THE MESSAGES OF LIFE

Have you ever noticed how something you may be avoiding, or hate doing, in your life, is actually trying to tell you something? Let me explain doll....I train two or three times a week at a local gym with a wonderful personal trainer who is probably the only person on the planet who can actually motivate me to exercise. I am generally a couch potato of note, but as the years progress I do realise that if I want to keep in some sort of reasonable shape as I advance into my more mature years, I do need to make a bit of an effort. Ruhan has a way of making our sessions fun and interesting, always changing things and I actually find myself working just that little bit harder, pushing myself a little bit further - yes he is that good! In fact he even motivated me to do my first 5km race (walking) the other day!But there are some things Ruhan cannot get me to do. Using the stationary bike was one of them (give me the treadmill any day) and then there are the "step ups". You know when you have to step up and down onto a box. We use the benches at the gym and they are quite high. Now I have always had a problem with step-ups. There is just something about having all the weight on one leg, pushing up, that makes me feel insecure. I just don't trust that I am strong enough to be able to manage it. So anytime this exercise came up, I refused to do it and being senior in years to Ruhan, he doesn't generally argue with me and gives me something else to do. Then last week I had a session with my life coach (the amazing Mel, you remember). At one point during our chat she said to me "you know Di, if you want to succeed you need to step up to the bigger platform". And she made this upward movement with her hand as she said it. Suddenly it hit me - my refusing to do the "step up" exercises at the gym was a physical manifestation of my refusal to "step up" to the next level in terms of my personal growth! Because of fear. And lack of faith in myself and my abilities, not trusting myself......what a profound insight! The upshot of this is that Ruhan has now made me a box. Lower than the benches at gym and we are starting with baby steps. As my confidence grows so will the step ups. This week at gym I did my first "step up" exercises with Ruhan and Mel cheering me on! It was such a great feeling. Not only that, but I decided to get over myself and did my 10 minutes warm up on the bike and it wasn't so bad after all. It really is all in the mind. So - what in your life is trying to send you a message? What is it that you avoid doing/fear doing and how could that relate to something going on in your life? Would love to hear! 'Til next time doll, blessings as always. xx

TO DETOX OR NOT TO DETOX.......

To start the new year off with a detox, good idea, right? Yup that's what I thought too! So I signed up for a 7 day yogic cleanse, determined to do the right thing and go into 2012 having let go of the past, old issues and of course getting a whole new sparkly clean system as well! First day went OK. Stuck to my fruit & veg, hot water and lemon, went to the yoga class which is included in the cleanse, felt very virtuous. This was easy I thought. Day 2 I was felled like a tree struck down in the forest by a chain saw gang. Ran the gamut of nausea, vomiting, the runs. Oh and a headache from hell. Luckily it was a Sunday so I could retire to bed. Could not face food at all. Hubby just shook his head in disbelief at what I was putting myself through in the name of health. Day 3 dawned and didn't feel much better. This was not good as Monday is a working day - hubby looked at me with raised eyebrow as I lay pale and wan on the bed - clearly not much was going to get done in the office that day! Days 4 and 5 were supposed to be fasting days - uh - been there, done that on Days 2 & 3. Did I mention the self-enemas that were part of the program......?Was feeling so lousy never made yoga class on Days 3 & 4. I sat quietly early on the morning of Day 4, feeling more like myself and, shock, horror, having broken down the night before and taken two painkillers for the headache from hell (well it was either that or rip my head off my shoulders) and feeling blessed relief as it finally lifted. I looked out at the garden, sipping my hot lemon water and a little voice popped up in my head and said "what the hell are you doing to yourself???" Well doll to be honest I had kind of been wondering the same thing!! Clearly this cleanse was a lot harsher on my body than I had anticipated. In that moment, I knew I wasn't going back and when I made THAT decision I could feel my spirits lift and my body gave a huge sigh of relief. How often do we do that to ourselves? Put ourselves through something because someone else says it's "good" for us? Even when every fibre of our being is shrieking "DON'T!" A friend commiserated that I had wasted my money. Not at all! It was a powerful lesson in listening to and trusting my body. I also learnt that I can eat a lot less and I am also more aware of what I put into my mouth and am eating far more mindfully (have to admit, the first glass of wine after that was thoroughly savoured!) I know that my body is far happier with lightly cooked foods than loads and loads of raw fruit and veggies. I went into this cleanse too fast. Once I had adapted the food plan to my needs for the week my body was so much happier. We are all so individual and unique and our body is our greatest guide, not just in something like this, but in anything else we experience in life. If we just take the time to listen. Now I know - a detox like this is not for me. And at least I managed to avoid that enema!!!!!

