I'm sure you realize that even when you know something, sometimes you need someone else to point the obvious out to you. I write a lot about manifestation because lack seems to be the #1 theme with people I know. I've been studying manifestation since 1980, under all kinds of different terms, in all kinds of forms. First it was called "the power of positive thinking," & that's even the name of a book that was popular back then. In 1980 I joined the first of many multi-level marketing companies. They are so not all created equal! And they also aren't all bad, or schemes, but many are or kind of are. The one back then harped on reading motivational books & listening to tapes, & made money off the tapes. I felt like I was going to gag, but I was a good little girl & did all I could. They were fairly horrible! And I'm not sure I learned anything either. That was at the beginning of the marriage to husband #1. Husband #2 also urged me to read books & listen to tapes but it all had come a long way by then. This time the tapes were by professionals like Tony Robbins. Some of it was good, but again, I wanted to gag at a lot of it. In between was the best stuff, the Tupperware years. The emphasis wasn't on books & tapes, it was on live training with some of the best and I learned so much. Out of all my home based business experience, I learned more from Tupperware training than any other. And I learned things of true value, that I now pass on to others & use in all parts of my life. It was true people-building stuff. So I've been a very active student of this stuff off and on for over 30 years. You'd think I'd be an expert by now, wouldn't you! But no matter how much you know, you can always learn more from someone & you can also need insight as to how to apply it to yourself.
Recently a friend and great teacher suggested I "act as if" for my daughter. She's been trying to get pregnant for several years now & it breaks her heart & therefore mine that it hasn't happened yet. My friend, Sandy Davis, suggested I make a baby blanket for my daughter with intent & prayer for fertility. (If you're in the Pittsburgh area, I highly recommend her channeled healing circles & classes. You can find her on meetup.com under "The Shamans Cave of Three Rivers Tribe" and "Angel Love Light.") I'm about to finish making an afghan different from others I've done, & remembered Sandy's suggestion when I thought about what to make next. So I'm going to go buy blue yarn & reduce the pattern because it will make the most beautiful baby blanket. After I do that, I'm going to knit a full layette (in blue) & cross stitch the baby quilt I bought a kit for some years ago. It's very special so I bought it when I saw it & put it away for when needed. Well, now it's needed, along with the rest. I'll put all my love, extra prayers (I already pray for her fertility daily), & intent into these things, & hold them for her. (Unless she reads this & decides she wants them when they're done.) A note on why they'll all be blue, by the way. It's her favorite color and all girls wear blue too so the sex of the baby doesn't matter for this. So thank you, Sandy, for helping me see another way to put these principles to work. The more you use them in different ways, the more they become your own, the easier they come to mind - they eventually become "second nature." I think there should be a better way to say that, because it doesn't come to you second - it comes to you more quickly & naturally. I also think there should be a better way to express sympathy than to say "I'm sorry" that's just as quick, and a more positive term for infertility. As much as I'm a word person, I haven't thought of good solutions to any of these.
Angel Baby Ornament sample 1
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
Positive Manifestation Starts with Gratitude
My cousins grew up without indoor plumbing. They weren't poor, they just lived in a farm house that was about a hundred years old or so. Their father was planning to build a new house & put running water in the barn that would continue to be used but not in the house they were going to abandon. Since I moved here at the end of November, I've had a day without heat & the thermostat sometimes takes awhile to obey when I try to turn up the heat in the morning. A few times I've come home to a fairly cold house because the heat wasn't running while I was gone, for whatever reason. I also spent a lot of January with no electricity because of a breaker that was in the process of burning out. I'd have hours without, then hours with, & never knew which it would be. I have a working dryer but it doesn't work here because it's electric with no outlet for anything but gas. My washer broke a few weeks before I moved & I haven't had the money to fix it.
It's all perspective - the "haves" & "have nots." If we concentrate on what we don't have, on the lack, that's what continues. If we're grateful for what we do have, count our blessings, then we've changed the perspective. That slight change, which is actually a major difference, makes the difference between manifesting positive things & not. We DO manifest! We are part of Creator & creation, so we do manifest. What most people don't realize is that we manifest from whatever our attitude is.
Most of us get caught in our own dramas & that's all we see. Last year at this time I was still very mired in the drama of loss. It was 4 months after I put my then husband in jail for stealing my mother's life savings. My reality was all about finding ways to cope. When I went to Groundhog Day events, I was answering questions about it from my friends in the Inner Circle of the Groundhog Club. At that time I was still a bit ashamed, as if I'd had something to do with it. So when the owner of Sam Adams brewery told me he'd heard of me, I thought the worst. Yesterday I was thinking about things that happened during this year's festivities & realized what the man meant. He'd said something about how great Punxsy is & the quality of the festivities put on by the Inner Circle, when he was giving a brief speech at a reception in his honor. So I made it a point of going up to him & telling him I agree with what he said so much, because I'd moved to PA from Maryland because of the town, the Groundhog Day festivities, & Phil himself. That's when he said he'd heard of me. It's not that he heard of my shame (in my mind at the time) - it's that my story (the moving to PA part) is bragging rights for the town & the Inner Circle. They weren't talking against me, they were using me as a positive example. There was no shame - they're proud to tell people I moved to PA because of them. And this year, they let me know they're pleased to see the positive changes in me in the past year. They see me happy, looking good, refocused. Last year I actually felt shunned for awhile. Now I see that was a reflection of my feelings about me, not reality. We truly color our perceptions of everything when we're stuck in our own dramas.
