Discovery

"Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they're supposed to help you discover who you are." ~Bernice Johnson Reagon

The last few days have been incredibly difficult for me. In the strange way that the universe works, I stumbled across this quote today when I was working on research for an article.

Lately, that's how I've felt--paralyzed. I've felt trapped and all out of options. This quote reminds me to look at at the challenges I'm facing in a different light. What are they teaching me? How are these challenges showing my character and paving the way for things to come?

It is a relief to even begin asking these questions.

Good conversation and a little bit of wine hasn't hurt much either.

Harrison Owen's Principles of Spirituality

It's been a rough few days (or weeks or months, however you look at it). In a class on shamanism I am taking, we learned about Harrison Owen's four principles of spirituality. I keep repeating the second law over and over in my head. "Whatever happened in the only thing that could have happened." Here are the other principles:

1 Whoever comes are the right people
2 Whatever happened is the only thing that could have happened
3 Whenever it starts is the right time
4 When it’s over, it’s over

I am trusting that nothing could have happened differently. I firmly believe that we all do the very best we can with the circumstances presented to us at any given time.

Light

I cam across some pictures taken last Fall. I love the light in these photos.

I'm listening

I keep seeing feathers everywhere. Not just one or two, but feather after feather.

I went for a short walk (maybe 20 -30 min) on Tuesday evening and there were between15 and 20 feathers right on my path. Black feathers, white feathers, Duck feathers, Crow feathers--you name it. I eventually stopped counting and just had to laugh.

The sheer number of feathers in such a short time frame directly on my path was unusual enough to get my attention. I also thought about the symbolic meaning of feathers as referenced in Animal Speak and other sources. I was finding more feathers than I could possibly need or want— and I was very aware that I was finding them on my path because I was choosing to see them.

I have been shifting my awareness to the prosperity that is all around me when I choose to see it (and am open to receiving it). Magical things have been happening. I have a new client; another client who has been stressed about finances was able to be reimbursed for the majority of all her sessions with me, which will make it easier for her to come; B was able to completely fix my computer and saved us hundreds of dollars. The list goes on, and on.

I now delight and laugh at how I am seeing feathers everywhere. I recently was lead through the Dreamwork process where I discussed what this image could mean. I was asked to title the image of feathers, like you might title a dream or a movie. My title: I'm listening.

Each time I see a feather, it is a reminder to me to look for the good that is present in every situation, to believe that I am supported, to have faith.

Grattitude and business

I was having a particularly challenging day today and I came home to check my e-mail (my own computer is currently being checked out and repaired for a very small fee) and I came across several blog posts about business and gratitude. One of them offered the following quote, which brightened my day, helped me to take a deep breath, and sit for a moment thinking about all I have to be thankful for. Great advice!

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order and confusion into clarity. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

Melodie Beattie

The 3rd Annual “Play Your Way to Prosperity” Experiment begins today!

Today, I invite you to play the prosperity game with me: http://choosingprosperity.com/blog/?p=21. Actually I am taking part in what's called a prosperity experiment that will produce tangible evidence about the law of attraction.

‘The Universe makes no distinction between the vibration you offer in response to what you are living and the vibration that you offer in response to what you are imagining, so this Prosperity Game Process is a powerful tool for shifting your vibrational point of attraction.By writing checks, using your imagination, writing the memos, focusing as you write, and feeling no resistance as you write the checks (because there will be no fear of overspending), you will achieve what is necessary in the achievement of anything: You will have made a statement of desire while you are in the state of non-resistance, or better said, in the state of allowing.

So, not only will you have the benefit of an expanded imagination, but your point of attraction will shift, and your life experience will then shift as well. Not only will your financial situation improve, but all manner of things that you have focused upon with pleasure will begin to flow into your experience.’ — Abraham-Hicks in Ask and It is Given

I hope you can join me for this fun experiment.

Love, Elizabeth

Biology of Belief

Here's a great quote from the author of The Biology of Belief, Bruce Lipton:

"Positive thoughts have a profound effect on behavior and genes, but only when they are in harmony with subconscious programming."
~ Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.

Art of Allowing

I went to the Abraham Hicks Art of Allowing Workshop yesterday after much deliberation. I have been really worried about finances, but am so very glad I went. It was full of inspiration and insight. I actually feel as if just making that choice has started to turn things around for me. I learned so much. As a surprise, I also got to see a couple of people I had not seen in a long time. It was truly a wonderful day.

I found this quote off of their Web site and it spoke to me "Worthiness, in very simple terms, means, I have found a way to let the Energy reach me, the Energy that is natural, reach me. Worthiness, or unworthiness, is something that is pronounced upon you by you. You are the only one that can deem yourself worthy or unworthy. You are the only one who can love yourself into a state of allowing, or hate yourself in a state of disallowing. There is not something wrong with you, nor is there something wrong with one who is not loving you. You are all just, in the moment, practicing the art of not allowing, or the art of resisting." Abraham-Hicks

Solar Eclipse, New Beginnings

I read an interesting blog entry today from What's Up On Planet Earth about today's full solar eclipse and what it means for our personal power.

"A full solar eclipse (and new moon) will occur on August 1, 2008, and although it will not be visible to experience in every geographical area, it will affect us all none-the-less. The solar eclipse occurring at this juncture in our spiritual evolutionary path will highlight and support a new beginning with the end of a certain amount of resistance from opposing forces.

Meaning what exactly? If you have been trying to move forward with your purpose, project, or much of anything else for that matter, the advent of the total solar eclipse will assist you in paving a much more clear and uncluttered path."

Perspective

I've got pictures to post and a lot to catch up on, but no time today. I will leave you with something I have been thinking about--perspective.

"Interestingly, koi, when put in a fish bowl, will only grow up to three inches. When this same fish is placed in a large tank, it will grow to about nine inches long. In a pond koi can reach lengths of eighteen inches. Amazingly, when placed in a lake, koi can grow to three feet long. The metaphor is obvious. You are limited by how you see the world." --Vince Poscente