I wanted them to tell each other that they loved one another. I had to get back to my call before the break was over, but I could hear the kids through the walls tell each other that they loved one another. All was well in the world. So, instead of fighting with what life presented to me, I decided to go with the flow and it was certainly a good thing!

Then this morning rolled around and I heard that the recording from our class cut off after twenty-three minutes. My reaction? My mind conjured up the word, "Bummer." Then it occured to me that either a) there is a backup somewhere, b) we could re-record it or c) I could just let it be and move on. I have decided that however the result ends up, I am simply going to dance with the flow of life and accept however it turns out. Why bother getting all riled up over spilled milk when one has a cloth to wipe up the mess. It all works out in the end.

So, I am not sure if there will be a recording of the class, but if there is, it will be available on my site as a possible class option for you. If you are feeling called to participate in the class at your own leisure, please feel free to visit my telecourses page at www.lisatunney.com/telecourses.php. If it is there than great, and it if it is not, well as the French say, "C'est la vie," or if you prefer English, "Such as life."

Update: Two days later the recording was retrieved. So, it is available. All's well that ends well!

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Breathing in Life

2012-01-18T10:37:00.000-08:00

It would seem that breathing would be a no-brainer since, thanks to the limbic or primitive brain, we do it automatically every second of every day usually without paying much thought to it. Unfortunately, when we don't breathe consciously, we end up missing out on a whole lot of good stuff. For one thing, we have a tendency to not use the full capacity of our lungs, when taking in air. Air is the energetic life force that supports our mind, body and Spirit, yet we don't take full advantage of the offering. It's sort of like hitting a home run, but then stopping at first or second base. What good is that? Yes, we might get a little exercise while we're running, but we certainly aren't making any points on the scoreboard. And breathing improperly is pretty much the same thing. While we do get some of the benefits, we are not receiving the whole shebang.

First off, when we don't receive enough air in our lungs, it effects all aspects of our Being. Our blood flow doesn't work to full capacity, which in turn effects the proficiency of all areas of our physical body. Our stress level rises effecting our mental body. And on the Spiritual level, it hinders us from listening to our own innate Inner Wisdom.

Luckily, if you weren't able to make this week's live class from The Inviting Change Series of telecourses taught by myself and my co-host extraordinaire Karen Hager of radio and Fog City Psychic Fame, there is still an opportunity to participate in the class! All of the classes in this series are being recorded so that you can listen to it at your own convenience.

In this class, Breathing in Life, we share stories, various meditations and breathing techniques, in order to get in touch with our True Spirit. Breathing properly helps to shift our perceptions and see things as they truly are as opposed to how our fears erroneously project them to be.

These telecourses are a wonderful way to get in touch with our Spirit without having to leave our homes! Time and distance are no barrier to energy and I am delighted to share any of the classes that are offered, whenever it is the best time for you take them. We are all connected by our intention, not our proximity to each other. So, whether you are being called to take these classes in the past, present or future, you are absolutely welcome into the space.

For more information, please visit http://lisatunney.com/telecourses.php.

Sending many Blessings your way and thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

A Love Letter to my Self

2012-01-10T18:09:00.001-08:00

The genesis of this particular blog entry was actually going to be a note written to two of my friends. As I typed out the words on an email, the story began to take a life of its own. Thoughts poured out of me in only an hour’s time and as I was writing it, I was hearing it in my head like an urban poem. As I practiced it out loud, I decided that the vibration of sound was important for its telling and so I chose to make this my first blog entry with my voice. However, as a writer, who loves the written word, I opted to have the text below it, as well. That way, you can choose to listen to it or read it, or do both or even none at all. So, with that in mind, I share my thoughts to those who are drawn to it.

This work is called:A Love Letter to my Self:

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Once upon a time, there was a little girl who grew up “different” than everyone else. She could see things that others did not. She could feel things that others did not. She understood things that others did not. All of this made this little girl feel like an outsider. She didn’t like having the attention drawn to her and as a result, she remained quiet.

She was known as the good little girl—always excelling in school, always the best patient, always the one that didn’t want to make any waves—and she continued to keep quiet.

When the little girl was thirteen, she decided it was best to save every single penny that she had earned over the course of the year so that she could buy a whole new wardrobe for herself when she reached high school. She wanted to be cool and the clothes surely would have made her so. During that year, as she saved her money, she went out with friends to the mall and to the rolling rink, pretending to be outgoing. The shy girl wanted people to like her, so she put up a front that was not really her at all. She became an actor in her own life.

Eventually, this extroverted attitude she had developed became a natural part of her. She no longer had to work at it. She no longer had to act. Yet, she still was hiding. She was hiding her Truth. The ubiquitous amount of words coming from her mouth, never really said anything that was meaningful. She didn’t want to rock the proverbial boat or step out of line. She still didn’t want anyone to think she was weird. So, she said nothing of consequence.

As this teenager grew into womanhood, she brought with her the amiable and outgoing traits along for the ride. Because of them, she excelled at sales. Once, during an initial meeting for a potential job, she was asked to “sell” a pencil to the interviewer…She got the job. It didn’t matter if this woman was selling clothes or hundred thousand dollar events, she had learned to be outgoing and she could sell it all.

In her private life, she had men, lots of men. She likened herself to be a female “Fonzerelli”. The Fonz, from the show Happy Days, could get any woman at any time of day, simply by snapping his fingers. This was not too far off from what this woman could do. She erroneously assumed that her ability to “have” any of these men made her feel loved or at least appreciated somehow.

And so, even though she could sell any product and she could get as many notches on her lust belt that she demanded, she remained quiet. Words still flew out in every direction, but she hid behind the image that she had successfully created, never speaking about what was really going on inside her.

Because of this, this woman sought out pleasure from a bottle, but what she was really doing was burying her emotions, while keeping the voice of Spirit at bay. Free will allowed her egoic self to be at center stage. Because of this she was the life of the party, but inside she was in pain.

Then one day, the Universe decided to take away every “thing” that this woman had built up around her—destroying the accouterments of this faux sense of self that she had created. She had to learn to move within. She slowly began to recognize her True Gifts and each day, she shed another old belief and another old way of doing things, making room for all the good stuff to come in. She learned with Grace what her mission on Earth was all about.

Through this process, she built up a new business celebrating Spirit. She methodically learned and as she learned she shared with others. She opened her doors to share for the first time her True Self with those who were inspired to join her. It was during this time of quiet contemplation and joyful sharing of Self, which gave her the opportunity to feel genuine happiness for the first time. But still, without realizing it, she kept part of herself hidden. She didn’t want to appear to be strange.

During one of her group gatherings, another woman named Alexe boldly stated that this woman needed to allow herself to be vulnerable. She, of course, knew this to be true, but she was not ready yet. However, these words were a Spiritual flag post, enabling this woman to begin to recognize the importance of vulnerability. The seed had been planted to sprout on another date, and all the while the thought was always somewhere on the surface, so that the woman could refer to it whenever she needed to.

The woman continued on her path of Self discovery—still learning and still sharing and still creating. She was on the verge of changing her website to something that spoke to her in that moment. She had been working on the mock-up images for months. Yet, it never seemed quite right and besides which the money was not available to implement the changes anyway. Then one day, her friend Elizabeth told her that it might be time to change her company name. The woman had been toying with releasing this company name for some time. However, she didn’t want to make any waves. She didn’t want to make any changes. She was still scared.

In the recent past, when she had kept her Spirit Self open to those who were open to it, she still hid behind the wall of shame she had built up around her to everyone else. However, something happened to her on that day that her friend suggested to release the name. She meditated on the idea and decided that it was time after all. In one fell swoop, that wall of shame now came crumbling down. And as she realized that the old company identity was a metaphor for this shield, she knew in her heart it was time to come out from behind it. It was time to shine BRIGHTLY to herself and to the Universe at large. This representation of the shield no longer served her. She thanked it for playing with her for awhile, for it had been good to her. She then allowed it to move on its own journey, perhaps helping someone else on their path.