These days I'm very grateful for heat, electricity, & my new home. I took heat, running water, & electricity for granted until the events in January. Now I don't take any of this for granted. I am grateful when I go to the grocery & pay for what we need. I'm grateful for every little thing provided for me, like the can of coffee brought to me by a friend. That's supply for my wants. I'm grateful for my abundance of friends & family, the abundance of love in my life. I'm grateful for the abundance of cats in my life, in my home. Instead of grumbling to myself when I scoop out their litter boxes, I'm grateful they use them, am grateful for really nice kitty litter. Because my major attitude is gratitude, I'm happy & content with what I have. This isn't true all the time. When I don't take care of myself or the things around me, things start to get out of hand & my attitude slips. Worry & fear slip in & things turn more negative. Then nothing works as well & problems start to get to me & more start happening. That's manifestation of the negative. As soon as I fix that & go back to the positive, it all starts to flow again. It truly is possible to do that even when things aren't as you wish. If you wait for things to start happening the way you want them before being grateful & positive, it's just not going to happen. You have to learn to be truly grateful & a good steward of what you do have before more is given to you. That's in the Bible, & I see the truth of it everywhere.
So how do you do that? At first, you probably have to force yourself. It's called "acting as if." You act as if whatever you need is already here. I thank God daily for abundance & prosperity, financial freedom even though I haven't seen the manifestation yet. I thank Him sincerely, because I know it's on its way. I also thank Him for the abundance I do have visible, like cats & linens & dishes & friends & family & love & blog topics & messages. At first, I had to say it even when I didn't feel it. I had to search my brain for things to be grateful for. Next came actually feeling the gratitude for the good things I already have. Some of it came from not having briefly, like heat & electricity. Then came the true feelings of gratitude for abundance & prosperity even though I don't see them yet. I sometimes don't feel the gratitude, when the fear comes back but I speak in gratitude anyway. Then if I really need to, I tell Him of my fears & offer then up to Him. I'm honest with Him, talk with Him as if He was a friend sitting with me - because He is. I talk with Him about my fears when I need to, but I still maintain the most gratitude & positive attitude I can. It truly is nothing but mind over matter, & we can control our minds & then our emotions. First, believe you can. Then "act as if." That's called "visualization." Once you practice this daily, you can turn your attitude & then your life around. Then for those times that you just can't, please remember that we're all human. Remind yourself that it's just drama that we all get caught up in from time to time, but that it's not real. Just as time & space are relative, so are our dramas. They're in our own minds so we're actually master of them. It just takes understanding this, then the will to make the changes & following through with them. More tomorrow.
It's all perspective - the "haves" & "have nots." If we concentrate on what we don't have, on the lack, that's what continues. If we're grateful for what we do have, count our blessings, then we've changed the perspective. That slight change, which is actually a major difference, makes the difference between manifesting positive things & not. We DO manifest! We are part of Creator & creation, so we do manifest. What most people don't realize is that we manifest from whatever our attitude is.
Most of us get caught in our own dramas & that's all we see. Last year at this time I was still very mired in the drama of loss. It was 4 months after I put my then husband in jail for stealing my mother's life savings. My reality was all about finding ways to cope. When I went to Groundhog Day events, I was answering questions about it from my friends in the Inner Circle of the Groundhog Club. At that time I was still a bit ashamed, as if I'd had something to do with it. So when the owner of Sam Adams brewery told me he'd heard of me, I thought the worst. Yesterday I was thinking about things that happened during this year's festivities & realized what the man meant. He'd said something about how great Punxsy is & the quality of the festivities put on by the Inner Circle, when he was giving a brief speech at a reception in his honor. So I made it a point of going up to him & telling him I agree with what he said so much, because I'd moved to PA from Maryland because of the town, the Groundhog Day festivities, & Phil himself. That's when he said he'd heard of me. It's not that he heard of my shame (in my mind at the time) - it's that my story (the moving to PA part) is bragging rights for the town & the Inner Circle. They weren't talking against me, they were using me as a positive example. There was no shame - they're proud to tell people I moved to PA because of them. And this year, they let me know they're pleased to see the positive changes in me in the past year. They see me happy, looking good, refocused. Last year I actually felt shunned for awhile. Now I see that was a reflection of my feelings about me, not reality. We truly color our perceptions of everything when we're stuck in our own dramas.
These days I'm very grateful for heat, electricity, & my new home. I took heat, running water, & electricity for granted until the events in January. Now I don't take any of this for granted. I am grateful when I go to the grocery & pay for what we need. I'm grateful for every little thing provided for me, like the can of coffee brought to me by a friend. That's supply for my wants. I'm grateful for my abundance of friends & family, the abundance of love in my life. I'm grateful for the abundance of cats in my life, in my home. Instead of grumbling to myself when I scoop out their litter boxes, I'm grateful they use them, am grateful for really nice kitty litter. Because my major attitude is gratitude, I'm happy & content with what I have. This isn't true all the time. When I don't take care of myself or the things around me, things start to get out of hand & my attitude slips. Worry & fear slip in & things turn more negative. Then nothing works as well & problems start to get to me & more start happening. That's manifestation of the negative. As soon as I fix that & go back to the positive, it all starts to flow again. It truly is possible to do that even when things aren't as you wish. If you wait for things to start happening the way you want them before being grateful & positive, it's just not going to happen. You have to learn to be truly grateful & a good steward of what you do have before more is given to you. That's in the Bible, & I see the truth of it everywhere.
