How's Your Sox Life?

Several years ago I was housesitting for a friend over the holidays. Her housemate hadn't yet moved out, however, so Sandra (who was no longer speaking to her) advised me, "Just ignore her."

To be sure, her housemate was not the most congenial person. She was needy. If I looked at her or replied to any comment or question, I'd be listening to her for the next hour. This could be rather discomfiting.

But I wanted to be kind. During this journey, I had a "clothes encounter" with my winter socks, which I'd somehow misplaced. I had eight or nine pair, in vibrant hues. Although I didn't recall packing them in one of the boxes I'd stored months earlier in Sandra's garage, I checked anyway. No socks.

That night as I allowed my mind to relax, I received the impression that my socks were in the external compartment of my green duffel bag, which had been in my car the entire time. In the morning, I looked there. Bingo.

Sandra's housemate heard about the sock caper, and had expressed her yearning for purple socks, since she'd once had a pair that had either been lost or stolen. When I found my sock cache, I walked into the house and held up two pair, one purple, one blue, and offered her whichever pair she wanted (we wore the same size).

Like a starving person being offered food, she grabbed the purple ones and thanked me profusely, saying, "It's like you gave me a house!"

I was humbled, and ashamed of my earlier thoughts. Sometimes — often — it takes so very little to uplift one of our fellow travelers. What we need to know is usually quite "clothes" to us.

So … how's your sox life? If it could use some rejuvenation, you know what to do now. Blessings!

Help! I Need Somebody …

Have we entered the "We Decade"? People are becoming more friendly and helpful than ever — and as always, what we give returns in spades (or hearts). Here's what it looks like:

A week or so ago, a shopper at Whole Foods pulled out an extra shopping cart for me as she got her own, and, delighted with the simple, unsolicited act of kindness, I declared this the year when we all receive what we need effortlessly and with grace!

A day or so later, a young mother with two small kids needed dinner plates; she couldn't leave the eating area to get them, so I went over to the hot bar for her, and she was inordinately grateful.

Yesterday, I parked my elderly car (that has a broken driver's side door handle for which I'm seeking a replacement part!), too close to a high curb, and when I went to open the passenger door to crawl through and unlatch the driver's door, as I've been doing the past few days, I couldn't open it wide enough to get in!

I stood there wondering what to do when a kind man walked by and I motioned to my plight. Without missing a beat he angled his arm in enough to roll down the back window on the passenger side, then crawled through the window to open the driver's door! I was amazed — and amazingly grateful.

These are all seemingly small acts, but aggregated times seven billion, they can add up to a far happier planet.

Let's choose to be helpful — and happy! Blessed Be.

If It's Broke, Should You Fix It?

We're all familiar with the adage, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" But what about when it IS broken ~ is "fixing" necessarily the best strategy?

In the last month, my eyeglasses, car door handle and wristwatch band have all "broken." I was cleaning my glasses when the micro-thin bridge quietly snapped in two. My old Toyota's door handle mechanism, which had been progressively weakening for weeks, finally quit working altogether. And my beaded watchband's elastic cord broke.

From a 3D perspective, we could view these incidents as discrete (unrelated) events that occurred because the objects in question simply wore out. And this interpretation would be accurate, although limited. Since I tend to live on levels other than the literal, I laid in bed one night and wondered what message, if any, all these "breaks" happening at year-end 2010 might be trying to communicate.

Eyeglasses help me see, but have nothing to do with inner vision. My car transports me from Point A to Point B on the physical plane, but can't help me travel metaphysically. And my watch enables me to "tell time" in our linear, third-dimensional reality, but will not assist me in accessing the timeless realm of Now.

The sense I have, especially after participating in an alchemical conversation between Jim Self and Celia Fenn on Winter Solstice, is that these breaks actually signify a breakthrough: in the incipient New Earth, we'll see with our inner eyes, travel at the speed of thought, and live in the eternal present.

