Christmas: Peace And Goodwill? I Hope So!

ChristmasIt’s that time of year again. The TV is filling up with Christmas movies and ads, the daily countdown has begun and the shops are stocking shelves full of Christmas goodies. Yes. It’s inescapable. One of the most stressful times of the year is almost upon us again. However, there are ways to make sure you stay with the true Spirit of Christmas.

There is a Christmas carol called ‘It Came Upon The Midnight Clear’ which has the line ‘Peace on Earth, goodwill to men’. I love that line because it reminds me of what can be so special about the festive season. The desire, for however short a time, to feel the peace and goodwill all around. Families, friends and all sorts of strangers become more open to the idea of giving and receiving. People wish one another well. We all hope for a few days where the news that comes across our TV screens is all positive.

The lines before that one mentions angels bringing a message of peace. Angels represent the kind of love it can be hard to find – unconditional love. The feeling that happens when we recognise completely that the other person is the same as us. A human being. So when Christmas stress all gets a bit too much for me I love to find a church, quiet place or or open space where I can remind myself that we are all the same. I sit quietly and ask the angels to help me both feel peaceful and to behave towards all others in a peaceful way.

I also look very carefully at what I am doing. Am I bulk buying enough stuff for a month when I only require food for a few days? Is my list of presents to purchase getting too long and involved? Do I really intend to go out for a Christmas meal every night for a month? And lunchtimes too? Then I visit a local charity shop to remind myself that I actually have all that I need but others might not have. It’s important for me to consider those who don’t or can’t celebrate Christmas. Giving is a way to share goodwill.

That makes me realise that perhaps I’m putting stress on myself. The smiling, relaxed me has disappeared inside a het up, frantic shopper! So I step back and smile at as many people as I can. I go and watch the children queuing to see Santa looking for the excitement and wonder in their eyes. I make a date with family and friends to watch the Christmas lights get switched on. And sing loudly through the carol service in the square. So that when the day finally arrives I can wake to a morning world with peace in my heart and goodwill in my thoughts.

Whatever your beliefs, over the coming month I wish you a happy, peaceful, sharing and compassionate time. 

Day 737 of my blogging challenge

Weary But Satisfied: The Shift Is Happening

wearyIt’s been a long day. I’m feeling weary. However I’am also very satisfied with the flow of my day. I’ve been moving, shifting things to storage, to charity and to the rubbish tip.

Endings always make me weary. Tidying up all the loose ends can seem endless. Sorting what to keep and what to shift to new homes. As I worked today I was busy recalling all sorts of memories. Some articles had lots of strong, positive feelings attached to them. Others were really only passing through my life. In the piles of old paperwork I found a thank you card from one of my students. It made me smile thinking about all the people who had been to my classes. Surrounded by organised chaos I knew it was time for me to travel much lighter than ever before.

The energy shift that is happening now is all about powerful, positive changes. I’m determined to be ready for these. I know the world is weary too. The energy flow has been badly affected by all the fear that is rising to the surface. Because of this staying positive within myself has be a challenge. It’s as if a big cloud has filled the sky. Yet there is so much waiting for me once that cloud has drifted past. I am sensing the new world we are all co-creating and it is very different to right now. All I have to do is shift my ground, take forward my new projects and send the old energy off to be transformed. So being weary is ok. I’m finally finding the satisfaction of letting go. Saving the memories and releasing the reminder things.

If you are weary of all the change energy take a break. Pause. That’s what I will be doing very soon. Giving myself time to process my year and dream of the new one. Certainly shifting my focus to forward not back. I’m satisfied with where I am now and excited about where I am going. A good rest and I will be ready for anything my Guides bring in.

Day 737 of my blogging challenge

Concluded! The 6th Inspired 2 Write Challenge

empowerment concludedI’ve concluded that I love writing. That might seem obvious after 765 blogs and a book. However, it’s taken me a while to get to the idea that I am a writer. An author.

I’ve just concluded my sixth Inspired 2 Write challenge on Facebook. This year I took the opportunity to see if I could extend or expand my writing. And I decided it would be great to have some company whilst I was doing it. Hence the six groups and various numbers of people joining me to explore their writing voices. It’s been an amazing journey. Some people have been with me on each challenge. Others have done one or two. Each time I launch it I get really excited that I will be reading pieces from lots of different points of view. In fact I find that the time flies by and the end is happening before I know it. I love it so much that I’m usually working our when I can start another one!

Finishing something also brings a little sadness that these wonderful voices might retreat into silence again. I don’t want that to happen. Writing has given me so much throughout my life. Even in the times when my own writing voice was squished or fell silent. Overcoming writers block enough to get through two years of blogging showed me that I really wanted to get the words out into the world. And they empowered me to stand by my writing voice when I wobbled and worried. I feel that the blocking time has been concluded. Now I hope that the people who have been in the challenges will feel empowered to pick up their writing even when there is no ‘official’ challenge.

