Friday, December 27, 2013

Receiving the Gift of You

Guest Blog by Susan Dumett

You are the most valuable gift there is.

No matter who you are, where you are or you current circumstances your presence on this planet matters. Your words have value. Your love, your laughter, your wisdom, your talents and your ideas are needed.

In fact, in this moment, your unique perspective, character, creativity, compassion, heart and intellect are absolutely essential to the fullness of life right here, right now, as we all know it.  The proof is simply that you exist. 


With every word, with every deed, you send out an energetic ripple that has both immediate and lasting effect. In every single moment, you radiate a unique and beautiful energetic presence. Whether intentional or unintentional, your energy immediately impacts whomever you happen to be engaged with, and is carried by and shared by that person with whomever they interact with, and so on. 

No matter your history, no matter your self-effacing stories or any pain you carry inside, you have touched more people in positive ways than you can ever know. That touch, your touch, is beautiful, unique and valuable because it comes from you—and whether you believe it or not, its reach can be infinite.  

Even in your darkest hours, your presence has value and meaning. In the darkness there is always something to take notice of, to explore, and gather information from. When we allow ourselves to be present to our shadows, we create space for calling forth something deeper in our selves and in others. 

We create space for transformation. It can be easy to think that asking others for help is a burden, but in actual fact, that too is part of the gift of you. It may offer an opportunity for someone to step forward and be of service, or return a favor, or recognize something in them selves. It might even give them an opportunity for them to exercise their right to say No, or Yes

The gift of you can deliver in ways you can’t even imagine. Behind every inspiration and every challenge there is deep wisdom and creativity, waiting to be mined and used to shift old paradigms and ways that no longer serve your highest and best good. This is when profound healing can occur. When you are present to that fact, and allow it to be true for you, you give a gift to yourself and to others. 

It can be hard to digest that our presence can make such a difference. There have been many times in may life when I 
felt too damaged or unworthy to matter much at all. Seeing and appreciating the gift of others is often quite easy. Seeing and appreciating the gift of who we really are can be incredibly challenging. But it doesn’t have to be.
The trick is letting go—of thoughts and behaviors that reflect and contribute to duality and separation. This means letting go of tendencies to focus on the negative and allow your self to see, feel, experience and enjoy the positive, in even the simplest of things. It means breaking habits that involve analyzing and criticizing your self and others, and letting things simply be, as they are, warts and all. It means letting go of the past, and not letting it define you. It means stopping worry about what may or may not happen  the future. and just being present to what actually IS, in this moment. 
In this moment, will you choose to dwell on a self-deprecating thought or look outside and notice the patterns and textures on a tree trunk or the wall of the building next door and remember that your eyes, or your ears, or your feet are beautiful miracles? All are miraculous gifts that embody the gift of you. Even the simple validation of listening to your own breathing can shift things. You are alive and because of that you are a miracle too. 
The only thing that matters in this moment is what you choose to do with it. While it can be helpful to understand the history behind why you do things that don’t serve your highest and best good, it’s not as important as your desire, intention and attention to transform these things into thoughts, behaviors and actions that better serve your self and the lives of others. 
Anything less is giving away your power. When you are able to say, enough is enough, I am ready to move beyond (what I’ve perceived) my limits (to be), you begin the metamorphosis—a journey to owning who you really are, and connecting with all that is. As Amma, or Mother, the Hindu spiritual leader known for her great hugs, selfless love and compassion toward all beings, wrote:

The common expression is 'I love you"
But instead of ‘I love you,’
it would be better to say, ‘I am love—
I am the embodiment of pure love.’

Remove the I and you,
and you will find that there is only love.

It is as if love is imprisoned between the I and you.
Remove the I and you,
for they are unreal;
they are self-imposed walls that don’t exist.

The gulf between I and you is the ego.
When the ego is removed
the distance disappears and
the I and you also disappear.

They merge to become one — and that is love.
You lend the I and you their reality.
Withdraw your support and they will disappear.

Then you will realize,
not that ‘I love you,’
but that ‘I am that all-embracing love.