It was a humbling and humorous awareness. I've always enjoyed these "object lessons" ~ especially from my car, which has long served as a surrogate "body" of sorts (if you spend considerable time in your own vehicle, I expect you know what I mean.)

Of course, since I am still traveling in 3D, I'm in the process of seeking a replacement part so that I can open my car door; the watch is out being restrung, and I'm going to invest in a new pair of eyewear so I can continue to journey safely while in a body.

With a foot in both worlds, this is one of the most challenging and exhilarating times to be alive. You can read more in my January newsletter, Some Assembly Required, which will be live on 1/2/11.

Blessings and joy to you!

The Mother of All Winter Solstices

Visionary activist astrologer Caroline Casey has been calling it, "The Mother of all Winter Solstices". This December 21st heralds a full moon / total lunar eclipse, making our inner darkness visible. What has been concealed is now revealed, and ready to be healed.

It's a galactic Dark Night of the Soul as we surge down the 2012 corridor into a brand new world, eclipsing millennia of spiritual darkness, says astrologer Allison Rae. She offers one of the more eloquent and inclusive depictions of now, and what it means for each of us. READ MORE

Two no-cost events I'm participating in that are sure to provide groundbreaking guidance and information:

Celia Fenn with Archangel Michael in conversation with Jim Self, Solstice eve webinar from 4-5:30 pm PST

And immediately following, human capacities pioneer / social architect Jean Houston, offering her signature Mystery School as a teleclass.

Join me, and invoke the 2011 you deeply desire and envision.

Taking the Bite Out of Tooth Decay

Frank Zappa once wrote a tune called, "Dental Hygiene Dilemma." The song may have been intentionally tongue-in-cheek, but the poor oral health of millions of Americans isn't very funny. According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, "95 percent of the civilized population suffers with tooth decay and/or periodontal disease." Which might sound pretty shocking — until you count yourself among this group.

Who knew that the very substances I was using to clean my teeth — tap water and toothpaste — were actually creating the problem? READ MORE!

Kindness

Naomi Shihab Nye's poem is a universal salve; the depths of the Journey we all must make:


Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve in a moment
like salt in a weakened broth.
What you held in your hand,
what you counted and carefully saved,
all this must go so you know
how desolate the landscape can be
between the regions of kindness.
How you ride and ride
thinking the bus will never stop,
the passengers eating maize and chicken
will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness,
you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho
lies dead by the side of the road.
You must see how this could be you,
how he too was someone
who journeyed through the night with plans
and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.
You must wake up with sorrow.
You must speak to it till your voice
catches the thread of all sorrows
and you see the size of the cloth.

Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,
only kindness that ties your shoes
and sends you out into the day to mail letters and
purchase bread,
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
it is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you every where
like a shadow or a friend.

The 7th Day of the Mayan Galactic Underworld Begins!

On November 3rd we entered the 7th and final "day" of the Mayan Calendar, which takes us up to its momentous conclusion in this time-space continuum, the much-lauded 2012. According to Mayan scholar Carl Johan Calleman, the end date is actually October 2011. But we're quibbling about minutiae when dealing with cycles so vast: on a scale of 26,000 years (the Mayan long count), 2011 or 2012 makes little difference. Besides, the Maya were not using our Gregorian calendar, but indigenous cycles aligned with the seasons and the stars.

The particular passage is all about balance: fully embodying the feminine after millennia of masculine dominance, and allowing both our bodies and our planetary body to come into wholeness and fusion.

This is not about masculine and feminine as they apply to gender distinctions, but to the energies we all carry: masculine being synonymous with dynamic, assertive, solar, outward, yang energy, and feminine synonymous with magnetic, receptive, lunar, inner, yin energy. Wedding the light and the dark within ourselves is the beginning of sacred reUnion for us all.

For more information on Mayan Calendrics, here's the piece I wrote a year ago when we entered the 6th Night: The Sky Is Falling ~ NOT! The Truth About 2012.

