In this Time of Thanks...Gratitude

Dear Ones,
There is magic in the air, can you feel it. Possibility and connection awaiting all of us. The opportunity to choose to shift our perception at any moment and to allow the reverberations of that choice to flow in our lives. If we go with this flow, I have experienced and witnessed that anything is truly possible. While this is always true, there is something about the energy of this time we are now in that is so receptive and supportive to our being in our essential flow. Notice I did not say our mind's flow, but rather our essential flow. Meaning if we listen with intuitive ears (yes, you all have them) and surrender to the energetic invitation calling to you...behold the world of synchronicities, magic and even miracles.

So during this week of giving thanks, I invite you to go to a place of gratitude in your heart. And if I were you, I wouldn't keep it to myself. I would share my gratitude with the people you are grateful for.  An amazing practice for your heart and for manifestation is to share your gratitude with the individuals/groups you are grateful for. Speak your gratitude, write your gratitude, show your gratitude, and emanate gratitude.

How powerful would it be to not only do this with the people who seem most obvious to you, but also with people who you might not think of at first. As an example, beyond your friends and family perhaps you share your gratitude for the people who provide services for you in your everyday life or people who are not front and center for you. A check-out person at your local grocery store, a doctor that has gone that extra mile, a friend who have not connected with in a while but who you are really grateful for, a teacher who you adore...you get the idea. Don't forget to show some gratitude to yourself, write a gratitude letter to yourself or speak it as prayer to yourself. And for those of you who are a bit literal, this is a beautiful practice to do anytime not just in these days before or during Thanksgiving. However, it should be said that there is something in the energy of this week that really beckons us to go to a space of gratitude.

I invite you to do this for the sheer love of it and as an extra incentive I promise that you will personally be touched and surprised by the waves that emanate from this throughout your days and universe. This gratitude practice is especially powerful for those of you who are feeling very far away from gratitude at the moment, no matter how challenging or bleak this time may be for you there is always something you can find to be grateful for. If you start with that seed and make the choice to bring more light into your heart and your life, you are creating more space for light to expand and move you.

Sometimes when we are stuck or grieving we don't feel like being positive or making a choice that we know could make us feel better, I am not advocating repressing or ignoring what you are naturally feeling but rather in addition to honoring that darker place within there is always room for some light.  I speak here not only from guidance but also from personal experience, for while I am by nature a very optimistic person I am also by "nurture" someone prone to dwelling in the underbelly of emotions as well. So this week (or any day for that matter), please make a choice to live more from your grateful heart...you won't regret it.

And to all of you who have touched and enriched my life more than you can imagine, I am so deeply grateful for you...thank you for gracing my life. I wish you all a very blessed, sweet and gratitude-filled Thanksgiving!!!
 "When you meet anyone, remember it is a holy encounter. As you see him, you will see yourself. As you treat him, you will treat yourself. As you think of him, you will think of yourself. Never forget this, for in him you will find yourself or lose yourself." From "A Course in Miracles" (as read from Marianne Williamson's "A Return to Love")

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Quote to Live By...

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”


----from A Return to Love, by Marianne Williamson.

Nurturing Yourself Through Your Home: Autumnal Nesting

We have all heard of spring cleaning, well I am a big believer in autumnal gathering. As our days grow cooler and nights draw earlier, the fall is a great time to begin to feather your nest for the upcoming season. For some of you this may mean clearing out your home of clutter and/or things that you no longer love nor support you in your home. Most of us spend more time in our homes in the cooler months, so being surrounded by pieces that nourish you and have positive associations is particularly important to your sense of well being.

It is amazingly freeing to let go of items that weigh you down emotionally and energetically. Are you holding on to things because of a sense of obligation (I should really keep this because so and so gave this to me), from past relationships that you have ambivalence or negativity about, things that you used to love but no longer reflect who you are, etc. Often we hold on to things out of a lack of faith that we won't receive what we really want or out of protection to hold on to a past version for ourselves. In my work with clients over the years I have seen amazing shifts in their lives and homes when they have had the courage and faith to bring their homes into the present and make room for the future.

Some of you may be on the polar spectrum and have very orderly and spare homes. While that aesthetic can be very calming and soothing, you may want to ask yourselves if your environment also reflects any areas of detachment, rigidity, or loneliness that you may experience. If any of this resonates with you, you may want to gather some pieces that soften your home. A great way to nourish your soul and add warmth to your environment is to add accessories and fabrics that are tactile and inviting.

For all of us autumn is a great time to add elements of warmth to our homes which in turn warms us as well. Cozy blankets or throws are great ways to add instant coziness to your environment. For those of you that love tea, buying a fresh stock of aromatic and soothing teas is an affordable and delicious way to enjoy some instant peace. Even though my days are as full as most of you, I find that taking an extra few minutes to sit down and drink some freshly brewed tea in my favorite cup is instantly restorative (I like steeping fresh mint leaves with a bit of raw honey).

If your windows are bare ask yourself is it just a design choice or does it reflect a lack of commitment to settling into your home or does a part of you unconsciously have some boundary issues around personal space (I am not just speaking physical space here). You may be more comfortable in having a choice over the level of privacy and exposure (as well as light) that you want to bring into your daily life.

This is also a great time of year to create a more romantic atmosphere in your home regardless of whether you share your home with a partner or not. Candles are an easy way to add instant romance, as are bath potions and inviting music. If you are interested in cooking, this is also a wonderful time to indulge and bring hearth energy into your home. Autumn is also an opportune time to start or deepen your meditation practice. This is a great way to bring more to your life and to your home. Use your imagination, there are so many personalized ways to lift the energy of your home and your spirits a well!

Some of My Favorite Things for Autumn:

 

Blankets/Throws:

Splurge: www.ochrestore.com

Visit their store in New York for a larger selection of beautiful and tactile pieces for your home. ABC home store on 19th and Broadway, an amazing selection of pretty much everything for your home (check out John Robshaw bedding).

Reasonable: www.barefootdreams.com

Their Cozy Chic line is amazingly soft for adults, children and babies. Wonderful blanket, robes and clothing.


A Tea Moment:

Bodum makes a beautiful and modern range of tea kettles and pots that brew fresh tea. I particularly like the all glass ones even if they require more delicate handling. In New York City  places like Alice's Teacup, Takashimaya and Dean and Deluca have a wonderful selection of fresh and exotic teas to choose from. I also love the French tea company, Mariage Freres.

Raw honey is a delicious and  healthy food to have on hand and tastes delicious in tea. After hearing about this from a homeopath at the first sign of a cough or sore throat in our home we have a small spoonful of raw honey (crunchy parts and all).

Favorite Candles:

Splurge: Diptique candles burn incredibly pure and come in tantalizing scents . I am personally obsessed with their Figuier (fig) candle.  A new favorite line of candles is from the French company LostMarch. They come in three scents to set different moods, I love all of them. This line is hard to find in the States but Share with...--a wonderful and friendly store in Montauk, New York--carries them and I believe they ship [(631) 668-2205].

Reasonable: Votivo carries a wonderful line of candles and comes in a beautiful glass jar (red currant is my long-time favorite scent, more sexy than fruity).  Geodesis makes my second favorite fig candle named "fig tree". It is slightly woodsy and reminds of crisp evenings in a foreign countryside.