By Leaps and Bounds

In the movie, "What About Bob?" Bob is directed to take baby steps towards the change he wants in his life.  Most of the time that's how it is.  We take small steps in the right direction, and over time we make noticeable progress. At other times, we find ourselves in a position to take a leap of faith.  No baby step, a great big, giant leap - often off a cliff.  When the big moments of our life arrive, and we are called upon to make dramatic changes, we grow by leaps and bounds.  We take large strides and soar onto the next level.


I've always read a lot of books, fiction and otherwise.  Years ago I read a great book that helped Carl and I meet some pretty enthusiastic goals in our life.  It was during one of those leap of faith moments that we discovered "Living by the Power of Faith" by Gene R. Cook.  The message is powerful, and at the end of each chapter is a worksheet to help you implement the concepts you are learning.  We worked through the book together and changed the course of our life dramatically.

Somehow, we got a bit off track.  We became comfortable on our plateau and stopped setting new goals.  Aiming each day just to hold on to what we had, we rather quickly began to dwindle.  The momentum was effectively dead.  It took a few years, but reality began to catch up with our attitude, and we ended up pretty close to square one, except now we were older, and less resilient. Since then it has been a series of leaps into the unknown followed by baby steps into the dark.

A few years ago the book, "The Secret" came out. I read it, Carl read it, our friends and family read it.  It was a breath of fresh air, a spark of energy, a reminder, and a wake up call.  I knew from personal experience that the principles worked. At the core, it is the same message as "Living by the Power of Faith".  My quest to know more resumed.  I wanted to understand why I could implement and succeed for while, but was unable to sustain the momentum necessary for lasting success.  Why did worry, fear, and doubt always return?  I began searching for a way to clear the stumbling blocks from my path, so that I could fully embrace a life of faith and trust, rather than falling back into fear and doubt.

Since then I have read and studied the subject from many angles.  I have learned a lot and I am grateful to all the authors who wrote those books, sharing their wisdom and knowledge.  I made a lot of baby steps while reading all of those books. There is a difference between knowing how to do something, and actually doing it.  Sometimes it was as if there were a literal wall in my mind that I just could not get over.  I believed, I hoped, I wanted, I visualized, I focused, I set goals, I acted - so why was I stuck?

Eventually my studying lead me to take a 5 week tele-course on energy healing basics.  The announcement that I read for the class mentioned the Law of Attraction, and how to clear the blocks that were holding you back from really living it.  I saved that email for weeks in my inbox.  Something about it spoke to me, and drew me in.  I just couldn't delete it.  The day before the class was to start, I signed up.  Paying that fee felt like a pretty big leap of faith.  I knew instinctively that I was getting really close to what I was searching for.

The class was amazing, enlightening, and everything the ad had promised.  Included in the handouts for each class was a reading list.  Some of which I had already read, and many more that I had not.  These reading lists were both a confirmation that I was still on the same path, and a wealth of new ideas.  Since then I have continued to study and implement the concepts of energy healing into my life.  Many of the invisible boulders in my life have been rolled away, or even blown to pieces.

As my understanding has increased, so has my desire to help others with these methods. Everywhere I look there is needless suffering - colicky babies, depression, addiction, heart disease, cancer, fear, anger, frustration, and pain.  The healing methods of energy medicine address all of these and more.  How can I keep all of this goodness to myself?  I want to share the light I have found with everyone.

Next month I am taking my next giant leap into the void.  I will be attending intensive training classes to become a certified practitioner of Calyco Healing.  I am so excited to learn even more, especially how to help others with these methods.  I have recently started a new blog dedicated to the subject of energy healing.  It will become a resource for others, who are searching to understand this subject. Eventually I will post reviews of the best, and worst, books on the subject, as well as links to other resources.  There is no reason for everyone to dig through the weeds to find the flowers.

The lights are on, the darkness has fled.  It's onward, and upward by leaps and bounds.

A Little Something You Can Do

If you leave your house, or turn on any form of media, you will be hit with a wave of negativity. The economy is in the tank. That isn't really news to most of us. All the regular people have been experiencing it for awhile now. At least now we don't have to feel like it is something we did personally, now it is just "the economy", not the consequences of our poor decisions, bad luck, or lack of talent. It's nice to have some nebulous entity to blame for our woes. Taking personal responsibility doesn't feel so good. In fact, it is down right depressing. Or is it?

If you accept the media message, then you are powerless, a victim of the whims of the global economy. If it is your fault, that means that you are powerful. All you need to do is start using your power for good, rather than evil. Or for success, rather than failure. You are powerful. You are intelligent, and have the ability to act for yourself. You are not a robot, and you are not a victim. Stand up and do something!

What to do? Well, here are a few small things that pretty much everyone can do.

