@Pantomime unexpected lessons

Writing from the heart this morning. Just letting it go. Seeing what my inner most self is trying to tell me. Exploring where my soul is taking me today. Going with the flow and let it come through my fingertips.

It’s Saturday morning, very early but I’m up and bright and bushy tailed because I have a long day ahead of me. My daughter’s first day of doing two shows for the Pantomime so I want to be there with her to let her know I am supporting her. It’s amazing to watch the confidence growing for all the children in the Pantomime this year.

They have moved from not knowing what to do. Not sure about what makeup they have to wear to applying it themselves. Taking charge of their own destiny. Getting themselves ready so when their cue comes they are up on stage. It’s wonderful to see them maturing and accepting responsibility for their roles. What's even more amazing is they range in age from 9 – 12. All from different backgrounds and schools but they have forged a camaraderie amongst themselves.

I am so proud of them. It’s not easy going on stage every night and becoming a character in front of a live audience but they have risen to the challenge. I never knew how much work went on behind the scenes to make sure everyone is ready and is costume. This is a first for me as well and I have forged friendships with people I would not have otherwise either. Telling me that every once in a while it is good for us to step out of our comfort zones. Do something different. Be amongst new people, new experiences. Stretch our boundaries. Because when we do, we see just how versatile and adaptable we really are. I know this experience has done that for me. And I know it has broaden the horizons of my nine year old daughter.

It also lets me see, as it has my daughter,  that at the base of it all we are all the same. Regardless of where we come from. Regardless of what we look like. Regardless of what we do on a daily basis. When everyone is scurrying around the dressing room area, no one knows where we came from or who we were before we walked through the door but once we are there we become the Pantomime family working together to put on the best production we can. No hierarchy. No questions asked. Just getting on with each other and striving toward our common goal of having a great show. And so far so good.

What a great experience for my daughter, for me and for everyone involved. An experience well worth having and one that will teach my daughter and myself lessons forever. That at the base of it all we are all the same. Spirits in human form of the One-Source seeking to love and to be loved.

Here’s to our day of acting, dressing, and working together. I enjoyed that flow this morning. Happy Saturday everyone.

Read More

We always get what we give

Lately I have been counseling many people about betrayal, disappointment, and rejection. There seems to be a lot of people who are coming face to face with their shadow selves. And obviously so am I because these people are coming into my life to teach me something about myself as well. By counseling them, I realise, I am actually counseling myself. Helping myself to understand more about my whole being. As much as I am helping them.

I recently had a conversation with a friend who is being challenged at work. She believes colleagues are taking her ideas as their own. Promoting themselves at her expense. Leaving her feeling angry, bitter and resentful. Looking at her body language I could see that she was feeling much smaller than she normally would. Her shoulders were hunched. Her eyes without their normal sparkle. Her energy exuding negativity.

I looked her in the eyes and told her she had to stop thinking about her colleagues. Stop giving them so much of her power. Stop fueling their ambitions by spiraling out of control. I advised her that she needed to take back her power by concentrating on herself. By challenging herself to find out what it is she wants out of life. Rather than on what she doesn't.  And if she did that she would find herself on a path that would make her life that much easier than the path she was presently on.

I also told her to forgive herself for being angry with her colleagues and to forgive her colleagues for their actions. To release the darkness that was threatening to pull her down to place she would have a difficult time finding her way out of. To surrender to where she was and ask what the lesson is that she is meant to receive from her colleagues and really listen to the answer.

And by giving her that advice I realized I was talking to myself as well. I heard the advice I was giving to my friend loud and clear as if it was an echo to myself.  My own advice resonated with me so deeply that I felt that much lighter. And the beauty of our exchange was that I could see I had hit a nerve with her as well. I could see the light coming back into her eyes. I could feel the tension oozing out of her shoulders. I could feel her energy shifting. Creating a bubble of support. Of love. Of understanding.