Not only that, she changed the original mock-up for her new website. Everything flowed together and the new designs were ready in only a weekend. She had been working on the other design for nearly six months and this flowed easily to her…and in only a few hours. As she looked at the new site with its shades of blues and greens, she realized that the old purple site represented her connecting with the voice of Spirit and the new blues and greens were a symbol for her ability to communicate her Truth clearly, concisely and from the Heart.

As everything was in its process of manifesting, she changed all the URLs for all her social networking sites to reflect the new name of her company—the name she had been given at birth. She morphed the signature on her emails to reflect the person she was now allowing to come forward...and as she did so she re-discovered that she was happy—not just while she was celebrating Spirit, but all the time—for it all is a celebration of Spirit.

And as she opened herself up, the sweet tears streamed down her cheeks, because she realized that for the first time in her life, she was allowing herself to be vulnerable—and amazingly, she discovered it felt good.

This woman, who of course is me, feels at the core level of her Being, the immense shift in Consciousness that has been offered to her…I thank Alexe and I thank Elizabeth, who inadvertently became two powerful messengers for my journey…I thank the Universe for helping me to see my Light and I thank my Higher Self… for it has always…been there…with me.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

The Solstice Begins

2011-12-21T08:17:00.000-08:00

As the Earth moves through the heavens, the axial tilt of the North Pole reaches its farthest point from the sun at 10:30 pm PST on Wednesday, December 21st (which means depending on where you are in the world it might be tomorrow). This signifies the winter solstice for those in the Northern Hemisphere.

As we approach this pivotal moment, the dawning of a new season is upon us and as such it is time to honor the needs of this part of our cycle. Unfortunately, in the modern world, we have been trained to forget this alignment our bodies have to the cyclical aspect of our Being. With this in mind, it is not surprising that our bodies scream at us to go to bed prior to what we have deemed as normal and when the alarm goes off in the morning, we find it more challenging to awaken. We were never meant to be forced to stay awake. We have a symbiotic relationship with our planet and in the heart of winter we require a mini-hibernation each evening.

Metaphorically speaking, winter is the time for introspection—a time for clearing out what no longer serves us, making way for what we truly desire. The cycle of death and rebirth are apparent in the symbolic meaning of this shortest day that is overcome by the longest night only to see the rebirth of the sun again tomorrow. Each day will then begin to get a little longer until the pinnacle of the summer solstice is reached.

For those of you are in the Southern Hemisphere, then the summer solstice begins, meaning this is the longest day of the year and the shortest night and the days will be getting shorter starting tomorrow. For you, it is the time of passion and creativity.

So, no matter where you are in the world, it is my hope that you take a moment to look within and send blessings to the new cycle. As for me, I send to you many blessings on this sacred day.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Being Present through Illness

2011-12-08T17:53:00.001-08:00

I thought I had escapedit. My family had been sick for twoweeks, but I alone remained healthy. Taking my Echinacea and drinking my herbal tea every day, kept my energyup and I felt quite lucky. Then onemorning, I woke up with an angry sore throat along with a raging fever to goalong with it. When the heat in thehouse was turned on, it felt like an air conditioner was blowing on my body and Ihad to bundle up—my body was that hot. Then as the air turned off, perspiration flooded every inch of my skinand I had to tear every blanket off of me. This oscillation between hot and cold lasted a couple of days. After the fever took its leave of me, thephlegm decided to make its presence known. My waste basket is now filled with a never ending sea of tissue that Ihave to empty out every day. Yep, I havethe same cold everyone else in the house has.

While being sick iscertainly not my favorite place to be in, I am trying to take it all instride. When illness takes a hold of us,the Universe is giving us the opportunity to have our body release the oldtoxins representing old beliefs that are no longer serving us, making way forall the good stuff to come in—and that is certainly a good thing.

There is little doubtthat I have made a giant leap in awareness in the last couple of weeks. There is so much change occurring in everydirection and I am allowing it all to flow through me. As I became sick, I thanked the Universe forbringing me this opportunity to shift into a new level of consciousness. One thing that I try do during this process is to remainpresent. When I cough or have to blow mynose, I pay attention to how each part of my body feels as I am experiencingit. I also observe my surroundings by seeing how the garbage growswith each passing tissue that I drop into it. I notice how differently I feel in the morning, afternoon andnight. Whether better or worse, when I observemyself from an objective viewpoint, illness can be seen as quite a fascinatingexperience. Our bodies endure so muchand yet they can keep going. It’samazing! So, this illness is triggeringthe reminder button in me to be mindful. What a great teacher!

For the moment, I amsending my body the healing energy of reiki. I continue my Echinacea and tea regiment and I make certain to drink mydaily glass of orange juice. The illnessseems to be moving me through at spitfire rapidity compared to everyone else inthe house that has gone through the same thing—and for that I am counting mylucky stars and recognize the blessings being bestowed upon me.

So, keep in mind ifillness opens its doors to you this season, that we are being offered an endingto the old, which of course opens a new door to new beginnings. Sit and be present and allow the process totake place without argument. And remember that this day shall pass, bringingforth a new one and that it is all good!

Thank you for reading andNamaste! (The Light in me recognizes theLight in you!)

Giving Thanks for Thanksgiving

2011-11-19T20:16:00.001-08:00

Since we are in the season ofgiving thanks, I am reminded how in my twenties when my then-husband and Ijoined our friends one year for the Thanksgiving feast. Each of us provided a dish and we set up thelong table in our friend’s living room and began the usual process of gorgingon the ubiquitous amount of food, wine and good cheer. Our merriment was obviated by the laughterthat we all shared, when it donned on me that this annual holiday, wasn’t justabout getting a day off. It wasn’t justabout having football in the background—and it wasn’t about stuffing our faceswith everything in sight until we got sick.

I circumnavigated the table withmy eyes and I looked upon every single person I was sharing space with when Irealized that there was a reason why they call this holiday “Thanks”“Giving”. It was about giving thanks foreverything we are grateful for. Ourforefathers had endured great hardship, but with the help of their NativeAmerican brethren, they made it through their rough patch. In celebration of their triumph, they held agreat feast.

I decided it was time to takeaction. I tapped the glass with my silverware asking for the otherparticipants’ attention and reminded each of them about the true meaning of theholiday. I asked if they would indulgeme by going around the table and sharing what in the last year each of them wasthankful for. I listened intently toevery person’s response. Some wereimpressed with new toys they had acquired. Some were elated for new marriages. But, all of us were grateful for the friendship that we shared, as wellas the abundance of food that we had prepared together. The following year, I took this gratitudeexercise and brought it to my own family’s table. It has since become a tradition that I lookforward to every year.

I have learned over the yearsthat even when I am preparing a simple meal, I express my thanks to each of theindividual ingredients for allowing their presence to nourish me. I celebrate all the colors of the rainbowthat each item offers and I notice how the colors I am eating reflect the colors of the various chakras in my energetic being: the reds of thestrawberries match my first chakra, the orange from the juice correlates to the 2nd, the yellow of the zucchini are aligned with the third, the greenfrom the lettuce. 4th, the blue from the blueberries, the fifth, the purple from the eggplantthe sixth/seventh and also all the beiges from oatmeal, whole wheat bread and mushrooms thatrepresent Mother Earth as she shares her bounty with me. And every year on the third Thursday inNovember, I acknowledge the gift of the turkey. Its symbolism, especially for the American iconography, represents thebounty, the abundance that every person on the planet is entitled to.

We are all part of the DivineForce and I offer my gratitude to you all for listening to my story.

...and let me say that I thank YOU for reading myarticle today.

Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light inyou!)

GRATITUDE WITH GUSTO

2011-11-13T06:14:00.001-08:00

Gratitude holds the key to unlocking so many doors, yet most of us are unaware of the powerful role it plays in our daily lives. In all honesty it would take me four decades to understand the energetic connection between Gratitude and my well being. I made the shift while I had been living in Paris, France. I had been there for three months and things were not going so well for me. I was broke. I was sick and I was not happy. I had spent a lifetime wanting to be there and it wasn’t turning out the way I had imagined it would.

