Global Awakening – A Personal Choice

Everyone agrees the Earth is undergoing substantial changes, yet we disagree on why. When I energetically observe the collective consciousness, it is similar to a jigsaw puzzle moving from random pieces into picture form. While the human family is diverse in thought and perception, we have yet to unite for the greater good of society. As long as division reigns, anything is possible.

Thoughts are energetic expressions that form a pattern, and every pattern has the potential for manifestation. On a personal level, what you embody within your consciousness is what you will create in your reality. Mutual states of consciousness act to increase the potentiality for the manifestation on earth. From global catastrophe to massive spiritual awakening, what you choose to intend affects us all.

As my human family expresses their will upon the earth, I observe my reaction. If a judgment or fear arises, I begin the process of healing through gratitude. The results are surprising. At times, I am able to witness those who create and cause pain from an unconditional space. In this space of neutrality, I can direct my energies to affect the whole. These soul empowering experiences are increasing the more I move out of reaction and into observation.

The morning of the Chilean earthquake, I learned about a potential Tsunami in the Pacific. I sat down to be with Source and asked, “Is this necessary and for the highest good of all?” The gentle yet immediate response was “no.” A soul-knowing followed as I remembered to connect with the water elements and my guides to hold the intention of calm water and no harm. In this timeless space, my heart and soul were in authentic expression. I offered others the opportunity to cultivate an intention of no-harm in their own way. I let go and allowed what must be to occur.

As we collectively experience change on earth, we will simultaneously experience our responses. Any incongruent energy is simply an invitation to heal. Healing occurs the moment our soul recognizes and experiences truth. We must be willing to feel truth’s vibration within because truth changes reality. Once you experience truth, to create illusion becomes difficult and exceptionally painful. Truth opens your heart to divine connection and through mutual receptivity, you experience your soul.

I have found the process of spiritual awakening to be neither simple nor easy. To heal from duality and division takes courage, personal effort, a lifetime of dedication, and assistance from my human and spiritual family. I choose to create peace, one action step at a time.

©Althea Treakle-Provost, 2010 – All Rights Reserved.
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What Can I Do By Corey Yanzito

I saw a status update on Facebook the other day that said something like this:

Shame on you America: the only country where we have homeless without shelter, children going to bed without eating, elderly going without needed meds, and mentally ill without treatment – yet we have a benefit for the people of Haiti on 12 TV stations. 99% of people won’t have the guts to copy and repost this. It’s sad but true!

It got me thinking: it is sad.  I wondered, when I saw this, what exactly the person who posted this was trying to convey?  Were they saying that we ought not to have jumped in to the Haitian relief effort with both feet?  Were they saying that our first priority out to be to our fellow countrymen?  Were they saying, as I have heard suggested, that celebrities only hype the causes that are cool at that moment?  Honestly, I’m not certain what the intention behind the post was, but it certainly got me thinking.

It is my personal opinion that all people deserve food, shelter, clean water, kind words, to know that there are people out there who care about their well-being.  I can’t imagine that anyone would disagree that basic human rights are essential.

I am glad that people are excited about the Haitian relief effort.  I hope that people continue to pour in their support as the Haitian people rebuild their shattered country.  I have a broader hope as well.  It is my hope that all people find a cause they believe in, a cause they can passionately support.

I’ve always admired my parents.  When I was growing up they did their level best to ensure that my brother and I were raised knowing just how lucky we were.  They hoped that we would recognize our blessings and share our gifts with those less fortunate.  They took us to homeless shelters, battered women’s centers, soup kitchens, training centers for homeless runaways.  They went on trips to build schools and bring supplies to Nicaraguan children.  They served on boards, manned call centers, wrote letters, sent checks, and spoke to school children.

While their financial support was certainly appreciated, as the financial support of so many is certain to be appreciated by the earthquake victims in Haiti, it was their time and their dedication that made the real impact.