So how do you do that? At first, you probably have to force yourself. It's called "acting as if." You act as if whatever you need is already here. I thank God daily for abundance & prosperity, financial freedom even though I haven't seen the manifestation yet. I thank Him sincerely, because I know it's on its way. I also thank Him for the abundance I do have visible, like cats & linens & dishes & friends & family & love & blog topics & messages. At first, I had to say it even when I didn't feel it. I had to search my brain for things to be grateful for. Next came actually feeling the gratitude for the good things I already have. Some of it came from not having briefly, like heat & electricity. Then came the true feelings of gratitude for abundance & prosperity even though I don't see them yet. I sometimes don't feel the gratitude, when the fear comes back but I speak in gratitude anyway. Then if I really need to, I tell Him of my fears & offer then up to Him. I'm honest with Him, talk with Him as if He was a friend sitting with me - because He is. I talk with Him about my fears when I need to, but I still maintain the most gratitude & positive attitude I can. It truly is nothing but mind over matter, & we can control our minds & then our emotions. First, believe you can. Then "act as if." That's called "visualization." Once you practice this daily, you can turn your attitude & then your life around. Then for those times that you just can't, please remember that we're all human. Remind yourself that it's just drama that we all get caught up in from time to time, but that it's not real. Just as time & space are relative, so are our dramas. They're in our own minds so we're actually master of them. It just takes understanding this, then the will to make the changes & following through with them. More tomorrow.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
On Vacation Until February 6 - the Why is Fun
In 2001 I went to Punxsutawney for the first time in search of groundhog photos, the day after Groundhog Day. The celebration was still going on a little, & the Inner Circle of the Groundhog Club still had members walking around town in their tuxedos & top hats, being friendly & attending events. I fell in love with the town & the festivities right then, & we decided to go back on February 2nd the next year. Every year the event grew on me (at that time we'd travel in from Hagerstown, Maryland, about a 4 hour drive depending on the weather & route). We started spending more & more time in Punxsutawney & decided to move there. Well, we ended up about 40 minutes outside of Punxsy, April of 2009 - renting a house on the edge of a farm out in the country. We needed a rental at the time, or rent with option to buy, & were ready to move, & that's where we landed. We figured from there we could scout out other locations closer in if we wanted - far easier from there than from Hagerstown.
By the time we moved I had friends in Punxsy, knew which events I wanted to attend, & eventually participated in almost everything. Therefore my time of celebrating "a large squirrel predicting the weather" as Bill Murray said in the movie, "Groundhog Day," became about 5 days of fun activities with friends. This has been my "vacation" for many years now. I know - most people go south in the winter on vacation & to the beach in the summer on vacation & I do the opposite - go north when the weather is usually at its worst. Call me crazy if you want, but let me tell you - it's the most pure fun I've ever had in my life! The people are so nice - visitors & townspeople & most especially, the Inner Circle! They put so much work into the whole thing, have it really organized, & it's all about US. They truly love to talk with the visitors & put on the most special & well organized event year after year that I've ever attended. The latest former president of the Groundhog Club says "it's not serious, it's just serious fun." How right he is!
I started the blog in April 2010 & even posted all during the holidays & while I was moving (although those were carefully selected reposts). Now I needed a brief break from it, a mental vacation. And in truth, it's so hard for me to think of anything other than Groundhog Day events starting mid January. I start to get so excited in anticipation & it's always near the forefront of my mind. So I'm taking a vacation from the blog & my work to give myself a mental break & allow myself to just enjoy my absolute favorite holiday of the year!
By the time we moved I had friends in Punxsy, knew which events I wanted to attend, & eventually participated in almost everything. Therefore my time of celebrating "a large squirrel predicting the weather" as Bill Murray said in the movie, "Groundhog Day," became about 5 days of fun activities with friends. This has been my "vacation" for many years now. I know - most people go south in the winter on vacation & to the beach in the summer on vacation & I do the opposite - go north when the weather is usually at its worst. Call me crazy if you want, but let me tell you - it's the most pure fun I've ever had in my life! The people are so nice - visitors & townspeople & most especially, the Inner Circle! They put so much work into the whole thing, have it really organized, & it's all about US. They truly love to talk with the visitors & put on the most special & well organized event year after year that I've ever attended. The latest former president of the Groundhog Club says "it's not serious, it's just serious fun." How right he is!
