Mar 31 – Apr 10, 2016
May 24 – June 4, 2016
Want some inner peace and joy in your life?
Need a powerful, sure-fire way to change things, while making a difference in a country that needs our help?
Come join us on a magical exploration of Peru
Imagine yourself on an exotic, beautiful, tropical island for 10 days. You feel the ocean breezes and you are being pampered with massages and savory, healthy meals.
Peace, tranquility and smiles all around you.
This is the atmosphere you will find yourself in as your transformation takes place to reconnect with your enthusiasm and purpose for life. Read more
Gratitude turns what you have into enough. When you are in a grateful state of mind, you’ll feel more positive, life is better and you’ll start attracting more positive people and circumstances. Thankfulness is an attitude that you can practice and develop. The whole experience of gratitude—is really about forcing ourselves to pay attention to the good things in life, things we’d otherwise take for granted. Start a journal about feeling grateful. I don’t think it’s necessary or even all that good to write every single day. There is the tendency to get numb to all the good things in our lives. It is similar to the numbness we develop when watching too much violence and suffering.
Start by feeling grateful for being alive. Give thanks for your body, even if you don’t like everything about it. Imagine not having this body, imagine not being able to touch, see, feel and hear the life around you. Now look at your hands! Appreciate all they do and feel. Feel your skin as you rub that lotion in, notice as you touch that fuzzy blanket, your furry pet, that round stone from the beach. Hug someone in your family or a friend and really feel them. Do that with your eyes, your ears, your sense of taste and smell………..
So pay attention to your senses! What are you seeing? Notice the things you normally take for granted, like the colors of the flowers or the glistening of the snow. Notice the details in the landscape you see every day. Look at it with new eyes.
Listen, especially when it is quiet. Can you hear the wind rustling the leaves in the tree? Do you hear that dog barking? If he annoys you, imagine not being able to hear anything? That joy of hearing the birds in the morning. People laughing, a song you love, the sound of your kids’ voices……….notice the sounds of life all around you.
Enjoy the taste of your food. We usually gobble our meals without really considering what we are eating or drinking. Savor your food, anything can become a feast if you slow down and appreciate the flavors.
Smell that fresh coffee in the morning. The air right after it rained. The food, the flowers, that perfume you love, the smell of a newborn.
If it all gets to be too much, you are overwhelmed and no amount of goodwill is going to make a difference: get away! Leave the house, the job, the kids, maybe the country. Take some time off. Explore a different way of life. It’s ok, we are all just doing the best we can.
Avoid the trap of being grateful for something that is better than what other people have. Instead, compare whatever you are grateful for and imagine how you would feel if you didn’t have it at all. What if you wouldn’t have that family, those friends, or even your problems. What if you had Steven Hawkins’ problems, or President Obama’s or even your neighbor’s or friend’s problems? Practice gratitude and appreciation for everything in your life: people, abilities, experiences, our planet, plants…..the list is endless.
Usually our best memories are made when we are playful, light-hearted. Realize beauty in every moment, and in everyday activities. Make time for those moments. Be spontaneous. The most playful people are the ones who are most “tuned in” to the present. They’re so fascinated by the world at the moment that they’re always finding ways to engage it! For me one of the best ways to have fun and be completely present is boogie-boarding. It is pure joy to feel the water against my skin as I glide along on the wave.
People who have a strong sense of gratitude and count their blessings are generally happier and healthier. It is tough to feel thankful when things aren’t going right and you are stressed to the max. For that reason it is absolutely essential that you take a deep breath, get in the moment and find something to appreciate. You may tell me that I don’t understand because your deadline is in 5 minutes or the house is on fire……. but I maintain as long as you are physically safe – stop, breathe and find something good about your life right now. Like the old saying goes, “The past is history, the future is a mystery, and the present is a present”.
I love this prayer from Unity Church:
The light of God surrounds me;
The love of God enfolds me;
The power of God protects me;
The presence of God watches over me.
Wherever I am, God is and all is well.
It helps me to become present, to know that in this very moment I have all I need and everything is well. The world will not end because I am late for my appointment or I forgot to send that email. Choose Gratitude!
To become a grateful goddess contact me.
Do you ache for more excitement, authenticity and meaning? Do you long for a way to break out of this crappy rut you have created for yourself? You want more from life, but don’t have a clue where to start?
How do you become inspired to live this passionate and enthusiastic life? A life that makes you want to jump out of bed in the morning and start your day. The most powerful inspiration comes when you pursue your very own distinctive, unconventional, unusual path that breaks away from the pack (the sheeples, I like to call them).
Have you ever noticed when there is a line forming, everyone stands in the one with the most people even though there are three other counters? Those are the sheeples, who follow the herd. We have been conditioned from infancy to follow the norm, to fit in, to believe what authority tells us, etc. Everywhere you turn, you are asked to conform. If you want to feel alive, you need to work at being you, not some copy of someone else. As you get to know your real, true self, the more inspired you will become.
So who are you? How can you discover who you are?
Look at your life now. What do you like to do? When are you your happiest? It may not look like something tangible, like cooking or woodworking; it may be reading, or watching people. You may have an eye for detail in fashion or decorating. You may enjoy sailing, perhaps listening to others’ problems. As you are reading this you may be saying: Yes, that sounds great, but I need to make money. Look at the many ways people create income: Someone came up with stuffing a teddy bear with filling and a heart, giving it a name and birth certificate. There are professional waterslide testers,Storm Chasers, Video Game Designers, Coffee/Tea Tasters just to name a few unusual actual jobs. People come up with new ways to make a living every day and you can too!
Pay attention and don’t dismiss anything. There are clues in your daily life.
There are 8 simple steps that are required for an Inspired Life. One of those is meditation.
