Confessions of a Spa Junkie

Ok, I confess, put me in a spa full of personal pamperings and I’m like a kid in a candy store!  I’ll have one of those, two of those and five of those!  Everything about a spa rejuvenates and relaxes me, and centers my soul.  From the music to the aromatherapy to the sound of the waterfall, not to mention the amazing treatments.  Massages, facials, pedicures,  manicures and special treats like mud baths, “lavender dreams” and “the balancing waters ritual”.

That being said, it is important to keep even “healthy” activities in perspective to avoid an “unhealthy” environment.  Anything taken to an extreme can cause chaos and conflict.  If I went to the spa everyday, all day, my bank account would be empty and my family would be full of neglect.  Balance is key.

Find that something that feeds your soul.  As long as it’s a “healthy” filling and  your life is in balance, you will feel the benefits in all aspects of your daily living.  After a massage, I am so much more receptive, and kinder, to those around me.  My physical, mental, emotional and spiritual components are in sync and my intuition is clearer.  All pathways are open to the offerings of the universe.

What is it that brings a smile to your heart and a jump to your step?  Take a dip into the sweet delicacies of life and feel the freedom!

Only Your Shadow Knows….

The “shadow side” gets a bad rap in our culture.  We are expected to think, act and perform “properly” in our everyday endeavors.  People who choose to step out of the box are often frowned upon as strange or trouble makers.  I suggest that it is healthy to explore your shadow.  In the yin yang of life,  how can we have light without the dark?  How can we experience happiness without sadness?   You simply cannot experience the full impact of joy unless you have had immense emotional pain in your life.  You appreciate the abundance so much more in your life when you have had nothing.

The late Psychiatrist, Carl Jung, developed theories pertaining to one’s shadow.  He believed that “in spite of it’s function as a reservoir for human darkness, or perhaps because of this, the shadow is the seat of creativity.”  He went on to say that “everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.”

In other words, get out there and explore your shadow side!  Create and allow yourself to be whole.  Learn from your lessons as you travel your journey, no one elses, just yours.  Some of my most painful experiences in life have been my greatest gifts.  Those thoughts that you repress into your unconscious mind will inevitably push to be seen.  Don’t fight it, embrace it! The fight often causes more turmoil than the release.  Learn from it and grow into the wondrous flower you deserve to be.  The author, Anais Nin, has a beautiful quote that reads, “and the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”

Don’t be afraid to blossom.  Enjoy life, have fun, allow your own secret thoughts to come to you, guilt free.  Be free, express yourself, and don’t concern yourself with others opinions of you.  It’s really none of your business what they think of you anyway.  Walk your own spirit path and allow yourself to be guided.  You will find your way.

A Breath of Fresh Air

Here’s a little test for you today.  Throughout the day, focus on your breathing.  Whether you have a busy day or a calm day, I ask that you consciously stop, sit or stand up straight, close your eyes or just focus on one point, and breathe in through your nose and out your mouth.   Allow your belly to expand as you breathe in order to allow the oxygen to flow through your whole body.  Do this for as long as you feel comfortable, several times throughout the day.

At the end of the day, sit quietly, look around at your surroundings and be conscious of how you feel.  Any different?  My guess is YES!

Calm your mental, emotional, physical and spiritual self today.  It’s worth your time.

The Vertical Coffin

I once had a wise old Crone ask me, “What are you doing to make your life count?  Are you listening to your heart, your soul’s purpose, or are you just going through the motions of your daily routine?”  She then went on to say, in her firm motherly voice, that I am not to wither away in this life!  “Wake up!  Enjoy it, follow your heart, listen to your intuition, and don’t you dare let ANYONE pull you away from that!”  Words of wisdom from a woman who lived, and still lives inside of me.

Have you ever seen the movie, ‘Night of the Living Dead’?  I remember seeing it in high school with a group of my friends, and I still remember it vividly, to this day.  A cluster of people awake from the dead and are wandering aimlessly through the town.  They are alive, but dead.  And although it was kind of a creepy movie, it had a message.  So many of us appear to have no direction and feel extremely lost inside.  If you get nothing else from this post, get this, you are NEVER lost!  There is so much inside of each and every one of us!  You have to consciously look, and see, and act.  Make that choice to have joy in your life!  Instead of running that errand today, like you do everyday, go for a hike, ride your horse,  get a massage, go to a movie, go to a bookstore and sit in a big chair and read, go skiing, go to lunch with a friend, sign up for that conference, roll in the snow with your kids…whatever your heart’s desire.  That errand can wait until tomorrow, and so can your vacuum cleaner!  Your “to do” list never ends, don’t wait to finish it, break it up.

Throw down your broom and get out there and have fun!  You’ve got nothing to lose, and so much to gain.

If I am Perfect, You will Love Me

How many of you out there have gotten caught in the trap of “perfection” as a means of getting the love you crave?  Yes, I said trap.  It becomes a prison and a never ending battle that only leaves you exhausted.  If it is love you are wanting in your life, I suggest you look inside to find the joy.  What makes you happy?  What can you include in your daily existence that brings a smile to your face?  Connection to people, places and things that are in alignment with your core values and beliefs will not only allow you to keep your spirit in tact, it will allow you to fly!