In these times of financial uncertainty, it is understandable that people might not be as liberal with their checkbook when it comes to a charitable donation.  However, there are other ways to give.  Most often, we are attracted to causes because they resonate with our own values.  It makes me smile to think what we could do if we all decided to dedicate just one hour a week to giving of ourselves.

A graduate of Colorado State University, Corey Yanzito enjoys her work as site editor for Satiama and The Nu Life where she is always on the hunt for new, insightful articles.  Prior to coming on board with the Satiama team, Corey worked in the accounting field.  Now a full-time mom to her tiny tots, Corey enjoys reading, writing, photography, travel, and spending time with friends and family.  Do you have a great story to tell?  Please send Corey an e-mail at corey@satiama.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Fields of Friendship by Corey Yanzito

I moved to Colorado when I was nine years old.  It was November and the school year was already well under way.  The first day I went to school in the outfit I had carefully chosen days earlier, the outfit that I would wear the first time I met all my new classmates.  Despite the carefully chosen outfit and many kind words of encouragement from my mother, my stomach was in knots as I slowly made my way from the office to my classroom that first day.  Thankfully, that day I returned to our new house with renewed confidence and an invitation to a birthday party the following weekend.

Tonight I took a couple of hours to have pie with friends.  One of the women who sat around the table with me this evening was one of the little girls who befriended me that first day in my new school.  As I sat around the table, nursing my diet Coke and savoring the last lingering bits of the kind of silly, touching, over-lapping conversation that happens when a diverse group of good friends gets together, I got to thinking about friendship.

One of my favorite quotes is from Tennessee Williams; he said, “Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose.”

I’ve chosen to surround myself with quite a diverse group of friends.  At the table tonight sat a woman who I’ve known longer than I’ve known my husband, longer than I’ve been driving—I’ve known her longer than I haven’t known her.  At the same table were women I’ve met in the last few years, women who have only known me as a woman.

My friends like swing dancing, fly fishing, reading about vampires, lost symbols and fifteenth century India.  My friends go to yoga, to counseling, and to night school.  Some of them have kids, some of them act like children, and all of them are loved by my children.

I know I am very blessed to have such wonderful people in my life, but I also know that having friends doesn’t always mean keeping them.  Certainly some people are in our lives for brief moments to teach us more about ourselves, to help us through something, or perhaps so that we can help them.  Nevertheless, like most good things, lasting friendships take practice and dedication.

If one neglects to water their garden and remove the weeds, their plants will not prosper.  Similarly, if one makes no effort to remain connected to their friends, their friendships will slowly fade.  Further, if one does not remove the negativity that can sometimes weave its way into relationships, the friendship will get bogged down in bad feelings and won’t reach its full potential.

I think it’s also important to mention that, while having good people in your life is priceless, severing ties with people who bring only stress, negativity, and demands into your life is crucial as well.  Save your energies for the people who lift you up.  Rather than spending time on people who don’t enrich your experience, devote your time to the ones who do and to yourself.

Dr Seuss once said, “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”  Take time today to nurture those friendships that fill you with gladness and self worth.  And, even though they probably already know how much you love them, it wouldn’t hurt to put it in to words.

About The Author:  A graduate of Colorado State University, Corey Yanzito enjoys her work as site editor for Satiama and The Nu Lifewhere she is always on the hunt for new, insightful articles.  Prior to coming on board with the Satiama team, Corey worked in the accounting field.  Now a full-time mom to her tiny tots, Corey enjoys reading, writing, photography, travel, and spending time with friends and family.  Do you have a great story idea?  Please send Corey an e-mail at corey@satiama.com.

Happy Tears by Corey Yanzito

I cried at the store the other day.  I had to stop the cart, take a deep breath, and wipe away my tears.  Very rarely do I cry sad tears, but happy tears — I just never know when they’re going to hit me.  As I pushed the cart through the crowded store just days before Christmas, my one year old son grumbling in the seat, clearly finished with his holiday shopping, I hear my three-year-old daughter’s voice as she looks up at me, tugging slightly at my hand to make certain she has my full attention.  “I’m glad you’re my Mom,” she says.

