Florish

Do you have someone you could call at 4 am if you really needed to? If your answer is yes then you are more likely to be flourishing in life. "Other people are the best antidote to the downs of life and the single most reliable up," according to Martin Seligman from his new book Flourish.

In the first two chapters he gives two exercises which I found worth trying and he insists are guaranteed to increase your feeling of well being. The first is DOING A KINDNESS. This he says has been found by scientists to produce the single most reliable monetary increase in well-being of any exercise tested!
The second is GRATITUDE and he sets a very specific exercise.

Close your eyes and bring to mind someone who contributed greatly to your life, someone living with whom you could easily meet face to face. When you have identified this person, write them a letter, it should be about 300 words; be specific as to what this person did for you and how it affected your life and how it still comes to mind. Now set up a meeting with them without telling them your purpose. Its much more fun when its a surprise! When you meet them read them the letter - do not let them interrupt, but watch their reactions and your own. Only after you have read it completely discuss the contents and your feeling for each other.
"You will be happier and less depressed one month from now." Seligman guarantees.

I'm going to try it, I hope you will too.

Know the Truth

What do you do when you hit a bump in the road of your plans? In the past I probably crumpled in disappointment or cried in frustration. These days I find, along with a mild feeling of concern I tend to be amused. In my mind I see myself throwing my head back in maniacal laughter (picture The Count from Sesame Street) saying "I laugh in the face of this set back because I know the Truth!"

With experience I have seen how these setbacks are nothing, that I have dealt with them, that they have come to pass and it all turns out alright in the end.

As practitioners of the Science of Mind we step into our Power and declare in the face of all that contradicts us with our eyes, that all is well in Spirit and we are being blessed by our circumstances.
Yes we turn to prayer, yes, we can take three wonderfully cleansing breaths, yes we can turn to an inspirational reading or dial a prayer. These are all fantastic things to do when we meet a bump in the road. In time the shift from despair to a knowing  smile can take seconds.
I used to think if you were enlightenment enough you just wouldn't encounter as many problems but as the Buddhist say "Before enlightenment - Chop wood, carry water, After enlightenment, Chop wood, carry water." And we would agree with Norman Vincent Peale "The secret of life is not what happens to you, but what you do with what happens to you."
So take those delicious cleansing breaths and know the Truth. You are strong, you are precious, you are a spiritual being, always perfect, whole and complete, untouched by circumstances that come to pass not to stay.

Being of Service

I remember an English TV show from the 80s called "Are you being Served?', it was set in a Department Store on the floor for ladies and menswear, supervised by a very proper Mr. Peacock. It was a great favourite of my Dad's as he worked in this environment when he was younger and I'm sure enjoyed himself and the interesting characters with whom he worked. They had two refrains - one to the customer "Are you being served?" and another to each other if they had a question "Are you free?", meaning not serving anyone at this moment.

So I'm asking you "Are you free?" Because I have a question for you, when it comes to work do you think about the service you give? Each of us right now has a place in the world where we are of service and its very easy to dismiss the value of the things that we do.

Whether I am volunteering, working for pay, doing dishes or speaking with a friend, I am in service to something or someone. If I am between jobs I can often feel isolated as if my life lacks purpose or value but this is a false idea. Its not what you do but how you do it that matters. If I tidy my office I contribute order to the world, when I wash dishes I can do it with love not grumbling, when I work I can remember my essential part in the process as well as the consciousness I bring to the workplace.

The energy we bring to each task big or small is the most important way we can serve the world. If I can bring my best self to all that I do today I contribute consciously, allowing Spirit to work through me, being uplifted in the process and adding that lightness to the very atmosphere I create. Once I am in the flow I can be assured that my good is coming back to me by laws of circulation.
I just have to remember to ask the question, "Are you being served?" by my consciousness, my love, my attitude, and adjust in consciousness accordingly.

Demonstrations

Demonstration - the act or circumstance of proving or being proved conclusively, as by reasoning or a show of evidence: something serving as proof or supporting evidence.

 

In Science of Mind we pray in the present tense, with feeling and we affirm through our connection with the One Source (which goes under many names, God, Spirit, Universal Energy, just to name a few) that our good is already present, our needs are met and we are an embodiment of all the qualities of this Source individualized. In fact we are indivisible from all that God is, as we say like a wave in the ocean. 

Ernest Holmes said all the theology in the world is no use unless as a result of your Spiritual practice you are not seeing evidence of increased good in your life. I think this very practical approach was one of the things that attracted me to Religious Science to begin with. We are a science because we work with the laws of the universe. Therefore like any science there is evidence, results of our experimentation, we call them demonstrations.

Very often I pray, I get what I asked for and forget to acknowledge the results, as if my prayer had no influence, that the thing just happened regardless. Bringing my attention to the process and remembering my powerful part in the results can help to remind me to take a more active role in my life circumstances.

As Ernest Holmes himself said;

"We are alchemists in the laboratory of the Universe, what then shall we create?" 

Remember your power today as the individualized Spiritual being that you are. In Unity with Spirit, I claim your good today as deeply felt connection, as an awareness of your prosperity and power, and joy in simply being here now. I am grateful for all that you are and bring to this life. I release my prayer to Law and let it be, and so it is!

Prosperity

How do you know when you are prosperous? What is the measure you use? What I can  identify when I give it thought  is a feeling of freedom, to feel unrestricted and to have choices.
Yet I can already see areas in my life where I have a feeling of freedom and choice. I put the laundry in the washing machine, I turned a dial and walked away, I wrote a blog and returned to clean clothes. There is freedom, thank God I didn't have to wash them by hand.
One thing that astounded me when I came to the US first was the supermarkets. So many choices in cough medicine!
I eat three varied meals a day. I am already flourishing, with freedoms women have rarely enjoyed before in history and still don't in many countries. I can forget how prosperous I already am.

The dictionary definition of prosperity is a successful, flourishing, or thriving condition, especially in financial respects; good fortune.

 

Finances! Well when it comes to that... what number on a bank account will suffice to feel prosperous? Its a loaded question, loaded with shoulds! You should have so much for retirement, you should have savings enough to be able to live without a job for 6 months, you should bla bla bla! Its nice to have those things but some people who have them don't feel prosperous - there's the fear of loss, of stock market fluctuations, still the fear of not having enough can preside like a dark cloud over the mind.

 

Balance in all things and FAITH has to be the middle ground in this thing called prosperity. Good stewardship, trust in the infinite abundance of the source within and around us, and gratitude for what we already are and have. Our security is not in the bank account of the financial institution but in the bank account of Faith, faith and confidence in our creative selves and the universe that provides.What idea or inspiration have you been provided with lately but ignored ? Decide to take confident action today, mix in some love, faith and gratitude, and see how prosperous you feel!

Day 21

Its day 21 of September and twenty one days since I committed to support the release in consciousness of the idea of lack. I don't know how anyone else is doing but I feel I have been challenged on many levels by thoughts with deep roots coming to light for release and healing. I have to acknowledge that this is a process I am in the middle of and need to continue to work on. This is not discouraging to me even as I wish I did not have to address my issues. I feel I want to address them, I have invited them to tea, to sit and negotiate and smooth the way to change.

Some old ideas are more stubborn than others and I now recommit for another 21 days to continue to be willing to change to do the work and to refocus on the Truth.