I started the blog in April 2010 & even posted all during the holidays & while I was moving (although those were carefully selected reposts). Now I needed a brief break from it, a mental vacation. And in truth, it's so hard for me to think of anything other than Groundhog Day events starting mid January. I start to get so excited in anticipation & it's always near the forefront of my mind. So I'm taking a vacation from the blog & my work to give myself a mental break & allow myself to just enjoy my absolute favorite holiday of the year!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Letting Go, & 3 Small, Mighty Books
Last night I talked with one of my dearest & we compared notes on life now that we've dropped our crutches. We agreed that you begin to feel your feelings more, have to face & be more of your authentic self. That's actually very good, especially now, even if it's not comfortable at first. Some of us really fear that & some of us embrace it. But this is the time for it. As I've said before, this is the time for letting go of all that no longer serves us. It's time to begin being all we can be & we have to drop the crutches to do that. Many of us have crutches when we're honest with ourselves. It can be illegal substances or alcohol but more often, it's chocolate or other food, cigarettes, or prescribed drugs. It's so very easy to get a prescription for your moods! I took one for about 10 years when I started having terrible & unpredictable mood swings when my hormones started preparing for menopause, & I'm glad I did. It was so bad that I felt for days like my world was ending, & since it came at odd times I couldn't identify it as hormonal. You see, awareness is a key to coping with anything & everything & I didn't have that then. Before that, I'd only feel that way one afternoon & evening a month, always on a Tuesday because I was on the pill & therefore my cycles were regular. A few hours into it, I'd realize it was that Tuesday & give myself the night off & warn the kids to be on their best behavior. I'm sure they could tell you stories! I'd order in, make no major decisions, do as little as possible, & take care of myself. I knew despite my feelings that nothing was about to come crashing down on me & so was able to work my way out of the feelings rather than drown in them. (I ordered in because I was also extra clumsy that one day & had learned it wasn't entirely safe to use a stove. This is another example of what I keep telling you about the importance of knowing yourself & working around whatever you have to in order to keep functioning.) I went off the anti-depressant on a trial basis a few years ago when I couldn't afford my medicines, & found I no longer needed it. Now, I'm not telling you to go off prescriptions you need, but I'm asking you to identify your crutch & consider letting it go, getting rid of it. If it isn't necessary (different than comfort or wanted) for your survival or wellbeing, you'll be much better off eventually if you do let it go.
Last night I unpacked my favorite books & hung the seagull from my bedroom light fixture. As I'm unpacking my books, CDs, & DVDs I'm clearly stating my intent to live in this house as long as I wish to. My landlady recently told me she's thinking of selling to a relative, who would want to live here! I keep my favorite books in my bedroom, in my privacy, close to me. I never lend them just as I never lent out my children or cats or clarinet. I love them as if they were alive & I felt that bond with them when I unpacked them. I also felt it with the seagull, which I haven't had out since moving from Maryland. It hung from the ceiling light fixture in my bedroom all the years I single parented, & does so now again. It didn't when I was with my ex, was in my studio. Now it's in it's rightful place, part of putting my life back in order again. When I separated from my first husband my dearest friend at the time told me to read "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" by Richard Bach, & that's one of the 3 books. I had begun to discover my true self for the first time ever, now that I was free of the oppression of my husband & my mother. Whenever I'd grow in another leap she'd say "you're growing again, Jonathan" & I'd be so pleased & proud. Eventually it got to the point where I'd tell her she owed me another Jonathan, because I saw the growth for myself. Then I realized that in every way I could give myself Jonathans. About 5 years before that, at the height of my success in Tupperware, I'd earned several unique seagull statues for business growth, so I dug those out & put them in my bedroom. I also redecorated my bedroom with a peaceful beach theme & was finally able to sleep in it (had been the marital bedroom & I had no money for new furniture or way to rearrange it). That's when I put in the peaceful sights & sounds of an aquarium & found the seagull I hang. (I lived on the edge of the Chesapeake Bay & found lots of unique, inexpensive decorations.) The other 2 books I recommend are "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint Exupery & "The Lemming Condition" by Alan Arkin. Each book is a quick read with a profound life message. I've read them multiple times. I believe each time you do, you gain more based on what you need to hear at that time, & your gained understanding of yourself & the universe since the last reading.
Last night I unpacked my favorite books & hung the seagull from my bedroom light fixture. As I'm unpacking my books, CDs, & DVDs I'm clearly stating my intent to live in this house as long as I wish to. My landlady recently told me she's thinking of selling to a relative, who would want to live here! I keep my favorite books in my bedroom, in my privacy, close to me. I never lend them just as I never lent out my children or cats or clarinet. I love them as if they were alive & I felt that bond with them when I unpacked them. I also felt it with the seagull, which I haven't had out since moving from Maryland. It hung from the ceiling light fixture in my bedroom all the years I single parented, & does so now again. It didn't when I was with my ex, was in my studio. Now it's in it's rightful place, part of putting my life back in order again. When I separated from my first husband my dearest friend at the time told me to read "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" by Richard Bach, & that's one of the 3 books. I had begun to discover my true self for the first time ever, now that I was free of the oppression of my husband & my mother. Whenever I'd grow in another leap she'd say "you're growing again, Jonathan" & I'd be so pleased & proud. Eventually it got to the point where I'd tell her she owed me another Jonathan, because I saw the growth for myself. Then I realized that in every way I could give myself Jonathans. About 5 years before that, at the height of my success in Tupperware, I'd earned several unique seagull statues for business growth, so I dug those out & put them in my bedroom. I also redecorated my bedroom with a peaceful beach theme & was finally able to sleep in it (had been the marital bedroom & I had no money for new furniture or way to rearrange it). That's when I put in the peaceful sights & sounds of an aquarium & found the seagull I hang. (I lived on the edge of the Chesapeake Bay & found lots of unique, inexpensive decorations.) The other 2 books I recommend are "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint Exupery & "The Lemming Condition" by Alan Arkin. Each book is a quick read with a profound life message. I've read them multiple times. I believe each time you do, you gain more based on what you need to hear at that time, & your gained understanding of yourself & the universe since the last reading.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Power Animals, Animal Spirit Guides (Totems), Animal Messengers
Some get pretty confused by the different terms here. It's my understanding that your power animals & animal spirit guides are basically the same thing. They are animals you most have an affinity with energetically. I've been told we each have 3-4 of them with us through life, & 13 total in our lives. The other 9-10 come & go as we need them. They're a lot like guardian angels & work like angels in our lives. In fact, they're spirits that take animal form. We each have at least one guardian angel with us for life but are given other angels to help us when needed, & can call on any angel we need at any time.