One day, I did have a few extra bucks and I felt well enough to go outside for a few hours. My energy was still low, but I was able to manage. I took myself to a quintessential Parisian café and ordered my meal while sitting at one of the many outdoor tables that are simply everywhere in Paris. As far as the eye can see, there is a river of small round tables calling out to passerbys to be used. The French certainly take their leisure time seriously and I decided to join in too.

After taking my seat, I pulled out a book from my backpack I had been reading by Dr. Wayne Dyer. For some strange reason, I had previously stopped in the middle of the chapter instead of finishing it like I normally would have. I removed the book mark and I began to read. This section of the book that I was soon to cover was about expressing gratitude. I read those two or three pages dedicated to giving thanks a couple of times as I sat there. I suppose the Universe wanted me to wait until I was ready to read it—and now that I was ready I wanted it to seep in.

I had read by umpteen Spirituality teachers that gratitude is an important practice in the ebb and flow of life. I have heard it all before. I read it all before and I even consciously bought into it on an intellectual level. However, this time something was different. I was going much deeper than that. I was having my “a-ha” moment and I understood it on the Spiritual level and it was now a visceral reality for me. Dr. Dyer had written that even in our worst of times there is always something to be grateful for—and I took the message to heart.

After soaking in his prose, I felt inclined to recite in my mind everything that I appreciated. It didn’t matter how small or how large it was. I included it all. I started out by looking down at what the server had brought to me. I was grateful to the cow and the vegetables who gave their life to feed me. I thanked the farmers who nurtured and eventually picked the food. I thanked the driver who brought it all to the store. I thanked the store for selling it to the restaurant. I thanked the staff who prepared it and I thanked the server who brought it to me.

I next thanked the fork, the knife, the spoon, the plate, the glass, the water and everyone who ever had anything to do with bringing those items to me. I did not have to use my hands and that was a beautiful thing! I thanked all the ingredients it took to make the table and chair where I was seated for it enabled me to sit and relax as I enjoyed my meal. As the server brought the bill, I thanked the Universe for providing me with enough money to pay it—and to leave a tip.

As I practiced this exercise, I began to notice the difference in how I looked upon the world. I had been cranky for several months. I was only allowing myself to see the dark and gloomy aspect of my reality instead of honoring the blessings that surrounded me. I felt lighter—maybe because I was allowing my innate Spiritual Light to shine through. As I moved through this process, I didn’t want it to end.

I got up from the table and began to walk the glorious Parisian streets that I had coveted my entire life. I admired the buildings and I expressed gratitude for their makers. The French have a keen eye for creating beautiful window displays and as I passed each creation that emulated a fantastic work of art, I expressed my gratitude to the Universe for bringing beauty into my life.

I thanked the color green. I thanked the color blue and I thanked my favorite color purple. In fact, I thanked all the colors even the ones that were not my favorite, for they all allowed each of us to show our unique qualities by expressing our own different tastes in color.

I thanked the old cobblestone road that held the history of so many footprints that graced its path. In fact, I thanked everything I could think of. For three hours my brain created a never ending list that kept me busy.

As I walked the famous streets, something else began to happen that was easier to recognize in this physical reality. As I continued on my journey of gratitude, men, I mean really good looking men, started appearing out of the wood works—and they were all noticing me. I heard whistles from workers from above. I had many offers to have an afternoon intrigue. “Bonjour, mademoiselle.” “Un café avec moi, s’il vous plait?” The offers kept pouring in.

It was interesting, because for the previous three months since I had arrived not one single man noticed me at all. I grew up having a lot of attention and now there was nothing. I simply had chalked it up to the fact that I was now in my forties and that part of my life was over, but now I was seeing things from a different Light.

It really amused me. I mean, I hadn’t suddenly had facial reconstruction, changed my make-up or started working out at a gym. I didn’t physically look any differently than I had an hour before. However, during this first season I had been abroad, I had been permitting myself to experience only pain. I was mad at the world for my misfortune and I was mad at myself for allowing it to happen—and as I stayed in this place of negativity I was shunning anyone from wanting to be around me. Yet as I shifted my perspective, I made room for me to recognize the Divine flowing through me—and as I did so, I began to attract men in their forties, in their thirties and even in their twenties.

Furthermore, when I arrived home that afternoon and checked my emails, I also had an offer for a job. This experience enabled me to not only get some attention from men; it helped me to manifest some much needed income. It was all a good thing!

While I didn’t accept the invitations for any of the dalliances being offered, I did accept the lesson that the potential paramours were all helping me to realize. Spirit was showing me that we create our realities and when we genuinely feel the Divinely inspired gratitude that is a part of us, more of the good stuff manifests in our life.

It is my hope that every single person reflects on what they are grateful for. Spend fifteen minutes a day just rattling off in your mind everything you can think of. We each have the opportunity to experience Grace through Gratitude. Even in our darkest hour, we can celebrate the magnificence of the trees, the sky, the air in our lungs, the legs that get us from place to place, our families, our friends and of course ourselves. When we view the world as a great masterpiece, we will shift our realities for the better.

...and let me say that I thank YOU for reading my article today.

Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Gratitude for Divine Inspiration

2011-11-08T08:38:00.000-08:00

Fromthe time that I was a child, I remember my beloved grandfather reciting thesame prayer at every meal time. “Blessus, oh Lord, and these, Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thybounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.” I must admit that even at an early age, I didn’t get it. Oh, I understood the words, but I didn’tunderstand why we had to repeat a memorizedprayer to offer thanks. Did it reallyhave anything to do with how I genuinelyfelt? Not really. I mean, I don’t talkthat way. I am far more casual thenthat. I wouldn’t put it pass me to saysomething like, “Hi God—thank you so much for this beautiful food that I am soexcited to eat…woo hoo…You rock…and Blessings to all!” That is what is from my heart and it is what speaks to me. God created fun andhumor after all and my versioncertainly is about fun and humor—but, because I loved and honored mygrandfather, I went along with his version for his sake. And frankly, I think that is how we sort of learnabout gratitude—from this viewpoint of repetition without giving much thoughtto what we are actually saying.

So,often we are on automatic pilot when we say thanks and we do it because we are supposed to. I learned as a child that Imust say thank you when someone gives me a gift, or passes me the salt or holdsthe door open for me. So, it is a giventhat I will do so. Through learnedrepetition I have said the words of gratitude, and I even felt them to someextent, but only at the surface of my Being. For years, it never occurred to me to dig deeply into my core as I saidthank you.

In fact, as I grew into early adulthood, I still said thank you for the commoncourtesies, but my ego got a little bigger than my breeches. In college, as I sat in a meeting with mythesis advisor who was admonishing me for my lack of enthusiasm for doing anywork, I explained rather matter-of-factly, that nothing in the course was beinggraded except for the final documentation. So, I did not feel the necessity of doing any extra work—and as mythesis was already in my head, I just needed to put pen to paper to get it outthere. Needless to say, my professor didnot like hearing my genuine thoughts on his class. And as per usual, I waited until the lastminute to get my work done. I typed it…twenty pages on a typewriter no less, the night before Ihad my oral presentation. I ended upgetting an A on it (though he decided to give me a B in the class for myattitude). Regardless, instead of givingthanks for the ease at the writing process for me, I smirked that I was brilliant.

It would take twenty years before I would realize that the writing process wasn’tjust about me. In reality, when I writeI am connecting to Source energy andallowing all the information that needs to be written to flow. It happens naturally. It happens easily—and now when things come tome, I share my thanks. As though I amtalking to an old confidante, I say in my mind the words of gratitude I havesaid so many times before, except this time I am not in recitation mode. Now I say, “THANK YOU,” to the Universe,allowing my enthusiasm to seep through every nuance of each word. Itruly feel at the core of my Beingthe essence of the connection with the Divine Force. When Ioffer my thanks, I am aware of the energy radiating throughout my body, even ifonly for a moment, but in that moment I feel the Blessings that are everywhere.