I take a deep breath, for a moment I think I might be able to hold back the tears.  When I bend down to give her a hug and tell her that I’m glad she’s my daughter, I realize there’s no way they aren’t coming.  She looks stricken.  “Mommy, why are you crying?”

I pull myself together quickly and let her know that I’m not crying because I’m sad, but because I’m happy.  I’m thrilled that she’s happy to have me for a mother.  I tell her that I’m so blessed to have such a kind and thoughtful daughter.  As we get back to our shopping, I notice that several of the other people in the isle had stopped their shopping to watch our exchange.  For a moment, I can’t decide whether to be embarrassed about the emotional outpouring the shoppers had just witnessed or excited that I’ve managed to pull myself back together in such a timely manner.

I decide to be happy.  Happy that I’ve been blessed with such a wonderful family.  Happy that my daughter is happy.  Happy that I really felt something.

It’s taken me years to become comfortable with crying.  I used to keep things bottled up so tightly that, under stress, I was a regular pressure cooker of emotion just waiting to burst.  Keeping a tight hold on my emotions meant that I wasn’t one to cry when I was sad or disappointed, but it also meant that true happiness and gratitude weren’t as rich for me.

Strangely enough, as I learned to express the unpleasant emotions in a healthier, more constructive manner, I learned to relish the positive emotions with greater fervor.  It seems that when I allowed myself to really feel things, I realized just how much joy there is waiting to be embraced.

I’m not suggesting that the local grocer’s become a hot spot for emotional outbursts, but rather that we allow ourselves to feel, even if it’s a little inconvenient.  Further, in that moment, with the cart and the kids, I had a choice.  I could have thanked my daughter and gone on, but I suppose she wouldn’t have known how deeply her words touched me.  Rather than worrying about what other people would think, I let my daughter’s words really penetrate.  Now, she knows how much her kind words mean to me and, I hope, she knows that it’s okay to express your emotions.

About The Author:  A graduate of Colorado State University, Corey Yanzito enjoys her work as site editor for Satiama and The Nu Lifewhere she is always on the hunt for new, insightful articles.  Prior to coming on board with the Satiama team, Corey worked in the accounting field.  Now a full-time mom to her tiny tots, Corey enjoys reading, writing, photography, travel, and spending time with friends and family.  Do you have a great story idea?  Please send Corey an e-mail at corey@satiama.com

Keeping Promises by Corey Yanzito

As 2009 ended and 2010 began, I got to thinking about all the potential the new year brings.  In some ways, a new year gives us permission to start anew.  It’s as though we can leave behind in the old year the things about us that we’d prefer didn’t accompany us into 2010.  Sure, I can’t wave a wand and make my debt or my love handles disappear, but I can examine my behavior and try to pinpoint the things that I do to contribute to my own shortcomings.

I’ve been thinking a lot about my weight and the resolution I seem to make every year to take better care of myself.  I’ve never been a thin person, and thankfully, my weight hasn’t caused any real health problems to speak of, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for improvement.  I know I would look and feel better if I were forty pounds lighter.  I’m also fairly certain that I need to eat fewer calories and exercise more.  Perhaps I’ll never be a size two, but I think two sizes smaller is a goal I can achieve.

The exercise isn’t a problem.  I like to exercise.  It feels good to get my blood coursing through my veins.  I enjoy the hour or so of time to myself that I get when I work out.  However, exercise alone isn’t going to make this the year I finally follow my own new year’s resolution.

It’s clear that my relationship with food is what needs to change.  I eat when I’m sad.  I eat to celebrate.  I eat because I’m bored or anxious.  I eat because I can’t resist my favorite foods.  I fix my husband’s favorite meals to show him how much I love him.  I bake to spend time with my kids.  Clearly, food is filling voids that ought to be filled in other ways.

