Autumn Rituals of Replenishment

I sit here, pondering the last few months since my last post. Life, as it always does, ebbs like the incoming tide, and you sometimes get the feeling of 2 steps forward, and two steps backward. But occasionally mother nature lets loose and you feel as if you are being pulled out to sea - and this dear reader is me at the moment. But today (with the help of a glass of red wine), I feel I am finally starting to swim towards the shore again. And with that, I turn back to my reflections with Sarah.

In the month of April, Sarah has encouraged us to turn the attention to our "outer" selves. Which for me means remembering to brush my hair at least twice a day. But this is how we present ourselves to the rest of the world, and to those people who will only meet us for a fleeting moment, yet will cast a "judgement" over us, if only for a few seconds. Now dont get me wrong, I am not the type of peron who feels that they have something to prove to total strangers, however sometimes the "outer" me, does not reflect the "inner" me, for example how I "see" myself.

Sarah encourages us to make time for rituals of replenishment, like the "ritual" of putting on lipstick. I have taken this oppertunity to throw out all my safe, boring underwear, and I have invested in lingere that actually fits me and flatters my shape for my age. And I am amazed of how good I feel on the inside - this simple act has made me feel better about myself, and I find myself walking with a spring in my step.

Sarah also reminds us to not forget the rituals of rejuvenation, finding (or creating) our sacred space where we can put down the troubles of the world if only for an hour. She reminds us that we carry our serenity with us, though I feel having a facial helps me onlock this "peace". I am sure you dear reader, will have no problem identifying what your own key is.

Excavating the real you

The path to self discovery, can be a difficult, and sometimes never ending one. Like an archaelogical dig, Sarah reminds us that we first need to sift through layers of "dirt" (aka our past), to find what enlights our souls. She suggests that we look to our past, and remember those minor details - the ones that changed our way of thinking. Of course major events would have an impact on who we are today, but these may not hold the essence of our true selves.

And be prepared to get your hands dirty. And arm yourself with a pen, and of course your journal to record these diamonds that you are about to remember.

Go back through your life, start with your childhood. Focus in on what made you happy as a child. What were your favourite things, your dreams, your family who have since past. Then move into your teenage years, remember your first job, your first love...........................who did you admire?

Move ahead to your adult years, remember your decorating style in your first home. Do you still have traces of these in your current home?? Do they bring you joy?

When we live our lives authentically, we discover our true place in the world (Sarah - Feb 16th). Life tends to focus on the "shoulds" instead of the "coulds", and we loose our own unique self of self. Today is the day to start embracing these little pockets of joy, and placing them in the limelight, instead of having them burried under years of "dust".

The World Is Too Much With Us

We are constantly bombared with information, which on the surface seems positive hey. But do we really need to absorb all of this extra stuff?

Magazines that tell us we need to have xyz gaget, the big house, the new car, the high power career................... And of course how to look and feel - even how many children we should have. And we "need" to do it all, the perfect partner, perfect mother, perfect work collegue.

Sarah writes "we are chronically exhausted from the getting (the amount of energy spent earning a living), and juggling the demands of home and career." We are paying now for the spending of yesterday.

So as asked earlier - do we really need all this extra stuff in our heads, and cluttering our cupboards?

Why to we ransom off our tomorrow's chasing things we dont need, and thus moving away from our authentic selves and what is really important to us?

Sarah advises - Today, deliberately turn away from the world. Dont read the newspaper, or watch / listen to the news. Instead listen to your inner voice, who is burried under all that external noise. Once we obtain this inner knowledge about ourselves, we will have the ability to change our outer worlds.

Maybe see if you can extend it to the rest of the week.

Creative excursions- The gift of time

Have you ever noticed that irritating pre flight procedure when you are sitting on a plane waiting to take off to some wonderful place. You know, the one where they point to the exits of the plane, and show you how to put on an oxygen mask. We sit there - thinking "duh", some of us actually saying this outloud. And they always say to fit your own mask before you fit the childs.

How often do we take this concept and do it in real life. There is always something or someone more important than us, so our needs get pushed aside, because life is just too busy to find the time you need for you. Yet so much rides on our shoulders, if we were to fall be the wayside, life as we know might fall into chaos. We need to say enough - and make time for us and our well being.

Sarah talks about creative excursions, taking a 2 hr period each week which we dedicate for our spiritual needs. That we prioritise over life's curveballs. Its about learning not to ignore your inner self for decades - and saying now it the time to make amends.

