Take An Appreciation Break :-)

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Right now, give yourself a few moments of your time. Take a couple of long slow luxurious breaths. After you have relished that sweet release, ponder and appreciate at least one thing that went right today... and if that feels good, keep going! ♥

I found this image on the Facebook page Sun Gazing.

Joy is Bursting from Our Home!

This gorgeous photo popped up in a recent image
search and I found it so inspiring!
(I found it @ Deaf Pagan Crossroads)

I find that any time I am not feeling 100% all I need to do is to go outside and spend a little quality time with the ever abundant and joy filled Mother Earth! Sounds pretty hippie dippy, I know... so be it! I find that the more time I spend appreciating my surroundings the more appreciation I feel for myself. I have a beautiful lake behind my house and almost every day I take my kooky little Beagle Duda down to say hello to "my lake". Every time I take the time to do this I receive a lovely boost of joy and occasionally I am blessed with an eagle sighting which adds a dose of pure awe to the mix!

"My lake" was built by the father of my next door neighbor, and great friend, many decades ago. It was a true labour of love on land that was granted to his great great grandfather (give or take a great) for his heroism in the Civil War. The family are all wonderful loving people and the land emanates with their love and appreciation. I feel such incredible gratitude to have the privilege of enjoying this blessed place every day. Just think about the way that domestic plants respond to being loved and appreciated... Take it outside, gang! The results will be world changing!

Morning has Broken and Oprah's Handing Us a Hot Cup o' Consciousness!

I was driving to the grocery store, yesterday, listening to Cat Steven's singing "Morning has Broken" and when I arrived, the spot I was going to park in had a cart in the middle of it. People not putting their carts away has been a pet peeve of mine in the past. Without even thinking about it I stopped the car got out, put the cart where it belonged and parked my car. There was no irritation in me, not even an echo of irritation. It was fabulous. Then I went into the store and shopped with total ease and joy. When I went to the check out area a cashier called me over with a friendly smile and it was so sweet. The funny part was that when I got home I found that he had placed a big bottle of juice on top of some rolls, squashing them! I was slightly irritated for about five seconds and then I just laughed and let it go.

I credit my great mood partly to the joy and gratitude that singing along with Cat Stevens inspired but mostly to the book that I've been reading for the past week, A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. The book is about learning how to step out of ourselves, observing our ego and becoming more present in our daily life. It's actually not new information for me, I mean some of it is, but mostly it's stuff that I've been learning or hearing for a good deal of my life. But the fact of the matter is, as my cousin Kanti says, until we really get it, I mean truly get IT, we need all of the help that we can get! It is extremely well written and it offers some fantastic insights. It may be the final straw for this lil' camel's back, yay! Oprah is offering a free web course with Eckhart Tolle, about this book, starting in March. The world is a changin' and it's ALL good, baby! Thanks again Oprah, you truly rock!

I've listened to that song many times but for some reason I was inspired to create the design in the photo above for TempleGreen.com last night.

It's Just Your Japa Walkin'... Yeah!

Recently I've taken to going on vigorous japa walks. The spiritual practice known as japa is simply the continuous repetition of any *mantra (or the name of the Lord.) A japa mala, which is similar to worry beads or a rosary, can be used to help stay focused on the mantra while keeping a count of the repetitions. Typically Japa Malas will have 108 beads with a 109th bead, the Guru Bead, hanging separately to mark the beginning and end. The practice of Japa may entail hundreds or even thousands of repetitions. Japa walks are a great way to give your exercise routine a spiritual boost!

*If you are interested in learning more about mantras I just found this book and, though I haven't read it myself, the book sounds fascinating from the description and excerpt on the website. If you don't want to read the whole book there is an excerpt from the book explaining what a mantra is here;

http://www.sanskritmantra.com/what.htm

Why Ask Why?

Imagine if you deliberately paused for just a moment before choosing to take action and asked yourself why? What paths would change in your life? Today I paused before choosing angry words and instead I chose to express pain. Each action becomes more deliberate and has more meaning when we pause for even a millisecond to evaluate our choice. I choose my actions and my reactions and when I remember to choose consciously I lessen the drama and heighten the quality.

A Box, A Catalog, A Gluestick & Scissors...