This year, I hope to find healthier ways to celebrate the ones I love.  I’d like to find more creative ways to show my affection.  Perhaps I can fix healthier meals with fresh fruits and veggies rather than comfort food heavy with pasta and cheese.  Maybe I’ll try sending homemade cards, rather than homemade cookies.  Certainly I need to address the things that make me anxious or upset rather than soothing myself with a bowl of ice cream.  I need to keep my hands busy with constructive activities when I’m bored rather than using them to munch on chips or cookies.

Sometimes I think the promises we make to ourselves are the easiest to break.  Besides myself, who is it going to hurt if I stop working toward my resolution to be healthier?  It seems that the biggest thing I need to do this year is to decide that I am worth it.  I need to keep the promises I make to myself as sacred as the promises I make to others.

What kinds of things do you do to take care of yourself?  Do you keep your resolutions?  If so, what kinds of tips do you have to share with us?

About The Author:  A graduate of Colorado State University, Corey Yanzito enjoys her work as site editor for Satiama and The Nu Lifewhere she is always on the hunt for new, insightful articles.  Prior to coming on board with the Satiama team, Corey worked in the accounting field.  Now a full-time mom to her tiny tots, Corey enjoys reading, writing, photography, travel, and spending time with friends and family.  Do you have a great story idea?  Please send Corey an e-mail at corey@satiama.com.

Holiday Obligations or Opportunities? by Corey Yanzito

My husband and I don’t normally exchange Christmas gifts, but this year he asked me what I wanted.  “Something small,” he said, “But you hardly ever get anything for yourself.”

This got me thinking about all the things I do have for myself.

I made sugar cookie dough while my children napped the other day.  When they woke up, we were ready to get cutting, cooking, and decorating.  As I looked at the plate of finished cookies, I realized that more than a sweet treat; we’d just made some wonderful memories.

It’s really cold for Colorado these days.  With temperatures looming below freezing for the better part of a week, you can hardly go anywhere without hearing gripes about the weather.  Sure, it’s not ideal–I like being outside—but I’m very lucky to have a warm cozy house to come home to and a snuggly pair of gloves for those unavoidable adventures outdoors.

As I labored to get my Christmas letter finished, addressed and closed a seemingly endless stream of envelopes, and massaged my finger cramps from my mass mailing I was tempted to complain.  I felt myself begin to wonder why I go through the card process every year?  I began to feel like it was just another stressor in a season piled high with obligations.

A few afternoons later, I braved the cold and trekked out to our mailbox.  We’d gotten our first holiday card!  I couldn’t even wait until I got back in the house to tear open the envelope.  I was anxious to see pictures of our friends and read about what they’d been up to all year.  After putting our first card up — we hang them on the inside of our front door so we can look at all the pictures — I was reminded of why I go through all the effort to send the cards.  I’m so thankful for all the people who touch my life and I am touched when I receive their cards and get caught up.

Sometimes I feel like we’re so busy doing all the things we “have to” do during the holiday season that we neglect to remember why we do them and what makes the season so amazing.  This season gives us the opportunity to get in touch with long lost friends.  This season brings cold temperatures that are perfect for hot cocoa, cozy blankets, and snuggling.  The snow that keeps us home from the office also gives us the chance to take a much needed afternoon snooze.  The family gatherings that can cause us so much stress are also the chance to form closer bonds with your loved ones and let go of old wounds.

It is my goal that this really be a season of love and gratitude.  I have been so blessed; this is my chance to share my gratitude with those around me and to do all things with love.  So, rather than seeing obligations, this season, I’m seeing opportunities.

How are you living in love and showing gratitude this season?  Please share your thoughts below as we build community at Satiama!

The Real Truth About 2012

The Real Truth about 2012

It seems that the collective human consciousness is determined to generate something to fear and the approach of 2012 is no exception. Daily I see more fear-based articles and now a movie trailer that depicts 2012 as an apocalyptic event that will tear our physical world apart.