We both walked away from our session feeling much lighter than when we first met.  Feeling hope and inspired. Leaving me to think about her, about life, about myself. And what I realized is that when we give from the heart without expectation, without judgment, with love and compassion, we always receive in return.

Reminding me that life is about sharing, helping others, love and compassion. And when we live our lives that way, we are always rewarded. Because we are one. Sahring this journey called life together.

@compassion

@shadow self

@love

@forgiveness

@sharing

@ betrayal

@rejection

Read More

Ram Dass, Faith vs. Belief

According to Ram Dass, belief comes from the mind. Whereas faith comes from the heart. Faith is that which we find when our beliefs are shut to hell. When we have nothing more to feel or believe, all we are left with is faith.

Now I understand. I watched the clip of Ram Dass being interviewed by Oprah on Super Soul Sunday and in that moment something solidified in me I did not even know I was wrestling with. Now I understand why I keep going even when my beliefs in people, circumstances and outcomes have been annihilated. It’s because I have tremendous faith. I know what I know deep down inside. Even when I think I don’t. There is that little friend called faith that sees me through. Guides me through. Wills me through.

After my mother died, I believed in nothing. Felt nothing. Was angry. Afraid. Felt abandoned but then each day the light at the end of the tunnel got a little brighter, stronger. I remember feeling like something was helping me. Reassuring me. Staying with me.  At the time, I did not understand what it was. But now I know without a shadow of doubt it was faith that was willing me to go on. To believe in more than my beliefs. Or the beliefs of others. To understand my connection to the Spirit. The One Source. The Most High.

It was through the death of my mother that I understood and understand there is much more to us than the physical. We are spirit that lives on and on. Some believe in different physical forms. Others not. We are infinite beings. I feel my mother’s presence in my life more than I do not and she died some 36 years ago when I was a 13 year old girl on the cusp of learning.

What I know is it is faith that gets me through even when I think there is nothing to believe in. No one to believe in. Faith is very different from belief because it comes from a place of nonjudgement, nonexpectation. It comes from a place of pure and unrefined love and light. It comes from the well of abundance that allows us to flourish even when we think we can't. Even when everyone tells us we can't.

I know now more than ever, there is no belief that can kill my faith unless I allow it. Faith is what gets me through my darkest hour and reminds me there is always light after the dark.  I have faith. I accept faith. I am faith. And I go on in faith. Amen.

@RamDass

@Faith

@Oprah

@SuperSoulSunday

@Death

Read More

I believe

“…From a distance
There is harmony
And it echoes through the land
Its the voice of hope
Its the voice of peace
Its the voice of every man

From a distance
We all have enough
And no one is in need
And there are no guns, no bombs and no disease
No hungry mouths to feed
From a Distance
We are instruments
Marching in a common band
Playing songs of hope
Playing songs of peace
They are the songs of every man

God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance

From a distance
You look like my friend
Even though we are at war
From a distance
I just cannot comprehend
What all this fightings for
From a distance
There is harmony
And it echoes through the land
And its the hope of hopes
Its the love of loves
Its the heart of every man

God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance” Sung by @Bette Midler. Written by J@ulie Gold

I woke up this morning with the voice of Bette Midler singing this song in my head. Willing to write about it. To spread its message. Songs of hope. Songs of peace. Songs of love. That is what we need right now.

We are all far too consumed with all that is impossible, hopeless and that which is beyond our control. We need to shift our focus from the negative to the positive. All of us - if we are to change our world.

Each one of us is responsible for the energy vibrating throughout our Universe. Each one of us is responsible for our own wellbeing and thought processes. Each one of us has the power to change this world and our own circumstances by believing. Believing in the fact that we are one. And what one does sends a ripple effect throughout the Universe.

Some people are offended by the word God but it can be substituted with any name that makes us feel at peace – @Yahweh, @Buddha, the @Universe, @Mohammed, @Haile Selassie, AMost High of Creation, any name that brings harmony to our souls. Dig deep and feel the harmony that echoes throughout the land because it comes from a place deep within us all. And it is there for us all.

