Rest

Like most other people, I use my computer all the time. Email, my blog, my website, different sites that I am on, like Facebook, some smaller listings and sites that I check into once in a while. Using all these things to try and promote my business, research information, connect with people, look for leads. These are things I do for my self, to develop my own business, my reading and healing business.

Then at my day job, I am always on the computer doing the company's work. Plus in various assignments over the years, on the phone at the same time.

This past weekend, I decided to rest. Unplug as much as possible and rest.

Checked the email a couple times, checked my lottery tickets, went to the farmers market, cooked, walked. Read a book. And slept.

By the time it was Monday morning again, I was more rested than I had been in a while. It felt really good.

There is so much we need to do, especially if we are growing our own business. That feeling that we always need to be on top of things, doing this that and the other or else we might miss something.

Some people have recommended that I start Twittering and doing a few other things online, but I just have not got around to it yet.

Being unplugged was really restful. I keep a pretty strong pace most of the time, working the day job Monday through Friday and working fairs and festivals on weekends.

Right now I am making my schedule more simple, more efficient. I am pruning the less productive events from my schedule and instead concentrating on booking more private appointments.

Unplugging and resting are very rejuvenating. My plan includes having more of that in my schedule too. It feels very good. Well rested helps a person be ready for what has to be done next.

Sometimes we fall into that trap of thinking that if we are not always busy, we will miss something. But it all comes back to love and fear. If we love what we do and stay focused on our vision, taking some quiet time becomes a plus, not a minus. Being constantly busy may be rooted in fear. It always comes down to love or fear doesn't it? Choose love.

Acceptance

Today I was just noticing how adapting a mood of perception helps s person slide right into the phase of livelier partner. Feel the whole process taking shape.

Acceptance is the final grace note of Elizabeth Kubler Ross' five stages of grief.

We can experience it in that concert flowing with the musicians, but also simpler experiences as well. Once we come to accept that this person who did something made a conscious choice and we are supporting it. Then agreement sets things into motion, acceptance opening doors.

We are happy when they played some of our favorite songs and we are happy when they come up with an unusual expressions of what we created,

We accept the gift o those who died and at the same time celebrate the adventures of those who survive. We need to plan clearly now and launch into the waves.

Once we have acceptance we can open up to the coming experiences and see what happens, and we sense the flow is much smoother. Same happens when a career path dies. Open up and accept opportunities and let love shape what comes next. Something totally unexpected might be perfect.

Now that we have reached acceptance some things just seem to fall into place and the execution is sweet. Acceptance lets us accept the gifts presented to us effortlessly and use then efficiently. No regrets, no anger, no disappointment. Just doing.

Then comes the realization. Why didn't we do it this way from the beginning? We might have too much philosophy, too much thinking, and not enough doing. In the doing we shine. Yes, it is simple, elegant and powerful. Accept, and do.

The Magic of Weekends

Since it is common for people to work Monday through Friday schedules, Friday is frequently our entry into the place where we choose. Friday, named for the Norse goddess Freya initiates a time of magic.

That is why it is so frequently an evening for play. Freya was definitely a sexy, magical goddess. Various tales say it she was the one who taught Odin the art of divination. She could also mediate between the different worlds. In the old stories, she had power in the realm of her origin, with her people, the Vanir, and also with her adapted people, the Aesir.

So it is that we launch adventures on her day each week. We plan to do something fun, or perhaps we dedicate some time to learning or practicing those things which we have chosen, various hobbies or avocations.

Yes, weekends are magical, whether we use them to get much needed rest or do other things we do not have time for on the weekdays. This is our time to deepen our progress on our path. If we work a second job, perhaps it is one that we love. If we take the time to spend with friends, that is magical too. Think how fitting it is that tomorrow is dedicated to Saturn, the bringer of change, and the next day is the day of the Sun, a day to bask in radiance.

So make good use of your magical time, your weekend. No matter what you do, make it magical.

I Want My Heaven Now

I find it interesting that so many people care whether there is an afterlife and speculate about what it is like. My view is that I will find out when I get there. Meanwhile, I just want to enjoy this life.

These thoughts are not directed at any one religion, but rather all religions that concern themselves with the afterlife.

I can see how for some people it would be a real letdown to find out that after all these years of working and keeping up a house, looking after a family, spending 60 plus hours a week cultivating a career path that you drop dead and find out that there is no next life.