While I do not consider myself expert about 2012 and the astronomical and astrological events it marks, even to the untrained eye it is apparent that the approach of 2012 is bringing with it some ‘interesting’ dynamics. Whether it is you personally, those close to you or others in your life in some way, you may have observed that many are deeply in the midst of change, turmoil or some sort of churning in their lives. It matters not if this began a while back or is presently occurring, the transformational energy of 2012 is being felt at some level by everyone on the planet.

For me, what the movie trailer offers – scenes of bridges, buildings and cities being torn apart, highways breaking up and heaving toward the sky, an entire landscape in flames, oceans swallowing well-established areas of civilization – isn’t entirely wrong.  This is because that is the very process that is going on inside many of us. It is an internal rather than external dynamic.  Our old infrastructure, our old beliefs, our old way of ‘being,’ ideas, activities and even people who no longer serve our personal evolution are going away.  The human collective consciousness is going through a transformation which for a lot of people feels very violent, cataclysmic or deeply personally challenging.

But in order for us to move forward into the energetic opportunity that 2012 and beyond offers us, we must absolutely evolve.  If our beliefs or barriers to growth are deep-seated and our unwillingness to grow is strong, this simply means that our old personal infrastructure must be broken down or broken apart in order to give way to the new, to the rebuilding that must occur now. The more we fear these changes, the more we resist them and therefore the more difficult they will be for us.

In legal terms, activities such as floods, tornadoes and earthquakes are called force majeure, translating as ‘greater force,’ meaning things over which we believe we have no control.  Yet, in terms of our level of resistance or acceptance of the changes with which many of us are being presented, we have complete control. We can choose our beliefs, our response, our willingness to reconstruct ourselves, and even our level of comfort or denial with the process at hand. We can choose to fear what is occurring, or we can embrace our ‘rebirthing’ process with love and gratitude.

It’s a very individual choice for each of us. We can choose to move forward in joy for what lies ahead – a new way of being, free of limiting infrastructure, fear of fear.

Are you experiencing any personal upheaval in your life?  What tools or techniques are you using to manage your own personal process?  Please share your thoughts and experience with others as we build community here at Satiama!

Namaste!

Getting Out of Our Own Way

For a good portion of my life I have been asking, “Why?” As a child, I drove my parents to near distraction with my constant barrage of ‘why’ responses to absolutely any request they might make of me. As a fledgling adult I felt that asking “why,” whether silently or aloud, was simply an intelligent response to the ridiculous rules and outmoded social conventions I felt fully explained what was wrong with the world.

In the ensuing years, I continued to ask, “Why,” but now posing that question directly to the Universe, Source and even to my own Higher Self. Like many, I would demand to know, “Why did this happen?” following the occurrence of any natural disaster, stubbed toe, rise in gas prices, paper cut, election results, canceled flight, lost earring, latest pandemic, loss of a pet or early arrival of grey hair. In short, I have always felt I needed or was even owed an explanation. And I believed that if I knew the answer to my question, then the world would finally be ordered, explained, would make sense to me and that I would be able to accept these occurrences with true insight and perspective.

It has taken me many years to learn and fully assimilate how much I was attempting to classify my world and how much I was getting in my own way with my question. It has taken me a few more years to understand how little faith and trust I was exercising in demanding to know “why,” and yet more years beyond that to understand that the answer really does not matter at all.

There is so much written today about manifesting your destiny, about creating the life you want, about soul contracts, about karmic connections, that we forget a couple of the basics. First, being here in this illusionary existence, we cannot possibly possess the perspective of a Higher Intelligence to understand or fully assimilate the bigger reasons why some things occur as they do — that there is a Divine Plan at work in absolutely everything around us. So to judge things as “good, bad, ridiculous, wonderful, unfair, right or wrong” is to assign our own answer to “why,” without the higher perspective we need to really understand their role in a greater design.

