Time for camp and Ceremony again…
Posted by msterilinn on Jun 11, 2008
Today I am reminded how precious time truly is. We have one and a half weeks until we leave for Goldendale WA for Ceremonies and camping for two weeks. We Love to camp! There is something about living outdoors in the Summer that brings Nature into a truer focus, and helps us to honor the Land in a more intimate way. It is still quite cold at night, and the wind seems to blow often, yet for some reason we do not seem to mind those things. We just bundle up, prepare to get dirty and remember how precious fresh water is. There is just something about connecting with the Earth and utilizing her natural resources to survive that brings out the best in me. Some people love the City… I love all that is pure and natural about the great outdoors which brings about such a wonderful sense of freedom!
During this time, we all work together setting up Teepees, preparing sweat lodges, cutting wood, gathering fresh water, and getting evergreen bows for the Sundance shade arbor. My little S and I have our own special place, in the shade of an Oak tree, in which we camp each year. This sweet little spot is very near our main camp… although some folks have individual camps, there are several main camps in which we set up to cook, eat and socialize together. The greatest thing about this whole adventure is how well we all work together! Everyone pitches in, so no one is overburdened, and there is such a great feeling of comraderie. Even if we haven’t seen some people in a year or more, we just seem to come together as if it were yesterday since we last saw each other. There is so much Love, hugs and sometimes tears, and we just feel so very grateful for these lasting friendships which carry us through some difficult times.
Well then, time to get back to organizing our camping gear and supplies. We still have to some last minute things to attend to, and I need to finish up the beaded medallion of a horse, which will be presented to one of our beloved Elders at a camp meeting before Tree Day. We are honoring each of our Elders with a medallion to show our Love and Gratitude for the Wisdom they share with us, and I feel blessed to be chosen to bead one for a very dear friend who has touched my heart many times throughout the years.
So you see, about this time every year I am reminded just how precious our time together is… S and I treasure every moment spent with our friends and family who live far away. This year we have an extra special focus on the Children and teachings for them, as well as learning more about the plants and herbs around the Land, and certain survival skills. There should be some very interesting discussions and plans for the future, which I am looking forward to. I am very happy to see such positive growth. I wish to send out prayers for safe travels for our friends and family who are preparing for this journey as well.
A new smokin’ hot blogging Community!
Posted by msterilinn on Apr 18, 2008
When I started blogging, I had absolutely no idea how much fun it would be! I was really quite casual about it at first, and pretty much just blogged about things I am passionate about. I didn’t really think a whole lot about other people visiting my blog and actually being interested in what I had to say, although I did hope that I might touch some folks and get some attention gathered to help the endangered wildlife around the Earth. And I did think it would be great to get people interested in caring for the planet by stepping up and taking notice.
Never did I think one could actually earn money from blogging! Now I know better. Although this particular blog is not geared towards making money, primarily, it has served to teach me how I can do this with other blogs that I am creating. Through socializing with other bloggers in communities, I have not only gained a greater perspective of the blogoshpere and all the wonderful people and information available through this amazing aspect of the web, yet I have found many bloggers who actually make some serious money. This is how several successful bloggers make a living, and a really good one!
Social networking is one of the most powerful ways to gain exposure and build relationships. If you are seriously looking for ways to monetize your blog, or are just now considering blogging as a form of earning an income, a great first step is getting out there and joining some great blogging communities. The search engines just love these communities, and we can learn so much from other bloggers, as well as finding great opportunies all in one place. Meeting people from all over the world and learning about so many different subject matters is a very sweet bonus!
I would like to direct you to a hot new blogging community called SocialSpark. I have had enough experience with the people behind this project to feel confident with telling others just how powerful and big this is going to be! Their code of ethics is to be commended, and I truly feel that once they make it through the bumps of their newly launched community, this is going to be one of the finest places on the net to gather with other bloggers. People will be able to interact with fellow bloggers, as well as create profiles to put their best blogging face out there to gain some positive exposure. This is also a great place to advertise, either your blog or your business. You can get real time statistics and find the truly popular blogs to strike up a conversation, or help fellow bloggers get a foot up by mentioning their blog in a fair trade. There is so much more in the way of tools and socialization, so I really do encourage people to stop on by and see for themselves.