I continue to affirm I possess all sorts of riches which I can bestow upon others. I can bestow them generously and my action will open the way for even greater riches to flow. I can start from the point where I am and give on the spiritual and mental plane, feeling the creative impulse extend through me to the material plane. It is all energy and I put this energy into motion knowing it returns to me multiplied abundantly and in myriad forms.
And so it is, Amen.

Discipline

I had an boyfriend once who hated when I mentioned the word discipline. Immediately he associated it with external authority, teachers, parents, priests! I had to explain to him I was talking about self discipline - acting according to an intention set by yourself. Staying committed to a course usually for improvement as my dictionary gives the example; acquiring the habit of promptness requires self discipline.

Practicing Science of Mind requires self discipline as we practice dominion over our thoughts so we might improve our circumstances. Releasing old ideas takes discipline as we replace our automatic reaction with creative acts.

I have been having a problem lately with self discipline in one area of self improvement, my diet. There is a rebellious child in me that stamps her foot and says no when I try to direct her to better food choices! Ive had to sit down with her and find out why she's so acting so stubborn. I realized  there were feelings I was keeping at bay when I did this, feelings I was trying to ignore. Just as with a child, we cannot use force, criticism or punishment with ourselves to keep ourselves in line. Fear or force of will will like a hastily constructed dam, only last so long.

Love on the other hand is the most powerful force in the universe, and when our motivation is love we can make monumental shifts. Talking to by unhappy and rebellious inner-child with gentleness and understanding has produced more alignment within me with love. Now I am also aligned with the flow of good and as I keep regular corrections to the tiller of self discipline I move more swiftly in the direction I wish to be going. Give it a try!

Monday Monday

Monday mornings, back to work, to school, or to the void of not working or the first day of a vacation, Monday morning is a beginning of a mini cycle in our month, year, lifetime. As with any beginning we can make choices, start as you mean to go on! Did you think this morning how you would like your day to unfold or did you start already racing, from shower to breakfast to car?

Do you think it would make a difference if you were to take one 60 second piece if time and close your eyes to bless the new day?  Just one minute, to remember the Truth that spirit is the activity in and through the day and consciously give it full reign. It is powerful to remember our dominion over our thoughts and even better to take that dominion and make a choice to not just react to the world but be a creative force in the world.

Lets set an intention today to allow our Truth to be reflected to us, the Truth of our preciousness in Spirit, the Love we are and the Love we are freely given as children of the universe. It's a blessing to be alive, to breathe, to love, to see, to walk, to hear, to give, to receive, to smile, I could go on. Remember the abundance of the stars and know your blessings out number them, feel it today. Give thanks for it today.
I claim a supercalifragilistic-expialidocious day for you, now go enjoy it!!!!

Presence

I want to comment on this poem, but it would be superfluous. Just to say I revel in this man's writings and feel he has a direct line to all souls, to Spirit. Truly we all have and if we practice presence, and acknowledge the sacred in the mundane we might maximize on it. John is no longer with us physically but his Spirit most definitely is. Enjoy...

Awaken to the mystery of being here and enter the quiet immensity of your own presence.
Have joy and peace in the temple of your senses.
Receive encouragement when new frontiers beckon.
Respond to the call of your gift and the courage to follow its path.
Let the flame of anger free you from all falsity
May warmth of heart keep your presence aflame.
May anxiety never linger about you.
May your outer dignity mirror your inner dignity of soul.
Take time to celebrate the quiet miracles that seek no attention
Be consoled in the secret symmetry of your soul.
May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder.
by John ODonohue from a Book of Blessings

Pay it forward!

 "May today there be peace within. May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others. May you use the gifts that you have received and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content with yourself just the way you are. Let this knowledge settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us."


I received this in my e-mail today from a friend I have not seen in years. We have lived in different continents for almost two decades now. She has three young children and though we used to write long letters, sharing our struggles and our hopes as well as our doubts that our dreams might never be a reality, our communication now is reduced to a scant trickle. Its OK. Some of our fondest dreams are now the reality that prevents our sharing in the present but I know the love that supported those dreams is being passed along by both of us. 
So rather than regretting what is lost I choose to quietly let the words she has sent me permeate my day and in gratitude I bless her.
I hope these words bless your day also.

Connecting to the Divine

The Seventh Chakra – Your Crowning Glory

The energy center at the crown of the head, connecting to the Divine, allows us to transcend all senses as its focus is on the spiritual meaning of life. This allows you to experience the goodness of the universe directly. It opens your way to becoming a bearer of light to the world.

Mission statement - I know.

To most effective way to open this chakra is through prayer and meditation.

Listen to Baroque music (Vivaldi, Pachebal, Teleman – it regulates the heart and puts the body in a deeper meditative state.)

Talk to God, Spirit, and ask it to direct your life, to help you moment to moment to find your way to the highest possible good.

Look for the sacred. Open your eyes, ears and heart for signs of Spirit around you.

Life is a remarkable gift, not a moment of which should be missed, pay attention to the miracles around you, unfolding daily.

Consciously bless yourself and your day before you open your eyes in the morning.

Sound a bell, donate to a local animal shelter, and tithe to your church as an affirmation of your soul’s abundance.

Rest on the 7th day, learn to value downtime.

Acceptance

"Believe in yourself as the physical instrument through which God (Spirit/Energy) operates.
Absolute dominion is yours when you have sufficient self-mastery to conquer the negative tendency of thoughts and actions.
Ask yourself daily; "What is the purpose of the power that put me here?"
"How can I work with the purpose of life and liberty in me?"
After having decide these questions endeavor hourly to fulfill them. You are a law onto yourself.
If you have a tendency to overdo anything; eat, drink or blame circumstances for your misfortunes, conquer that tendency with the inward conviction that ALL POWER is yours. Eat less, drink less, blame circumstances less and the best there is will gradually grow in the place where the worst seemed to be.
Always remember that ALL is yours to use as you will.
You can if you WILL; if you WILL, you do.
God the Father (Spirit/the Universe) blesses you with all He/She has to give.
Make good Godly use of it."

From Your Invisible Power - The Religious Science of Judge Troward by Genevieve Bertrend
Italics are mine.

Be willing to open your mind today to the truth spoken here, and in gratitude accept your good!

Oneness

I love the idea of Oneness, the idea that we all, each separate individual, as well as every rock, tree and creature are connected. Everything in creation emanating from a single source of life. It can be a difficult concept to really get your head around and I'm not sure I have or every will completely but it feels right.

As part of my Practitioner training I had to attend a stranger's memorial service. This had its discomforts I can assure you as I felt I was intruding on the intimacy of a family's grief. I sat in the back and listened to the eulogy and the sharing of who this lady had been in life and I guess I got what was the lesson we were intended to learn. I felt her loss, I felt her humanity, her desire to leave some good behind and sensed the love that the gathered group had for her. I saw myself in any one of those attending and in she who had left this mortal plane.

Once we are born, we strive for so many of the same things, to love and be loved, to express who we are in our unique and varied ways, to live fully and well, to be all we can be and make some contribution to this thing called life. If I could see this in a woman I would never have the chance to meet, can I see it in strangers I encounter today. And if I see myself in others can I be unkind, judgmental or cruel?

We are all connected by the divine spark of creativity which brought us on purpose into this life form and being one with this force we are imbued with its wisdom, beauty and power always. Oneness that connects us eternally, unfailingly. At any moment, if we choose to remember this, we can realize our own power, the power to transcend any challenge or difficulty, the power to create new circumstances, to forgive, to give, to uplift our thoughts, to love, to ask for forgiveness. We need not fear or be anxious.
Lets try and remember the power that we are as spiritual beings and our connection on that plane with all those we encounter today.

