Short Meditation for Embracing and Creating Your Future

Last weekend I was looking for a file in the chaos of my computer documents.  My curser slipped and I inadvertantly opend a document entitled "moving schedule"  from the May 2010.  It wasn't the moving schedule I had written for moving my household two summers ago-but it certainly was about moving my life!  The piece of writing that opened before me was a meditation I had been inspired to write-wrote and then it disappeared and I could not find it, regardless of how  much I had searched.  I am sure some of you have had that experience!

Now here it is again, perfect timeing.  I share it here and it will be posted on the website http://www.circleofself.com .

Meditation for Circle of Self Year

The 13 moon cycles of my Circle of Self gives me the time necessary to explore and embrace all the Aspects and Elements of my Self.  As I hold my commitment to myself and this work, I will gain knowledge, grow in hope, and bring balance to the whole of my life.  From this knowledge, hope and balance I will be able to bring my intentions into manifestation and experience the change for which I have longed.

As I evaluate my personal life I will begin to understand the connection between physical well-being, mental health, emotional balance and spiritual support. Each Element nourishes the others.  From here the health of my whole person is enhanced.

As I embrace my relationships, with friends and colleagues, children and family, and my partner, I may find them to be outer expressions of different parts of my inner-self.  Here I will find guidance to heal, resolve grief, create safety, and understand the meaning of forgiveness.  I can complete my Circle of Self process with a more open heart, and more fully able to be in my relationships in healthy and satisfying ways.

As I explore my Creative Self, I move from the self-limiting extremes of perfectionism and fear, and experience the life giving flow of my innate creativity. I experience this flow in my work and my leisure time, in the flow of abundance in my life and in the ways in which I am able to be in service to others and to the world.

As I engage the Elements of my Collective Self, I will find ways to create a home which shelters body, heart, spirit and soul.  I will strengthen my connections to the natural world and to the community around me. My role as a citizen of the world develops in alignment with my life purpose.

This, My Personalized Circle of Self, is my invitation to live my life to my full potential.  My hope and prayer for myself is that I may embrace my life and live my life fully, as is my birthright, without fear, hesitation or regret, but with joy, hope balance and possibility!

Waxing Moon-Spring into Cleaning Inner and Outer Clutter

I began cleaning and resetting my sacred space and my office on Thursday's new moon.  Resetting my altar space was easy this month, as I am continuing to focus on my Creative Aspect. In resetting my sacred space. I carefully dusted each piece that I had previously placed on the altar and reset and updated my intentions for this moon cycle.  I expressed gratitude for my wisdom council, and reconnected with them in my heart.  I added a symbol representing the growing number members of Circle of Self virtual community. 

Spring Cleaning my Office, which is also my sacred space is taking more time-but at least everything is set in place-just not organized or totally sorted.  I've had this room for two years.  It is the sun room of our home, and what I have noticed is the every season I am changing the direction my desk faces.  I hadn't thought about this until I was sorting the stack of papers which had accumulated on the desk and spilled over onto the floor.  I had been struggling to get some writing done, and was having major writer's block. So, more as an act of distraction, or perhaps a push from my subconscious, I shut down the computer and proceeded to rearrange the furniture in in my office.  Afterwards, I sat down and began typing-no problem!  Then I realized I have done this every three or for months in the two years that we have lived here.  I will be more intentional about being in tune with any deeper meaning about this.

Internally, this is a spring of resolution.  After many years of resentment and ongoing distress in several personal relationships, feelings of gratitude and prayers for blessings are coming from my heart-without being coerced or forced.  I am doing a daily review this month, observing this process, which began spontaneously about three weeks ago.  I can not tell you the immense lightness I feel as these old patterns are releasing and being cleaned from my heart.

I wish you many blessings and support in your spring cleaning journey

New Moon, Conceiving Something New

This is a pretty special new moon for me.  My hope is that it is a special new moon for a number of you as well as you begin your Circle of Self program with this new moon.

Last week, after a LONG gestation,the official birth of http://circleofself.com// occurred.  Only with the support of a community of many was I able to achieve this accomplishment. It has been a labor of love.
This morning, I reset my sacred space, both the room in which I work as well my altar space.  I set my intention for continuing to work in my Creative Aspect in my Work Element: being present for the ongoing growth of Circle of Self.  I invite any and all of you to share what you are comfortable sharing about your intentions and focus for this current moon cycle.  Our mutual support benefits all!

Just as I finish helping in the birth of one project, I am helping to support the gestation of another project which is happening today http://conceptionday2012.com.

I wanted to share about the Conception Day 2012 event--which will be attended by thousands (some virtual, some in person-I'll be in the virtual group!) of people from more than 120 countries.  I have been part of this group (albeit a quiet part) for about a year now, and I feel blessed to be a member of this group whose focus is to help create a world that is peaceful, sustainable, healthy and prosperous.  Check out the website and the Conception Day invitation. It is open to all and without cost. 