Next, we must recall that we can control our own thoughts and create our own world, but others around us have the same free will to do the same. We cannot control the thoughts or actions of others unless they allow it, and thank goodness for that! Each of us is here to fulfill a life purpose, and we cannot possibly know or understand what that purpose might be, especially for others, or how much we can interfere with it even when we believe our actions are well-intentioned. So if we believe we understood “why” something seemingly bad was happening to another, we might feel the need to unreasonably interfere, and therefore get in their way.

What does this look like in practice? While we should definitely move the baby away from the hot burner, we should also allow our grown-up friends to get ‘burned’ by dating the wrong guy rather than spending hours on end explaining to them that he seems a ‘bad’ guy. So, if your friend asks for your opinion about her significant other, you can offer it without a knee-jerk, reflexive need to control or feel attached to the outcome. After all, there may be something huge for your friend to learn in that situation.

At first, learning to trust and have faith that everything is in Divine Order for me was similar to asking me throw myself off the Eiffel Tower or into a pit of molten lava. I could say the words, but could not feel the feeling. I really didn’t get it. Then a wonderful and wise friend asked me one day, responding to my usual question, “Why do you need to know?” And I was stunned into silence. I had answers to her question, but I immediately perceived that they were all coming from a place of ego control and judgment, and I had to laugh out loud!

Now and only by standing back, breathing deeply and allowing some of the story lines in my life and for those around me to play out a bit have I been able to see a glimpse of the Divine Order that really is at work and that things do work out for our highest good. Only by refraining from asking “why” or really needing an answer to my question have I been able to get to this place. Only by remembering that the ‘answer’ would likely only get in my way was I able to move into the space of faith and trust that was far more loving, accepting and warm than the cold, hardscrabble space of my quest for ‘information.’

I think I am finally arriving at a place now where I understand that the question I have been posing all these years is really the wrong question. I should have been asking, “Why not?” For this question allows for the possibility, the likelihood, the probability that there is an Intelligent Source of limitless love that really does have all our very best interests at heart if we can only just get out of our own way.

Looking back at many of the occurrences in my life, as well as in the lives of those around me, I can see now that many things I thought at the time were really bad, ill-timed or unfair happenings actually led me or them to a wonderful awakening of a greater truth or understanding of things I simply could not see at the time. If I had asked, “Why not,” I think I could have saved myself a lot of mental and emotional energy and angst. I could have flowed more easily through those occurrences. Trust and faith was a choice I could have exercised.

Do you have experiences in your life that seemed very bad at the time, only to turn out far differently than you believed them to be when they were occurring? Please share them with us below as we continue to build community at Satiama.

Namaste!

The Opportunities In Change March 2009

The topic of change is constantly in the headlines and in our conversation these days: the changing economy, changing earth conditions, all kinds of changing circumstances that appear to have influence in our lives. Change can be powerfully uplifting and energizing, helping us to restore our spirit and spurring us forward to manifest our dreams. Change can also at times be deeply unsettling, impacting our inner serenity, seemingly making us feel powerless, thrown off course, or swept along in a current of what we might think are random circumstances.

What is interesting is that the constancy of change is, in fact, a part of our daily life. Each day our world changes from sunrise to sunset, and as the Earth spins rapidly on its axis, changing from second to second as it also hurls along its path around the sun, we are constantly in motion — never where we were yesterday, or where we will be tomorrow. In the present we are also changing, as our body itself casts off old cells, replacing them with new ones freshly minted to support our continued existence. Change, occurring from second to second, has been a constant, consistent part of our reality from birth.

Yet this type of change never rocks us to the core, perhaps it is constant and reliable to us. We never fear when we wake up each morning that there will be enough oxygen to breathe, or enough gravity to hold us to the Earth, or even enough sky above, or enough ground below. We simply take these things for granted, and although we need them to exist in this time and place, their presence and abundance in our life is assumed.