Of course some people adapt the point of view that it's OK if everything is out of whack here, because after we die, it will be better there. Some people are so certain of that that they will hurry their own death along to get there faster.

Not me.

There are certain moments here on earth, in this body, when we can get a taste of pure bliss. I don't know that any afterlife can top an orgasm. Maybe some people will try and argue that there is, but I still say that we won't know until we get there.

Are there other sublime experiences to be had in this lifetime? Yes, I can think of a bunch. Can you? If we can repeat those a bunch more times, we get to have heaven on earth.

Let the other people debate what heaven might be like. I am too busy looking for all the joy that is possible here. For some reason, I just got a vision of some BBQ ribs, corn on the cob, a summer salad, a cold micro brewed beer, and yes, that is another heavenly experience. I would make a longer list, but I need some sleep.

Yes, I want my heaven now.

You Just Never Know

True to form on the Fool's Journey is the simple fact that he just moves on with his journey, experiencing life and the only thing he knows for sure is that he does not know everything.

I have been maintaining my focus on my career path, and even though I have taken steps that some might think foolish, such as dropping out of some events and deciding not to do others, I have opened up space in my schedule.

Interestingly, into that space have come other appointments and opportunities, sometimes from past customers, some from referrals, and just some from "out there" who initiated contact through my blog or a website I am on.

You just never know.

I have learned by doing that some of my advertising dollars are well spent and some are totally wasted. A long time ago, someone said "I know that half of my advertising budget is wasted. I just don't know which half."

You just never know.

Of course, we can all our own common sense to look at the track records of certain events or the logistics of the deal and make decisions accordingly. Still, there will be things we just don't know.

And as we continue on our path there are not only adventures, but surprises. Those "out there" responses are still the result of energies we put in motion. Strangers contact us because we put ourselves out there where they could find us.

Even setbacks are opportunities to put fresh energy into our efforts as we decide what to cut, what to strengthen and what to rebuild.

I am focused on my goal and proceeding toward it. That draws energy into the path. Have you noticed the same thing with yours?

Small Food, Big Food

Half a billion eggs from just two farms have been recalled because of the recent salmonella outbreak. Although they are packaged under a variety of brand names, the recent problem has been traced back to just two farms that produce half a billion eggs.

What kind of farm is that? Interesting how egg cartons frequently picture a barn and chickens running around in the yard. That's the kind of places our chickens and eggs used to come from, but nothing that looks like that picture will produce a half a billion eggs. That's similar to the images of cows in grassy open fields with a barn and a farmhouse in the background, where much of our diary and meat comes from cattle that actually live much more confined lives than that.

Those of us who can remember as far back as the 1960s and 1970s know that massive recalls of contaminated food because of illness and death were a very rare event.

However, since the 1980s, it has become almost commonplace. Beef, chicken, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, peanuts. Lots of foods have been recalled for contamination.

How did this happen? Two main reasons. One, larger farms and processing plants kept getting larger while many small family farms, slaughterhouses and processing plants went out of business.

Two, politicians let lobbyists persuade them that industry could do a good job of inspecting itself, even though the FDA was created and government food inspectors were hired about 100 years ago because of public concern over the quality of food processing facilities and slaughterhouses. These recent outbreaks of food borne illnesses certainly indicate that need more food inspectors, not less.

All the modern problems and controversies in agriculture revolve around one thing. In making farms into factories, shortcuts are necessary in order for fewer people to produce more food. In the worst case scenario, that pressure produces people like the guy who ran the peanut warehouse and shipped moldy peanuts even though he knew they were moldy. In the best case scenario you can have someone working very hard who simply does not take the time to wash up between chores.

Perhaps we should consider whether smaller might be better in farming. How can two farms produces a half a billion eggs?

Supporting small family farms, organic farms, and producers of heirloom foods through CSAs (community supported agriculture is buying a subscription for a farmer's produce) and farmers markets is increasingly popular. Sometimes, smaller can be better than larger. Even taking small steps in that direction as consumers will make a difference, both to us and the farmers.

Tastes Good Too!

My sisters have long made a habit out of shopping for their produce at the farmers market as a way of both getting high quality, interesting foods while at the same time supporting local farmers.

I do buy locally grown fruits and vegetables too, but I am not eager to get out of bed early on a Saturday when I don't have to.