Learn to meditate, wait…. before you say you can’t sit still and empty your mind….there are many ways to meditate. Some people do it while running, surfing or taking a walk. Being still and listening is a learning process for everyone. You have to be willing and generous with yourself in that every second you remain still is a victory. A little at a time is good enough.
Guided meditations are a great way to begin, if it is difficult to sit and be completely still at first. Only in the stillness can we hear the answers that come from that sacred place within us.The more frantic and stressed we get, the less we find any answers. So learn to calm those racing thoughts and listen to what comes to you!
Be open. If you get invited to participate in something new: do it! If someone suggests taking a different path while hiking or walking: pursue it. If you feel the urge to take a trip: go. In your willingness to be open, doors open and you may be led to the very thing you have been searching for. Doing the same things again and again and expecting different results was defined as insanity by Einstein. So take a chance, open your mind and heart and allow new people and things into your life.
Sometimes we watch and learn from others; this is called modeling and while it is a powerful learning tool, it is only effective for a short while, as merely imitating someone else is ultimately not likely to be truly authentic or inspiring for you. What if they are living exactly the kind of life you want to live: Does that mean that you should model yourself after them? You can learn a lot from them, but you need to tailor it to your unique self. After all it’s very likely the people you admire were inspired to pursue their own unique path.
You CAN have an empowered, passionate, meaningful life ! Reaching your true potential requires a different kind of wisdom, one that requires you to develop a different concept about what is possible and a new attitude about life in general. You’ll want to acquire new life skills in order to produce higher quality results. Sound difficult? You do it one step at a time, taking little baby steps. It is no different than learning to ride a bicycle or eating with chopsticks.
You can do it!
If you need more help, contact me.
Christina’s new book, How to Create Passion, Spirit & Adventure In Your Life, is now out and available on Amazon.com.
If you haven’t yet had a chance, please check out the book’s page on the Amazon.com website and leave a review or comment.
You can read more about the book here.
Christina was interviewed live on VoiceAmerica.com Family First internet radio show Friday June 29, 2012. She discussed her new book: The Truth About Parenting, and revealed how parents today face the complexities of multiple work responsibilities, school and afterschool activities, extended family duties, supervision of digital connections, health and more. She went on to explain why we all want to do the best for our kids, but many parents worry that they are falling short, especially when they hear constantly in the news of what can go wrong for kids and young people in the world today.
Listen to the broadcast below.
Oh boy I was so caught up writing my second book that I neglected my blog.
I was given the opportunity to watch how trust and faith work in our lives this past weekend. I want to share that with you, because if you are like me you need affirmation and reminders.
My friend Amy hit a rough spot in her life. Her car (I think it’s a lemon) did not start, she still had no job offers, her laptop finally broke completely and her cell phone was falling apart (the back had fallen off long ago and now the battery had fallen out). That meant no way to apply for a job and even if she could get one, she had no way to get there. It seemed that it could not get any darker, unless she became sick.
To be honest, she was not doing well. Fear almost got the better of her. Somehow….I admire that woman…..she kept affirming her faith and trust in a higher power, God. I tried to be positive with her, but really I did not hold out much hope. This was Friday evening.
On Monday morning she called AAA and had her car towed to a garage, where they discovered a tiny little problem that kept the car from starting. The cost: $56. Two hours after that, she found her phone battery and listened to a message asking her to call back. It was the manager of a company she had applied to and she got the job.
To top it off, a family member had an extra laptop that he let her borrow.
In a matter of three days her life turned around completely. I was stunned. It humbled me.
My upcoming book “How to create Passion, Spirit, Adventure in your life” has many of those uplifting stories. It seems that I should keep reading it to not lose my own faith. How are you keeping your trust and faith? Do you have a ritual that helps keep you on the path?
I was talking with a friend today who was wondering what the real secret to success is. Everyone always tells you to see yourself having or doing what you really want. Well, he said, that’s no problem for him, he is great at visualizing…..so why isn’t he successful yet?
While he was talking, someone came to mind who is always busy, always doing, but not being successful. As a matter of fact that person often runs into closed doors, impossible hurdles or just plain brick walls.
I believe that it is a balance, you have to walk the fine line of visualizing and doing. Take one step toward your goal, while you feel yourself having it. Consistently!
Understand what it is you want. Most people don’t want a bag of money, they want what the money can do for them. What is it that you really long for?
Be clear, be specific! I wasn’t planning on writing this piece, because I spent a good portion of my life being vague….. and maybe I am feeling a bit inadequate to write about being clear.
But I realize there is nothing wrong with that. I was vague enough that when something good came my way I was ready and able to jump on it. Maybe if I had been on a set course I wouldn’t have allowed myself to do that.
What I am seeing now, however, …..now that I know more clearly what I want….the more specific I am, the quicker I reach my specific goal.
If you forget, like I do, here is a little reminder of what is important in life! Then take a moment….become present to this moment and experience it.
Paste this link into your browser and see:
My book “How to create Passion, Spirit & Adventure in your life” is completed and being formatted and finished for publication through amazon.com. I can’t tell you what an amazing and exciting feeling it is. My intention is to provide thought-provoking, empowering and helpful information for you to implement.
The book is a real look at what people do who are true to themselves. It is not a lofty…if you just mediate, it will come…kind of approach. Without a doubt the Law of Attraction is in effect, but there is more. You will have access to real people who have traveled down their own path and found what makes them feel alive.
I will keep you posted on the progress.
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My approach to life has been that of an adventurer and risk taker. This has allowed me to experience my life on a broad, yet deep level, delving into what works and what doesn't. My natural inclination as a teacher has led me to pursue my calling as a counselor, Mindfulness teacher and author.
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