Some positive notes I would like to mention about SocialSpark…
-100% Audit-able In-Post Disclosure
-100% Transparency
-100% Real Opinions
-100% Search Engine Friendly
Well then, here is the opportunity to spark up some fantastic new relationships and learn from the pros. What finer way to gain a better perspective of this world we live in than touching base with people from all walks of life and different cultures? I am truly excited to add this to my favorite places to visit. And if I can earn some extra money to help care for my family and enjoy a better lifestyle, then this is just a sweet little extra bonus.
Happy Blogging!!
The Gift of Giving from the Heart
Posted by msterilinn on Mar 12, 2008
Amongst our People, the Lakota, we have been taught that to Give is to Live. Giving that which is dear to us shows our Love for our fellow human beings. Our possessions are not meant to hold onto, as we do not truly belong to this Earth. We are just here for a little while to learn. In our way of Life, we have giveaways to celebrate important events in our Lives, such as Weddings, Coming of Age Ceremonies, Vision Quests, Hunkas (adopting a relative), as well and for those who Cross over to the Other Side, etc. We give to those who help us through emotionally trying times, or have been there to help us through a particularly difficult Life lesson. The Joy of Giving is like no other, and holds special meaning for both the giver and those recieving the gifts. The only thing we truly possess in this Life is our bodies, while we dwell upon this beautiful planet, and these we must care for with respect and Love. When we give, we become more. I would like to share more thoughts about Giving… Pilamaye.
Thoughts On Giving
by Kahlil Gibran
You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give. For what are your possessions but things you keep and guard for fear you may need them tomorrow? And tomorrow, what shall tomorrow bring to the overprudent dog burying bones in the trackless sand as he follows the pilgrims to the holy city? And what is fear of need but need itself? Is not dread of thirst when your well is full, the thirst that is unquenchable?
There are those who give little of the much which they have–and they give it for recognition and their hidden desire makes their gifts unwholesome. And there are those who have little and give it all.
These are the believers in life and the bounty of life, and their coffer is never empty. There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward. And there are those who give with pain, and that pain is their baptism. And there are those who give and know not pain in giving, nor do they seek joy, nor give with mindfulness of virtue; They give as in yonder valley the myrtle breathes its fragrance into space. Through the hands of such as these God speaks, and from behind their eyes He smiles upon the earth.
It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give unasked, through understanding; And to the open-handed the search for one who shall receive is joy greater than giving. And is there aught you would withhold? All you have shall some day be given; Therefore give now, that the season of giving may be yours and not your inheritors’.
You often say, “I would give, but only to the deserving.” The trees in your orchard say not so, nor the flocks in your pasture. They give that they may live, for to withhold is to perish. Surely he who is worthy to receive his days and his nights, is worthy of all else from you. And he who has deserved to drink from the ocean of life deserves to fill his cup from your little stream.
And what desert greater shall there be, than that which lies in the courage and the confidence, nay the charity, of receiving? And who are you that men should rend their bosom and unveil their pride, that you may see their worth naked and their pride unabashed?
See first that you yourself deserve to be a giver, and an instrument of giving. For in truth it is life that gives unto life while you, who deem yourself a giver, are but a witness.
And you receivers… and you are all receivers… assume no weight of gratitude, lest you lay a yoke upon yourself and upon him who gives. Rather rise together with the giver on his gifts as on wings; For to be overmindful of your debt, is to doubt his generosity who has the freehearted earth for mother, and God for father.
Healing our Bodies with Self-Love
Posted by msterilinn on Feb 27, 2008
With much Love and Light, I would like to offer the following to all my fellow human beings…
Our physical bodies are only an aspect of what we truly are. In reality, we are beings of light and energy. The concept of “the Force” described in the Stars Wars movies is surprisingly accurate. Our minds and bodies are shaped by our consciousness, thoughts, and intentions. Our bodies are the conduits of life energy that flows through the Universe. When we run low on life energy we become “dis-eased” and eventually diseased. Just as matter and energy are interchangeable, thought and energy are interchangeable. Just like energy can be thought of as having a specific frequency (like tuning into a radio station at a certain frequency), thoughts have different frequencies as well. Not unlike radio waves or microwaves or light waves, they are broadcast beyond our specific brains.