 
In the end, coming to a place of love and acceptance of oneself is the key to everything. When we start to consider that we are a gift—that our lives are a gift and that we are love, we begin to awaken to the Truth.  So go on. Say it.
I am Love. I am Love. I am a valuable gift. My words have value. My love, my laughter, my wisdom, my talents and my ideas are needed right now on this planet.
Dolores Cannon in The Convoluted Universe Book One says, “The awakening is the purpose. The awakening of the fact that in essence we are light, we are love. Each cell of our body, each cell and molecule of everything. The power source that runs all life is light. So to awaken to that knowledge, and to desire to operate in that realm, and to believe that it is possible, are all factors that will put you there.” 
The awakening is not always easy. When you shed old skin, the peeling away can be painful. But it is far less painful to move and grow and open, than to continue to live in the confines of  “not enough” or “not worthy” or “not valid”. Our intellect can entertain the idea that what comes next promises to be better, but our hearts and bodies can still feel fear, the fear of the unknown. We don’t want to leave the pain we’ve become accustomed to without knowing what we’re stepping in to. Fear becomes paralyzing when we resist it. Give up resistance. Ask for help. You many not love every step of the way—but with each step you will learn, grow and emerge. The load will become lighter, the connections more.
Do this because you not only deserve to be nurtured, supported, loved and cared for—you have a right to be. 
But, you have to get out of your own way. Others can help you, but no one can  pull you out of your own rough spot if you aren’t willing to help your self. When we own it and walk with it, walk through it, a shift occurs. We begin to see that we are both more powerful and loveable than we’ve been led to believe—and than we’ve allowed ourselves to be.
How does this all work exactly? At Psychic Awakenings we learn that we are all vibration, we are all energy—and energy can be shifted and changed. Even deep seeded, difficult beliefs and feelings, patterns of behavior (and their consequences) can be shifted: into something more positive, flexible, useful—into a higher vibration. But we have to choose it. We have to be vigilant and consciously change our words, our language, our thoughts and behaviors.

These thoughts and behaviors are usually based on lies and stories we picked up as children or through media and cultural practices and beliefs that don’t serve the highest and best good. They are not true, and they are certainly not true for you. Yet their potency can be paralyzing, if we allow it. We have a choice in this as well. You are, YOU are, more powerful that you know. To tap into this power, begin to do as Amma beckons. Remove the separation between “us”, and “them”, release the habits of judgment, and know that no matter your history, no matter your pain, no matter how many times you’ve f-ed things up, there is nothing wrong with you. 
One of my favorite quotes is by Paulo Coelho in his book Warrior of the Light: “I’ve been through all this before,’ he says to his heart. “ ‘Yes, you have been through all this before,’ replies his heart. ‘But you have never been beyond it.' ”

And so, if you know that something is holding you back, it is time to move beyond. When we talk about living in a higher vibration, it simply means connecting, really connecting to our highest and best heart and mind, our truth, our power. This is the place where you shine the brightest and help ignite and inspire light in others. Use your words, thoughts and actions as intentional expressions of love, kindness and compassion. 

With this as your motivation, there is no room for self-sabotage, self-deprecation or judgment of your self or others. Your heart begins to open with more ease and there is a profound realization that we are all on our own wild trip here, we are all doing our best to navigate both the chaos and beauty.  In choosing to come back to love again and again and again we see the innocent child in every person. 
There is no need to react to the negativity and judgment passed by others, because we understand where it comes from. We understand it is nothing personal. Criticism that comes from you or from others, is a red flag that there is something to heal within. It is a call to remember who you really are:  the most valuable gift.

I am Love. I am Love.
___________________________
Susan Dumett is a teacher at Psychic Awakenings, a Professional Energy Healer and Spiritual Coach for both individuals and organizations, and the Founder/Owner of Iosis Media, specializing in transformational business communications.

Friday, November 22, 2013

Forgiveness: A Powerful Key to Your Happy Holiday Season and Awesome New Year

Guest blog by Wendy R. Wolf

The holidays are wonderful… AND for many of us, they can stir up many old memories, disturbing thoughts and emotions!  Which can make the holidays NOT-so-wonderful, for many of us…

Most of us have tried to forgive in the past, to varied success;  we end up:
  • thinking about it,
  • complaining about it, 
  • feeling crappy & stewing about it, 
  • re-living it, 
  • yelling or crying about it, 
  • TRYING to let go of it!
Although I have been known to indulge in the above activities, I have found another way that Really works for me:  Allowing the ENERGY of forgiveness into my system.  When I spiritually allow-in forgiveness vibration, it magically shifts my energy: my thoughts, my feelings, my Resistance to letting-go of the past, my Attachment to my pain, hurt, anger, resentment and my pictures of what I think I need for a 'fair' conclusion.  All this begins to melt away, and a more delicious experience grows within me, as I let my vibration shift.

