Smile, breathe and be present

Ok, so it has been a while since I’ve written but so many wonderful things have happened since I last wrote. I attended an Awakening to Oneness Intensive Weekend, which included meditation, yoga and wonderful people seeking balance within their spirituality and life. My awakening has begun. I’ve also been doing readings and have found that they bring me such peace. I feel as though I am stepping into the flow and into my true calling. This is a calling that allows me to help as many people in as many ways as possible. It brings me such joy!

So do you feel like you are in your flow? Is what you are doing ringing true to your soul? Of course it doesn’t always have to be your job or career. Take me for example; I do something completely different to pay my bills. Having this dualistic existence may be wonderful for many people, allowing them to embrace ALL of the parts of themselves.

I am in transition. Transitioning to one wonderful career, done in a wonderful way for wonderful pay, allowing myself to answer the call of my soul. Sometimes what we seek doesn't come when we want it to. But if we can be at peace with our situation, work, personal life, etc. at the moment it is happening it will keep us open to divine timing. The challenge for many, myself included is to just be in the now and not always looking to the future to what is going to happen or in the past with what has already happened.

Be present and it will allow you to see the gifts that exist HERE for you.

Happiness is contagious!

Ok, so I actually heard this comment yesterday and it just made me smile. "When I first met you, you just seemed so happy..." followed by a scoffing sound and chuckle. It was almost as if my friend (and yes she is my friend) seems to be almost disgusted or just found me to be goofy.

My response to her is this. I do not find it necessary to live my life taking on the sadness, disappointment, anger, frustration or unhappiness of the people that I come in contact with in my life. Their emotions and drama are not mine and should remain that way. I have a really great life. I have a wonderfully supportive wife who I think the world of and we have a mutual respect, trust and love for. I love the opportunity this has given me to be more observant within my life. Which allows me a better sense of when to let things go. Now don't get me wrong. I have not always been this way. It has taken work, struggle, determination and love to get me to the place that I'm at now and I will continue to strive to maintain and increase that balance.

I hope that my attitude and enjoyment of life rubs off on people. They can think I'm silly, ditsy, dim or whatever because I'm SO happy. But really I just want them to see that they can have the same balance within their own life. Everything and anything is possible if you believe that you deserve whatever it is that you want. “What you move towards moves towards you.” Dr. John F. Demartini

So don't worry, BE HAPPY!

Art

There are many things that we can observe in life that can be considered as art. But art is all subjective. Something that someone what consider to be beautiful and groundbreaking may be just downright unappealing or appalling to others.

I love to observe art in life, some examples are handmade jewelry, cards, paintings, sculptures, and body art (tattoos), even make up is an art. To be able to wield your craft in such a way to generate income to me means that you are appealing to at least a few people:-) Although I don't necessarily consider myself to be terribly creative I don't think that it’s right to judge other people's art or what they consider to be art. If you are continually judging someone else it doesn’t leave any room for you to grow.

Find your own type of art to enjoy on a daily basis. Allow yourself to relax and observe how it makes you feel. Does it bring you joy, does it make you think of a family member or friend, is it calming, agitating, does it create excitement, etc.? So here are some examples of what I think art is….enjoy.

Showing up

How do you show up for your life? Do you hide behind a mask of feelings that aren't true/half true or down right a lie of how you are really feeling? As long as you show up to your life with a mask of feelings that aren't REALLY the ones that you are having at that moment you will continue to be stuck.

If you continually deny yourself the right to be in the moment and feel the feelings that you are having as they happen you are denying your true self. But here's the kicker! This does not and should not give you a license to go all crazy on people just because you think that's the 'true' you. Nope, that's not how you should behave either! The key is to find balance between living and feeling the life you are experiencing.

Allow your self the hurt, anger, frustration, depression, joy, elation, daydream, rapture and then release them. A wonderful flow has fantastically begun in my life. I cannot emphasize enough that you do not need validation from ANYONE else to have those feelings. You don't need anyone telling you that YOUR feelings are right or wrong. They are yours to have and understand. By allowing the feelings to come up you can get to the root of the experience. Letting my ego have a chance to be heard has allowed it to subside more easily and quickly. By doing this I am able to be in the now, enjoy my flow in existence and be more present.

We are all one, one energy. I want to share the joy of this and all planes of existence. I hope and strive for one thing and that is to share my light with the world! My light and soul has grown exponentially by letting my ego have a voice and then making it get out of the way.

