It's all about Love.

On November 1, my good ol' dog Chelsea passed away at the age of 18. She was an amazing wise being, a profound spiritual teacher, a healer, and a soul mate for sure. She was pure love, and she touched many lives in her years of service.

My 4 year old black Lab Skooter and I have been missing her terribly, and there has been a hole in the fabric of my practice and our entire family that I knew that only another dog could begin to mend.

Trusting that my simple prayer would be heard, I knew that the right dog would come into our lives at the right time, "Calling all dogs, help wanted. Love and be loved."

I put out a classified to the Universe.

"Must enjoy people, other dogs, and the wind-in-the face experience of riding in a convertible and boat. Long hikes and fresh bones daily. Will train."

Enter Harley and Duke, two five month old Labs (brothers) who suddenly found themselves looking for just such a set up. At first I thought," No, I can't take two."

But then I got it. The world needs a lot of love, and it's more than a full-time job to see that it's being shared unconditionally, with grace and joy. No one dog could take up Chelsea's space. That's a lot of wagging.

So she sent two.

Love, and be loved.

May you be blessed!

Kissed by the Spirit

Despite the 21 days of rain in July, August gifted the gardens with abundant sunshine and perfect balance was restored quite beautifully. It amazed me to witness how the equilibrium was reset naturally in the landscape while my container gardens all suffered root rot. Recently I tipped them over and salvaged what I could. And today, even a few of those wounded plants are growing something beautiful or edible with their roots tucked happily into the Earth.

This morning I found myself quite humbled by the entire process. Standing silently for a minute or two, I became aware of my fellow gardeners, the hummingbird, bee and butterfly. Grateful for the invaluable services they provide, I blessed their day’s work. I put my palms down on the soil and gave a shout-out to the earthworms, also doing their part on behalf of the harvest. I watched newly hatched goldfinches feasting on seed heads, and mama chipmunk filling her jowls with my morning offering of raisins. I felt such gratitude for being included that I was almost moved to tears by the simple pleasure of the moment. And then I knew.

I had been kissed by the Spirit of the garden.

It is this Spirit that restored the refugees from the container garden, and that held the seedlings and tender plants firmly through the torential rains and cold winds that drove me out of the garden for weeks at a time...

In June, I sprinkled a tiny bit of cornmeal in each of the four directions in my garden, thanking each direction for its teachings. I thanked the life force of the Great Mystery as it manifests in that little patch of Earth. I placed myself in service to that Mystery and to the garden, so that together we might grow fertile, beautiful food and flowers. And then it was cold, and the rain came, and would not stop, and I gave up for a while. But the Spirit of the garden did not.

In May, when I turned over the soil and planted small crystals in each corner of the garden, I pledged myself to anticipating the garden’s needs for water, food, and care.

"May all that grows here be of benefit. May I serve you with an open heart," I said and then I didn't. It was my responsibility to nurture the Spirit, to remember myself and my garden in a loving partnership. In the mud, the weeds, the dampness, I forgot my pledge. But the Spirit of the garden did not.

And so this morning, feeling undeserving, a bit negligent, certainly guilty and lazy – yet awestruck and amazed – I got down on my knees and thanked the Spirit of the garden. It was another simple ceremony, and I know it was more for me than the plants. Then, I re-staked what was tumbling, and weeded out that which had encroached beyond the perennial beds. The mint had to be tamed again, it's not that mint has bad manners, it just needs reminding. I tore out some tansy, and bundled up the daylillies. And then I filled a basket with beans, tomatoes and herbs.

I felt such connection, welcome, and forgiveness – a profound gift from the Spirit of the garden. And then the kiss!

It was a brief awareness, a sensation of pure love and oneness, and then my silly monkey mind filled again with the scheduling of the days appointments, the shipping tape I must purchase in order to send out the packages, remembering to leave a check for my son's oil change and tire rotation... I returned to the house and to the responsibilities I pledged to honor.

In that kiss, the Spirit restored me and my promise.
Like the mint, I just needed reminding.
That I might serve you with an open heart...

May you be blessed!

Dance a Tremendous Dance, that's Oshun Spirit

When you need to start thinking tremendous thoughts, start dreaming tremendous dreams - and then get out there and live life the way it was intended to be lived - dance that life into being in a super duper tremendous way, with flowing joy!

That's Oshun. That's the Spirit!

We all yearn to live tremendous lives; the lives we have dreamed about, lives where our fondest wishes come true. It's only natural to want the best life has to offer. Yet, if asked to choose a word that best describes the lives we are presently living, odds are pretty good that 'tremendous' would not top the list. In fact, it probably wouldn't make the list at all.

Truth be told, most of our days fall well short of tremendous. And that's something that needs to change.

We are born to live terrific, ecstatic, sensational, absolutely extraordinary lives. That's right; our Creator wants our lives to be nothing short of amazing. We are each born to live remarkably incredible lives where we consistently reach the unreachable, touch the untouchable and do the undoable each and every day. We are each artists, dancers, lovers, creators!

I know it's tough to keep your spirits up when things start dragging you down. And it's hard to dance when you are constantly bombarded with problems and difficulties. But dancing is a must if you truly want to live a tremendous life.

Well, here's the good news. It's all right here, ready when you are. That's right; everything you have ever wanted, anything you'll ever need is right here. The Goddess is ready to take you anywhere you desire, ready to make your life all that it could be and more. Flowing joy!

So what are you waiting for?

“I am the honey-sweet voice of the waters.
I am the flowing of a woman's skirts as she dances her life.”

