Braving the Hot Mess

World Kindness Day

11/13/2018

Did you know that today is World Kindness Day? I am a huge proponent of intentional acts of kindness. Kindness is not only a nice thing to do, but it's been proven as instrumental in creating a life of happiness, positivity and wellness.

Kindness not only makes us and the recipient feel good, but it's contagious, it causes moral elevation. That warm and fuzzy uplifting feeling you get when you have witnessed human goodness, kindness, courage and compassion is called moral elevation.

Studies have found that the natural high of moral elevation makes people want to behave more altruistically toward others, causing compassion and kindness to be contagious. Elevation makes people optimistic about humanity. So, ripples of kindness not only cause a ripple in the direction of the person receiving it, but also casts out ripples in the direction of the giver and all of who witness the act.

This ripple effect can extend out to 2 and 3 degrees of separation. Experiments with large numbers of people show that if you are kind and compassionate, your friends, your friends’ friends, and even your friends’ friends’ friends are more likely to become kind and compassionate. A powerful ripple of kindness!

Here's the thing, most people don't want to hurt others. What we really want is to live in a moral world where people treat each other well, and where we can satisfy our need for love, productive work, and a sense of belonging.

We get the sense that we do not live in such a moral world when we see people behave in petty, cruel, or in other unkind or selﬁsh ways. But when we see a stranger perform a simple act of kindness for another stranger, it gives us hope that maybe we do live in a good world. It restores our sense of hope and goodness in humanity.

I love this quote by Scott Adams, "Remember there's no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end." Today and every day I invite you to ripple out intentional acts of kindness into the world.

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My Hope For Today

11/6/2018

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Today is election day here in the United States. Agendas, opinions and ideas have been shared and debated and it's time to vote. For some, it’s a date where there is hope for change, however that is defined by each of us. Here is my definition of and my hope for today.

My hope for today is that we set aside labels and divisiveness. We are not red, we are not blue, we are one.

My hope for today is that everyone will take action from their heart, from a place of love, compassion, kindness and the recognition that we are all one.

My hope for today is that we can set aside the ego’s fear. Fear of scarcity, fear of relinquishing power and control, fear of judgment, fear of failure. That we set aside fear and ego-based mentalities like the ideas of a zero-sum world and of survival of the fittest.

My hope for today is that we can see the world through the lens of abundance instead of the lens of lack, and with that recognize that there’s enough abundance for everyone.

My hope for today is that we exercise reverence for all that is. Reverence for each other, for the earth and for all living creatures.

My hope for today is for peace and harmony that comes from a place of love, care and connection.

My hope for today is for people to feel seen, heard and respected. No matter your status in life, race, gender, beliefs, opinions that you feel seen, heard and respected.

My hope for today is that we can each be a non-judgmental witness to our own judgments and that we work toward healing the wounds that caused the judgment. That we replace our fear-based judgmental thoughts with love.

My hope for today is for healing, joy, health and happiness.

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Reverence

10/30/2018

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Do you live your life with reverence? With a feeling of profound awe, deep respect and love for all that is? Do you believe that we are ALL children of God, of one source, that we are in essence one? Pause and really think about it. Do you REALLY believe it without hesitation, without any "buts", without any excuses stemmed in fear?

Author Gary Zukav states in his book The Seat of the Soul, "We look upon each other as prey to satisfy our emotional and physical needs. We say, 'It's a dog-eat-dog world,' and that to survive in it we must take advantage of others before they take advantage of us. We look upon Life as a contest that produces winners and losers, and we feel no restraints upon us when the needs of other people or other groups threaten us."

He goes on to say, "Our behavior and values are so much shaped by perceptions that lack reverence that we do not know what it is like to be reverent. When we curse a competitor or strive to disempower another person, we absent ourselves from reverence. When we work to take instead of to give, we labor without reverence. When we strive for safety at the expense of another person's safety, we deprive ourselves of the protection of reverence. When we judge one person as superior and another as inferior we depart from reverence. When we judge ourselves, we do the same thing. Business, politics, education, sex, raising families, and personal interactions without reverence all produce the same result: human beings using other human beings."

