Little Blessings, Big Gratitude

The weekend comes, the weekend goes. It has been such a week. My eldest brother was in town. It was so great to have him here. He came with a friend as well, and it was such a blessing. They both helped out around the house, helping with the Honey-Do list, which has gotten faded and cobwebby it is so overlooked these days. My husband has been working so many hours lately, needless to say I haven't asked him to do any of those around-the-house chores for awhile. My brother and his friend were not here to assist us. They were working every day to assist our parents as they tend to the estate of our Aunt who passed last year, along with other odd jobs which have been piling up for our parents. Along with all of that, can you believe they did chores around my house too? I am so grateful for all they have done.

So, why am I writing about all of this? I find myself filled to overflowing with gratitude: for being in community, for helping one another out when we need an extra hand, for receiving (I have always found it easier to give), for the loving relationship my brother and I share, for the family of origin I am blessed to be born into, for the gifts which come from sharing your spiritual path openly with those around you, for the blessings of family and dear friends new and old (the friendships, not the friends), for our children and the way they walk in this world, for my loving husband, for our precious dogs, for our loving home, for home cooked meals, for any time spent with loved ones, for contemplative time spent alone, for the sun coming up again and me being here to see it, for the moon shining brightly in my window at night. For, for, for, my list could go on and on. There is so much to be thankful for, little blessings, big gratitude, I could keep on listing.

What are you grateful for? What are the blessings which touch your heart? Who is great-full for you in their lives? Ah...there is the sweet spot, there is where the magic lies. May you have a week of blessings and gratitude, every week, forever and ever, amen.

I Stand in Gratitude

My son came home to visit for a few days this week. It was so good to see him and have everyone under one roof again. I am acutely aware that these times are precious and few, having everyone together. Even as I hold that thought I am in awe of our children. I stand in gratitude.

This week our daughter has heard from several universities which she applied to, and has gotten into each one she has applied to so far. She has done her part of the job: good grades, internships, community service hours, college classes, all that and she is a loving, sensitive, kind person too. I am so impressed and touched by the woman she is becoming. I couldn't ask for more. I stand in gratitude.

As our son came home his priorities for the few days he was home were: laundry (of course), seeing family, and to do healing work with me. There are not words for how honored I am to have my 20 year old son asking to do healing work with me. This further reminded me of the generous heart, thoughtful, considerate young man we have raised. He is doing well in school, in a loving relationship with a wonderful young woman, I couldn't ask for more. I stand in gratitude.

We had a friend embezzle a large sum of money from us. A la Bernis Madoff. He is in jail, we are learning how to forgive. We thought our children's college would be paid for by those funds, instead we have student loans. We have made some very dear friends who have gone through this same loss, we are blessed beyond measure for their presence in our lives. I can't put a price on that. I stand in gratitude.

Our income has been cut in more than half over the past few years, our expenses have increased. Our savings has been nearly depleted. We have weathered most of this storm with great success due to my husband's excellent financial planning. We have a long way to go before we are done climbing out of this financial debacle, but the process has begun, and we have more than survived these challenges. I stand in gratitude.

When times are challenging, as they are for so many on many fronts, it does not serve me to focus on the stresses and frustrations, instead I focus on the gifts and blessings. That does not mean I close my eyes and ears to the problems. I pray first, asking for help and then take action, calmly, smoothly, moving forward, towards healing and wholeness. I celebrate the gifts of our loved ones ~ friends and family. Each morning when I wake up I am thankful for another day, full of possibilities. As I move about my day I am playing more music, singing and dancing in the house and car (I can hear, I can dance, I can play music, I have a car, I have a house, gratitude, gratitude, gratitude). I find joy in my every day tasks. At the end of the day I am grateful for another day, and I count my blessings, literally, until I fall asleep. I stand in gratitude.

Today is the Vernal Equinox. Halfway between the shortest day of the year and the longest day of the year. The start of Spring! The time of renewal, rebirth and new beginnings! Joy, joy, joy! Each day is a love song to The Divine, make yours a good one, I plan to. I stand in gratitude!

Look Out World, Here We Come!

