Earlier this week a friend gifted me three Butterfly Koi. They were pets of an 80 year old gentleman who wanted to find a good home for them. They are quite personable and beautiful. I agreed to adopt them but I needed to get a place ready for them. I went up to my lotus ponds this morning to fix a solar pump and clean up the pond. It is a beautiful sunny morning and I really enjoyed playing with the pump, cleaning it and was excited when I finally got the water bubbling and gurgling into the pond.

As I walked back to the house I was really struck by the quality of my life. This truly is a life beyond my wildest dreams. I am so glad I didn’t stop when I hit the rough spots, felt hopeless or wanted to settle for what was.

It is Sunday and I was reflecting on the apprentice class tonight.

My passion is showing people how they can live the life of their dreams. I often reflect on what I did. While I studied with Don Miguel Ruiz and his mom literally thousands of people came and went. I remember when Don Miguel told me only myself and another man had done what he told us to do. The only difference I saw was I did the exercises.

“Come to the edge, he said.
They said: We are afraid.
Come to the edge, he said.
They came.
He pushed them and they flew.”

Guillaume Apollinaire

It is hard to do it alone

I’d like to invite you to my upcoming apprentice class. I’d love to show you how to live the life of your dreams. I am going to be having a free introductory class later this month. You’ll learn a lot, get a bunch of tools and get to see what it feels like to be part of a group with the intent to experience personal freedom.

Hope you are having an awesome Sunday. I’ll post pictures later of the Butterfly Koi and their new home.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha and Happy Thanksgiving,

Here in the United States we celebrate Thanksgiving Day today. It is my favorite holiday. A day dedicated to gratitude and thanksgiving. What could be better than gratitude and love? Lots of people use it as an opportunity to overeat but I love having people over, cooking, celebrating and truly giving thanks for everything. I am so grateful I have a wonderful home, a great family, friends and each of you. Thanks for allowing me to be part of your life.

As the holiday approached thought about what I wanted to give you. I finally decided I wanted to share a story from my book, The Toltec Way. It is about a village of people who learned the power of gratitude and love. At first I was just going to record it as an audio but then decided to make a video instead. I hope you enjoy it.

Here is the transcript of the story if you want to read along.

From The Toltec Way:

The Villagers Find Abundance

It had been a short, cold summer. The frost had come early and many were afraid that there wouldn’t be enough food for the winter. A heaviness settled over the village and people walked hurriedly, bent over, wrapped in their blankets, not even looking at each other. Fear filled their hearts and tempers were short. The Grandmother was saddened, her heart hurt as she saw the beautiful seeds of love dying.

The talk of war started gradually, first with the young braves. They complained about how their neighbors were killing their deer and picking their berries. At first the others laughed because everyone knew the deer and berries belonged to the Great Spirit. But the talk of war soon took on a life of its own. It was a way for many of the people to channel their fear.

The old women heard the talk and wept silently at night. They knew firsthand the pain of war. They had lost many sons and husbands over the years but war had not visited their village since the Grandmother had come to live with them. One by one they came and sat at the Grandmother’s fire; they talked about their fears, and asked the Grandmother what they could do.

“Forget your fear, walk in love. Look at the way others walk through the village. Walk not in fear. Share your love and your light as you move through the village; look at each person you pass and bless them. Share what you have, know that the Great Spirit will provide.”

The old women left muttering to themselves. It was easy for the Grandmother to say; they knew death waited for all of them this winter. Their hearts were too full of fear to heed her words.

The talk of war continued to spread. People no longer shared their meals and families built their fires alone.

The hunters went out and came back empty handed. They cursed their luck and muttered in anger about the neighboring villages. They knew the spirits of the land were against them and that many would starve during the long winter ahead. The grumbling spread throughout the village.

Finally the elders called a council meeting. The young warriors stood outside, their faces filled with anticipation and fear. War was the answer and they all knew it. They would raid their neighbors, kill them, and take the food that had been stolen from their lands.

The meeting had been going on for most of the evening. The energy of war filled the air and the crowd was thick around the gathering place. There was barely room to move, when suddenly the crowd began to part.

The Grandmother walked slowly and deliberately toward the meeting place. As always her eyes were filled with love but there was a sadness and a determination few had ever seen before.

A murmur went through the crowd of women and young warriors as she lifted the skin covering the meeting room door. Women weren’t allowed in the council meeting but no one dared stop her–she was, after all, the Grandmother.

The men fell silent as she entered. She looked around the room, meeting the eyes of everyone present, and she walked over to the Chief and stood in front of him. She looked deep into his eyes, then turned, and faced the fire as she raised her arms in prayer. The fire crackled, growing brighter by the moment, and the wind outside began to howl.

“I call upon the power of love. May only love be present here and may its light wash away any illusion of anger, hatred, or fear. I call upon the ancestors and all those who have gone before us or will come after us. May their wisdom and light be present here as well.”

The air began to shimmer and the people could feel the loving presence of the Great Spirit. The Grandmother stood in silence, her eyes closed, and her hands open facing the sky.

When she finally spoke her voice was filled with gentleness and power. “What is it you want to create? Why did you gather here tonight? Will war really solve your dilemma?”

Everyone started talking at once. The voices of fear were loud and raucous. The Chief stood up and everyone fell silent.

“Grandmother, you know we don’t have enough food for the winter and our neighbors kill our deer. We must protect our village. We must survive.”

The Grandmother slowly turned and looked at the Chief.

“At what price?”

The Chief began to speak and the Grandmother silenced him. No one silenced the Chief. When he again tried to speak she turned and looked at him. Her eyes were full of fire. His mouth continued to move but he couldn’t utter a single word.

“I said silence. I have enjoyed your loving hospitality for many moons. I have never interfered with tribal matters, but you have gone too far. Do you remember nothing I taught you? Do you so easily throw away the gifts of love? This village has grown and prospered because of the love you so freely shared. Do you love only when you feel safe? Do you turn your back on love as soon as fear starts whispering in your ear? Do you believe your eyes instead of your heart? Everything in your life is a gift freely given. If you try to hold on in fear it dissolves and you are left with nothing but your fear. Is that what you want?”

She looked around and stood before Gray Wolf. He had fear in his eyes and war in his heart.

“What is it you want to create with this war of yours? What is your intent, Gray Wolf?”

“I want to feed my family and take back what is rightly ours.”

“Why do you want to feed your family Gray Wolf?”

“That is a silly question old woman; because I love them.”

“So your intent is to show your love to your family by killing other families?”

She looked deeply into his eyes and touched his heart with her love. For a moment he had seen through her eyes and he saw what was really in his heart. He looked away in shame.

She looked around the circle and the men all lowered their eyes. They too had seen what was in their hearts and they were ashamed they had so easily surrendered to fear.

“If your intent is to love your families, love. Love everyone–especially your neighbors. If you let love be your guide you will always have enough. Fear causes starvation. Love never will. Give thanks for your blessings, bless your neighbor, share your bounty, and live in love.

“Your intent to love must be followed by loving actions. Love expands, fear contracts. If your intent is to love, be fearless in all you do, both in thought and in deed.

“Have you ever seen me want for anything? Have you ever seen me do anything but love? Would love deny you anything? My food barrels are full and yours will be too as soon as you open up your hearts and share. Give in love, without fear, and you will always have enough. As soon as fear infects your thinking you can be sure that scarcity will begin to rule your life.”

The Grandmother turned and walked out of the room. The young warriors were surprised when the Chief emerged a little later and ordered everyone to begin preparations for a great feast. All the villagers returned to their homes and took stock of what they could contribute.

The next day the neighboring villages were all summoned to share in their bounty. Laughter filled the village again, there was plenty of food for everyone, and the Grandmother smiled as the Chief said the blessing. He talked about love and sharing. He talked about always having enough as long as your intent was to walk in love.

The village shared their food with many starving people that winter. Their storerooms were always full. Anyone who came to their village was offered a place by their hearths and given all they could eat. They were sent away with a full stomach, a heart full of love, and all the food they could carry to take back to their families. Many learned the lesson of love and intent that winter.

With love and aloha,
Susan

PS. Watch out for what is coming next!

Index Cards

I’ve spent the week in Honolulu and last night I went shopping. When I began my spiritual journey I used a lot of index cards. I’d write down quotes from books, thoughts, affirmations and anything else that would help me retrain my mind. I would carry them with me everywhere and whenever I started feeling afraid, hopeless or miserable in any way I’d read them. Sometimes I’d read one card and reconnect and sometimes I’d read the whole pack.

Earlier in the day I had been thinking about an upcoming class I will be teaching and thought I would make creating a set of index cards one of the assignments. I got back to my hotel and in the bottom of one of the bags I found an index card with an affirmation on it. It says, “ It’s the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen.”

What a beautiful conformation of my earlier thought. Get a pack of index cards and get started. Index cards certainly transformed my life.

Spiritual Practices take practice

Creating bookends, something you do every morning and each night really makes a big difference in life. Using them to set a joyous, conscious intent for the day acts like a  catalyst for a miraculous day. We are either consciously or unconsciously riding the energy wave of our intent.

A great question is: What do I want to experience more of?

Once you decide what you want, focus your attention on having it, align  your thoughts and consciously take steps to move toward your desired result.

As my little index card reminded me, once belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen. Convince yourself that you deserve it, that you can have it and be willing to take the necessary actions. It will surely show up.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I was recently asked what one thing changed my life the most. I had a hard time coming up with just one. I know I started my journey in earnest shortly after spending five days in an intensive care unit, on ever machine imaginable and in excruciating pain after a failed suicide attempt. I became very willing at that moment to do whatever it took to change the way I felt about my life. Believe me you don’t have to wait for that kind of a wake up call.

Here are some of things I learned to do that made a huge difference and the one most important thing I did everyday (and still do frequently).

NUMBER ONE:

Realize we really are special. Without each of us the universe would be incomplete, that makes each of us very important. When we learn to truly value ourselves, to love ourselves just the way we are life becomes amazing.

MOST DAILY POWERFUL EXERCISE:

Twice daily look at yourself in the mirror, think of something that creates a warm, loving feeling ( a puppy, your beloved, a sunrise, a hot fudge Sunday, whatever. . .) and then look directly into your own eyes and say I love you. Say it until you really mean it. I did this daily for months and it made a HUGE difference. I resisted and cried at first.

NUMBER TWO:

I dedicated myself to loving and accepting myself just the way I am. Whenever I heard the voice of my inner judge, I thanked it for sharing and once again reminded myself how precious I am.

ANOTHER POWERFUL EXERCISE:

Give yourself a hug, as a matter of fact make it a daily practice to give lots of hugs, lots and lots of hugs. When you give a hug really allow yourself to receive as well as give.

Until next time ….. remember you are loved, you are love and you are lovable.

With love and aloha,
Susan

How many miles have your thoughts traveled?

I once read an article about how far out in space human beings original radio signals travel each day. I saw a science fiction movie in which ET’s were attracted to earth because of TV shows from the 50’s (what a scary thought!)

Imagine each and every thought or word you have ever had or spoken. Think of them traveling into space, forever held, forever spoken, forever reverberating through space, for all time, eternally. Are there any words or thoughts you wish you could take back?

Our thoughts create our emotions and they dictate how we feel

This world is a vast energy system. We are like radio towers constantly receiving and broadcasting. Our body uses our five senses to translate energy so we touch, taste, feel, smell and hear the world. Think about how you feel when you are really happy. Think about how it feels to be very disappointed. You just created those feelings, the world didn’t.

Your thoughts do become things. Your life reflects what you have focused your attention most frequently. What do you think about that? Ready to change your thoughts yet?

Did you know that every rainbow is unique?

Each rainbow is formed from light that hits your eye at a very precise angle. Someone standing next to you will see light from a slightly different angle and therefore see a different rainbow. I love rainbows and no one else can see the same rainbow as me.

Without you the universe would be incomplete. You matter. Focus on loving yourself unconditionally. Affirm your value and watch your life transform.

Today is the only day you have the power to change and you can start it over right now by knowing you are loved, you are love and you are lovable.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I am opening up my apprentice class for the month – great way to change your thinking rapidly and create a life based on what you do want …. just a thought

What is a happy life anyway? How do YOU define happiness. For some people the idea of working for yourself is absolutely terrifying while for others working for someone else is depressing.

Years ago my aunt asked me when I was going to get a real job -  you know one where you work for twenty of thirty years, get a gold watch if you are lucky and retire. Well for some people these days that job has turned into pay into a retirement plan, go to retire and find out you don’t have any money. I haven’t had a real job in years, I have followed my inner  voice and for over twenty years I have done what I love everyday. What a wonderful life and such an incredible gift although my aunt never thought so.

What denotes happiness for you?

Is happiness having a job, a relationship, a beautiful home, traveling, staying home, lots of friends, more time for yourself, a new car, freedom, more structure? To be happy or not to be happy, that is the question. It helps to realize that we all define happiness in a different way.

When I do counseling for couples I ask each person to write a list of how they feel loved and then exchange it. One couple I worked with had a disagreement about how coming home should look. The wife wanted to talk about the day while the husband just wanted some alone time. Neither person was willing to compromise so eventually they went through a rather messy divorce. I always find it sad to change love into anger simply by not listening. So often we would rather be right than happy.

Happiness is always just a thought away

There is no ultimate definition for happiness. In my hippie days I went to Jamaica. I had very little money and traveled around using the local buses and staying with people in huts. To the Jamaicans I was rich. According to my mind I wasn’t because I had no idea how I was going to pay the bills when I got home. Happiness and wealth is relative.

So how do you create a happy life? It is really easy. No matter what is happening in your life tell yourself a story about the event that generates happiness. Simple but often not easy. Like I said, we would often rather hold onto our perspective, our old, limited way of seeing things rather than be happy.

Change your perspective change your life

The Toltec tradition has three masteries: Awareness, transformation and intent. You really can be as happy as you make up your mind to be happy. Change your awareness, set your intent to be happy and then transform your thinking.

If you look at the image to the left you can see a young woman with a hat or a very wrinkled old woman. It is a matter of perspective. The same thing is true in life. We can see it through the eyes of love and have a joyous, happy experience or see through judgment and fear and create misery, pain and suffering.

Spiritual practices take practice. Decide to practice seeing life as a perfect opportunity to either deepen your connection to your spirit and be happy or reaffirm your limiting belief system and be not so happy.

The choice is yours moment by moment and you can see your choice clearly by observing what you are feeling emotionally. Changing your perspective is so much easier than changing the world. The paradox is as you change your perspective  your life changes too.

I will soon be opening my apprentice class again, so watch for the announcement. It is a powerful way to change your perspective.

With love and aloha,
Susan

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What really matters to you? What really matters if you want to make permanent, life enhancing changes in your life? What really matters? What do you want to experience more of or less of in your life?

If you talk to a hundred people or read a hundred self-help books you will probably get at least fifty different answers, well at least a few unique ones.

How do you decide what matters?

We can make that choice consciously, based on what we want to create or unconsciously based on our filter system, society or our habitual way or doing things. We live so much of our lives unconsciously. The years tumble by and we look back, wondering where the time has gone. What if instead you developed the ability to be fully present in the moment and fully savor all of life? How would your life be different?

Change is simply a matter of thinking differently. Once we shift our perspective nothing changes and everything changes. We really do swim in a sea of unconditional love and once we fully experience that all of our choices change. We can actually be happy no matter what is happening around us, we make choices that are life enhancing and we create a life that makes our heart sing.

A life that makes your heart sing. Sound good?