2012 HERE WE GO!

2012 is upon us! Festive season seems to have whizzed past, as time tends to do these days. I try and read something inspirational daily, preferably early in the morning before my day starts. Don't always get that part right, but hey, I'm only human after all :) - Robin Sharma, Wayne Dyer, A Course in Miracles are some of the books I dip into. I find that reading something inspirational every day, even if it is just one quote, really helps to keep my spirits uplifted and myself motivated. I also have a journal where I make a note of random questions and thoughts that surface as I read. This morning, in Wayne Dyer's book "Change Your Thoughts-Change Your Life, Living the Wisdom of the Tao" he talks about "allowing" instead of "wanting". Now I already know that when you constantly "want" something (money, to be slim, success etc) you just get more of......wanting!!! This chapter of the book ties up perfectly with the New Year channelling I listened to on the 31st December, by Angela Deutschmann www.angeladeutschmann.com at the beautiful Boondocks Mountain Lodge & Labyrinth near Barberton, www.boondocks.co.za which was all about what we give ourselves permission for now shows up in our future! Serious!!!! So, if I give myself "permission" to not exercise, eat badly, procrastinate, fear success......you fill in the rest, guess what is going to show up in my future? You got it doll, more of the same!!!!! What a flipping eye-opening shocker that was. My good friend, (brilliant life coach Mel www.newleafcoaching.co.za and I just stared at each other as the pennies dropped simultaneously!

See there is this thing that happens when you "get it". We can know on an intellectual level all these truths. But until the body "gets it" these just stay in the mind. It is not just about changing the mindset, it is about changing the vibration of our body! There is literally an internal "click" and suddenly things start changing in our world. We can say affirmations until the cows come home, but until such time as the body "feels" them, they have little effect.

So, here's a question for you - what are you going to "allow" in your life? More money, better health, loving relationships? If you allow rather than want, surrendering to that allowing, then don't be surprised when the miracles start happening! Maybe take some time to think about what you are giving permission for in your life now.

You see doll, it really is that simple, we have the power within us to change our life. So stop waiting and start creating! Don't let the future gobble up all your attention (also from the channelling, love that). So often we come into a new year with major expectations of what it is going to bring, forgetting that we have to actually make a start ourselves. That we have to BE the change we want to see in the world. And the change starts right here, right now.

BTW if you are wondering about all the web addresses in my blog, I really want to share with others the amazing and inspirational people and places that have touched my life in magical ways. Paying it forward!

'Til next time, stay blessed. Be excited for all that is at your fingertips......
xx

LIVE WITHOUT REGRET

Well here we are doll, the (almost) end of what has been a turbulent, fast moving, fairly hectic year for most people. The world as we know it is changing moment by moment. Mother Nature is flexing her muscles and showing us all too clearly who rules!  Life is fragile, uncertain and changes forever in a heartbeat. My friend Karen knows that only too well. On a sunny Saturday morning in mid November while en-route to the shops with her husband, her life changed forever when another vehicle slammed into them at an intersection (other driver at fault), Karen taking the brunt of the impact. As I write this on the 30th December, she is still in hospital, not fully conscious and recovery is going to be a long, slow, painful process. Her shocked family are having to rethink the way they do things, adapt and adjust to not having their wife and mother around. Whenever I don't want to do something (exercise, do something that scares me) I think: If I cannot do it for me, I can at least do it for Karen. Because she can't. It has become my mantra "doing it for Karen". Hey, maybe that's the title of a book! Then a few days ago, was reading an article while at the hairdressers and someone who works with the terminally ill listed the 5 Major Regrets that the dying have. I think they are worth repeating here......

I Wish......

• I had the courage to live a life true to myself not the life others expect of me
• I didn't work so hard (without exception EVERY male patient had this regret)
• I had the courage to express my feelings
• I had stayed in touch with my friends
• I had let myself be happier

So, as we move into a year that promises to be even more challenging and exciting than this one (and no, I do not believe that the 'end of the world' is nigh), if you take these five simple yet profound regrets and set the intention to allow yourself to experience at least one of them, I think you will have an exceptional, joy-filled 2012. There is an old saying "this is not a dress rehearsal" - this is IT. The show. There is never going to be a right time to leave/commit/start/end. You have to just jump and KNOW that the net will appear. If not for yourself - then do it for Karen.

Happy happy new year to all - prepare for the ride of your life and I am right there with you!
Blessings to you.

JUST A THOUGHT

So I read a quote on my Facebook page today from the Dalai Lama and a sentence caught my eye "it is anger that is a sign of weakness". Now I have been thinking about this very thing for a while (it seems to come with age, this thinking, or "cogitating" as my husband calls it, about life because I seem to be doing it a lot lately!) There is SO much anger in the world right now. People ranting and raving and protesting and rioting, and just generally raging. Looking for any outlet for the anger they carry within. Now don't get me wrong, protesting for positive change is good, anger can be effective in getting people to take action (as evidenced by the tidal wave of support that sprung up for the 200-year old tree that TRAC wanted to cut down recently near Nelspruit to make way for a new road. So vociferous was the opposition that they agreed the tree could stay.) Apathy can be more dangerous than anger when you think about it. Yet I am reminded of the message in the film The Secret, that "what we focus on increases", "what we think about we bring about" and "energy flows where emotion goes". Mother Theresa saying "don't invite me to an anti-war rally, because all you will be focussing on is war. Invite me to a pro-peace rally and I am there".