Knowing that I am concluding a year of lots more writing has also empowered me to make a big leap. A leap into writing nearly full time. So I want to share the my final piece to the group tonight.

” I love that I set these topics without thinking. I’m empowering my creativity to leap out and bite me on the bum. Especially with a request for 300 words! And after a full on day and a church service. I guess I enjoy a challenge. That’s what I have been empowering myself to do. Grab the challenge, manage the fear and enjoy the leap of faith. For a long time I let other people tell me what to do. Or I responded to their expectations. Without realising that I was giving away my power. It seemed to be one of my obsessions that people had to be looked after, be happy and that I must do as much for them as I could. Yet all of the time my needs shrank further and further into the background.

So much so that I become unable to express my needs because it felt like they wouldn’t be listened to. I was sadly in need of empowerment by the time I realised I had nearly burnt myself out with this imbalance.

Taking back my power has been a long, frustrating and uncomfortable journey into myself. But it has taught me how easy it is to strip the power out of other people. Gaslighting, passive/aggressive behaviour, disrespect or undermining language all take their toll over time. I gave away my power in lots of situations because i wanted to be kind to others, not seeing that they weren’t kind to me. But the regaining of power can be done. I have given myself permission to speak as I find. And allowed myself to let other people’s reactions pass me by. I understand that my intentions are good even if other struggle to see that. And I recognise that I have the same right to life as everyone else. So I make no apologies for living life my way. And enjoying doing so.

Empowerment is about what you will let yourself do to recognise your rights as a human being. It brings with it the requirement to have an ethical base to work from. And a heart full of compassion for yourself and others when issues of power, rather than empowerment, crop up.” Challenge concluded!

Day 736 of my blogging challenge

Friendships Come And Go But Each Adds Value

friendshipsIt’s been a day of friendships. I had a closing down sale at my Centre because I have to move on to new work. So it was lovely to greet friends as they called in and shared a final cuppa in that space.

Sometimes friendships last a lifetime. Sometimes they don’t. I have been very lucky to have good friends around me all of my life. Not necessarily always the same friends. My life has taken me to several parts of the country, different homes and neighbourhoods and a variety of people. I’m always amazed at the way in which new friendships spring up wherever I am. Sometimes that means I have had to let go of old friendships. Or that they have reached a natural end for both of us. Yet I also know that each relationship has been a part of my growth and expansion. I’ve learned to let go, to grow close, to share a friend with others, to have many different friends. Each pairing has been worth it.

So now it’s time to let some friendships fade a little into the background. I’m grateful for what these relationships have given me and for the people who have become my friends. I know that some people will stay in my life for longer. They have become part of the journey I’m currently on. But I’m also aware that they too may need to find a different path at some time in the future. When we move onto separate tracks I hope that I can honour what the relationship has meant to me, to us, in a positive way. That’s not always easy. Friendships sometimes end in disarray. With falling out. Or unhappiness with each other. Yet these endings are also valuable. They help me to work out what not to do in my next relationship with someone.

I have never expected to have life-long friends. But I have been blessed with a few of these friendships. I also know I have been blessed with every single friendship I have ever had. Good, bad or indifferent each relationship has helped me value other people and their share in my life. I’m looking forward to more friends on this next part of my journey.

Day 735 of my blogging challenge

Hold On: Letting Go Is Easier Thank You Think

hold onI went out onto the hillside for a little while today. It was muddy so I had to hold on to my walking stick in the slippy places. Despite that I somehow slid, climbed and plodded to the top of the hill.

As I watched a waterfall at the top of the hill I thought about the crashing, foaming water finding it’s way down the hill. I passed an old mill on the way up, abandoned long ago with only half of the shell still standing, beside the rushing river. The water used to be dammed to create power for the mill. To hold the water a sort of pond was created. But I wondered how often the water was too ferocious and escaped the containment. Or the times when they had to open the sluices and let the water go. I paused as the cold wind caught at me on the hill top. Water is the symbol for emotions. My walk seemed to have brought a perfect sign to me.

I am very good at holding on to emotions. I hold back from vocalising them so sometimes they become stuck. It can be frustrating when I really want to flow with what I’m feeling. It’s as if I am frightened that releasing my emotions will damage my structure. Yet I saw a solidly built mill, damaged by time, still clearly holding it’s shape. It made me think about me. Am I that solidly built structure still able to hold on despite the ravages of time? I had a sense of the value of when holding is a blessing and when letting go is too. Letting go of my Centre, even though it’s my decision, is bringing up feelings of grief for me. So on the hill I let them flow out and into the water.