What are you willing to do to experience that? Are you willing to consciously choose loving thoughts? Are you willing to have an inner dialog with your spirit? Are you willing to let go of your limiting beliefs and embrace the truth of who and what you are, a limitless being of love and light and laughter?

What it really comes down to is are you willing to allow yourself to be happy? It may not seem like it but it takes a lot of work to be unhappy, to experience limitations, to fail, to feel unloved and to not have enough of everything. Every day you unconsciously have to choose misery, moment by moment and thought by thought.

So let go, surrender to the love and light of your spirit, follow that love and watch your life transform. You are after all a totally limitless being. Let it be ….

With love and aloha,
Susan

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Are you using your filter system or aligning with your spiritual essence

We are the creators of our life experience. We either create that experience from our filter system and fear or our spirit and love. Where we focus our attention makes a huge difference.

You are a limitless being. Your thoughts are not real and are usually assumptions about reality that have no basis in fact. So often I watch people embrace the idea that they can create what they want when they want it. They are overjoyed because it is reassuring to think we are in control of our reality. If we are in control then we are safe.

That desire for control is fear based.  When you are aligned with your spiritual essence you know you are safe no matter what and there is no need for control. You can easily surrender to what is and savor the moment.

Sunrise, sunset – the tide is in the tide is out

When the sunsets I never worry if it is going to come up again the next day. When I watch the ocean sometime the tide is high at other times low. I have learned to apply that concept to my life. Sometimes I have lots of money, the tide is in. When money is not as plentiful I realize the tide is out and it will turn around again. The same is true about health, energy, love and time. When I view it that way love is ever present. When I feel the need to control things or worry about what is, fear is once again the master.

A change of perspective changes your experience of life dramatically and it also invites different results into your life. Love expands, fear contracts.

Love =  bliss

If you choose love more often than fear bliss is only a thought away. When you surrender to what is from a place of love it is easy to enjoy the moment. When you surrender from a place of fear that often feels like giving up and it is easy to victimize yourself with fear-based outcomes.

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE. Focus on love, practice seeing through the eyes of love, know you are love and know only love is real. Watch your life fill with magic and miracles.

Times are a changing . . .

Times are changing. The economy is dicey, terrorist abound. In the Great Depression of the 1930’s there were more millionaires made than in any other time in history.  If you align yourself with love you will create an amazing future. If you react from fear, believe in all the news reports and react to them – well I wouldn’t want to live that life.  Breadline of philanthropist, you get to choose.

Guess which world love builds?

With love and aloha,
Susan

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That inner voice

Our inner dialog isn’t really the problem. The problem is we listen to that dialog, think it is our true nature and then we believe what we are telling ourselves. We forget that all of our perceptions about reality are based on an illusion. Until we change our perspective generally our assumptions about reality are based on the belief that we are separate and limited. We experience life as if we are our body and our thoughts are real. The world is a vast energy system and we forget that as soon as we start describing it, as soon as we start thinking we have broken our connection with who and what we really are.

You are a limitless, infinite, eternal energy presently inhabiting a body. The voice of your inner critic is an indication you have aligned yourself with your mind and not your spirit.  Many years ago I was told that I couldn’t think myself into shifting my awareness but I could take actions that would help me experience and in the process remember who and what I really was.

The judge can set you free

Whenever the voice of the judge kicks in I can choose to stay asleep, follow along and remain immersed in my old beliefs, ignorant and unconscious of the real me. If I want to experience my limitless nature I can choose to notice the voice and use it as a reminder. “Oh, there is the voice of the judge. Time to wake up.” 

Once I set my intent to awaken I can make new choices and take actions that will set me free. I can begin to consciously create my life and fill it with magic, miracles, wonder and joy or whatever else I want. The inner critic, the judge can be viewed as an alarm clock, granted an annoying alarm clock but an alarm clock none the less.

The two questions I often get are: “How do I remember to wake up and not get caught up in the judgment?” and “What actions should I take?”  The first thing I always suggest is change any should into I could or I choose.

How do I remember to wake up?

Early on in my journey I realized I could spend my time moving away from pain and I would create pain to move away from, not the best option. Listening to our judgmental inner voice will certainly help us create pain to move away from.  At first things would have to get pretty bad before I would take action. I actually tried to kill myself several times.  We can use pain as a wake up call. Once we get tired of moving away from pain (that can take a lot of suffering, it’s up to you) or we can create a routine designed to help us stay awake. I call them my non-negotiables.  Once I did that I began to move toward pleasure, connection, love and spiritual awareness.

I find it is much easier to stay centered and connected than it is to get reconnected.  So, my answer to that question is decide to move toward pleasure instead of away from pain. When you notice you are in pain take a concrete action that you know helps you feel better. I literally made a list of things and put them in the back of my journal. I knew I could read the list and pick one when my discomfort didn’t allow me to remember what to do next.

What actions can I take?

I no longer have my list of nurturing things in the back of my journal. They are so much a part of my life I generally choose to take an action as soon as joy becomes illusive. That list including anything that assisted me in connecting with my spirit, with that sea of love we all live in daily.

When people ask me what actions to take I suggest they make a list of nurturing things, a personal list of things they find uplifting. When I made my list it was a process of trial and error. It was a wonderful exploration. I got to find so many ways to feel loved and connected to that energy of creation, that loving and expansive energy of unconditional love.

Some of the things I had on my list were:

Meditate
Take a walk
Take a deep breath
Write a gratitude list
Call a friend and talk about all the good stuff
Pet an animal
Help someone else
Sing
Dance
Take a hot bath

I think you get the idea.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Related Posts:

What if I had Toltec Wisdom as a child

When life gives you lemons

The World is a Vast Energy System

Suffering is optional

It is Never Too Late to Have a Happy Childhood

This morning I was doing some stretches in my hot tub. It is located under a tin roof and it was raining very hard. The gutters were gurgling with water destined for my water tank. I use rain water for all my water needs.

Suddenly I began to think of rain and what a miracle it is, water falling from the sky. Sometimes clouds are fluffy and white, at other time they share their water with the earth. This morning they were gray and dark yet I knew that the sun was shinning just on the other side of them. Rain gives life to the earth and many people are in need of that life giving water.

Cycles of life

Just think about the all the cycles of life. Plants turn CO2 into oxygen, water recycles, we are born, live and die. What an incredible gift each moment is and if we are willing we can allow a simple act like observing the rain to change our entire perspective and in the process change our life.

Life is miraculous and an experience best savored in the moment….

Just some thoughts on a wonderful, miraculous rainy Friday morning.

With love and aloha,
Susan

PS. The drought in Somalia is devastating. Here is link to some organizations that are helping.

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Perspective Changes Everything

I wrote this a number of years ago. I just ran across it and thought it was time to share it ….. enjoy

As so many of us do, I carried wounds from my childhood into my adult life. As a young girl I was molested by some boys. At the time I was devastated. I was sure it was my fault, and when the boys told me not to tell anyone or they would kill me I believed them. Before that I never felt like I fit in afterwards I felt like a total misfit. I was sure life was a complex game and everybody except me knew how to play. When I began my journey of self-discovery in my twenties I ran across the concept of forgiveness and with a great deal of anger and judgment promptly rejected the idea. Over the years my thoughts on forgiveness have changed drastically. Now I believe forgiveness is one of the most important steps we can take toward achieving self-acceptance, peace of mind, and happiness.

We are taught to think in terms of duality: right and wrong, positive and negative, good and bad, black and white, you and me. Our society is based on the concept of domination – the society and the individual are seen as separate – the problem and the solution are two different things. As long as we view the world that way judgment and comparison are very much a part of our thought process. Forgiveness seems like we are letting them off the hook – punishment makes much more sense than forgiveness. We aren’t taught to believe that everything in life is one. But in truth we are all one, everything and everyone is part of the great mystery of life.

There is another way of viewing life, which I call dominion. Symbolically I think of dominion as a huge sphere, a womb that holds everything lovingly within it. How we view events in our life depends upon where we are standing on that sphere. I am not separate from anyone hence no one can do anything to me, they just do it. Viewing life this way makes forgiveness a desirable and understandable component of life. Let me explain. As I embraced the concept of dominion I realized that those boys didn’t do anything to me, I just happened to be in the same place they were when they decided to do something. The boys that molested me dealt with their emotional pain by passing it on to me. It was really all about them. What a gift that realization was for me! Not only was I able to forgive them but I was able to forgive myself and really see the experience for what it was, an opportunity to learn how to open my heart and love at a much deeper level.

I strongly believe that if we learn to live in dominion instead of domination the world would be a much more loving and gentle place to live. In dominion, instead of judging things we embrace them. Life, relationships, and everyday events become an opportunity for us to see our filter system, which is composed of all of our assumptions, agreements, and beliefs. In each moment we have a choice – will I see this through the eyes of my filter system, the eyes of fear and separation, or will I see through the eyes of my spirit, the eyes of love and oneness? In each moment we can choose to either be in domination or dominion.

When I first introduce these concepts to people they usually say I am asking them to be a doormat. They ask me how I can embrace the rapist or the murderer? When they ask that, I share the story of my family. The Nazis killed my great grandmother during the holocaust while a cousin went back to Germany to fight with the Nazis. Dominion allowed me to accept and understand both a brutal murder and murderer. Many holocaust survivors share that they couldn’t make peace with their experiences in the camps until they forgave the Nazis. I believe that as a species we missed a wonderful opportunity after World War II. If you want to get rid of a dandelion, cutting the head off won’t work. If you deal only with what’s on the surface the weed will come right back; if you dig out the root, the weed will be gone forever.

The legacy of Hitler and the holocaust isn’t just about unthinkable cruelty and genocide. Those were just the head of the dandelion. If we have the courage to really examine the root we will find judgment and our need for domination. I believe the questions we ask as a society often define us. What if we had asked ourselves what caused Hitler to have a filter system that allowed him to make choices that resulted in the death of millions of people? What if we had seen judgment as the cause of all that death and suffering and Hitler as the symbol of our collective hatred, criticism, and judgment? What could we have changed as a society? Where would we be today if we had sought to free ourselves from judgment instead of focusing our judgment on what they did?

Everything in life is a process and by definition a process takes time. Getting to the point that we are even willing to think about forgiveness often takes a long time. I believe exploring the concept of dominion expedites arriving there. When we view the world from a place of dominion our perspective changes and we are able to fully embrace the experience. As we learn to embrace the events in our life the problem and the solution become one.

The first step in our emotional healing is allowing ourselves to freely vent our anger and judgment. It is important not to rush through this step. Do whatever is necessary to release the emotional trash surrounding the issue; write a series of letters fully expressing all your thoughts, judgments, and feelings and then burn them; draw pictures; scream and yell; beat on pillows. After all, if we have a lot of emotional trash hanging around it makes it much harder to move toward forgiveness. Once we release the emotions we have attached to the memory we can begin the process of forgiveness and acceptance and then we can begin to see the gift every event in our life contains.

All of our emotions are generated by what we tell ourselves about the events in our lives rather than by the events themselves. As we change what we tell ourselves about an event our emotions will change as well. Our emotions are really signposts that point toward our filter system. Our filter system is composed of our beliefs, the assumptions we’ve made about life, and the agreements we have made with ourselves and our world. We think we are seeing reality when we are really seeing the distorted version of reality created by our beliefs, the assumptions we’ve made about life, and the agreements we’ve made with ourselves and our world; we see our filter system and not the world.

We often say things like, “You hurt my feelings,” or “You really make me angry.” What actually happens is someone does something, then we tell ourselves something about what happened, and those words generate our emotional response. All the events in our lives are emotionally neutral until we attach an emotion to the event by what we tell ourselves. When we realize our emotions are our own creation we can use them to set ourselves free of our limiting beliefs. We can use the events in our life to illuminate our filter system. Instead of focusing our attention on our emotions and trying to change the events in our life we can change the way we think. We don’t want to suppress our emotions, it is important for us to feel them and do what is necessary to release them. That allows us to have an opportunity to see our filter system in a neutral and non-judgmental manner.

After we achieve a degree of emotional neutrality it is much easier for us to see our filter system for what it is – a collection of ungrounded and limiting beliefs. Our mind would much rather be right than be happy. Our spirit is limitless while our mind feels safer within the familiar limits of our filter system. Once we fully embrace that which our mind wants to judge we can then set ourselves free. At that point not only do we forgive ourselves and anyone else involved with the event but we move beyond the need for forgiveness.

As we move beyond forgiveness and toward acceptance we see the beauty of all of our creations. When we view life from the perspective of dominion we begin to see it as a work of art we create moment by moment. Every event in our life is an opportunity to deepen our connection with ourselves, the people in our lives, and with God, the Great Spirit or whatever you choose to call the Creator of this magnificent universe. After we clearly see the role our filter system plays in our experience of life we often want to release it.

Until then we frequently attempt to control things beyond our control so we can be happy or at least comfortable. We try to change the events in our lives instead of how we see them. When we learn to focus on our filter system instead of what ‘they did’ or ‘what happened to us’ we can learn to be happy no matter what is going on in our lives. We can move beyond forgiveness to a deep sense of acceptance of life just as it is. When we finally realize it has been our filter system that has prevented us from being happy we can change how we think about life.

Changing your mind is a process and it can be an easy and enjoyable one or one that is full of pain and struggle, the choice is yours. To make it a more enjoyable experience create an inner sanctuary for yourself, become your own best friend, talk lovingly to yourself, and gently accept yourself just the way you are. Remember, learning to see life through the eyes of dominion and love is a process that takes time. Give yourself the gift of taking as much time as you need.

With love and aloha,
Susan

What a powerful phrase. Emotional poison …. we can poison our lives, we can poison our relationships, we can poison our passion, we can poison … we can poison. That is the point: we can poison anything with our thinking. Don Miguel Ruiz uses that phrase a lot in his teachings.

On the other hand we can also create anything we want with our thinking. It all depends on how we focus our attention. Life is and then we tell ourselves a story. What is our intent in telling that story? Does it allow us to be happy? Does it facilitate a deeper connection with our filter system or with our spirit? Fear or love? Does our habitual way of thinking take us in a direction we want to go? Are we getting the results we want in our life?

If we aren’t experiencing the emotions, events and outcomes we want in our life we can explore changing our perspective. It will have a very powerful result if we are willing to be honest with ourselves and make the necessary changes in our thinking. Life really isn’t about ‘out there.’ Our experiences in life are a reflection of our internal perspective.

Perspective = awareness + intent

Perspective is defined as:

a technique of depicting volumes and spatial relationships on a flat surface

the state of one’s ideas, the facts known to one, etc., in having a meaningful interrelationship

the faculty of seeing all the relevant data in a meaningful relationship

a mental view or prospect

If our intent is to be happy we will focus our awareness one way. If our intent is to maintain our filter system (to be right) we will focus our awareness another way. The results we are getting, our emotions will show us what our intent really is. If you are happy most of the time your intent is to be happy and if you find yourself being judgmental, angry or sad a lot of the time that was your intent as well.

So, how do we change our intent?

Intent is a fun concept to play with. Did you ever play with clay as a child? An artist can no doubt get the clay to conform to their wishes. When we first start playing with clay our outcomes reflect our lack of skill. So it is with intent. As we become more proficient with intent our life becomes a beautiful reflection of our true essence instead of a reflection of our untrained, habitual mind.

So perhaps we don’t need to change our intent. What we need to do is consciously choose moment by moment what we want to create. Practice, play, adapt, play, change our thoughts, observe, modify, play, praise and then do it all over again with love.