Abundant Support

I cant write today without touching on the commemoration of the tragedies of 9/11. No doubt following those events there were a lot of questions flying to heaven looking for a god or asking where is the order in this chaotic and seemingly cruel random existence.
My prayer today is that each and every person touched by these events has found a measure of peace, that they have made their own sense of it, each finding his or her own answers.

"Unfortunately every attempt to grasp the totality of life from a cognitive perspective is bound to fall short, because the brain is limited in how it perceives the world.
We may try to fill in the gaps with intricate beliefs but ambiguities and uncertainties remain and these are the very things that pull us deeper into our biological quest for knowledge, meaning and truth.
Around and around we go, for wherever there is a mystery, our brains are destined to explore."
Page 99 from "Why we believe what we believe" by Andrew Newberg and Mark Waldman


Each of us must find what resonates in our own hearts as we make sense of our worlds but one thing I am fairly assured of is, that every person affected by these events were offered some form of loving support, from sister,  brother, mother, daughter, father, stranger, neighbor, friend. In some small way or large, love was offered.
It is my belief that Spirit/Life always supports its own expression, so we are each supported in our highest expression today and always.

P.S. So were those who died so tragically supported? It is my belief they were equally supported in their transition to a higher plane of existence. Like in birth, they have started life in a new form, no doubt welcomed by loved ones already passed and offered no less loving words and gestures. This is simply my sense of it, you must find your own.

ORDER

"The wonderful thing about emergence is you don't need something new to get something new!" - Murray Gell-Mann, who discovered the existence of the quark (smallest particle of matter)

It is believed by science that if you get enough things interacting with each other something new naturally emerges. Out of chaos, order.

In other words, something can come into existence, something beyond what has been seen or experienced before, by an orderly sequence of natural growth.

This same activity can work in each our lives to create new experiences and circumstances, each greater than any we have experienced before. As in the macrocosm so in the microcosm. 

Give this idea some thought, if it makes sense to you, really embody it. 

No doubt you can identify how growth has happened in your life so far. Maybe that gain was hard won through painful experiences or imposed change. Why not choose to have it happen through joyful experiences next time?

If we can really embody this idea of order and allow it to have its way in our lives we can hope for greater experiences of love, joy and abundance. There is no limit to what the mind can imagine so visualize the expansion of your experience. What is it you wish for? Greater contentment, peace, finances? Be willing to allow it and keep your mind stayed on this idea order, its a natural law, like gravity.  Trust in it fully and you will not be disappointed.

"Each one should realize that there is nothing in him that denies that which he desires. Our unity with our good is not established while there is anything in us that denies it." - Ernest Holmes 

Circulation

We have all heard "What goes round, comes round."  The idea of circulation seems to be a widely accepted idea. Emerson talked about this concept liking the microcosm to the macrocosm, as blood circulates in the body so too does all energy in the universe. Drawing from this, what we put out will indeed come round. So what do you want to put into circulation?

If you wish to experience love, give love. If wealth, put money in circulation. Tithing is the idea of giving a tenth of your earnings to that which feeds you spiritually. Even if you cant or don't feel comfortable giving a tenth then give what you can. Remember you are putting energy in motion. Give of your time if money feels impossible. Give of yourself. Its not difficult to give a smile, a compliment, a kind word, in fact it can make someone's day. You have the power to do this.
Doing it reminds us of our power. What a simple mechanism we so easily forget. You are a center of power and a cause of circulation of energy, what are you waiting for? Go to it!!

"The progress of the intellect is to the clearer vision of causes, which neglects surface differences. To the poet, to the philosopher, to the saint, all things are friendly and sacred, all events profitable, all days holy, all men divine." R.W. Emerson

This is my favorite image of Emerson, it seems to capture his intelligence and his playfulness. I love his mind and often quote him. He wrote many essays  in the mid 1800s which are as relevant today as they were then. Did you know Louisa May Alcott who wrote Little Women was a neighbor of his and was a little in love with him. When Louisa's sister got married Emerson kissed her on the cheek in congratulations. Louisa who never married, commented, "It might be worth getting married if one got a kiss from Mr. Emerson!"

Abundance is Now

Place your order...we do it all the time in restaurants and we usually receive what we order. Several stories have been shared with me in the past week about how people put out an order to the universe in very definite ways, some very specific and some not so much. Each got a response and learned something in the exchange.
No.1 You must be very specific.
No.2 When you are specific be prepared to get what you asked for!!

In the latter I recognized that the order was not placed as a command of even a plea but simply a statement of what the person felt she deserved. It came from the heart with a deep knowing that it was a Divine Right. It was as if this woman had come to a place of realization that she had been accepting less than she deserved and in that came the shift in consciousness. A week later her hearts desire showed up and she was a little taken aback. Now she had to work on her fears and sit down with herself to see what those were. She discovered her courage to say yes to a new experience. Getting what you want demands new behaviors and often what stops the receiving is comfort with the status quo.
Are you ready to let go of some way of being in order to have your greater good?

Sit with this question today and make your declaration of what you truly deserve as a child of God. Not as a demand or a plea but as a simple statement backed by conviction.God is not with-holding but we may be with holding from ourselves!


Buddah said; You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection.

Individuality

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment."
— Ralph Waldo Emerson

The world of men will always try and impose its vision on to you, of how you should behave, what you should do or how you should live. I hear people who are seeking employment, in transition from a dying career, ask what the work place wants. It always rankles me. So you are going to try to fit a round peg in a square hole I think.

This is such a mistake that is commonly made. In relationship with parents and lovers its asked, if I behave this way will I be acceptable. Bosh, I say! Be yourself in mutual respect and allow yourself to be loved as you are as you respect the other.

If you love, love to the best of your ability, with kindness, support and compassion for the beloved. If you need employment look to what it is you thrill at doing, LOVE is the key. And you express it uniquely so don't be afraid to be yourself. This is what the world needs. Believe it. As an individualized expression of the Life of God, you are a center of its Infinite Abundant Nature. How good it is to know this!

"It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude." -Emerson

Expansion

Scientists tell us the universe is expanding all the time. Of course it is so vast that we cannot fully comprehend it and so much of this world we live in is similarly incomprehensible. Cut open my brain for instance and where is the image of my childhood bedroom? I see it but a surgeon can't.

Yet so often we look for the solid proof of what we decide to believe in, scientists are only scratching the surface of this incredible universe and will seek its explanation for eternity.

In the meantime I believe since I am a part of this whole thing called creation I too am expanding in my knowledge and understanding, in love and my ability to create. Just talking today with a friend, about acknowledging our own progress, I have to admit I don't mark it as much as I could. I tend to forget how far I have come, in my need to reach further goals. I usually look at the distance yet to travel, to be more of who I want to be and express as I wish to express rather than pat myself on the back for what is achieved. I believe this is fairly common. So if you have been doing the same to yourself, I invite you now to take a little time to appraise where you were five years ago and where you are today. Measure not in finances or job status or outward trappings but in inward qualities such as wisdom, maturity and loving kindness.

"I believe that Spirit is forever creating, forever changing and forever becoming more of Itself, through that which I am. Therefore I know that this creative, expansive and self-giving nature is working through all of my affairs including financial." SOM
I can trust this is so because I acknowledge evidence in my personal experience, satisfying the scientist in me; times a need was met even when I did not know how it could be met. Acknowledging this and my growth, increases my belief and so my experience. Can you say the same? If not then maybe its time to begin a gratitude journal and find something to be grateful for no matter how small. With this practice in time you will see shifts you never thought possible. Begin where you are today and let me know what you manifest!!