I can hold the balance between grief and excitement. Because letting go of the Centre is also bringing me the opportunity to do other things. New adventures. Activities I really enjoy and feel passionate about. But which might have been squeezed out by my attention on the Centre. I am finding the letting go much easier that I once would have. I know the structure remains. And now I can build a new structure on those solid foundations.

Day 734 of my blogging challenge

Chat With Loved Ones And Friends Over The Miles

ChatMy day started in the early hours. I had an online chat with a friend in another country. The wonders of modern technology got us face to face even though there are miles between us.

When I think about my younger self I’m always amazed by our technological strides. I used to have a pen pal. We wrote letters to each other because phoning was too expensive. I would eagerly await the next letter so we could continue our chat. Of course even by air mail it would take a few weeks for the exchange of replies. But it was a glimpse into another world. She was in a country on the other side of the planet. It seemed very far away to me. As I got older the world began to communicate more. Mobile phones and computers were a faster kind of communication. I could chat more easily with my family and friends and email sort of killed my letter writing.

So sitting having a chat over Skype last night I was struck by how young people have so much more ease with chatting to people online. Setting aside some of the online stuff that is challenging I am fascinated by the speed with which we can connect continents and countries. The rest of my day has been spent doing mini readings. Connecting to the loves ones of people who want a chance to chat with the people they love. I couldn’t help but notice how much like an online conversation it was. And had a quiet giggle to myself that I was the latest technology to make that happen. Actually it’s been over one hundred and fifty years that my kind of technology has been around.

It feels as if it’s time for the Spirit World to send us all an upgrade. Or some new software to make having a chat easier. So my chat filled day has got me excited. I’m wondering when I will get my new, improved program to help me connect people up faster, easier and more clearly. I must ask my Guides when it’s due to be installed!

Day 733 of my blogging challenge 

Trust The Universe: A Skill To Master

TrustI know I’m always talking about trust. Trust me, trust them, trust it will be ok, trust the Universe. But it’s actually quite hard to master relying on myself, others, the Universe and to know it will be ok.

Yet it’s so important for me in the work I do. I have to trust my Guides and the Energy Beings to give me what I need to communicate to others. They have to work with me so that a positive, evidential message or communication comes out of my mouth. Certainly not an easy thing in the beginning because my Ego Mind worked very hard to build mistrust instead. In fact my Ego Mind seems to take every opportunity to get me mistrustful. It’s as if i’m Always looking for the catch. Of course I understand that life is unpredictable, risky and uneven. I have had my roller coaster rides plenty of times. But my Ego Mind makes a big show of pointing all that out at exactly the moment when I need to trust the most.

For a long time in my mediumship developement I remained mistrustful. Not only because of my Ego Mind but also because of the general level of distrust most people have towards Energy Beings. In the end I decided that I had to trust the experiences I was having. It made me realise that until you have tried to connect for yourself you are unlikely to get over the mistrust. Even if you are a believer. Because somewhere lurking in the back of my head is the Ego ready to bring up that feeling of mistrust again. Like an old, worn record playing again and again. Every time I gain trust in something a new reason to mistrust something else crops up. Some days I wonder if I will ever master complete, utter and unconditional trust. That’s what I am aiming for. Being able to let myself respond easily and openly to the energy flowing all around me.

I know that if I trust this Universal flow of energy everything will be ok. All that I require and desire will find it’s way to me at the moment I actually need it. I guess that little bit of mistrust is still there to give me something to aim for!

Day 732 of my blogging challenge 

Gratefully Thinking: The Way To Send Positive Vibrations

gratefullyI’m often asked how we can help the planet and the animal kingdom. Many people feel that they can only take limited action. That’s when I explain about gratefully thinking.

I know that so many of us want to be active in some way in honouring our planet. And the animal kingdom who share it with us. From an energy point of view everything has a consciousness of some sort. A kind of energy presence. Perhaps not what you or I would understand as a brain. But I would say humans are more than a brain too. I believe we are all Spirits in human bodies. So, for me, our consciousness is the Spirit, whilst the brain acts as a processor of tasks. I also believe this is true of the plant and animals. Even the tiniest one. And that’s why we should be practicing gratefully thinking about our whole system instead of one part.

For me animals do have feelings. So does the planet. At the moment humanity treats the planet and it’s animals as unfeeling, unthinking resources to be used and abused. We have successfully damaged this delicate ecosystem because we refuse to acknowledge it’s consciousness or the deep interconnections between it and us. That’s why one of the actions I know we can take is to begin gratefully thinking about all that the planet and animals contribute to our abundance. Of course, if we can approach our daily lives with conservation in mind then recycling, reducing energy use and the need for material goods will also play a part. I know that we can also assist in protecting and rescuing animals, especially by considering the chemicals we apply to the land, and creating ways to boost endangered species.