You will notice that even the chain grocery stores will have signs up when produce is local. Personally, I am not so concerned about organic. For some items, I will go for it, but for some, I am not willing to pay a lot extra. To be certified organic a farm must be doing everything organically for several years, and I would see more sense in spending the money on organic leafy greens than say, potatoes or bananas. Just my opinion, of course.

I think that if you consider that some of these farmers who are taking the time to cultivate heirloom vegetables and different varieties are doing so on a smaller scale on a family farm, they are paying a lot more attention to what they grow and how they grow, even if it is not certified organic, and I think that is a good thing.

Most important I think is when you buy produce at the farmers market, the income goes directly to the farmer, and that helps them to make more profit.

One of the added bonuses is that at the farmers market you will find heirloom varieties, and vegetables and fruits that have surprising tastes, colors and textures.

That's a great added bonus for supporting local farmers and helping to keep jobs in the American economy. Every little bit helps, and it tastes good too!

Finding a Way to Do What You Love

When people are faced with trying to find a new career, they often thrash about and wonder what that could be. I know I did for a while. I kept applying for jobs simply because they held out the promise of a higher salary, but ultimately I had to come to grips with the fact that I did not really care about those jobs and chose not to pursue those possibilities any more.

Once I got clear on the fact that I really wanted to do something that I could get out of bed eager to do every day, everything changed.

I looked at my involvement with tarot, past lives, reiki, music, and other metaphysical pursuits over the years and realized that for as much as I enjoyed doing those things and for as much positive feedback I had gotten from clients that I had never really made an effort to make that my full time source of income.

That was partially due to the fact that earlier in my life I really enjoyed my day jobs and felt no desire to change that.

Now I am placing all of my attention on shifting out of my day job and into life as a full time reader and healer. Making that decision helped me organize my energies much more clearly and I am steadily making progress toward my goal.

Have you overlooked the obvious for yourself?

There are many people who have taken a hobby or favorite recreation or activity and turned it into a business they love, which also supports them.

Your whole world view can shift radically when you quit thinking of your career path in terms of getting this next job because it pays a little more, or shifting into something you don't really want to do simply to have a paycheck.

Yes, I am practical, and I have had to also take some of those jobs from time to time just to get some cash flow. The difference is not resigning yourself to thinking that the rest of your life has to be like that.

Look at the things that you really love to do. Then do some brainstorming and networking to investigate and consider all the different ways that you can make a living in some way connected to that love.

It may not be easy, but if you stay focused, you can find a way. Remember that old saying, "Where there's a will, there's a way"?

Ways to Network

Networking is a deliberately vague term that has many applications. It is all about referals and how to get them. One might be networking in your chosen field of business. For me, that means sharing booth space at expensive shows with other readers and healers so that we can all become more profitable. We also give each other a heads up when a new show is opening or words of caution when another one does not have a good track record. So that manner of networking is very direct. You get useful information from people in the same business and share resources to help each other succeed. Plus, you can refer people to each other. For example, I am not an astrologer or a massage therapist, but I know astrologers and massage therapists if one of my clients requests that kind of service.

Another way of networking is to exchange information and ideas with people in a variety of businesses different than your own. This is a less direct method of referrals, so it may take longer to yield results. For example, someone who is a caterer may not use your services that often herself, but she may know others who are interested. On the other hand, most entrepreneurs could use the assistance of an accountant or book keeper and you could refer leads to them. And perhaps you do not have a dog, but at a networking meeting you met someone who takes care of dogs. So then when you have a friend who needs someone to take care of their dog, you know who to refer them to.

This is a helpful, friendly way to do things, but as an entrepreneur, you also need the kinds of leads that will mature into sales faster than that. After all, who knows how frequently someone will ask you if you know of an accountant or dog sitter?

Generally, trying to be helpful to other people is a good way to set positive energy in motion for yourself.

By far the best networking is through your previous customers. People who have enjoyed and appreciated your work are in position to refer new customers to you who will, of course, be requesting an appointment for the very service or product you are selling.

A combination of all of the above is necessary. Keep your momentum going and eventually leads and clients will come from all of these directions. If you are trying to start your own business or grow your business, you always have to keep looking for new ideas. Networking is a good way to go.

Networking

For some of us, meeting new people is an easy task. Drop us into a room full of people and we have no problem striking up a conversation. Others of us are shy by nature and would rather be home working on their computers rather than mixing and mingling.