Halloween: Just a Specter of Samhain

In the U.S., Halloween is all about costumes, trick-or-treating, candy and, occasionally, mischief. Few people realize the date also marks a sacred day on the Celtic calendar, Samhain, ushering in the dark half of the year. October 31st precedes Day of the Dead/All Soul's Day, which takes place November 1-2, honoring those who have crossed over. Clearly, the dark side — what remains hidden from view — is calling.

As mythologist Kathleen Jenks writes on Myth*ing Links, this is an excellent time to explore what is ending, or "dying", within our own beings. What do you need to release in order to move forward in your life? Now, when the veils between worlds are thin, is a ripe moment to embrace transformation.

The souls of those who have transitioned can share their wisdom with us still, if we request their collaboration. Visionary activist astrologer Caroline Casey likes to say, "We cannot live through the dead, but we can invite the dead to live through us." What gifts are asking, aching to be brought forth in you?

The real treat of Samhain is the opportunity for quantum growth, on both personal and planetary levels. And the trick, perhaps, would be turning your back on those inner voices begging you to shine your brilliance and step fully into your aliveness, purpose and service.

So by all means, enjoy the outlandish get-ups and fun. Try not to ingest all the candy at once. And remember to remove your mask when trick-or-treat time is over, so that you can fully become who you came here to be. Blessings!

Taking It Personally

Recently I suggested to a new, local editor that we meet in person to discuss some story assignments. She acquiesced, though I sensed she found it an unusual request.

Today I called a business prospect who responded to my initial email with an email asking several involved questions, and wanting a rate quote. Since he'd included a toll-free telephone number, thinking to connect as well as expedite the process, I phoned this morning.

He sounded nonplussed when I identified myself, saying, "I'd prefer to communicate by email if you don't mind. I'm interviewing a number of candidates." I felt like part of an assembly line, and dismissed — not to mention a lot less inclined to continue this potential "relationship".

Yet truth be told (because I always strive to share the complete story), I didn't accord his online post any more importance initially than any of the other ads I receive daily as a member of a freelance writers' network. With these sites, I troll for new business by sending out fairly generic letters, customized as the posting warrants.

Does the fact that he knew who I was make a difference, assuming he received numerous replies?

I can appreciate both perspectives. I opt for going the extra step and connecting via phone or even face-to-face when possible — especially if we're going to work together. Yet I've also enjoyed working virtually with many individuals and businesses around the world for many years. I see it as a question of balance.

How personally should we take or make our virtual connections? Your thoughts?

I Can't Get No … Satisfaction — Or Can I?

Gretchen Rubin wanted to discover the secret to happiness, so she spent a year "test-driving the wisdom of the ages, the current scientific studies, and the lessons from popular culture about how to be happy — from Aristotle to Martin Seligman to Thoreau to Oprah."

She began blogging about her experiences and discoveries, convinced no one but herself would ever read it. Famous last words. Four years on, several hundred thousand people look forward to her daily musings, and her book, The Happiness Project, is a #1 New York Times bestseller. One reviewer calls it, "A cross between the Dalai Lama’s The Art of Happiness and Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat, Pray, Love."

I first wrote about Gretchen's work in March 2008 in my inspirational enewsletter, What Shines. (This article, A Big Tank of Pink Liquid is now part of my eBook, What Shines: Practical Wisdom for Unleashing Your Inner Brilliance/Volume 3). Today I listened to her share some of her wisdom in a telecast:

How can you increase your happiness every day?

#1: Get enough sleep!
#2: Novelty and challenge bring happiness, but not right away. First you'll feel insecure, incompetent, and frustrated — push through to mastery.
#3 Strong relationships. Increase your contacts with others, including social media — but don't overdo it!