Animal messengers come & go more often, to deliver messages as needed. They don't generally stay with us, just appear to us periodically until we get the message. Steven Farmer is a really good authority on animal messengers & what they're trying to tell us. His book is called Animal Spirit Guides: An Easy to Use Handbook... He also has information on your power animals/animal spirit guides. I feel Ted Andrews is a better authority on animal spirit guides, & recommend his book entitled Animal Speak.
I totally believe in animal spirit guides & messengers, & I think my belief is very logical. Most of us have felt the presence of a departed loved one. Many of us have also felt the presence of a departed pet. Many of us believe in guardian angels. Why can't that be, in addition to a guardian angel, a guardian animal? If your pet's spirit can visit or stay with you, & angels do & can, why not an unrelated animal? It's just not a stretch for me, but then, I've always had a heart for animals & paid special attention to them. I've also always communed with them on a deeper level than most have. I've studied every wild animal & bird that would stay still near me long enough, & many have. I like to joke that I have "animal magnetism," meaning that I attract wild animals & birds. Also, I believe because I've read the descriptions of my power animals & can totally relate myself to the things Ted Andrews says. Plus, when animal messengers show up, I read the messages & they totally fit. To me, that's all proof.
So how do you figure out who your animal spirit guides are? Do you regularly attract a certain animal or bird? Have a deep love for one? Really notice a specific one? If so, read what Ted Andrews has to say & see what you think. If not, try finding out the same way you would go about identifying your guardian angel. Set your intent, ask the animal to reveal himself, get help if needed (like a reading from someone you trust). It's been easy for me. I've attracted domestic cats since 1982 - they keep happening to me. So that's one. Mostly sleek black ones happen to me, & then I was told black panther is one of my animal totems. Duh! Groundhogs move to be near me wherever I live, so they're obviously one too. I'm just starting to purposefully communicate with my animal spirit guides but I've been enjoying animal messengers for nearly a year now. I find it very exciting to have animals appearing to me to give me messages. The appearances are quite creative - crossing my path or making noise at an odd time of day or place, or my favorite - coming quite close & studying me for awhile. Last spring, summer, & fall every nice day was an adventure because I didn't know what animal, insect or bird I would experience in an unusual way, but knew I probably would. I had black & gold butterflies & lightning bugs landing on me, a hummingbird that would hover in front of my face or over my head, & chipmunks & squirrels that would come quite close & stay. I also had groundhogs that would come close (for them) & watch me. To me, these are obviously not coincidences because the behaviors are outside of the norm for these animals, bugs, & birds. Believe, & explore this for yourself. It becomes a wonderful adventure & chance for regular learning. I believe animals & angels deliver the most gentle messages of all.
Animal messengers come & go more often, to deliver messages as needed. They don't generally stay with us, just appear to us periodically until we get the message. Steven Farmer is a really good authority on animal messengers & what they're trying to tell us. His book is called Animal Spirit Guides: An Easy to Use Handbook... He also has information on your power animals/animal spirit guides. I feel Ted Andrews is a better authority on animal spirit guides, & recommend his book entitled Animal Speak.
I totally believe in animal spirit guides & messengers, & I think my belief is very logical. Most of us have felt the presence of a departed loved one. Many of us have also felt the presence of a departed pet. Many of us believe in guardian angels. Why can't that be, in addition to a guardian angel, a guardian animal? If your pet's spirit can visit or stay with you, & angels do & can, why not an unrelated animal? It's just not a stretch for me, but then, I've always had a heart for animals & paid special attention to them. I've also always communed with them on a deeper level than most have. I've studied every wild animal & bird that would stay still near me long enough, & many have. I like to joke that I have "animal magnetism," meaning that I attract wild animals & birds. Also, I believe because I've read the descriptions of my power animals & can totally relate myself to the things Ted Andrews says. Plus, when animal messengers show up, I read the messages & they totally fit. To me, that's all proof.