It’s really the other kind of change – the surprising, unanticipated and very challenging kind – that is most meaningful and transformational. This type of change is actually a gift of great opportunity, if we choose to harvest from our upheaval the chance to change the way we navigate through our storm. This can awaken in us a spiritual thirst for a more profound connection, for the healing, wisdom and loving guidance of Spirit, Source Energy, God, a Higher Power, or whatever name you might elect for the Divine. It is most often the type of change that feels cataclysmic, even shattering, that sets our feet more firmly upon a path of seeking, a journey of the heart and soul for which there is no true destination, but leads each day to a deeper sense of peace, meaning and insight. We can use the change around us to change ourselves.

I can’t really put my finger on the exact day when I began to realize I had begun my own quest in earnest. Battered by the death of a spouse, a life-threatening illness and a series of wrenching events that each left me feeling more emotionally exhausted and deeply depleted than the day before, I somehow began to recognize and release some of my most limiting beliefs. From there I began to grow my own sense of the limitless nature of the Divine, the Universe and all its inhabitants. I began to understand the profound and simply unexplainable power of love. I began to make new choices. I began to heal.

For each of us such a “tipping point” occurs, somewhere in time. What causes us to emerge from the deep trance of fear to seek the light of happiness is as different and unique as there are people on the planet today. But it most often happens in the wake of change – a bus ride we don’t want that takes us on the most important journey of our life. And there are innumerable tools and techniques to assist us in navigating change along the way: music, books, CDs, lectures, a beautiful painting, an uplifting photograph, walks in nature, whatever feels personally nurturing to you or leads you to personal changes that render the forces around you far less meaningful.

Along with the magnificent works of our Satiama artists, musicians, teachers and authors, there are many personal techniques for managing change that can also support you to find serenity and peace, rather than feeling randomly tossed about by external events or by limiting thoughts, attitudes or choices. One of my personal favorites is what I call The Viking Funeral.

If I am deeply bothered by something, or feel the need to release a habit, an idea, a thought pattern, an illness, perhaps even a toxic relationship, I sometimes hold a Viking Funeral.

Here’s how to do it:

1. First, set your intention to be willing to release whatever you are trying to move past or through into a more peaceful place. Without this intention, a Viking Funeral will simply be an empty exercise.
2. Next, mentally build a beautiful and empty Viking ship. Build your ship in as much detail as you like. You can imagine the masts, the rough hewn wood, the slight rocking of the vessel, even the snap of the sails in the wind. The cargo hold and decks must be empty and ready to be filled up. Your ship is unmanned. It sits docked on a lake, river, stream or ocean, ready to begin its journey toward positive change.
3. Next, fill your ship with any habits, old beliefs, limiting thoughts, the memories of bad relationships, guilt, resentment, anger, hatred – you can fill your cargo hold until your boat is full, or simply load it with one or two things.
4. Next, push it away from the shore until the current catches it. Watch it move away from you, into the distance, in silence and peace.
5. Give deep thanks and gratitude to your Viking ship for carrying away those things that don’t serve you anymore, and say goodbye to them.
6. As your Viking ship reaches the horizon, imagine that you watch as it bursts into flames, until the ship and all the ashes disappear into the water.
7. Enjoy the return of the water to its beautiful, serene calmness. Your Viking funeral is over. Positive change is occurring.

It is our goal, our desire and our gift at Satiama to assemble and offer beautiful tools and techniques to nurture and encourage you on your personal journey, and to provide community along the way. How has change been a powerful catalyst for you? Would you like to offer a technique you use to assist or support you in navigating or effecting change in your life? Please share it with us below as we build The Satiama Community and support each other through change into a life without limit.

Namaste!

Are You Willing To Be Happy?