I could keep typing quotes from this chapter in his book because it is so important to me especially right now. In my opinion our world needs more reverence. Yes, we most definitely need more love, less hate and less divisiveness and that starts with reverence. As a society we have bought into the model of fear hook line and sinker. We operate from a place of fear and scarcity, that it's a dog-eat-dog world to justify our appalling behavior toward each other and toward the earth.

No matter which side of the fence you look at it seems as though reverence is missing. People are labeled, dehumanized, and viciously attacked both verbally and physically all in the name of "a solution". It lacks reverence. It hurts my heart deeply and it probably hurts yours too.

If we are reverent, we would not harm life. The reverent person is a spiritual person who sees Divinity in all forms of life and honors it. Imagine what life would be like if we held it with reverence.

re- word-forming element meaning "back to the original place; again, anew, once more," also with a sense of "undoing,"

ver- meaning truth, true and genuine.

ence- meaning action or process.

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The Edge Of The Comfort Zone

10/22/2018

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Ever get the feeling like you're moving on auto-pilot, just running, running, running on the hamster wheel of life? Wake up, go to work, come home, handle chores, kid’s activities, repeat. Same tasks, same people, same everything.

Habits and routines can be good, they serve a purpose. They can make life more efficient and predictable. The more routine our life is the less brain power we need to expend. However, if we become too set in our patterns then the potential for learning something new and growing declines. We run the risk of becoming stagnate and lose our sense of curiosity and adventure.

As Shilagh Mirgain, PhD, a University of Wisconsin Health psychologist says, ”Our best life begins on the edge of our comfort zone, to ignite our potential, we must stretch ourselves outside of our daily patterns.” Not letting fear or routine get us set in our ways.

Mirgain suggests starting small by mixing up the daily routine. Maybe drive a different route to work, or try a new type of food or a new restaurant. Saying yes to something you would normally say no to. Introduce yourself to a stranger and strike up a conversation, take up a new hobby, new sport activity or take a class.

While something fairly simple and small like trying a new food may not seem life changing, it’s about learning to step outside of your habits and self-prescribed limits. Continuing to learn, explore, be curious and adventuresome.

Stretching yourself to try something new might produce surprising results. You may end up creating a new favorite activity or uncovering a new skill set that you were previously unaware existed.

Switch up the same old same old auto-pilot pattern and give your spirit a chance to soar by trying something new. What better time than now to give it a try and change things up?

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Let It Fall Away

10/15/2018

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Have you taken a moment to witness the beauty of nature that is around you? Here in Wisconsin I am witnessing the spectacular changing of color that happens every fall. Truly one of the benefits of living in Wisconsin! The golden yellow trees, the cherry topped trees, the vibrancy of the burning bush, the flaming orange leaves. At this time of year, I also tend to notice the beauty of the shape of the trees. Some are pear-shaped, some are very round, some are oval it's amazing the simplistic beauty of the shape of the trees.

I love to feel the crunch of the leaves beneath my feet and breathe in the crisp fall air. Have you witnessed the leaves as they're fluttering around in the wind? Falling from the sky like snow. I am always blown away at this time of year by the sheer beauty that is all around me in nature. It just never gets old! Each year I am equally amazed by the spectacular beauty of the season.

Fall is the harvest time of the year when we celebrate and give thanks for the abundance of our crops and for all the good things we have in life. What is your own personal harvest? In addition to the usual fall harvest, it can personally mean the harvest of your lifetime, a year's worth of growth and learning. It can be a time of great stirring in the soul. A time to be still, a time to explore the mysteries, a time to savor the season.

The fall of the leaves can symbolize the fall of old ways. It can represent an out with the old and in with the new. As we watch leaves fluttering to the ground, we are reminded that the cycle of nature is also mirrored in our lives. Autumn is the time for letting go and releasing things that have been a burden. Fall is the time to practice getting out of the way, of letting go and allowing Spirit to take charge of our lives.

At this time of year, the day and night are equal. It is a point of balance between dark and light. As we make the shift from longer days to longer nights, let's take time to reflect upon what part of our own lives might be out of balance. It's a great reminder to cultivate balance within your spirit, mind and body. What is it that you need in this season? Do you know what that is? Are you listening and paying attention?

