Transparency … learning to deal with life … this is one of the hardest things that we have to do. Transparency is more than the latest political buzz word … it is living by our beliefs, allowing others to see what our beliefs are, and clearly setting out our boundaries.

One of the ways that transparency comes into play is when we are dealing with the actions of others. We view the actions of others through our own lens of perception … our own life experiences, and the boundaries that we set for ourselves through our personal belief systems. We choose how we are going to react to the actions of others … in doing this, we have some say in how their actions are going to affect us.

The first thing that we want to do is know that another person’s actions are their responsibility … they have nothing to do with us. Each person makes the decision to do what they do … we are not responsible for their actions, or the consequences of their actions. So we start out by taking a deep breath. Then we take another one.

If someone has taken an action that affects us in some way, then we do need to speak up. We need to tell them how their action affected us, and how we feel about it. We need to do this in a calm voice – not from a center of anger.

We are being transparent in that we are allowing others to know how we see them, and how we see their actions. This is not a judgmental act … it is living an authentic life … living life with our mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual bodies in balance.

Have other peoples actions affected your life? What did you do about that? How did you address it? Did you make them understand how you felt about what they did? Were you able to do so in a loving, rather than an angry manner?

Be transparent … come from a point of peace and unconditional love … and you will begin to see positive changes in your life!

Pendulum power is one of the oldest ways of reading energy. It can be used by anyone, with excellent results. Through the use of a pendulum we can connect with our inner self, our higher wisdom. And just what is a pendulum? A pendulum can be any small weight that is attached to a string or a chain, so that it can swing freely.

Each time that we use our pendulums, we should spend a few minutes holding them in our hands, picturing a white light around them. They are a channel for information, and we want them to be as pure and protected as possible. (Note: Pendulums can also be smudged to clear them of negative energy.)

Hold the string/chain that the pendulum is on lightly between your thumb and first finger. The first thing that you want to do is ask the pendulum how it is going to indicate a yes answer, and how it is going to indicate a no answer. Some people choose to program this into their pendulums, but I prefer to allow my pendulum to make its own choice. I have always found that the direction towards me and away from me indicates a yes, and a side to side direction indicates no. If there is no yes or no answer, I have found that my pendulum will simply continue circling. Each person will have their own way of doing this. Some people may choose to use a piece of paper with Yes, No, and the four directions marked on it.

Once the directions have been established, ask the pendulum if it is willing to talk to you. If the answer is no, thank it and put it away. You can work with it another day. If it says yes, remember to phrase your questions so that they can be answered with a yes or a no, and make them very clear and precise. If your pendulum starts moving erratically at any point in time, ask it if it wishes to continue answering questions. It may simply not want to work any more in that session.

Respect your pendulum, and respect... Read More

Life Balance – what the heck is “life balance? Quite literally, life balance is balancing all of the different parts of our life – home, family, career, community time, private time. They all need to be there for us to be happy, to feel successful, and to feel whole.

Finding balance is not about dividing our lives into little partitions, and allocating a certain amount of time to each partition. Sometimes the divisions between partitions blur, which is natural and normal. In the flow of life, what takes priority, what has most importance, will shift and change. We need to be aware of our priorities, and make sure that we are not short-changing ourselves anywhere.

How do we do this? We find that which we are passionate about, and honor it. We reflect it into all parts of our life – into home and family, work and play, private and community. We surround ourselves with our passions – we make them a part of our life. We make the time to have personal time – we schedule it, if necessary, just as we schedule work activities.

Three- day weekends are great ways to recharge ourselves. Allow time to follow personal pursuits, to play, to do personal study. Whatever our needs are, we must honor them. Visit the farmers market, cook the meal of your dreams, read a good book, go see a play, go hiking, visit a new city. Do what brings your heart joy!

Set your boundaries, and enforce them. If you don’t have the time, don’t take on that extra project at work. If you want to take a three-day weekend away from home, don’t agree to stay home and work on the house.

Know who you are, know your priorities, and reflect this into your life!

Blessings,

Bonnie

On the new moon of January 15^th we experience the first solar eclipse of 2010, The Capricorn Moon comes between the Capricorn Sun and earth, so that here on earth we experience a short moment of darkness. The nature of an eclipse is to bring change – a solar eclipse brings with it the energy of new beginnings. Significantly, on the January 15^th Mercury comes out of its retrograde status and goes direct.

Use this lovely Capricorn energy (the worker bee of the zodiac) to set goals, make plans, and take on new challenges. Capricorn also references community, or collective life. Use the discipline and tenacity of Capricorn (and its ruler, Saturn) to move yourself forward.

This is a time when what we have refused to see, or refused to work on, will come at us full force. Capricorn is concerned with the social structures that hold us together. At this time, as a country, and as a world, we are facing, economic and health care crisis of epic proportions. How can we make a discernable change in our world? We do that by making small changes within ourselves, by making sure that our thoughts, decisions and actions are in alignment with our purpose, so that we are living an authentic life. Where we fit into society is a reflection of who we are inside, as individuals.