So, keep in mind that when we feel the spark of inspiration in any form that we are being guided by the Universe to take the next leap. We are a part of the Universal Whole and as such we can tap into this Divine Library of Information at any time. And when we have this beautiful a-ha moment that shows up for us, I encourage you to say thank you for the idea.

...and thank YOU for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

The Sewing Kit

2011-10-17T22:14:00.000-07:00

My nine-year-old niece asked me today if I could show her how to mend the hole in her teddy bear. I said yes and she piled the oversized bear and sewing kit on my lap. I may have said yes to her request, but my mind went off in another direction. I was thinking how much I hated to sew and I was annoyed that I had to take the time to do this tedious work instead of doing something I really cared about.

Hiding my true feelings, I advised what color thread to use and showed her how to make a double stitch. As I did so, my thought process began to take a different route. I looked into the future and saw her as a thirty-year-old woman with the ability to perform any task on her own. She may very well decide at one point to pay someone else to make simple repairs that she will need, but she would always know how to do it. In other words, my thirty minute lesson was helping to create an independent woman--and that made me smile.

I relayed this story to my grandmother a few hours later and as I was doing so I was reminded of an allegory I once read. In it, a visitor approaches the building site of a great cathedral. He notices three men chipping away at their stones, performing the banal work that was required of them. When he asked the first man what he did for a living, the disgruntled worker responded, "I chip away at stones all day long, every single day. That's what I do. What else does it look like?" When he approached the second man performing the same task and asked what he did for a living, the worker smiled and shared his genuine gratitude for having employment by explaining the he was putting food on the table for him and his family. Finally, the traveling man approached the third worker performing the same task and asked him what he did for a living. This man breathed in the beauty of the moment and explained that he was creating a resplendent cathedral that would last for many centuries allowing countless generations of people to enjoy this beautiful edifice."...And I guess that really says it all.

Three men engaged in the exact same routine saw life completely differently and I suppose that is what Spiritual Awakening is about. We can choose to stay asleep and see all the necessary chores we must do with great disdain. We can begin our journey of Awareness by viewing these duties as a necessity to provide a life for us--or even better still we can emulate the Divine by opening our hearts to see the great potential of each act as a seed that will one day create a beautiful garden.

The good news is that we don't have to take several lifetimes or even years in this lifetime to shift our way of thinking. Even on this very day, I started out on one end of the spectrum, but chose another course in only about ten seconds. It's that easy! And the great thing is that each of us has the opportunity to change the direction of our life at a moment's notice--and that is a beautiful gift.

Which direction will you choose?

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

The Symbolism of Dimes

2011-10-12T19:22:00.000-07:00

Today was the day for dimes with me. From early this morning through this evening, I found one after the other in different locations. Anytime I notice something three times or more in a short span of time, I know the Universe is trying to tell me something. Ever the investigator, I Googled my search and clicked on the first link that seemed to be calling to me. I loved what the author had to say, and since they allow people to reproduce their work, I wanted to share it with you all:

Here is the number 10 (dime) defined.

Ten

The meaning of number ten deals with returning to our center, coming full circle. Ten holds a vibration of unity, as well as fresh starts. If the number One symbolizes the beginning (& it does), then we can say that the number Ten represents the outcome, result, or achievement of that first step or beginning. The most profound message number Ten hails is “whatever we sew, we shall now reap.” In other words, “what comes around goes around.”

Ten also represents fulfillment, attainment, and completion. These attributes are obtained by observing the Ten containing all the elementary numbers from 1 to 9. As such, Ten is a vessel holding all the jumbled up potential found in the language of numbers.

Ten is also a bit slippery because reduced - it turns back to number One - hence, again - a full circle, coming to the beginning - finding unity (all is one, one is all).

That you are picking up a great deal of dimes is quite a good sign. Specifically, dimes may be symbolic of shiny opportunities coming your way that you once thought were lost to you.

Remember Tens are strong representation of recycling events (full circle) - a dime is a superior symbolic symbol of such phenomenon. Consider how many times a dime (or any money for that matter) is recycled through our society.

Symbolic dimes provide messages of lost opportunities regained. Things we thought we should not or could not do are beginning to resurface. Our energies are being recycled. Our intellectual currency is on the brink of change. Shiny, bright and round…these dimes on your path are beacons of promise. They hold the meaning of number Ten firmly in their vibration and that is: “Events are coming full circle. Cast off the old, and don the new. Step into the beginning that is for your greatest good.”

I am thankful to this anonymous author for putting this information online for us all to read and it is my hope that each of us finds many dimes and all the metaphors that go along with it.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

To read the original What does finding dimes mean?, please visit Anonymous ATS; a member of AboveTopSecret.com at http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread29594/pg3

The Yin and Yang of Abundance

2011-10-09T10:37:00.000-07:00

I was out on one of my early morning walks that begin while it is still dark out. Because I leave so early to avoid the Arizona heat, I am able to experience the process of the sun rising, witnessing the constantly changing shades from black to cobalt to powder blue. As the sun peaks its rays over the horizon, the vibrancy of the salmon clouds act like jewels to enhance the sky. On this particular morning, the heavens seemed to caress the stars in the distance while the moon swelled to its fullest capacity above me. The moon was not leaving my side as the sun gradually began to show itself and I was presented with both of the celestial bodies at the same time. The moon continued to reflect the light from the sun down upon me and I appreciated the connection between the three of us—the sun, the moon and myself.

For me the sun represents the Divine Masculine qualities in all of us—the drive, the rationality and the focus, among other things, while the moon is a metaphor for the Divine Feminine spark we each have—our intuition, receptivity, creativity and the nurturing aspects of our Being. As I walked between them, I celebrated the feeling of balance between both the Yin and Yang aspects of the two Divine creations.

The term Yin and Yang is derived from the Chinese philosophy that all things in the Universe stem from either a masculine or a feminine context. Everything, therefore, has its exact opposite. Whether we are a man or a woman, we carry elements that are both Yin nature (feminine) and Yang in nature (masculine). When we are feeling geared up and ready to go, that is our masculine energy at work and when we are called to create something that is our feminine aspect doing it its thing.

The symbol for Yin and Yang are the two fish-type creatures in circle with one another. Yin is dark, representing the Void or the place where all of Creation occurs and Yang is light colored, representing the drive to reach our Spiritual Light.

As I continued my journey, it occurred to me that financial abundance springs forth from the balance of both the Yin and Yang aspects and seeing these two entities as a metaphor for the Masculine and Feminine, I took it upon myself to ask them both to bring balance towards my own financial situation. It was a lovely visualization, but I was compelled to add more.

The clouds spanned the lengths of the sky and I got them in on the act, as well. I imagined that they were showering me with $100 bills along with succulent red hearts. It seemed to me I was receiving money with love from the heavens.

I added the caveat to my visualized creation by spanning a rainbow across the sky that ended in the crown of my head. I imagined that it filled up my body with the radiant light force of each color to its corresponding partner in my chakra system. The chakras are spinning wheels in our energetic bodies that are aligned with various aspects of our physical and Spiritual planes (ie. survival issues, sexuality, creativity, self-esteem, power, love, intuition, etc.) Each of them are represented with their own color. The seven primary chakras are the same colors as each stripe in a rainbow. So, in my mind I was imaging the rainbow’s red arc filling up the red of the root chakra; the orange of the rainbow filled the orange of the sacral chakra and so on.

As I visualized these images, I could truly feel the abundance that surrounded me. The ubiquitous amount of leaves on each of the trees, the never ending rocks that graced the desert floor, the clouds in the sky that seemingly went on forever all metaphorically represent abundance and it was simply everywhere.

While I felt sheer joy from my active meditation, it also served a practical purpose. Within only a few days, I manifested several hundred dollars that I wasn’t expecting. My bills were paid and I was able to spend money on things I actually wanted instead of only what I needed—and that was a fun thing too!