Questions can set us free

Using our awareness to notice our subtle inner dialog. Infusing that dialog with questions that lead us to our essence. Questions that inevitably lead us to the limitless, loving, expansive beautiful being that each of us really is.

What do I want to create?
How can I see this through the eyes of love?
What would love do?
Would I really like to be happy right now or hold onto my perspective that is causing me pain?

Or you can use the 4 questions of Katie Byron:

Is it true?
Can you absolutely know that it’s true?
How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought?
Who would you be without the thought?

However you do it give yourself the gift- embrace your birthright to be happy, joyous, free and living the life of your dreams.

With love and aloha,
Susan

PS. Check back soon. I will be re-launching my web site with lots of great stuff.

A friend sent me an e mail and I thought I’d pass it on:

I believe the U.S. Congress needs this wakeup call.  Pass it on.

Please consider forwarding, if you agree

This is something I believe in and I hope you all read it all the way through.

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months; 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971…before computers, before e-mail, before cell phones, etc.

Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took 1 year or less to become the law of the land…all because of public pressure.

I’m asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise.

In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around.

Congressional Reform Act of 2011

1. Term Limits

12 years only, one of the possible options below.
A. Two Six-year Senate terms
B. Six Two-year House terms C. One Six-year Senate term and three Two-Year House terms

2. No Tenure / No Pension.

A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.

3. Congress (past, present and future) participates in Social Security.

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people.

4. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.

span style=”font-weight: bold;”>5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise.

Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

6. Congress loses their current health care system

and participates in the same health care system as the American people.

7. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.

8. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12.

The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen. Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves.

Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S. ) to receive the message. Maybe it is time.
LET’S FIX CONGRESS!!!!! If you agree, pass it on.

What a concept!

With love and aloha,
Susan

I just finished leading a retreat here on the Big Island. A group of wonderful people from Lithuania and Latvia came here to experience Hawaii and get a crash course in transforming their lives. We had weeks of rain before they came and I was grateful the skies cleared and the weather was perfect, rain at night, sun during the day and showers only while we were driving. Magic at its best.

As is often the case I was teaching class Sunday night while they were here and had a profound ah ha that was in a sense always self evident yet not at all obvious until after the fact. I have found that is the nature of most of my profound ah ahs.

Horse are good at pulling wagons, but not so good at pushing them

I get hundreds of e mails from people struggling with change. They want to get different results in their lives and are tired of the results they have been getting. Can you relate to that in any area of your life? I know I can. If we try to move away from a behavior, especially one we have a judgment about we create more of that behavior. That seems counter intuitive but it’s true.

if you have a judgment about something, you have a strong emotional charge about it and tend to focus your attention on it frequently. Whatever you focus your attention on you get more of. Emotions are energy in motion, judgments tend to attract our attention so we get more of our judgments.

So, if we move toward what we do want instead of away from what we don’t want change is much easier.

Allowing Change to Happen

The easiest way to allow change to happen is to align with your limitless nature, with your spirit. The key to changing your alignment rests in the three masteries: awareness, transformation and intent.

Awareness – where are you focusing your attention?

Transformation – what are you creating with your energy? Are you aligned with your filter system or the essence of who and what you are, your spirit?

Intent – what do you want to create?

When we focus our attention on what we do want, choose to consciously focus our attention on what we do want and set our intent to deepen our connection with our spirit we are in alignment with allowing change to happen. When we are aligned with our filter system judgment is prevalent and change is much more like pushing the cart.

In the next few days I will be sharing some posts on using meditation, music and guided meditations to facilitate change. If you want to make sure you don’t miss these posts use the form below to subscribe and get blog posts via email … it  is easy, no muss, no fuss and of course no spam …

With love and aloha,
Susan

Related Posts:

Deliberate Intent

Boundaries without limits

Suffering is optional

As I watched Oprah’s final show I found myself not only deeply moved but having several really great ah ha moments. This seems to be the month for ah ha’s for me. At one point she whipped away tears when she said she had gone from a little girl who didn’t feel much loved to a woman who could feel the love of millions.

I was scheduled to be filmed for one of her angel moment segments years ago but I was driving from LA to San Diego and missed the call. One morning I was sitting at my desk and the producers from the Oprah show called and interviewed me. They put me on hold for a minute and I ran around the house yelling, “I’m on the phone with the Oprah Show.”

At the time I was disappointed I didn’t get on the show now I am grateful. When I heard her speak from the heart about connecting with her viewers, the wind of God at her back and watched her energetically I knew wasn’t ready. Don Miguel had told me many years ago that I had lots of knowledge and that I needed to change that knowledge into wisdom. When I asked him what that meant he gave me one of “those smiles.”

Knowledge is Great But Wisdom is The Key To Personal Freedom

It took me a while to realize that knowledge comes from the mind while wisdom emanates from our heart. As I watched Oprah I could feel the love from the depth of her soul or I could have watched the show and thought ,”How arrogant to tell people how to live life!” I really felt the love and the humility of spirit.

Over the years, one by one I have taken each piece of knowledge and allowed myself to feel it in my heart. To know it from the core of my being and allow it to become a guiding force in my life.

The Toltec tradition teaches that the world is a vast energy system, that everything is made up of energy and that all energy has consciousness.  The Hawaiian tradition reminds us of the power of every word we speak. The ancient Hawaiians had very few words and none for judgment or anger because they knew the power carried by each word.

Over and over again Oprah kept saying, “You have the power. You have the power.” And we each do have the power to engage our spirit as the guiding force in our life. When we do that all of our actions come from our inherent wisdom instead of our often fear based version of knowledge. The statement, ‘I Know’ often short circuits our wisdom, love and disconnects us from the limitless possibilities our spiritual connection can allow into our reality.

I’m Sick or Is My Body Just Busy Healing?

I have had laryngitis for about a week. When I was waking up this morning my first thought was I don’t feel good. That first moment of awakening is called the hypnagogic state and is the most powerful moment of your day. Just as you are awakening or falling asleep your mind is most suggestible. It is a powerful time to set your intent for the day or to consciously choose to use your dreams.

My body didn’t feel good. I had a sore throat, a deep cough, I ached and was sneezing a lot. As I laid there I made a choice. My body is in the midst of healing and doing a great job doing it. I thought of all the times by body got over colds, the flue, healed from broken bones and knitted my skin back together from a variety of cuts and bruises. My body is the midst of doing a great job of healing and in that moment I felt so much better.

I Don’t Have Enough Money to Pay My Bills or I’m in The Process of Connecting With My Financial Abundance?

Can you see the difference? Can you feel the difference? Take care of how you think about everything in life and watch your life transform. I have had walking pneumonia several times. My body knows how to create that and I could feel it coming on this morning but the moment I realized my body was busy healing it was cured.

YOU HAVE THE POWER. You have the power to change you life in this moment simply by changing your inner dialog. Change how you talk about what is and what is changes immediately, unless you keep returning to your old thoughts.

My ah ha: Thoughts become things, think lovingly about everything and everyone. Surround “what you perceive as the truth” with a loving expansive perspective and ask questions that help you deepen your connection to your spirit.

I have known and taught this for years but it has moved more deeply into my wisdom column and it sure feels good. My body is busy healing and I love the process. I feel so much better already!

With love and aloha,
Susan

Related Posts:

Basic Toltec Wisdom

The World is a Vast Energy System

How do I find my life’s purpose

Our mind is an incredibly powerful instrument. Unfortunately for most of us it didn’t come with operating instructions or if it did I sure missed getting them!  Thought by thought, choice by choice, moment by moment we either consciously or habitually create our experience of reality.

A sharp knife can be used to prepare a fabulous meal, carve a beautiful work of art or badly injure or kill someone. The knife is just a tool, it is how we use the tool that makes the difference. So it is with our mind.

Your Mind is the Gateway to Heaven or Hell

Life is. The world is a vast energy system and we harness that energy with our mind.  We are like little radio stations constantly sending out vibrations that are converted seamlessly into the events in our life.

Yes, YOU DO create your reality. I used to hate that idea ….. what about the starving in Africa are they creating their reality … and child abuse and … been there done that, I know all the yeah buts. Please read on with a mind at least partially willing to listen and let go of judgments (limitations is disguise). Okay at least read on because I guarantee you can be happy no matter what and start creating REALLY good stuff. Suffering really isn’t necessary!

I CREATE MY REALITY, EVEN THE BAD STUFF???? HOW DARE YOU! But wait, it is all GOOD, really even the bad stuff, actually especially the stuff we don’t like!

What we tell ourselves about ‘what is’ creates heaven or hell, in this moment and sends out the invitation for the next event about to enter our lives. So, what is your intent? To hold onto your limited version of reality and be right or let go of your old paradigm and be happy?

Hypnagogic State and Intent

Our inner dialog, that endless prattle that goes on between our ears creates an energy state. If we focus on fear based thoughts, judgmental thoughts or victim thoughts guess what we invite into our lives? Guess what we create with worry, judgment and fear?  On the other hand if we retrain our minds to see life through the filter of love and joy guess what kind of events we invite into out lives instead? When life hands you lemons instead of complaining about the lemons make lemonade.

When we are just waking up in the morning or falling asleep at night our mind is extremely suggestible. That relaxed state of mind is called the hypnagogic state. Left to its own devises our unruly mind tends to start thinking about all the things we have to do, the unpaid bills, another day at that job. I other words our minds surround us with fear and worry. However if we set our intent to retrain our mind, if we set our intent to infuse our mind with positive affirmations of love and acceptance our lives change very rapidly.

Use your intent consciously and with awareness of what you are inviting into your life. Next time you get together with your friends instead of complaining about life make the conversation a huge gratitude feast. Set your intent to find a way to love what is …. especially the stuff you don’t like.

Training Tools, Bookends and Meditation

Dogs make wonderful companions if you take some time to train them and become, as Caesar calls it pack leader. Taking time to train your mind will have benefits beyond belief! It will take time, effort, dedication, consistency and a conscious decision on your part but the rewards are well worth it.

In up coming posts I will talk about the training process in depth but for now I will put in a plug for meditation. Of all the tools meditation is the most versatile and powerful, so stay tuned …. and if you like this post please push the like button on Facebook.

With love and aloha,
Susan

How does the nature of prediction change the actual prediction, the predictor and the recipient of the prediction? The Heisenberg uncertainty principle states that it is impossible to know both the exact position and the exact velocity of an object at the same time. Simply put that the observer affects the observed. So how does that apply to life and does it?

Heisenberg uncertainty principle in life

Early on in my spiritual journey I went to psychics. They would make a prediction and then I would sit back and wait for it to happen. I often stopped doing what I had been dong and simply waited. Their predictions rarely occurred. We are the creators of our reality, there is no fine print that says except for this. Psychics can see probable futures, potential realities. It is up to us to create the prediction. Once a woman predicted I would find my dog dead outside my door. I didn’t choose to experience that so I didn’t.

To observe any particle, smaller particles must first be reflected off it. When that happens the location and the speed of the particle is affected. We all have the ability to explore potential realities and then decide which one we will create. The one that we give the majority of our attention to is the one that most likely manifests.

What if you ‘knew’ you were going to die in three weeks? Would you spend all your money? Would you give everything away? What would you do? But what if that ‘knowing’ was based on faulty information? What if three weeks came and you were still alive?

Judgment Day: May 21, 2011

I recently read an article about a Christian family, the parents believe in the rapture. They stopped working and have spent all their time spreading the word about judgment day. Since their children wouldn’t help them they told them they were going to be doomed to hell with the rest of the evil non-believers. What kind of a future are they creating?

I could be wrong but I doubt that God or the creative force of the universe judges. I doubt that only one religion will go to heaven and everyone else will go to hell. Is the end of the world coming? I doubt it will arrive on October 21, 2011 either. Planet earth may stop supporting human beings at some point in the future and a different species may become the dominant one but who knows?

Okay I will  get off my soap box now…..

A prediction I am pretty sure of but I could be wrong …

According to the Toltec tradition the world is a vast energy system. Love expands, fear contracts. If we focus on love, acceptance and joy our lives will expand. If we focus on fear, judgment and anger our lives will contract. And will that prediction affect your life? I hope so.

My favorite prediction is that if you do random acts of kindness on a regular basis  you will feel good and so will others.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I talk a great deal about emotional neutrality and the perfection of everything. I know every event is perfect and that doesn’t mean that at times I don’t have strong reactions, judgments and profound wonderment at our choices as a species. This week I had one of those moments.

Celebrating Osama bin Laden’s death

No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks.
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

I watched the images of people celebrating the killing of Osama Bin Laden and was deeply saddened. It is that very behavior that helps nurture the creation of terrorists. Hatred and judgment creates the perception of the need to retaliate.

Do people really not see the inevitability of al-Qaeda getting even? As with Hitler, I wonder about the beliefs, agreements and assumptions that created these men. I hope some day we will be willing to look at our collective filter system with a willingness to see it and modify it.

I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. Martin Luther King, Jr

My question is when will we get that? When will we realize that judgment and hatred will never create peace? As long as we live in a world driven by right and wrong we will create a world filled with hatred, judgment and war.

Today My Spiritual Practice Is To Love The War On _____ You Fill In The Blank

Today my spiritual practice is to accept, embrace and love the people that celebrate Osama Bin Laden’s death. I want to be bale to love all the people that believe the war on terrorism or the war on drugs or the war on illegal aliens will succeed and improve the world.

It will take lots of self talk on my part, prayer, meditation, love, forgiveness, more love, more surrendering and LOTS OF LOVE to get there. I may not get there today or tomorrow or next year but it is my intent to release all internal conflict and judgments. I will create peace within, without that there is no hope for peace out there.

I do not know with what weapons World War 3 will be fought, but World War 4 will be fought with sticks and stones. Albert Einstein

Blessed be,
Susan

Whenever I talk about the Toltec tradition one of the first things I say is, “the Toltec viewed the world as a vast energy system.” I know the world is energy, that our words have great power and that we create our reality energetically, usually with our thoughts or our words. I know change is simply a matter of shifting our energy. I know this stuff, I teach this stuff. Knowing and doing aren’t necessarily the same thing as I learned last week with my dogs.

Energy and Dogs

I have watched and loved the Dog Whisperer, Cesar Milan for years. I have tried to apply his principles with some success, ok with very limited success. My dogs were still unruly when it came to barking and greeting people. Well the term greeted is relative, if you mean maul, annoy and scare they did just fine.

Moke, the big one smiling at the camera was totally over the top. She is too strong for me to physically control so when people came over she was relegated to the bedroom. The real problem child was Roxie, the one with the pointy ears. We are her 4th home, we’ve had her for about two years and she was getting worse. She has started to get aggressive toward people, mainly the family.

Well, long story short ….. I ran into the woman who had the puppy classes for my little dog, Minty (front row) and told her I was having problems. She told me we had a local dog whisperer. I found his number and called.

It is All About Energy, Eye Contact and Mommy Dog Energy

Taking my foursome for a morning walk had become a nightmare. A car in the driveway was a dreaded occurrence.  Carl, our local dog whisperer came over for a few hours Friday afternoon.  Miracles do happen. I am a witness to that!

He showed me how to do what he called mean mommy energy. He explained that when a mother dog would leave her den to get food  she would give the puppies a ‘mean mommy look’ that said put one foot outside of this den and you may die. He went on to say that any puppy that didn’t listen probably did become someone else’s dinner so they aren’t part of the genetic pool.