When you attempt to “people please” to gain approval of someone else, you often become someone you’re not.  The authentic self is diminished and so is your self esteem.  For those of you who do this (and you know who you are), is it ever enough?  Be honest with yourself.  One tactic doesn’t work, so you try another one.  Before you know it, your self respect gets lost, and so does the respect of the person you are trying to please.

So take the chance of pleasing yourself and see what happens!  The truer you are to your heart’s desire the more it all miraculously falls into place.  Pick up your pieces and soar!

I Love You, Dad

Today is my father’s birthday.  He left this earth to fly with the angels 17 years ago.  The thing is, my dad was an angel on this earth.  For those of you who knew him, you know what I mean.  I cry as I write this, thinking of so many memories.  He was a guy who was always there when you needed him.  Not only was he a father of 8 children, he took some others under his wing as well.  Always the dad with the stop watch at the swim meets, always on time to pick us up at the club, always the one you could depend on, literally the glue of our family.  The sound of his whistle is so clear to me, right now, as I sit here in silence.  As my brother, Norm, wrote in one of his songs….”Oh Brayley Road the country in my soul, how I miss those days on old Brayley Road….and I can taste those macintosh apples in the spring time sun, and I can smell those lilacs bloomin’ when the mornin’ comes, and I can hear my daddy’s whistle a mile down the road, just the feeling I get right now makes me want to go down…old Brayley Road, the country in my soul, how I miss those days on old Brayley Road.”

My dad left me a dime last night.  It is one of the many ways he lets me know he’s still with me.  I find them in various conspicuous places.  It gives me comfort to know that I can talk to him at any time, night or day.  He especially shows his presence around his birthday, and Valentine’s Day, the day before he passed.  So fitting for such a sweetheart.  I love you, Dad.

Remember those you love, today and always.  They are treasures that may move to another dimension, but they can never be lost.

DAD

There was a man, and he was tall and strong

And he ran right through my life

He was sharp and funny, but he was quiet most of the time

And he is the eagle in my soul

He carried me over my doubts, there in the rain he washed them out

And into the sun he lets them fly

Knowing that love will never die

And I saw him running once, and with his hair blowin’ in the wind

He seemed to me to be the greatest man that ever lived

And I wonder, as I think of him, and a tear drop fills my eye

Does he know, that love of his, still runs right through my life

Song by Norm Weintraub, Jr. (my bro)

Energy Vampires

Are there certain personalities you spend time with, and when you leave them, you feel depleted?  Do you feel drained and begin to take on their negative energy?  If you answered yes to these questions, you are very likely spending time with an “energy vampire.”  They are people who feel so empty within themselves that they pull from your energy in an attempt to fill themselves up.  They have no consideration for others and will gladly take your energy at any opportunity.  Your kindness may fill them temporarily, but they soon return for a refill before you can catch your breath, and you become the empty one!  You cannot, and will not, “fix” this person and make them feel better, they have to do the internal work themselves.

So how do you keep your own energy tank full while spending time with these personalities?  Boundaries, boundaries and more boundaries!  Tell them NO, guilt free.  They will very likely not listen to you, and attempt to cross the boundary anyway, but you need to stand your ground.  Don’t answer the phone when that tenth call of the day comes in, tell them it’s not a good time when they come to your door, stop the conversation when you’ve been listening nonstop for hours.  These are just some examples, I’m sure you have your own experiences.  The main thing is that you set limits in order to preserve your own healthy balance.

Don’t allow ANYONE to steal your peace.   It is your birthright to live a life full of happiness.  Embrace it!

The Giving Tree

In what way have you given lately?  Have you given your time, attention, money,  possessions?  Do something kind for someone or something today.  It will fill your heart with sunshine!

One vine I’m reaching out with today is http://hopeforhaitinow.org.  What is your vine?  I’d love to hear, for it’s in the sharing of “actions of the heart” that we become more whole….

Humor Us!

A dose of humor many times a day is one of the best remedies for an ailing heart and mind.  When you laugh, your whole attitude changes and you are suddenly catapulted to a different place in time.  So search out those activities that bring a smile to your face and a laugh to your belly!

For those of you who read my recent post, “Joie de Vivre”, you may recall my dance class and the joy it brings me.  Not only does dance bring a smile to my face but the connection with the women in my class often brings big  laughs.  This week, we’re dancing along and concentrating on our deep earthy African moves, and all of a sudden my friend yells out, “my ovary hurts”!  I’m still laughing as I write this… how does she come up with this stuff?  I’m just grateful that she does, comic relief is a beautiful thing.  Anyway, the saga continued, my other friend pulls out this little heat packet she had, hands it to my “ovary” friend who placed it over her ovary area and continued to dance!  For those of you picturing this scene, I hope you are laughing right now, and enjoying one of your daily doses, because mine is repeating on me!

So laugh, laugh, laugh, and sing, sing, sing, otherwise, none of it means a thing, thing, thing!

Angel Speak

Recognize and give thanks to all angels that come to you today.  Some walk this earth, some are more ethereal in nature, others make themselves known in your everyday existence.  Notice that nudge that comes to you in your sleep, or that feather that lightly touches your cheek.  It is very likely that your angel is giving you a message of love, hope, guidance, faith, and letting you know that you are not alone.  Never alone.  Always wrapped in angels wings…

I’d love to hear your angel stories/experiences….