We chatted together recently about the spiritual opportunities available to us through the dynamic of change. But what about our day-to-day spiritual journey? Not only to find the mystical meaning, insight, and soul-based wisdom that will move us toward a higher consciousness, but those divine conventions that affirm us and keep us grounded, heart-based and centered while we do so? How do we flow along, enjoying the dance of life, the beauty and power of the world around us from moment to moment?

In other words, how can we be happy and peaceful, all day long?

I don’t pretend to have all the answers about this, but I do know that there are things we can do to find and hold the feeling of happiness or peace. The most important of these starts with the decision that you would rather be happy, joyful and peaceful than anything else. It begins with a decision to simply be happier than you felt a few minutes ago. Sounds simplistic, right?

But many of us are so accustomed to feeling depressed, worried, lonely, victimized, unworthy, resentful, unforgiving, angry, feeling a lack of money, companionship, love, support or a variety of other things, that those feelings become comfortable and familiar, like a favorite pair of old jeans. Like any habit of thought or action, feeling bad is a daily choice and a habit that you must have the desire to break. So, to be happy all day long, you must be willing to choose that feeling over something else more familiar and comfortable.

In other words, you have to really want to be happy, because no person or set of circumstances can really make you feel happy or peaceful – it’s up to you.

One way to experience happiness is to spread it around – to share joy, happiness, compassion and gratitude with others. Simple courtesies, such as looking the grocery clerk in the eye and saying “thank you” from your heart as he or she hands you your receipt. Simple gestures such as offering to pick up some groceries for a sick friend or to bring your elderly neighbor her newspaper from the snowbank where it was thrown. Simple but sincere feelings of compassion for someone you might usually vilify, resent or feel anger toward, because you are willing to acknowledge that we are all on a personal journey and cannot really know or understand the experience of another.

Share your heart and your true nature with others and you will definitely experience an increase in happiness and inner peace.

There are many other techniques to support us to make a decision to feel happy. Breathwork techniques and spending time in nature are very important. Sound healing, such as listening to singing bowls is also a wonderful therapy to move you up on your emotional scale. But perhaps my favorite, and the technique I find most powerful, is to step fully into the present.

In the present moment, there are no thoughts of yesterday or tomorrow, or even an hour in any direction. There is only now, a moment of perfection and peace that always helps me to put my feet back on the ground, and to reopen my heart.

I start by deciding to move fully into the present, and take a deep, releasing breath and close my eyes as I do so. I concentrate first on my sense of hearing, gathering up and focusing on everything I can hear, reaching beyond the obvious to hear small sounds as well as the layer of sounds around me. Then I concentrate on simply feeling my body, from the bottom of my feet to the roots of my hair, and anything my body is touching. I add to that any smells around me and also any taste in my mouth. I am moving slowly toward being fully present in all of my senses. And finally I open my eyes to fully experience the present moment.

Resist the tendency to do this while also using thoughts to define what you are experiencing, such as thoughts which label, judge or classify anything you feel, smell, hear, taste, touch or see: “this smells good,” “the house next door needs painting,” “I hear those dogs barking again.” Simply “be” in the present moment as you experience everything around you. With just a small amount of practice, you will find a sense of deep peace, inspiration and surrender in the present. This can lessen the importance of things in your life that you might believe are leaching away your happiness. You can find a doorway to joy.

Many excellent teachers and authors have written about ways to choose and experience happiness as a constant rather than fleeting experience. Still others have written about how to awaken your own compassionate nature, and also about how to live life fully present. And many of you have your own ways to developing the quality of happiness in your own life, but no matter what, they all require the desire and willingness to be happy.

Many of you shared your wonderful comments, ideas and experience with us in our last blog posting. We invite you continue to share with us here in The Satiama Community your own favorite techniques for experiencing and maintaining happiness in your life, as well as perhaps favorite books you have read on the subject, or your own ideas about reaching for personal peace.

How did you personally handle a difficult situation that challenged your ability to be happy, to stay present or to continue experiencing joy? Please share your thoughts or experiences for creating happiness and peace with us, and thanks for joining us!

Namaste!

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