So how do you figure out who your animal spirit guides are? Do you regularly attract a certain animal or bird? Have a deep love for one? Really notice a specific one? If so, read what Ted Andrews has to say & see what you think. If not, try finding out the same way you would go about identifying your guardian angel. Set your intent, ask the animal to reveal himself, get help if needed (like a reading from someone you trust). It's been easy for me. I've attracted domestic cats since 1982 - they keep happening to me. So that's one. Mostly sleek black ones happen to me, & then I was told black panther is one of my animal totems. Duh! Groundhogs move to be near me wherever I live, so they're obviously one too. I'm just starting to purposefully communicate with my animal spirit guides but I've been enjoying animal messengers for nearly a year now. I find it very exciting to have animals appearing to me to give me messages. The appearances are quite creative - crossing my path or making noise at an odd time of day or place, or my favorite - coming quite close & studying me for awhile. Last spring, summer, & fall every nice day was an adventure because I didn't know what animal, insect or bird I would experience in an unusual way, but knew I probably would. I had black & gold butterflies & lightning bugs landing on me, a hummingbird that would hover in front of my face or over my head, & chipmunks & squirrels that would come quite close & stay. I also had groundhogs that would come close (for them) & watch me. To me, these are obviously not coincidences because the behaviors are outside of the norm for these animals, bugs, & birds. Believe, & explore this for yourself. It becomes a wonderful adventure & chance for regular learning. I believe animals & angels deliver the most gentle messages of all.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
The Tortoise & the Hare?
The lesson given is "slow & steady wins the race" but that's not really the way the world works, especially these days. The real lesson of the story is that ego gets in the way & will cause you to lose. It's also a lesson about pacing, constancy, persistence, & that the underdog can win. In today's world, slow & steady isn't the pace for anything. Most things are "hurry up & wait." Some people punch a time clock & can't punch in too early. Those people hurry to work & then wait to be allowed to punch their time cards. That creates a lot of tension. We rush to doctor's appointments only to wait an hour in most practices. It's either that they overbook to compensate for those who are late or no shows, or they don't know how to properly schedule for how long an appointment really takes. Most government agencies & agents usually keep you waiting for a long time too, & both are very stressful. I believe overinflated ego plays into both examples of waiting - in a doctor's office & with government agencies, & I believe it's a real shame. There are no winners in either scenario.
Life these days, in the 3rd dimensional world, seems to be almost entirely predicated on "hurry up & wait." The energies seem to be flowing that way these days, with periods of calm between periods of intense energy. Sometimes messages come flowing in quickly from many sources & other times we seem to seek in vain. It's really good to stay in touch with others who are spiritually like-minded during these times. It gives you both a chance for reality checks. You usually find that however you're experiencing the energies, you aren't the only one. It's very validating. It's been very interesting for me because I haven't considered myself especially aware of energy shifts. All last year when I'd go to a Reiki Exchange or meditation several times a month, I'd hear others talk of energy shifts & their reactions. Each time I'd realize that I had been feeling it, & that it was an energy reaction rather than another factor. I don't know about you, but I have so many reasons I could be feeling slightly off or dizzy or imbalanced at any given time. For one thing, I have diabetes & used to check my blood sugar levels when I'd feel really off. When I'd find that to be normal, I'd wonder about my sinuses, my eating habits, stress level, sleep, etc. I imagine we all have a mental checklist when we're feeling "off." I'm finally learning that it's usually the energies, not me. But that too follows the ebb & flow of "hurry up & wait." In fact, it helps if you think of it as the natural ebb & flow, the pace of our current lives instead of "hurry up & wait." It's all in perspective. We can't change any of this - it's too big for us - it's become the world way & the energy shifts are universal. So we have to find ways to live with it until it changes for good. Well, you don't have to. You can continue to suffer it, but I won't be joining you in that because I choose to go with the flow rather than against it whenever possible. To do that you need to accept that you can't change it so you need to adapt & adjust your expectations. Please understand that this isn't permanent & you won't have to live with it forever. But your degree of comfort in life is dependent upon your degree of comfort with change & the pace of it & you have entire control over that. Ask God & the angels for help. Meditate, & understand what's happening, change your attitude, & learn patience. Understand it's not forever, but just something we have to cope with for now. I truly believe a new world is coming, a new earth system, a new way of being & new energies. I believe that it doesn't have to be a terribly painful transition & that we can control that by how easily we adapt to each change as well as each current norm.