We worked for a few hours, I got to feel what mean mommy energy sounded like and felt like. My dogs were perfect angels with him because he came in with that energy. Well in a few hours we all got it. The next day the electrician came over, oddly enough his name is Moke too. For the first time in her life Moke got to wander around a human’s feet sniff and be calm and relaxed. WOW!!!

So If Four Dogs Can Change Overnight What About You?

These dogs have been barking for their entire lives, yet in a few hours they were able to shift their behavior. I was able to shift my behavior as soon as I saw what the desired energy felt like, sounded like and looked like.

So what does personal freedom feel, sound and look like? How would abundance, health, unconditional love and anything else you want feel like, look like and sound like?

We are the creator of our reality. One of the gifts of physical reality is we get to experience energy in three dimensional physical reality. We get to see anger and fear in action. We can feel pain and if we are determined change the underlying energy that created it. We can create whatever we want as long as we are willing to resonate with the same energy.

What about world peace?

I have heard lots of people call for world peace. I have seen people demonstrate against war (I did myself a long time ago) but I have seen very few people hold the energy of world peace and resonate with it. Perhaps the Dalia Lama does but then again he says, “We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.”

So if you really want to see a world at peace you need to find peace within, release all judgment and learn to love everything and everyone including people like Bin Laden, Hitler, child molesters, murderers and anyone else that annoys you.

Most of us seem to think world peace means a world run by our rules and free of anyone who doesn’t act the way we think they should but that is another post.

So Do You Want To Change?

Are you willing to start focusing on the only thing you can really change, your energy? Pay attention to your energy, become aware of the energy waves you are constantly launching into the universe, make sure those energy waves are consistent with what you do want and watch your world transform.

With love and aloha,
Susan

For years I was a loner. I didn’t believe in depending on anyone or anything. I thought I could figure life out by myself and I spent many years trying to do just that. But at some point it dawned on me that every single unhappy day I stumbled through was almost identical to the previous ones. And on that day I decided to really change my life—to finally see if I could figure out if ending the pain and suffering was possible and how to do it.

At first I read books on spirituality, and applied myself sort of randomly to the task of finding joy and peace. I would spend a little time thinking about how great it would be to have a better life and I’d be excited about it for a while. But then my excitement would wane and I’d find myself back where I started: depressed and nowhere closer to my spiritual goals.

Even though I felt I really wanted it, pursuing a spiritual life by myself was hard. In fact, it turned out to be impossible. I couldn’t stay focused and disciplined and it meant I didn’t make any real progress. My choice to go it alone didn’t work very well at all.

Over time I did make some small progress and life started improving slowly as my spiritual journey became an important part of my life, but it was taking forever and that too was a reason for me to feel depressed about it all.

The real turning point was the moment when one of my first teachers pointed out that, “…it’s hard to return to being one when you are doing it alone.” The way she said it made me laugh and I got it.

 

Community Paves the Way

Have you ever wondered why so many religions and spiritual traditions have a community aspect to them? When we come together as a group our energy multiplies and empowers us. It becomes much easier to connect with the divine.

Ultimately becoming one with your essence is about learning who you are and it’s a journey only you can take. The strange thing is,  being surrounded by a supportive group and having the assistance of a loving guide makes your solitary journey so much easier. In fact, in some ways, it’s the one thing that can make it possible at all.

Our limiting beliefs are invisible because our beliefs form our version of reality. It’s the old story of the fish who doesn’t realize it lives in water.

When I first started studying with Don Miguel the classes were taught in Spanish. I didn’t speak Spanish, but I knew that this group was where I belonged. It may sound strange, but even though I couldn’t understand the language my life began to change.

The energy of the group enfolded me and helped me feel safe enough to embrace change. It helped me feel confident in taking my next solitary steps on my journey because I knew I had the group to support me if anything went wrong or just didn’t work like I expected.

Eventually, the group became a very, very powerful part of my journey and ultimately helped me achieve my transformation from depressed and unhappy to grateful and thrilled to be alive. Yes, I still had to do it by myself and yes there were always painful and challenging days, but with the group I was no longer alone when I was by myself, if that makes sense.

Your Filter System is Invisible—To You

I call our belief structure our filter system for a reason. Our beliefs, agreements, assumptions and attitudes filter and distort our experience of reality. We never see reality. What we see is our filter system and we call it reality.
Personal freedom arrives in our lives only when we release our filter system, but seeing our own filter system is almost impossible when we try to do it alone. It’s a lot easier for us to see someone else’s filter system though, and that’s why we are part of a group.

Together, as a group we can see and help each other in ways that are far more powerful than anything we could do alone. We all help each other to see what we can’t see on our own, namely, our filter system and the ways it hides from our view.

Of course, the group also supports you when you forget your goals and wonder where to turn. And we also have the opportunity to support our fellow classmates. In fact, this is an important part of the experience. When someone else needs support, a funny thing happens. As we reach out and help others, there are lessons that we would never have learned had we been sitting in our rooms, alone and unneeded.

So, whether you work with me and our lovely group who get together on the phone every Sunday (as well as online) I really encourage you to avoid the lone ranger routine and seek out a group of fellow seekers who care as much as you do about making their lives as wonderful as they can be.

The Window is Closing Soon

When I completed my apprenticeship, Don Miguel told me to go and teach in my own way. I spent a lot of time in prayer and meditation trying to come up with the best way to share the love and wisdom I received from Don Miguel and his mother, Sister Sarita. Eventually I came up with the format for the tele-apprentice group and it’s had a huge, positive impact on everyone who’s participated.

I haven’t invited new members into the group for a number of years. In fact, in order to join the apprentice group before now you had to be signed up for my Mastering Life course which is a 1-year commitment.

But until May 8th you have the opportunity to join this dynamic group of loving and supportive people. There’s no long-term commitment and the price is a lot easier to manage than the Mastering Life course.

If you think you might be ready to shift your consciousness and move to the next level of creating a life of your dreams, I do encourage you to consider the apprenticeship program. And again, whether it’s with me or someone else, I sincerely encourage you to begin it now—it’s the only time you have.

With love and aloha,
Susan

What a delicious word deliberate is. It is defined as: 1. Done with or marked by full consciousness of the nature and effects; intentional. 2. Arising from or marked by careful consideration: a deliberate decision. 3. Unhurried in action, movement, or manner, as if trying to avoid error: moved at a deliberate pace.

Imagine living your life deliberately

Personal freedom is all about deliberate intent. When we consciously choose our thoughts and actions we can create whatever we want when we want it. We tend to allow our mind to ramble. We think anywhere from 12,000 to 50,000 thoughts per day and today you will think 95% of the same thoughts that you had yesterday. We not only ramble we repeat the same things over and over again.

Our thoughts generate energy vibrations and based on those vibrations we invite events into our life. Our filter system dictates many of our thoughts and generates our attitude about life. We can continue to allow our mind to wander and create our experience of reality or we can begin to choose our thoughts deliberately.

That choice can set you free

Spiritual practices take practice. You can begin to practice being deliberate today, in this moment. Instead of just allowing your mind to wander consciously choose what you think. How many opinions do you have about almost everything in life? Do those opinions help you create what you want or do they just create more of the same old same old?

Our thoughts are either love based and expansive or fear based and constrictive. Energy is always in motion. It is either expanding or contracting. The world is a vast energy system and we are magicians constantly manipulating that energy, creating whatever is consistent with our predominant energy.  When we deliberately set our intent and choose thoughts that are consistent with that intent conscious creation unfolds easily and effortlessly.

Conscious creation happens when we stop our mind from rambling

Imagine your mind getting very quiet and only speaking to you when you ask for its opinion. Our minds are trainable. We can literally install a screen saver on our mind much like we do on our computer. I leave my computer on all day and it goes to sleep when I am not using it. As soon as I touch a key it wakes up and awaits my command. It isn’t demanding and doesn’t tell me what to do unless I ask it to, then an alarm goes off and reminds me of an action that needs to occur.

With our intent and practice we can have the same sort of a relationship with our mind. It does take training and practice but the results are worth it. Begin by setting your intent, then practice consciously choosing what you want to focus your attention on. Your breath is a wonderful tool to facilitate training your mind. You are a limitless being, a spirit inside your body. Your mind was never meant to be in charge of your life, your spirit was. Breathe consciously, use your breath to deepen your connection to your spirit.

So, practice deliberant intent

Give yourself a gift, think about deliberate intent. Think about thinking deliberately. Practice making that choice in your life and see what happens.

I’d love to hear from you . Do you have any questions, thoughts or feelings?

Until next time ….

With love,
Susan

Related Posts

The Scorpion and the Turtle
Boundaries without limits
Active side of infinity

I know we are all experts at arguing for our limitations. At times I have that honed to an incredibly fine art. Before I know it I am down the path of limited thinking, totally convinced I am right and forgoing the pleasure of being deliriously happy. And don’t you dare even suggest I might be wrong!

The other day I was teaching a class and a woman suggested giving up suffering was dangerous. At first I thought she was kidding but after a short conversation I realized she was really serious. We talked for a while, I made some suggestions and clearly she was very attached to suffering.  I remember making a similar agreement to a therapist I was working with before I began my spiritual journey.

Still attached to suffering?

As I was leaving I said, “I’ll see you next week” to which she replied, “I don’t think I am ready to give up suffering yet.” She wasn’t in class the next week but as luck would have it as I was driving home I stopped to pick up a hitchhiker and it was my suffering lady. The look on her face was priceless as I am sure was mine when she opened the door.

It was about a long ride so we talked. I started by asking her how she was doing with suffering. At first she looked defensive but after a few minutes she relaxed and we talked.  She explained why she believed in suffering, because it was inevitable. I shared some of my thoughts about perspective, emotional neutrality and paradigms and she got very quiet.  Then she smiled and said maybe I don’t have to suffer after all.

Change is part of life – suffering is a choice

Change is an inevitable part of life, suffering is always optional depending upon what we tell ourselves. I have had lots of conversations about Japan lately. The tsunami caused incredible devastation. If I tell one set of stories about it I have one experience. Since the world is a vast energy system I can launch a tidal wave of grief, sadness and feelings of despair. If I choose to see it differently I can launch a wave of hope, joy, love and expansion. The question is what do we want to create more of?

But how do we watch the news and not react to the stories we see? How do we talk about life to our friends? Recently Masaru Emoto sent out a prayer request for the water around the nuclear plants in Fukushima, Japan. After that when I thought of the tsunami I thought of that prayer and sent out an expansive energy instead of one of sadness or fear.

When you talk about anything set your intent to send out the energy of gratitude, love and expansion. If there is a news story about violence send out a prayer of love to all those impacted by those actions. When we decide to let go of suffering and decide to share love instead, our lives become truly blessed.

What is it I want more of?

We talk, we think, we react and occasional we stop to ask ourselves what we want to create more of …. deliberate intent can be a very powerful force in our lives when we choose to engage it. A wonderful practice is to consciously watch the news and send love. Consciously watch your thoughts and choose to think expansive ones. When you notice an old habitual thought that creates limitations and suffering consciously choose another one.Fully engage your deliberate intent.

Next time more on deliberate intent ….

Until next time

With love and aloha,
Susan

Related Posts

World Free of Suffering
Perfection – is it really all perfect
How can abuse be okay?

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/22491242[/vimeo]

When I first began my spiritual explorations I spent a lot of time trying to figure out my life’s purpose, what I was suppose to be doing. (I have since realized there are no shoulds and our life’s purpose is to savor every moment but that is another post) I often thought, “If god would jut leave a note on my night stand life would be so much easier.

When I was traveling and doing book signings for Dance of Power a woman heard me say that and was leave a note for me but there was no night stand or table.  Here is one I wrote many years ago. I read it every morning for a long time until I could really feel the love.

A letter from God

To my beloved,

You are wonderful gift to me and to the world. Without you the universe would be incomplete. You are one of my most cherished creations. You are made of love, you swim in a sea of unconditional love and you are absolutely and completely lovable. With each breath I give you the gift of life and free will.

My only desire for you is to be happy. I will give you anything you want, merely focus your attention on it consistently and it is yours. Remember always you are loved, I know your name and I care deeply for you. Share that love, know you are safe and cared for. Know you are eternal, you can never be harmed, you only change form.

You sprang forth out of love and will go back to love. Savor the moment, embrace what is and know I am always just a thought away. I am well pleased in you my beloved.

Your loving creator,
God

A powerful exercise

Write your own letter and read it to yourself everyday for 90 days. Really feel it each time you read it and your thinking and your life will change dramatically but you MUST allow yourself to feel the love each time. If you can’t write about how you stop yourself from believing you are loved. Happiness, joy and the life of your dreams are always just a thought away.

With love and aloha,
Susan

PS My apprentice class will be open until the end of April if you are ready to really change your life.

Have you ever wondered what your life’s purpose is? I find that at some point my students inevitably become curious about why they are here, I know I did. For years I thought I came here to make the world a better place but then about 10 years ago I realized that desire was based on a judgment – that their was something wrong with the world and that it needed fixing.

I have since come to believe that the purpose of life is to realign ourselves with our spirit (wake up) and then savor life (have fun). It is our birthright to be happy, joyous and free.

Awakening to our true nature

We are limitless beings, we are eternal, infinite and immortal. Our true nature is expansive and we are one with the energy of creation. At our core we are unconditional love. Once we hop into a body we forget much of that an align ourselves with our body and our mind. From that perspective life is a very different experience. When we align ourselves with our spirit we see the perfection in everything and we become miracle workers or at least we can.

I think our life’s purpose is to do whatever it takes to wake up to our true nature and live life from that perspective.

Changing our point of creation from our mind to our spirit

When we change our point of creation from our mind to our spirit nothing changes and everything changes. I see all of life as an invitation to make that shift. It is basically the choice to see life through the eyes of fear of the eyes of love. It is the decision to remain in hell or relocate to heaven and we do that by shifting our perspective.

If we make experiencing that shift our life’s purpose amazing things begin to happen in our lives and the lives of those around us. When we align with our spirit we have the power to affect change in the world and we can do it from love instead of judgment and fear.

What is YOUR life’s purpose?

What are you going to make your life’s purpose? Your life’s purpose isn’t preordained, you get to choose.

For many years my soul purpose was to have fun and never mind any spiritual anything. After a number of years I realized that was totally unfulfilling thus began my spiritual explorations. One life’s purpose I kept bumping into was ‘clearing karma’ (hint there is no karma carry over, no debt to pay – guess that could be another post or two). I kept searching until I realized it was totally up to me. We each get to choose. I get to decide what I dedicate my life to and how I do that.

The Toltec tradition views the entire universe as a vast energy system. That energy has consciousness but it responds to energy resonance not rules. You could have been a mass murder most of your life but the minute you shift your point of creation from your mind to your spirit your resonance changes and you are done with the old energy of mayhem. The wheel of karma stops the moment you change your energy.

So the question is:  How do YOU want to define your life’s purpose? What do you want to dedicate your life to, at least for now. The beauty of seeing life through the eyes of your spirit is you realize you are free.

Personal freedom

When I start talking about being totally free, no rules, doing what you want people often get this look on their face, “you must be kidding, a world without rules! Seriously what is my life’s purpose? I want to get this right, I don’t want to waste my time. We need rules”

The paradigm of dominion requires no rules. We all get to define our own. After all in the paradigm of domination there are LOTS of rules but when does having a rule ever make someone observe it, unless they were going to anyway? Do laws against robbery stop robbery?

Anyway back to the concept at hand … personal freedom. Just like your life’s purpose you get to define it and I have found my definition changes as I deepen my connection to my spirit. Perhaps spend sometime defining what personal freedom means to you and make a stab at defining your life’s purpose while you’re at it.

