New Year Giveaway to Inspire You!

Happy New Year!

                It is amazing how fast I let go of 2012 and now all my focus is on what I want to create for 2013. In reviewing my vision board from last year, there was only one thing that I didn’t make much progress in, but everything else I hit spot on!  Woo Hoo!

                Last year I facilitated a What If? workshop (for more information on this year’s What If? Workshop go to (Livdivine.com) where we cleared away beliefs that no longer served us; listened to our hearts to understand what our soul desires; and then we created vision boards.  Within weeks everyone had already manifested something on their board!  You can bet that we will all be back again to create our year of 2013.

                I had taken some time off from my teaching and healing work due to burn out and my own health challenge (all better now).  The time has now come to go back to my life purpose of helping people embrace and live their true self through my teachings and writings.

                The beginning of a New Year can be confusing and scary for some.  “What will the New Year hold for me?” “It has to be better than last year, right?”   If you didn’t already know, YOU have control over your life.  You and only you have the power to create the year (world) you want for yourself.  And the thing you should be aware of is that if you don’t consciously create your world, you will create something that you don’t want because you are not paying attention to what you are saying, thinking and doing.  And that my friend is when life goes out of control and we can’t seem to achieve our goals.

                So how do you enter the New Year full of excitement and knowing that you will achieve your goals because that is the way you planned it?  First get clear on what you want (no matter how crazy it may seem), next write it down and review it often.  That is where a vision board comes in handy.  It is a wonderful visual reminder of what we want and keeps us focused.  Also, if you can take a moment every so often and really see yourself reaching your goals that can be very powerful.  And when faced with a decision always ask yourself, “Will this bring me closer to my goals”?  Before you know it you will be where you wanted to go!

                Do you still need a little inspiration to figure out what you want for 2013 and how to get started?  No fear I can help with that.  Three things that ALWAYS inspire me are books/reading, writing (helps me get unstuck if I write randomly) and creating (anything).   

With that said, I am offering my blog readers a chance to win some tools to help create their best 2013 they possibly can. 

Enter to win one of the these three inspirations: 

$25 Barnes and Noble gift card (books/reading/learning)

$15 Joann’s gift card (creating)

A Lovely Jane Austen inspired Journal (ideas flowing.)

It is so easy to enter to win one of the above gems.  
All you have to do is either or both of the following (total 2 entries possible):

1. Email subscribe (upper right corner of page) to this blog AND enter a comment here letting me know you did it. Counts as 1 entry.

2.  "Like" my Facebook page (upper right hand corner of page) AND leave a comment here letting me know what name you liked it under (first name and last name initial are fine).  Remember you must like my page from your personal page NOT business or blog page or it will not count.  Counts as 1 entry.

That’s it!

Good Luck and Happy New Year!

In love and light,

Christine

The giveaway is open until Saturday, January 19th at 11:59 p.m. PST. Open to U.S. residents only. All winning entries will be verified. Winners will be announced on this post. All winners must respond within 48 hours, or new winners will be chosen. Good luck!

Daily Pleasures

   

         A couple of weeks ago my friend Robin came over and was helping me with a daunting and overwhelming task.  We had already been going at it for hours when I turned and noticed my beautiful antique French art deco champagne glasses.  Suddenly I announced, “We need champagne” and I headed to the store for a bottle. When I returned with a taco shop lunch and a very nice bottle of champagne, I filled my very favorite champagne glasses with the bubbly.  I have owned these glasses for about twenty years and first used them to toast at my wedding.  I think I have only used them maybe once or twice since then.  They are my most cherished possession and I have kept them safe in a case for years; afraid of taking them out and using them for fear of breaking one.

          Now, this morning, while in the pantry getting coffee to make a pot, I noticed that I still had a bit of Kona coffee my friend (Robin once again) brought back from Hawaii last year.  Kona coffee brought over from Hawaii is a delightful pleasure for me and I tried to make it last as long as I could.  As I looked at the half empty bag, I realized that I wasn’t really enjoying it because I was only using it for special occasions.  It was so revered that I put it up on the shelf (pedestal) and rarely used it.  I realized that day that I wanted to enjoy all my favorite things as often as I could, whether it was a special occasion or not. 

          How many things do we put on a pedestal afraid to touch it, spoil it or break it?  How many things are brought out only for special occasions?  Are we missing the pleasures in life because we are afraid that there isn’t enough to last so it’s best if we use it sparingly?  I have to say it was a huge “aha” moment for me when I realized, that for me, saving something for a special occasion was based in the low energy of lack.  I realized that day that I wanted to enjoy all my favorite things as often as I could, whether it was a special occasion or not.  In order to make a change, I had to change my way of thinking.  Abundance is the opposite of lack and is a powerful energy that is strong and flows freely if allowed to.   I now allow the things I was holding on to for special occasions to be held in the energy of abundance.  There is an infinite (abundant) amount of joy and pleasure to be found, so if I use up my favorite coffee, there will always be more coffee.  If I break a favorite glass, an equally precious glass will enter my life.  There is always enough to go around.

          Nothing can be enjoyed if we do not use it (or look at it).  The pleasures in life are meant to be enjoyed daily, not only at special times, and there is always enough pleasure to last a lifetime.  So, replace lack with abundance and begin living a meaningful life now.

Which of your favorite things would you like to incorporate into your daily life?  Please comment here and share with us.

In love and light,

Christine

Creating for the Sake of Creating

Forward:  I posted this blog on my other site Blog.livdivine.com on November 8, 2011.  I thought it was worth posting again.  Enjoy!  