Life these days, in the 3rd dimensional world, seems to be almost entirely predicated on "hurry up & wait." The energies seem to be flowing that way these days, with periods of calm between periods of intense energy. Sometimes messages come flowing in quickly from many sources & other times we seem to seek in vain. It's really good to stay in touch with others who are spiritually like-minded during these times. It gives you both a chance for reality checks. You usually find that however you're experiencing the energies, you aren't the only one. It's very validating. It's been very interesting for me because I haven't considered myself especially aware of energy shifts. All last year when I'd go to a Reiki Exchange or meditation several times a month, I'd hear others talk of energy shifts & their reactions. Each time I'd realize that I had been feeling it, & that it was an energy reaction rather than another factor. I don't know about you, but I have so many reasons I could be feeling slightly off or dizzy or imbalanced at any given time. For one thing, I have diabetes & used to check my blood sugar levels when I'd feel really off. When I'd find that to be normal, I'd wonder about my sinuses, my eating habits, stress level, sleep, etc. I imagine we all have a mental checklist when we're feeling "off." I'm finally learning that it's usually the energies, not me. But that too follows the ebb & flow of "hurry up & wait." In fact, it helps if you think of it as the natural ebb & flow, the pace of our current lives instead of "hurry up & wait." It's all in perspective. We can't change any of this - it's too big for us - it's become the world way & the energy shifts are universal. So we have to find ways to live with it until it changes for good. Well, you don't have to. You can continue to suffer it, but I won't be joining you in that because I choose to go with the flow rather than against it whenever possible. To do that you need to accept that you can't change it so you need to adapt & adjust your expectations. Please understand that this isn't permanent & you won't have to live with it forever. But your degree of comfort in life is dependent upon your degree of comfort with change & the pace of it & you have entire control over that. Ask God & the angels for help. Meditate, & understand what's happening, change your attitude, & learn patience. Understand it's not forever, but just something we have to cope with for now. I truly believe a new world is coming, a new earth system, a new way of being & new energies. I believe that it doesn't have to be a terribly painful transition & that we can control that by how easily we adapt to each change as well as each current norm.
Monday, January 23, 2012
How I Quit...
Remember in December I wrote about resolutions. I challenged you each to make a list of the things you wanted to overcome or change in the coming year, & told you I'd do the same. I suggested that you just change one thing at a time, that if you had 12 you just do one a month. Mine for January is probably the only one I'll share with you since they are personal habits & since I don't like them enough to be determined to change them, I don't wish to expose them to the public. However, one of my goals is to be able to be entirely exposed to the public at any time without shame or embarrassment, to be an example.
I'm going into the details of this because some of the things I did to quit will work for most addictions & bad habits. Yesterday I quit smoking after 15 months of it & 3 other attempts. Don't think it was easy because it's only been 15 months. I quit for 10 years before that, but smoked off & on, mostly on, all my adult life. Smoking is one of the hardest addictions to kick for many reasons, including: it's legal, the habit itself is addictive, nicotine is extremely addictive, it's not mind altering or mood altering when it's maintained, there's little stigma attached to it, & many others do it too. Quitting has to be planned for with 2 things in mind - rewiring your habits & handling the withdrawal from nicotine. First, you truly have to want to quit, to be motivated from within for it to work. If you're quitting because of someone else in your life, you have to make it your own reason to quit. Twelve years ago I quit because my new boyfriend (later husband) insisted. To be with him I had to. It became my motive because I was determined to be with him & I knew he was serious. Besides, I'd kind of wanted to quit for about a year by then anyway. In the past I also quit when pregnant & to honor the wishes of my first husband. Because each time I quit to benefit others more than myself, I went back to smoking when the relationships got rocky. Also, to me it was taking back my personal power. When I was abused as a kid & powerless, my abuser smoked. All my childhood I pictured myself in her place, the one in control. Since smoking was a big deal to her & she was very dramatic about it, it was part of the picture for me. So each time I went back to smoking it was a mental power play. Please hear that & determine what your power play habits are. I believe we all have them - from our parents, relationships in school, sibling relationships, romantic relationships, etc.
This time I quit because I want to be entirely healthy & healed, it doesn't fit with my life as a healer & the things I'm trying to do, & I want to be a good example. This time it's all from within, all for me & my goals for myself & my life. I set this up ahead of time with intent & knew it was working so I set the date. I'd been asking Archangel Raphael (angel of healing) & God to help me quit for about 10 days before I did. As soon as I was ready to quit & started asking for help, I started feeling bad most days with sinus headaches. It feels very much like withdrawal symptoms feel to me so I knew the actual wouldn't be much worse & knew I was being helped in advance. Last week I absolutely set my intent to quit smoking on Sunday, & renewed it every day. Sunday & today I've taken care of myself as needed, & only did the barest minimum of responsibilities. I didn't try to be social or go to church or anywhere. I kept the phone off so I wouldn't be awakened & slept all day to get through the worst period, then made sure I also slept all night. Today I took a long bath in my detox bath salts to aid in detoxing my body (supporting my effort). I did that while drinking my morning coffee (changing the habit, as my favorite cigarette was with the first cup of coffee). Another thing I'm doing to stay off them is making this public announcement. I'd really lose face if I went back to them now.
People especially revert to their habits when stressed. There's never going to be an optimal time, a no-stress time, to drop a habit. Smoking is especially one linked to stress. One way to combat stress is to do the kind of deep breathing smokers do. It's called 4 square breathing in the psychological community. You take a deep breath in to the count of 4, hold for 4, release for 4, wait for 4 & do it again. Do about 4 of them but if you really need to you can do 5-6. I don't recommend more than 6 at one time because you'll hyperventilate if you're not used to doing it. It's the way you begin any kind of meditation & relaxation exercise too, so go ahead & try meditating or deep relaxation from there. Much better for stress than smoking or just about any other habit. I'll continue supporting myself throughout this process, as long as I need to, with prayer, asking the angels (especially Archangel Raphael), taking care of myself & whatever I need at the time. To take care of myself I'll be doing the detox baths, the breathing, self Reiki, Reiki on others, helping others, avoiding others when I need to in order to avoid excess stress, take breaks when I need to, drinking lots of water, getting plenty of sleep, doing 4 square breathing. I'll be doing anything & everything I need to, paying attention to my needs at the time & doing whatever I need to for myself. I will not be substituting food, drugs, or nicotine patches or gum for cigarettes, or any other crutch. My final thought is to assure you that the angels are truly helping me. I haven't smoked for about 34 hours at this point & I know what that usually feels like vs. the way I feel today. I didn't have angelic help before because I wasn't determined or ready before. My mental state wasn't there - I was still in fear based energy. About the time I finally released myself from fear based energy I was ready to address quitting, & started asking the angels & God. I knew help was in place when smoking started to make me feel bad so I went into yesterday determined & knowing help was in place. Hopefully reading all this will help you too, no matter what you want to change.