I needed a gift box to put my best friend Pam's birthday present in. Pam is a very creative and spiritual person and I love her dearly so I wanted the box to be special. I was also under a time crunch because I wanted to send off her gift immediately. I looked through my papers, bags etc. to no avail. As I pondered what to do my eye fell upon a catalog of meditation items. The photo on the front was stunning. So I grabbed a glue stick, scissors and a box and went to work! I not only saved time, money and gas, I also I recycled a catalog and a box! I used a few more photos from the catalog and an old card to make a new card. And on top of it all Pam will really love the personal touch. Give it a try, it's fun and incredibly satisfying.

Green Juice and Greener Pastures!

One of my best friends recently found out that she had a tumor at the back of her tongue and it was cancerous. Her reaction was to immediately change her diet, she went from being a total foodie to being basically vegan, literally overnight. Raw foods and raw juices instantly became a part of her daily routine. When she called me to ask if I would stay with her after her surgery to help her out while she recuperated I told her I was more than happy to do it. I ended up arriving before the surgery and staying with her through most of her two week hospital visit as well as for her recoup time. Her surgery and recovery could not have gone better, I am happy to report, we are a week out of the hospital and she's almost back to her old self!

Now I must give a little back story here. Fifteen years ago I did seva (selfless service) in what was then called a 'living foods' kitchen. I NEVER ate the food because it looked scary and it just was not my thing at... hmmmm, twenty four years of age. Several years later my brother and his wife owned a health food store where they sold raw green vegetable juice and swore by it. I simply was not interested. Patooey! Not for me! I don't like nasty things! Eventually I finally made the switch to buying organic and locally grown products but was still completely turned off by the whole raw foods/living foods lifestyle change idea. Too much work and I like to enjoy my food, for the love of Pete!

Okay, in walks my old friend. So we are in her apartment and I am complaining about bags under my eyes and she tells me that perhaps if I stopped drinking my one Coke a day and switched from coffee to tea I might lessen my baggage, so to speak. I really couldn't argue with her, so I just did it. It was so much easier than I thought, really. The next day we were at a store waiting for her raw green vegetable juice (with a single green apple added to take the edge off) and she encouraged me to try one and see how it felt. I took a sip of hers and, bleghch! I tried a second sip and it was not as bad but I still opted for a nice fruit drink with acai and apple. However the next day I did order the green drink, a small one, and while it didn't cause my taste buds to sing with joy, it didn't make me gag either. Later on that day I looked in the mirror and, lo and behold, the bags under my eyes were almost completely gone!

What was truly amazing was that the next day I actually looked forward to my green juice. I had a craving to feel the healthy burst that I'd gotten after drinking it. It felt so good to know that I love myself enough to have such a craving. I thought about it and I realized that enjoying food does not necessarily mean being a slave to your taste buds. The first taste of the drink turned me off, the second taste intrigued me and bucking it up and just drinking the darn thing created a new understanding of yumminess. The other fantastic effect that it has had on me is that I no longer enjoy really unhealthy drinks and foods. I used to love a particular brand of turkey bacon that I'm sure is packed with chemicals. It simply does not taste good to me any longer. I went to a restaurant with a friend recently and ordered a lemonade. It was obviously made from a mix and full of sugar, I just could not drink it. Now I wholeheartedly enjoy my green juice, flavor and all, down to the last drop! I am retraining my unruly taste buds, it can be done!

The book that my healthy friend gave me, and I feel that I can really work with, is 'Raw Food Detox Diet'. It allows one to enter the world of raw food on there own terms which I find refreshing. I think part of the reason that I could never go there before was because it always seemed like an all or nothing lifestyle change. Giving myself permission to start small has opened the door to those changes and they are no longer so terribly daunting. In fact they are quite exciting! So, drink up gang, drink to a healthy and well oxygenated future you! You will not be disappointed.

Need A Boost?

I was feelin' a tiny tad blue this morning... no big thang, it happens. Anyway, I turned on my computer and opened a photo that my brother had sent me yesterday. The photo is of me and my nephew, Sundar. It boosted me right up! I am incredibly blessed with a wonderful family and superfantastic friends. When I think about it I feel such beautiful gratitude and joy naturally ensues. So... No more blues! Gratitude works everytime, without exception.

Another favorite mood booster of mine is Coldplay mixed with nature. I put on my iPod, cue up Speed of Sound from Coldplay, go outside, sit down on the grass and look up. Luckily for me I have about seven eagles nesting near my house. If I sit tight for a wee bit o' time I usually get the awe inspiring experience of an eagle or three soaring above me. Once I had the good fortune of having one land in a tree next to me. I adore eagles. I never knew this until I saw them in 'person'. So go outside and look up! Who knows what you might see?