Networking is a very loosey-goosey concept. Essentially, you figure some of the people you meet will refer some business to you. It's sort of a cousin of getting referrals from customers, except that some networking contacts are not customers. Maybe they are just people you liked when you met and you keep their business card in your file, then one day, what they do happens to be just what you need. Or what someone you know needs.

Sometimes it may take a while before you see any results from gong to networking meetings and trading business cards. So you make note of where new business comes from and keep in mind where the contact came from. There are lots of networking groups and your experience will let you know which ones are worth continuing with and which are not.

With things like online directories, they all help, but that is where it differs from in person events. At some in person events, you may or may not ever get a bit of business from them, but it always costs something to participate. With some online directory listings, once you are on them they stay out there all year, until you renew. And, of course, there are some things that are out there on the Internet that seem to stay there forever.

When people google your name or your business name, the fact that you are included on a lot of sites, even ones that never generate any business for you, all helps your name float to the top in the search engines.

I always make it a point to ask people who call me how they chose to call me. If they are not a friend of someone I have worked with before, they will mention the name of a website where they found me.

Networking is a part of the strategy for success for any entrepreneur. How you use it, and the most productive ways to use it are things we all discover by trial and error.

Dreams of Dreams

Are our dreams within our reach or are they really farther removed than that? Why is it that when we wake up in the midst of an awesome dream, we lay for a moment savoring the parts we remember?

While still in the thrall of a dream, we can see all the beautiful developments, and then we tell ourselves that it is not real, it is only a dream. Yet, there are ways to make dreams real.

What has been the energy of the other world in our mind is simply what we are stirring up before they have materialized in our daily life. In the in between dream state, we sense that we can reach out and touch the others in our dream. We sometimes find ourselves riding around town or to a little place in the country, along the beach, into the woods or up a mountain road to a place where we just came to enjoy the sensations. And in time we feel those vibrations and discover that some of the clothes from our dream fit real nice and some of the things we thought about doing are now what we are doing.

So as your energy settles down, look at how it is moving and how you would like it to move. Yes, that dream state that is still within arm's reach.

When we give our sleep guardians various offerings to help us sleep, other gateways open, yet these dreams are also within arm's reach of our waking state. And some days we feel like we can reach out and touch them, and live in them. You see, there is not such a great distance between the world of our dreams and the world of our conscious living. We just have to reach for it, and close the gaps between the two dreams, the dream of life, and the dream of dreams.

Inhaling the Scent of Rain

Do you like the way it smells just before it rains? Do you take a moment to appreciate it? I do. I love the way the whole world is transformed when rain is approaching and afterwards.

Water of earth, water of air, water of water, water of fire.

Notice how the world usually smells to us when we first get up in the morning, and how there is a distinctive smell that the water colors into our consciousness just after it rains. It helps us perceive the aroma of the plants around us, projecting a more dense taste of the natural fragrance. The earth itself yields up a pungency that presents our palate something new even though it is very familiar. Suddenly there are tones that speak to our sense of taste as well as smell and offers a renewed connection to the earth itself.

Did you ever notice how there is a particular smell that envelops you when you walk in the mountains among the pines and the streams? Notice how the entire palette of smells that rise up to greet us when we enter a desert area that immediately speaks to us of a change in the environment?

In each case, the change of place is both specific and broad at the same time. Yes, the person who is familiar with the different plants and can readily identify them and distinguish their scent. At the same time there is a general mingling of scents that create the entire environment of desert, mountain, forest or seashore. Altogether, the mingling of the big bold scents with the delicate fragrances create the aura of the entire space.

It is similar to walking into a huge field of flowers, eyes at first not recognizing individual shapes, but rather swaths and splashes of color, at first simply overwhelmed by the visual explosion. Then the excitement calms as individual plants come into focus and sometimes saying their names helps us to feel more at home.

Sometimes we do not know their names and we try and familiarize our senses with them simply through the color, shape and fragrance. Some of them will be memorable to the touch as well.

Inhaling the scent of rain is a very sensuous experience. It signals the return of something to our world that we need. It offers us a gift to remember this by. It encourages us to let our feelings flow, the sense of smell bringing us spontaneous recollections triggered by various smells that stimulate memories attached to them.

The sent of rain also comes with a sound that is cleansing. We can turn off radio and TV and computer and just listen to the sound the falling, running water makes as it cleanses and refreshes. The sound of rain invites us to deep moments of contemplation and relaxation.

