MEMO: From Your Bad Mood

MEMORANDUM

TO: You

From: Your Bad Mood

It has come to my attention that something is amiss within.  I’ve created some signals to alert you to this matter that may include; frustration, pouting, depression, anger, sarcasm, aloofness, crabbiness, etc.

Sit with me, allow me to offer you information and awareness.  Take a few moments to get quiet.  Talk it out with a trusted friend.

Your task is to ask yourself; what is this bad mood about?  Then, allow your subconscious to offer you clues. Write down what you hear.

Listen. To your inner talk as your day unfolds.  Ask; is this my mood?  It might not be if you are sensitive to others emotions. If so, ask this feeling to move on. Outloud.

If you choose to ignore this memo, please be advised that you may receive additional memos like this one in the future.  I’m here to assist you in being clear and in touch with your soul.

April Full Moon Dreaming

Every month I create a full moon board inspired by Creative Living Coach  Jamie Ridler,  as a creative project and a way to tap into my inner dreaming world.  It’s become a meditative practice as I take time to connect to my soul and with curiosity, see what shows up.  This month is full of blues, greens, ease, fun, and illumination.  Growing. Blooming. Glowing.  My wish for you as well!

The Temptations with Change

I love coffee. I love the smell of it, the taste of it, and the warmth of the coffee cup in my hand.  Savoring that first cup in the morning has become a ritual that I look forward to.  However, it’s time to take a break from coffee.  I’ve been listening to my body and this is what it’s telling me.

The first step with change is making a decision.  So I’ve decided.  Now comes the sticking to it part and the temptation.  This morning I recieved an email from Starbuck’s offering me a special; if I purchase a coffee drink in the morning I can recieve a free drink in the afternoon.  First thought, sounds good, I like it! Second thought, ha!  a temptation.

Sometimes when we make a change, we will get tempted to go back to the old way.  I look at it as a reminder about why I’m making the change; better sleep, calmer countenance, easier to meditate….lots of reasons.

If you’ve decided to make a change and a temptation appears, instead of lamenting about what you are missing out on, focus your attention on what you are recieving by NOT engaging in something.  Focus on the feeling you are working on creating with the change.  Feelings facilitate positive change.

Off to have a cup of oolong tea.  Perhaps I’ll be writing a love letter to tea soon.

Meandering and Savoring~Offers You Possibilities

I thought stopping by my favorite art store for some acrylic paint would be a quick in-and-out process.  However, I ended up meandering for longer than anticipated.  When I couldn’t find the lemon yellow I stopped in for, I turned the time into a sensory experience.  I wandered through all the aisles, touching papers and products, and drinking in the colors, textures, and tools.

Taking in all the color with my eyes, my vision expanded and brought me joy in the moment.  Color for me is energy, and it fills me up.  Looking at all the colors below moved me into what I call “possibility thinking”.

If you look at this photo and choose your favorite color, or one color, what happens to the rest of the colors?  When you finally make THAT decision, your choice has narrowed.

There are a plethora of possibilities when considering how to change, create, re-route, update your life experience.  Narrowing and deciding is an important part of the process, but it’s an end point.

When’s the last time you wandered and savored without choosing or selecting?  Stay open to more…more color, texture, feelings, ideas, things you haven’t thought of yet.  It’s a palette of possibilities out there. Oh yes it is.

Listen…to the Wisdom of Your Emotions

When I think about the water element, I feel it can be the most often neglected and misunderstood element.  In its extremes it’s a full on tsunami, destructive in its force OR dammed up to become stagnant, scummy and stinky.  The middle ground is a free flowing stream or river.  Ahhhh, now that feels better!

The water element can bring up  trepidation and fear which can be about having a feeling surface and not knowing what to do with it.  What it’s really about is control, or loss there of.  Emotions are like that as they rise from our depths and can be overwhelming.  But the good news is, the more you  listen to, learn from, and ride with your emotions, the better you’ll feel and the control issue can melt away.

I think of emotions as a GPS system installed at birth.  We’ve all got ‘em, so instead of pushing them back or ignoring them, find out how they can guide you.  Emotions are a language and information, period.