I'm going into the details of this because some of the things I did to quit will work for most addictions & bad habits. Yesterday I quit smoking after 15 months of it & 3 other attempts. Don't think it was easy because it's only been 15 months. I quit for 10 years before that, but smoked off & on, mostly on, all my adult life. Smoking is one of the hardest addictions to kick for many reasons, including: it's legal, the habit itself is addictive, nicotine is extremely addictive, it's not mind altering or mood altering when it's maintained, there's little stigma attached to it, & many others do it too. Quitting has to be planned for with 2 things in mind - rewiring your habits & handling the withdrawal from nicotine. First, you truly have to want to quit, to be motivated from within for it to work. If you're quitting because of someone else in your life, you have to make it your own reason to quit. Twelve years ago I quit because my new boyfriend (later husband) insisted. To be with him I had to. It became my motive because I was determined to be with him & I knew he was serious. Besides, I'd kind of wanted to quit for about a year by then anyway. In the past I also quit when pregnant & to honor the wishes of my first husband. Because each time I quit to benefit others more than myself, I went back to smoking when the relationships got rocky. Also, to me it was taking back my personal power. When I was abused as a kid & powerless, my abuser smoked. All my childhood I pictured myself in her place, the one in control. Since smoking was a big deal to her & she was very dramatic about it, it was part of the picture for me. So each time I went back to smoking it was a mental power play. Please hear that & determine what your power play habits are. I believe we all have them - from our parents, relationships in school, sibling relationships, romantic relationships, etc.
This time I quit because I want to be entirely healthy & healed, it doesn't fit with my life as a healer & the things I'm trying to do, & I want to be a good example. This time it's all from within, all for me & my goals for myself & my life. I set this up ahead of time with intent & knew it was working so I set the date. I'd been asking Archangel Raphael (angel of healing) & God to help me quit for about 10 days before I did. As soon as I was ready to quit & started asking for help, I started feeling bad most days with sinus headaches. It feels very much like withdrawal symptoms feel to me so I knew the actual wouldn't be much worse & knew I was being helped in advance. Last week I absolutely set my intent to quit smoking on Sunday, & renewed it every day. Sunday & today I've taken care of myself as needed, & only did the barest minimum of responsibilities. I didn't try to be social or go to church or anywhere. I kept the phone off so I wouldn't be awakened & slept all day to get through the worst period, then made sure I also slept all night. Today I took a long bath in my detox bath salts to aid in detoxing my body (supporting my effort). I did that while drinking my morning coffee (changing the habit, as my favorite cigarette was with the first cup of coffee). Another thing I'm doing to stay off them is making this public announcement. I'd really lose face if I went back to them now.
People especially revert to their habits when stressed. There's never going to be an optimal time, a no-stress time, to drop a habit. Smoking is especially one linked to stress. One way to combat stress is to do the kind of deep breathing smokers do. It's called 4 square breathing in the psychological community. You take a deep breath in to the count of 4, hold for 4, release for 4, wait for 4 & do it again. Do about 4 of them but if you really need to you can do 5-6. I don't recommend more than 6 at one time because you'll hyperventilate if you're not used to doing it. It's the way you begin any kind of meditation & relaxation exercise too, so go ahead & try meditating or deep relaxation from there. Much better for stress than smoking or just about any other habit. I'll continue supporting myself throughout this process, as long as I need to, with prayer, asking the angels (especially Archangel Raphael), taking care of myself & whatever I need at the time. To take care of myself I'll be doing the detox baths, the breathing, self Reiki, Reiki on others, helping others, avoiding others when I need to in order to avoid excess stress, take breaks when I need to, drinking lots of water, getting plenty of sleep, doing 4 square breathing. I'll be doing anything & everything I need to, paying attention to my needs at the time & doing whatever I need to for myself. I will not be substituting food, drugs, or nicotine patches or gum for cigarettes, or any other crutch. My final thought is to assure you that the angels are truly helping me. I haven't smoked for about 34 hours at this point & I know what that usually feels like vs. the way I feel today. I didn't have angelic help before because I wasn't determined or ready before. My mental state wasn't there - I was still in fear based energy. About the time I finally released myself from fear based energy I was ready to address quitting, & started asking the angels & God. I knew help was in place when smoking started to make me feel bad so I went into yesterday determined & knowing help was in place. Hopefully reading all this will help you too, no matter what you want to change.
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