With love, until next time,
Susan

Related Posts:

Some of those obvious truths

Pay it forward

World free of suffering

When life gives you lemons

The three questions:

What was the right time for every action?
Who were the most necessary people? and
How he might know what was the most important thing to do?

Tolstoy’s short story: Three Questions

Tolstoy wrote a wonderful story called Three Questions and the answers to those questions are really a formula for a happy, peaceful and blissful life. It is a wonderful story about the king’s search and the answers life and an old hermit provided him. It is definitely worth reading.

It once occurred to a certain king, that if he always knew the right
time to begin everything; if he knew who were the right people to
listen to, and whom to avoid; and, above all, if he always knew what
was the most important thing to do, he would never fail in anything
he might undertake.

And this thought having occurred to him, he had it proclaimed
throughout his kingdom that he would give a great reward to any one
who would teach him what was the right time for every action, and
who were the most necessary people, and how he might know what was
the most important thing to do.

The answer to those questions are:

Remember then: there is only one time that is important–
Now! It is the most important time because it is the only time when
we have any power. The most necessary man is he with whom you are,
for no man knows whether he will ever have dealings with any one
else: and the most important affair is, to do him good, because for
that purpose alone was man sent into this life!”

Now is the only time you have the power to change

How much time do you spend thinking about the past, processing, wanting to change, thinking about changing, wishing things could or would be different? If we take the time to notice we will observe we spend most of our time either in the past or in the future yet the only time we have the power to change anything is right now, in this moment. We have the power to change moment by moment and thought by thought but only while we are in that moment.

So how do you stay in the moment?

That is where it gets easy or difficult depending on the story you tell yourself. When we focus our attention on our breath we are in the moment. When we feel our breath and are one with it we are in the moment until we start talking to ourselves about our breath. Being in the moment is about being, not thinking about being.

Just breathe and be with the moment, be with who ever is with you in that moment and share the essence of who and what you are, your loving presence. It is a wonderful practice that will set you free. When you are in the moment, sharing love success is guaranteed.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Imagine a waterfall – a big waterfall

Imagine standing behind a waterfall looking out at life. It is a big, rushing waterfall. As you look out at the world everything is distorted. The cave you are in feels safe but a bit constricted. When you reach your hand through the water your hand is pummeled so you pull back. The thought of walking through that raging torrent is terrifying and makes very little sense, unless you want to die.

At least with a waterfall you can see it, touch it, feel it and smell it. Your filter system is often invisible. You seldom if ever see life directly, what you experience is your filter system and think it is reality. Our beliefs are translated into ‘the truth’ they become our unwavering, truthful, accurate experience of reality.

Beliefs, agreements, assumptions and attitudes

Your filter system is a mixture of all of your beliefs, agreements, assumptions and attitudes. We, as individuals have a filter system, each country has a collective filter system, as do religions, various cultures and organizations. An intimate relationship can be derailed by the individuals filter system and their collective definition of what a relationship should look like.

Filter systems aren’t a bad thing. If we didn’t have some sort of a filter system we wouldn’t have a body or the ability to experience  physical reality. Filter systems only become a problem when we ignore their existence and make our decisions based on their limiting parameters rather than on what we want to create in our lives.

What DO I really want? What is my story about this?

We never have a desire for something without also having the ability to create it in our life. Unfortunately our thoughts often prevent us from celebrating the appearance of a desire and instead focuses on the disappointment of not having it already or worrying about how we can create it.

The most powerful change you can make to your filter system is to fully embrace the idea that the world is a vast energy system and that you have the ability to harness that energy to create what you want. Your thoughts are your tools. You use your thoughts to manage that vast energy of creation. Change your thoughts and your life changes.

Washing your brain

“This stuff seems like brainwashing,” said the student.
“Your brain needs washing,” replied the teacher.

Realizing that expanding your awareness of your filter system and deciding to release your limiting beliefs will set you free. All of your limitations arise from your filter system, clear that out and life becomes an incredibly magical experience.

Stay tuned for exercises to help you experience your truly limitless nature.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Humans are basically pack animals, we follow the leader or we are the leader, we gather in groups and feel safest when we know we are part of a tribe. That fear of being alone often drives many of our choices.

I remember watching an episode of the original Twilight Zone. This man wanted to be left alone so he could just sit and read books. There was a nuclear holocaust and he survived. He wandered the streets finding food and then he found a library. He went and gathered all his favorite books as he sat down to start reading he dropped his glasses and they shattered. He couldn’t see a thing without them. Rod Serling commented about the irony of this man’s situation in his dead pan voice.

Do you ever feel like you live in the Twilight Zone?

The Twilight Zone had lots of great episodes that pointed out the irony of our choices. Have you ever felt like you were living in the Twilight Zone? Our filter system often causes us to make choices that create outcomes we would rather avoid. If we make choices based on fear the best we can create is more fear. If we make choices based on love we create more love. Seeing the world though the eyes of love takes practice.

I am scheduled to go to Japan and teach classes in June so I have been following the news about the nuclear reactors very closely. It is an opportunity to practice. Back in the 70’s I wrote an article for an alternative newspaper about nuclear energy. It was far from loving and very judgmental.

How do you see through the eyes of love?

When I connect to my spirit seeing through the eyes of love is much easier. When I am connected to my spirit I know I am one with everyone and everything. I was teaching a class the other day and a woman wanted to know why people would make the choice to build nuclear reactors in such a seismically active location. A wonderful question to catch the attention of our filter system and keep us disconnected from our spirit.

Seeing through the eyes of love is facilitated by asking questions that deepen our connection to our spirit rather than questions that feed our filter system, questions that I call mind candy.

What is mind candy?

Our minds are such busy creatures. Virtual thought machines, endlessly thinking, random thoughts, often fear based, filled with limiting beliefs, certain of its version of reality and that it knows the truth about everything. Mind candy feeds that belief and helps solidify the mind’s limited awareness of reality.

Any thoughts that feed that limiting perspective is what I call mind candy. ‘Why’ questions are a wonderful source of mind candy. They allow us to think and think, go round and round with why without arriving at a new behavior or a more expansive version of reality. Anything that allows us to argue for our limitations is also mind candy. It is addictive and helps us stay miserable.

Connect with your spirit and you ARE NOT alone

The antithesis of mind candy is anything that deepens your connect to your spirit, anything that allows you to connect with your limitless nature and expands your awareness. When you connect with your spirit you know you are one with everyone and everything. The more you open up to that reality the more you feel loved, feel the love and know you are lovable.

Once again polish up your bookends, meditate, listen to guided meditations, look in the mirror and say I love you, pray and just remind yourself you are one. You are never alone, you can’t be you are a spiritual being that is infinite so you are one with the entire universe. Allow yourself to be loved.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Messenger of Water

With love and aloha,
Susan

Angels are everywhere just open your mind and your heart to the signs.

Make Angels on Your Shoulder part of your daily routine and share it with a friend!

A Teaching Story

I have heard many variations of this story. I love teaching stories. Each time we read them we can glean another piece of wisdom from them, kind of like life when we are paying attention.

One day turtle was sitting by the edge of the pond getting ready to swim across. Scorpion came over and asked turtle for a ride.

Turtle looked at scorpion and said, “Why would I ever give you a ride. You would certainly sting me and I would surely die.”

“Why would I sting you when you were doing me the kindness of giving me a ride? Besides, I would drown and die too if I stung you.”

Turtle though about scorpions words for while and then seeing the wisdom in them offered him a ride. About half way across the pond turtle felt a painful sting on his neck. He could feel the poison flowing through his body. Just before he lost consciousness he asked scorpion, “Why did you bite me? We will both die now.”

Scorpion sadly replied, “It is my nature.”

What is your nature?

To me the main purpose of the Toltec tradition is to change your point of creation from your mind to your spirit. When we are aligned with our mind our filter system will cause us to make choices that are not very beneficial in the long run. As we learn to align ourselves with our spirit our choices become much more loving and far sighted. You are an energy that gives life to your body, your body is merely your vehicle for this lifetime. Much like the scorpion when we align ourselves with our body we make choices that don’t serve us in the long run.

What can you do to align more fully with your spirit?

What can you do on a daily basis to align with your spirit? I find creating bookends extremely useful. Bookends are something you do every morning and each evening to remind you that your intent is to deepen your connection to your spirit. I start my day with  meditation and usually write in my journal.

What are you willing to do to get in touch with your true nature?

With love and aloha,
Susan

Tomorrow, Wednesday, March 16 at 9:30 PM I am having a free teleclass on Coming from the Heart. Hope to see you there.

Positive thinking, yeah right!

When I first heard the saying, “When life gives you lemons make lemonade” my thoughts weren’t exactly loving, kind or positive. For years now I have taught people the power of accepting life as it is. Not from the perspective of being a victim, “Well this is what is so I may as well accept it” but from the perspective of self empowerment, “This is what is, what can I do with ‘what is’ from the perspective of love, perfection and knowing I am the creator of my reality.”

What a little tweak will do

The Toltec tradition, well any spiritual tradition for that matter, can be used from a fear based perspective or from a loving, expansive perspective. The difference in the results you achieve in life is dramatic.

Life is a vast energy system. Life responds to the energy we project not the words we use. If you are afraid of not having enough money and affirm that money is now flowing to me easily and effortless you will continue to create financial lack. What, you say? But I am affirming abundance.

If you acknowledge your fear, realize your current financial reality was created by that fear and shift your awareness to one of love and self empowerment your reality will change dramatically. If you affirm with fear rumbling in your heart nothing will change. Love allows change to happen.

How do I let go of fear?

Shifting your awareness is the key that unlocks the prison our fears create. We can have a lot of knowledge yet nothing changes. We can connect with our spirit, change that knowledge into wisdom and everything changes. Ironically at times positive thinking alone does nothing but deepen our fear and create a sense of despair.

There was a time I affirmed endlessly, tried to ignore my fear and life kept spiraling out of control. Then I tried affirming and controlling every thought as well as life in general. Neither approach worked very well. Eventually I surrendered, really let go and connected with my spirit. Thinking will never set you free but feeling the loving embrace of your spirit does the trick every time!

Connecting with your spirit

Spiritual practices take practice. I suggest you create bookends for your day, something you do every morning and evening to remind you of your intent to deepen that connection.  Meditate on a daily basis, find a group to work with, read, write, go out in nature, watch a video, light a candle, listen to something uplifting, or doing anything else that helps you remember the sacred nature of life. I am so grateful I found don Miguel and his mother Sister Sarita. I continue to remain open to sacred experiences. Yesterday I went to the top of Mauna Kea to do a ceremony. It was very cold, a long drive and WELL worth the time and effort. Spiritual practices do take practice.

Remembering your perfection

When I do private session with people I often remind them of their perfection I remind them that, “After all without you the universe would be incomplete. So that makes you pretty special.” As you expand your awareness to include the paradigm of dominion you begin to easily see the perfection in everything. That certainly makes life and changing your awareness a whole lot easier.

Next time I will talk more about dominion and how that leads to personal freedom. Until next time …..

With love and aloha,
Susan

PS. In March 2011 I will be opening up my apprenticeship class for the first time in years. For the next few months you will be able to join this incredible group of spiritual people and work with me personally in much the same way I worked with don Miguel. Thanks to technology you don’t have to leave the house, you just need to pick up a phone.

Related Posts:

Some of those obvious truths

Fearless Friday: letting go

World free of suffering

I am currently in Mexico enjoying the culture and the magic of the country. I just spent time in Baja with the gray whales. What an experience to look into the eye of a mother whale and her son. The mother was longer than our boat and the calf was very playful. At one point he came up under the boat with a resounding, boat rocking thump.

He swam with such complete abandon, talk about freedom and joy! Watching them was amazing. As I watched the rest of the group I was reminded that each of us was having our own unique experience. The whales were obviously as curious about us as we were about them.

When I travel there is a sense of ease and being in the moment that is often not present when I am at home. It is just a matter of shifting my awareness. When I am home it is so much easier to get into habitual thinking and the routine of every day life.

One of the gifts I will bring home from this trip is the reminder of that awareness and the willingness to let go of my habitual thinking and way of being. Moment by moment I can have freedom and joy or the familiarity of habit and routine. What a wonderful reminder.

The Toltec tradition is rich with exercises and ways to help you achieve personal freedom. One of the most powerful exercises is to practice changing all of your habits and routines for a week or two. Get out of bed on a different side, eat different food, get up a different time….. you get the idea. It is much like traveling only without the expense of packing and unpacking.

Try it and allow the freedom and joy of the moment to seep into your life.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Rituals and ceremonies are incredibly powerful tools that can enhance the quality of our lives. Many cultures still have elaborate rituals to celebrate milestones in a person’s life. In our society, we often celebrate events, but we forget to embrace the magic that rituals can bring to the celebrations.

A ritual has only as much power as we give it. Even the most beautiful ceremony can become meaningless if we do it mindlessly, without giving it our full attention, or without imbuing it with the power of our spirit and our belief. When we perform a ritual and we are receptive, willing and attentive to the process, miracles can happen. How different a celebration becomes when it is also a sacred event!

I love participating in ceremonies. As a young girl, I used to go to church alone and be totally enthralled by the sunlight pouring through the magnificent rosette stained glass window. I watched the minister prepare the altar for communion and I could feel something – something that I had no way of expressing verbally. Today I realize that I was feeling the power of the ceremony – the inherent power in a sacred ritual that has been performed for many centuries.

A ritual or ceremony can be anything; it can be done anywhere and look any way we want it to. I define a ritual as “a conscious act designed to assist the participants in deepening their connection to their divinity.” It is an act of power or a series of actions that allow us to access a power beyond the scope of our normal, everyday awareness. It allows us to connect with magic and miracles. It allows us to connect with the divine.

For years, my experience of ceremonies was limited because I thought ceremonies had to have a religious connotation. On the contrary, we can even turn voting into a powerful ritual if we make the effort. The spirit within each if us is very powerful; anything we can do to harness that energy of unconditional love is bound to improve the quality of our lives.

Rituals can elevate even the most mundane event into a sacred experience. There is no exact formula for rituals. There really is no right way or wrong way to perform one. I find the most necessary ingredients in any ritual are mindfulness, the willingness and desire to connect with the divine, and the intent to create a powerful experience. When creating a ritual, I sometimes find it useful to use what I call “props.” Such props could be candles, scents, herbs, bells, chimes, water, or even simply air. A ritual can be as complex or simple as you’d like.

Why not create some rituals of your own? Next time you take a shower, use it as an opportunity to create a ritual of release. You could get some lavender bath gel and a fresh washcloth. You might want to light a candle and play some music.

As you run the water, you could say a prayer that goes something like this:

“I ask God, Goddess, all there is, to guide me and direct me. May this room be filled with love and may this water act as a powerful tool of transformation. May I easily and effortlessly release anything that no longer serves me and may my body and spirit be filled with love and light and laughter. May I have the courage and the willingness to let go. May I be gently shown the way of ease, of love, and of joy. May this water be an instrument of healing and may your love and light shine forth from me now and always. So it has been asked for; so it will be received. Namaste.”

Then, step into the water and mindfully wash your body. Allow yourself to feel the water as it washes over your body. Breathe deeply and imagine yourself surrounded by the loving presence of your spirit. Mindfully dry yourself and give thanks.

When we take the time to create simple things like taking a shower or eating or driving to work as sacred acts, life becomes so much richer. Next time you get together with some of your friends, why not make it a sacred experience? Allow the magic of ceremony to fill your life and see what happens.