Gretchen blogs six days a week, and encourages people who are having trouble blogging regularly to actually increase the amount they blog. It's counterintuitive, yet, she says, when you know you have to do something daily, it becomes part of your routine.

She also recommends adding structure to your blog. She has specific categories: video, tips, quizzes, quotes, interviews — which makes it easier to frame what she wants to share. People learn differently, so offering various formats allows more people to resonate with what you have to offer.

Finally, she says, don't be concerned if some visitors don't agree with what you post. A strong brand will repel as well as attract. While it's painful to have someone attack you in their comments, it also provides an opportunity for you to learn from them, expand your growth by not reacting in kind, and engage more readers through the discussion.

Is Your Battery Corroded?

Last evening I stopped to put gas into my trusty Toyota, which is now old enough to graduate from high school. When I turned the key afterwards: nada, zip, no reaction. I popped the hood, and sure enough, the battery (barely a toddler) was laced with corrosion.

What ensued is comical this morning, not so much last night. The first AAA driver I called gave me a jumpstart, but said he was a tow truck and therefore had no tools to clean the battery. He sent me sputtering down the road to a nearby Kragen's Auto Supply. The Kragen employee helpfully cleaned the battery terminals while the battery was recharging in the store. We then asked another customer if he'd please help me with a second jumpstart, and, although at first nothing happened (tension!) at last the car sprang to life.

I thanked both Samaritans profusely, backed up, and — it died completely.

This time when I called Triple A, I did request a tow truck. When Dave arrived, he asked what the problem was, and I recounted the evening's events. But instead of hooking me up for a tow, as I expected, he asked me to pop the hood again, and expertly found quite a lot of additional corrosion under two of the bolts, that the Kragen's employee had missed in the dark. After this, the car started up just fine, and I drove home.

Since my car has often symbolized my body and/or my life, I immediately began to identify areas where my "battery" (life force energy) might be corroded. Even when we think we're in great shape, having done a lot of work on ourselves and transmuted dross to light, there can still be a bit of corrosion hiding in the corners of our mind, sapping our power, creating "terminal illness" on many levels. Our battery isn't dead; it just can't fire because of the insidious slime gnawing through our façade, encroaching on the cables to make a clear connection impossible.

The solution, with cars, with our bodies, and with Life in general, is to alkalize: get the acid waste (rage, frustration, disgust, hatred, fear, despair …) out of your system through the powers of love, appreciation, enthusiasm, self-worth, service, joy … and your battery will continue to serve you faithfully for many years to come.

Context: The Sequel

The "Tao of Now" for my October What Shines newsletter is Context, and how, as Anais Nin observed, we see things not as they are, but as we are. Today I experienced another, literal, "frame of reference":

I'd wandered into a local art gallery, in part because a new client had mentioned his photography was being exhibited there. After finding his work, I continued to enjoy the other artists' creations ~ until I came to a canvas that appeared to have crumbling strips of white plaster pasted on a background, with a little blob of red in one corner. The price was $1350, and I shook my head in amazement. While I aim never to criticize art, as it's the epitome of personal preference, this looked like something a child might have done when bored.

I strolled to the entrance and saw a fellow I've seen here before; one of the exhibiting artists. We struck up a conversation, and I mentioned that, as usual, I loved seeing the new works on display, although there was one that I didn't understand. Something kept me from saying anything more judgmental. I was glad I'd obeyed my intuition when Bob revealed himself as the creator of the piece.

A recent transplant from Taos, New Mexico (a noted art colony) he explained that the white strips represent the dominant Caucasian culture — which is crumbling — and the red dot, Native Americans, whom we've dominated. All at once, like a trick cube, his work appeared brilliant, and I asked why he didn't include a brief Artist's Statement with the piece to help people understand his intent — even something as simple as "Anglo / Native American". But he wants it without training wheels, so to speak. Enigmatic, though quite powerful, once I had a context.

Where are you making assumptions because you're missing the proper context? It's a potent exercise for us to practice every day: staying open to new information that could completely shift our interpretation of what we think we see.