Much is up, up, up! All around me, and even in my own life there are some areas which are up, up, up! You might ask, why is this happening? Because we are moving through change, then just a second, here's another area ready for, you guessed it, change. Oh yeah, and just a second, here's another heaping helping of, um...yeah, CHANGE! Some of us have become accustomed to change, we have adapted to it, we have even (if I do say so myself) gotten good at moving through change! Ha! That's what you think! Relax, and allow yourself to be carried downriver by the flow, if it feels challenging, well then that is how you know you are not in the flow. It is exhausting to try to paddle upriver. These effects are being amplified right now. Why is that you ask? Well they are being amplified to assist us. To actually make it easier for us to see which way we are going, upstream (fighting all the way, and before you know it you will be at a waterfall, which is impossible to paddle up, no matter how good you are at paddling) or downstream, in the flow, relaxing, blissful even. This is where the peace and joy reside!

For some time now I have been feeling like the time is coming when things are really going to take off. Tic toc. Look at the clock. Well now, we have begun to hear the first chime ringing as both hands are now on the 12. I am reminded of Cinderella running down the steps and dropping her shoe to hurry home as the first bells begin to ring. We are not running away from anything, in this case, rather we are being reminded to drop everything and begin running towards Home. We are heading towards being the best expression of ourselves, authentically, here and now. We are doing this, in the flow, instead of the frantic panicked feeling Cinderella must have felt, we are running towards our destiny, with love and peace, ease and grace and joy and gratitude! Woo hoo! This is a time to celebrate being alive! To be grateful for all the many blessings in our lives! To truly enjoy our friends and family, all those near and dear to our hearts! To love being alive! This is in the flow! These are our reminders for how to move through these times. So rather than up, up, upstream I am focusing my attention right now upon being in the flow, tucking in my arms and legs, lay down in the canoe, relaxing into trust and let the current take me along. Look Out World Here We Come!

Let's Get Together

Last night we went to a dinner party. It has been years since we have been to or hosted a dinner party. It was a wonderful group of dear old friends. Let me clarify. Three couples there have been friends for decades. We are newer friends. That is, our husbands are all good friends, and have been for some time but this was my first time to get together with everyone. Let me tell you, I was welcomed in like I had been there all along. It was so sweet to get to spend the evening in the company of a group that fits like an old glove, and to have them include you so seamlessly that you forget you are the newbie. That is love and grace in action. So thank you to these dear new friends that already feel "old" to me.

As we were all around the table enjoying the good food, glowing candlelight, and basking in the warmth of dear friends, I found myself reflecting upon just how blessed I am. There I was at a table with these wonderful, loving, kind and authentic people. I couldn't help but think of how many amazing people we have in our lives, and just how seldom we all get our act together enough to come together. There is that word again, together. It keeps coming up!

So I want to take this moment to thank you all, dear family and friends old and new, near and far. For all the times we have shared in laughter, in counsel, in joy and in tears. This is what it is all about. To love and be loved. To share life together. Our lives are a rich tapestry of these events woven together. So let's break bread together. Let's make it a regular thing. These special moments are just all together too few, and I for one am going to attempt to up the average! Come on over, or give me a call and let's get...together, yeah yeah yeah!

Spread the Love

Today, on the Eve of St. Valentine's it seems appropriate to talk about love. Who we love and how we love says so much about us. As I ponder that thought and consider who I love, I feel so blessed by the presence of dear friends and family in my life. I can think back on earlier times and remember spinning in circles in some relationships, trying to figure out who I was and how to move about in this world. I must be a slow learner, it took me some time to uncover the underlying conditions which were my boulder sized blocks to love. Not that I am done removing those blocks, but I have whittled some down in size.

Does that mean I didn't really love anyone until recently? No, of course not! Learning about love is messy, but it involves getting in there and figuring it out. It makes me infinitely more grateful for those friends and family members who have been there for the long haul. It seems to me that as we are working to heal ourselves and remove the blocks to love, most people are working in one of three areas: with our friendships, with our primary love relationship, or with our family of origin. We work in all three areas, but at any one time we are generally centered in one of these three. Perhaps knowing this you can identify which area you are currently working on the most.