In peace and love,
Susan

It is so easy to look around at our world and make a perfectly logical argument that this world is full of suffering. There certainly seems to be a lot of violence. As a species, we certainly seem to create a lot of war, pollution, and starvation.

One of my favorite scenes in the movie, “The Matrix,” was when Agent Smith said, “I’d like to share a revelation that I’ve had during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species. I realized that you’re not actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with the surrounding environment, but you humans do not. You move to an area and you multiply, and multiply, until every natural resource is consumed. The only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern – a virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You are a plague, and we are the cure.”

What is the cure? Certainly not enslavement. In the movie the future was quite bleak. Humans had been enslaved by machines and turned into the power source used to run them. Until we decide otherwise, we are enslaved by our minds, or more accurately, our thoughts. We believe the thoughts our filter system generates. We see the world through eyes that have been taught to see only what our minds believe is real. Our thoughts generate our emotions and then we think our emotions are caused by external events. We believe our beliefs. We really think they are true and they aren’t. Our beliefs aren’t true they are just erroneous assumptions.

We really believe there is suffering. We forget that everything in this world is energy; that everything is God if you choose to call that energy God. Even the youngest child is a spiritual being and, as such, is a powerful being of light. Part of the fun of physical reality is we get to come in as children and need to be cared for and learn how to operate our bodies and taught how to create our lives. Our childhoods reflect our filter systems and often serve to turn up the volume on our limiting beliefs. When we are ready (often when we are terribly uncomfortable) we begin the journey of remembering who and what we really are.

When we look at the world through our minds, we see suffering. When we see the world through the eyes of our spirits, we see love even in what our minds think of as evil. This is probably a rather challenging thought to your mind. There is no evil – only the love is real.

In the 1930’s, doctors performed cataract surgery on people who had been blind from birth. The surgery was a success except that some of the patients went mad, others killed themselves and the rest refused to open their eyes. Why? Because we actually learn to see; we learn how to organize massive amounts of visual input. We stop seeing a lot of what’s there because it is too overwhelming. We agree to see a chair instead of a swirling mass of energy. We agree to believe objects are solid and that we are our bodies. We translate hundreds of pixels on a computer screen into coherent images, recognize words, and then have an emotional reaction to them.

The love is real; everything else is an illusion. There is no suffering once we stop listening to our thoughts. The concept of suffering is based on a judgment. So, when you perceive someone suffering, what you are really doing is judging that person. Most of what we call love and compassion is really merely control and judgment. True compassion is based on respecting each spirit’s choice – seeing the truth about a situation. In reality, a bunch of spirits are doing a cosmic dance and from the level of our thoughts we may have no idea what it is about.

Does that mean we shouldn’t do anything? Absolutely not; but throwing gas on a fire doesn’t help put it out. Adding judgment and fear to the world only adds more judgment and fear.

Are we sad when someone close to us dies? When my mom died I missed her a great deal. As I have retrained my mind, I can actually feel her presence in a more profound way now than when she was alive. No one and nothing ever dies. Certainly the physical form decays, but the spirit lives on.

Once we have an emotion it is to late not to have it but we don’t have to feed it and keep it around. We can have an emotion, honor it, savor it as long as we want to, then notice the thoughts creating it and change them. We don’t have to change the world – only our thoughts about the world.

Each of us can live in a world free of suffering. When we change our thoughts, our experience really does change. I have led many groups where we have had very different experiences from other people in the same physical location. Once, when I took a group to Egypt, we left the hotel in the middle of the night to go meditate with the sphinx. I was so focused on getting the group to the meeting place on time that I barely noticed the crowd we had to walk through. The next morning I found out we had walked through a riot in which several people were killed.

Give yourself the greatest gift there is – learn to listen to your spirit. Realize that your mind is full of thoughts that aren’t true. Your mind has been taught to see through the eyes of fear. The same world, when viewed through the eyes of love, is full of magic, miracles, laughter and joy.

If you want to live in a world free of suffering, you don’t need to change the world all you have to do is retrain your mind and change your perspective. Peace is only a thought away.

In peace and love,
Susan

What an amazing video. If a crow can decide to care for a starving kitten what could we do as human beings if we decided to act from love as often as possible and opened our hearts to care for one another?

With love and aloha,
Susan

Symbols can be powerful tools for transformation. They can show us where we are and guide is to where we truly want to go. They can be incredibly powerful or useless depending on our inner dialog.

I find symbols interesting and fun. I love the way they show up at such pivotal moments when I am paying attention. I am sure they show up anyway I just fail to notice. The other morning a butterfly caught my attention. I literally stopped mid thought and watched it for a few minutes. As I watched my mind quieted and I felt a sense of peace and understanding wash over me. To me a butterfly is a symbol of transformation and in that moment my thoughts were transformed.

I was driving to the ocean Sunday to take someone to see the lava flow. We drove by a garden plot totally full of crosses. He asked what it meant and I told him crosses along the side of the road were a memorial, that someone had died there in a traffic accident. He said he knew that but was wondering about the yard. Then I realized he was referring to the garden plot owned by a local Christian church.

In that moment I was struck by the irony of that symbol. Jesus was an incredible teacher whose main message was love and forgiveness. So why did a religion choose the cross as its symbol? This man performed miracles, healed the sick and helped people to feel loved and connected yet the symbol they use is of his crucifixion.  What’s up with that? It certainly gave me something to ponder.

We walked out to the lava and I could feel the soles of my shoes melting with the heat. I think of lava as a symbol of creation and a reminder of the power, magic and energy of Pele and this island. Then I looked around and the most recent flow has consumed a number of homes. I wondered how these people felt about the power of Pele. At his one house their laundry was still on the line and their car was obviously never going anywhere again.

Symbols are all around us and we get to dictate what they mean to us and how they affect our lives. What will you create today with your thoughts and actions? What symbols will you invite into your awareness and how will you use them?

With love and aloha,
Susan

This year is the 25th anniversary of the holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr’s life and his dedication to changing the world. The corporation for National and Community Services is encouraging Americans to mark the anniversary by committing to 25 acts of service (that’s only twice a month!) in 2011.

I have long been an advocate of random acts of kindness. This is an opportunity to be of service for a whole year to perform 25 acts of service in 2011. Service is the antithesis of fear, helps improve the quality of your life and is sure to chase the blues away.

Give yourself and your community the gift of being of service. Spread love and help the world have more love.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I find taking time to reflect at the end of the year useful.

Today I started that process for myself. First I will review 2010. What was my intent for 2010 and what did I actually create? Are there any patterns? How can I use 2010 to make 2011 an incredible year? When viewed through the eyes of love what did I discover about myself and my filter system?

Then I set my intent for the coming year. What is my intent for 2011?

As I sat by the pond this morning I was deeply moved by how much my life has changed over the years. My life used to be chaotic and now I have this incredible place of peace. The sun was just starting to hit the pond, the birds were celebrating the morning with their songs, the fish were feeding and my cat was running up and down a tree.

I could attribute my feelings of joy etc to the surroundings or realize I created those feelings within myself first and then my world reflected them in physical form. I have been getting lots of emails from people who have lost their jobs and some have been looking for work for several years. How do you feel abundant, joyous and grateful when you are about to lose your home?

When I was living in chaos, hiding my car from the repo man and not sure where my next meal was coming from I realized I had a choice. I could focus on what was currently happening in my life and create more of that or I could decide what I wanted to create and allow myself to be grateful for already having it. Some people think of that as denial. I think of it as shifting gears or changing my energy state so I can more easily create what I want.

What is your intent for 2011? Feel it, know it and resonate with it no matter what is going on around you. If you don’t have a job do something each day to create one and then go volunteer some where, help others instead of worrying. Share love and watch your life fill with more love.

With love and aloha,
Susan

If you look at my previous post, Reflections from the pond you will see the effects of a little time and effort. The pond is now full of beautiful water lilies and lotus. The butterfly Kio are thriving and the pond is even more beautiful.

The same thing can be true of our lives. With some time and effort anything can be changed. As I sit by my pond and reflect on how it continues to grow I have a feeling of wonder and gratitude. I just bought several more colors of water lilies and look forward to them adding their unique essence to the vista.

It is almost 2011. What is it you would like to create in your life? Are you willing to take the necessary time and exert the effort to make it so? A year from now you will be a year older and if you keep acting and thinking in the same way your life will be the same. If you take the time to modify your thinking you could instead create the life of your dreams.

In February I am taking a small group of people to Mexico. We will spend 5 days with the magnificent Grey Whales. It will be an awesome time of fun and transformation. I heartily invite you to come along. Once you look into the eye of a whale your life will change forever.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I often have people ask me for suggestions on books to read. Here are some of the books that really helped changed my life. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did! I am starting with the oldies and moving onto the more recent ones.

Number 1 all time favorite has to be Richard Bach’s book Illusions.

A friend gave me a copy of it, I looked at it, had a negative judgment about it and immediately put it away on my bookshelf.

Several months later I was in the midst of a huge drama in my life and picked it. I knew I needed to read it and there was a message in there for me. I kept skipping the handwritten part in the beginning of the book. After reading it several times I finally read the story about the creatures clinging to the side of the river and found an answer to my problem. I love this book and suggest you read the WHOLE thing many, many many times!

My next favorite book is by Jane Roberts. I was so glad when they rereleased these three books in one  volume. They are the story of Oversoul Seven, three novels that explain the nature of physical reality in an enjoyable and easy to understand manner.

The first book i ever read about human potential was Jane Robert’s The Nature of Personal Reality. I would read a few paragraphs and sometimes it would take days to understand or digest the ideas. Now it is how I live but in the 70’s it was ‘way out there.’

When I was really hitting bottom emotionally I found this book or it found me. I was living in Nantucket at the time and remember reading it on the ferry. It was a stormy day and I remember looking out the foggy window wondering if I could ever love myself. Healing my life and having a wonderful life was beyond my capacity to believe at that time. When I look back I am so grateful I actually did the exercises and deciding to change my life. Louise Hay is an amazing woman. Her life is a shinning beacon for millions.

This book really touched my heart. Years later I was privileged to be a workshop leader with her in Egypt. She was such a warm and caring person, very real and living her life based on these concepts. No mater what the question LOVE is always the answer. I was deeply touched by her spirit as well as her words.

I Come As A Gentle Brother is just a wonderful reminder of a loving way to see life. Its subtitle says it all – all we have to do is focus on what is real (the love) and see the illusions (limitations and fear) for what they are reflections of our false beliefs.

These are just a few of my favorites. I will add more in the coming days. Enjoy!

With love and aloha for you,
Susan

I am creating an Amazon bookstore with all my favorites if you’d like to check them out.

Life is and then we tell ourselves a story. Our experience has nothing to do with life and everything to do with our story. How freeing that realization is. You don’t have to change life all you have to do is change your story. That certainly is a lot easier than changing the world!

Happiness is a decision we make about events and not created by the events. We really can be happy regardless of what is happening in our life. We can be such experts at creating misery in our lives and the lives as those around us.

What we tell ourselves about life is based on our habitual thinking which is based on our filter system. Collected rainwater is my water source. I put it through several filters so it is drinkable. When the filters get dirty I have no water pressure. When your filter system is filled with limiting beliefs it can be difficult to create the results you want in your life.

Expanding your awareness makes clearing out your filter system much easier. Whenever you have a strong emotional reaction observe your story and ask yourself if holding onto it serves you? Is any belief, agreement or assumption worth being unhappy?

Just some food for thought.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Check out my free 7 week video class

A few weeks ago I was watching the television show 60 Minutes. They were doing a piece on the economy and they interviewed some people who had lost their jobs. I seldom watch the show and I found the segment particularly fascinating. In one formerly affluent family the husband had been out of work for a number of years. He had used his 401K to buy a franchise for cleaning air-conditioning ducts and wasn’t really making money doing it.

I could so relate to his filter system, I’d been there and done that. He had a really fancy truck and the franchise name but he wasn’t making money. Chances are he could have gotten the equipment for a lot less, change his filter system a bit and been successfully providing a necessary service while making a good living.

Another woman had been living with a friends brother, cleaning and cooking for him in exchange for room and board. She had just gotten a job with a substantial pay cut. The interviewer asked her if she expected to ever regain her former life style and the woman said no. For me it was sad to see someone give up on her dream.

In the depression during the 1930’s only 25% of the population was severely affected by the depression and there were more millionaires made than in any other time in history. My parents grew up during the depression and were both affected by it emotionally in very different ways.

It isn’t out there that creates our financial reality it is our filter system: our beliefs, agreements and assumptions. Thoughts aren’t real or solid yet they set in motion a vibration that in turn forms the substance of our lives.

Change our thoughts and our reality changes. If we don’t change our core beliefs our lives never change substantially. We just paint a different picture on the surface of the water of life that very quickly dissolves into nothingness. Before you know it we are creating more of the same old same old.

Instead if we change our thoughts one thought at a time everything changes. I enjoy listening to Ester Hicks. One of the things she talks about that I absolutely love is rampages of appreciation. Just imagine how differently you would feel at night if every time you wanted to complain about something or someone you did a rampage of appreciation about the subject instead.

Imagine a world in which the news was all about the wonderful things that were happening. Imagine if you and your friends only talked about how wonderful your life was. Just for today rant with appreciation about two or three things and see how you feel afterwards. Each night before you go to bed find 10 or 12 things to be grateful for and if you really want to change your life tell yourself stories about how wonderful your life is. Use your imagination to dream big and really feel the wonder of that dream. Then see what happens.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I just started a 7 week video class at no cost, check it out!

What on earth is the active side of infinity? It sounds rather mysterious and intriguing to me. I remember reading about Don Juan explaining the concept to Castaneda. The way I understood it is basically connecting with this force, the one that creates the universe, Don Juan referred to as infinity.

When I look back at my life I can definitely see times where I connected with something far beyond my limited beliefs and vision of reality. As I look back some events took on almost epic proportions, okay not epic just very curious and the events were certainly beyond my normal, everyday creations.

One event that is a great example of that connection was the first time I went to Egypt. It was shortly after a Middle East war and the runway was flanked by burned out planes. I remember thinking, “I’m not in Kansas any more.” As I walked down the stairs toward the bus awaiting us I noticed lots of armed men and heard a voice, it was the Sphinx welcoming me. Now, I don’t ususally hear voices and I certainly wasn’t thinking of the Sphinx. I was think of safety and asking myself what I was doing here.

The next night I was walking with one of my students when a man began following us. My student kept telling me to get rid of him but instead, after having tea and talking for a long time he eventually took myself and several other people to meditate with the Sphinx. It was amazing to say the least. There were many logical reasons not to go with this man but I guess for lack of a better term that active side of infinity urged me on. One night we even went through a riot where people were killed, without incidence and without noticing the riot.

Aligning ourselves with that energy is amazing to say the least but how do we do that? How do we know when we have? That is what I am teaching about this weekend in Lithuania. It is really simply a matter of intent, willingness, discernment, discipline and dedication. It does take practice. I’ll be sharing some exercises in the next few posts that will facilitate that process for you. So if you are interested, stay tuned!

