Embracing the Grounding in Your Life

How do you keep yourself from getting caught up in the chaos of life? How do you keep grounded? What do you do to not let the frazzled energies creep into your own vibrations? How do stay true to you, your choices, your vision and your truth?

Over time I have learned that there are definite ways that I keep myself grounded. It has taken consciousness and awareness. But it is also so aligning to what I want and hope for that the choices become easier and easier to make as my life shifts more and more toward what I want and need.

Living simply is step one. I choose to not get caught up in the drama of the frantic life. I purposefully slow down, create pause in my life, and make time for simple pleasures. I invest in relationships that support this lifestyle.

I embrace my soul and all its messages. I lean into my personal soul growth, looking for ways to expand and learn. I listen closely to the messages and lessons. I take an active role in my spiritual development.

I give back. I find sharing with others helps keep me grounded. Rippling out the energies of love, the act of giving, the sharing of life brings a beautiful balance to my days.

I censor what I take in. I often go on news fasts, I rarely watch movies, I am selective about what I read and what I listen to. I pay as close attention to what I feed my mind as to what I feed my body.

I no longer look at struggles as problems. I embrace challenges, knowing that these are opportunities for me to grow, become more of my truest self and to learn so much about what life has to offer me.

I also am an active member of my community. Many of the members of my tribe are like family to me. My heart is invested in our relationship. I seek to offer my support and lean into them when I need their guidance or celebration. Having a solid network of people in one's life adds a richness to each life experience.

Everyday I seek the beauty of my life. It is a shift in perspective that makes a difference in the way that one views life. There is beauty in everything around us, we just often do not take the time to notice it, to appreciate it or to celebrate it. Slowly with time we become blind to it. Within this beauty are the everyday miracles that surround us.

Finally, I find grounding energies to tap into when I seek the silence in my life. Stillness and pause are a vital part of my day. Without them I cannot recharge, I drain, I make poor choices and I am not my brightest self. Silence and stillness are now a part of each and every day for me. Some days, it is only a few minutes, but quite intention filled. And then there are the other days where I consciously choose to set aside a date with myself in glorious stillness, quiet breath of nature and little to no outside interference.

My life is fuller and richer these days. I am not scattered or overwhelmed. I rarely find myself feeling at a loss or shutdown. These simple steps of awareness and focus have brought a grounding to my days. Within this energy I find vibrancy. I find grace. I sit with peace and contentment. I see beauty around me.

Blessings, Lisa

Finding Presence in Solitude

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A day to myself! A rare thing in my life, but so valued. My husband and youngest son went to ski with our oldest son three hours from home. A full day to myself! What a treasure! What a treat! What to do?

I spent the morning preparing for a visit from a mentee later this week. She will be flying in from Hawaii and staying for a several days. We have so many delightful plans. I organized, gathered, grouped and prepared. I took great delight in making the space she will call home while here filled with beauty and comfort. I cleaned and primped the space. Washing the warmest of flannel sheets for her, knowing the New England temperature will feel fierce to her heat loving body. I set out candles and crystals to call in positive energies and peaceful moments. I gathered books to share, items to discuss, and mapped out activities we are so looking forward to doing together. The morning was quickly over as I delighted in my arrangements made for her visit. There was wondrous anticipation present in the joyful planning.

After a quiet lunch and a pot of Dragon's Well tea I read. Three whole uninterrupted chapters! I got lost in the pages, took notes, paused and re-read paragraphs and enjoyed the author's voice and vision. I then turned to my journal to capture my thoughts on what I had read and what inspirations were created. Curled up under an afghan with a cat sleeping on my feet, we both purred the early afternoon away. I felt connected to my soulful presence and my thoughts.

Later in the day I caught up on email and friend's messages. I looked up a few recipes for my mentee's visit. I then took stock of ingredients I had on hand and those I would need. I shared an hour long call with one of my daughters, exchanging thoughts about this and that and lots of laughter in between, missing her presence but feeling her essence through the phone lines.

As the quiet of the late afternoon descended I went into sacred space. It was there that I brought my presence and attention to next. I reflected deeply upon the past year and all its unfoldings. I looked inward to the ways in which I have expanded. I remembered the release of so many different aspects, beliefs and ways that were not serving me and realized that they were no longer missed. I appreciated those who are in my life, sharing of themselves, adding to my days, celebrating with me, challenging me, inspiring me and witnessing me and my work. I offered gratitude to the many ways in which Source allows me to connect, shows me light in the darkness, offers moments of encouragement and calls me further and deeper still. I wondered at the many possibilities that I have been exploring and felt a deep peace settle within me as I realized, whatever direction I choose, I will receive what I need from it, I will learn and grow in it and I will find beauty there as well.

