Our Teachers

 

Our Teachers

Throughout our entire lives we are engaged n the process of teaching and learning. And we are both students and teachers at the same time. We learn from those who have more knowledge and experience and in turn, share with those younger. Did you ever find yourself thinking that you had wished you had asked more questions of someone when you had the chance? So, instead, take the time now. You know how young children always like to ask their grandparents to tell them stories about when they were young. Part of our life lessons come from those stories. Knowing what I know now, would I ask my grandparents more or different questions if I could do that now? Yes. During my different careers, I have different teachers for each of those phases of my life. They taught me technical things, and even more importantly, lessons about working with other people to get things done. I have always appreciated that people who were older and more experienced than myself always smiled and enjoyed sharing when I asked them questions about things they did excellently. My experience as a healer who teaches brought me teachers who are spirit guides, and two of them are nurses. So yes, some of our teachers are in spirit. There were my teachers in real life who taught me the basics and techniques. But it was when I felt the connection with my spirit guides helping to heal that my healing increased in flow and intensity. I feel it and my clients feel it. When I refer to teachers, I mean all of them, from the person who taught you in school, to those who taught you how to create win/win relationships, use your sense of humor, plant a garden, cook a tasty, nutritious meal, to those who gave you pointers for your workouts. That includes your inner circle of family or friends who are always there for you. We all need people who can relate to who we are now, not who we used to be. As we grow and evolve our social circles evolve as well. Throughout our lives, we will have more than one teacher or mentor, all part of our team. How do you feel about your team now? Is it time to work with a new teacher? By the way, the image above is the Hierophant from the Victorian Romantic Tarot. Hierophant is a word from ancient Greece that means a spiritual teacher.

What may be

 

What may be

Here we are in the 5th month of the year, and the number 5 as we know, is about tests and challenges. For those of us who like to garden, we hope that what we do this month will bring good results in the coming months, yielding beautiful flowers, as well as healthy vegetables. What may be, has everything to do with what we are doing to plan, prepare and put in place now. How much of this applies to other parts of our life? There are many things that we may do, which is when we are being courteous and get permission to do. Then there are things that we can do, and the question before us then is what will we do? It simply caught my attention when I thought about the name of the month being the same as the word that indicates permission. We may have a more profitable year in business this year. What do we need to do to make it so? We may have better relations with people this year. What do we need to do to make it so? We may have better strength and health this year. What do we need to do to make it so? The number 5 challenges us to go beyond our previous limitations. Month 5 prompts us to thionk about how we want to proceed. Mayday. Funny how this simple word became a universal call for help. May I help? Can you help? What choices may we make now? What choices will we make now? There is also the old saying that April showers bring May flowers. May you enjoy this beautiful month and use it to accelerate and expedite your dreams and visions.

Fools can be spirit guides too!

 

Fools can be spirit guides too!

What brings more light into your life? As the days grow longer now, there is more time to get things done in daylight. Like gardening, going for hikes and walks. Or whatever else lights you up. What about those ideas that you know you want to spend more time researching or trying out? Time to shed more light on them? Yes, the picture above is me dressed as a fool. Hey, it is still the April Fool's month, and I am enjoying it. I like to use humor whenever possible, because it always raises energy when we laugh together. Humor can be a great tool to help make a point. Even back in the old days of jesters in royal courts, the jester could get away with saying things that other people could not, because a truth delivered with humor has staying power. Recent research has also shown that laughter can stimulate healing hormones, as well as relieve stress. When people ask me how I unwind after a long day of work, I always recommend going to Netflix and looking up stand up comedians. The good ones will have you laughing within minutes, and the ones you don't like, you can just turn off and pick a different one. Just like that. A flick of the switch. The person who really got me hooked on stand up was a guy I used to work with many years ago. I noticed that he always had jokes to crack with clients when he was calling on them and he was very successful. He used to go to a stand up comedy club after work that was near our office and one day he invited me to go with him. Then we did it more frequently. Ever since then, stand up is one of my choices, and one of the tools in my tool kit. One day not long ago, I just happened to think of him. He was from North Carolina and I knew him when I lived in Atlanta. So I Googled him to see what he is doing now. What I found was his obituary. He had died a number of years ago. In April. And it was in April that I just happened to remember him. That was a gift. He showed me how valuable tool of communication humor can be. Spirit guides can be funny as well as serious. When a person comes back to you in this way, perhaps on an anniversary, it is a spirit guide. That's one of the ways they work to remind us of something that is worth our remembering.