Fall into whatever it is that your soul, your mind, and your body needs in this season. Maybe fall into a new habit, fall into a new story, fall into a new way of thinking, fall into mindfulness, fall into peace, fall into love, fall into joy, fall into forgiveness, fall into gratitude, fall into self-care. Whatever it is that you need, listen to it and fall into it this season and let go of what you don't need and allow Spirit to take it over.

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Your Shift Will Make A Difference

10/8/2018

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This past week has been a tough one for many in our country. We seem to be divided more than ever. This can feel stressful, frustrating and hopeless.

Many spiritual leaders believe the challenges that we are currently facing as a nation and as a world is a collective challenge. Its intent is to raise the consciousness of a large group of people all at once. From a higher consciousness perspective, being challenged is a good thing and the crisis is a natural part of evolution.

French sociologist, Emile Durkheim, first introduced the term collective consciousness in 1893. It's defined as the set of shared beliefs, ideas and moral attitudes which operate as a unifying force within society. Just as our individual consciousness can evolve or ascend, so can the collective consciousness.

Eckhart Tolle explains that sometimes as part of this evolution, we first regress backward. Two steps forward, one step back. It is a cycle, you revert backward, so you can spring forward further. He believes that right now we have regressed, but that we are positioned to bounce forward collectively.

The choice for each of us is to see the craziness, to see the challenges that are happening now, and the other is to see from a higher perspective that what is happening now is part of the evolution. Right now, whether we realize it or not, we are standing at a big fork in the road. The question is, will we stay on the same path, or be brave and bold and venture down a new path?

We can choose to work toward the evolution or to work against it. You may be wondering, how do I choose to work toward it? There are many things that you can do to foster the growth of the collective consciousness. A global shift cannot occur until we acknowledge and own our actions and then take action in the world.

We can choose to infuse love, lots and lots of love. I believe that what our world needs more of right now is love, not more hate, anger and fear. We need to love intentionally, extravagantly and unconditionally. Infusing loving kindness into everything we do and every interaction that we have. Collective love, empathy and compassion will dissolve collective fear, anger and hate. Love is the medium of miracles. Do not underestimate the power of love, do not discount its impact. Even if you chose to not take action in other ways, spread loving kindness intentionally, extravagantly and unconditionally into the world.

As Mother Theresa said, "There are no great deeds, just small deeds done with great love". Let's each go out and do small deeds with great love. Let's expand into love instead of contract into fear. Let's hold the vision by taking a lot of little right actions in the direction of love. Love is a choice, just as fear and hate are a choice.

Gabby Bernstein states it this way, "The times we’re living in require a commitment to love. You don’t have to be a news junkie to know that division is at an all-time high. People are hurt, angry and resentful. Our work as people who walk a spiritual path is to shine a light in the darkness. When we reconnect to the power of love, we begin to vibrate at a new frequency. When you change your frequency, your family, neighbors and friends reap the benefits. One person’s energetic shift has the power to create a ripple effect across the globe. And as more and more people vibrate love, the vibrations of hate and judgment weaken."

We can choose to stop taking sides and fostering separation. This is not about us versus them. This is not about republicans versus democrats. This is not just about men versus women. This is not about blacks versus whites. This is not about blaming, deflecting or defending. This is about all of us working together. It's about understanding that we are all one. A collective higher consciousness means we stop acting as though we are separate, but instead work toward the good of the whole.

We can choose to exercise the ability to truly listen to one another. Listen without judgment. Listen with curiosity. Listen with an effort toward understanding. Listen without the goal of responding. Listen with the awareness that each of us has our own set of unique life circumstances. In this moment of stillness where you are listening you are not only aware of what that person is saying, but you can also become aware of the deeper essence in the other person that goes well beyond what they are speaking.

Author and spiritual teacher, Brother David Steindl-Rast, sums it up this way, "See everything as an opportunity. The current challenges that society faces is a huge opportunity. It is a moment in time that is calling each and everyone of us to step into this opportunity. It is a gift, a great gift. We have the opportunity to stretch even further than people have ever stretched before. An opportunity to stretch to understand each other more, to listen to each other more, to come to a common hope."

Stretch yourself into the vibration of love. Your love, your empathy and compassion, your kindness, your forgiveness, your surrender, your faith, your lack of judgment, your gratitude, your prayers, your commitment to action...that is how we'll save the world.
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After writing by blog post, I received an email from Hay House today with the following excerpt written by Wayne Dyer. I am sharing it with you below in hopes that it will be inspiring to you.