So, if you are struggling to make ends meet, remember that abundance does surround us wherever we look. Moreover, if we keep in mind that both the masculine and feminine energies are at work to create this manifestation we will bring balance to our creation.

I encourage all of us to go forth and create!

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Celebrating Eternal Life

2011-09-27T09:08:00.001-07:00

Dogs are known to be man’s best friend and that was certainly true in the case of Roxy. This gorgeous golden retriever touched so many lives in my family that even though she lived at one house with my parents, the rest of us couldn’t help but have the same deep connection with her that we would have had if we saw her every day. She brought so much joy to the hearts of anyone who came in contact with her—and I was certainly no exception. Needless to say, it touched my heart when I heard that Roxy decided to leave this planet over the weekend.

What struck me most was that I was moved not by the loss, but for the celebration of her life. From my perspective, this ten year old never stopped looking like a puppy and she always seemed to have a smile on her face. Her cheerful demeanor as well as her perfectly trimmed ears helped to maintain her youthful appearance. I suppose she was so beautiful on the outside, because she was so beautiful on the inside.

I spent many hours and days taking long walks with her. If we were in the same room together I would be hard pressed to stop petting her or playing catch or tug of war with her. And yes, I occasionally slipped her her favorite treat—an apple slice that she gobbled up with unabashed delight. It was a pleasure giving her as much love as I possibly could.

Even with all we had gone through together, after living in Europe for two years, I thought that Roxy might have forgotten me, but as I entered the house, I was nicely surprised to see that she waited for my approach at the top of the stairs with her wagging tail in tow. She followed me to the guest room and slept next to me on the floor as though the lapse in our meeting together never occurred. For her, time had no meaning. I was simply her friend who was here again and she was happy to see me.

In fact, as I reminisced about her this morning while out on my walk, I remembered how the only time I would ever see her in a crazed mood was if another dog barked at her first. She was friendly to friends, but if another dog acted aggressively, she would hold her own. Barking back, she would try her hardest to be released from the leash to meet her adversary face to face. Alas, the dramatic moment would be over as soon as the dogs passed each other. It never ceased to amaze me how Roxy was able to live fully in the moment, never burdened with the past. She had already achieved what I have to constantly work at and I admire her deeply for being my role model.

Roxy and I never spent time on petty bickering. For us there was nothing but love. My relationship with her represented what Spiritual Love is all about. We truly saw each other as the Divine Being that we both are—without any flaws that the egoic mind so often invents in its imagination. Perhaps now I will think twice when get angry at someone for some trivial thing, remembering that we are all part of the same Divine Source that flows throughout the Universe.

So, now as I celebrate her life on Earth, I reflect on how when I was younger I used to wail when a loved one passed away. Tears of sadness rolled down my face and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for myself for the loss. However, now I see things a little differently. Instead of tears of sadness, I have tears of joy for a life well lived. Today I recognize that we are all eternal beings living in various dimensions and that this one reality we are viscerally experiencing is just that—one reality. Roxy the dog and everyone else who has left their temporarily borrowed bodies are still with us. They are simply on a different plane of existence.

With that in mind, I think of the French term au revoir. It doesn’t actually mean goodbye. Instead, it roughly translates as until we meet again. So, until we meet again, I thank you Roxy for being a part of my life. Instead of focusing on the last moments before death, I choose to celebrate the ten years you were here. So many beautiful moments you gave to me will always be cherished and I am grateful that you were my teacher and my friend.

Au revoir, my sweet.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

No Fear, just Love

2011-09-10T16:07:00.000-07:00

It has been ten years, since the September 11^th attacks. Celebrations of patriotism are occurring in the county where I reside and the media is on an ongoing blitz of bulldozing painful images down our throats. While my ego would love nothing more than to ignite the fear button, my Spirit has decided to take a different course of action. On this day of remembrance, I choose to reflect on the blessings that have occurred, stemming from that initial fear-based act.

Just this morning, I opened an email sent by Scott Heiferman, the co-founder and CEO of Meetup.com. In it, he eloquently shares the story of his company’s provenance. He admits that as a native New Yorker he once ignored everyone around his neighborhood, but after the 9/11 attacks he began to say hello—as did everyone else. Furthermore, it inspired him to look to the internet to launch a gathering place for neighbors to organize groups with like-minded people and Meetup was born. He chose to see the Light in the situation and he has helped to change the world—one neighbor at a time.

I know for myself I opt to look at all the so-called catastrophes of the last decade, from the natural disasters to the man-made ones, as an opportunity for each of us to have a heart opening. On a Spiritual level, these situations occur to shock us into our innate sense of Love and Compassion for not only our neighbors, but for people from all over the world, who we will never meet or even see. In other words, the Souls who decided to leave their physical bodies behind are enabling the rest of us to raise the vibration of the planet and the Universe at large by filling our hearts with all the good stuff. From this perspective, I see it all as an amazing gift for it is the springboard helping us remember our Divine Connection and our True State.

Taking this into consideration, in lieu of turning on the news on this anniversary, I sat in meditation today visualizing hearts being sent from the heavens to all the land masses and to all the bodies of water coming from Mother Earth. A smile graced my face as I couldn’t help but feel the Love radiating from my energetic heart space. It was a beautiful thing.

So, in spite of the media’s dogged determination to regurgitate the same images of ten years before in our minds, I offer that we don’t give into the fear that they are promoting. Instead, I ask that we look to our hearts and embrace only Peace, Love and Light to every single Being in the Universe. It is our True Nature after all.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Mosquito Madness

2011-08-27T08:25:00.000-07:00

My alarm wakes me up at 4:30am these days to remind me that I need to take my walk before the sun rises and before the Arizona heat is too unbearable to take. While it is a little painful to wake up from the shock of a screaming alarm, I have to admit that I have become a convert when it comes to exercising in the morning. It is well worth waking up before the crack of dawn just to see the amazing colors the sky presents as the impending sunrise approaches. Arizona certainly has its skyscapes going for it that is for sure! They are the best sky views I have seen yet.

It’s not just the sky either—it’s also the sounds I get to hear. Most people are still asleep so, there are few, if any, cars on the road. The silence from humankind affords me the opportunity to hear the symphony of chirps coming from the crickets. I can attest that their performance gets louder as the heat rises, which I find fascinating. I am also able to hear the sounds of the birds waking up. It seems as though there is always a solitary tweeter that starts singing its melodious song, serving as a natural wake-up call for the rest to join in. It is all so lovely.

I have been practicing this routine for the last couple of months, but a few days ago something had changed. Along my path I was joined, not by one, but by many mosquitoes. I initially discovered them due to the fact that I could practically feel the wind being pushed against my face by the mosquito wings flapping back and forth. Additionally, I heard the never-ending obnoxious buzzing sound right next to both of my ears. My hands went into automatic flailing mode. I have to mention that the bug was not simply there for a moment where I had to brush the side of my head one time. No, that little bugger would not leave me alone and I spent a good fifteen minutes with both of my hands in the air. I am certain it must have been a ridiculously funny looking site to see—if anyone else had been awake to see it that is.

It didn’t end with the mosquitoes practicing their fly-bys on me either. Oh no, that would be too simple. Several of them kept landing on me. Not only was I throwing my hands next to my ears, I now had to brush them off my arms and my thighs too. This seemed a little too scripted to me and thought I might have been either on Candid Camera or a Monty Python film. Alas, the several bites all over me confirmed that this was the real deal.

As uncomfortable as this all was, it was clear to me that the Universe was definitely trying to get my attention and that Mosquito was serving as a messenger for me. It was important for me to go within to discover what it was all about.

First of all, it is only the females that bite humans, as they are gathering nutrients that the blood supplies for their young. This can be seen as the importance of the cycle of life and the continuation of the species. It can also serve as reminder of the strength of the Divine Feminine, through which our innate intuitive wisdom springs from. I also discovered in my research that it is thought that mosquitoes suck the unwanted qualities of the blood from us and when I read that, I knew this was a powerful metaphor for me. The mosquitoes represented the releasing of old beliefs that were no longer serving me. A-HA, that’s it!

