Plant a Dream Seed!

Are you a blooming human?  Are you ready to manifest your wildest dreams?  Are you ready to live the life you know you deserve?

The world is evolving and ascending with each passing day.  I firmly believe we came here with a purpose.  Are you living yours?  I wasn't until recently.  I was shown my dharmic purpose many years ago in a journey.  I didn't understand it and couldn't make it fit into the conventional wisdom I held.  I gave up on it and let my ego trick me into following a much "safer" and way more difficult path of resistance.  

My Red Tent experience opened me to amazing shifts in consciousness and awareness that's surfaced my dharmic purpose once again.  I've grown and I'm now in a space that I grok what it means and how to bring it to fruition.  Planting a Dream Seed is one more tool.

I invite you to join me by Planting your Dream Seed in the Blooming Humans Garden.  Spend a few minutes each day contemplating the power~filled possibility.  ASK for guidance on how to grow and nurture your Dream Seed and take ACTION on the inspiration you receive.  Share your Dream Seed with others, invite your friends and family to plant their own.  Let's co~create an over~flowering garden ~ divers, healthy, and filled with possibility!

I also invite you to share your Dream Seed in the comments box below.  I'd love to know who my "neighbors" are!

The 9 Skills Every Woman Should Master

Today, I'm sharing an article written by Christine Kane, Mentor to Women Who are Changing the World. (I *love* that!!!)  As I move forward in my journey I'm treated to daily reminders of the synchronicity of the Universe.  This article parallels an "epiphany" I experienced in my coaching group yesterday.  As I reviewed my mind-map of goals and tasks for the next three months of my life, I realized I filled five pages with "chores" and "services to others."  FIVE pages of giving away my time, energy, and resources with NOTHING coming in.  

WHOA! 

*BLiNG* "Order UP!" called the Universe and delivered this article to my inbox!

The Nine Skills Every Woman Should Master
by Christine Kane 
There's a popular Esquire Magazine article called "75 Skills Every Man Should Master." There's stuff about baseball, neckties, and other things that most of the extraordinary men in my life could care the least about.

It got me thinking about the happiest, coolest, most successful women I know. And how they would take the question of mastery about 40,000 leagues deeper than neckties and baseball.

In fact, it dawned on me that the burning desire beneath my outward goals is almost always the mastery of one of the following skills. The goals themselves - be they money, fitness, etc - are reallythe means to becoming a student of something much much cooler.

So, here are 9 Skills Every Woman Should Master...

1 - Reveling in your own preferences.

Taking the time to notice your delight. Trying new things, and honoring yourself enough to make time for them. (No matter how stupid they seem.) This is the key to the authenticity we women crave.

Unapologetically reveling in your own preferences gives you permission to be real - and serves others by letting them see your joy and choose (or not) to bask in it with you!

2 - Listening without judgment.

I'm convinced that suffering comes from judgment. Not just self-judgment. But ALL judgment.

That being said, many people think that "listening" means "waiting my turn to talk." Which means that much of our time is not spent actually listening. It is spent judging what's being said.

Learning how to truly listen without judgment - whether to another person or to yourself - awakens the intuition. It heals and empowers the speaker. It enriches the present moment.

3 - Discerning "Nurture" from "Distract."

Many of us lead exciting, challenging and sometimes stressful lives. We are serving children, clients, parents, co-workers. Our self-care matters if we are to be of true service in the world.

There's a huge difference, however, between nurturing ourselves with what we truly want and need - and distracting ourselves in order to stuff the stress or fill the time. Learning that difference, and honoring our true needs (ie, getting a massage vs. eating a sleeve of Oreos in one sitting) is crucial.

4 - Letting go of the need to "fix."

Most of us know that when we try to fix another person, we rob them of empowerment. (And often, our "fixes" are more for US than for them.) Allowing others to find their own wisdom, to make mistakes and to be exactly where they are on their path teaches us to accept the present moment as well as the mystery.

It also teaches us that we are not the ultimate deciders of what is right and wrong!

5 - Becoming an Imperfectionist.

Having a purpose, taking action, trying new things - all of these contribute to our deep satisfaction and joy. When we expect ourselves to be perfect before trying new things, we cut off many avenues to happiness.

When you become an Imperfectionist, you finally recognize your ego voice exactly for what it is: Your own personal Success Prevention Expert.

6 - Getting Out of the Comfort Zone.

Our growth and success are often proportional to how often we're willing to let ourselves be uncomfortable. We kid ourselves (and our souls) when we convince ourselves to play it safe.

Getting out of the comfort zone doesn't mean extreme sports or stepping onto a stage. Sometimes it can be as seemingly small as saying no - or trying a yoga class.

7 - Saying No with Clarity.

Learning to say no is really about learning to say yes.

When we say no to something we don't want to do, be, or have - we are actually saying Yes to our deeper desires. Many women don't believe they can have what they truly want, so they learn to settle, and their lives are filled with "maybe's."

Saying no - with clarity and without explaining - is really about honoring other people as well as ourselves.

8 - Allowing disappointment.

When we say no, or when we follow our dreams or true callings - people might be "disappointed" in our choices.