When we dam up the water element, pushing away or ignoring how we are really feeling, we create inner turmoil.  Our inner world becomes stagnant like a pond without a fresh spring to feed it.  We gather scum and debris, which is not good for our health.  The life force begins to fade if there is not fresh oxygen, created by movement. Depression can settle in here.

Consider the nature of water, it moves.  As the old Chinese proverb states, you cannot step into the same stream twice.  If you are feeling something, feel it and allow it to move.  And it will, it’s the law of nature.

This past week I found myself getting frustrated over a business issue.   This caused me to begin writing about my own past business experiences and a passionate blog post emerged.  Additionally, as I allowed this feeling to surface and stayed open to being with it, I gathered even more information about why this issue caused such a reaction within me.  If I had ignored my feelings, I can guarantee this situation and feeling would show up at a future date.  But now I know and there’s inner personal power in that.

Want more wisdom? Listen to what your emotions are sharing with you.  They may not always be the truth, but they are true to you.  Honor them, listen, and be gentle with your precious self.

If you’re interested in learning more about your emotions, I highly recommend the book, “The Language of Emotions” by Karla McLaren.

Same Time, Next Year

I admit it, the holidays plum wore me out and I didn’t even have a huge group of people for dinner at my home this year.  The week after I found myself moving very slowly, and sleeping in as much as I could.  Reflection is good for the soul, because we can stop patterns, redirect ourselves, and ultimately create the experience we want. When we listen, to our soul.

I love so many of the simple things about the holidays; looking at twinkling light displays, hanging out with friends and family, making fires, watching old movies, all doable, but trying to tuck them in between working and prepping left little time for these beloved activities.

Planning ahead….

So this year, I’m doing something different.  Over the weekend I flipped forward in my 2012 calendar and wrote in deadlines for all major holiday activities.  I also weeded through and purged 5 years of holiday cards past and entered all the addresses into a spreadsheet.  This year I’ll be able to to print out my card list on labels.  What a time saver and so easy to do.  I’m also putting away decor by area so it’s easy for me to find and display.  And, I’m throwing out or giving away decor I haven’t used in ages.  Ah… I feel freed up already.  I’ll let you know how I do next December.

I’m taking care of me ahead of time.  Planning allows for this and it’s not only about doing and tasks.  Planning for sacred space time is important too.  That’s my next post for you.

Consider how you can create even more enjoyment for yourself next year, this time of year.  What’s important to you?  Plan for it. What is not?  Weed that out. Who do you want to spend time with?

Wishing you a year of what your heart desires.  May your path be lit with the bright light of your soul, beckoning you home, within.

Atlanta Botanical Gardens, 12/30/11

Welcome 2012!

How do you welcome a new friend to your home?  Does your new friend find you slamming the back door on an old friend, 2011 and lamenting about the past?   Hmm…not a very good first impression.

You attract and experience what your inner world dictates, so keep your inner house clean and clear for the new that awaits you this year.  Unclutter the corners of your mind that may be filled with resentments or distractions.  Sweep away negative self talk.  Dust off your Soul and get ready to be who you really are ~  a bright shining light that has so much more to experience and give in 2012.

Here’s one of my favorite poems to start the new year.  May yours be filled with more room for you Soul to express!

This Is The Year by Russell Kemp

Wonderful, wonderful, fortunate you, This is the year that your dreams come true!

This is the year that your ships come in; This is the year you find joy within.

This is the year you are glad to live; This is the year you have much to give.

This is the year when you know the truth; This is the year when you find new youth.

This is the year that brings happiness; This is the year you will live to bless.

Wonderful, wonderful, fortunate you, This is the year that your dreams come true!

Review and Onto the New!

As the major cresendo of the holidays begins to quiet,  I create some reflection time to review the past year and create new intentions for the year to come. I’ve tried many goal setting “systems” over the years, and I’ve discovered that simple works best.   For me, if a system is too complex, I get distracted and overwhelmed and eventually I’ll let it go.

“Keep it simple.”

In the spirit of  supporting you in creating your best year yet, I’m offering you 3 easy steps you can take right now to create your year, your way.  These steps are closely aligned with the therapy process of reviewing and learning from the past, building on strengths, and taking action in the areas where you want to manifest change.  Are you ready to plan your 2012 road trip?  Come on, let’s hit the road, this is going to be an adventure!