Ever aware of my continuing journey down the road of Spiritual Awakening, I am continuously shedding old beliefs transforming them into new ideas that are not really new, but rather newly remembered. As I remember that my True Essence is Divinely inspired and not stemming from my ego, I learn to relax into the chaos that life sometimes presents. Admittedly, I am still not so relaxed when a bunch of mosquitoes are on the war path with me, but I can relax just a bit more through the curve balls that life throws at me—and perhaps that was the lesson that was needed to be learned. The mosquitoes were helping me to remember more of my own Light.

As I paused for a moment from writing to scratch one of the bites, a smile crossed my face. Even with the ubiquitous discomfort from all the itching, I can still smile through the pain…and that is a good thing.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

My Teacher

2011-08-12T06:57:00.000-07:00

When I was six-years-old my health decided to take a nose dive for a couple of months. Between ear infections, strep throat, the flu and whatever else decided to show up, I managed to miss a couple of months of school. I was getting a little bored with all the staying in bed I had to do, so it was a nice change of pace when I finally was well enough to go back to the first grade.

My teacher welcomed me back by telling me that I was behind on the S.R.A. reading all the other children had started while I was away. I do not remember what the letters S-R-A stood for, but I most certainly remember what the lessons were like. I was handed the first card from the box and was told by my teacher that I had to read it. When I was done I had another thirty-nine cards or so to finish before I would be caught up with the rest of the class. She did not foresee that my actual catching up was possible and frankly I did not either.

In fact, I have to admit that I was just slightly stressed out when I realized I was this much behind. In response to this fear, I decided the best course of action to take was to spend about a minute and a half “reading” the card, turn it in and then I would “read” the next card. So, after “finishing” the first card, I turned it in—but that is when I was caught. My teacher informed me that I had not completed the test on the back of card. YIKES, I hadn’t actually read the card! How was I going to take a test on it? Needless to say, I was not able to answer one single question.

Panic arose in my body and I felt flush. My teacher was watching me at this point, so I could not actually go back and read the story. I guessed as well as I could, but considering I knew nothing of the material, I was not able to pull the proverbial magical rabbit out of my hat. I will never forget what happened next. My teacher declared that I would probably have to stay back and repeat the first grade again. I obviously had missed too much of the school year to be able to move on to the next level. Initially, I was horrified. I did not want to do-over a whole year. That simply seemed ludicrous to me.

I remember staring at my teacher for a minute or so and then something within me changed. I wasn’t going to take this sitting down. I allowed the ego-voice to run its course of enabling the fear to reside in my body, before I decided to spring into action. With the shift, I kicked the fear right on out the door. No one was going to hold me back a grade!

As the teacher still stood in front of me, I not only sprung into action in my mind, my physical body began to follow suit. I proceeded to jump up from my desk, walk over to my nemesis, the S.R.A. box, and proceeded to give it a piece of my mind. I did so by actually reading the first card. I obediently took the test afterwards and low and behold I aced it. My teacher seemed a little perplexed.

After completing the first card, my tension began to ease, for now I realized that I was smart. I placed it back in the box and pulled out the second card. I read it. I took the test and I aced it. I then pulled out the third, fourth, fifth and so on until I completed all the cards in one day. The teacher was clearly stumped by the change that had taken place in me. I could see it in her face and I could feel her confusion in her energetic body, as well. I admit I was slightly perturbed and to punish her I never did bare light on the situation. I did not tell her that I hadn’t read the first card the first time around. I was far too shy to admit any wrong doing and my anger came out by keeping me quiet. So, she stewed in her state of quandary for the remainder of the class time. Perhaps that was a little childish of me, and of course it was, but hey, I was only six after all. I would eventually forgive her and forgive myself for my own actions in this endeavor.

By the end of the day, she did eat her words and admitted that she had been mistaken. She said I clearly did not need to stay back a grade. Of course not, I thought, but I knew it was better to say nothing. So, I kept my mouth shut and kept my thoughts to myself.

Some might see the original behavior of this teacher as being unkind. She could have explained the assignment more thoroughly by telling me there would be a test. She could have been more warm and compassionate upon my return and she certainly could have kept her words to herself—but if any of those things had happened, the course of my life might have ended up differently. If she had not stirred my passion for knowledge, I might have actually had to be held back—and it is possible that I would not have gone on with my education as I had. I may not have earned my Master’s Degree or even my Bachelor’s Degree if it had not been for her. In fact, I might have stuck with the status quo and just stayed back, because that was expected of me.

What actually ended up happening, you see, is that my study habits that I learned from this experience did not end on that day. In response to those words, I would continue on this path of teaching myself and moving at my own pace as I had on this day of reckoning—so much so, that by the time I was in the third grade, I was already in an eighth grade reading book, sixth grade spelling book and fifth grade math book. I just kept going.

One of the greatest lessons I have learned from any teacher, throughout the many years of education I have had, was not something that came out of a book. It was not a quote from one of our forefathers. It was not a resolution to a math problem. Instead, it was an unkind remark. This one little moment in time would ignite the fire in me to move past the ordinary. It would help to shape the person I have become and I am moved beyond words for the inspiration I have had because of her.

This example shows how we all have a choice in life. We can choose to accept ego-driven falsehoods that are thrown our way or we can instead take a different route and see things from a Higher Perspective. We can elect to see the Divine in all things. Sometimes these so-called painful moments are actually omnipresent reminders to help guide us towards our own Spiritual Truth. That is what this teacher did for me—she helped me to recognize the Spiritual Truth that I love to learn. For that, I am forever grateful.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!

Fear Factor

2011-08-05T06:32:00.001-07:00

Something came up in my life a few days ago that created deep fear in me. As the situation developed, I could physically feel the pain the anxiety was creating as it swirled around in my body. My stomach felt queasy. My chest and throat felt constricted. In addition, I was letting my imagination run wild. Projecting the worst case scenario as an outcome for the future, I had taken myself out of the present. I had moved into fight or flight response mode, not because I was in any danger, but because I was allowing my ego-voice to take control. It was telling me to be afraid and to stay that way indefinitely and I was listening. Needless to say, I wasn’t having any fun.

After giving permission to my ego to be in charge for about a day, I decided it was time to let Spirit move back into control. I was already in the dark place and I most certainly did not want to suppress my feelings. Doing that only created a space for these emotions to stay in my energetic and physical bodies for it to manifest into something much worse at a later date. Who needs that? So, instead, I calmly sat down and began to pay attention to my breathing. This always helps to bring me back into the present moment. As my lungs filled with air, I expressed gratitude to the Universe for allowing me to be here even during this dark time.

I then took note of my feelings. Yes, I already recognized that my physical body felt horrible, but now I wanted to really pay attention to each individual part. I breathed into my stomach. I noticed every nuance of pain I felt in that area. I honored the moment. I repeated the action with my chest and throat. Lastly, I scanned the rest of my body to make sure I did not miss anything. Thankfully, I hadn’t so I moved onto the next step.

The first level of healing was to deal with my physical body, now I had to deal with my Spirit body. I teach how important it is to see everything in life in life as a gift, even the so-called “bad stuff.” Nothing is actually bad. Everything is presented to us in order to teach us something. Challenges can be seen as an opportunity to let go of old beliefs and to expand our vibrations to recognize Spiritual Truths. Even though I already knew this to be true, I am human and because of this I have to sometimes bring balance back into the picture. This was one of those times.

I looked deep within to see what the important lesson was that I needed to learn from this situation and that is when it hit me. I have been an avid “control freak” for the majority of my life. I want everything to be my way and that’s it. That is fine and dandy if life were a story book, but it is not. Life throws us curve balls that are out of our control and we need to learn to go with the flow. Instead of fighting to go upstream, I have to simply ride out the course of the water and see where it takes me. This is a big part of why I manifested on Earth in this lifetime. I am here to learn that I cannot control life’s events. However, I can choose to go with the flow and allow the magic to happen. And guess what? That is when the magic actually began to happen for me in this situation.