Life is not a campaign. We don't have to get votes. People can love us and still feel disappointed that we didn't do it their way. Too many women go on campaign trails to get others to agree with them before they take proactive steps. This only serves to rob them of the creative energy they need.

Allowing people their disappointment sets us free.

9 - Making support mandatory.

I can't remember NOT having a coach. It's now a requirement in my life in the same way it's a requirement for a world-class athlete.

I feel the same about hiring people and about asking for help. Too many women hope for the best and go it alone. (Been there, done that!)

Well, remember this little ditty from Einstein: The problems we face cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.

Translation? Get support, training and encouragement. Make it a mandate. You will soon discover a new level of lightness and velocity!

---

Christine Kane is the Mentor to Women Who are Changing the World. She helps women uplevel their lives, their businesses and their success. Her weekly LiveCreative eZine goes out to over 20,000 subscribers. If you are ready to take your life and your world to the next level, you can sign up for a F.R.E.E. subscription at http://christinekane.com.

A Whole New World

That's what life feels like lately ... a whole new world!  I feel like Jasmine on her first magic carpet ride ... where Aladdin sings, "tell me princess, now when  did you last let your heart decide?"

I must admit, I've always had a secret passion for Disney princesses.  They're smart, beautiful, talented, and well they're Princesses ... hello!!  *grin*  I grew up on the magic of Cinderella but soon realized that "happily ever after" takes love, compassion, perseverance, and more than a little action and effort on both parts.


Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling through and endless diamond sky ... of possibility!  My reawakening consciousness is delivering unbelievable sights and indescribable feelings.  I'm allowing myself to be guided by the Universe.  It's like stepping onto that magic carpet.  Will it fly? How can it? It's a freaking rug for Christ sake!! ... but it does!  It soars higher than I've ever dreamed because of faith.  So I blindly take each step, some of them baby steps, trusting in the support and guidance of Godde.  I'm always surprised and grateful when I see the spot light move with me ... shining brightly before me illuminating the way.


That's where I find myself, in the spot light pursuing a career change.  I've enrolled in a Life Coaching program and I love it!  It challenges me daily to look deeper into myself, to uncover the root cause of my decisions and take responsibility for my life. 


I'm identifying monsters and shining beams of light into the darkest corners of my ego.  I'm growing and becoming so much more than I ever imagined.  I'm up to my eyeballs in responsibility and like Jasmine on the magic carpet singing, "I'm like a shooting star, I've come so far, I can't go back to where I used to be." 

Collage as Divination

Yesterday I attended a collage playshop and was BLOWN AWAY by the insights I received.  I went in thinking it would be a fun, creative afternoon.  I had no idea it would be so insightful and could be used as a tool for divination.  


Divination, just in case you don't know, is the attempt to gain insight to a question or situation by way of a standardized process or ritual.  It's from Latin  "to foresee, to be inspired by Godde."  There are many forms of divination out there, the key is finding one that *speaks* to you.  My favorite (until now maybe) has been tarot cards.  I love reading cards and Spirit flows freely through them.  I've collected many decks over the years, some I could read from and some not; some I just had to have because the art was so spectacular.  Maybe that's what drew me in about collage.  It's given me a new way of using imagery to divine messages from Spirit and to gain insight to my subconscious.  


From a scientific perspective but without delving too deeply into the numbers...  With all of our vast knowledge and advances in medicine, we know so very little about the majority of our brain functions.  We use our left brain 5% of the time (yes, for ALL those left brain activities!) and our right brain is processing the other 95% of stimuli.  It's where our subconscious lives, plays, and constructs the experiences of our world. I think it's where our Godde Self resides.  It's our intuition, that little voice or screaming insistence, that *knowing* that comes from out of nowhere.


The right brain is our animal brain.  It's scanning the environment for all the sights and sounds useful for survival.  It's responsible for vision, spacial sense, music, body senses, memory, the creative "yes" center and the area of inhibition or "no" center to balance us and keep us safe.  The right brain speaks to us in images and it talks a lot.  Unfortunately, in this society, we've trained ourselves to be dismissive of the right brain, giving more weight and value to the logical left.  When we choose to pay attention to the right brain, it can, it will provide you with incredible insight into your personal landscape.  


Enough of that, let's get on to the juicy, creative, right brain stuff!


Supplies - it's pretty much the same stuff used for the Magical Mystery Vision Boards.  I like canvas board for this project instead of poster board but either one works.  I also personally like filling in "white" space with paint.  That's me; if you think you might, an assortment of craft paints and brushes are obviously helpful.


The process is pretty similar too but there are a few differences.  I always begin pretty much everything with lighting some incense and finding the music that suits my mood.  From there, get comfortable, ground and center yourself and find that place in the quiet where you feel the connection to, the oneness with everything.  Ask yourself, "What do I need to know that would be most beneficial to me right now?"  You may get an answer ... hear words, see images ... you may get nothing.  It doesn't matter.  The asking is what's important.  Trust that the answer is coming.