My dear, sweet husband has loved me through many years of my stumbling and bumbling in all my relationships with friends and family. Our children and our families of origin and our friendships have all been part of the mixture to make our lives rich. Today we have settled into a gentle rhythm, without the drama, trauma and stress of out of balance relationships. It is a blessing to have a peace-filled life. It has been a gift we share and enjoy and which affects all aspects of our lives. It is the gift that keeps on giving. Actually, that is what love is. It gets recycled, and regifted and just keeps getting better with time.

This week as you contemplate love, stretching yourself and spreading your love, remember to take a second to thank all those you love and have loved along the way. Even silently thank those friends and family who are no longer in your circle, or who have moved on, physically or emotionally. They have helped to shape who you are today. Good, bad or indifferent, thanking them for their part in shaping you is another way to help remove the blocks to love.

Sending you Love and Blessings with Joy and Gratitude!

The Power of Words

"A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day" Emily Dickinson

That is one of my Mother's favorite quotes. She would often recite it to us, to help us understand the power of words, ours and those of other people. Words. They have power. Today is a Holiday to honor Martin Luther King Jr. and it seems appropriate that this is the day I feel compelled to write about the power of our words. Certainly Dr. King lives on, in part by the power of words.

I was watching Maya Angelou recently and I was reminded of how beautifully she uses written and spoken words. Her poetry, her story, it is all about the power of words, and she is a master. As I discussed this today with a dear friend, we were talking about the work of Dr. Masuru Emoto, the Japanese author and scientist who has studied the effects of words, written and spoken upon water. In a nutshell, he has taken samples of water and frozen them, shaved off slivers of the ice and looked at them under a microscope to see the crystal patterns in the water. He has samples from all over the world. Different waters display different crystals. That's interesting, but there's more. If the water has been prayed over, or stored in a container with a word on it, a different crystal forms. If a "beautiful" word is used, like Love, Forgiveness, Peace, the crystals are beautiful snowflake like patterns. If an "ugly" word is used, the crystals are fractured and messy. Okay, fine, that's all well and good, but if you begin to think that as human beings we are made up of 80% or so water, then 80% of your body is affected by the words that are being thought and spoken around you, perhaps that is something worth monitoring. Maybe his work is actual proof of the impact of words {if you are interested in learning more about Dr. Emoto's work, I encourage you to read any of his books, "The Message in Water" for one, or his most recent book, "Love Thyself, The Message in Water"}.

Last night my daughter and I witnessed a woman get angry and frustrated with a server at a restaurant. The manager came over, and after repeatedly trying to soothe the woman, finally, he offered her some compensation. Until she left he continued to try to soothe her. Finally this grown man said to her, "I feel so bad. I want to just go crawl in the bushes over there". I think he was reflecting to her just how badly her words were making him feel. Let me say the service was terrible, but for us it was a good night. Of course we did wait a LOOOONG time for dinner, just as our neighbor had. Actually, it was as though were were having two different experiences. We were having a pleasant mother and daughter bonding time and our neighbor was seething. We didn't complain to the manager, we didn't complain to the server, we smiled and made conversation about how busy they were and how challenging that can be. I don't know what they gave to the woman who was so unhappy, but they gave us a free dinner. We had a wonderfully relaxing, enjoyable evening and were tickled by the bonus of a free dinner. The words of the manager, wanting to crawl into the bushes, and the crumpled face of our server, as she nearly cried from the stress continue to remind me of the power of words. I am not judging or faulting the unhappy diner next to us. I think we have all been in her shoes, and I confess, I have even gotten angry with someone who was just doing their job. I can't change that. What I can do, is weild the power of words responsibly, lovingly even. So how do you want to weild the power of words? What if we are not talking about a restaurant, but at our own home with those we love? What do we want our legacy to be?

Let's begin to pay closer attention to our words. If you catch yourself using words in a negative way, complaining or grumbling you can undo it. Replace the thought or word with a new one, a better one. It is a step in the right direction of making the world a better place, one word at a time. One moment at a time. From the inside out, beginning with you and me. In our hearts, in our minds and coming out of our mouths. Let's spread the words...love, peace, grace, gratitude, joy... you get the idea.

Oh, and let me know how it goes! I would love to hear!