The power of an idea whose time has come is really the power of Spirit at work. Equality for all is how God is, for instance, and we seek to be like God. When enough of us, along with one or two at visionary consciousness, begin to contemplate these in-Spirit ideas, they can’t be stopped. Let’s take some time here to note a few such ideas from America’s history:

— When it was time for the unspeakably horrid practice of slavery to be abolished, that was an idea whose time had come. This was because a critical mass of individuals with a new vision for humanity began to contemplate something that had been espoused a few generations earlier: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” It took more than 85 years after Thomas Jefferson wrote these words, but then the idea couldn’t be stopped—even though slaves represented a tiny part of the population and had no voting rights. When a man with visionary consciousness, Abraham Lincoln (along with many others), approached this idea from an inspirational perspective, it was clear that the time had indeed come to end slavery. This new idea of equality for all is the way of Spirit.

— We can see also an idea whose time had come in the granting of voting rights for women in 1920. Despite the opposition of a nonvisionary President (Woodrow Wilson), and over the objection of a majority of men who had voting privileges, the idea couldn’t be stopped. Several visionary women, who aligned with many other men and women, believed and made it happen—a right that we take for granted today.

— The racial integration of the United States is another example of an idea whose time had come. When this concept began to surface in the visionary consciousness of a few individuals such as John F. Kennedy; Martin Luther King, Jr.; Lyndon Johnson; and Rosa Parks; it couldn’t be stopped—despite the objections of millions of people, many of whom were in positions of political power. Today, in schools that once practiced segregation, we have a multiracial student body. Racial integration is still in the process of manifesting everywhere in our society, and there’s much still to be done, but make no mistake about it, this idea cannot be stopped.

— Gay rights is another idea whose time has come. One of the many reasons I admire Ram Dass so much is the stand he took a long time ago on equal rights for people of all sexual orientations. No individual or group can be denied legal or social privileges because we all come from one Source, which excludes no one. An idea whose time has come is always in perfect alignment with our originating Spirit.

— Finally, the shift in consciousness from a collective belief that smoking in public places is permissible to one where it’s not tolerated was an idea whose time had come. The idea became unstoppable when one visionary airline banned smoking on their commercial flights—and then the rest fell into spiritual alignment. Since we come from a nontoxic Source of Well-Being, aligning with It is our destiny and can’t be stopped.

I could go on and on with examples of such ideas manifesting in our society, but instead I propose that we begin looking around us for evidence of ideas whose time has come. You see, when we’re ready, willing, and open to it, the Divine guidance we seek will spring into action on our behalf. It has been that way throughout our life. For example, the people we’ve had love affairs with—regardless of how long the relationships lasted—are all characters in this dream of ours called “life.” They come to us for any number of reasons, such as to help us create a child (or children), to teach us forgiveness, or to assist us in fulfilling some other destiny.

It’s difficult for our ego to grasp, but every single person who’s drifted in and out of our life is a part of our Divinely chosen life experience—that is, they are ideas whose time had come. As we move into a life of inspiration, we’ll find it easy and even necessary to give thanks for all of these individuals, and to take serious note of what they brought us at the time of their arrival and/or departure.

By the same token, when we needed to have a certain vocational experience, it was made available to us. Because we were a vibrational match to what showed up, we took it in and got out of it precisely what we needed. And when we were no longer a vibrational match to that job, those people, that city, that house, or whatever, we left.

We’re in a system that’s directed by a Supreme Intelligence, and we’re a part of that system. Everything is on purpose. Our vibrational matchup determines what we attract and what we repel in our life. We needn’t focus on what’s already happened and what we’ve gone through; rather, we must shift our vibration upward so that it harmonizes with Spirit, and then—and only then—will spiritually based ideas come knocking on our door. These ideas won’t give up or go away because, as we know, there’s nothing in this Universe more powerful than an idea whose time has come. Our responsibility is simply to become beings who expect and await inspired ideas that will not and cannot be stopped.