“Reality is the mirror of your thoughts. Choose well what you put in front of the mirror.” ~ Remez Sasson
Light waves are electromagnetic radiation that comes to us from the sun. Their frequencies are such that they have a positive impact on our bodies. Gamma radiation is also a type of electromagnetic energy at a different frequency that has a very destructive effect on our bodies. Thoughts and intentions also generate energetic fields that have either positive or negative effects upon our lives. The thoughts and intentions that have negative energetic effects on our spirit and our body include shame, guilt, anger, fear and false pride. These include activities such as criticizing, blaming, judging, withdrawing, hiding, punishing, attacking and so on. The thoughts and intentions that have positive energetic effects on our souls and bodies include acceptance, openness, love, joy, peacefulness curiosity, compassion, and reverence. They include activities such as acceptance, forgiveness, kindness, love, understand ing connection, and empathy.
“Love is the great miracle cure. Loving ourselves works miracles in our lives.” ~ Louise L. Hay
There are certain people whom everyone likes to be around. We often say, “I like their energy”. We are absolutely correct about this. These people do broadcast good energy. There are other people we do not want to be around for just the opposite reason. We are all aware of this. But it goes much deeper than this. When we walk around criticizing, judging and blaming others or ourselves we weaken our life energy. When we go though our life being angry and negative towards others or ourselves we generate negative energy that makes us feel bad and makes us suffer immediately. The impact of this energy continues to affect us over time. Eventually these negative thought patterns create negative energy fields that disrupt the body’s physical functioning and can in some cases create dis-ease.
“Eventually you will come to understand that love heals everything, and love is all there is.” ~ Gary Zukav
On the flip side, we gain create positive energy in our mind-body by giving love and accepting energies to ourselves and others. In fact, the vibration of love will literally create physical healing in the body. The more loving energy you send towards yourself, the healthier you will be and the more energy you will have. The vibration of love has been scientifically proven to alter the shape and structure of physical molecules such as water. According to current scientific studies, water molecules are directly effected by the words, sounds and thoughts they are exposed to. Since your physical body is made up of more than 70% water, it is continuously impacted by the vibrations of negative or positive words you send into it.
“The greatest healing therapy is friendship and love.” ~ Hubert Horatio Humphrey
Consciously sending loving energy to your own being will create amazing shifts in your physical body on a molecular level. As you start daily send loving thoughts and feeling into every cell of your body, you will start to heal your mind-body, and experience a dramatic shift in your energy field. You will naturally feel more energized, alive, and healthier as you continue to bathe your cells to the healing energy of self-love.
Sending you loving and healing blessings,
Margot Zaher and Jafree Ozwald
A vital final message from a Hopi Elder…
Posted by msterilinn on Feb 23, 2008
My people are of the Lakota Nation, yet it is very important to pay attention and show respect for the Wisdom of our Elders from all Nations. I wish to share a very important and vital message, which carries much wisdom regarding the original instructions to the people, a sharing of past, present and future…
His Final Message to Mankind
From Hotevilla, Arizona, USA
Dan Evehema, Eldest Elder
I am very glad to have this time to send a message to you. We are celebrating a time in our history which is both filled with joy and sadness.
I am very glad that our Hindu brothers have given us this opportunity to share these feelings with you because we know many of you are having the same troubles.
We Hopi believe that the human race has passed through three different worlds and life ways since the beginning. At the end of each prior world, human life has been purified or punished by the Great Spirit “Massauu” due mainly to corruption, greed, and turning away from the Great Spirit’s teachings.
The last great destruction was the flood which destroyed all but a few faithful ones who asked and received a permission from the Great Spirit to live with Him in this new land.
The Great Spirit said, “It is up to you, if you are willing to live my poor, humble, and simple life way. It is hard but if you agree to live according to my teachings and instructions, if you never lose faith in the life I shall give you, you may come and live with me.”
The Hopi and all who were saved from the great flood made a sacred covenant with the Great Spirit at that time. We Hopi made an oath that we will never turn away from Him. For us the Creator’s laws never change or break down. To the Hopi the Great Spirit is all powerful.
He appeared to the first people as a man and talked with them in the beginning of this creation world. He taught us how to live, to worship, where to go and what food to carry, gave us seeds to plant and harvest. He gave us a set of sacred stone tablets into which He breathed all teachings in order to safeguard his land and life.
In these stone tablets were made, instructions and prophecies and warnings. This was done with the help of a Spider woman and Her two grandsons. They were wise and powerful helpers of the Great Spirit.