We have all started projects and some of us have actually finished one or two of them.  Others have dreams of other artistic endeavors like writing, painting & sewing.  The thing is we all at one time or another have had the desire to create.  So what stops us from either getting started or complete something once we do start it?  One thing that gets in my way is fear that what I create won’t be good enough.  No matter how my heart urges me to sit down and write or sew I seem to put it off.  It’s too scary.  Recently that changed for me.

Creating is Good for the Soul

I love to crochet. As a child, my mother taught me how to crochet a chain and the single crochet stitch. Through the years I dabbled in scarves and blankets, but stayed away from anything more complicated than the one stitch I knew or that required a pattern. About seven years ago I fell back into the art while grieving the death of my sister. Crocheting gave me something to do without having to think too hard. It calmed me and kept me in a safe place where I could safely go through the grieving process. As time passed, I realized how much I enjoyed it and was inspired to take a class or two in order to learn to read crochet patterns (and learn a few new stitches). I am still not very proficient, but I can read patterns and am proud to say that I have expanded my repertoire (hats, purses, ponchos...) of crochet projects. You could say that crocheting is my go to creative outlet and relaxation.

But why do I love it? Well, there are the practical reasons, for instance; it is portable so I can take it anywhere; it keeps my hands busy when I am trying to stay out of the refrigerator, and there are so many quick and easy projects out there so when needed, I can attain instant gratification. Pretty good reasons so far, right? But, the real reason I love to crochet is because of what it does for my soul. It allows me to connect with the power of creation and with that comes peace. The steady motion of my hand is hypnotic as I work the yarn in and out of loops, placing me in a type of meditative state. My breathing clams and so does my mind. Ahhh, pure relaxation.

A few years back I was doodling on a piece of paper and my hand went into the motion that makes the infinity pattern (∞). As my hand moved through the figure eight-like motion, I noticed that the movement was familiar to me. I realized that the motion that the hand makes while crocheting is similar (if not the same) to the motion that is made when the infinity sign is drawn. I wondered if there could be a connection between infinity and creativity.

Definition of Infinity - unlimited extent of time, space, or quantity

Definition of Create - to make or bring into existence something new.

Have you ever noticed that when you are in the creative process you allow yourself to open up, remove limits, and lose a sense of time (a.k.a. being present)? Maybe part of the creative process is to enter infinity and be in a place of endless possibilities, a studio where ideas can be joined together to make something (anything). Knowing that what we focus on attracts more of the same, it makes sense that the more time we spend in our infinity studio,  putting ourselves in a place of endless possibilities, that that energy will continue to overflow into our everyday lives. Imagine having that sense of peace, calm, and being in the moment 24/7.

Now, I am not saying that everyone should run out and buy a skein of yarn and a crochet hook in order to find inner peace. What I am offering to you is the encouragement to spend some time during each day (week, month, whatever you have time for) in your own infinity studio, exploring the possibilities. Remember creating is good for the soul.

Here is my latest creation....

Thanks again for visiting Meaningful Living Now. I would love to hear about your creative experiences so please feel free to leave a comment.

In love and light,

Christine

For the pattern for this Poncho, please visit creator Patti Gonsalves of Dandelions Dreamers.

   
   

   

Themes of the Past Can Give Clarity to the Present

     Feeling the need to purge and doing a little Spring cleaning (OK, Fall cleaning) I started to go through my books.  I never get rid of books.  I go through every other area of my house fairly consistently, except for my bookcases.  I love my books and I can not imagine letting go of any of them.  So I found it odd that I had the "urge" (which for me, is another word for message from intuition) to go through my shelves of books and pull out the ones I no longer want/need.  I guess you could say that I have an eclectic collection of books.  Everything from romance novels to books on medieval castles.  As with most book lovers, I consider all those pages stacked side by side on the shelves, my friends.
     As I began going through the top shelf of one bookcase, pulling out the books to be given away I became nostalgic. Memories of when I had purchased a book came back to me along with the memory of what I was going through emotionally, spiritually or physically at the time.  I could see how when I got excited about a subject I would buy several books on the topic and find out all I could about the concept or technique.  Mystery, romance, self-improvement, weight loss, relationships, exercise...the list goes on.  I soon realized that I was looking at a sort of history of my life.  Each book and topic represented a time of exploration and a time of growth.  It was similar to looking through an old photo album and remembering who you were "back then".
     One theme that seemed fairly constant was that of writing.  I have many books titled "How to Write (fill in the genre)".  I have books on how to awaken your creative side of writing, books on character development and even the beginnings of many books I had started to write.  As this blog represents I still have the desire to write and it was amazing to realize how long I have had this dream. 

     If I had ignored the "urge" to clean out my books I would have never gone through my "photo album" of books and realize that writing for me is not just a dream, writing is my life purpose.  Writing is what my heart has desired to do since I was a little girl and has carried on through adulthood (as my book collection is witness to).  I can't believe that I have not seriously acted on my desire to express myself through words sooner.  I'm still not sure which genre I am destined to write, so for now I will continue to follow my "urge" and keep writing this blog.
     Living in the past is never recommended, but taking a quick look back to see if there are any themes running through your life can be eye opening. Take a moment to walk down memory lane and for a clearer picture, this time be an observer not a participant  I found confirmation of my life purpose when I took a glimpse at the past.  What will you find?

     Thanks for reading this blog and sharing my dream with me.  Please feel free to comment and share what you find when you take a look back.

In love and light,

Christine

P.S.  I could never bare to part with my historical romance novels.  They have saved me many times and hold a special place in my heart.