So what will it be for you dear reader? Take in a movie, have breakfast in that wonderful cafe you have been admiring, visit an art gallery and drink in all the wonderful colours and imagination of the truely talented? Maybe enroll in that class of how to speak Italian, something that you have always wanted to learn.

Or visit that dress shop - you know, the one that you have been afraid to go in because you fear the price tags. Really look at the designs, appreciate them for the designer's insight, the fabric choice, the colour. Then grab a coffee and a fashion magazine, think about your personal style, what it currently is, and what you would prefer it to be.

Sarah warns us that it will not be an easy task. There will be excuses thrown up in your mind blocking you from this time with yourself. I am broke, the kids have the flu, work is just too busy at the moment............dont give in. Remember creative excursions require an investment in time - not money. None of us are too busy to find two hours per week. Get creative with this too - maybe get up earlier and have that walk along the beach, use your lunch hour twice a week, let your spouse babysit the kids - turn off the TV.

My creative excursion for this week - is to get back to quilting. Look out Patchwork shop - here I come.

Blessing or circumstances

Sarah writes "after accepting our present circumstances, no matter what they are, we must learn to bless them". Pretty hard stuff, when you are faced with misery hey. Anyone who has been through a recent crisis (mine is the flooding in Victoria - see picture above), will tell first hand how difficult it is. Learn to bless misery??? Thats a hard ask.

Sarah quotes:

Bless a thing and it will bless you. Curse it and it will
curse you..... if you bless a situation, it has no power to hurt you, and
even if it is troublesome for a time, it will gradually fade out, if you
sincerely bless it.

Emmet Fox

It is so easy to focus on our woes, our pain and our losses. Over time these occupy the majority of our thoughts, and they change who we are. We become bitter, lethargic and concoured. This is not our authentic selves.

But it doesnt have to be this way. The harder road is not to be a defeatest, but to be like the mythical phoenix bird, to rise from the ashes re-born and better than before. This takes courage, which if we search our souls, we will find that we have a bounty of.

Sarah asks us to count our blessings, starting today. Acknowledge the daily positives, even during times when the negative seems to take centre stage. She reminds us, writing down our victories focuses our attention on the adundance already within our grasp and makes it real.

So dear reader - how many blessings have you counted today???

Acres of Diamonds

Todays post reflects the story of the persian man, who sold his farm to spend years travelling the world looking for wealth. Eventually homeless and destitute, in despair he ended his own life - his search for wealth had consumed him. However the man who bought his farm, was grateful for every blade of grass on this land, and celebrated his good fortune with his family and friends. He was grateful and content with his life and considered himself a wealthy man, though by society's standards, not materialistically. Woe & behold, one day he discovered a diamond mine on the property.

Now I'm sure you are sick of me reminding you to be grateful for the simple joys in your life. So today dear reader, I want you to focus on the diamonds that you have. What riches have you not acknowledged or discovered yet? If you could be anything in the world - what would it be?

Sarah writes "would you open a store, nuture a family, design a dress, write a screenplay..........?"

I have many talents, but I am sure there was talents that I have not discovered yet, or not conciously acknowledged that I have.

My dream is to live simply by todays standards, raise my own sheep fowl and cattle, grow my own vegetables, and enjoy the process along the way. I am part of the way there. And maybe when I reach my utopia, I might even find my diamond mine.

So what is your dream dear reader - and what are you doing to make this dream a reality??

Beauty - opening our eyes to the beauty that surrounds us

In todays world, we are exposed to various sources that tell us what is beautiful - and what is deemed ugly. Magazines, newspapers, television - god forbid even the internet, all seem to endeavour to put their idea of beauty onto us so we call it our own. Then there is cultural, religious, ethinic, etc influences which further "refine" our sense of beauty, until one day, we forget our authentic selves and go with what others have decided for us.

We forget the marvel that mother nature provides us, instead turning to artifical sources.

Today Sarah encourages us to see our world differently. "Let your eyes drink in the beauty that surrounds you" Today really look at your loved ones faces, and saviour them. Ignore the dirt on your youngest's face and see it as not an "ugly" thing, but as evidence as what fun he /she has had making those mud pies. The smile should be the trigger, yet more often than not, we only see the mess.

Over the past few days, I have embraced the 6 threads of abundant living. These are:

Gratitude, Simplicity, Order, Harmony, Beauty and Joy.

So dear reader - how have you honored your soul?????