Balance

So often we set an intention and suddenly the universe challenges us on our new resolve. Do you ever find this?

Let me give you an example.
I set an intention to release my belief in lack and began September's blogs on this theme so I might be mindful of what I believe and be in integrity with it. Already I find myself challenged by unexpected expenses; my cat needed x-rays this weekend and my car is seeing a mechanic tomorrow. Immediately I could begin to claim "I cant afford this," "I just cant get ahead," "I'm sure as heck not feeling abundant!!"  etc.

Thankfully I am a Practitioner of the Science of Mind and I may momentarily respond that way but very quickly I remember what I have stated as my belief. I believe I am One, as the wave on the ocean with God/Spirit. Spirit is infinite and abundant in all things. My source is not external to me, it is not a bank account or a job, it is Spirit. That being so, I trust that by winding passages or straight, I don't have to know the HOW, Spirit supplies my need.  I believe the activity of Spirit is always harmonious and balanced. Therefore I am a center for the expression of Balance in my financial affairs. I can pay my bills right now and be assured that whatever comes I can handle it too because I am a portal for Spirit's wealth.

A bit like Jesus isolated and fasting in the desert, being tempted by Satan offering all manner of power and false alternatives, he knew his Origin and his Power and did not accept what was seeming to be offered. Appearances are deceiving, and I do not accept the false belief in lack. At times like these I find its best to close ones eyes and meditate on the Truth. Give it a try, I find it works wonders!!

Awareness

So often I move through the day lost in my concerns, my plans, comparing my reality to some ideal of how I think my reality should be! What these preoccupations have in common is that they most often lead to exhaustion, missed opportunities and subsequently limited possibilities for the expansion of good in my life.

Holidays are a chance to down time, a chance to take a break from doing and just be, and today was that day for me. Slowing down has the effect of allowing me to be more aware of everything around me as well as what's going on in my mind.  I can more easily take a step back from my thinking and loosen my attachment to things. Today I acknowledge I was in the flow of being and was aware of an abundance of riches; in the form of chance encounters, a most glorious sunset, a full rainbow, thunder and lightening and a walk on a beach so teaming with life it was as if the whole world was represented there. It was one of those days I will remember for a long time.

So yes it was a holiday today and I had the advantage of being more relaxed, but is it not the truth that everyday has the potential for such awareness of the good. I believe it has if I just remember to slow down. The number one complaint of people today is that they don't have enough time, that they cant catch up, that they are overwhelmed and I can feel this way at times too. I have to ask myself who creates my experience?  The answer is "I do," in the choices I make and how I approach any commitments. For myself I know, when I make better choices in how I use my time and choose not to do so much, I am more present and effective. I am trusting in a Higher Order and my oneness with It. My awareness of my oneness, is the source of my Abundance. Therefore, this awareness is my Abundance. So it doesn't have to be a holiday for me to experience it. With that in mind I wonder what this work week will bring!

Always enough to do good

Sure there are days I feel the world is against me and it can feel very uncomfortable. Like today. I wont go into the gorey details but one thing after another seems to be telling me that everything I touch turns to dust! Interesting to me how one day can so differ from another and how when negative events come in a row I begin to form a belief that everyone hates me, I'm useless or unworthy. I realize I may not be everyone's favourite person on any given day and also recognize that I'm simply not my favourite today.
So rather than letting things continue on this downward spiral I turn to what I really know. In Spirit all things are whole, perfect and loved, including me! OK so there may be things I need to redress, something I need to do or say, to put somethings to rights. I can do that.  I resolve to do what needs to be done and I can go beyond that, take it up a notch and do something good for someone. When we most feel depleted of good, of love, of gentle understanding - that is the time to draw on the reserves of the oneness that we are. We are not isolated and separate little human beings but powerful spiritual emanations, connected, as the waves to the ocean. So from the morass of my mind I come forth and write this blog of Hope and Truth, reminding my self and you that there is always enough to do good because I believe in the infinite resource of Spirit which is equal to every demand placed on it, be it financial, physical or mental. 
I am glad to have this knowledge at the back of my mind and the presence of mind to bring it to the forefront when its been forgotten. I hope its been a reminder to you to be gentle with yourself or someone you know who may be lost in forgetfulness and falsity momentarily. Now go have a wonderful day and so shall I!

Infinite Abundance

Arriving home from work yesterday thinking about what to make for dinner I resisted calling my husband in response to my first impulse. I was thinking of New Moon our favorite restaurant and the meal we had shared there last week. I remembered our intention to not eat out this month so we could save for what we really wanted, which was to give a money gift to our nephew who is being married October 2nd. It seemed like good money management and not an action taken from a belief in lack. It is our way of keeping us in the flow of giving generously. I went through the food items in our fridge in my mind as I drove home and came up with a plan for dinner.

On my arrival at the house I found the door open and a large empty shipping container for perishable goods on the couch and my husband looking very pleased with himself! "Whats all this" I asked and he delightedly brought me to the freezer which was full of boxes. "Gifts from heaven," he declared. "Salmon fillet, sirloin steaks, creme brulee, pot roast, accompanied by a set of knives and a cutting board! From my mother!"

Needless to say my dinner plans changes slightly and we ate like kings. I believe there is only One God and the nature of God is Infinite Abundance! We gave thanks to God and toasted my husbands mother!! We live in the flow and as we focus on giving we are putting the law of circulation to work which cannot help but result in the inflow of all kind of good. This was never so clear to me as while I ate dinner last night!

Willingness is worthiness

I believe that whoever brings the qualities of God into expression, for example practicing kindness, compassion, generosity, experiences kindness, compassion and generosity.

I didn't always know this. I started out in life passively wanting others to treat me with kindness and thinking things come from the outside in. I was constantly looking to receive. It took me decades before I learned it all starts with the self. I went about looking for someone to be generous to me, to love me or to have a kind word for me on a bad day, always in want and feeling depleted and powerless. I found it most often ended in disappointment if it came from a neediness that I was unwilling to meet myself. Having this experience lead me to feel undeserving, compounding the feeling that this was the case to begin with; a belief that was picked up somewhere along the path of life and lingered long beyond its usefulness, if it ever had any.
Thankfully I changed the cycle of experience of lack, of disappointment, of feeling undeserving. 
A place within me knew the Truth. Tired of the pain of my life and inspired by others example I was finally willing to experiment with new ways of being. The change did not come till I truly deeply knew my connection with the infinite source. Without this knowledge I imagined I had to give from my limited resources of love, compassion, praise, prosperity but with God as my source I could give generously and never feel depleted. What a powerful place from which to live. I saw so many areas of my life flourish as a result. The faith of the mustard seed at the back of my willingness, a hope that springs eternal within us all opened the door to truly finding out that I was worthy of the good I wished to experience.
Willingness is worthiness. So knowing this I continue to be willing to know more and more of the good that is to be experienced in this life as I daily remind myself of the Truth of my being as a channel of the Infinite, bringing the qualities of God into expression.

Reality Check

Today I am feeling pulled by thoughts to the past, to childhood places and people especially my Dad who passed away a little over a year ago. Where is he now I wonder? Sometimes I feel he is nearer to me than other times and I wonder if that's my imagination.