Before the Great Spirit went into hiding, He and Spider woman put before the leaders of the different groups of people many colors and sizes of corn for them to choose their food in this world. The Hopi was the last to pick and then choose their food in this world. The Hopi then chose the smallest ear of corn.
Then Massauu said, “You have shown me you are wise and humble. For this reason you will be called Hopi (people of peace) and I will place in your authority all land and life to guard, protect, and hold trust for Me until I return to you in later days for I am the First and the Last.”
This why when a Hopi is ordained into the higher religious order, the earth and all living things are placed upon his hands. He becomes a parent to all life on earth. He is entitled to advise and correct his children in whatever peaceful way he can. So we can never give up knowing that our message of peace will reach our children. Then it is together with the other spiritual leaders the destiny of our future children is placed.
We are instructed to hold this world in balance within the land and the many universes with special prayers and ritual which continue to this day.
It was to the Spider woman’s two grandsons the sacred stone tablets were given. These two brothers were then instructed to carry them to a place the Great Spirit had instructed them. The older brother was to go immediately to the east, to the rising sun and upon reaching his destination was instructed to immediately start to look for his younger brother who shall remain in the land of the Great Spirit.
The Older brothers mission when he returned was to help his younger brother (Hopi) bring obout peace, brotherhood and everlasting life on his return. Hopi, the younger brother, was instructed to cover all land and mark it well with footprints and sacred markings to claim this land for the Creator and peace on earth.
We established our ceremonials and sacred shrines to hold this world in balance in accordance with our first promise to the Creator. This is how our migration story goes, until we met the Creator at Old Oribe (place that solidifies) over 1000 years ago.
It was at that meeting when he gave to us these prophecies to give to you now at this closing of the Fourth World of destruction and the beginning of the Fifth World of peace. He gave us many prophecies to pass on to you and all have come to pass. This is how we know the timing is now to reveal the last warnings and instructions to mankind.
We were told to settle permanently here in Hopi land where we met the Great Spirit and wait for Older Brother who went east to return to us. When he returns to this land he will place his stone tablets side by side to show all the world that they are our true brothers.
When the road in the sky has been fulfilled and when the inventing of something, in Hopi means, gourd of ashes, a gourd that when drops upon the earth will boil everything within a large space and nothing will grow for a very long time.
When the leaders turned to evil ways instead of the Great Spirit we were told there would be many ways this life may be destroyed. If human kind does not heed our prophecy and return to one’s original spiritual instructions.
We were told of three helpers who were commissioned by the Great Spirit to help Hopi bring about the peaceful life on earth would appear to help us and we should not change our homes, our ceremonials, our hair, because the true helpers might not recognize us as the true Hopi.
So we have been waiting all these years.
It is known that our True White Brother, when he comes, will be all powerful and will wear a red cap or red cloak. He will be large in population, belong to no religion but his very own. He will bring with him the sacred stone tablets. With him there will be two great ones both very wise and powerful.
One will have a symbol or sign of swastika which represents purity and is Female, a producer of life. The third one or the second one of the two helpers to our True White Brother will have a sign of a symbol of the sun. He, too, will be many people and very wise and powerful. We have in our sacred Kachina ceremonies a gourd rattle which is still in use today with these symbols of these powerful helpers of our True Brother.
It is also prophesied that if these three fail to fulfill their mission then the one from the west will come like a big storm. He will be many, in numbers and unmerciful. When he comes he will cover the land like the red ants and over take this land in one day.
If the three helpers chosen by the Creator fulfill their sacred mission and even if there are only one, two, or three of the true Hopi remaining holding fast to the last ancient teaching and instructions the Great Spirit, Massauu will appear before all and our would will be saved.
The three will lay our a new life plan which leads to everlasting life and peace. The earth will become new as it was from the beginning. Flowers will bloom again, wild game will return to barren lands and there will be abundance of food for all. Those who are saved will share everything equally and they all will recognize Great Spirit and speak one language.
We are now faced with great problems, not only here but throughout the land. Ancient cultures are being annihilated. Our people’s lands are being taken from them, leaving them no place to call their own.
Why is this happening?
It is happening because many have given up or manipulated their original spiritual teachings. The way of life which the Great Spirit has given to all its people of the world, whatever your original instructions are not being honored. It is because of this great sickness called greed, which infects every land and country that simple people are losing what they have kept for thousands of years.
Now we are at the very end of our trail.