1. Don't listen to all that negative crap. Turn it off. It isn't news and it doesn't help.

2. Be grateful for what you have. Make a list and think about it often. You might not have everything, but you have something, and I bet what you do have is pretty awesome.

3. Give. Pay your tithing, donate to a worthy cause, give your unused stuff to a thrifty store. Give a smile, a hug, a word of encouragement, to someone everyday.

4. Buy something, preferably from someone you know. If we all became customers of those we know, we would bless the lives of each other. We don't need the government to print more fake money to get the economy moving. Businesses need customers. If you own a business, isn't this what will save you? Isn't this how you pay the bills and make payroll? So, think about who you know that has a product or service that you can use, and become a customer. Here are some of my friends that you can buy something from in case you live in a cave and the only thing you do on the internet is read my blog. :-)

My cousin Amanda sells Avon. I will start with her because her name starts with A and so does her business, so alphabetically speaking, she is the obvious choice. I hadn't used Avon in years, but she took the time to send me an email a few weeks ago so I thought I would take a look. They sell a lot of products that I would normally buy at WalMart. I think WalMart has enough money. Amanda could probably make better use of my few dollars and WalMart would never miss me. They ship for free, even to Hawaii! That is a big deal and I won't soon forget it!! Here is a link to her website.

My good friend Tammy Dugaw sells Mary Kay. I have been using a few of their products for years, and again, I would rather buy from a friend. They recently changed their lipstick formula. It no longer tastes/smell like perfume. It is yummy! Here is a link to her website. www.marykay.com/tdugaw

If you are looking for something special, like, say a belated Valentine's day gift, my friend Joella has a TON of beautiful jewelry on her site www.threefoldgifts.com It is very affordable and good quality. Joella is awesome and it would directly benefit a real, American family if you bought something from her. She also does personalized adoption gifts. If you know someone who is adopting, her site is the best place to find a truly unique and thoughtful gift.

Joella is very enterprising, and has another site selling some really cool silk wraps. That site is at www.themagicskirt.com I own a few, and they are beautiful and fun to wear.

If you want to buy a Corvette, or maybe just a Corvette t-shirt, then go to http://www.corvettecenterusa.com/. My brother Rik will treat you right!

Cherie makes the most delicious home made jams, sauces and meat rubs. You can't go wrong with any of her products. Sweet Darling Jams are awesome! She ships anywhere, even to Hawaii! If you want a taste test I might be willing to share :-).

In various states, I know people that are massage therapists, hair stylists, run yoga studios, do photography, and create all kinds of beautiful things. There are opportunities everywhere to be a customer for someone that you know. Buying from our friends is the grass roots way to stimulate the economy. If you have a business, and I didn't include you in this blog, please post all the details in a comment. I want to include everyone. Let's take control of our mutual success and prosperity!

Small Miracles

I asked one of my friends for a suggested topic to write about, and she said, "Cars, or small miracles." It's funny that she would say this. In my world, they are often one in the same, this week in particular.

I like excitement and adventure. I like a good adrenaline rush now and then. I love to ski, but usually end up going down the black diamond slopes on my butt, rather than on my skis. It is the age old problem of desire vs. talent. I don't have any real athletic talent, so I have to get my thrills in more creative ways.

I drive mechanically challenged cars. Nothing gets the heart rate up, and the adrenaline pumping quite like driving a car that chronically over heats in a city with legendary traffic congestion. It is a race against the clock, and the odds. I try to accomplish all of my stops between morning rush hour and evening rush hour. I make my stops as quickly as possible, and avoid any lengthy meetings. If I am not home by 4pm, I am looking for a productive place to spend the next 2 hours waiting out the traffic.

This past week was especially challenging. The Christmas shopping craze threw off all the normal traffic patterns. My skills are sharp. I only had to pull over once to let the car cool and add some coolant. I keep my trunk fully stocked with supplies; jugs of water, coolant, a funnel, etc.

It would seem logical to buy a new one, or at least take this one to the shop and have a professional fix it, but where is the fun in that?
1. The thing is paid for. It is really hard to argue for a car payment.
2. It has a really great stereo. It's a Bose stereo with high end speakers. I can really rock out in that car!
3. I can take the kids to the beach and not worry about sand in the carpet, or any other sort of mess.
4. The last time I took it to a shop, it came back with more problems. I think it is like Mr. Burns, all the things wrong with it are in a delicate balance, keeping it alive. If I fix one of them, the rest might just kick it over the edge.

These car challenges are also great faith building opportunities. More than once car trouble has brought me to call on my Heavenly Father in prayer. Often my children have silently prayed, while I tried to figure out what the trouble was, and how to get us where we need to go. I witness small miracles regularly.