What are you addressing in your life? Are your thoughts, decisions and actions al in alignment with your purpose? Are you sure what your purpose is? Make the best of this solar eclipse! Our readers are available 24/7 to help you gain clarity and insight into your life.

This is the time of year to declutter your life (if you have not already done so in preparation for the new year). The scope of decluttering is wide – it includes people, issues, and things that are no longer serving you well. Until you get this clutter out of your life, you will not be moving forward at a discernable pace!

The peopling issue may be larger than you think. People who act as negative energy in our lives bring our energy down, and cause us to lose self-esteem. They are the little voices in our heads that tell us we are not pretty enough, not good enough, not smart enough. If you have one or more of these people n your life, you need to start taking responsibility for yourself. Set out your sacred boundaries – what you will accept, and what you will not accept, and communicate these to the other person (or people). Choose how you react to them – do not feed into their story. If they are unwilling to work on then you have the option of either limiting your contact with them, or taking them out of your life completely. Put yourself first, and take the action that is in y our best interest.

Sometimes releasing the “things” in our lives is one of the hardest decisions that we can make, and one of the hardest actions that we can take. Why is this? We have memories attached to the things in our life – they bring out an overwhelming emotional response in us. It is these same memories that can act as a very real deterrent to our moving forward. Or, we may be stuck in the rut of “I may be able to use this some day.” We need to look at why these memories are important to us, and then lovingly release them. We can keep them with us through pictures, through videos, through journaling – whatever method works best for us. But when we can release something, when we are ready to release it, we need to do that.

Work slowly... Read More

A few random thoughts on life to start out the new year:

1. When you are talking to someone, have to courtesy to look them in the eye. You are respecting who they are, and staying present in the moment, which will encourage them to stay in the moment and respect you.
2. Take another look at how you are addressing your work/career. Reconnect with what you want to accomplish. Recognize and care that your decisions and actions will be affecting others in many different ways.
3. Be conscious of each moment, and what you are thinking/saying/doing in each moment. Thoughts, words and actions should remain in alignment, and support your life path and life purpose.
4. Recognize that all the wisdom you need is already inside you, waiting to be put to use.
5. Accept that some of your choices will not be the best ones for you, and learn from them so that you do not have to repeat them.
6. Love and accept yourself, so that you have the wisdom to love and accept others.
7. Know that each day is a fresh start – use it wisely.
8. Recognizing what triggers stress for you as an individual is the first step in understanding the shadows activated by the stress.
9. Recognize where you are in the cycle of life, and place your focus accordingly.
10. Know that sometimes heartache opens up a door that shows true love on the other side.

Happy New Year, everyone! This is the first day of the new year – are you ready to make this year rock? Do you know what you need to release, what you want to keep, and what you want to grow? It’s not too late to set your focus for the coming year.

One way to do this is to break your life down into specific areas, such as:

1. Career
2. Home
3. Family
4. Finances
5. Personal
6. Spiritual

Take the time to mentally review these areas, make note of what needs to be released, and what you want to set as goals for the coming year. Start with two or three primary goals for each section. Now go back and list at least one action step for each goal, along with how long you are giving yourself to accomplish it. Set your action steps for whatever you are releasing also.

Remember that we are here to help you define your path for 2010. There are readers on line 24/7, ready to assist you in any way.

Today is New Year’s Eve Day – tonight we celebrate New Year’s Eve, tomorrow is the first day of the New Year. Celebration is important – it marks an event in our minds, it creates a lasting memory that we can return to whenever we need to. This does not mean that tonight we all need to “party hardy” - it means that in some way we need to release the old year, and embrace the new one.

What do you need to release from your life? In what way are you going to release it? What new things do you want to bring into your life? In bringing in new things, are you creating more of the same, or are you growing yourself personally and spiritually? What is your passion, what is your path in life? Are your thoughts, decisions and actions in harmony with your path? Are you being an authentic person, living an authentic life?

On this New Year’s Eve, take the time to acknowledge the Old Year, pay your respects, and usher in the New Year with all of the intensity, hope and thankfulness that you can. Make your number one priority in the New Year that of being the authentic you!

Now is the time to be getting ready for the new year. One good way to do this is to start a journal. You can do a general journal, for daily events, or a journal that is specific to one area of your life, such as career, personal growth, or spirituality.

Anything can be used for journaling – loose papers, a wire bound notebook, or a more formal bound journal. Any type of pen or pencil can be used. Whatever you choose, you want this to represent you in the best possible manner. I would advise getting pens in at least two different colors – one for the original journaling, and a second one for notes that are added at a later date.

Journals can be annotated with personal drawings, photos. pictures that are taken from newspapers or magazines – whatever images most graphically represent what you are journaling. (Or you may not wish to include images at all – this is up to you.)

You can write a chatty journal, ask yourself questions, plot out future plans – your journal is a world of your own creation. You will find over the coming year that it will help you put things in perspective, and make better life decisions.

Happy journaling!