1. Review

• What worked well in 2011 that you can build on and continue into 2012?
• What patterns continued to play out that did not feel good to you?
• What feeling was predominant for you this past year?
• What distracted you from a goal?
• What belief system, something you kept telling yourself over and over, stopped you from reaching a goal?
• What did you learn about yourself in 2011?
• Where did you grow?
• In what area did you feel stuck?
• What increased your energy and what depleted it?
• What seed was planted that will require continuing nourishment in 2012?

2. Plan & Design

Designing your new year is much like planning a road trip.  If you’ve got a destination in mind, you’ll have to plan a route to get there or you may drive around in circles and get frustrated.  Planning is part of the process and the following ideas will help you keep it simple.

• Choose the feelings you want to experience in 2012.  Here’s some words to warm you up: vitality, health, love, inner peace, joy, renewal, rest, creativity, fun, purpose, clarity…
• Who do you want traveling with you along the way?
• What destinations do you want to make sure you get to?
• What areas of your life do you want to focus on in 2012; work, relationships, spirituality, body, learning, emotional well being?

Choose at least 3 areas you want to focus on and write them on the plain side of a few 3×5 card’s.  On the other side, create a positive affirmation about each area. For instance; “I create healthy boundaries in my relationships and I feel empowered”.  Adding a feeling word locks the affirmation into your body.  Remember, you can manifest material items, but what is the feeling it brings you?  Creating from a feeling is like adding boosters to a rocket.  Post them where you can see them; in your car,  bathroom,  office , fridge, computer.

Now…

Close your eyes, imagine it and feel it, often! This takes seconds and this is the bridge to the next step.

3. Let’s Go!

Stay W I D E open to how your list will manifest.  As soon as you decide “this is exactly how it must look”, you shut  the door to thousands of ways it could appear.  If you miss the mark, keep going and start again.  Sometimes the back roads offer a new way to seeing things that might surprise you. Creating is about experimenting and being willing to make mistakes.  Allow room for this and you’ll expand your consciousness and your manifesting even more.

Keep it simple:

Review

Plan & Design

Action

My wish for you in 2012 is that you know and love yourself at a deeper level and that you experience your heart and soul’s desires!

If you’d like to create a visual poster of your 2012 intentions, I’m offering my annual Vision Board Workshop on January 21, 2012.

“Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Welcome Winter!

Gossip: Don’t Mess Up Cute by Acting Ugly

I was standing in line behind young girl at the Coca-Cola Museum here in Atlanta, GA recently , and I noticed the statement on her t-shirt, it read: “Pretty is as pretty does. My Mama said, don’t mess up cute by acting ugly”.  I thought what a powerful statement for young girls to embrace as it opens the door to clear communication and integrity in their lives. When we communicate clearly and honestly, we have a greater chance of receiving what we desire and we deepen our relationships. Otherwise, gossip keeps you skating on the surface of relationships.

When I find myself listening to someone talk about another person and the conversation moves into the gossip realm I find myself 1) defending the person being gossiped about 2) feeling very uncomfortable 3) wanting to exit the conversation fast.  Gossip is a passive form  problem solving as well as a false ego booster.

Gossip is about creating a false sense of power over someone else and it can point towards insecurities, fears, and wounds.  Gossip is a teacher.  It points out where your growing edge is.  And, it’s like any other addiction that feeds the ego, you’ll need more and more as it will never fill you up.  It doesn’t stick. Inner integrity sticks.

If someone is gossiping to you about someone else, you can be assured they will talk about you at some point. So why not stand in your inner integrity and stop gossip in it’s tracks? Here are some ways to handle gossip mongers:

1) Exit the conversation, change the subject.

2) Make a suggestion to the gossiper that they take their issues to the person they are gossiping about.  That is clear, truthful communication and it gets you out of a messy triangular converstion.

2) The most direct approach: tell the gossiper you don’t feel comfortable discussing someone else without them being present.  You take the chance they will get angry with you, because you are not colluding with them.  However you will lose an aquaintance not a real friend.  A real friend will share their feelings about what you said and they will stick with you to work it out. An aquaintance won’t.

You’ll keep your inner integrity intact and feel good right down to your soul.

Don’t mess up cute!