Waking up to the First Full Moon of Spring

The full moon in Glen Ellyn was obscured by clouds and came in with a bang and left us in the dark.  Somehow a transformer near our house blew last night. It nearly threw my 17 year old out of her bed from the fright of the sound! The end result was that all of our clocks were wrong and we all scrambled to get out the door on time.  Rushed, not fully prepared, not looking our best because there was not time for a shave or shower or make-up. 

All of this seems quite relevant coming just after my last post using the metaphor of pregnancy.  I stayed to long in the womb of my bed.  I was not so aware of the rhythm of the day calling me awake and dependent on the alarm, I was late.  Regardless, I enter my day-prepared or not, and into a household where everyone else was also late and trying hard not to be crabby with one
other.

Here is where having a commitment to work with a daily inspirational reading helps me. It takes less than a minute for me to read mine. Today I'm reading Earth Medicine, by Jamie Sams (My Book Store). My reading asks if I am ready to look at the places in my life where I would like to improve my reactions or responses, reminding me that I can change my reactions and responses for myself.  I'm the only one who can do that. What will follow is needed inner serenity.  I reset my inner perception.  Suddenly I have time to write this blog and take a quick shower and be just on time (no make-up though, that was sacrificed for the blog-priorities). 

Be Blessed, Everyone.

First Full Moon of Spring March 8th. Are you ready to birth your renewed self?

The first full moon of Spring is this Thursday March 8th. 

More births seem to happen on the full moon than any other time of the month.  I'm not sure if that is true, and if anyone know, please share!  What is ready to be birthed in your life?

With the warm winter we have had, all the plants and trees have buds which look pregnant and posed to pop fully open at any moment.  They are ahead of their natural cycle.  Have they been influenced more by the weather than their genetics?  My neighbor and I were examining the tender shoots yesterday and she wondered to me if there was still a risk of a killing frost.  I'm not savvy enough about plants to know, but I hope not.

What do pregnant buds have to do with us?  Well, it got me to thinking about how like pregnancy, we sometimes,have parts of our lives which have their own timeline.  Influenced by things outside our control, wishes and plans...when the time is at hand for birthing (or budding) it happens.  We may have done everything required to be ABLE and READY for a pending birth.  But are we WILLING to fully embrace it? 

Another reason I'm reflecting on buds popping and birthing:
Next week is the official launch of the renewed Circle of Self website.  More to come...

New Moon's Arising--shining on our homes and hearts

The new moon for March is upon us.  With the March moon the Spring Season also begins.  As it happens, season of lent in the Christian liturgical year also begins this week. 

It's time to begin 'spring cleaning'-not only in our homes,but in our hearts and our lives.  I grew up Catholic and lent was always a time of giving up something we 'loved'.  For us kids, that usually meant candy.  I have friends who still follow this practice of giving something up-most often it's alcohol, coffee or chocolate. 

This year, I've decided to do this Lenten practice again: I've decided to give up being irritated-just for the next 40 days and forty nights. I might not be able to stop being irritated, but I commit to stop myself from putting what irritates me onto others.  (IE stop bitching, crabby, and blaming).  I am going to watch myself, watching myself with my reactions: (to learn about how to practice this exercise go to http://www.circleofself.com/Pdfs/aspectselements/PersonalAspectofSelfOverview.pdf  )

If I'm going to be successful, I will spend time doing some spring cleaning.  Starting in the 'easiest' place I will be truthful with myself about what needs to be cleared out of my home space-my office,my kitchen, my closets and the stuff I have stashed in the basement over the winter. Then I might move to my heart.  What am I clinging to that invites irritation into my life?What are my resentments and past hurts that small things stir up again? I will do an honest inventory of where I need to have boundaries for myself and others and where it is time to have a more clear and open heart.  Finally, I will work on housecleaning in my life--a few bad habits have taken residence in my life over this past winter.  I've brought some new people, activities and plans into my life and I  need to make space for them, so I will use the Spring cleaning and truth weighing over this first moon cycle of Spring. 

On Being Kind

“Be kinder than necessary, 

for everyone you meet is fighting 

some kind of battle.” 

― T.H. Thompson and John Watson

I have a friend and colleague who writes a blog for her friends.  She has disciplined (committed and supported) herself to do a piece of verse everyday as her morning prayer/meditation.  She sent this along to us, an invitation to 'be kinder'  and this includes to ourselves.

I'm fighting a cold today.  I succumbed to it by the stress I put on myself over the weekend.  I wasn't even aware of it until I woke up in the middle of the night unable to breathe , my sinuses were so clogged.  For me, getting a cold is always connected to stress of some sort.  I have come to the awareness nearly everyone has a pet 'illness' that visits them when they get too far out of balance.  We get out of balance when we stop being kind to ourselves--which most likely means we have also not been kind to others at the same time.