appreciation
Transform Your Life With Daily Spiritual Power
If you are seeking change in your life, you must create the change. You alone create your reality. Your future happiness, joy and fulfillment does not depend on others. It truly depends on you, and you only. But it is not necessary for you to plan or control exactly how everything will change or work out. Leave the ultimate manifestation and transformation to Spirit and the Divine. But you must at least believe your life can change, and will change. And the best way to ensure such transformational changes in your life is to spiritual practice a part of your daily lifestyle.
My daily routine, which rarely changes, includes the following spiritual practices. Upon awakening I immediately do my affirmation prayer for the day.
Thank you, Universe for this amazing, positive, successful, and abundant day ahead of me. I know it will be better than yesterday and I am ready!
Thank you, Archangel Michael for putting your cloak of protection around me, from above my head to below my feet. May it shield me from all negative energy and bounce it back in to the ethers, instead of attaching itself to me during my day.
I also ask this for my partner, children and grandchildren. Amen.
After my prayer, I am grounded and centered to confidently go about my daily business. Even if I have nothing major going on, I will still get dressed as if I have something important to do that day. This further ‘lifts my energy,’ because as I look in the mirror and I feel prepared anything. I know I am going to be successful, happy and in a good place for the day.
One I am turned-out for the day, and before I start working, I sit at my desk and study at least one chapter in a spiritual book, as I need this knowledge every day in my work with my clients all over the world. Some of my favorite inspirational sources to date are Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz; You2 by Price Pritchett; The Power of Awareness by Neville Goddard; You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay; and The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. But I have many others in my personal library.
Love Is Everything
Hello friends of my mommy, Mountain Sage. My name is Babe. I’m her one and only favorite pup and she thinks I am a ‘cutie-patootie.’ Well, I don’t know about that, but I’m sure glad she thinks so. I try to be. I really do. But there are so many instructions: “sit, down, stay, no-jump, hold hands, leave it.” Phew! What’s a cute four-legged fur baby like me to do?
Well, there are treats sometimes, and that helps, but The Sage is not always so generous. Sometimes, she seems to think I should do all those silly things for free. It’s okay, I guess. Anyway, if I want to get those cuddles and kisses, as well as go to Bow-Wow Camp (which are two of my very favorite things), then I simply have to do it all her way.
But, when I’m outside hunting, then I do it my way. The Sage is most definitely not a hunter, I can assure you! Nope, not even one little bit. So, I have to bring home the bacon, right? A nice little mouse, for example. I brought it in the doggie door, as a gift, while she was on a phone call with a client.
I assume it was a client because that’s when I have to be ‘all quiet.’ Anyway, she made all these mad gestures. She clearly could not contain her excitement about the juicy mouse. Strange, I tell ya! Making all those weird motions. I mean, really, it was just a plain ole’ mouse. Nothing special in my world, but she acted like I’ve brought a month’s supply of meat into the living room?
Then, there was the frog. It showed up on the porch after a heavy rainstorm. I had never seen anything hop quite like it did. It was intriguing – all shiny, plump and green. I decided to lick it on the back. I was just curious. No need for The Sage to become all hysterical, right?
But I have to be honest: that frog was the most vile and disgusting taste I’ve ever experienced. I had to spit, and spit, and spit to try and get that yucky goo out of my mouth. “It’s poison,” The Sage was complaining, as she picked it up and put it outside the fenced garden. Well, I guess she might have been right. Anyway, I was a satisfied dog and more than glad to see it go.
A Smile Is Contagious Too!
As we continue to find our way through the seemingly never-ending twists and turns of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is understandable that many of us are anxious, frustrated, and worried. Our lives and health are still at risk, our jobs and businesses remain in jeopardy, and parents are unsure about sending their children back to school.
Even so, there is a light at the end of the tunnel as many inroads have been made. There seems to be a feeling of increasing lightness and hope as the restrictions are gradually being lifted. In some places, people are nearly back to pre-pandemic norms, but for many of us many challenges and restrictions remain for the time being.
If you are feeling stifled and frustrated by the circumstances, remind yourself that it is the little things that we will come to appreciate after having gone without them for so long.
For example, with masks no longer required in some outdoor settings, we can now see each other’s faces again! And is it not wonderful to be able to make even the tiniest connection again with a smile?
Whether it is a neighbor you have known for years, or a stranger on the street, why not take the opportunity to smile at them as you pass by? Grin at the cute kids playing outside, or the adorable dogs owners are walking. Appreciate the little things. Gratitude and appreciation is empowering. Kindness and compassion is healing. And a smile is powerful. It can transform someone’s day in an instant.
Smiling is universal. In every country and culture, people smile. A smile represents kindness, joy and happiness. A smile can break through worries for a brief moment and make someone’s day. A smile can be reassuring or comforting when support is needed most.
Empower Your Life With Ho’oponopono
I was introduced to the Ho’oponopono prayer several years ago by a friend I met at a meditation group. She told me that it is an ancient Hawaiian custom that can be used to resolve karmic issues in life. So, of course, I tried it, but with mixed results.
It is a simple, yet powerful three-line prayer:
I am sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you. I love you.
I did not fully comprehend it at the time, but even in my lack of understanding, I still experienced some results. Then I reached a point in life where I was experiencing a lot of personal difficulties, and suddenly this simple prayer took on a whole new meaning for me.
It was at a time when I had lost three loved ones in short space of time, and I was going through an intense grieving process and associated life challenges. I figured trying out this prayer again certainly couldn’t hurt. So, for a few days, I made a conscious effort to repeat this mantra in my mind.