Many people no longer recognize the true path of the Great Spirit. They have, in fact, no respect for the Great Spirit or for our precious Mother Earth, who gives us all life. We are instructed in our ancient prophecy that this would occur.
We were told that someone would try to go up to the moon: that they would bring something back from the moon; and that after that, nature would show signs of losing its balance. Now we see that coming about.
All over the world there are now many signs that nature is no longer in balance. Floods, drought, earthquakes, and great storms are occurring and causing much suffering. We do not want this to occur in our country and we pray to the Great Spirit to save us from such things. But there are now signs that this very same thing might happen very soon on our own land.
Now we must look upon each other as brothers and sisters. There is no more time for divisions between people. Today I call upon all of us, from right here at home, Hotevilla, where we to are guilty of gossiping and causing divisions even among our own families; out to the entire world where thievery, war, and lying goes on every day. These divisions will not be our salvation. Wars only bring more wars never peace.
Only by joining together in a Spiritual Peace with love in our hearts for one another, love in our hearts for the Great Spirit and Mother Earth, shall we be saved from the terrible Purification Day which is just ahead.
There are many of you in this world who are honest people. We know you spiritually for we are the “Men’s Society Grandfathers” who have been charged to pray for you and all life on earth never forgetting anything or any one in our ceremonials.
Our prayer is to have a good happy life, plenty of soft gentle rain for abundant crops. We pray for balance on earth to live in peace and leave a beautiful world to the children yet to come.
We know you have good hearts but good hearts are not enough to help us out with these great problems. In the past some of you have tried to help us Hopis, and we will always be thankful for you efforts. But now we need your help in the worst way.
We want the people of the world to know the truth of our situation. This land which people call the Land of the Freedom celebrates many days reminding people of the world of these things. Yet in well over 200 years the original Americans have not seen a free day.
We are suffering the final insult.
Our people are now losing the one thing which give life and meaning of life — our ceremonial land, which is being taken away from us. Hotevilla is the last holy consecrated, undisturbed traditional Native American sacred shrine to the Creator. As the prophecy says, this sacred shrine must keep its spiritual pathways open.
This village is the spiritual vortex for the Hopi to guide the many awakening Native Americans and other true hearts home to their own unique culture. Hotevilla was established by the last remaining spiritual elders to maintain peace and balance on this continent from the tip of South America up to Alaska. Many of our friends say Hotevilla is a sacred shrine, a national and world treasure and must be preserved. We need your help.
Where is the freedom which you all fight for and sacrifice your children for?
Is it only the Indian people who have lost or are all Americans losing the very thing which you original came here to find?
We don’t share the freedom of the press because what gets into the papers is what the government wants people to believe, not what is really happening. We have no freedom of speech, because we are persecuted by our own people for speaking our beliefs. We are at the final stages now and there is a last force that is about to take away our remaining homeland.
We are still being denied many things including the rite to be Hopis and to make our living in accordance with our religious teachings. The Hopi leaders have warned leaders in the White House and the leaders in the Glass House but they do not listen. So as our prophecy says then it must be up to the people with good pure hearts that will not be afraid to help us to fulfill our destiny in peace for this world.
We now stand at a cross road whether to lead ourselves in everlasting life or total destruction. We believe that human beings spiritual power through prayer is so strong it decides life on earth.
So many people have come to Hopiland to meet with us. Some of you we have met on your lands. Many times people have asked how they can help us. Now I hope and pray that your help will come.
If you have a way to spread the truth, through the newspapers, radio, books, thought meeting with powerful people, tell the truth! Tell them what you know to be true. Tell them what you have seen here; what you have heard us say; what you have seen with your own eyes. In this way, if we do fall, let it be said that we tried, right up to the end, to hold fast to the path of peace as we were originally instructed to do by the Great Spirit.
Should you really succeed, we will all realize our mistakes of the past and return to the true path-living in harmony as brothers and sisters, sharing our mother, the earth with all other living creatures. In this way we could bring about a new world. A world which would be led by the great Spirit and our mother will provide plenty and happiness for all.
God bless you, each one of you and know our prayers for peace meet yours as the sun rises and sets. May the Great Spirit guide you safely into the path of love, peace freedom and God on this Earth Mother. May the holy ancestors of love and light keep you safe in your land and homes. Pray for God to give you something important to do in this great work which lies ahead of us all to bring peace on earth.
