parenting
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 Eternal Love Of A Mother
The nurturing energy of a mother is usually the emotional glue that keeps many families together. Whether it is their kindness, generosity, unconditional love or simply their joy and laughter, the mother-figures in our lives are often fundamental in helping us grow, expand, love and learn.
Many mothers must transcend what is possible to achieve the near impossible on an ongoing basis. Regardless of their circumstances, the impact of our mothers is deep and everlasting.
Perhaps it was your mother’s triumph over adversity that instilled a deep-rooted sense of perseverance in you. Perhaps it was by observing your grandmother’s social interactions that you learned how to function well in your community. There are many examples of how the mother-figures in our lives have nurtured and inspired us.
A mother’s unconditional love for her children is the most beautiful bond of love we may ever know. For this most of us should be eternally grateful. We are indeed privileged to have felt such loving care and protection.
For those of us who have lost our mothers, it is comforting to know that they continue to guide, guard and protect us in spirit, as we make our way through this life on Earth. Regardless of the turmoil we might endure, most of our mothers always come through with an amazing amount of love and care, both in this life and the next.
Our mothers can often also do more for us from the spirit realm, than they might have been able to do for us while they were here in this life. It is comforting to know that our mothers and grandmothers, including the mother-figures and nurturers in our extended family, are with us always, combining their earthly experience and newfound wisdom in spirit to impart to us even more than we could imagine while they were on the earth plane. Continue reading
Put Down The Phone And Start Living
I used to walk around the lake in the small town where I used to live. It was a picturesque hike that took you all the way around a large body of water that fed into the lake.
It was also a popular camping ground. Many city folks came to our little rural town to camp. Day after day, I saw them walking their dogs around the campsite, or relaxing on the park benches overlooking the water.
But nobody seemed to be appreciating much of the beauty of the natural surroundings. No, they were all too busy looking down at their phones!
In the good old days, people used to love breathing the fresh air, watching the children playing, looking for baby lizards on the sunbaked rocks, admiring a newlywed bride dancing on the beach, or marveling at the curious formations of the clouds above. These many beautiful nuances and subtleties in the world around us, are what make life joyful and precious.
Sadly, even seeing people walk their dogs saddens me these days. Everyone appears to be obsessed with their phones only. The dog owners hardly notice their own dogs, never mind anything else around them. They miss out on their dogs’ cute moments of joy and excitement.
Someday, when their dog is no longer around, they might regret missing these precious moments. So many lost opportunities and forfeited memories. Or maybe they will still just be staring at their phone.
Once, I saw a couple at the lake. They were also campers. They were lounging by the water, with their chairs far apart. Of course, this was of no concern to them, because they were both far too busy on their phones to even notice.
I’m sure they were posting pictures they took in front of the lake on social media. By the time they leave, they would have only those photos, but no real experiences or memories of ever being there. They were not at the lake, they were in cyberspace – the cell phone rabbit hole.
Energy Protection For Children
I just did a phone reading for client who said she was feeling as if “the life force has been sucked” from her, after she received an unexpected call from a former work associate.
In hindsight, she says, this individual had always had this effect on her when they used to work together in the corporate field many years ago. She didn’t actually put two and two together at the time, but now she realizes that it was him who used to constantly drain her energy at work. At the time, she simply put it down to work stress and exhaustion.
She was surprised to realize that, even over the phone, certain individuals have that ability to drain us! We then discussed how she could even better protect herself psychically and shield her energy field from this former colleague and other energy thieves she may encounter in life.
An interesting aspect of energy protection and psychic shielding that is seldom considered is how children are affected by the people they connect with in life. Children are exposed to various social settings and energy environments that could be toxic and negatively affect their energetic well-being.
The veterinarian I rely on for my pets told me last week that he finds his work overwhelming at times. He feels it is due to the human owners of the pets, rather than the animals themselves.
At times, he says, he finds some pet owners really exhausting, as they bring both their anxieties about their pets, plus their own personal concerns with them. I could sense what kind of clients he had been dealing with to make him feel this way and believe me it was not a pretty sight!
He then asked me about his own two sons who are growing up now and how he could advise them to shield themselves in the future from the energy drain of people, and even social media. This made me think of the increasing number of clients who have been asking me the same question. How can I protect my child from people their energy, should they find themselves in a toxic environment?