Yet there is a mind issue too. Gratefully thinking puts us in an attitude of gratitude where we are more willing to take less, protect more and plan properly for the future.

So what exactly do I mean when I talk about gratefully thinking? I try to sit quietly for a few minutes every day and think about the planet. I bring to mind the forests creating oxygen for me to breathe, the water flowing along bringing me a drink, the vegetables that grow so I can eat. Letting my mind wander I see the rocks and stones that give shelter, the grass for grazing, the nuts & berries there for me to pick. As I think about these things I am grateful. I know that I am blessed with everything I need by the gift of my planet. Then I think about the animal kingdom. Such a delicate system of species each interwoven with each other. The bees know that we need each species for the whole to work.

I think with gratitude about the bees, spiders, ants, mice, rabbits and so many others who live beside us in the world. They sustain us too. And they have become our companions. I have been fortunate to be surrounded all my life by dogs and cats. They have protected and soothed me in many moments. I am grateful that they decided to be a part of my life. As I feel the gratitude within me I send out positive thoughts for Mother Earth and all of her inhabitants to thrive and be abundant. Believing in the energy world as I do I know I am radiating both my gratitude and healing energy. It is contributing to the flow of positive around the planet.

I know that when as many of us as possible start gratefully thinking about our Mother Earth the boost of energy will make a great and positive difference for all of us. It’s not action as we usually define it. But I know gratefully thinking is an energy action as strong as any physical action I can take. Can you spare ten minutes a day to join me in boosting the planet?

Day 731 of my blogging challenge

Two Years Later: The Blog Challenge ….. Continues

two yearsTonight I’m going to take a moment to celebrate achieving a daily blog for two years. It’s a challenge I set myself that I wasn’t even sure I would complete. But I have.

Two years of a blog a day! Sitting down mostly last thing at night to decide what to write. Wondering if anyone was reading them. Imagining I might run out of things to say. Staring at a blank screen as the clock crept round to midnight. Wishing I hadn’t challenged myself. Yet determined to fulfil my promise to myself. I know I needed something big to break me out of a massive writers block. Because I also knew for a long time that I had at least one book in my head that needed to be written. Well it has been. And I’m now onto book two. All from asking myself to push a little bit further.

I’ve stopped worrying about whether my blog gets read or not. Because I’ve started to enjoy the words for their own sake. After one or two false starts I’ve realised that there is so much joy in expressing myself this way. My writing has become a wonderful thing to do to lift my mood. It keeps me clear of low vibrational energy. I can be me. The real me. And I know I am generally an optimistic, hopeful person. I’m so glad to have discovered that me again. In a way I think it’s sad that writing is taught in such a rigid way. Unless, like I did, you have a good teacher or two. Or even three or four. Now I encourage other people as much as I can.

Out of the same challenge four of us have written a book each. Maybe there will be more who find the power of words in the future. Of course, my challenge isn’t over yet. I set myself the total of one thousand and one blogs. Or maybe I could up it to one thousand and two. Who knows? All I know is that my writing challenge continues.

Day 730 of my blogging challenge

Picking A Random Card: The Message For Today Is …

picking cardsI love my oracle and tarot cards. They can be so random. Yet really accurate in picking me a message out of thin air. A message that makes perfect sense.

I confess to having about forty packs of cards. It’s true that I used to have more but I have been releasing packs to new homes for a month or so now. I love the idea of picking from a randomly chosen set and seeing what comes out. Or even what falls out of the pack for me. My Guides often niggle me to get the cards out when I’m not listening to what they are saying. Or when the messages are getting scrambled. Sometimes it’s about wanting to get a quick and simple signal to me. And I always reach for the cards when I feel really stuck. Because I know that whatever comes out it will make me stop and think. That’s the best way to get me unstuck!

My first pack came to me from a friend. I loved them but was really unsure how to use them. Then I saw a second pack and really feel in love with their design and artwork. The explanations were a bit sketchy. I remember picking out another set because I liked the way the cards had been interpreted. My fourth set came when I was looking for a set that had everything. By the fifth set I knew I was hooked. With each set I remember the basic journey of the tarot and use the oracle cards in a similar way. They are all a journey of self-discovery. When I get a card I check where I am in the journey from being a fool into being wise. As the message will help me to find the wisdom of the moment I am in.

Then I can apply the guidance to my situation, picking a path through the events of my day, making sure that I avoid the pitfalls the card is hinting at. If you have never used oracle or tarot cards please give them a try. Your Guides might be picking you a pack so that you can make better choices. And free yourself from doubt and stuck energy.

Day 729 of my blogging challenge