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Living With Intention

10/2/2018

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Do you know what kind of life you want to live? Have you identified what you value most in life and who you want to be? Are you intentionally creating that life or does life just seem to happen? Are you living every day, every moment with mindful intention?

To live with intention can feel scary as it may challenge how we've done things in the past and how we've been conditioned to think and act. To live with intention can improve our happiness and our sense of peace. It can bring meaning, fulfillment and purpose into our lives.

I believe that happiness is not a pursuit, not a destination, but rather an intentional practice. Daily intentional practices are the key to leading a good life, a life of more sustained happiness, inner peace and well-being. We are the creators of our life and our reality is created by our intentions and the intentions of others.

To live with intention means to know who you are and what you value. It's understanding what lights you up and what your dreams are. It's knowing what kind of world you are choosing to create. It's understanding your purpose and the legacy that you are choosing to create.

To live with intention means to recognize that life is a series of choices. Whether we realize it or not every moment of every day we are making choices. You can always make the choice to choose a different path, you don't have to be held prisoner by your past.

To live with intention means starting off each day by setting and affirming your intention. Your intention for the day and your intention for your life. Plan each day with intention.

To live with intention means to pay attention to your inner experience, to be self-aware. To know what triggers you and how to manage your reactions.

To live with intention means to listen to your inner voice, to your intuition, to your internal guidance system. Allowing your intuition to guide and direct you. This will allow you to live life in the flow. Your heart carries the wisdom, it knows the answers. Tune in and listen to it, pay attention to wisdom from within. It's when we betray it that life gets off kilter.

To live with intention requires examining who you are surrounding yourself with and whether they too are living with intention. How they are affecting you and are they helping or hindering you in living the life of your intention? Be around people who support you, lift you up, inspire you and cause you to be the best version of yourself.

To live with intention requires us to stop comparing ourselves to others. It's focusing on and being committed to being the best, most authentic version of yourself. Comparing is a never-ending, losing battle of exaggerated untruths.

Living with intention is an active practice that you get better at the more you practice it. It's living from your truth and authenticity. Living with intention creates a life of flow, purpose, meaning and fulfillment.

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Step Away From The Screen

9/24/2018

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How much time do you spend each day behind some type of screen? A computer, cell phone, iPad, TV any type of screen. Be honest now between work, school and personal time how many hours each day do we spend on these devices?

Research is bringing forth some dramatic numbers. On average, 8-18 year olds spend between 7.5 to 11.5 hours per day on technology and 3 hours of this time using social media. The average adult spends 11 hours each day in front of the screen.

These devices, some of which are toted to create connection, are actually the source of social disconnection. Technology makes adults and teens profoundly anti-social. Our happiness and longevity are on the decline. Disease and loneliness are increasing.

Screen time is a likely cause of the ongoing increase in teen depression, anxiety and suicide. Numbers significantly changed around 2012 when smartphones and tablets became widespread among teenagers. And teens who spend more time on screen activities are more likely to be unhappy. After a little less than an hour a day of time spent on a smartphone, their well-being begins to decrease. These statistic also mirror adult figures as well.

When we are young we don’t always use good judgment because we’ve yet to form good judgment. The prefrontal cortex is where we house problem solving, decision making and impulse control and it’s not fully developed until you are in your 20s. As a teenager and into the 20s, they are inherently lacking these critical skills and yet perpetually using devices that ask them to respond immediately, react immediately, make decisions immediately, to click, like, tag and post. They/we are not asked to stop and critically think.

Research is also showing that we are 40% less empathetic than we were 30 years ago. Exercising empathy fosters connection, if we don’t, we become disconnected and ultimately foster loneliness.

We learn empathy through vulnerable situations and experiences. On social media we are masking our vulnerability. Social media portrays one-side of our life, and it's the side that we want people to see, not our real side, not our vulnerable side. We can't empathize with one another when we aren't being authentic and vulnerable.

The common thread among all ages is that more screen time means less time for activities that are good for our health and well-being. The most important question to ask yourself is...What is screen time replacing? A lot of us are giving up sleep, communicating with each other as a family, social connection, exploring the world, exercising, hobbies, etc. Remember we are all disciplined to something, what are we disciplined to?

This fall season, let's intentionally chose to decrease our personal screen time and replace it with actively engaging in life through social connection, nature and experiences that nurture and fill up our spirits with goodness.