Begin flipping through your magazines; do this very quickly so that you stay in your right brain.  If you feel your left brain drawing you into an article or debating about whether or not you should use a particular image, sit back, close your eyes and connect with your right brain again.  When an image strikes you rip it out and set it aside.  Don't think this through.  You're staying in your right brain.  There is no right or wrong picture and you'll rip out more than you'll use in your collage.  Honestly, I sometimes get carried away with this part.  My inner artist devours the images like she's been starved of sustenance.  (...she probably has.  One of the many things I'm learning about myself on this journey.) 


After a bit, you'll have a nice pile of pix to choose from.  Sort through and begin to pull out the ones that seem the most important.  It's okay to not know why or how they'll fit together, TRUST that it's part of this yummy process.  Listen to your body, it will guide you to cut some a certain way or only a specific piece.  In yesterday's collage, I was guided to cut a young boy from a group of children.  Not so easy, but take your time and pay attention to how it feels. 


The feeling is everything! 


As you cut out the various images begin to lay them on your board.  They will tell you where they want to be placed.  Sometimes, even moving it a fraction of an inch feels better.  Trust the feeling...it's your Self / intuition / sub-conscious / Spirit speaking to you.  Begin gluing them in places as it feels right.  Don't forget to step back from time to time to see how the next piece joins in.  Will it overlap or does it feel better to go under?  


Trust your instinct to guide you when it's finished as well.  It isn't necessarily when everything is glued down, your space is covered, or you've used all of your images.  Again, it will feel complete.  Maybe there are chunks of white space; maybe it just feels full. Keep your attention on your body and how it feels and you'll know.


What does it all mean?


Step back, maybe even walk away or let yourself sleep on it before trying to interpret the meaning.  You'll have some idea of what all or some of each picture represents.  Don't be surprised though if there are some you cannot explain at all.  As time passes, days or weeks even, the message will unfold for you.


When you're ready to read it you can generally think of the top of the collage is the Spirit axis - the un-manifest; the bottom is the Earth axis - the manifest.  The middle is the focal point or what's most important in the collection.  I also can see it being the Higher or Collective Consciousness (top), Consciousness (middle), and Subconsciousness (bottom).  The left tends to indicate the past; the right, the future.  There are also relationships between opposing diagonal corners (i.e. upper left/lower right).  As always though, TRUST how you're being led.  This is about you after all and there is no right or wrong way to read your inner landscape.


There will be a flow to the imagery...find the beginning and follow it outward. Pay attention to how images relate to each other.  How do they under/overlap?  How do they join together?  What parts of the images are touching?  What parts are hanging in open space? Is the figure looking at you or something else in particular?  Is the figure facing you or does she have her back to you?  


Not every image will have a significant meaning; it could have a supporting role in your landscape.  As in life, it's part of what adds to the richness of the experience.  Follow your intuition to what's most important.  If you need to Google an item for help in understanding it's symbolic significance, by all means do so.  Check several sites and compare what you find.  I had to do that with Leopard - I had no clue and was stunned by my discovery.  Again, because I can't say it enough, TRUST what you're feeling.  You'll know when you're on target because it feels *good* ... that warm, fuzzy, love feeling.  


Here's my collage from yesterday, I call it, The Power Within.

My second day assessment is that it speaks of cataclysmic events in my life, of resurrecting and healing childhood traumas, of the guidance and peace of Godde, and of reclaiming my power ... of remembering that it's been inside me all along.  I'll let you know what develops.


I'd love to hear about your insights or see your collages.  Please feel free to share or post links to the photo.  


Namaste

It's O~K~A~Y!

I've been working with my inner child lately.  Something I've egotistically avoided doing until now.  She started showing up in my dreams about a month ago.  A precocious little thing who purposefully kept her back to me and pretended not to hear me when I spoke.  Normally that would infuriate me but this was different.  I was intrigued!


A week or so went by and there she was again, but as an infant.  In my self-absorption, I'd allowed her to be injured.  As I desperately searched help for help I was jolted awake.  I was physically shaken by my blatant neglect.  How could I live as an enlightened being when I was so careless with the most precious and fragile part of me?


I journaled about little precocious Angela.  I drew pictures of her (me) at the different ages she appeared.  I talked to her (me) for the first time in my life.  Not the ego-mind thinking out loud talking to myself but an honest heart-to-heart conversation.  I spoke to each age...infant, toddler, pre-school, school-age, and adolescent. I spoke from my heart about love, about using my adult powers to protect and be responsible for us, and to say it's OKAY to feel what I felt, explore the world, be curious, ask questions, experiment, and to say what I wanted to say.  It's OKAY to like what I like.  It's OKAY to ask for what I want and expect to get it.  It's OKAY to be me.  100% full vibrant, vulnerable, happy, smart, beautiful, quirky, sometimes crazy, chatty, creative, reclusive, moody, quiet, introspective, angry, silly, playful, sexual, inquisitive, unsure, sassy, sparkly me!


It's OKAY to be ME!  And, it's OKAY to be YOU! 


I encourage you to get to know your inner child.  It's an amazing journey that can be frightening and beautiful.  Get to know her, play with her, LOVE her ... that's all she's really looking for.


My Happy Birthday America wish to all today is:  
Embrace Life, Celebrate your Uniqueness, and fall in LOVE with YOURSELF!