Still in meditation, I began to assume that the situation was ALREADY RESOLVED in the direction that I desired and I repeatedly affirmed that I was GRATEFUL for the resolution. I visualized how the outcome would look while maintaining that it had happened in the past, not that it was going to happen in the future. I practiced this mantra and visualization while in quiet meditation, but I did not stop there. I continued my thought process while taking my daily walks, while I did the dishes and while I watched tv. I had to make certain that I actually believed it was true.

As I created in my mind what I really wanted, a miracle began to unfold. I no longer held onto the physical pain I was feeling. I let it go. I allowed the Universe to take control of the situation. I knew it was already resolved, I simply did not know when it would manifest in this dimension. I just had to go with the flow. The good news is that by the end of the night, the situation was resolved with the exact outcome I had hoped for! I was so excited for the result that I not only thanked the Universe again, I also performed my own personal “victory dance”, raising my hands in the air in the shape of a V and moving the rest of my body in any direction it wanted to move in. I was on a natural high and I was celebrating!

This situation had become another teacher for me. I not only established that I needed to move with the flow of life, I also needed to create what I want by recognizing that it had already happened and that I was grateful for the result—even before it had actually manifested. It was important for me to learn that I did not know how this manifestation would take place. The “how” part of the equation was none of my business. As long as I did not put my own limitations on how the outcome must take place, I was leaving room for the Universe to do its thing—to make it work out in its own way.

All I can say is this, “Hallelujah! Life is such a blessing!”

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

EMPATHIC ACTION

2011-07-13T08:33:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the people at Good News Network, I received in my inbox yesterday another positive story that lifted my Spirit. I was brought to tears of joy when I watched the video showing people on a boat rescuing a humpback whale that had been caught in a fisherman’s net. All they had at their disposal was a small knife. Yet, they worked tirelessly until they completed their task. Needless to say, I was put in a good mood after watching it.

Always one to share stories that inspire me, I posted the link on Facebook and a friend commented how she had goose bumps after watching it. I responded to her by writing that I have always felt a kindred spirit with the humpback and it was nice to see people taking empathic action towards a creature of our planet. As I wrote this, I realized that “empathic action” was a term I had never used before and it was clearly being downloaded by the Universe into my conscious reality. The term felt so right for me, as though it was a part of my auric field for an eternity (and indeed it has been) and now I simply knew what to call it.

I know for myself I could see how empathic action was playing a role in my life. For example, I have had a lifelong passion for the clean-up of planet Earth. For those of you old enough to remember, there was a commercial in the early 70’s where a Native American man is standing at the beach with a tear running down his face. As the camera panned outward, we see the reason for his emotional state. He is standing amongst a pile of trash that surrounds him at every turn that people threw on the sand without any thought of the consequences whatsoever. This haunting image has played a part in the creation of my own empathic action. I often can be seen picking up trash off of Mother Earth to relieve her pain caused by her inattentive children. Even as a six-year-old, when my babysitter demanded that I throw my paper cup under a tree, I protested the next day by going back, picking it up and throwing it away.

And since I was a teenager with the ability of exploring my town with more freedom than I had as a young child, I would always wait impatiently by any car whose owner left his or her children sitting there alone, only to wait for their mom or dad to return. Acting as a babysitter until the parent came back, I could be found even at sixteen, giving the supposed grown-up a piece of my mind for this careless act. Nowadays, I not only wait, but I use my cell phone and call the police, as well. It’s not that I want the person to get into trouble. It is my intention to educate them by explaining that the car heats up exponentially very quickly that is dangerous for any adult let alone a small child, not to mention that there are those people out there that have unsavory intentions towards children. Being gone in the store “for only a minute” can be a lifetime under such circumstances. I have felt compelled to act as protector for these children and embrace my empathic action with all of them.

Empathic action can be seen in so many ways—by donating money to worthy causes that speak to one’s heart; by dialing 911 when someone is in trouble; by volunteering time to various organizations; by watering a flower that needs to be watered, by stopping to pay attention to your child’s fantastic art display instead of telling him that you are too busy; by giving away your leftover meal to a homeless person, or better yet by buying a whole meal for him or her; by contacting your local congressperson to share your voice—and the list goes on and on.

We were never meant to walk away because we could not be bothered and we were not meant to sit around with a cup of coffee complaining to whoever happens to be around in the moment. Instead we were meant to see all the inhabitants of the Universe, whether person, animal, plant or earth as members of our own family to be treated with the nobility it deserves along with the utmost respect. It is time that we all stand up and take empathic action. I ask you, how will you?

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

This story would not be complete without sharing the video that inspired it. Please watch how we can make a difference through empathic action.

The New Food Allergies

2011-07-01T12:08:00.000-07:00

For centuries we have been putting up walls around our properties. During the Middle Ages, moats along with thick stone fortifications were put in place around the castle in order to keep neighboring adversaries out. Fast-forward a few centuries, we no longer are using deep moats and thick stone walls, but we do indeed still have wooden or iron fences that let people know that this is our space and unless otherwise invited, everyone else should keep out. Interestingly, these walls are doing much more than just preventing people from entering our physical space. They can also be seen as a metaphor for the walls that we have all constructed around our energetic space that have been keeping us in fear.

As we have shed various layers of fears over the centuries, our outer walls have become noticeably smaller and as we move through the rapidity of the new evolution our energetic walls are falling down, as well. In fact, with the approaching dawn of a New Era, we see that the metaphorical walls crashing down around us in dramatic form. The economy is in so-called chaos, wars are being fought and our ideologies are taking a massive leap forward towards the voice of Spirit. Yes, there are many still living in fear and they are fighting to keep the established set of rules and regulations in place. Yet, even though there is this intense bickering, more of us are awakening to see the Truth that surrounds us and we are bringing forth the information so that others might begin to hear their own radiant Voice of Truth.

As this change is happening, an interesting byproduct is occurring—our bodies are no longer able to handle the harsh chemicals that we have been putting into them for a half century.

What do walls and chemicals have to do with one another you might ask? Well, for several millennia we have been living under the spell of religion that has dictated that we must all live in fear of God for He will punish us if we step out of line. These fears are so indoctrinated into Western culture that even if a person is agnostic or even an atheist, they still have the same puritanical fears that everyone else does—they simply don’t trust their own Divinity that is the core of who they are.

Furthermore, the more fears we have, the more walls we put up around us and therefore the more chemicals we are able to seemingly endure. People living in fear can consume massive amounts of alcohol, drugs, smoke inhalation as well as the chemicals that are poisoning our food supply. However, the more Spiritually aware we become, the more “allergic” we are to products put on the shelves for us to consume.

Don’t be surprised if you are suddenly allergic to a food or a cleaning product that you have used all your life. Instead be grateful that the walls are coming down for you so that you can now realize what is good for the body and what is not. The truth is we are all “allergic” to smoke, alcohol, drugs, insecticides and so on. However, if we have a lot of walls built up, we cannot recognize the adverse affect these items have on us until it is too late—when disease has ravaged our bodies from long term usage of these products.

These “new” allergies are not simply cropping up in adults either. There is a massive wave of children that are being born that have allergies to nuts, dairy, gluten, etc—so much so that labels are required to state what is in the food item that you are buying; even if that means it is made in a factory where a particular item such as dairy is produced. People have questioned why we have this sudden outbreak of allergies. The answer is actually quite simple. It is because, with each generation, the children being born are more Spiritually evolved than the previous generation and as such they do not have the tolerance built in for them to eat man-made food items, natural foods laced with pesticides and items produced by unethical farming practices. In other words, we are organic beings and when we put inorganic items inside our bodies, the body will fight back by rejecting them.