We the Hopi still hold the sacred stone tablets and now await the coming of our True White Brother and others seriously ready to work for the Creator’s peace on earth.
Be well, my children, and think good thoughts of peace and togetherness. Peace for all life on earth and peace with one another in our homes, families and countries. We are not so different in the Creator’s eyes. The same great Father Sun shines his love on each of us daily just as Mother Earth prepares the sustenance for our table, do they not?
We are one after all.
Good Therapy to Empower our Lives
Posted by msterilinn on Feb 21, 2008
What is it that brings about an inner peace to bring harmony into our lives? Many people have had negative experiences which can be detrimental to our happiness as well as our health and well being. There are always those who try to influence us, through either words or actions, as to how they think we should feel or behave. Such experiences can leave emotional and spiritual scars. Finding true, lasting, good therapy can sometimes prove to be quite difficult. Not everyone is truly out for our best interests, so much as their own.
Let us look into this a bit further.
Empowering therapists maintain the belief that people can grow, heal, and transform. This hope is held no matter how intense one’s defenses and wounds are. People can heal if they want to and if they can contribute to their own growth whatever is sufficient and necessary to that end. When a therapist views a person as fundamentally flawed or incapable of change, the person is more likely to feel and become flawed. Yet, when a good therapist sees beyond a person’s wounds and defenses and holds in mind their true nature, the person is more likely to discover their own true nature for themselves. Some people may not heal in this lifetime, but let the therapist not be an additional barrier to whatever other obstacles may be presenting.
Good therapy often times needs to go deep. There seems to be a split in the mental health field between approaches that emphasize cognitive solutions and those that emphasize emotional or body oriented healing. Both are important. In many instances, the depth of our emotional traumas are buried deep within ourselves. Reaching these extreme emotional depths of hidden pain is a very delicate process, and must be approached very carefully.
If you, or someone you know, is in need of good therapy to Empower your Life, and wish to find a counselor or therapist, perhaps you may like to visit www.goodtherapy.org, and browse through their extensive selection of therapists. As always, use your good judgement and choose wisely.
As quoted from Good Therapy…
Our Purpose…
“There is a movement toward more collaborative, empowering, and nonpathological forms of psychotherapy. We promote this movement by helping people find therapists and counselors who believe “people are proficient,” capable of feeling peaceful and satisfied with life, and can, with a bit of guidance, access their own wisdom and healing potential to overcome the obstacles to health & happiness.”
~Love and Light to All
“Enlightenment consists not merely in the seeing of luminous shapes and visions, but in making the darkness visible. The latter procedure is more difficult and therefore, unpopular.” ~ Carl Jung
Bringing about Balance in our Lives..
Posted by msterilinn on Feb 21, 2008
The Chinese word for ‘busy’ consists of two symbols: one is the human heart - the other, death. I take this to mean that when one is excessively busy, the heart is insensible, frozen. In a world where busyness is held up almost as a virtue, especially in business, I’d like to take a look at coming back into balance. It’s a big topic, and one I’ll return to over time.
We hear a lot nowadays about work/lifestyle balance; today I’m asking, what does a balanced life look like to you?
Balance… there are various definitions in dictionaries, but one that I particularly like describes it as “harmony and proportion”. Perhaps these words resonate particularly with me, but with their overtones of unity and spaciousness I feel that these are virtues that most of us could do with more of in our lives.
Balance is about feeling connected to ourselves and others, and a sense of rhythm and flow between mind, body and spirit. It’s about being flexible - having awareness about what’s going on for you at any given time, and equally important, having the ability to respond to the messages that you’re receiving, bringing you back into harmony.
If you think about it, when we balance on something, we’re always moving as we seek to remain in equilibrium: think of the tightrope walker, and how he adjusts his position on the rope continuously in order to remain upright. Likewise in nature; the universe is always seeking equilibrium: think of our bodies and homeostasis, the means by which the internal systems of the body (e.g. blood pressure, body temperature) are maintained, despite possibly extreme variations in external conditions; also the way in which as cells die in a healthy person they are replaced by exactly the same number. We don’t have to think about these bodily processes, but constant awareness of our thoughts is required to create mental and physical balance.
I would like to give you two very different time-frames in which to consider what balance means to you: one may feel more appropriate to you right now than the other.