Fueling Our Future

At its best, technology is a universal connector and translator, helping us come home to ourselves in the deepest sense. Never before have we approached such a leveling of levels, an alliance of adopters across age, social, cultural and religious spectra.

As the world again becomes flat, we're creating ever-expanding arcs of connectivity. And connection equals energy.

We can literally power the planet with the energy of pure love, which enables us to reimagine the obvious. When I recently listened to David Blume, a globally recognized expert on Ethanol and biofuels, cavorting with astrologer Caroline Casey on her weekly Visionary Activist radio show, I was galvanized by possibility.

Caroline introduced the show by saying, "We are convening the Ouija Board of Directors," where curiosity and generosity open the path to ingenuity. Caroline and David are masters of non-linear, alchemical thinking; in fact, both spoke to the "alchemy of reversal" that only awaits human receptivity to manifest. READ THE REST ON THE NEW GREEN ECONOMY!

Of Chocolate, Face Cream, and Life Purpose

The call to claim our purpose usually sounds at a somewhat inconvenient moment. Sometimes we hear whispers years before we're ready to acknowledge them, let alone begin taking the steps necessary to create a new reality. And while the call can come at any life stage, there's something special about the thirties, when our inner voice tends to start asking, "Is this all there is?"

Recently I've been privileged to meet two vibrant, self-aware women, both 35, who have started heart-centered, Earth-based, health-conscious businesses. In each instance, a health crossroads precipitated the call (as is true in my own life). READ THE REST @ TheNewGreenEconomy.com

Possessed

Possession wears many faces. Meanings can range from falling under a temporary spell: "Whatever possessed you to buy that?!" to outright seizure: "We're taking possession of the property." The essence is a sense of ownership — and often what we "own," owns us. Lately, large numbers of people have been releasing years of accumulated baggage in preparation to relocate, travel, or simply feel freer. READ THE REST @ The New Green Economy

Dancing With the Shadow: Mercury Retrograde

It's that time again: Mercury is retrograde (Rx), and as the past cycles back (or recycles, if you see Mercury as an environmentally-minded messenger!) we have an opportunity to claim/reclaim what's been hiding in the shadows. Mercury Rx is also when technology, travel and the best-laid plans often go haywire — especially in the season of fire.

For instance: three days ago I discovered that "Live Your Light" (my website URL) was at last available as a Twitter handle (it had been parked, unused, since 2008) and joyfully added it to my existing Twitter presence. The next day, the power cord to my laptop appeared to short-circuit; it wasn't working at all last night. Today, after sending my Mac and its accoutrements some good juju, all systems are go — but the refrigerator in my van isn't cooling.

This might be because it's been well over 100º, highly unusual for northern California. I mentioned the soaring temps to a friend back East, who opined, "The mercury at 112 is certainly in retrograde." It's all highly amusing, when we can get a bit of perspective.

Dancing with our unhealed/unacknowledged aspects, observing how they control us in ways that do not serve our highest good, reveals a potent opportunity to live into Aretha Franklin's song Respect, where she sings: "Re-re-re-re". You know: review, redefine, renew, reform, reimagine …

This particular Mercury Rx began in Leo, seguing quickly into Virgo, where it remains until September 12th. What do you need to release to the fires of transmutation? What needs to be planted in fertile soil for the future?

Astrologer Allison Rae counsels, "Mercury's transiting back through Virgo, so pay attention to details. Take the time to get things right. Also pay attention to your health and well being. Mercury Rx check-ups aren't just for cars and computers. On a deeper level, our path of service is highlighted in the sign of the Vestal Virgin, goddess of hearth and harvest. What did you come to do in this lifetime? Are you tending the flames of your soul's passion? It's time to remember and recommit. Soon, it will be time to take action."