Then I think (stay with me, doll, there is a purpose to this!) about things like the rhino poaching, Julius Malema, the corruption and any other number of other negative things going on in our world, and how very angry we get about them. I have to wonder - are we not increasing them because of the way we feel about them?? The more we focus on "fighting" the poachers, Julius, corrupt officials, are we not  in fact energising them?  If, as people like Gregg Braden, Wayne Dyer & John Demartini are constantly telling us, we create our reality with our thoughts, then are we not creating this? If we are all "One", from the same source, part of the same collective consciousness, then can we not, collectively, change what is going on in the world by changing our thoughts? Or is that just too powerful for us to even begin to comprehend? Just a thought......

I made the decision recently that I was no longer going to respond or react to hate emails (awful one about Muslims doing the rounds at the moment), scare emails (dodgy Census reps, Hijack Hotspots,) emotional emails (horrifying pics of slaughtered, brutalized animals) because I feel, personally, that I am simply adding fuel to the fire and I choose not to perpetuate it. I choose instead to see the good in the world, those people who are making a difference, who are working for a better, brighter future. Yes, I believe we can do it, we can tip the balance, because just as humans are capable of incredible depths of cruelty and brutality, we are also capable of the most amazing love, compassion, generosity and kindness - and THAT's what I choose to see in people. And quietly, in my own small way, hold those whose soul light seems to have dimmed, who have forgotten their own divinity, in the grace and the love of God. Because if we are all One, then what is in them must also be in me. Which I now need to go and think about.... :-) Stay Blessed.

TIME TIME TIME.....

My goodness, where does the time go? Is it really July since I "blogged". I have committed the cardinal sin (so say the experts) of not keeping my Blog up to date :-( The past 5 months have been something of a blur - so much to do, so little time!! Do you sometimes feel you want to reach out and just catch hold of time, the way you grab for the string of a balloon as it drifts through your fingers, to stop it? Time is like that - it stretches out in front of you, endless, eternal then in the blink of eye it telescopes into the tiniest bite. Life is unpredictable and, quite honestly, a bit crazy sometimes. We certainly live in interesting times! I love the Internet and all it offers us but sometimes it does feel like information overload. I am very blessed to work from home, a beautiful space indeed, and I am trying very hard to spend some time, even if it is just five or ten minutes a day, just looking at the garden. Am keen to do a silent retreat next year, time to stop putting off all those things that keep me grounded and centered! Why or why do they always end up at the back of my "to-do" list while I occupy myself with the unimportant "stuff". I yearn for simplicity and stillness and by Jove, I am going to get it!!!!! A dear friend who has survived two bouts with cancer and was recently declared cancer free, was involved in a serious car accident a few days ago and is now being kept sedated with bleeding on the brain and multiple fractures. Life is so precious, human existence so fragile, Live Life Now!

PRECIOUS PARENTS

My very best friend is currently dealing with losing her Mum. She lost her Dad to illness only last year. Some women, when they lose their life partner, create new lives for themselves. They go on to new and wonderful experiences. Sometimes they mourn the loss of their spouse/partner, sometimes they don't. Some remain frozen in time, living in a kind of limbo, seeing out their own days. Some women just never get used to being alone. They feel lost, lonely and there is a deep dark void in the heart that life just cannot fill. My friend's Mum is one of these women. Capable, wicked sense of humour, a no-nonsense approach to life, caring, dedicated to her job and family. Hates people to make a fuss of her or about her. My friend is now with her family, spending the last few days with her mother, who is slowly and consciously letting go of life, refusing treatment. These are going to be the most painful and the most joyous of days, hours and minutes as they say all the things they have never had the chance to say. I know there will be laughter and tears intermingled at the bitter sweetness of reliving memories; the love will be tangible, the depth and warmth of feeling will for a while hold them all in its loving embrace as they try and hold onto every nanosecond with the woman who brought them into the world. My friend describes the time as "surreal". Even with the understanding that while the physical body dies, the soul lives on, that Mum is exchanging one life for another, reunited with her beloved husband, that she has chosen this path, it does not stop the tears, the grief. And nor should it. We should never under-estimate the loss of a parent, our co-creator on earth. There is no going around, under or over something like this - it has to be faced head on and the feelings and emotions felt to the very depths of our being. What can a friend do at a time like this? Words are meaningless, you feel so helpless, wanting to carry some of their pain, lessen it, but of course you can't. There is no "fixing" this, making it better. You simply hold your friend in the deepest recesses of your own heart, you feel their pain and you carry it gladly. You weep with them and for them. You hold them and you comfort them and you let them know you are there for them. I salute my friend's Mum for her courage in steadfastly following her own path. So many will hold onto life, try and prolong it simply to please others, often suffering in the process. She isn't one of them. She has made a decision with her usual strength of character, brooking no arguments from anyone and these next few days will be spent saying her goodbyes to her children, their partners and grandchildren. So many don't get that gift - sometimes death comes shockingly and without warning. This whole experience has reminded me of the preciousness of our parents and even if you don't have a great relationship with them (or no relationship at all) let's face it, without them you would not even be here reading this! Bon Voyage Pat - be at peace.