So how do you show up in for life? Do you allow your ego to always run the show never keeping it in check? Or do you acknowledge it and your feelings and then let them go and step into the flow and light of your life?

Here is a great little book I am reading for more great tidbits on getting out of your own way :-)

if the Buddha got stuck

Try not

Ok so I'm a dork. I LOVE the saying, "No, try not, do or do not, there is no try" ~Yoda

He's the bomb by the way!

Although it may seem trivial or juvenile, it is the truth. Either you commit yourself to doing something or you are just floundering about not really DOING anything. So, if you decide that you are going to work out....do it, and do it to the best of your ability. If you are going to teach yourself how to play an instrument.........do it, and do it to the best of your ability. But to say that you will try something implies that you are not fully committing yourself to actually doing it.

So be brave, tackle the things that you have always wanted to DO but have only tried....and DO them.

"Help you I can, yes" ~Yoda

Faith

What religion or you? What do you believe in? I have been asked these questions before and they kind of made me uncomfortable. But not uneasy for the reasons you might think.

I have enormous faith but in an organization or religion that may not be considered 'mainstream'. I am a Buddhist. Having moved from California to Virginia over four years ago it was quite a religious and cultural change. Meaning, I did not feel that I could be as open about my own faith as MANY of my coworkers, strangers, grocery store clerks, bank tellers, etc. were. With there consistent greetings of "God bless you" or "Have a blessed day" it was not until moving here have I found MORE people so open and public about their faith and religion. Still I was not comfortable sharing my own.

Having felt like I have lived on the outskirts of society for the majority of my adult life this situation regarding my religious faith seemed to be just another reason to detach from people. But here is what I have discovered, although there are numerous people that are hypocritical regarding religion, i.e. only their religion is the only 'right' one; I have grown stronger in my own.

I am no longer living on the edge of society, I am embracing my faith, my religion, my life and the immense joy it provides me. I know now that I was meant to share my joy, love and compassion.

I do have a resolution this year and it is to continue to have faith in myself. It is to have the faith to be the very best human being that I can be. Then it is to allow the joy of THAT faith to be a beacon, to drawn loving and wonderful people into my life and surround them with compassion and love.

So what do you have faith in?

Dreams

Everyone dreams, but not everyone remembers them. A good way to remember them if you wake in the middle of the night is to keep a journal. I started keeping a journal by my bed. That way when I wake up in the middle of the night I can reach for it, have my place marked and just start writing even in the dark. Then in the morning I revisit my notes and am able to interpret them.

I found this website that has helped me interpret objects, animals, etc. that are in my dreams. Of course there are all kinds of books out there but I am doing my best to empty several of my shelves and save trees at the same time :-)

Here's the site: http://www.dreammoods.com/
Just click on the dictionary and it will take you to the alphabetized reference.

There is one book that has become invaluable to me. I use it for dream interpretation as well as meditation symbolism.

Animal Magick by D.J. Conway



Your dreams are a doorway to your subconscious mind. It may seem foreign at first but taking the time to write them down and interpret them can be meaningful and fun.

Enjoy!

Great Day!

I just wanted to share that today was a really great day. I am so grateful for the friends and family that I have.

Try this........every day before your feet ever touch the floor to get out of bed, go down the list of all the things that you are grateful for.

"What you move towards moves towards you." Dr. John F. Martini

Check on his book below. It is worth the effort and time to read and fully complete his exercises in this book. It's awesome!!!!

What are you worth?

As someone who has struggled with self-esteem issues well for as long as I can remember I knew at some point I would bring it up.

No matter what that little voice in your head is telling you, you ARE worth the risk of a new job, to follow your dreams, to get paid what you are worth, try new things without fear, do what you love, love what you do and to assign value to the services you provide. You are worth the time, effort, love and dedication!

What that little voice doesn't tell you is that it's actually the little kid that used to pick on you in high school, the abusive parent, the rude customer, spiteful girlfriend/boyfriend or complete stranger. It is their criticisms that your ego has adopted as truth.......those voices are not you...not the TRUE you.

The real you, your SOUL, wants and knows you deserve to be happy, healthy and experience all that life has to offer both the ups and downs, but experience it nonetheless. It is up to you to cipher through all the mental chatter and get to the real you and get to live the life you were meant to live. I have to say it does take time, some hard and emotional work but it is so liberating!! You will find your true voice, happiness, joy and all the things that make your life worth living.

