Dark Times

I seem to have entered a bit of a darker period. Doing something of a life review and finding some sadness there. I really haven't got any clarity as to why I am here but that isn't my concern anyway. What I find most important is how I treat myself while I am in this place.

We all go through dark times and contrary to the 'everything's got to be positive' crowd, my journey isn't about avoiding or wallowing in the sadness and heaviness but rather being fully present with compassion and understanding. Being present I can really feel the inward pull to spend quality time with inner being. It really is quite delicious even if it isn't all yahoo and go get 'em.

Namaste

Experiencing Life

It amazes me at times just how much old programming kicks in to tell me it isn't quite safe somehow when I step out of the old comfort zone. It's easy to fool myself into thinking all is peace and calm and in the flow when I'm not actually out of that safe space which is so very familiar.

I'm involved in a year long program that is about learning referral based marketing. I've been in three workshops with them so far and every time my 'stuff' comes up. Yesterday I was at another one, this one about using the phone which I have had a great deal of resistance to in terms of marketing. As I started the day I became deeply aware of my limited ideas and negativity about the whole subject. I was definitely projecting from beliefs that are not serving me and are not really applicable to what we were actually doing. What was particularly cool for me was that I noticed it very early in the process, thanks to a couple of comments made about how negative I was about it all. Ah, time to breathe and make a shift. I ended up really enjoying the workshop and felt I learned a lot in the process. I don't know how much of it I'll be using but there you have it.

This is not an isolated incident and is a good example of how our programming works. It can go dormant for long periods of time until we are challenged in some way. What I really appreciated about what happened for me yesterday was how I was able to be gently introspective with it all afterward and tell myself the truth about where I was. There was nothing new about the beliefs that showed up and so I just needed to remind myself of that and bring some loving, compassionate understanding to inner being. Then, instead of thinking I needed to change anything or that there was something wrong I just enjoyed hanging out with the being who had gotten caught up in the game. It's life, it's the way it is with me. We all have our 'thing' and it's all perfectly OK right now.

I'm so grateful for this vast array of experiences that are always available and that what may have seemed like such an awful thing at one time is now a stepping stone into an expansive, appreciative, gentle and compassionate space.

Namaste

Holidays, Gratitude and Events

Home again after a great holiday.

Old Montreal, the cruise down the St. Laurence and down to Boston and the train ride back to Montreal were all great. My favorite thing was the fabulous food everywhere we went, especially in Montreal and the dining room on the ship (Holland America, I highly recommend them). I'd say the bonus part of the trip was on the train especially between Albany, NY and Montreal. Upper New York is absolutely beautiful, especially with the wonderful fall colours. I am so grateful for the opportunity to travel and experience so much beauty and history.

Now I am back home and back at work and loving that too. I have a funeral and wedding this afternoon and I feel so very privileged to be officiating for both. Life is such a mix of blessings; endings and beginnings. It's wonderful to be able to celebrate it all.

Through my work as a coach and a celebrant I am constantly reminded that everything is indeed temporary. As my favourite saying goes, 'This too shall pass'. No matter what is happening in life it is but a fleeting experience in the grand scheme of things. I find it very helpful to have this constant reminder because it opens me to be even more fully present and appreciative of whatever is going on in life. The more difficult experiences are just as important as the most joyful ones. As my beloved is so fond of saying about the weather, 'there is no good weather or bad weather, these is only different weather.' So it is with the weather of the inner world.

Speaking of change, if you haven't already gotten the invite, I am one of the panel of presenters in a one day experiential workshop on October 20th here in Edmonton called Your Life, Your Masterpiece. It's a very different kind of adventure for me; yet another experiment in a life full of experiments. It feel good though and I'm looking forward to the experience. You can check it out on Eventbrite.

If it resonates with you in any way, do join us for a fun and enlightening experience.

Namaste

Turning Coal Dust into Jewelry

In port in beautiful Sydney,NS. What a gorgeous day! I can't seem to upload pictures from my iPad to blogger so I can't show you but there you have it, so many of the fabulous experiences we have simply cannot be shared in their fullness can they? I bought some jewelry at a little craft fair here this morning which I did manage to upload a picture of to Facebook and Twitter. The thing I was most impressed about was that it was made of coal dust. Coal mining used to be a huge part of their economy here on Cape Breton and of course it is mostly done with along with the steel mills that were also important for their economy. I thought it was brilliant of someone to take what was deemed as useless and turn it into something so beautiful. Great metaphor for life. We are so quick to judge our past sometimes and deem it useless for what is going on now or where we want to go but is it really? There is something about everything we've experienced that can now serve us beautifully in a new form, we just have to get a little creative sometimes and learn through a little trial and error what will and will not work. The people who started making the coal jewelry had to try a few different processes before they had a product they could use. Bottom line, what is one thing from your past you thought wasn't good for anything anymore that can be turned into something beautiful and profitable? Namaste

Travels

Our journey continues as we relax in a shipboard lounge after several hours of wandering about Charlottetown, PEI. A lovely little city where it all began for Canada. The lobster rolls are fabulous too. We're on day 3 of our Canada New England cruise and have been thoroughly enjoying it. There's so much more history at this end of the country and the leaves are turning though still in the fairly stages in many places. It's just nice to relax and be taken care of at times. I do find it a bit challenging maintaining any kind of routine in terms of inner self care when doing this kind of traveling but I have been able to stay connected anyway for the most part. I do find being connected internally enhances my experiences and my enjoyment a great deal so it's always worthwhile to take the time to be aware of the breath and what's going in inside as we'll as out. The other thing I am aware of as we travel is how much I enjoy my work and as much as I love doing the traveling and exploring on a physical level it could not replace the work I do at this point in my life. I am so very blessed to be able to enjoy a balance of both! All things work together to create a life of wonder and I am so very grateful! Namaste