I am presently reading a book titled "Why we believe what we believe," by Andrew Newberg and Mark Waldman. Its a fascinating read exploring the biological aspects of how beliefs are formed and the workings of the brain. When you realize how much our brain fills in the blanks for us and how much our beliefs depend on a general consensus from those around us combined with the emotional aspect of it feeling comfortable, you realize I could have a completely different set of beliefs if I'd grown up in another part of the world.

The author says when we encounter someone with a different set of beliefs we naturally want to convince the other that our beliefs are right because we have made our beliefs our truth. In reality there is no truth only best guesses. Even mathematics which is held up as a definable truth as in 2 + 2 = 4 can be proven to be inaccurate by a mathematician by the name of Kurt Godel. If there is no truth we must create it so we can feel comfortable in our world. We cant rely on our eyes or our ears  as our brain is selective and cant possibly process all the information it receives. So what does this all tell us? I haven't finished the book yet so I don't know where the author is taking this but for me it means I need to question my beliefs a little more and hold less rigidly to some while allowing other people theirs. It adds up to greater compassion and gentleness and understanding in my mind.

As to where my Dad is today, I have my theory's but I know he is in my mind, in memories now fuzzy or distorted and his presence in my life is palpably in my heart as the love that never dies.  

Childhood Gifts

“Its never too late to have a happy childhood” Tom Robbins

Our childhoods gave us infinite gifts some we easily recognize as good and grounding and adding to our well being and others not so much.
I just learned that mushrooms dont need light to grow, they get all their nutrients from the earth, however humidity has to be just right for them to flourish. I personally love light, my living room is light filled and I love to sit in the window seat to read and feel the greeness of the plants outside. My least favourite time of day is dusk when the light is fading and night approaches.

When I think about my siblings (of which I have eight) and our unique personalities and life paths, having come from the same parents and home environment, I imagine that we each had individual needs most of which were met there, enabling us to grow and flourish like the mushrooms. I also know that almost always some ingredient is missing in a childhood, some aspect of light or love. Maybe it was a feeling of safety, maybe it was unconditional love, maybe not enough attention, maybe too much attention! Each of us, as we meet the challenges of life have our dark moments of fear or doubt, feeling our area of weakness or lack of confidence. The process of re-parenting, where we identify our unmet need and rather than having someone or something outside of ourselves fulfill it or solve it or mask it, attend to it ourselves, can be the process by which we discover our truest gift of childhood; the one that if we work with it right can be our greatest strength and gift in this lifetime.

Spiritually we talk about enlightenment and talk of bringing the light of love or Spirit to a situation. Bringing something dark into the light dissipates the scary aspect and dispels imagined ghosts and goblins. We often find the thing we thought of as unforgivable or shameful was not our fault and that we are blameless. If we are truly spiritual beings we chose our parents, our life circumstances and the lessons we wished to learn. There are no mistakes in Spirit. Negative associations are just that and can be changed and released if we choose to do the work. We are in the perfect place at the perfect time to begin the healing process. Its a powerful healing choice and we have an ability with our new enlightened vision to turn our previously imagined lack into our gain and strength and most of all our gift to the world. What is your less obvious gift?

Its a great world we live in

Me on Eagle Hill which overlooks my hometown of Hacketstown in the County of Carlow.

I just got back from three weeks in Ireland, the country where I spent the first thirty years of my life. The unique fragrance of the earth and the air there is in my blood. When I'm there I feel grounded, filled up, something deep within me is satisfied like no where else on earth. Los Angeles is like a dream when I'm there, like a bad TV mini series I recall with nostalgia, like "Dallas!" Its somewhat unreal to me and it seems I could slip back into life there in Ireland and never miss the newer one I've been living for over a decade.

Yet I return and take up where I left off. I am in touch with family weekly. I'm OK with this situation even if sometimes I yearn to be there again.

I remember one of my goals in leaving all that was familiar so long ago, was to make a friend of all people, to be a citizen of earth. I felt so dependent on the few back then, which seemed to me to be limiting. I felt vulnerable to loss and fear.

It seemed if I could know, that I can depend on the kindness of strangers, develop a network of diverse friends and essentially trust in the goodness of people I would be free. I am a great believer in our interdependence as a species, even as society encourages us to become so independently isolated. One example is cell phones. Yes we are connected to those in our network and if our car breaks down how great is it to call someone we can trust.

I love my cell phone for such an occasion. But wouldn't you know, when I needed it recently in just such a situation, the battery had run down! So I was forced to rely on the kindness of strangers and pleasantly I found that kindly stranger. I like having faith in humankind. I feel free when I don't live in fear, its a friendly place this world I live in. I like believing this even with all the fear mongering that goes on today. People, be they Muslim, Catholic, American, Armenian, French or Irish are intrinsically good. Lets not let the few who act badly dictate our behaviour or beliefs or limit us. I'm here for you, are you there for me?

Get Happy Today!

If you are not feeling great today - you can change that. Happiness is in your own hands and you can begin right now! Think of one thing you are deeply grateful for and come up with one kindness you can do for someone else. Do this right now! It has been scientifically proven that these two attitudes, gratitude and kindliness can increase your life satisfaction in a matter of days. According to research done at the University of Pennsylvania if you take note at bedtime of three things that went well that day the benefits in general well-being will continue for months, your mood and your relationships will improve. A kindness journal or a gratitude journal can make you aware of how blessed your life already is and can increase optimism and peace of mind. This of course will reduce stress and subsequently improve overall health - so simple yet so profound and powerful! I myself have taken to writing thank you cards. Yesterday I went to lunch at a restaurant that I don't go to very often but one waiter always remembers me, asks how I am and he even asks for my friend whom I usually meet there. This never fails to make me feel welcome and acknowledged. This time I got his name and a card will go out to him today because I want to acknowledge how his great attitude brings good to my life. I know you too have many things for which to be grateful today. Start now and watch not only your own happiness increase but the happiness of those around you.  If you read this far I thank you and I'm smiling! Namaste.

Renewal of Spring

Hiking in the foothills of the San Gabriel mountains above La Crescenta / Montrose today I was awestruck by the profusion of wildflowers and growth since the wildfires of late 2009. Only a year and six months and the land has renewed itself in large part. Charcoal enriches soil, and some plant species have flourished in the wake of this devastation. It was heart warming to see and to recognize the force of nature behind this plenitude of purple and green. Humans have helped reshape the park following the complete obliteration of trails by the torrents of rain and erosion of topsoil that followed. New pathways have been created where none existed before.
It gave me hope.
I felt my spirits lifted.
Then I knew the Japanese will come out of their present circumstances, altered for sure, with losses most definitely, yet good can come in time, as nature and the human spirit have illustrated over and over.

So much of the time, fear of the worst drives us to protect, pull inward, separate ourselves with walls and defenses of various types and we don't know the resilience of our own spirit.
We can come through, overcome, transcend, renew and flourish once again. Yes we are stronger than we realize, we are our own greatest resource, we just need to be reminded of our power sometimes as I was today.

Chasing a rainbow!

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players, said Shakespeare, but who

is the audience?

Who do you play your life to, whose approval and applause do you hope

to receive?

I know I spent much of my life looking for that approval in all the wrong

places. It was as if one section of the crowd gave me a standing ovation

but I sought to convert those faces that showed disapproval or mere

indifference.

Why would a person do that?

It is human nature to want to be loved and accepted. If we are not then we

may find ourselves alone and isolated. This brings up the primal fear for

our very survival. As a child I learned quickly how to get that approval

from parents who loved conditionally and a pattern was set.