When was the last time you did something foolish?

 

When was the last time you did something foolish?

When was the last time you did something foolish? Playing tricks on people can be humorous, and we all enjoy a good laugh. That is one aspect of April Fool's Day. In 1998, Burger King announced their new Left Handed Burger on April Fool's Day and thousands of customers went to their stores to buy one before the chain announced the next day that it was a joke. Beyond that aspect, every day we have opportunities to choose from, and we exercise our free will every day in choosing between foolish risks and calculated risks. Sometimes, the wise choice looks foolish to others. Shark Tank, the TV show where highly successful business sharks consider backing new inventions, took a pass on the ring doorbell camera. And that became more successful than other new businesses they chose to back. Mark Twain, the famous author, declined to invest in the telephone. Who was foolish in those choices? When I made this my full time business 15 years ago, my mother asked me when I was going to get a real job again. Now, over time she came to appreciate some of the things I do, and she knows that this is a real job. My point is that every time we do something foolish it feels exciting and fresh. When you are doing something new or different and being more humorous and playful, being foolish sparks joy. When we look at the world with a sense of joy, we lift our spirits when we do things that are lighthearted and playful. When we look at a situation and notice that we always do things the same way, our open mind can see different ways to achieve our goals. When we do something different than usual, some will think our new approach is foolish. But is it really? How often do we excede previous limitations when we do something different, something others might think is foollish. We also need to be kind to ourselves when we make mistakes. Being kind to others helps us get past their errors and start fresh. We need to do the same with ourselves and not carry on beating ourselves up when we make a mistake. We need to forgive ourselves and try again. What others may consider foolish often leads to creativity, innovation and personal growth. Many years ago, I was invited to go to a workshop where we walked on fire. My first impression was to wonder how foolish that was and how anyone could do that and not hurt themselves. Then I did it, along with everyone else in the group. And then I wondered what else there was that I thought I could not do, that I could do if I changed my mind. That foolish act broke through barriers. When was the last time others felt that you were being foolish? When was the last time you felt you were being foolish? See the difference between the two? Happy April Fool's Day! The image above is from the Elemental Wisdom Tarot I always love getting feedback, so if any of you has thoughts about these articles I write, or any idea you would like me to include in my newsletters, I will consider all suggestions.

Balancing Acts

 

Balancing Acts

The Spring Equinox this coming Thursday, March 20, brings to mind the value of keeping our balance as we pursue our goals and dreams. This day is equal parts day and night and then tips the balance into more light every day. This is a physical sign of the changes nature is bringing, swinging back and forth between light and dark with the two balance points in the year of the spring and fall equinoxes. There are lots of ways to help us keep our balance. How does that work for us? One big challenge is to reserve some time in our day to nurture our personal relationships and not neglect them because we are working hard at building our business. Both are important. An important aspect is balancing between physical and non-physical activities. I reserve some time almost every day to go to the gym to balance out all the time I spend at my desk talking with people and getting things done on the computer. In the picture above are some of the instruments I use to create additional sound and vibration to reiki energy healing sessions. Sound can help to re-balance us by vibrating through us, with the flow of those vibrations carrying tensions away like a river carrying those disturbances to our system out of our body and into mother earth for recycling. What other ways do we seek balance in our life? How do we balance our every day goals with our long term goals? When we take a little time each day to reflect on where we are and where we are going, we check in with our spirit guides, take a little time to read literature that inspires us, and then think about any changes we want to make to bring us more balance, we will feel better about having our thoughts and actions aligned. Doing that always brings feelings of peace and happiness. Grounding and centering helps us keep our balance. There is always a balance between the give and take in all our relationships. How is the balance between give and take in yours? In our everyday balance, and in the bigger picture,we have karma, where we get back what we give out. When we pay attention to our balance, we often find those places in our life where we need to adjust the balance in order to get a smoother flow of energy in total. Another aspect is this. When we are finding our attention drawn to a subject, it might be that following up on that curiosity will help bring more balance into our life. Our spirit guides often inspire us to follow a lead to get a balancing aspect into our life that we didn't know we needed until after we check it out to see how it feels for us. I always love getting feedback, so if any of you has thoughts about these articles I write, or any idea you would like me to include in my newsletters, I will consider all suggestions.