Inhaling the scent of rain is an invitation to stop and enjoy a deeper moment, a taste of life, the scent leading to sounds, sights and tactile, touching experiences. Breathe in, breathe out and enjoy the scent of rain. Water of air, water of fire, water of water, water of earth.

13, the Number of the New Order

Today being Friday the 13, there is a lot of folklore and superstition associated with Friday the 13. Today we are experiencing the only one we will have this year. Last year 9 times the 13 fell on a Friday.

Two of the myths that suggest to a lot of people that 13 is a bad luck number is the story from the Christian myth of the Last Supper where Judas was the 13th guest, after the 12 apostles. In Norse mythology, there was also a huge feast of 12 gods going on when the 13th, Loki, arrived.

Judas gave the signal that turned Christ over to the Romans for his execution, while Loki's mischief resulted in the death of Balder, the sun god. Both were catalysts for great change.

The Judas kiss changed everything. Without it, Christ might have continued being an itinerant teacher and healer for who knows how long. Maybe his followers would have been loosely organized with no centralized authority, like Buddhists. But the crucifixion, resurrection and the merging of politics and religion under Constantine, complete with the establishment of the HQ of the church in the lap of the HQ of the Roman Empire changed the whole trajectory of that story.

For those of you with an irreverent sense of humor, check out Tom Robbins' novel, Another Roadside Attraction, where he speculates that the apostles really stole the body and hid it, then told everybody that Christ ascended so that they would have a more powerful story to build their new religion on.

Another religious story that pivots on Friday the 13 is when King Philip of France ordered the arrest of all the Knights Templar on that date, cementing the place of that date in history and kicking off a whole new generation of secret societies and conspiracy theories.

The story of Balder is also a game changer. Frigg, Balder's mother, and Balder both had a prophetic dream of Balder's death. She asked every creature and plant to agree not to hurt him. She neglected to secure a pledge from mistletoe because it seemed insignificant. At the feast, the other gods were playing a game of seeing how impervious Balder was to all assaults. Loki, however, knew about mistletoe and his mistletoe spear killed Balder. Frigg sent a messenger to Hel, the keeper of souls after death, to ask for his release. She agreed to do so if every creature in the world would mourn for him. All agreed, except one, so Hel stipulated that he could only return after Ragnarok, the battle at the end of the world which destroys everything and kills all the old gods, clearing the way for a whole new world to be born, and with new gods to rule it, led by Balder, the Bright and Shining One.

I do not regard 13 or Friday 13 as bad luck.

Some people refuse to travel on Friday 13, more than 80 percent of high-rise buildings lack a 13th floor. Many airports skip the 13th gate. Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.

Some numerologists consider 12 a complete number. There are 12 months in a year, 12signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, and 12 apostles. In exceeding 12 by 1, the 13 association with bad luck has to do with just being a little beyond completeness.

But remember that there are different ways to do numerology. In simple numerology, the number 13 becomes 4, the number of foundation and order.

13 has as many good connotations as bad.

We do well to remember that before the church changed the calendar to what we use now, we did not have all these months with odd numbered days. We had 13 months that were all equal in length, consisting of a 4 week moon cycle.

Traditional witches formed their covens with a membership of 13, bringing yet another spiritual perspective to the number.

There are 13 stripes on the American flag. In the Great Seal of the United States there are 13 olive leaves (with 13 olives), 13arrows, and 13 stars. These form a triangle over the eagle with the number 13 on each point. On the reverse the pyramid has 13 levels.

A baker's dozen contains 13 items.

Apollo 13 was the only manned spaceflight intended to land on the moon that failed in its mission. However, the courage and ingenuity of the men aboard resulted in all of them returning safely to earth, becoming a story of great inspiration, rebounding from the potentially fatal results of the explosion of an oxygen tank. Its fame has eclipsed other missions in which everything went as planned.

So you see, there is more to suggest that 13 can lay the groundwork for strength and new beginnings as there is to suggest that it is bad luck.

In the Flow

Watch what happens once you set a vision and follow a course of action toward that vision. Notice how energy flows with you to support your progress. Opportunities present themselves, doors open and new ideas spring to mind.

Clarity is important. So are friends and mentors who will lend their strength to our visions. Relax into your vision and feel the energy carry you forward. Now you can feel that all of the actions that move you in that direction add to the momentum. If one action does not yield great results, another will.

Keep reaffirming your vision to the universe. Keep taking action steps. Feel the energy fill you. Is your goal or vision stated in a way expresses accurately what you want?