I am sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you. I love you.
Then I came across a certification program Ho’oponopono. It is a seminar over multiple days. I had the time and resources to enroll, so it felt like destiny. I then learned a lot more about Ho’oponopono and came to realize it is not nearly as simple as I had originally thought.
The term Ho’oponopono means ‘to make right what is already right.’ The prayer itself is only part of the practice. As a spiritual endeavor Ho’oponopono is about untangling the patterns and blockages that contribute to the challenges we experience in this life. The prayer itself is merely a conduit to experiencing Ho’oponopono, or ‘making right what is already right.’
The Ho’oponopono prayer is intended to move the practitioner into a state of consciousness that is love, free from things like fear, worry, resentment, blame, guilt, criticism, judgment, desire for vengeance, jealousy, and so on.
The Benefits Of Daily Journaling
I have always loved writing, since I was a little girl. However, as I grew older and became a wife, mother and business owner, I found I no longer didn’t have enough time to follow my passion for putting pen to paper. During the pandemic I suddenly had more time on my hands. Not only did I discover the art of journaling during this time, but I also learned a lot about myself in the process.
I am now the proud owner of a fitness journal, a gratitude journal and a well-being journal. No, I do not write in each of them every day, but I do journal at least once every day, usually before bedtime. I have found that the benefits of journaling to be manifold.
First and foremost, I find journaling to be a form of meditation. Let’s face it, traditional meditation, as empowering as it can be for some, is not for everyone.
Journaling, on the other hand, is not only a form of self-expression (which can be very stress-relieving, to say the least), but it also connects you to the deepest parts of your inner being that may otherwise be drowned out by daily life. Journaling allows you the quiet time to reflect, truly express yourself, and look within – where the answers to life’s problems can often be found when one is in a calm state.
Journaling also trains the brain, because you use both hemispheres of your brain simultaneously. Journaling employs the right brain, by expressing our creativity and feelings, as well as a left brain use of analysis and critical thinking. Journaling also helps to improve one’s memory.
Have you ever heard of RAS, otherwise known as the Reticular Activating System? Apparently, when we write by hand, this stimulates RAS cells and whatever we are focusing on at the forefront of our minds becomes processed into its deeper recesses. Therefore, it is imperative that when writing, we remind ourselves of how important the words are that we are writing – even if they are to ourselves!
Journaling can help us learn from past mistakes. When we record a past experience and reflect on the lessons we have learned from it, it moves us forward. Drawing upon these new insights, we can then approach similar issues or problems more effectively and secure a better end result.
Honoring Our Fathers And Forefathers
In our youth we easily forget to honor those fathers and father-figures who love and guide us. As we grow older, and hopefully wiser, some of us begin to realize that our fathers are the unsung heroes we never appreciated much. If we are one of the lucky ones, they were our champions growing up.
Always stalwart and steady, no matter what was going on around them or preying on their minds. How often must they have ended their day wondering whether they were doing enough for their families and what the future might hold?
After the fact, sometimes they openly share the worries, fears and insecurities that became all too real in times of crisis, but these challenges were carefully hidden from us, so as not to frighten us.
For those of us who have fathers who fought in wars for our freedom, we owe a great debt of gratitude. These courageous men who may have been terrified in the face of grave danger, fought bravely for their beliefs and the safety of their families. Many were lost or injured. Most returned home, greatly changed. And yet, we rarely heard about the realities of war, or their sacrifices.
Striking a balance between strength and vulnerability is a never-ending work in progress. Blessed is the man who finds his equilibrium with a calm, cool demeanor in the midst of the chaos that surrounds them. Blessed also are the children who call him “Dad.”
To the men who have acted as leaders and mentors to many protégés, perhaps without even knowing it, a great deal is owed. Whether it has been through leadership in business, teaching in schools, or volunteering in communities, many have no idea how deeply they have affected those whose lives they have touched, even peripherally.
The Extraordinary Treasure Of The Ordinary
It is unfortunate that so often tend to take the ordinary for granted. Ordinary things that we do not consider unusual or special is seldom something we excited about. But the very things that one person might consider ordinary, is a magical treasure to another.
When I was about six years old, I remember being at the ocean looking at some beach roses, when a butterfly landed on one of the roses right in front of me. Even at that age, I intuitively knew this was somehow a special and significant sign. My dearly departed grandmother used to love beach roses and butterflies. I did not know it at the time, but right then and there these two things became my future mediumship symbols for someone’s grandmother in spirit.
I thought it was the most beautiful butterfly I had seen in my young life! I was excited to have my sister see and experience the beauty of it, so I called her over. To my surprise she shrugged and said, “No big deal. I see butterflies like that all the time.”
Her cynical reaction took some of the joy out of the experience for me at the time. At that young age, my older sister’s opinion on things mattered a great deal to me. But I have grown wiser over the years.
Later in life, I could not help but wonder why my sister did not see the world as I did in those days? The answer that eventually came to me was that it is all in the timing. It is about what is going on in our life at a given moment in time. One day we may look at things a certain way and not really see them as beautiful or anything special, while on another day we might be thrilled and amazed by the exact same things.
For example, we frequently travel the coastal road in my area. One day last summer, at the height of the pandemic, we were slowly driving along this road. with no rush to be anywhere at a designated time. Normally we would be in a hurry to get somewhere, but due to Covid-19 there was nowhere urgent where we needed to be.