A Good “No” Day July 24, 2008

Summer is zooming by and with each day I seem to pack more and more activites into it… or not, and then I feel “the Guilt” for not doing the things I really want to do like yoga, fitness, reading, meditation, work (I seem to enjoy a variety of activities in this area), relationships, business, write a blog post, work on my new website, golf, painting, writing in my journal, the list seems endless.

Michael Bernard Beckwith, when he appeared on Oprah, said (and I’m paraphrasing) that if our hands are always full, we are unable to receive more.  We must let go of something in order to receive something.  The Universe abhors a vacuum.  So today I said “no” to 3 people / opportunities and you know what… it was a few seconds of discomfort followed by a whole lot of relief.  My anxiety level diminished and I had time to catch my breath.  I know it was a disappointment for them, but for me it was the best thing I could do.

In a book I picked up years ago and recently re-read, Time Management for the Creative Person by Lee Silber, he devotes a whole chapter to saying no, saying it’s the greatest time saver of all time! 

Today was just the start.  I have some more to let go of in order that my visions become reality.  I might even get good at saying “no”.   All in due time.

Money can’t buy this July 15, 2008

I had a very interesting dream the other night that I won $100,000.00 in a lottery.  I don’t remember visuals or actions in the dream, but I remember a profound FEELING of happiness that having the extra cash would afford me.    It was so real that I woke up with that FEELING and it took me several moments before I realized it had been a dream.   Waking up wasn’t a disappointment at all because the FEELING stayed with me throughout the day.

Now why did I dream that?  Is it because I’m in the midst of a business shift?  Is it because a bit of extra cash would help with moving a few things off my checklist earlier than planned and buy me time freedom to enjoy summer and work less?   In the grand scheme of things, $100,000.00 wouldn’t greatly change my life as it might someone else.  But the lesson I learned from this dream is invaluable.  Are you ready for it? 

Money does not buy happiness.  It doesn’t matter whether I have the money or not.  I just need to remember the euphoric feeling of freedom, abundance and appreciation always because I can have that feeling whenever I choose.  I don’t need to win a lottery to feel that way.  Wasn’t that a wonderful revelation to know I have control of how I feel, every moment of every day.   And you have that same ability to choose how you feel.

Everything is energy.  Money is currency (current-see?), simply green energy.  Keep it circulating for abundance; be stingey with it and you have lack.  Whether we choose the {{{ vibration }}} of abundance or lack, that is what the Universe will bring to us as our life experience. 

FOR SCRAPBOOKERS:  Have some fun with money in your scrapbook… like many people create vision boards, I create a Vision Book for myself.  In my scrapbook I include all the things that I am grateful for that money brings to me, and I don’t mean just material things.  I use personal photos, magazine clippings, quotes and lots of journalling.   I also journal and include visuals of my goals around money and that includes how I will give it away to help others (keep the good flowing).  Money may not buy happiness but it is not “evil”… money allows us to do wonderful things in the world, for ourselves and others.  It is energy and just as spiritual as the stars or a forest.

QUOTE:  “When you become a harmonically wealthy individual, money comes as a by-product of who you are in the world.” ~ James Arthur Ray in Harmonic Wealth: The Secret of Attracting the Life you Want

Lessons from Mother Nature July 11, 2008

It’s interesting to me how much emphasis Canadians place on the weather.

We’ve been through a long winter and — hooray — summer sunshine is here, yet it’s apparent how quickly some of us forget what it is we have to be grateful for in the present moment.   Now I hear complaints of how hot it is.    Just the other day, I observed a group of golfers standing at a driving range discussing how “bad” the weather has been and that the rain was supposed to continue.  Here was the sun was shining over their heads that very moment and they chose to focus their attention on what had already happened (living in the past) or what was potentially going to happen (worried for the future).  I challenge you (and myself) to live IN THE MOMENT.

Weather is life… it brings what it’s going to bring and you just have to roll with it.   Recently I viewed a screening of a film Aftermath: Population Zero (or Life after Humans) which aired on National Geographic Channel in the US and History Channel in Canada.  This screening was at a local library and the director/producer of this incredible film was on hand for questions.  What would our planet be like if there were no humans here to maintain and fix everything we have built?  How would the world get along without us?  While you might think it would be all doom and gloom, the movie was surprisingly uplifting in sharing the regenerative powers of Mother Nature.

Weather and Mother Nature are OUT OF OUR CONTROL.  Now there’s a novel concept… relinquishing control.    I believe we have a word that pairs quite nicely with that:  Faith.   When we relinquish control, live in the moment, have Faith and give thanks for it all… great things are possible.

Here’s a photo and a quote for you to ponder as you meditate with the summer sun on your shoulders.  )

Winter Storm

QUOTE from another recommended documentary titled In the Shadow of the Moon:

“I haven’t complained about the weather one day since my 1969 mission to the moon.  I’m glad we have weather.  We live on an oasis.”  ~ Alan Bean, Apollo 12 Astronaut

When did you last dance with the universe? July 4, 2008

I’ve been running all sorts of topics through my head the past 2 weeks, deciding what to write next yet not making the time to choose one and run with it.  When this video came into my inbox this morning, it made me weep with joy.  It is so beautiful and the music is so lovely, that I wanted to share it with you and continue to expand the awareness of this video and how we are all connected.  Enjoy with love and gratitude…

Dancing With the Universe By Jim Walsh

The video was downloaded to the web on Saturday, June 20, 2008. By Sunday, it had 500 hits. By Thursday, it was everywhere – imbedded on Facebook and MySpace pages and flooding email inboxes and translating into millions of viewers, thousands of comments, and official “gone viral” status.

But this one is no YouTube vanity trip.  This one is different.  This one feels important, necessary, and artistic; a concrete manifestation of the change that the world’s leaders have been preaching at a time when the human race could use a little pick-me-up, a little jig in it’s step.  This one is a high-definition television commercial for hope.  

“Pretty cool, huh?,” said Matt Harding, when it was suggested to him that, for the first time in history, someone – him – got the entire planet dancing together to the same song.

The song and website is noted at the end of the video.