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What Did I Do Spiritually Today?

9/16/2018

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During busy or challenging times in life, we can fall prey to running on the hamster wheel of life and toss aside the practices that can support us through the challenges. Practices that keep us propped up, energized and full to move through them with grace and ease.

It's easy to make concessions in our schedule and stop exercising, getting enough rest, eating well, and it's easy to stop meditating, praying, being in a place of gratitude, being still, listening, letting go, asking for guidance, paying attention to our intuition, offering ourselves compassion.

We fall prey to trying to control life and prioritize the busyness over our practices that can help to sustain us. When this happens it's easy for life to feel overwhelming and like it's spiraling out of control, so we try to control it some more.

In last week's post, I invited you to stay in your magic when life gets tricky, to have faith and trust. Staying in your magic requires daily spiritual practice, especially during the messy challenging times. It doesn't have to be time-consuming or even the same each day, but practicing is key. It works best for me if I don't over-complicate it and allow my practice to be flexible.

I firmly believe that a few minutes of daily spiritual practice will reap the rewards ten-fold. It will buy you back the time you spent, it will keep you grounded and centered, it will help you be in the flow, it will keep you energized. When you are consistent with your spiritual practice you will be more productive and creative and life will unfold with a lot more ease.

Find the practices that resonate most with you. For me daily prayer, affirmations, meditation, gratitude, Reiki and exercise are my go to practices. I add in others on days where I have more time, but those are my consistent practices.

If you currently don't have a daily spiritual practice, I invite you to start one today. Give it a try for the next month and see how life shifts and changes for you.

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Stay In Your Magic

9/7/2018

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Sometimes life can get tricky, it can get messy and it can seem to make no sense at all. It doesn't always smell like roses and look like rainbow unicorns. Sometimes it's easy to throw in the towel and think I'm done for now, I give up for now, I have no idea what I am doing. Do you know what I mean? That's when we need a shifter, a tool in our toolbox to help us get through the muck of life without getting stuck in it.

Today, September 11th, marks a tricky day for me, it's a bittersweet day. It's a day where I very much remember the horrific tragedy that we collectively experienced, and it also signifies for me the day that I decided to live my life. The day that I decided to be brave and have the courage to step into my own unique magic. Especially on this day, I remember and honor those that have fallen, as well as my decision to learn from that experience and to live life with more passion, more authenticity, more vulnerability, more fullness, to live whole-hearted.

It's a day to reconfirm the choice to shine brighter, to sprinkle some magic, to throw a little glitter at the mess, to laugh at the craziness, to recognize that life can be tricky and messy, but it can also be beautiful and magical. It's up to us to find our way through it, to not get stuck in the muck, to use our tools.

The Chopra Center recently posted this on Facebook..."Every person has their own magic, bringing something into this world that no one else can. Trust that you are exactly who and where you are supposed to be and life is unfolding as it should. When things get tricky, turn to meditation. It's the best way to reconnect with your magic and align with the power of the universe." Turn to your tools. Meditation, gratitude and faith are amazing shifters and game-changers.

Our faith can be tested when we experience hardships, illness, disappointment and loss. It's at these difficult times that we can either rely on our faith or turn from it. By holding onto our faith, its possible to see hard times as part of the journey and not as a punishment. It's a belief that there's more to life than what's in this physical world.

The door is opened for the best things to occur when you let go of your fears and hesitations and just move forward with faith. I believe that everything is more powerful when it starts with faith and trust. Faith and trust in yourself, in your intuition and in a greater plan.

Faith is about trusting the journey, believing that there's a plan, within this plan there are lessons and choices. Faith is about being in a place of yes. Trusting your intuition and sense of knowing to keep you in the flow of life, not resisting against it. Letting go, surrendering control and fear and living in a place of trust.

Life can be tricky, but stay in your magic. Stay in the flow and allow your faith, heart and intuition to guide you. And always sprinkle a little magic and pixie dust along the way.

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World Kindness Day

My Hope For Today

Reverence

The Edge Of The Comfort Zone

Let It Fall Away

Your Shift Will Make A Difference

Living With Intention

Step Away From The Screen

What Did I Do Spiritually Today?

Stay In Your Magic

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