Thank you for reading! I am great-full for you!

Sending you Love and Blessings, Kim

An Abundance of Blessings...

I have so much to be thankful for. As I say my prayers at the end of the day, I do my best to include a list of gratitude. I start with my husband, he is a wonderful, thoughtful, sweet, conscientious, loving man, and I am amazed that I was smart enough at 21 to marry this man. I was really not that well equipped to make such a momentous decision, my frontal lobe not being fully formed and all. That is one reason I know we are are blessed by a Divine Presence. That I found this man, and then managed to be smart enough to not just date him, but also to marry him is a testament to there being more going on than meets the eye at any given time.

Next I am grateful for our children, my favorite son and my favorite daughter. This an inside joke of sorts. I have a dear and loving friend who mentioned she thought I favored one of my children over the other. I thought a lot about this comment and ultimately decided to ask each of my children privately, which one of them did they think was my favorite child. They each smiled sweetly and said they secretly knew they were the favorite! I told them the story of the woman who told all her cousins at the gathering for their beloved grandmother's funeral that she had the most special relationship with their grandmother. In fact, she knew she was their grandmother's favorite, because she had told her so in confidence many times. At this point the room erupted with each of the cousins declaring that she had told them the very same thing. I have made it a point to let each of them know they are indeed my favorite, and to remove debate upon my passing, I make it clear that they are my favorite son and favorite daughter. I love the legacy from the grandmother that each one of those grown children thought they were their grandmother's favorite child. What a gift! I would love for the debate at my funeral to be who I loved the most, because everyone I loved knew they were special in my heart. Of course, everyone I love, I do have a special place in my heart for. I am blessed by a wonderful family, that Karl and I have created, as well as a wonderful family of origin, I was lucky enough to be born into. Karl and I are blessed by our extended families and by an amazing group of very special friends we have gathered along our journey.

There is so much to be thankful for. I haven't even gotten to all the showers of blessings we are surrounded by everyday, good health, a warm home, food to grace our table daily. There are so many blessings. The most important one of all is LOVE. To love and be loved, beginning with loving ourselves and going out from there. The more we are loving with ourselves, the more we are able to tap into that love, and share it with those who surround us. I am most grateful for all the blessings of love in my life. If you read this, I know you are someone special, and I am "great-full" for you in my life. Thank you.

Is there someone you are thankful for? Do they know how special they are to you? Let's make sure they all know how blessed we feel by the loved ones in our lives! Take a moment to make someone's day and let them know you are grateful for them in your life. Have a blessed day!

Sparkly Showers of Gratitude

It has been some time since I last wrote. I think it is time to begin blogging again!

These are the Holy Days, and even though much of the hustle and bustle is waning, we are still in a magical time of our Holiest time of the year. No matter what your traditions are or religious beliefs, these are Holy Days. As we gather together with loved ones, and bring love and light to the shortest, darkest days of the year, we finish up one year and head into the next, we are setting the tone for the days and months to come. I can't think of a better way to prime the pump, than with sparkling showers of gratitude, abundance, love and joy!

This is my new vision for my gratitude prayers... I came by it honestly. Let me tell you the story of my Christmas Eve wink and nudge from Spirit!

We had the whole family over for a Christmas Eve feast!  We served champagne and sparkling cider.  Karl opened the first bottle, no problem.  He then proceeded to (against my wishes, and my sister's in law's suggestions - yes, both sister's in law) lay the opened champagne bottle on it's side in the fridge, with a replacement cork.  A few minutes later, we are about to eat, and my fridge is oddly leaking. Hmmm...no, it couldn't be...Karl wouldn't...noooooo. I asked him not to, so he would listen to me, and Val, and Linda...right?   Oh, no, he did not!  Champagne Showers all over the inside of the fridge!  Wow!  So I am trying to clean up, everyone is coming in and saying, "How did that happen? I told Karl not to do that" or "I heard so and so tell Karl not to do that".  Well...all of this did wonders for Karl's mood, as you can imagine.   He was so annoyed with himself, and with me for cleaning it all up then.  Meanwhile my brother went home, next door to get more champagne, when he gets here and opens it in the bar area, it showers all over him.  Really?!  Yes, Really!  About five minutes later, we are all getting ready to eat, everyone is at the table and I opened up a sparkling cider, sitting on the counter untouched for two days and whoosh, it showers me!!!  By now, I get the hint, and as I sit at the table and begin our blessing, I tell everyone about the three "sparkly showers" and remind everyone we are there to celebrate!  We are showered with blessings and love!  Enjoy ourselves and remember why we are all together joined together to celebrate and share The Love and joy with gratitude.  After dinner, and the dishes, we were headed out to play our Christmas gift game, and I stop at the kitchen sink to get myself a glass of water...and the faucet, which has been on about 500 times that day, decides then to shoot water, like a waterfall, all over me. Well I just had to giggle, tighten the faucet grommet and silently give thanks for all our showered blessings, and head into the living room to join everyone else. We are truly showered with joy, abundance, and love.  It was a beautiful night!