Close your eyes and listen to, From a Distance, and feel the power of those words. Feel your energy shift. Feel possibility replace impossibility. Feel the love we all share. Embrace the fact that we are of one cloth regardless of what we look like on the outside. Regardless of our socioeconomic background. Regardless of our religion. Or lack thereof. Regardless of where we live. We all come from the One Source. And we come from love, light, peace and harmony.

I believe. Do you?

@From a Distance

Read More

An inward @prayer of @surrender

When life feels like an uphill battle. When friends feel like enemies. When enemies feel like friends. When ill feelings replace good feelings. When life turns us completely upside down. What does it all mean?

Where do we turn? What do we do? When we feel like we are being constantly tested and betrayed and given away. When enough never feels like enough. What are we meant to do? Where are we meant to turn?

When we feel all these mixed up feelings, we are being asked to turn within. To look within. To search within. To centre ourselves and decide what it is we want out of life. Who we want in our lives. And to always try to see life from the viewpoint of others. To forgive. To let go. To surrender.

To know that no matter how dark it may seem, there is always light within. There is no one outside of us that can fix us. Can change our direction. Our path. But us.

There is no magic thing outside of us that can help us. Not any addiction. Attraction or affliction. The answer to all of our dilemmas comes from a place deep within us. A well of abundance, compassion and love. A place where there is more than enough for all of us to experience pure bliss.

So on those days when we feel like we can take no more. Trust no more. Love no more. That’s when we are being challenged to go to that place. To allow ourselves to dwell in that well of bliss. To ask no more questions. To fret no more. To just be and surrender to the Universe. And to trust that we are being shown exactly what we need to learn at all times.

Today I surrender all to my well of abundance. Today I trust in the Universe that I am who I am as I am. Today I accept I am a child of the Universe. A part of the whole. And I embrace all that is and trust that it is as it should be. Amen.

Read More

A foggy @Monday morning makes way for clarity

This morning my alarm went off and I could not believe it was time to get up. I felt like I had just gone to sleep. So I was really confused about where I was and what I was meant to be doing.

And then I realized it was Monday and I panicked. Froze. Thinking about how trying the next couple of weeks will be.  The Pantomime starts on Thursday and from today on I will be involved every night somehow in making sure my daughter gets to the theatre on time, makeup is applied and she is ready to go on stage.

 Rehearsals begin in earnest tonight for the Opening night on Thursday. My mind was spinning about how I was going to accomplish everything I need to get done at work to leave the office in time to get her to practice on time.

Then I went into an even greater tizzy when I remembered I had not been in the office for a week and I had so much to catch up on there. I wanted to put my head back under the covers and not come back out until December 16 when the Pantomime was over and the demands were lessened. I questioned why I get myself involved in so much.

I was so confused and out of sorts that I even forgot how to shut off the alarm. I forgot that I was in my own bed this morning. I forgot my morning routines. I even felt for the first time that I could not create this blog. That it too was another burden I had placed on myself. And as soon as I told myself my blog was a burden too, a sense of calmness came over me.

I realized that if I was going to make it through today and the next 13 days I would have to shift my mindset from lack to abundance. From pity to glory and joy. From too much to do to embracing I am where I am meant to be.

After remembering how to turn off my alarm and giving myself a pep talk, I got out of bed. Repeating to myself that I am grateful for another day on this Earth. For being at home with my family. For waking up on Monday morning with much to do. Rather than not waking up at all.

I then knew I needed to meditate. To seek inner peace. To give myself permission to quieten my mind. To allow myself space to see what I am capable of handling without panic. Without outside noise and interference.  So I looked for my 21 day meditations I had downloaded from the Chopra Centre.

At first I allowed fear to enter my mind again when I remembered I could not find the downloads over the weekend. But this morning because I had shifted my consciousness and told the Universe how much I needed those meditations, as soon as I opened my download folder, there they were.  Like magic they were waiting for me.