There’s moment to moment mindfulness, where you might choose to observe your thought processes at various points during the day (perhaps using an external trigger such as when you put down the telephone after a call, or you hear the next door neighbor’s dog barking; whatever it is, make the trigger something that occurs regularly during your day). As you observe your thoughts, see if you can let them go and become aware of what is happening within your own body; you might like to incorporate this with breathing in and out slowly a few times, and saying a statement to yourself that you find calming and centering… an example might be: “I am in control of my life” or “life flows easily for me”.
Another suggestion for “in the moment” mindfulness is to choose an activity that you do on a regular basis and that you consider a chore, and see if you can, by coming into the present moment, alter your experience of it, as an active meditation. If you do not like washing up, for example, see if you can become highly aware of the heat of the water, the sound that the dishes make as you clean them, how the plates shine after they’ve been buffed… Breathe, and feel the calm and balance that comes with mindful activity.
The other method is to take the ‘big picture’ view. Balance doesn’t have to be about compartmentalizing the different areas of your life: indeed, trying to see these areas in terms of symmetry and allocation of percentage points (e.g. work life 22%, social time 15% etc) can cause more stress than it cures! There will always be times when we’re out of balance, if we’re dealing with a sick parent or child, or a deadline at work for example, but in general, some questions to ask yourself are these…
Am I feeling more contented with my life overall than I was one/two/ five years ago?
Am I heading in the right direction?
Are my talents being utilized?
Do I have things in my life that I’m passionate about, and.. Do I have more flexibility of time for these things/people/activities than I used to?
Asking yourself these questions on a regular basis is a good way to check whether you’re moving towards balance or away from it.
Educate yourself on Taxes and Exchanges
Posted by msterilinn on Feb 20, 2008
Ah.. tax time again. A lot of folks seek outside help during this time in the USA, yet it would be wise to educate yourself on the laws surrounding taxes. As well as when it comes to exchanges and investments, it is always in our better interests to do our homework.
I discovered a site which answers a lot of questions that concern just about any situation on this subject. As I work out of my home, for example, the following question and answer was of great interest to me…
I have a home office. Can I deduct expenses like mortgage, utilities, etc., but not deduct depreciation so that when I sell this house, the basis won’t be affected?
Answer.. If you qualify to deduct expenses for the business use of your home, you can claim depreciation for the part of your home that is a home office. Generally, the part of your home that is a home office is depreciated over a recovery period of 39 years using the straight line method of depreciation and a mid-month convention. If you do not claim depreciation on that part of your home that is a home office, you are still required to reduce the basis of your home for the allowable depreciation of that part of your home that is a home office when reporting the sale of your home. For more information, refer to Publication 587, Business Use of Your Home.
What exactly is a 1031 Exchange?
Under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 1031, a real property owner can sell his property and then reinvest the proceeds in ownership of like-kind property and defer the capital gains taxes. To qualify as a like-kind exchange, property exchanges must be done in accordance with the rules set forth in the tax code and in the treasury regulations. The 1031 Exchange can offer significant tax advantages to real estate buyers. Often overlooked, a 1031 Exchange is considered one of the best-kept secrets in the Internal Revenue Code.
To learn more about these important questions concerning your property and future investments, perhaps you would like to vist 1031 Exchange Alliance.com today! Educating yourself is the first step to personal and financial freedom. You owe it to yourself to learn all you can to help you realize your Dreams.
A Nursing Academy of the Medical Arts
Posted by msterilinn on Feb 19, 2008
Of all the noble professions there is, nursing is up there on the top of my list. As a mother, I have been graciously endowed with nursing abilities and instincts, and then some. My extended family is also blessed with an abundance of talented and compassionate men and women in the field of the Medical Arts. We have Naturapaths, Midwives, Massage Therapists, several specialists in different fields, as well as Nurses.
Have you ever considered embarking upon a journey involving the nursing of others? If so, you may find a very good Vocational Nursing Program at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts. After looking through their program details, I feel they are most certainly qualified to provide the training needed to meet the needs of those interested in becoming a Nurse.
The Vocational Nursing Program (LVN programs or LPN) at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts utilizes the plan that nursing courses progress along the continuum of simple to complex, normal to abnormal. The organizing principle is homeostasis as it relates to the study of representative client problems by addressing the various anatomical systems and specialty areas in nursing.
So, if it is in your heart to become a Licensed Vocational Nurse in caring for others as your chosen path in Life, then perhaps you would like to keep the Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts in mind.