I offer you this visualization. It is one I will be using with my prayers of gratitude... a surprise shower of golden, sparkling joy, abundance and love...see it shooting up and around you as you close your eyes and revel in the gratitude for all the showers of blessings you feel falling on and around you, today and always, in all ways.

Thank you for being in my life. If you are reading this, then you too are one I am truly grateful for.

With Showers of Love and Blessings for you and yours, Kim

You Choose it's Free Will

Free Will. It's all a choice. It is. It may not seem that way, but it is. Whether we are living moment to moment in joy and happiness or whether we want to focus on what is out of balance, what makes us unhappy, angry or sad, it is a choice. These are challenging times. I know I have said it before, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist or a psychic to figure that out. We cannot control that. What we can control is our own response and reaction to these times. If we are overcome by frustration, anger or sadness for a few hours, a day or a few days, that is to be expected every now and again, especially when we are in the mix. Use the tools you have, the abilities you have attained to assist you to move through these difficult times, and shift you into the love, joy and gratitude field. If we remember that The Laws of Attraction bring us more of what we are focused upon then The Universe must have some big ole pots brewing of anger, resentment and fear on the front bunners because lots of folks seem to be calling up for more of those brews. What if you can't remember any of your tools right now, or you keep finding yourself coming up empty when you try to use those tools? How do you proceed then? Here are some suggestions. Ask, "What is presenting itself to be healed in me?" " What is going on right now that is making me feel out of balance, and what can I do to remedy this?" "Where do I need to shift, change and heal, to bring myself closer to healing and wholeness?" These are the questions to be asked, this is the process if you want to live in love and joy. This is the work. Sometimes it helps if we do this with a buddy, if we have assistance with this. Just this week, I had a buddy help me out. She listened to me ramble on, and on, and on, and at the end she said you really needed to release all of that. Yes I did, and I am thankful for my dear friend, she knows there is a lot on my plate right now, as there is on hers, it was just the right time and place to release, with a dear, non-judgmental, loving friend. Sometimes we need to come to someone when our plate is full, to help us to see what is getting our attention the most, and what is the next thing we need to do in order to shift this situation. So thank you dear friend.

Once you have looked at what is up, apply the four basics to the situation: love (yourself, the other person and God - whatever that means for you), forgiveness (forgive yourself, the other person - and yes even God), responsibility (what have you done? What could you do better next time? What part is not yours - perhaps the other person's and perhaps just is) and gratitude (to yourself, the other person and again God). After asking what is revealing itself to you to be healed at this time, the fastest path out of those places is not to dwell upon what is wrong, but rather to focus upon all that is right, all the blessings in your life, all the gifts you are given daily. Allow yourself to be flooded with gratitude for all those miracles. Gratitude and love, this is the elixir for living a heart centered, soul based life. You choose. The pots of love, gratitude and joy are bubbling away, and there is always more where that came from. What do you want a heaping helping of? I thought so. Why would anyone rationally choose anything else?! And you are choosing, several times every day.

Is there a time when you felt you couldn't find the love or gratitude in a situation? Do you want to talk about it? I'm here for that. Let's chat.

Sending you all Love, Gratitude, Peace and Joy wherever you are, whatever is going on, you deserve this, we all deserve this, it is our Divine Right.