And I felt so much better. So much clearer. So much lighter. Particularly when the meditation that was waiting for me was all about abundance. And that fact that abundance is my universal right. Elation replaced degradation as I knew the Universe was answering my call.

I went into my meditation with gratitude. And when I came out, all became clear to me. The next 14 days will be trying. Exhausting and busy. But it is up to me to decide how I will be during these days. It is up to me to say no sometimes when I have enough on my plate. It is up to me to centre and focus myself so I can radiate the peace and abundance I carry within myself at all times. I chose to be where I am and will be over the next fourteen days. There is no one to blame for the obligations I have placed on myself but myself.

So instead of feeling overwhelmed this morning, I chose to feel grateful that I have so much in my life rather than feeling bad for what I don’t. I chose to shift my mindset to embrace all the abundance and good that flows throughout the Universe rather than on all that is bad. And soon my body was tingling and my mind was clearer and I knew no matter what comes my way, it is within Divine right to choose how I will be.

Happy Monday everyone and here’s to a couple of weeks of trails. I welcome them with open arms because I am where I am meant to be. With abundance, grace, and gratitude. Namaste.

Read More

Lost luggage leads to me a lesson well learned

Yesterday I was taught an invaluable lesson. I arrived in Bermuda from Boston after a week of travel to discover that my luggage did not make the journey with me. And instead of being angry or disappointed about that, I was more disappointed that I did not follow my own instincts. That I did not listen to my own inner compass which was telling me something was amiss.

The night before when I checked in in Chicago, I was told by the curbside check in handler that my bag would be checked right through to Bermuda because I had less than a 12 hour layover. What he was telling me made no sense and I told him so but he was insistent that what he was telling me was true. Still it did not sit well with me for two reasons. Firstly, I had an overnight layover in Boston. Secondly,  I was flying to Bermuda on a different airline.

I told the check in handler those facts and he said it did not matter because the rules are the rules. He was very convincing and he even showed me my baggage check claim which showed that my bag would be on the American flight to Boston then the Delta flight to Bermuda the next day. Even though it still did not resonate with me, because he was so convincing and showed me the evidence that what he was saying was true, I believed him.

However as I walked away from my bag sitting by itself on the curbside I had these feelings of unease snaking through my body. My mind telling me to check the baggage carousel when I got to Boston. I shrugged those feeling off as  I walked away thinking I was just being paranoid and trying to control situations that were beyond my control.

When the flight landed in Boston, my inner radar again peaked and told me to go to the baggage carousel to make sure my bag was not there but I chose to ignore it thinking I had to trust that others are capable of doing their jobs. Not just me. I walked out of that airport with every sense in my body telling me to go back to the baggage carousel but I was so tired and it was so late that I decided to ignore it.

Through the night I had visions of my bag sitting in the Boston airport unclaimed but again I dismissed them. So when I got back to Bermuda and my bag was not there, I knew I had no one to blame but myself. My inner compass was telling me what to do. My inner voice was screaming at me to check on my bag. My whole body was letting me know that my instincts were right and the check in guy was wrong. But I chose to ignore all the signs that were blatantly obvious to me.

There was no one to blame but myself and I learnt an invaluable lesson. What was reinforced to me was, when we know we always know. No matter how convincing others are. No matter how we don’t want to hurt the feelings of others. We cannot ignore our inner compasses. Our inner voices. Because when we do, we always go down the path that will be the most difficult for us.

And I guess I have been ignoring my inner voice for the longest time now because the Universe chose to show me the power of my inner voice by teaching me a lesson in the simplest and most obvious way through the loss of my luggage. There’s no arguing that fact now. And for this lesson I am truly grateful. I get it Universe. I understand what those symptoms feel like now from this most basic lesson so I will do my best to listen and take heed. That’s only if I want my life to be without struggle of course!

Read More