Embrace your soul you ARE worth it!

New Button

Ok, so I added the "Donate" button with the intention of allowing anyone that finds the information and/or services I provide helpful, entertaining, encouraging, inspirational......well you get the idea.

I am more openly offering readings and this way folks can donate if they desire, safely and securely.

Today's 'real' post with follow...........

Much Love and Many Blessings!!!

What you say....

Ok, so this has happened frequently as of late, to me and by me. That is all the more reason to mention it here.

Sometimes it's not what you say but HOW you say it.

We go through our days caught in the routine of it. Often times going through the motions of similar actions and not really noticing how we interact with people. When our expectations are not met by our own doing or by others it can create frustration, anxiety, anger, stress, etc. The challenging part is to not let that frustration run over into how we react.

Here's a suggestion and believe me this is one that I am going to make my BEST effort to do! Take I DEEP breath before responding to someone that has maybe provoked you, pushed your button or just come upon you in conversation while you were having a difficult day. Then respond to them with the tone and emotion that is appropriate for their interaction. Giving them nothing left over from interaction from someone else.

I challenge you and myself to be in the NOW, not in the past interactions with co-workers, family, your children, etc. Honor them with the interaction they desire and deserve loving kindness and compassion.

Change happens

Change can happen in any aspect of your life at any time or all at once. It can make you feel uncomfortable, uneasy, fearful, scared, excited, exhilarated, and happy and a myriad of different emotions. But one thing that I have come to realize is that if things in your life are not changing then I am not growing, shifting and reaching new planes in my existence.

That is really difficult to remember sometimes because the state of change can be so uncomfortable for people like me that like to have control of EVERYTHING! I take a deep breath and do my best to relax into my state of now. Doing my best to embrace my life each day, during that day and not worrying or stressing about the future. So to fight off the worry do something each day that grounds you in the moment; taking a walk outside, meditate, do some yoga or other physical activity that brings you to the now.

Take a deep breath and realize that happens and it's a great thing.

"Let Go and Let God"

First here is my reason for disliking this phrase. Don't immediately damn me to hell.....read on.

I believe it’s a way for some (NOT ALL) people to release themselves from ‘doing the work’ in their life, whether that work is to forgive someone, self improvement or to just take action. They take themselves out of active participation in their own lives.

However my reason for liking this phrase is that it shows that anyone and everyone can have faith. That faith can be a motivating factor to improve your life. So which are you? An active participant in your own life journey or a bystander that believes life happens to you without your control?

Calm and clear mind

The human mind can be like a monkey chattering all the time saying good things, bad things, and critical things about yourself and others. But if you can set aside time each day even if it's just for 10 minutes to quiet your mind it will do wonders. Allowing your mind to become calm from the day’s activities and clear about how that day went may allow you to see how you handled your day and what you can change about your actions for the next day.

You can also use meditation to set the tone for your day by doing it in the morning. Allowing your mind to clear and envision how you will act, react and exist during your day are all good things to concentrate on.

The difficulty may be when you start to wander in your thoughts; that's alright just notice that you are wandering and move back to the focus of that session. Some suggestions of focus are being calm throughout your day, allowing yourself to smile and enjoy the people around you, focus on love, focus on healing, focus on emptiness, etc. You get the idea.

It all begins by being calm and clear in your own mind, quieting that monkey chatter and hearing individual thoughts and focusing on a state of being for the day. Namaste

Loving unconditionally

The wonderful greeting of a dog wagging her tail happy to see you or the purring of a pet cat as he slinks by you and wraps his tail around your leg; unconditional love. They are always happy to see you no matter the time of day or how many times you come and go. These to me are all signs of unconditional love.

Unconditional love is not something that is easily obtained. As humans I believe that is an action and feeling that we can all strive for. We want to be able to be the bigger person and forgive others for the pains that they may have caused us. Do you have the ability to forget and truly love them unconditionally? Maybe the emotion that we should be striving for is unconditional compassion AND love. Recognizing yourself in the other person and ultimately having compassion and love for yourself and the other person. Allow the faults of the other person and ourselves because neither of us is perfect. We should work through our issues with love and unconditional compassion.

Compassion~noun: a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.

Love~noun: to have a profoundly tender, passionate affection for (another person).