After a simple dinner and a quick phone call from the men telling me they were heading home after a full day of skiing and male bonding, I found more presence. I sat looking out into the night sky. The full moon of yesterday, just a sliver shy. The gray sky of the day now filled with stars. The snow seeming to glow from the moonlight, with shadows of bare branched trees stretching over it. My heart and soul overflowing with the day's gifts and gentleness.

A day of solitude, full, varied and all mine. I brought my presence to each part of the day, finding in the layers much for me to honor. The abundance found, the gifts, the wonder, the reflections and the pause all swaddled me in a comfort much needed. It is a gentle reminder to me that days like today are a special necessity. Bringing presence in all its beautiful forms to my life allows me to step into the wholeness of my life and to feel my evolving truth in all its places.

Blessings, Lisa

Bringing Presence to Your Support

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There are times in my shamanic work that I am sitting with someone who is in tremendous suffering. I, no matter how much my tender heart may want to, cannot remove their suffering. Nor should I, for there are times that it is through our suffering that we find our healing. And yet the client sits before me, seeking my services; wanting to find relief and release from their pain and loss.

And so the work becomes one of being present. I bring my presence to the relationship we are sharing together. By doing this there is an expansion of the energies between us. There is a widening of the understanding, often first on a soul level, but then with time the heart and mind follow.

Pain is a great inducer of change. We all have pain in our lives. This is not about whether it is fair or not, pain cannot be measured by that scale. This is not about how terrible or unfortunate the pain is; for each of us suffering feels bad. But this is about the fact that when we are in pain it is a natural force within our soul to move away from it into an energy of change, to find a flow that supports growth, evolution and insight.

Supporting someone in understanding that their pain can become a vehicle of transformation is sometimes the very shift they need to step out of the hurt and into the healing. We cannot rid someone of their suffering or pain, but instead we can help them find that there is some truth in the pain, sometimes there is beauty there as well. In our suffering, if we can remain present, we can often find meaning. In this meaning is the next step that takes one out of their unbearable pain. It is an encouraging force that beckons them to look beyond the pain into tomorrow or at the least, into the next moment.

I have worked with those who have faced unbelievable suffering, loss and pain. In the moment, they felt there was no way out of it. But with time, remaining present for them, when they could not, space was created so that the energies could expand and shift. With time, tenderness, compassion and presence the soul found its way out of the wound and into the healing. The story did not remain stuck in the loss and hurt. The unfolding of the vibrations of the continuum of life brought the client to a place of healing and wholeness, away from the space of pain and brokenness.

The best medicine a shaman can offer to a client is that of being fully present to all that the moment holds. It is within that precise exchange of energies that the client feels witnessed, supported and held. From there the healing can begin.

Blessings, Lisa

Divine Beauty

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Tell someone that they are beautiful and you may get one of many different responses. Depending on that person's story and beliefs around beauty it may be a positive reaction or a negative, or it could be indifferent. The response may also be based on what you are referring to when you acknowledge their beauty.

One indisputable fact is that we are all divinely beautiful. We have an essence of our soul that shines. Maybe not all the time, maybe not in a while, perhaps it is hiding or wounded, but underneath it all and somewhere in the busy-ness of our life, our divine beauty exists.

There is greatness to be found in embracing this divine beauty. It illuminates our soul. It empowers our actions. This type of beauty touches hearts. It also heals wounds and unlocks doors. It is the spirit of our being. And it is completely and entirely unique to you.

This divine beauty cannot be purchased or copied. It cannot be embellished or masked. It is so vibrant that it shines through the cracks of our insecurities, the bars of our bravado, and the shadows of our pain.

It often is seen by others before we are aware of its presence. Yet it is this very beauty that connects us to each other. It brings worlds together. It creates union. It fosters peace and it welcomes simplicity.

There are many in our lives who we can identify with this glorious beauty. We hold them in a tender and special place within our heart. We think of them far differently from the glossy magazine paged bodies or the cinema screen bombshells. And if by chance we discover it in someone who also exhibits outward polished beauty, we stress the divine beauty as far more valuable and appreciated, "She may have a lovely face, but her heart and compassion truly are where her beauty shines."

So think on this. What is your divine beauty? How do you express it? What do you do to allow it to freely flow into the world and touch others? How do you recognize it and honor it? We are all divinely beautiful and it is here that we need no redefining!

Blessings, Lisa