As we surge towards 2012 we're in the midst of the most accelerated period of personal and planetary transformation in history. The energetic of the new exhorts us to live as large as possible NOW, not some time in a shadowy future. It's a continual process of reinventing ourselves.

We can use the energy of Mercury retrograde to release our resistance to going higher. The world needs all of our gifts, especially now. We've never been so primed "to boldly go where no one has gone before." This star trek begins in our bodies, minds and hearts as we begin to burn brightly with purpose and to activate our true potential in every realm.

You are the gift; open yourself now. It's time to shake hands with the shadow, unbox its message, and multiply our power exponentially.

For further illumination:

What's shadowing your potential? Is there:

∞ Someone you need to forgive (including yourself)?
∞ A phone call you're afraid to make?
∞ A long-standing debt (monetary or otherwise) you've not yet fulfilled?
∞ A health challenge?
∞ A relationship issue that's quarantined your emotional energy?
∞ A job that leaves you too drained to think about anything else?
∞ Or "simply" an all-encompassing fear of living your light?

The 8/8 Lion's Gate: Your Portal to Power

Each year on July 26th, a gateway opens with the heliacal rise of the star Sirius in Egypt: the Nile floods, enriching the land, even as the Heavens flood us with cosmic illumination from the Galactic Center. Known as The Lion's Gate, this powerful portal of light code transmissions reaches its peak on 8/8. The Stargate closes about August 12th.

To handle the intensity, we can take comfort from Viktor Frankl's quote: "What is to give light must endure burning." The author of Man's Search for Meaning spent World War II in a concentration camp, and went on to write the landmark text about what it takes to continue to say "yes" to life under the most extreme conditions. READ THE REST!

Barter: It's the New Money

When I discovered a gorgeous but flawed sweater at a clothing designer's semi-annual sale, the small company gave it to me: they weren't going to be able to sell a sweater that had one long sleeve and one cropped mid-forearm. And what was I going to do with a lopsided designer cardigan, anyway?

Request help. I posted on Waccobb.net, my local equivalent of CraigsList.com, to see if anyone could repair the sweater sleeve in exchange for writing, coaching, office organization, or other assistance in lieu of cash. A woman responded that she knits and sews "for fun" and would be happy to take a look. READ THE REST!

Recess and Reassess

With our focus on The Shift taking place worldwide, it's easy to forget we have the power to effect change at the very local level ~ within our own beings ~ by altering how we think. Simply shifting our emphasis allows "I feel depressed" to morph into "I feel deep rest".

I also realized the root of "recession" is "recess": it's summer, time to take a break and allow ourselves the deep rest and rejuvenation we deliciously deserve in these tumultuous times!

All the players I've encountered recently say the same, in their own unique ways. Visionary spoken word artist DreamingBear Baraka Kanaan, a modern-day Rumi, exhorts us, "Play hooky from your have-to's, Will you marry freedom with me? Let's elope into ecstasy…"

Clearly, the keynote of now is, "Ain't it awe-full?" READ THE REST!

Summer Solstice: An Opportunity to Become More Whole

Summer Solstice celebrates the sun at the peak of its power. Both the sun (male energy) and the moon (female energy) are waxing, or increasing, now. June 21st marks the longest day and shortest night of the year, in the northern hemisphere (Winter Solstice for our southern hemisphere allies). It's a stillpoint. A time to reflect. A potent moment to set your intention, because the manifestation momentum is strong.

The day goes by many names: All-Couples Day, Feast of Epona, Gathering Day, Midsummer, Litha, Vestalia. In ancient times, June was a popular marriage month, since summer offered a window between the sowing and reaping seasons. The June full moon was considered the best time to harvest honey from the hives, and newlyweds were fed honey during the wedding feast to encourage love and fertility. The tradition lives on in our modern post-nuptial getaway, the honeymoon.

How might we translate our ancestors' emphasis on love and union at Solstice to our lives today? In other words, how can we best live this light? READ THE REST!