When as an adult I sought approval from those who with held love, then

I am chasing a rainbow. I had lost myself.

How then could I feel good about who I was.

The belief that hides in this behavior is, "I are not enough as I am."

These people I choose to pursue confirmed my belief. Only when I risked

being true to myself, approving of my imperfections, and loving the

whole rather than just parts, knowing at the same time that I was growing

daily, only then could I find those faces in the crowd that already said,

"YES, you are enough!"

They were there waiting but I devalued their opinion as I did my own.

As Groucho Marx humorously put it,

 "I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as members."

This realization for me was the turning point in my relationships. I began

to see the approving individuals that I had dismissed and looked for what

I liked in them. Wayne Dyer says, be a love finder instead of a fault finder. 

We most often find what we look for. I found love and so can you.

Henry David Thoreau - Walden

"However mean your life, is meet it and live it. Do not shun it or call it hard names, it is not so bad as you are. It looks poorest when you are richest. The fault finder will find fault in paradise.
Love your life, poor as it is, you may have some pleasant, thrilling, glorious hours even in the poor house. The setting sun is reflected from the windows of the alms house as brightly as from the rich man's abode. The snow melts before it's door as early in the spring. I do not see but a quiet mind could live as contentedly there and have as cheering thoughts as in a palace.
If you are restricted in your range by poverty, if you cannot buy books and newspapers, you are but confined to the most significant and vital experiences. You are compelled to deal with the material that yealds the most starch, it is life near the bone where it is sweetest. You are defended from being a trifler, no man looses ever on a lower level by magnonimity on a higher.
Superfluous wealth can buy surerfluities only. Money is not required to buy one necessary of the soul."

Written in another time and place in language old and awkward - yet I find his meaning as profound today as ever. It is not how much we have but how much we are that dictates our experience of life. Today I look to gratitude for who I am and the inspirations that are freely given by spirit. I am inspired by this quote which I noted down in a diary in 1995 and find I am motivated to share these ideas in hope you too may be touched and find appreciation for yourself today. How rich are the experiences of this life no matter what form they take. Feel the vitality of the life in you today, the sweetest and simplest pleasures should not be overlooked, what are yours? 

Meditation

I recently recommitted to meditation as a daily practice. I vary my method depending on what I feel I need that day. Somedays I use Vipassana - becoming the observer of my thoughts thus giving me the distance I need to realize the real "I" is separate from my worries and fears. Other days I use a mantra or affirmation that I repeat silently. My favourite at the moment is "God is the love that I am." Another way I like to meditate is while hiking to try to be fully present with nature, observing my surroundings and listening to the sounds I hear; all the time being aware of the solidness of the earth beneath my feet.
Of course meditation for some takes the form of a creative activity such as playing an instrument or painting. Its a time they are so absorbed in their task they forget themselves, loose track of time as if they have been absorbed into everything around them and merged as one.
Joseph Campbell says meditation is simply where we place the majority of our thoughts in any given day. He believes we meditate a lot on how to procure money and how to spend it, how to provide for our children, how to improve our lives and of course whats wrong in our world!
This idea I find very interesting because it is my belief that what we focus on grows. Being aware of what occupies the majority of our thoughts can help us realize how we are creating our life circumstances. Ernest Holmes says trained thought is much more powerful than untrained thought, the more one gives conscious power to one's thought the more power it will have. So be watchful today of where your thoughts are going. Where you feel it necessary try to make more of a conscious choice of what thoughts you think. Then observe the difference in how you feel, and how others respond to you. Add to this better posture, speaking with more confidence in your more positive thoughts and really notice the shifts that happen. Have fun with it and know your own power to create.

New Year, New beginnings?

I love the New Year even if it is just another day designated as the changeover of the calendar. I have always kept a diary and delight in the newness of the page for the January 1st entry. It's a time of reassessment for me, not so much to set New Year's resolutions but intentions for the year to come.
I write out ten things that happened in the previous year and ten things I would like to happen in the coming year. It's my way of acknowledging my progress or the changes that a year brings in circumstances, in relationships and career. At the same time I get to be conscious of what I would like to create. And we create each day anew if we choose to. So whether its January 1st of Feb 1st or the ides of March itself, one thing holds true, the past can only affect the now if we choose to allow it to. I love this passage from Thomas Troward, which acknowledges the possibility for expansion of our lives and the possibility of completely new experiences.

"My mind is a center of Divine operation. The Divine operation is always for expansion and fuller expression and this means the production of something beyond what has gone before, something entirely new, not included in past experience, though proceeding out of it by an orderly sequence of growth. Therefore, since the Divine cannot change its inherent nature, it must operate in the same manner in me; consequently in my special world, of which I am the center, it will move forward to produce new conditions, always in advance of any that have gone before."
-Thomas Troward, The Dore Lectures on Mental Science

May you allow and enjoy in 2011, new conditions beyond what has gone before, as your life expands and the Divine finds fuller expression through you this year. May you create the new beginnings you most desire.
Blessings, Joan

Walking Through Illusion

Betsy Otter Thompson leads us to see with deeper discernment the growth opportunities in life's challenges in her book "Walking Through Illusion." Using different Biblical characters who struggled with memories, complaints, beliefs, handicaps and confusion, to mention but  a few of her chapter titles, the reader is brought on a vicarious life path to the insight and gift of the challenge faced in each situation. The characters were each personal acquaintances of Jesus Christ and Thompson channels His compassionate understanding of the path their lives took. Each individual is doing his best as are each of us. What Thompson offers us is a door to unconditional love of ourselves and others if we are willing to explore our own challenges and look at our lives from a broader perspective.
A workbook, each chapter is followed by thought provoking questions so we may explore our own experiences with each issue. Most helpful I found were her own own personal insights, gained on her own life journey that conclude each chapter; the theory in practice.
I am reminded of a question posed once about upsets in relationships, why is it when we love someone who upsets us we cannot simply skip the anger, confusion and argument and jump to "I love you" which you know will come at the conclusion? This is what would happen if we truly walked through the illusion as Thompson is asking us to do. She offers us gems of great value if we seek a more peaceful and lovefilled experience of life and who would not wish for that. May your Christmas and New Year be blessed by the revealing of what is of true value in all aspects of your life.
To check out her book go to http://www.betsythompson.com/index.php

Season of Light

Personally I love Christmas because I have strong positive associations from my childhood. With nine children in my family we were not affluent in terms of money and but we were abundant in comradery and love. Christmas carols, cards, gifts and get-togethers, its a busy time of year!

These days there are so many ways to be stressed at Christmastime: shopping, lack of funds for shopping, planning dinner at your place or not having a place to go for Christmas, organizing travels, dealing with colds, flu, family or maybe a combination of all of the above!

Or maybe you are someone who stays centered at this time of year, feeling only the goodwill and childhood joys of the season. Its possible!

Whatever your experience, my wish for you this coming week is to find time to really be present to your power and to your every experience. You are alive, you have the capacity to love and be loved - whatever is going on around you or within you, you can choose to be the light of love. Your presence is the greatest gift of all so be conscious of where you spend your time and be aware of your thoughts. A kind word is a simple and inexpensive gift so why not give generously this week! First to yourself and then to others. Its not really complicated but its so easy to forget.

If there is sadness of loss in your Christmas, acknowledge it and find a way to include that person in this year's experience. Lighting a candle in their honor at the Christmas table is one possibility. Loss makes everthing more precious and helps us see what is truly important. Be present in your present relationships.