Work Through The Fear, Obligation And Guilt (FOG)
Reflecting on my life I have found how many of my early life experiences have subconsciously influenced me, mostly due to a lack of awareness that allowed fear, a sense of obligation and guilt to remain hidden.
These hidden influences mostly come from my formative years and became obstacles I had to repeatedly struggle with in my adult life with regards relationships, career, finances, family and community.
Once I discovered these non-empowering beliefs, it was time for me to get out of the FOG (Fear, Obligation, Guilt). In hindsight, several things I was unaware of in my family’s dynamics, were actually ‘seeds’ hidden beneath the surface that in time sprouted into personal challenges and self-sabotage.
Fear
Fear and insecurity are frequent visitors for many of us in all areas of life. I was constantly focused on the negative and worst-case scenarios. This is because our brain is wired this way for the purpose of survival. Much of it also depends on our upbringing. So, we must recognize this and catch ourselves early on, in order to shift our thoughts and emotions in a positive direction.
We must be cognitive of our behaviors and explore where in our life we have learned these negative, fear-based responses. Fear is a natural part of life, but can easily become a ‘whack-a-mole’ of frustration, anxiety, uncertainty and indecision, always showing up at the most inconvenient times.
Nurturing Your Psychic Child
Have you ever noticed how young children, especially before they enter school, are full of wonder, curiosity, and awe? And did you know some children are born psychic? Sadly, only a few children continue to use and refine their psychic gifts as they get older, as their sense of wonder diminishes. As a parent, guardian, or mentor of children, it’s our responsibility to engage with our young psychics to nurture and protect their gifts.
It may be our first urge to dismiss their imaginary friends, conversations with departed loved ones, or remembrances of past lives as ‘fantasies’ or the result of an ‘overactive imagination.’ Instead of this, gently encourage your child and ask questions. What they are experiencing is very real and may not entirely make sense to them.
For example, show them family pictures of ancestors. They may be able to show you whose spirit is guiding them. If they are curious about a particular time in history (a past lifetime), a family trip to the library for some good books or documentaries about that time can be a great learning experience. Imaginary friends, which most children seem to have at a young age, may actually be angels or other spiritual guides.
Some children also have deep intuition or psychic sight, which may unnerve the adults in their lives. Perhaps your child has specific dreams or instinctively knows things which they should not. It is important that instead of reacting with fear or anger, you respond with empathy and encourage and to talk about whatever is on their mind.
Instead of simple ‘yes or no,’ or closed questions, ask your child how they are feeling and what you can do to help them. These dreams, visions, or prophecies can be cryptic and not easily understood. The fledgling psychic may feel overwhelmed or scared by what they see. If a child feels they can confide in you, and trust you, they will be more willing to use their gifts.
Accepting Your Psychic Abilities
I was recently asked how I became aware and started using my psychic abilities. For many this can be a complicated, challenging journey, but I was fortunate to grow into my psychic gifts quite easily.
It all began with me growing up in a small town with a population of only 8000 souls. We were a large family of 12 children, which at that time was more common than today.
From the time I can remember, my mother used to foretell events and always spoke of a person’s “inner character,” as if she could clearly see their internal mechanisms as one would with an X-ray. It was also clear to everyone who knew her that she never seemed to be wrong in her estimations.
At the same time, my grandmother, as well as my father, frequently spoke of spirits coming back to visit us from the afterlife, and sightings of loved ones who had passed on was a common occurrence in our family life.
I can remember even as a very young child that I also just ‘knew things’ and certainly it never occurred to me to question the validity of any information I perceived. In my family it was not unusual to hear talk of someone having the “third eye” or the “second sight.” No one was ever denied their gifts.
As children we simply took these ideas in our stride and accepted them as natural and normal. We never had reason to question any of it and we didn’t realize this was not something all children experienced in their families. It was as common to us as any other domestic event that would occur in other people’s homes.
Psychic ability, metaphysics and the paranormal was something that we would naturally nourish growing up and utilize to whatever advantage we needed. Maybe ones of the reasons it became so strong among the siblings, was our inherent drive to survive under extremely arduous and stressful conditions. Only later in life did we come to understand that not all brother and sisters develop this strong psychic bond, with the ability to connect and detect danger in any situation, despite the great distances that might separate us to this day.