Yes, there are times when we have struggled. Check the three sides of your triangle and see if they are strong. If so, your boat will sail on the waters the moon is moving, and the waters will be traveling in the direction we want to go.

Owning Your New Year

A person's birthday is their new year. Yes, we have a civic holiday called New Year's Day every January 1, but each of us starts a new year on our birthday.

It is refreshing and clarifying to get a perspective on this every year.

It is a natural time to ask ourselves what we would like to see happen in our next year, and reflect back on various milestones in our life, not just from this past year, but from our life.

We never (or perhaps I should say rarely) get a chance to do over, but we do get chances to do differently.

So if today is your new year, celebrate, look forward and embrace that future.

Maybe relecting on the past, expressing gratitude for the present and stepping into our future would be a lot more powerful on our birthday than all those broken adn forgotten New Year's resolutions.

After all, we don't really own that day, but we own this one.

New Moon Energy

We are in a time of new moon energy, a time for beginning new projects, taking new initiatives. Look at what you want to create in your life and take action steps to bring it into reality now.

Feel the energy surging upward, onward, forward as the moon continues its path to fullness. We are on a path of fullness as well.

Consider the phases of your life already completed, and the possibilities still ahead. Can you see a pattern on how you have built your successes?

What we do in the next phase of our life is result of the movement of energy we facilitate now.

Feel your way toward what you want next in your life. Look inward and outward. Once you are able to visualize your goals more vividly, it is easier to move toward them and take the actions to make them real.

New moons are a perfect time to do this inner work and then let it project into outer work, outward actions. Set the energies in motion and then flow with them to fullness.

An Exercise in Gratitude

It is good to stop and reflect on our life journey so far.

Here is an exercise to help with that. What are you grateful for?

Take your deck of cards and select the ones that have pictures that would pertain to your feeling of gratitude. Any surprises?

Did you suddenly come across a card that prompted a good feeling? Keep them out for at least one day and see what other feelings come to you.

Is this layout one that you added to the next day?

Does this suggest any action on your part?

Or are you simply basking in the glow of gratitude?

Common Bonds

When you walk in old neighborhoods where people have created gardens in their yard, they are almost always glad to talk about it. You stop and comment on an unusual flower, a particularly beautiful specimen, how well their tomatoes of zucchinis are going, and suddenly you find yourself in a conversation with a stranger. How easy that is.

If you know a bit about gardening yourself, you might pick up some new ideas or useful tips, and they might ask you questions. The really fascinating thing is the dynamic. When you ask people about something they are interested in, they open right up, and their is an opportunity for a pleasant experience.

So, of course, we are not all gardeners and we all don't want to talk about gardens, but extend this principle into other areas of interest. Often, when our interests are very specialized, we find ourselves going to meetings or events centered around this topic.

People are always seeking to connect that way. One of the beauties of gardening though is the simplicity. You don't have to go anywhere special, you just have to take a walk. Another beauty is that it is simple. When you are stopping to admire someone's garden, they may strike up a conversation if you don't. You are already complimenting them on their work, and everybody enjoys that.

Perhaps one other idea is as simple or universal. If you are walking your dog, other dog owners will usually be interested in talking about dogs.

How many ways can you use this idea? How much joy and peace do we spread in the world when we simply connect with other people with whom we have a common bond?

High and Low Zero

There are times in life when we get knocked back down to zero and in the process of getting back up again, we learn a lot of new things, maybe even better ways to do things.

It seems that our learning often needs to be reset to get a fresh start. Often, for example if your computer is acting sluggish and the applications you are using just don't seem to be responding properly, you have to reboot, which stops everything and starts it again, and that gets everything back on track.

Sometimes in relationships, people may find that they have to go back to zero by divorcing or separating before they build a new and better relationship.

When we are looking for ways to build our business to the next level, we find that we need to reconsider how we are doing it and perhaps adapt new techniques, or mix in new techniques while keeping the best of the old.

Sometimes people who create new businesses go bankrupt, go back to zero and start all over before they find their great success.

Science and art are places where we see it all the time. We think we know how something works, but then we discover something new and reframe our whole idea of how it works. How do oceans work? How are planets formed? How are diseases cured? How do we learn music? What makes this art?