Laughter Lightning

 

Laughter Lightning

Laughter is lightning for our mind. Why is that? What is the nature of comedy? Why does it work? Comedians and humorous writers see the same things we see, but they see things differently, and when we are cracking up because of this different point of view, lightning is zapping our mind. This past month, one of my favorite authors crossed over into the the next dimension where we all go for our encore performances. Tom Robbins was a writer who had a great sense of humor. He lived 92 years and wrote stories that had me dropping the books while cracking up with laughter. Another of my favorite authors, Ray Bradbury, also was 92 when he made his transition. Hmmm..............I wonder what that means? So often, when a person wants a day off from work they have to call in sick in order to get it. Robbins called in well when he sold his first novel and never went back to his day job. Interestingly, Robbins wrote all of his book manuscripts long hand, then had someone else type them up to send to his publisher. One other author you might have read, Wayne Dyer, also wrote all his books long hand. Writing by hand slows the process down while encouraging deeper connection to thoughts with the written words becoming an act of creation, thoughts manifesting into action. We create in three levels of communication. We begin with a thought, the second level is when we speak those thoughts, then thirdly, they take on another level of reality when we write them down. Robbins was unique in that he was not only humorous, but his books included metaphysical matters like reincarnation, tarot card readings, aromatherapy, the second coming, the dance of the seven veils, moon lore, mythology and more, all treated with a wildly weird sense of humor. Robbins could find humor everywhere, even in subjects we don't usually find humorous. His most popular titles include: Jitterbug Perfume Even Cowgirls Get the Blues Still Life with Woodpecker Another Roadside Attraction Skinny Legs and All Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas Tibetan Peach Pie Now I know that what might be hilarious to me might not be to your taste, but my main point here is the value of humor in our life, the value of humor to our spirit, and its use in healing. Notice how a joke or funny story breaks the ice when meeting new people or starting a presentation. Notice how when you are feeling stressed or burdened that finding something to laugh about lightens the load. After laughing a bit, you might decide that there are some things on your mind you can let go of, or not worry about. And there have been studies done where they discovered that laughter can help boost the immune system. Music helps boost the immune system too. Often, I look on Netflix to watch stand up comedians after a long day of work or to lift my spirits after a stretch of focused, intense sessions. And as you have noticed, I like to use humor to help make points in my sessions. One of the other benefits I have noticed from fun reading is this. When we read books that require focus because we are learning something new, we may be going over parts of it and making notes. We are working at a slower pace. When I take a break just to read a fun book, my pace is quicker, so when I return to the books that require more attention, my mind is quicker, my reading speed is faster. Humor lifts our spirits in the same way that love does. When you laugh with a person, your energies become warmer and more harmonious. Who are your favorite authors who write with a great sense of humor? I am always willing to check out new ones, just as I am always checking out new comedians. I always love hearing from you, so if you feel like sending me a note, calling or coming to see me, please do! If any of you has any idea you would like me to include in my newsletters, I will consider all suggestions. *********************

What do we learn from disasters?

 

What do we learn from disasters?

Disasters, while tragic, often serve as a poignant reminder of our resilience and the unyielding spirit of community. Observing the California fires, it’s heartwarming to witness how adversity ignites a collective drive to support one another, showcasing the innate goodness of humanity. Many survivors, despite losing their homes, emphasize the priceless value of life and loved ones, a perspective that, while seemingly simplistic, starkly contrasts our often distracted daily lives. These harrowing events compel us to re-evaluate our priorities, fostering gratitude for the little things we might otherwise take for granted. Remember the fires here a few years ago? For a while, those of us who lived in nearby towns were hyper alert, hoping the fires would be put out before they could spread here. We were greatly relieved when they did not. The sight of entire neighborhoods consumed by fire is both chilling and awe-inspiring, as we are reminded of the fragility of our built environments. Ultimately, disasters teach us that while structures may crumble, the bonds of community and the appreciation for life endure, and that is a lesson worth holding onto. Disasters are literally the end of one phase of our life and the beginning of our next phase. Our things may all be gone, but our spirit helps us begin again, this time, with even more heart.