Most of us are aware that nature functions in daily, monthly and yearly cycles. These cycles are in synchronistic flow with the rhythm of the universe. We can see this rhythm when we observe the growth cycle of plants, the movement of the tides and the behavioural patterns of animals however, many of us feel that these rhythms either do not affect us, or that we are somehow out of synch.
It is self-evident that being ‘in synch’ or in ‘the flow’ feels good and being ‘out of synch’ does not. We experience this when we dance, participate in a drum circle, play music or sport. Physiologically our bodies respond to and get into ‘rhythm’ with another person when you have a good conversation, your brain waves will fall into synch; heart cells contract simultaneously when they are brought together; and breathing rates, brain waves and heart rate are all rhythmically entrained. Being ‘in synch’ is a natural state and your environment has the greatest impact on which rhythms your body will lock into synch with. Read the rest of this entry »
738 days; that is how long it has been since my last drink. I know this number-not because I am a recovering alcoholic-but because my ‘last drink’ was a particularly memorable occasion. It was News Years Eve 2011, I was in Paris and the drink was a glass of champagne offered to me by a stranger on the Champs-Élysées. I feel proud that my drinking days ended on such a high note. As a number of my friends embark on a “Sober January”, I thought I would share with you my story of how one month of sobriety turned into many.
I used to really like drinking, I would even tell you I was pretty good at it, so when I decided to stop, it was an unexpected decision for myself and those that know me. I would probably classify my drinking days as fairly average. Average as measured by a relative scale to those around me and my circumstances. Fittingly, university was certainly a peak consumption period in my life, followed of course, by a serious decline rate upon entering the working wold. So after years of being a fairly typical drinker, why did I suddenly make an unusual decision to stop? Honestly, I just didn’t feel like doing it anymore. That’s it. It wasn’t about my health, or the cost, or because I liked it too much-this was not a fear or shame motivated choice. Not at all, I was just finished. Read the rest of this entry »
Christmas is a magical time of year however it can also be an extremely challenging time of year for many of us. Why is this, and why do we seem to lose the magic of Christmas that we know is at the heart of the season?
We celebrate Christmas to commemorate the birth of the prophet Jesus Christ. And while we know that Jesus was actually born somewhere closer to March or April, this time of year is still very special. Every year as we come to the end of our calendar cycle the Earth is also completing a cycle. Each year as the Earth completes its annual orbit around the sun it resets its energy. Similarly, every cell within your body also resets its energy on the new year. As we approach this time of year each one of us is in the last stages of a cycle of integration. We are integrating all of the changes we have experienced over the year in preparation for a new beginning. It is really worth a moment to reflect on the year that you have had and all of the differences in your life over the last year. You are integrating all of that right now. With this piece of information you can see that everyone has a lot going on!
Have you ever been faced with a big opportunity and not sure if the apprehension you are feeling is normal or if somehow your intuition is trying to tell you something?
This was a big question for me about a year ago when I was given the opportunity to travel to a new country to do some really interesting work. Initially I was excited about all the new experiences I was going to have, the fascinating people I would have the chance to work with and suddenly I was really nervous; restless sleeping kind of nervous. So naturally I wondered is this nervousness coming from a forewarning kind of place or is this just the butterflies that naturally signal the start of a new adventure?
In order to feel really good about your decisions it is important to be able to distinguish between fear and guidance from your higher self; here are some suggestions.
Ok, full disclosure, I’ve been on Facebook and had all of the following thoughts: I do not like that haircut, those are terrible shoes, there they go bragging again, that’s a bad baby name, who cares about your dog. These, and many other thoughts which I am not proud of have gone through my head! So, I’m going out on a limb here but, I don’t think I’m alone. What’s more, is that I know this is very grade six behaviour but I believe that this kind of thinking is so habitual that we don’t realize firstly, how much we engage in it, nor that it has a huge impact on our lives. So here’s why you may want to be really honest with yourself and pay attention to what you are thinking as you scroll and click you way through your friends latest posts. Read the rest of this entry »
Granted, forgiveness is a big topic and to some people it seems just exhausting to think about, but the underlying principle of it is quite simple. Forgiveness means that you no longer wish to carry it forward. ‘It’ of course can be situations, experiences, wrong doings or whatever it is that you feel is still out there-unfinished and unforgiven. In other words you’ve made a decision to leave it behind, to be done with it. Where we get confused is a lot of us believe that forgiveness means to pardon, that what happened doesn’t matter. That is not true, what happens in our life means a great deal, but the choice we make is about how long we want to carry the weight of that negative experience. I’ve also heard forgiveness as being defined as ‘giving up the hope that the past could have been different’.
When I came to an understanding of forgiveness from this perspective, it shifted a lot of things for me. I made up a list of all the people, including (and especially) myself that I wanted to forgive-it was a long list. It took some reflection but once I started the list came together pretty quickly; grade one teacher, ex-boyfriends, the guys who give parking tickets…There is a great prayer of forgiveness from our friends at Ish-a-tah that I used and then burned the list. To say it changed everything will sound a bit extreme. but it shifted everything and it was simple-I just made a choice.
Chapter 25 of Change is Natural is dedicated to the topic of forgiveness. Titled, Clearing your Field for More of What you Want to Come into your Life, it explains how forgiveness brings about a clearing within your energetic field. It’s a short chapter, only a couple of pages long but I hope that you find it to be informative and inspiring.