With love and aloha,
Susan

By changing how we think we change our lives

By being loving we feel better

By offering love instead of fear we make our corner of the world a little bit better

Life is all about change, we can embrace it or fight but regardless change happens

Happiness is always just a thought away

We can think that thought no matter what is happening in our lives

Choosing happiness takes practice

Life is and then we tell ourselves a story, our experience is based on our story

We can change our stories

Life is a grand adventure and a fatal disease (our bodies all die we don’t)

You are an energy that gives life to your body

You are a spirit, a ghost from the ethereal realms meant to have fun

There are no tests in life just opportunities to connect with our spirit or our mind

We are limitless, all of our limits arise in our minds

Our choice is love or fear, love gets more enjoyable results

You are the creator of your life

You are one with everyone and everything

Life can be elegantly easy and effortless (I love the sound of that)

Care to add a few of your own?

With love and aloha,
Susan

I am making videos of some of the most popular blog posts. I hope you enjoy. If you have a topic you’d like me to write about just drop me an email.

Late one night I was sitting at a gate in Seattle waiting for my flight. A young boy sat a short distance away sobbing. His parents were very upset and yelling at him. His mother was telling him how selfish and self-centered he was. Periodically the father would angrily add to the discussion. The boy’s sister sat and watched smiling smugly. The boy was unable to catch his breath he was crying so hard. Several people moved away obviously uncomfortable about the exchange.

The young boy kept trying to defend himself and his mother continued to tell him how wrong he was. I felt powerless as I watched the drama unfolding before me. I wanted to run over and say to them, “Stop! Don’t you realize what you’re doing to your son?” The young boy’s sobs continued to deepen and his whole body trembled. After a few more futile attempts to communicate his feelings his eyes stopped focusing on his parents, his body was present but you could tell he was no longer listening.

As a young girl I too had cried as I listened to my mother yelling at me about being so selfish. I never quite understood what she was talking about. I tried so hard to please her yet I always seemed to fail so miserably. Eventually I stopped crying and became defiant. It was safer to be angry than it was to be sad. Long before that I had stopped feeling lovable. By then I knew there was something inherently wrong with me, how else could I fail to make my mother and everyone else in my life happy. But deep down inside of me there was a little voice I seldom heard that said, “What about me?”

As I watched that young boy I realized I was witnessing the creation of that part of him that would always feel unlovable. With each word and gesture his parents were reinforcing the beliefs that, no matter what he would never do anything right and that he was unlovable. As he retreated further and further into his mind’s chatter I could only imagine what decisions he was making, ones that would affect his ability to feel loved, to love others, to be intimate, and to experience freedom, joy, and happiness.

It is in those darkest hours when we feel so alone, when we have to face the end of a relationship or the death of someone dear to us that we need to feel loved and that is also often a time we feel most unlovable. Recently I realized a good portion of my life I had been unlovable. I wasn’t unlovable because there was something wrong with me. I was unlovable because I had walled myself off from love, no one could love me because I couldn’t and wouldn’t let love in. Love was just too scary and painful.

That realization was incredibly freeing for me. There wasn’t something wrong with me after all. Feeling unlovable was an accurate description that had nothing to do with me being a valid, worthwhile human being. Feeling unlovable simply meant that I was unable or unwilling to allow myself to feel loved at that moment.

Intimacy is such a funny thing. As a species we seem to crave it while at the same time doing everything possible to avoid being vulnerable enough to experience intimacy. I think of intimacy as “into me see.” If I feel defective or unlovable I am certainly going to protect myself. I am not going to willingly allow you to get to know the real me.

Chances are, if I feel unlovable, I don’t know the real me either. I am not going to let myself know what I’m feeling or what I want or need. I am going to find some way to numb myself out – to avoid intimacy with myself as well as you. I may even try to please you in order to get you to like me instead of focusing on my own wants and needs.

When my flight arrived in Anchorage I saw that little boy struggling to get his parent’s bags off the carousel. By now it was well after three in the morning and there was this little boy trying to get mom and dad to love him. Do you remember what it feels like to try to get someone to like you? Have you ever given up part of yourself to try and save a relationship?

I believe that as human beings we need to feel loved or lovable. We all learn to express that need differently. Some of us become demanding and try to control other people’s behaviors, others become whinny, some become like a bottomless pit, always needy. We can cover up that need with anger or indifference; we can hurt one another or even kill one another. To hide that need we can use something such as an addiction or simply wither up and die inside. Unless we face that need directly we actually cut ourselves off from the very thing we so desperately seek.

As I watched that young boy I realized the reason I had felt unlovable all those years was because I was . I was unable to be loved, accept love, or even love myself. Those decisions I had made long ago as a little girl had trapped me in a prison – as a young girl I wasn’t able to realize that I had an endless well of love within my heart; that no matter what others were saying I could use a gentle inner voice to remind me that I was perfect just the way I was.

As a child I was told sticks and stones could break my bones but words could never hurt me. In my life that hasn’t been the case – no one has thrown stones at me but I have heard many unkind words. Those words lose their sting when I learn to be loving toward myself. I am lovable when I am able to love myself.

Freeing myself from the echoes of all the old wounds is a process of learning to be my own best friend. I must learn to listen to myself and make sure all of my internal commentary is nonjudgmental, loving and kind. I need to become aware again of my wants and needs.

Part of me wanted to go over to that little boy, hold him in my arms, and tell him how wonderful he was. I wanted him to know that he was loved and very lovable. I wanted to ask his parents what they wanted to create in that moment. I am sure they loved their son. I’m fairly certain they had no idea how deeply they were hurting their son. They simply wanted him to modify his behavior.

When I think of all the wisdom I dismissed as a child because of miscommunications. My mom wanted to help me avoid some of the pitfalls she had encountered in her life. All I could hear was I was doing it wrong one more time or my mother’s way was the only right way. I wasn’t able to feel her love no less internalize and use the wisdom of her years.

I have learned to go inside and see what I am telling myself whenever I am reacting to someone else’s words. When I need to defend myself or in some way feel judged or devalued I am the one creating those feelings. If I feel unloved today I know it is because I am unavailable to being loved. If I am feeling judged I am the one doing the judging. No one can affect the way I am feeling unless I agree with what they are saying. What freedom, today I can chose how I feel regardless of what is going on around me.

Next time you feel like arguing with someone remind yourself that their opinion doesn’t count unless you let it. Let the other person have their opinion, after all it in no way diminishes yours unless you allow it to. Words can only hurt us if we agree with them.

A wonderful exercise is to carry around a small notebook and whenever you are feeling judged or ‘unloved’ to a few minutes to write down your inner dialog. What are you telling yourself? We swim in a sea of unconditional love yet we have the ability to feel unloved. Noticing how we do that is incredibly freeing and transformational.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I have recently written a series of posts about the controversy about building a mosque in NYC on my beliefnet blog.  For some reason this issue has engaged me. Here is a video blog post. I have a feeling I may have a lot more to say about this topic and I am not really sure why.

What do angels, mosque at ground zero and 9/11have in common? From the comments and e mails I have been getting very few people chose to look at the issue through the eyes of the angels, nor have they asked the angels how else they can see these events.

It was interesting to me. I actually found myself getting rather upset with people’s judgments and of course that meant I was judging them for judging! I view every event in life as opportunity to either deepen my connection to my filter system or to deepen my connection to my spirit. My emotions are a clear indication which direction I am going. Joy, love, acceptance indicate I am getting closer to my spirit. Fear, judgment and anger show me I am reinforcing my limiting beliefs and deepening my connection to my filer system.

Have you ever had one of those white-hot AHA!-moments where you suddenly understood something that  had been eluding you?

Well I just had one recently . . .

I am leaving for Lithuania in a few days and I was trying to get everything done before I left. One of those things was opening up my favorite program, Mastering Life.

I’ve been re-working this apprenticeship program for a while now. As I was going through the class material, I suddenly had a flash. I’m really enjoying the updating process and getting excited about these updates, but I’m feeling really pressured to move faster and try to get it done immediately.

Then my little voice suddenly piped up and said, “Allow yourself to fully savor reading and editing this material rather than just getting it done.”

What a relief. Now, while I spend time in my favorite place in the whole world (next to my home in Hawaii) I will savor re-reading and editing, tweaking and changing.

I was amazed that because I wanted to get things done I forgot to take time to smell the roses. Life is after all a journey best savored in the moment. So I am back to savoring and all is well in my world.

With lots of love and aloha,
Susan

This is my first video blog. I am sure they will keep getting better and better. I still remember how nervous I was when I recorded my first podcast! Enjoy. Finally the face behind the words …….

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha!

I need your help…

I hope you will take 5 minutes to answer 11 short questions about what you most want out of life. I’d love to hear about your frustrations and successes and everything in between.

The reason I’m doing this is simply to make sure I’m helping you on your journey as best I can. I want to create programs and systems that truly help you create the best possible life you can have. But I can’t do it without you!

Here is the link for the survey

Once again, thanks in advance for taking a brief moment out of your day and I really look forward to hearing from you!

With love and aloha,
Susan

This is an audio of a talk I did a few weeks ago at New Thought of Hawaii. I thought you might enjoy listening to it.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I love writing teaching stories. I met the Grandmother when I was writing my second book. I started to write story about the Grandmother telling stories to the children of the village. One little girl said, "I want to here the story about the white wolf." My immediate thought was I do too!

She and I have journeyed far together and I have decided my next book will be all teaching stories. Here is the first of many to come.

The Grandmother, the chief and omens

Grandmother pulled her robe closer as she looked up at the stars. It was a cold night for early spring and she wondered what the crops would be like this year.  She loved sitting outside watching the village sleep. She heard the gentle stirring of the wind as it began its morning journey across the land. Off in the distance the coyotes sang and an owl flew overhead.

She felt his presence as he stepped out of his Hogan, silently said his prayers and began walking toward her. Something was deeply troubling him. Perhaps he too felt the quiet whispers of the changes to come.

The horizon was just showing the first signs of light as he approached. Grandmother’s cooking fire was just springing to life as he settled onto the bench he had made for her as a boy.  What a gift watching him become a man. She was grateful he had turned into such a kind and loving leader. Grandmother handed him a cup of tea and slowly stirred the porridge.

They sat in silence, comfortable in each others company. Grandmother heard the owl again and pulled her robe a little closer. Death was in the wind or was it?

“What troubles you my son?”

“I feel the presence of death in the village. I am afraid someone I love will die. What if my wife or my son dies? I know I shouldn’t fear death that it is part of life but I just can’t shake this feeling. The feeling of darkness haunts my every step.”

“Are you sure it is death you fear? Did you talk to the darkness before you gave it a name?” The young man looked at Grandmother for the longest time.

“I am not sure what you mean. I feel the presence of death.”

The old woman poured another cup of tea and looked at the horizon slowly showing signs of the sun’s arrival. He followed her gaze and was struck by the beauty of this valley. He was filled with a familiar feeling of gratitude and peace.

Grandmother smiled as she looked at her young friend. They both sat in silence as they watched the sun come over the horizon. In winter and early spring the light always illuminated Grandmother’s place first, at her age she needed the extra warmth. A hawk flew overhead, circling three times before he screeched loudly and landed on a branch not too far away. He looked directly at Grandmother and began to clean his feathers.

“Each new day is an opportunity. We can fill the day with love and laughter, we can share our light and open our hearts to the gifts so freely given or we can walk with fear.  When we walk with love we have no choice but to see the perfection in all of life. No matter what is happening in the moment we can celebrate or deny the experience and bemoan our fate.

“When I was young I was asked to leave my village. I left in disgrace, failing to see the gift and walked with fear for many seasons. One night an old woman came to me and helped me see life through the eyes of love. She changed my life and shortly after that I came to this village where I was welcomed with love.  Since I met her I see the gift and the love in everything. I have learned to talk with the spirit of all things and am no longer so quick to name things. Once named, they are limited.  Did you talk to the darkness or just name it death?”

He thought for a moment before he replied. “I felt something I did not know. It was strange, like nothing I had felt before. It felt dark and ominous so I named it death. My fear spoke loudly and I forgot to talk with my spirit. Yes, Grandmother I named it before I spoke with it.”

“Really listening to our heart, taking time to connect with our spirit and listening is so important in our lives. I watch people read the omens and watch for signs but not take the time to go within. It is by going within that you will find the answers. If you read the signs, if your definition of the omens comes from an external source they may lead you astray.

“The hawk visited us and if I tell you what that means I rob you of the opportunity to ask your spirit what it means for you in that moment. We often deny our wisdom by projecting the past on the present moment. What you learn from someone else is knowledge. When you listen to your spirit you gain wisdom, a wisdom that comes from the heart of the Great Spirit that is filled with love and will only bring you joy.”

He bowed his head and gently kissed her check. “Thank you Grandmother. I will always remember your words and hold them close to my heart.”

He walked rapidly toward the path that led to the top of the cliff. She knew he would spend the morning there finding the voice of his spirit returning with the wisdom of love.

If only more people would take the time to do that what a wonderful world this would be.

With love and aloha,
Susan

I arrived in Peru late last night. Before I left I did my usual, “I hate traveling” rant. While I was traveling I had some insights about my ‘hate traveling’ creation and next time I travel I will make new choices.

I know that everything in my life is my creation and that out there has very little, if anything to do with my experience. It was interesting to see how easily I forgot that and for a few days actually believed traveling was the problem.

Often change is really a matter of finding the actual cause of our distress, our beliefs and changing that as well as our intent. I realized that if my intent is to experience peace of mind and ease then when I travel I have to prepare in a different manner.

Our mind/filter system works on the premise that it needs to be right and remain the same. Our happiness is often a matter of ‘seeing’ life in a new, more expansive manner. I’ve decided next time I travel I will allow myself to have a day of rest the day before I leave rather than have that last day home as a crunch day.

When I look at what is in my life I can easily see my actual intent. If I want to get different results I have to change my intent.

As you look at your life what has your intent been and will that allow you to get the results you want?

With love and aloha,
Susan

I just had two people drop out of this amazing trip so I am letting you know if one of those spots is for you email me immediately. This is a once in a lifetime adventure and opportunity.

Merging with the Divine
Led by Dr. Susan Gregg

April 17^th-May 1^st, 2010

Of all the sacred sites, Machu Picchu is amongst the most talked about and mysterious. Truly there are more questions asked than answered regarding its purpose and ultimate demise. Imagine a city of incredible structures built using 50 ton blocks of stone fitting so perfectly together (without mortar) that you cannot fit a hair between the joints! Five square miles of astrological perfection sits majestically on top of a misty mountain in the Andes (8000 feet). Located two thousand feet above the rumbling Urubamba river, the city remained untouched and undiscovered until Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham explored it in 1911.

On this spiritual journey, we will be using the energies of this amazing country to assist us in experiencing the divine within. Peru is the perfect place for this adventure of ceremony and inner exploration of the heart. We will be joined by several Peruvian Shamans who are great sources of the ancient Inca teachings and traditions.
Using the three levels of the Inca’s mythology of transcendence, we move from the dark underworld of our own minds to the clarity of spiritual consciousness. The snake, puma and condor will be the symbols we use to represent our spiritual ascension for these 11 sacred days together.

Cusco, Ollantaytambo, the Sacred Valley, Moray and Tipon are some of the locations we will explore. There will be ceremony, and deep personal exploration on this incredible and sacred spiritual retreat.

Daily Schedule:

DAY  1 (L,D) Arrival  to Lima in the morning (we suggest that you arrive on the overnight flight to lima arriving around 4:30am). We then fly to Cuzco and go by bus to the Sacred Valley. On the way we will stop in Pisac to see the andean camelids, relax and drink some coca tea for the altitude, visit the Pisac market for some shopping time and relax in the market where we will have lunch. Overnight in Pisac Royal Inka hotel.

