dogs
The Manifesting Power Of Mindful Mornings
Mornings are special. The energy of the morning is different than at any other time. When the sunlight is still fresh and gentle, the world is calm and quiet, there is a magic to this time.
The first few moments of our day help to set the tone for our experiences throughout. Becoming aware and attuned to this fresh universal energy can be as simple as creating a small morning routine.
Now, I realize not everyone loves the morning as much as I do. If this is the case for you, the idea of creating a morning routine may not sound appealing at all. Starting with small, quick steps can make all the difference here.
Your morning routine is meant to set you up for success. It is about doing things you like in the morning, that get you in the right frame of mind and heart.
Bringing a bit of mindfulness into your morning can set you up energetically to respond more effectively to your experiences throughout the day.
Below is a list of things you can do in the morning to create a personalized routine that works for you. You certainly don’t have to do all them! Just pick one or two to get started and build from there.
While consistency is important, if something is not working for you, change it up and try something new. This routine should be fulfilling and meaningful to you.
Affirmations – Start saying ‘I AM’ affirmations. As you are getting ready in front of the mirror, look yourself in the eye and speak aloud three ‘I AM’ affirmations, for example: I am learning to let go of fear and negativity. I am worthy of abundance and fulfilment. I am grateful for all the good things in my life.
Gratitude – Place a note somewhere you are going to see it in the morning that reads: ‘What am I grateful for today?’ Every morning you see it list three things aloud.
The Girl Who Healed Animals At The Pet Cemetery
I grew up in Germany. My dad, coming from an extremely poor background, worked his hands to the bones to provide a roof over our heads and food on the table. Mom and dad married when she was only 19 and we lived in a house built beside my grandfather’s on a small farm.
My maternal grandfather was a pharmacist and had bought the land on the hill, where he built his house after he came back from the war. He had been imprisoned in France. Times were hard, but the land my grandfather was able to purchase the land at a low price. It was the last lot on the hill, before the heavily forested area, and it was an old pet cemetery, which was unknown at the time.
Around the time I went to high school, I started finding injured animals. Or maybe they found me? The first was a black bird with a broken wing. I brought her home and named her Raven. I learned how to feed her, and how to stabilize the wing so it could heal.
The next animal was a mouse. She had a bloody foot and was almost frozen to the ground. She was barely alive and seemed relieved as I picked her up and carried her home. I put her in a terrarium I had inherited from my brother, after he had used it for his ‘frog project’ in school. His 143 tadpoles turned into frogs all over the backyard, and mom was livid! Thanks for my Dad, they all moved to a pond.
My next surprise guest was a black cat. I came home from soccer practice and there he was, sitting on my desk in my room. It was a problem, because mom did not want any pets in the house! Period. I could hide the small animals, but what to do with a big, black cat?
I begged my parents to let me keep Fritzi. He was like a dog. He followed me wherever I went. My family voted for Fritzi to stay, on mom’s condition that he sleep on the porch. But, of course, Fritzi the black cat slept on my pillow instead. Sadly he was killed after a few months, when I called him for lunch and a car ran him over. I was devastated. Heartbroken.
Time To Follow Your Heart
The Covid-19 pandemic has been causing many of us to face some of our life issues that may not have come up otherwise, had we not been under so much stress, while isolated from external social support.
The times we are going through remind me a lot of what the United States went through after 9/11. People were scared, and our lives changed. Some of us questions our purpose and our future: our lifestyles, our goals, our dreams. Many homes overnight became fortresses of self-isolation. Air travel became an issue. Many things we took for granted changed literally overnight. Sound familiar?
At first it was a matter of fear, anxiety and self-preservation. Then the effect on our emotions, choices and attitudes kicked in. Many people became more humble, patient and kind. We were more unified than ever, similar to our mindset during World War II, when a nation came together with one goal: to protect and defend what they loved.
Back then, people planted gardens, and bought bonds to support the cause. Industry became a place where women could play a more significant role in manufacturing and engineering. All for one thing, and one thing only: to secure our freedom. Covid-19 has brought with it similar challenges and adversity. What remains to be seen is how we will choose to respond and what good might come from it. I believe we will ultimately beat this crisis in the same way we have done in the past, both as individuals and as a nation. We have done it before, and we will do it again.
A Letter To My Beloved Dog
Precious Elizabeth, it has been nearly two and a half years since you left your physical vessel to live in another dimension. I know you didn’t want to go and held on long past your time – selflessly, because you had such an enormous love for me that you didn’t want to leave me.
Always my protector, I know you couldn’t imagine that anyone other than you could be as fearless and courageous as you were during all those heartfelt times, throughout the 16 years you took care of me. I adored you and you showed your love every day in countless ways. No matter what you were doing, you always dropped everything, anytime I asked you to come to me.
Well, all but that one time!
We were rocking in the willow chairs on the far end of the portico. It was late in the afternoon, on a perfect spring day. I was relaxing in my chair, and you were asleep in your rocking chair next to mine. A big, brown bear then decided to sniff out the contents of the garbage bin at the other end of the portico. Before I had even spotted the bear, you had already leaped from your chair, apparently having smelled the enormous varmint’s odor. You flew at him as if you had wings, in order to chase him away – so protective of me you were.