It is Christmas Eve, 2009. Where on earth has this year gone! It flew by, at warp speed, is what it did! Through full moons, new moons, Mercury retrogrades, a shaky economy that is still in recovery, jobs lost and jobs gained – 2009 brought us many lessons, some of them on the physical level, some of them on a spiritual level. (2009 was a Master year 11/2, which is where the spiritual emphasis came from.)

How do you feel about your year? We have one week left in this year – let us make best use of it. Take the time to review your year – Did you achieve what you wanted to? If not, what stood in the way? Are you happy? If not, why not? What is happiness to you? Do you realize that you are a co-creator of your own happiness (along with Universe)?

Are your decisions and actions n alignment with your beliefs? Are you waiting for the “perfect time” to live your perfect life? What from 2009 do you need to release? What do you want to replace it with?

I am not talking about New Year’s resolutions, the ones that get broken on January 2^nd. I am talking about recognizing your own passions, and the strengths and abilities that you came into this lifetime with. Use those strengths and abilities to follow your own path, to be an authentic person.

The coming year carries the strength of achieving the goals that we set – of manifesting them in the physical world. Set your goals wisely, and be ready to handle the success that you will see!

Five days to Christmas – feeling the stress? Whether it is financial, emotional, mental. physical, or spiritual – the holidays bring with them joy and hope, along with a huge dose of angst! The best thing that we can do for ourselves is to recognize what is acting as a trigger for our stress – and this will differ from individual to individual.

One of the biggest sources of stress is the people in our lives – and the expectations they put on us. This can come from spouses or significant others, or it can come from family members. We love our families, but sometimes they can be difficult to take when dealing with them over an extended period of time.

What is the best way to deal with relationship stress? Decide what you personally will put up with, and what you will not. These are your sacred boundaries. Be willing to protect those boundaries, and then share them with the other individuals involved. If they continue to act in a stressful manner, remind them of your boundaries. If they still keep it up – walk away. Take a small time out. It may be time for you to leave, or for them to leave (depending on where the conflict is taking place – your house is your house, their house is their house). Above all – leave the past in the past. Try to avoid putting people next to each other that are going to try and start world war three. Take common sense precautions, and try and set the tone for a peaceful time.

Finances – presents, food, travel – all of this puts incredible stress on us. We do have a great deal of leeway here – things that we can do to take control of the constant flow of money going out. Start with the buying of presents – set a limit that is agreed upon by everyone in the family. Stick to that limit! Choose items that will fit within your budget, and then look for them on sale.

When it comes to food, decide what you really need for your meals. Food is nourishment, it promotes... Read More

Music is such and uplifting, healing force! Here are some suggestions for Christmas music – and a couple of Internet links where they Can be heard!

Links to Internet sites for Christmas music:
Live365

Xmas Fun

Joyful Christmas songs:

A Child This Day Is Born
Adeste Fideles
Angels We Have Heard On High
Away In A Manger
Bells Will Be Ringing
Blue Christmas
Christ Is Born In Bethlehem
Christmas Time Is Here
Deck The Halls
Do You Hear What I Hear
Feliz Navidad
Frosty The Snowman
Go Tell It On The Mountain
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing!
Here Comes Santa Claus
Holly Jolly Christmas
I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
I’ll Be Home For Christmas
In Excelsis Gloria
It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
Jingle Bell Rock
Joy To The World
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
O Christmas Tree
Oh Come All Ye Faithful
O Tannenbaum
Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
Silver and Gold
Silver Bells
The First Noel
The Night Before Christmas
We Wish You A Merry Christmas
What Child Is This
White Christmas

Christmas is a time for family – for family activities, and for a simple time of sharing. This is a busy world, and we may need to make time – or take time – to create the memories that will sustain us over the years. It is also a time to maintain family holiday traditions – if possible. Sometimes, due to time or financial constraints, choices have to be made. Or sometimes a tradition will be left behind, and a new one created.

Family time can be simple – baking cookies together, cooking together, trimming the tree, and then sitting there with a cup of cocoa watching the lights. You may choose to watch favorite Christmas programs together, or rent a favorite holiday movie and watch it.

You may decide to go outside and build a snowman, or make snow angels. You may decide to go ice skating – or even ice fishing! Whatever you enjoy doing is what you should share with each other.

Time shared is more important than any expensively wrapped present will ever be!

Interesting goings on re the 2012 energy – on October 29^th, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, at the new age book store The Ark, Guatemalan Lina Barrios discusses her brother Carlos’ work “The Book of Destiny”. This book does carry some weight, re an endorsement by a group called the Mayan Council of Elders.

According to Barrios, 2012 is not is not a date of destruction, but the mark of a new astrological cycle, taking us closer to nature. This is a time of planetary energy change, and perhaps the beginning of new religious movements.

For more information, see Book of Destiny.

What would your perfect life look like? Where would you live? What kind of community would you choose to live in? What kind of house would you live in? How would your house be decorated? What kind of work would you be doing? Would you be working at all? What kind of spouse/partner would you have? Would you have children?

Where would you find your joy, your bliss? How would you connect to spirit? How would you interact with your community? How would you give back?

Take back your power. Take small steps to move towards your perfect life. What you can envision, you can create, if you take real, concrete steps towards doing so.