May you be blessed!

Life is a daring adventure, part 2

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar, India. He led India's movement for independence from British rule and is one of the most respected spiritual and political leaders of the 20th century. In 1948 he was assassinated by a Hindu fanatic who opposed his tolerance for all creeds and religions. Gandhi is honored by his people as the father of the Indian nation and is called 'Mahatma', which means Great Soul.

According to Gandhi, "a man is but the product of his thoughts, what he thinks, he becomes."

The Seven Blunders of the World is a list that Gandhi gave to his grandson Arun Gandhi, written on a piece of paper, on their final day together, not too long before his assassination. This list grew from Gandhi's search for the roots of violence. He called these acts of passive violence. Preventing these is the best way to prevent oneself or one's society from reaching a point of violence.

Seven Blunders of the World

1. Wealth without work

2. Pleasure without conscience

3. Knowledge without character

4. Commerce without morality

5. Science without humanity

6. Worship without sacrifice

7. Politics without principle

To this list, Arun Gandhi added an eighth blunder, Rights without Responsibilities. And, I have added one more: Service without joy.

Gandhi wrote, "Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor the served. But all other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy."

And these words have become the mantra of my life. When I am serving selflessly, that is from the heart, from the seat of the spirit, from a position of oneness with my Creator, I recognize that I am simply returning to the Source all the love and the energy that has been given to me, and it is the completion of this circle that creates those indescribable feelings of joy we know as ecstasy.

The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. May you be blessed with an opportunity to love unconditionally, and experience the joy of service today.

Bathing In Blessings: Creating Structure

In this Sunday morning series, "Bathing in Blessings," I will teach you how to make wonderful elixirs that combine energies from minerals, herbs, and essential oils that you can use to add light to your lifestyle, and improve the quality of your life. For basic directions on how to make synergistic elixirs, please refer to the blog archives (right) on read the blog posted on Sunday, December 28, 2008, "Bathing in Blessings Lesson One: Forgivenes."

Humanity is Ascending. Much has been written on the subject, but for our purposes it is enough to say that we are changing, and waking up to our true divine nature and unlimited creative potential. And, as we may create sacred space in our environment in which to meditate or commit to a yoga practice, and restock our kitchens with healthy foods to support physical energy and health, we must also create a structure to hold the energy of creation before it can manifest in the physical world. In a very basic way, we are learning to hold more light, create with light, and add light to all aspects of our being.

Creating Structure. Structure is the formation vibration which when applied holds the space for layering other vibrations together for the completion or creation of a thought regardless of the creational level or dimension in which it is born. Much as a cup contains or holds the space for a potential mixing or blending in third dimension, structure provides a similar function in the energetic realms. Another way of perceiving structure is as a template or gridwork through which other vibrations may be woven. Structure provides a pathway for creation, development, or communication. The ingredients that effectively combine to create a structure elixir are lavender (essential oil), amethyst (mineral), and Saw Palmetto (herb).

A flower, a herb, a color, a scent, Lavender is each of these. Easy to grow and easy to appreciate, lavender is well worth getting to know as a flower and an aromatic herb. Although the flower buds are poopular in sachets and dream pillows, the stems and leaves of lavender can be used in dishes in place of rosemary in most recipes. To add a delightful twist to your next barbeque, place your favorite fruit on lavender stems and grill! For soothing lavender tea, brew 1 - 2 tsp whole herb per cup of hot water.

Lavender is a useful essential oil for the skin and for the mucous membranes. Lavender assists the skin in regenerating and has many acids that are supportive for healing dry skin conditions. Lavender oil is useful to mix with lemon and clove oil to help heal the gums and teeth; or for a toothache. Much has been written on the soothing properties of Lavender and it's obvious health benefits, so I won't go into those here. Instead, I am going to concentrate on how Lavender's energetic signature impacts the subtle bodies and assists in creation and manifestation.

Lavender provides the tone of creation related to structure which creates a new movement of energy flow that is rotational and magnetic. You will use a pure lavender essential oil as a base for your elixir. Advanced practioners can make their own lavender oil from thier medicinal gardens, but orgainic oil is readily available at health food stores, natural phamacies, and on-line.

Amethyst also assist you in restructuring your life and field to become unity based, or in other terms, embrace the flower of life energy flow. You can use a rough amethyst cluster or a faceted gemstone, or create a grid of amethysts and quartz points around your lavender oil.

Add the herb Saw Palmetto, which will assist you in ascending into the a new structure upon a biological level, which is crystalline. Throughout history, Saw Palmetto has been respected for its healing qualities. The Mayans drank it as a tonic, and the Seminole Indians used the berries as an expectorant and antiseptic. Saw Palmetto assists with the transmutative process during which cells re-compose themselves into a new genetic structure. In a deep way, Saw Palmetto acts as a bridge to assure that the new crystalline, genetic structure becomes physical in the act of biological ascension.

Elixirs are most often used by drinking glasses of charged water. They can also be used topically on the skin or put in bath water. A great way to absorb the elixirs is to mix them into your body lotionor blend into a salt or sugar scrub. These areall excellent methods of absorption into the body. You can also add them to distilled water in a clean spray bottle to create aura mysts.

Throughout time, Lightworkers have worked to see humanity ascend to a new level of awareness known as unity consciousness,a peaceful state of co-existence with all species upon Earth. And it is for this purpose that I share these powerful formulas, to serve in the momentum towards unity within the human experience, now. May we be blessed with a new era of peace, joy, abundance and love.