Meditate on the Fool's Journey, and this is part of what you come to realize. The Fool is always numbered zero in the deck, and for this reason the Fool is said to be both the highest and lowest card in the deck. In any of these endeavors, one of the characteristics of the journey is having enough humility to know that you do not always know, but you are willing to learn.

Pizza and Peanut Butter

I saw a post from someone asking if they knew of a place that had gluten free, lactose free, vegetarian pizzas. I thought to myself, wouldn't it just be easier to order something else? I mean what is a pizza without the bread dough, meat and cheese? Then again, I am the kind of guy who will opt for a glass of ice water if the only kind of beer you are serving is something called lite or light. No matter which way you spell it, it can't pass for a beer around me.

Oh, I know, the poor people with allergies still want to eat something that looks like their favorite food. And some people just want to be seen drinking something that looks sort of like a beer.

All this leads me to wonder though. Is this some sort of evolution or aberration going on? From the time I was a kid eating peanut butter sandwiches until about ten years ago or so, I never heard of people who were allergic to peanuts or wheat.

Is it that these were in existence all this time, but everybody thought it was something else? Or is it that so many additives have been added to all kinds of foods that this stimulated new allergies?

I don't know. I think it is just another one of those weird things that is happening in our world. Curious how something like peanut allergies or gluten allergies just all of a sudden pop up on the radar. Curious to see how that happened or how it will evolve.

Cosmic, Curious, Connected

One of the reasons that many people feel so dislocated in adapting to new realities is that we just look back at our parents generation and they had one job or worked for one company for their whole working life. Then that shifted during our lifetime.

How many jobs have you had? I know that I have had many. Some I tried just out of pure curiosity. That cat characteristic keeps surfacing as part of my cat (Leo) personality. I got interested in tarot, reiki, past lives, dowsing and so much more just out of curiosity. And that took me in unexpected directions.

My career path has not been linear for the same reasons. Oh, yes, for periods of time it was linear, but overall, not.

I remember when Grandpa retired, that was just sort of the end stage. Just relaxing, nothing special to be done. No more goals to achieve. Just a state of rest and a very easy going pace until death.

Today, however, we look around and see people in their 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s taking up new challenges and starting new careers.

Part of what I think now is that after 40 years of farm or construction work they were just worn out. Those were the kinds of work my family did. Oh eventually they branched out into other things, but still it was many years of hard work whether they worked in factories, offices, as teachers or salesmen. And the women got worn out from having and raising 4,5 or a dozen kids. Back then, family planning meant figuring out where all the kids would sleep.

Today, lots of jobs consist of sitting in front of computers and using phones to do our work which not only doesn't wear us out in the same way, it also leaves the opportunity to get up and do something else physically.

In some ways, all these changes seem chaotic. I am working on creating a transition into my next full time career, and when I look back, it had absolutely nothing to do with the career I was involved in 20 or 30 years ago, although you could see it as a tangent branching out from what I was doing 10 or 15 years ago.

Focusing on what is next is plenty to do for now. I am not even extending my vision forward another 10 or 20 years. Curiosity and surprises have led me inexorably forward until now, and no doubt they still will, for as long as I live.

Starring in Your Own Movie

Look at the Star card in the tarot deck. She is doing what she needs to do so that her every day life works. Maybe she is getting water from the well for bathing, cooking, drinking or cleaning. Whatever the case, today this is what needs to be done.

Yet she never loses sight of her hopes, dreams, goals. She looks up in the sky, and seeing all those brilliant lights, she knows what a limitless universe this is.

As she gazes at these stars and bathes herself in the soft night lights, a song escapes from her lips. It is only loud enough for her to hear at first, then it grows louder as she walks back home, carrying the water.

She dreams of her starring role in her next venture. It could be the part she is auditioning for in a play or a band. It could be the success she envisions with her new business. It could be the next book she will write. It could be the relationship she has always craved. It is her time to shine as she writes her own script.

The stars are spotlights shining down on her. She is the star in her own movie.

Never give up on your hopes and dreams, no matter how much you feel that at times, it will be difficult to make them come true. Every day, do what you need to do and take a step toward them. Your exact vision of what your movie will look like might change from time to time. That is fine. Editors make cuts in their movies to make them better. Editors make cuts in books to make them better. Sometimes you rewrite or reshoot a lot in order to make it fit your new vision.

Feel the moonlight on your skin. Feel the starlight on your skin. Now let the starlight come out through your eyes. Love yourself and express your dreams. Act as if you are the star in your own movie. You are. Your life is your movie.