An orange of today is not an orange of thirty years ago. In fact, the nutritional value of most foods is so depleted, that unless we eat organically we are not replenishing our bodies with all the good stuff it needs. The rate of cancer, heart disease and other ailments has increased dramatically and it is because of the lifestyle that we have all permitted. We permit it by continuing to buy non-organic foods.

On the sidebar of this blog, I have posted a video by Robyn O’Brien who is one of many people that have done a plethora of investigative work to uncover the damage that has been caused by ‘modernization’ of farming practices. It is a must see in understanding what has been done to us and what needs to be done to resolve the issues that have been created. I highly recommend watching it. The eighteen minutes of listening to her speak may be the catalyst that saves your life.

In short, we were never meant to conquer the Earth and all of its bounty. We are not nature’s adversary. We are a part of nature, here to learn that we have a symbiotic relationship with all things in the Universe. It is time to stand up and take action. One voice can change the world and that one voice is YOU.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Birthdays and Re-Birth Days

2011-06-02T07:45:00.000-07:00

I put this article on my newsletter this month, but I thought it was worth a double dosage by putting it here on my blog...So, happy reading!

As my friend and teacher Anna says, today I celebrate going around the sun for the 45th time. Yep, every June first, I honor the day of my birth and I have done it so many times now I am getting pretty good at it. Yippee!

To give you a little look into my life, I grew up In a family where my grandmother, grandfather and my aunt all share the same week of birthdays with me. Needless to say, the Gemini Birthday Bash as we called it was always a big deal filled with loads of people, music, a ubiquitous amount of gifts and a large cake stuffed with as many candles as it could hold. Growing up with all the hooplah, I thought June first was the coolest day to be born on in the history of mankind!

As I have grown older and life has quieted down a bit, I contemplate how lucky I have been to have manifested into the physical Being I am in this lifetime. It hasn’t always been bells and whistles. In fact, I have had to endure great hardship to get to the place where I am now, but I even celebrate the pain, for it all gave me the opportunity to shed the old beliefs and to expand my Spirit. With each new day I awaken to not only the beautiful Earth that surrounds me, I awaken Spiritually to recognize more of my Light. As June first has always held a special place in my heart, my re-birthing process that I move through on all the other days are even more powerful reminders of the Divine within me and I celebrate that, as well.

I salute my own birthday and re-birth days AND I celebrate all of yours too. It’s not just about June first for me anymore. It’s about every day of the year being the best that we can be. We have all manifested on this planet, as Avatars, if you will. Avatar is not just the name of a blockbuster movie, an avatar is the physical manifestation of a deity--and that diety in this case would be YOU! We are all branches of the same Divine body after all! We simply spend a lot of time forgetting that fact thinking that we are somehow not as good as the next guy, when we should be honoring the Innate Wisdom that is already within.

Remember, that no matter where we are on the Spiritual path towards Enlightenment, we are all on it. Our heads are not better than our feet just because they are at the bottom of our body and our Spirit Body works in the same way. No one is worse off than anyone else, just because they are not as far along in their journey. Yes, we can choose to see the Light or we can choose to stay back behind the shadows, but either way, we are all in this together.

That whole being One with everything idea might be a large concept to grasp, but we can take a look at it on a smaller scale. There are different facets of your own personality. There may be lover you, spouse you, parent you, golfer you, intellect you, dancer you, gossip you, traveler you, gardener you, friend with Bill you, friend with Susy you and so on. They are all different aspects of the same you and we are all different parts of the same Source.

That all being said, as we move through this process of awakening, we bring to us teachers (formally or otherwise) that match our vibration. They are here to help us remember who we are. It is not necessary to be devout followers, rather we can learn what we can to create the Leader within. As such, we will, of course, like some of what they have to say and we will not like other things that they say. That is normal. If you disregard what does not work for you then take what you do like, mix it with all the other goodies you have learned along the way, you can then blend it all together to make a nice recipe that celebrates YOU and that helps to elevate the Universal Consciousness.

So, remember that YOU are perfect and YOU already know the truth. I send YOU happy birthday wishes whenever your birthday is and I send happy re-birth day wishes to YOU every day.

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Ninety Years Young

2011-05-29T08:33:00.000-07:00

Today is the celebration of my grandmother's 90th birthday. It is such a lovely milestone and my aunt had the great idea for us all to write a memory down for us to share with her tonight. I thought I would share mine with you in hopes that you would take the time to think about the wonderful memories of loved ones in your life.

Walking down Memory Lane, I can see my grandmother in so many places I could not possibly single out one thing.

I see her teaching me the game of checkers. It initially surprised me to find out what a natural talent I had for it, as I had won every game! But, after awhile I started getting suspicious. When I confronted her, she denied all allegations that she knowingly allowed me to win. Even at three-years-old I knew the truth, but I thought how lucky I am to have such a wonderful grandmother!

I see her holding my hand as she walked down the aisle for a second time to renew her vows with Jack. I looked forward to my duties as a flower girl, but when I saw so many grown-ups I couldn’t go through it alone.

I see her standing in the kitchen with Jack and me, cheering us on as we practiced our Abbott and Costello style schtick we developed on my eighth Christmas.

I see her in the garage revealing to me for the first time her creative talent when she showed me a beautiful painting she had created that she had long since hidden away. I didn’t understand why it wasn’t out on display. I was so impressed with her gift that I wanted to be able to paint like her.

I see her questioning why I wore such crazy clothes as a teenager. Needless to say, the Madonna Boy Toy look was not her thing.

I see her taking me on many shopping expeditions to find beautiful things for my home.

I see her putting me in a trance as she tickled my arms and face when I was a little girl while she sang itsy bitsy spider to me — and I see her putting me in a trance as she tickled my arms and my face well into my middle age. These days, she leaves out the itsy bitsy spider bit.

I see her sharing the stories of her life, giving me a glimpse of her personal history. They have made me feel as though I was actually there with her.

When I see my grandmother in my mind I think of:

The Color Yellow

Bracelets, Clip-on Earrings and her Precious Wedding Band Set

The Fabulous Wedding Day Photo of Jack & Bette that Life Magazine Could Have Published

Garden Gloves, Hand Shovels and Her Impeccable Garden

The Gentle Scent of Roses

Books, Books & More Books

Femininity at its Finest

Paintbrushes, Kilns and of course China

Decorating, Garage Sales and Thrift Shops

Traveling the World with her man

AND The Marriage I Admire Most!

Thank you, Bette for being a part of my memories and for being my beautiful grandmother. I LOVE YOU!

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

2011-05-29T07:06:00.000-07:00

I put this article on my newsletter this month, but I thought it was worth a double dosage by putting it here on my blog...So, happy reading!

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)

Let's See the Light

2011-05-03T08:40:00.000-07:00

When I heard what happened last Sunday evening, I could literally feel the emotions from around the world; some feeling great elation for the death of an enemy and some that were sending anger or even hatred towards Americans for this murderous act...and all these emotions made me sad. In that moment, I felt guided to send Compassion to all Beings everywhere.

Ten years ago, I was right along with the crowd that said, "Get him!" Through my awakening, I have been afforded an understanding that exchanging one hateful act for another only breeds more hatred. I suppose that due to my own metamorphosis I have been given a unique insight into both sides of the opinionated coin and because of this I can only empathize with every person on this planet.

I have learned that instead of continuing the cycle of negativity by harboring hatred for one man who committed an attrocious act ten years ago and instead of allowing hatred to seep through our veins towards the government that took it upon themselves to avenge the many lives lost, we have the great opportunity to stop vengeance right now in this moment and send out the energy of Peace, Love, Light and Compassion to all including those feeling elation for one man's death; for wherever they are on their Spiritual Journey everyone is part of the Divine Force.

We can remember that Ghandi and his followers never raised a weapon, stick or even a fist; yet they were still able to fight a powerful enemy. They did so through Peace and Love and through this course this simple man won the freedom of an entire nation.

In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., “I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”

Thank you for reading and Namaste! (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you!)