I have reached a milestone. I started this challenge on the 28th of February, today is March 13th, that is fifteen days in a row of meditation and you know, I am quite proud of myself. There is something quite fulfilling about keeping promises to yourself. I’ve not been very good at that before. I know that it is important to keep promises to others, it builds trust, but I didn’t realize that keeping promises to myself is building confidence in me. I believe myself now when I say that I am going to get up when the alarm clock goes off, or that I will eat a proper breakfast in the morning. All of these ‘promises kept’, including my fifteen days in a row of meditation, are like a little high five to myself. OK, a big high five.
As well, I am very excited to be able to share a guided meditation from our workshop series for those of you who are new to meditation and were wondering about a good place to start. This one is called “Chakra Weaving” and is lead by Jas Malcolm. It is about 17 minutes long-which isn’t too long if you are new to meditating and takes you through the process of harmonizing, balancing and aligning the major energy centres of your body. I find it to be very calming and energizing at the same time.Press play on the audio player above to listen to on your computer or click here to download
It turns out that meditation is, in fact much like flossing your teeth. I think it’s a good comparison because both are activities that require regular, sustained effort in order to achieve their means.
Confession: I am a sporadic meditator (and not a great flosser either). Yup it’s true. In a practice where consistent effort is the key, my attendance record for getting together with God is spotty. Here’s the thing, I’ve been at this whole meditation practice for a while, but to be totally honest I’ve not managed to ever string together more than a few days at a time. Now to be fair, I go to class and I pay attention, have good intentions and a genuine will to improve; it’s just that well, sometimes I get busy, or I forget. Sounds a bit lame, but that’s about it. What’s more-while I’m making confessions-is that it’s nearly my job to meditate. I have all the resources, encouragement and time to do it and still-sporadic. I cannot fathom how people with full time jobs, children, dogs, and meals to make manage to be consistent, anymore than I can comprehend how the Dali Lama can get up at three in the morning for his daily practice. Oh, God if you would just come to me whilst I am cozily sleeping in my bed so that I might become illuminated without ever having to set an alarm!
On February 28th, I set a new goal: to put together thirty solid days of meditation-in a row.This will be a challenge for me as I believe that the only daily routine chore I have ever succeeded at was the advent calendar at Christmas time. Why thirty days? Well, it used to be that was the amount of time it took to build and set in the energy of a new pattern, but as the vibrations of the planet continue to increase, that amount of time has now reduced to only twenty one days (the same time period applies for your mantras and prayers too). So, good news for all of us that implementing positive change takes less time! I’m putting in the extra seven days for good measure.
So, here I am four days in a row-so far so good! I might even go out and buy myself a calendar and some star stickers-it worked for the advent calendar.
Did you know that your DNA can change? Many years ago scientists did not believe that your DNA could change after you are born. Now, thanks to new fields of research such as epigenetics and pioneers like Dr. Bruce Lipton, scientist now do agree that yes, indeed your DNA changes and in fact it changes quite a lot. The magnificence of your DNA is that it is a sound and light signaling system that retains all of your beliefs and experiences at a multitude of levels.
So, what determines what it records and what it doesn’t record? Your emotions. Whenever there is an experience of strong emotions-be it great joy or great fear and sadness-that will imprint onto the DNA. Just as your emotions today are influencing your DNA so did the emotions of your ancestors affect your DNA. The DNA you were born with is not a blank slate. It is an inherited canvas that has been painted upon by the emotions of your ancestors, up to four generations back. And, there is a good reason for this. The reason is that when strong emotions can imprint the DNA then you do not have to repeat the lessons of your ancestors.
This means that we are all carrying around all of the feelings and beliefs of our ancestors. This is a blessing as we all inherit the amazing courage and love that our ancestors experienced, but the problem is that we also inherit many emotions that do not fit our lives. Read the rest of this entry »
Back home from my latest adventure to India-what a beautiful country! Getting life reorganized here at Pure Leadership and will be posting here as usual, very soon. In the meantime I wish to share this miracle of a newborn baby, who was pronounced dead and brought back to life through the love of his parents.
It is always an exciting moment for me as I pack my bags in anticipation of another adventure to see the world. I have been very grateful for all of the traveling that I have experienced this year with Pure Leadership, however this trip is even more special because I’m going with my husband. Tomorrow we leave for India-off to Rajasthan to experience the best and greatest of this part of the world!
I have shared many of the things I have learned about traveling, and this time I would like to share with you a few of the things that I pack which help me to have a wonderful and healthy trip. (As you are reading this please keep in mind that I am not a doctor-this is not advice-this is simply a list of what works for me).
1. Lavender oil
I pack a great big bottle of Lavender oil which has all sorts of wonderful uses. I rub the oil directly onto my skin-just the exposed parts-a couple of times a day. Not only do you smell wonderful, but we found that the oil is a very effective insect repellent. Rubbing lavender oil on the bottoms of your feet helps to balance your nervous system as well I find it an excellent antiseptic for cuts and scraps. If my hotel room feels a little grubby I will sprinkle some on the curtains, the carpet or in the bathroom as a general disinfectant. I also like to put a few drops on my pillow in the hotel to help me sleep.
by Kandis Twa
Deciphering Truth Within Yourself
A Positive Social Revelation
Pure Leadership 