DAY 2 (B,L,D) Late start this morning! We will drive to the temple site of Pisac, do a welcome despacho ceremony for the Apu mountain spirits and then have an optional walk to Pisac market, lunch in Pisac, then to Ollantaytambo an incredible ancient Inca city. Two hundred steps lead up terraces to a double-jamb gateway and the Temple of Ten Niches, a long wall with odd protuberances. Above this is the unfinished Temple of the Sun, considered one of the masterpieces of Inca stonework.Six giant monoliths of pink rhyolite are perfectly slotted together with thin slices of stone and oriented to glow with the rising sun.

At Ollantaytambo we will discover the surprising Astronomical Watcher, which lies under the Tunupa’s glance (Part of the Wiraccochan myth) who is sculpted on stone in part of the Pinkuylluna mountain in front of the archaeological complex. In this place of power we offer Coca leaves which are used to send love and thanks to the Spirit of the Mountains, the Apus and to Pachamama (Mother Earth). We will take a beautiful walk to see the famous Pacarectampu Pyramid. Ollantaytambo for overnight.

DAY 3 (B,L,D) Today we will visit the sacred site of Moray – temple of fertility for a meditation and coca hallpay ceremony and picnic lunch. There are four huge natural depressions that have been sculpted into deep terraces. These circles represent for us the Cosmic Spiral, and we work with the energy of this place to connect with the womb of the Mother Earth (Mama Pacha). Time to do a ceremony in order to offer something to her and asking permission to be there. In the afternoon we return to Ollantaytambo to the temple of the winds for a cleansing ceremony.  Overnight at Ollantaytambo.

DAY 4 (B,D) Today we catch the morning train for our ride to Machu Picchu (1.5 hours) where we travel through beautiful mountains and jungle scenery of the Andes before arriving at the site. We will have our first ceremony to ask permission of the Entities of the place: The Puma, The Condor and Lights of Spirits. We visit the Seven Places of Power at Machu Picchu. This entire stone complex is a high voltage magnetic focal point and every invocation made at Machu Picchu is amplified to incalculable proportions. We will spend a few days here merging our energies with this sacred site and deepening our understanding of the Inca mythology. On arrival we will check into our hotel and then take the bus to the site for a shamanic visit, explore the powerful temples of the site and have a meditation. Overnight in Aguas calientes.

DAY 05: (B,D) Return to the site for optional hikes, ceremonies and just to be in the energy of this beautiful site. If we feel good we can hike to the Temple of the moon and the sacred peak of Wayna Picchu (this walk lasts 3-5 hours and is demanding but very special to connect the Hanaq Pacha upper world!) If you go you will have the opportunity to see the Temple of the Moon, part way down the northern side of Wayna Picchu. We will continue our explorations of the Royal Tomb, the Funerary Rock, the Sacred Plaza, Condor Temple and the Inihuatana Stone (known as the “hitching post of the sun” is a carved rock pillar whose four corners are oriented toward the four cardinal points. The Inca were accomplished astronomers, and used the angles of the pillar to predict the solstices). We may also walk to the Gate of the Sun which is the end of the Inka Trail. Overnight at Aguas calientes.

DAY 06: (B,D) Optional hikes to Putukusi mountain 3 hours round trip (very demanding) or walk to the waterfalls of Mandor over the train tracks (much easier 4 hours round trip). Overnight at Aguas calientes.

DAY 07: (B,L,D) Early train ride back to Ollantaytambo then by bus to Cusco, resting time, exploring the city, overnight in the city. (11,500 feet)

DAY 08: (B) Visit of the altars of the city including Koricancha, Inka streets, shaman market and the temple of the heart Kusilluchayoc. Overnight in Cusco.

DAY 09: (B,L,D) Altars nearby the city such as Sacsayhuaman, Kenko and Chacan the temple of the rainbow (Picnic lunch) on the site itself, optional horse ride to the temple. Cusco, the navel of the earth, was laid out on a grid plan to reproduce the shape of a puma, their sacred mountain animal. The pre-Inca site of Sacsayhuaman, high above the northern edge of the city, forms the head of the puma and the Coricancha temple forms the center of the grid. At Sacsayhuaman; (a hilltop fortress looming over Cusco to the north with three ramparts of zigzag walls that run for nearly 300 meters on its north side) we connect with the rocks which contain messages and lessons for a new era through geometrical symbols. Rest of the day is free to explore the city. Overnight in Cusco.

DAY 10: (B) We will drive to Tipon for a purification cleansing ceremony then we will drive to  Wasao to visit one of most popular shamans, Don Martin Pinedo, to receive a blessing and connect with the condor energy. Tipon is a little known Inca ruin complex southeast of Cusco. It consists of a vast walled enclosure with some of the most complex Inca drains, water works and baths, some of which are still functioning. The location is superb, with stupendous views of the mountains and Valley. Uphill from the enclosure is a magnificent Inca aqueduct which we will use for a purification ceremony. Afternoon for free in the city.  Overnight in Cusco.

DAY 11: (B) Today we fly back to Lima for our international flights OR if you are joining us for our extension to Lake Titicaca then we will be taking a bus to Puno.

Extension:

DAY 11: (B,L,D) Today we take our bus to Puno, we will stop on the way to visit several sites of interest including the temple of Wiracocha, the creator of the Andes and have a blessing ceremony and meditation on the site itself. Then drive to Juliaca and Puno. Overnight at Taypicala hotel.

DAY 12: (B,L,D) We leave in the late morning for the temple of the fertility then we will drive to Charcas beach on Lake Titicaca, have a cleansing ceremony, meditation, bathing on the lake, and a picnic lunch. Afternoon bus ride to Puno port for our excursion to the floating islands of Uros – an amazing experience. Overnight at Chucuito.

DAY 13: (B,L,D) We will drive to Cutimbo located on the road to Tacna, experience ancient pre-history caves, then meditating and working on the great Chullpas, places to connect the 3 worlds.  We will have a picnic lunch and take some time to work with the local children, then return to Puno to explore the city and have an early dinner. Overnight in Chucuito.

DAY 14: (B,L,D) Journey to Aramu Muru, we will drive on the Panamerican road to this amazing rock formation which is know as an interdimensional gate! We will have time to be in the energy of this powerful sacred place, do a meditation and have free time to explore. Picnic lunch. Overnight in Chucuito hotel.

DAY 15: (B) We will leave early our hotel, on the way to the airport we will visit the famous site temple of Sillustani, have a final ceremony, then we will continue our drive to the airport of Juliaca for our afternoon flight to Lima and then home.

Costs:

For the main trip itinerary $3395.00 USD double occupancy.

For the extension to Lake Titicaca $995.00 USD double occupancy.

All breakfasts are included in this program and many of our other meals. Our included meals are noted next to each day of the above itinerary and are in parentheses (). Non-included meals may need to be paid for in cash so plan accordingly. All spiritual teachings are included. All tips for the drivers, guides, and bell boys are included. All bus ground transportation is included on this journey. Your international roundtrip air flight is not-included in the cost of the journey, but your internal roundtrip flight from Lima to Cusco/Lake Titicaca is included. Entrance fees to all the ruins are included. Non-included items would include souvenir shopping, personal phone calls, laundry and the tips for your room maid (recommended $1.00 USD per day).

For me it is early Monday morning and the whole weeks lies before me like a new journal without a single word on any of its pages. When I think about the week with that realization I know I can write anything I want on the pages of the days to come.

So as I sit here I imagine it is Sunday and I am looking back over the week. What do I want to see there? How do I want to feel about this little block of linear time called last week?

Do I want to look back and smile because I was able to bring joy into someone’s life? Do I want to have a profound sense of gratitude because I spent most of the week profoundly connected to my spirit, fed by the sweet nectar of that love? Do I want to feel a sense of accomplishment because I finished all the tasks I wanted to get finished? Do I want to have savored every moment of the precious gift of life?

Once I know how I want to feel next Sunday I simply need to make choices moment by moment to make that so.  Each day I set my intent and get clear about what I DO want to create. Each night I review my day.  I gently and lovingly notice if I need to adjust some of my choices, release any emotional baggage or make amends to someone for being less than loving.

The more consciously I make my choice the more magnificent my days become.

So what are you planning to create this week?

With love and aloha,
Susan

The basic intent of the Toltec tradition is to change your point of creation from your mind to your spirit or as Castaneda referred to it, shifting your assemblage point. When you create your experience from the level of your spirit magic and miracles literally become a way of life and fear becomes a wonderful guidepost.

When I am safe and snug inside the bounds of my filter system fear acts like a herding dog, keeping me in line. When I shift my point of creation fear becomes an indicator that I am moving in the right direction. Granted it is a different kind of fear but it is fear none the less.

I often talk about fear based fear and love based fear. Even though they are both ‘fear’ they feel very different. When we are connected to our spirit fear is more love based and isn’t like the monsters under the bed that terrified us as children. Often the path I am guided to by my spirit is unfamiliar and may seem to lead to the edge of the cliff but when I take that leap of faith I can always fly.

So what is your real intent? To avoid fear or to have the faith to follow your spirit’s gentle guidance? I recently watched Wayne Dyer’s movie, “The Shift” and in a round about way it talks about the same thing.

I often say we have two choices, love or fear. I guess what I am saying today is we have a choice how to use fear, either in a loving or fearful way.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha,

What are you going to create this year? What is your intent? This time of year I like to look back, review last years intent and observe, gently and lovingly my results.

Many people in my life changed address (died) last year and my life is very different. It is amazing how death can give you such a profound sense of gratitude for life. I was able to hold my dads hand as he took his last breath.

I have been practicing using my breath a lot lately. Breathing in love and breathing out anything unlike love. Each breath is a gift of life from our spirit and I find acknowledging that and allowing myself to feel that at a profound level changes my experience of life as well as the way I ‘see’ life.

A connection with our spirit can only occur when we quiet our mind and step into the stillness of our spirit. The ability to that while immersed in the busyness of life is one of the greatest skills we can acquire.

So what is your intent for this year and what actions are you going to take on a daily basis to make it so?

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha everyone,

When I first moved to Hawaii I held classes on healing the inner child. Interestingly enough 20 years later I was asked to speak at a The Center for Spiritual Living in Waikoloa on the month that the theme is the divine child. So I decided to speak about the divine inner child. Funny how things come full circle.

Whenever I am asked to speak I begin to meditate on the topic and I am often pleasantly surprised by what comes up. I may try to record the talk and post an MP3 on my web site.

I know most of my readers live all over the world, but for you lucky few that do live in Hawaii I invite you to join me on December 6th, at 9:30 AM. The service begins with a meditation. The Center for Spiritual Living meets at the Waikoloa Elementary School Library (at the end of Paniolo Avenue in Waikoloa Village). Meditation begins at 9:30 a.m. Regular services begin at 10:00 a.m.

• December 6, 2009 at 9:30 a.m
• Center for Spiritual Living
• Waikoloa Elementary School Library
• Waikoloa, HI on the Big Island

Hope to see some of you there. And by all means pass the message along.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha everyone,

I just finished the a tele-ceremony for All Hallows Eve. If you would like to listen to it just click here. I do it as a guided meditation so you can listen to it and participate at the same time.

I hope you enjoy it.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha,

I have been in Lithuania and Latvia for the past month. Today I leave for the USA. I love the people and the countries and I will be very glad to get home. I am looking forward to the enthusiastic welcome of my four dogs and the aloof hello from my cats.

Filter systems are such an amazing thing. Last year this time I was on my way to Vermont to pick up my dad. In June I shared the process of helping my dad transition. It was such a beautiful experience, filled with tenderness and love. In my wildest imaginings I never imagined being so close to my father and feeling such tenderness, immense gratitude and unconditional love. That was only made possible by me letting go of my filter system and all my old stories about my relationship with my dad.

It really never is too late to have a happy childhood. I always knew releasing your personal history was a  gift but as I reflect over the past year that idea has taken on new meaning.

The finally day of the workshops in Lithuania I was moved to tears when one of the women in the workshops had a choir come in and sing “Over the Rainbow” to me. I have always loved that song and was so deeply moved by that experience.

When I got back to my room I had an email a woman had sent out to a variety of organizations with the title, “Gregg brags about murdering her father.” It was a very strong reminder how our filter system creates our reality. What is really real lies beyond the awareness of our minds.

If you haven’t yet, I recommend you let go of your stories about what was and really allow yourself to fully focus on what you want to create.

Talk to you again soon!

With love and aloha,
Susan

The quality of our life is directly related to the kind of questions we ask ourselves. If we ask ourselves, “why did this happen to my” or “why do bad things happen to good people?” we will have the opportunity to feel like a victim and stay the same.

If we really want to make a difference in our lives than we ask ourselves questions like:

What do I really want to experience?
What actions can I take to create that?
What belief, agreement or assumption is operating in my life?
How can I see this differently so I can feel happy, joyous and free right now?
What questions would assist me in connecting with my ability to consciously create my experience of reality?

It isn’t a race to get from one question to the next. Take time to fully explore one question in depth. Butterflies are pretty as they dance from flower to flower but I am not sure how in touch with the nature of reality they are.

When I explore a question I find each exploration leads logically to the next and to deeper and deeper awareness of how my filter system works. If I really want to get different results in my life I focus my attention on seeing my filter system. As I do that I will see how one thought leads to another and how my thinking colors my choices. Once I see my filter system it is easier for me to modify my thinking.

Questions are meant to assist you in seeing the magnificence of your filter system – how perfectly it fits together and how it consistently creates the same results. It is seamless and invisible to the naked eye yet it automatically and with no effort on your part drives all of your choices and hence the results you get in your life.

See its magnificence – see how your beliefs, agreements and assumptions fit together to create your experience of reality – once you really see the system, the entire system for what it is and what it creates change isn’t very far away.

My emphasis on coming from the perspective that there is ‘no out there’ came from a near death experience. Many years ago I had tried to kill myself by taking cyanide. I died and found myself swimming in eternity with all the emotions, thoughts and feelings I had run away from – talk about hell!! In that moment I realized there was no where, including death to get away from my filter system. At that moment I decided to do whatever it took to see my filter system and release myself from its bondage.

If you view life from a perspective that there is NO OUT THERE you will be able to see your filter system more clearly. As we clean out our filter system the ‘out there’ that we play in will change and life will become even more magical. Frame your questions so they will help you will see YOUR beliefs, YOUR assumptions and YOUR agreements. You can change them. If you focus on changing out there without taking responsibility for your creation you will doom yourself to creating more of the same old same old.

With love and aloha,
Susan

Aloha everyone,

Several years ago I watched the movie Pay It Forward and really enjoyed it. The other day I was thanking someone for an act of kindness they had done and they said, “That’s okay I was just paying it forward.” I did some goggling this morning about pay it forward and was really happy about the results.

I infuse my teaching of the Toltec tradition with the idea of living from a place of dominion and people always ask me how do I do that in a world based on domination. I now have a great answer – pay it forward. Believe me paying it forward will change your life and it really feels good!

Here is a short quote from the book by Catherine Ryan Hyde:

“You see, I do something real good for three people. And then when they ask how they can pay it back, I say they have to Pay It Forward. To three more people. Each. So nine people get helped. Then those people have to do twenty-seven.” He turned on the calculator, punched in a few numbers. “Then it sort of spreads out, see. To eighty-one. Then two hundred forty-three. Then seven hundred twenty-nine. Then two thousand, one hundred eighty-seven. See how big it gets?”

Here is a neat video about a woman paying it forward by being a foreclosure angel.

What three small things could you do to pay it forward today?

With love and aloha,
Susan