You have the power to make this a peaceful, love and light filled Christmas. 
YOU are the light of the season!

I Find My Path

I always find my path, even if I sometimes have the impression that I have lost my way. So often I have taken pointless detours. I find the one and only reason for my presence in the universe- my ultimate realization, the return to Unity. I now walk in peace.

Bleak mid winter.

With the images and news I am seeing from my homeland of Ireland I am reminded of iambic pentameter! In the convent where I went to school the poem "Winter" was used as a beautiful example of this rhythm of poetry writing. Reading the poem again I cant help but think of the perishing cold that these characters had to fend off with wool and wood. How hard their lives must have been and short their life expectancy.

The double glazing, the gas heating system and my fleece jumper ensure my body heat, and my electric kettle boiled water for my tea this morning. I am grateful.
I woke up, I walked to my kitchen to feed the cat. I am grateful.
My husband walked by and kissed my head, I am grateful.
I see my sister's latest art on Etsy, I am grateful.
I use Skype to call my mother, I am grateful.
And though money may be tight and the winter bleak, I put a prayer out for protection to my angels for my family and for all people experiencing difficult circumstances. I affirm Spirit as our source and sustenance and know that we have much to be grateful for and grace will see us through. 

WINTER.

When icicles hang by the wall
And Dick the shepherd blows his nail
And Tom bears logs into the hall
And milk comes frozen home in pail,
When blood is nipp'd and ways be foul,
Then nightly sings the staring owl, Tu-whit;
Tu-whoo, a merry note,
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.
When all aloud the wind doth blow
And coughing drowns the parson's saw
And birds sit brooding in the snow
And Marian's nose looks red and raw,
When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl,
Then nightly sings the staring owl, Tu-whit;
Tu-whoo, a merry note,
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

I feel dead people!

"Life is real

Life is earnest,

And the grave is not its goal.

"Dust thou art, to dust returneth"

Was not spoken of the soul."

There are more people dead than there are people alive on the planet today!

Great minds, paupers, kings, mothers and murderers, all gone on to inhabit the next life. And one day we too will join them. Where are they do you think? Many imagine multiple worlds in order that the next might not suffer from overpopulation!

I know people who see dead people. Trustworthy individuals who get messages to pass along and others that seem to make no real sense at all. There are so many opinions and beliefs about the afterlife that it really comes down to your personal experience what you choose to believe.

When we do talk of death I believe it is only of the physical, what we see with our eyes. And we are so much more than that. If you have ever looked on a dead thing, be it an animal, a flower or a human being, you know that what you see is just a shell; a shadow of its former self with the essence of life force gone somewhere else. 

As the poet Longfellow says the soul does not turn to dust.

When I feel in my heart the presence of someone lost to me in the physical, they are as real as they have ever been. This is not uncommon. My friend Robert speaks of his deceased father in the present tense. In meditation we turn inward to experience the vast field of possibility, our connection with the infinite. There it is in our very being as if a portal opens to the other worlds. This is our connection to all life including our beloved in the next. We are never separate except by choosing to think that way. We create and demolish our very own personal blocks to our divinity and to love. Open up today to connection in whatever form your meditation takes; a walk in nature, painting, listening to music, journaling, day dreaming, creating a collage of your loved one. Feed your soul connection and know that you are never alone and you are loved just as you are. Then go forth and love unconditionally and in earnest while you still have time in the physical world!

Talking about death won't kill you!

I have heard people say as a positive conclusion to a list of physical ailments or complaints "Oh well, it beats the alternative!" To which people respond with agreement, acknowledging that whatever we may be experiencing, we are still alive and that is always preferable to being dead! After all death is the ultimate fear, the unknowable and the great void, the end...that's all she wrote!  Shakespeare's Hamlet contemplated "to be and not to be" concluding that there may not be peace even in the permanent sleep of death. How can we know so lets not go there, what's the point?

I was browsing a book at my library the other day, intriguingly entitled "Talking about death won't kill you," just my kind of book by the way. I like to tackle ideas that others throw up their eyes at and have little time for. The author Virginia Morris, a woman after my own heart as we would say in Ireland, was putting forward the idea that talking about death has many overlooked benefits. It can help us appreciate life more fully for one thing, it can help friends and families appreciate the relationships we enjoy more deeply and also can help immensely when the inevitability of loss visits our lives.

My father broached the subject of his demise to me years ago when he was making his will. I kept the discussion brief, adding I didn't want to imagine that day. This is a very natural response and I know I am not alone in my feelings. But I wish I'd been able to say how much I loved him and how unthinkable it was to no longer have him in my life. I wish we could have held each other and acknowledged that love and continued our discussion to its conclusion in awareness of the reality of that eventuality.

So many of us run from emotion - from being real and authentic and we miss out. I really feal our lives would be richer if we could simply allow our selves to be real. Emotion and discomfort just like all things come to pass and not to stay...we will not be swallowed in the slough of despond forever..in fact if we go there we can come out more quickly instead of skirting along the edges indefinitely.  Its all about living fearlessly. All my life I have worked at releasing the fears that restrict my experience of life. I am still determined! So who wants to talk about death?

In the quiet moments...

Lately my life has taken a slower pace. Its the time of the year when in America we turn to Thanksgiving. Yes this involves turkey and friends and travel and the tensions and joys of family. I spent the last two weekends celebrating with my husbands family so the coming break will be quiet and I hope a time to rest. For this I am thankful.
My life has taken a slower pace because work is slow and I am having to use my time creatively without remuneration except of the most personal nature. My own family are caught in the morass of the dismal Irish economy crisis. Every day the news is full of doom and gloom with no hope of a light at the end of the tunnel for years to come. Where can we turn at times like these when optimism is all but quenched?
Help wanted? Apply within! We must look to ourselves for the truth of our experience.
It is our own thinking that has the power to darken our world according to John ODonohue.

"Search and you will find the diamond-thought of light. Know that you are not alone and that the darkness has purpose;
Gradually it will school your eyes to find the one gift your life requires hidden within this night corner."

He seems to be saying there are gifts in times like these that without them we would never discover. Depths and strengths unexplored. Overlooked blessings that if we can pull our eyes away from the external, await our appreciation. Look for them in life's simple quiet moments. This poem by Irish poet Seamus Heaney illustrates, in quiet moments with his mother, the sacred found in the mundane. Turn your eyes from the world this Thanksgiving and find your abundant blessings of love, strength and insight within. Then shine it for all to see, it is the greatest gift you can give to your loved ones and to yourself.
Have a blessed and joyous Thanksgiving!


In Memoriam M.K.H., 1911-1984

When all the others were away at Mass
I was all hers as we peeled potatoes.
They broke the silence, let fall one by one
Like solder weeping off the soldering iron:
Cold comforts set between us, things to share
Gleaming in a bucket of clean water.
And again let fall. Little pleasant splashes
From each other's work would bring us to our senses.

So while the parish priest at her bedside
Went hammer and tongs at the prayers for the dying
And some were responding and some crying
I remembered her head bent towards my head,
Her breath in mine, our fluent dipping knives--
Never closer the whole rest of our lives.

Let Death lose its Sting...

They say that death is our ultimate fear and all other fears can be traced back to the idea of death. The word itself makes us recoil. It means something is devoid of life, inanimate, inert, ended and without power of any kind. Our ego screams at the thought of its annihilation, the idea that we end or no longer exist. This is the human reaction to the death of the body.

In Religious Science we believe very differently; that life never ends, we are not our bodies, we are our consciousness and as such a unique part of Spirit which is infinite and ever expanding. Depak Chopra gives an example to illustrate this idea; your TV until it is turned on is inert but the signal information is always there no matter how long the TV has been off. So too with people when they die in the physical, their energy still exists, its just not channeled in a visible body. For this reason we are never separate from those who have left this plane of existence, though our energy/consciousness still expresses through our bodies it is also connected with the whole, as a wave in the ocean of being. Therefore we can still commune with our loved ones in consciousness and they with us. What a comfort when we truly deeply know this.


As an old friend of mine used to say I'd still rather have someone with skin on!!! Yes we miss those who have left us. I live 6,000 miles from my family but at any time I still gain great comfort in writing a letter to my mother which is an action that I take separate from her. This year as part of my artistic expression I began making collage portraits of my family members. It is one very satisfying way of spending time with the individuals I miss and love. I also get to acknowledge their unique traits and qualities and how they express those in life. My art pieces represent my experience of another individual, what I see in them and the connection we enjoy.
In the Workshop "Remembering with Joy" that I designed with my friend Mary Hylan this is the core idea; we focus on the beauty of a relationship and how we have been enriched by another, knowing that we can still draw joy from it, that we have gained from it and that every situation in life including loss is an opportunity to know our spiritual interconnectedness more deeply.
For details www.GratitudeandGrace.com

“Love is stronger than death even though it can't stop death from happening, but no matter how hard death tries it can't separate people from love. It can't take away our memories either. In the end, life is stronger than death.”

Small Daily Tasks

"A small daily task, if it be really DAILY, will beat the labours of a spasmodic Hercules"
Anthony Trollope

This wisdom is a good thing to remember when we are feeling overwhelmed or that we cannot seem to achieve all we would like to. It reminds me of water on limestone, it has the power to wear away caves over time. Similar to love, whose action is gentle, it has the ability to make its way into the hardest heart with daily acts of kindness.

We put off so much saying I need an entire free day to tackle this task, or I need a consistent day off to really make a dent in this goal. Its not true! This is just one way to hold ourselves back from achieving. We get out of testing ourselves, we can avoid failure but in doing so we also avoid success.

So if you are attempting to love yourself more today or love a difficult person in your life or achieve a major task, know that persistence is omnipotent. Do something in line with what your heart is prompting you toward today, no matter how small. Place reminders on your fridge or somewhere you will see it to remind yourself to take time DAILY. You can achieve so much in just five or ten minutes a day - EVERY DAY. Novels have been written this way. Fitness, closer family connections, forgiveness, a more beautiful home, clearer consciousness, more peace, all of these things can be and have been achieved this way.

What could you attempt to do? I'm certainly giving thought to this idea. I know there is power in it.
I'll keep you posted.

We must maintain love.

Its not what happens to us in this life that matters most - it is the attitude we take to what happens that dictates our experience.

Some people derisively call keeping a positive or optimistic attitude, a Pollyanna attitude as if seeing only the good is some how a delusion. A course in miracles would say that any other way of seeing is ego based and we have forgotten who we are. Only love exists. If a person acts unlovingly it comes from fear. When we choose to love that person despite their negativity or fearful actions we are choosing the power to heal that person. Making a person wrong, pointing to their anger or negativity we lock them into the illusion they are creating, forgiving them we see through to their innocence.

We are all innocent. Marianne Williamson says in her book, A Return to Love that when a person acts unlovingly, if they lie or hurt us with criticism or judgement, that it is a call for love. If we can step out of the way of the insult or negative behaviour and remain nonreactive we can find our power. Our power lies in seeing the illusion or dream the other person is in and seeing with the eyes of Spirit. We are instruments of love not of defense of the ego.

The choice to act this way is not easy but it is within the realm of our choosing. We can ask for help in this shift of perception. Outside circumstances don't bring us peace, it comes from within. Are you willing to stop withholding love as forgiveness? Do you choose love or fear? Let us not let the closing of another's heart tempt us to close our own. "Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord." (Romans, chapter 12: verse 19) , lets leave that to her as we choose love today!
Namaste.

Willingness is Worthiness

I believe that whoever is willing to bring the qualities of God into expression is worthy of experiencing them. Therefore because I am willing to prosper others I am worthy of being prospered. - Science of Mind Principles

Say this out load to yourself. How does it make you feel? Does this phrase evoke a sense of truth or feeling of hope? Do questions come up in your mind about what it means to prosper others and do you feel you are doing it?
The word prosper has its origins in the latin prosperare, to make happy. The dictionary says it means to make successful or fortunate especially in financial aspects, to thrive, to flourish.

I cant necessarily make others rich, though I circulate money when I purchase services and goods and I give to charity. That's only a small of my power to be willing to prosper others.
What about to make happy? I can't make anyone happy if they are not willing to be but I can add to people's happiness by my attitude, my respect, my time and attention.

I can look at what I need to thrive and flourish in the world and provide that for myself to start with. There are so many ways, I will list just a few; getting to bed early, exercising, eating well, finding time to journal and feel gratitude, to call my friends, to be kind to myself and also exercise self discipline in the areas I am lax, expressing my creativity, my joy, my love. Sharing who I am. Your list may be similar, it may be different.

Then I can look to my family and friends, acquaintances and people I meet in the course of my day and constantly ask - how can I assist or serve this person in order that they may flourish and thrive? What is it they need right now? Is it a smile, a kind word? How can I contribute in the work place to prosper my company, my work colleagues, the patrons of my business?
The Science of Mind principle states "because I am willing," so a willingness to simply ask what a person needs to thrive is the beginning of your own prosperity. What does your sister need to thrive, what does your husband or wife or daughter need to thrive? Very often when we think about it, it is love in some form; understanding, support, compassion, a word of encouragement or approval or a listening ear. Its not difficult to prosper others, it takes our willingness to be present to them. Take that time today and "Live long and prosper!"

Take Time

“Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein."
- H. Jackson Brown Jr.


So many perceptions of time. These days there just doesn't seem to be enough of it. I know I feel that way often. So much so that when I suddenly had some time the other day I wasn't sure what to do with it. I was a little panicked even!!

This morning was a different scenario. I found myself writing my journal as I lay on my couch looking out at the greening trees in my neighbourhood and simply so present I did not want to move. It was a delicious moment and I reminded myself to just enjoy. The house was quiet except for the ticking of the clock. I let seconds go by just listening and looking and breathing. I continued to write and as I did I could feel the morning close in with lists and choices and tasks and the old feeling of rush and tension. I recognised what I was doing and as always I knew I couldn't get everything done this morning so I had to choose. In time all things would be taken care of. Right now my power was to choose. Rather than what I usually do on a task oriented day getting caught up in doing, this morning which I consider my morning off, I chose to spend one hour doing necessary jobs and two and a half hours till lunch doing fun things. Balance!

Its all about balance. We work so hard these days despite our labor saving devices and our computers! Or because of them! The brain needs space to be be undisciplined and free flow, to reflect and rejuvenate. In this time I can assess if I am headed in the right direction, I can access my feelings about my life and my choices. I can make new choices based on what I find. If we don't take time out we are definitely on a treadmill, caught up in the rat race that goes nowhere I want to go. So give yourself time this wonderful Easter weekend. The perfect time for rejuvenation and rebirth and enjoying family and friends. Even if there is sadness in your family this Easter, be with it fully, be present for a time before life sweeps us all forward again. Just choose to be fully present, your present to the universe!

"Time discovers Truth" - Seneca