For me forgiving others is hard enough, forgiving myself is the really difficult part for me.  What about you?  Trying hard to forgive (myself or others) never got me very far, rather I have found the miraculous power of forgiveness truly is by Grace, not by force of will.  To let in this energy, it can be as straightforward as being grounded and present, then asking for a waterfall of Forgiveness energy from the Cosmos. From here we have the potential to shift, sometimes subtly, sometimes profoundly. This higher vibration can fill us with the blessing of forgiveness, and wash-out all the other detritus. It can be that easy, if we let it.

I'd like to say more about this life-changing process of forgiveness.  The Ascended Master whom I know best regarding his physcial life, is Jesus. And Jesus spoke about forgiveness, a lot actually. One thing he said that kind of wraps-up his perspective for me, is: "in what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged."  I used to think of this saying as a tit-for-tat kind of thing - some judge sitting there, looking at what I did and having me 'reap what I have sown'.  If I was/wasn't willing to share my toy, therefore some cosmic-cop would increase or limit my access to more toys ; )

It turns out that the very-same judgement that I live-in and I allow for others, really is what is applied to me. But, having looked at this psychically for quite a while now, I have a very different perspective on the mechanisms behind this process.  God/the Universe/Karma isn't rewarding or punishing me!  It is a matter of the vibration I am inhabiting.  From my perspective, the waterfall practice/analogy is really powerful here.  What I notice spiritually is: if I am in the waterfall of Forgiveness, all those around me are in it as well.  If I allow you to be in a waterfall of forgiveness, then I am in it too - I have to be!  So what I allow for myself, you get.  What I allow for you, I get.  It is that simple. 

This is not only a tremendous key in our forgiveness process, in my experience, but in all aspects of our lives: love, peace, joy, trust, healing… The vibrations I allow for myself, you get.  The blessings I allow for you, I get.  What an easy, beautiful way to transform our world!

Ok, so back to forgiveness.  The way I psychically read Forgiveness, the vibration is very similar to the vibrations of Validation, Truth, Certainty, Acceptance, Gratefulness, and Healing that is an experience of the Wholeness we Already Are.  This seemed really strange at first, because from a body-perspecitve, from my experiential, intellectual and emotional perspective, these ideas had been very different things for me. But, eventually I realized what they had in common: They are all about 'Being with what IS.'  

Powerfully, spiritually 'BEING with what IS' opens up a whole new world to us.  Many of us are fighting, judging and resisting what IS.  It is can be life-changing to start allowing the energy of 'Being with what IS' to shift our vibration, as well as how we experience ourselves and our world.

At Psychic Awakenings we work with energy, we believe that when we shift our energy (change spiritually), everything inside us and around us changes.   And it does.  We work from the inside-out.  And, at the same time, it can assist us to change our mind, change our heart, change our experience, when we deal with things from the outside-in.  There is much wisdom in the world to support us in this process of' BEING with what IS'.  One that has been a useful tool for me is The Work of Byron Katie. One of her books is called 'Loving What Is'.  From the other side: for years now, I have one of her quotes right by my bed, so I see it when I sleep and when I rise:  'Stop arguing with what IS!' … How Powerful is THAT?!

Ok, so back to forgiveness.  Isn't it interesting to apply the distinctions and power of 'BEING with what IS' to Forgiveness?  Well, I think it is!  What I have noticed, as a psychic healer for the last decade:  at its core, Forgiveness really is fundamentally 'BEING with what IS' on every level of our being. What they did, what I did, what happened, how that affected me, them, the world…. this can just become a FACT, a past-reality; without a big-long story, without a truck-load of emotionality attached.  I really can stop suffering, stop living in the past, and just BE; and I can let them do the same.  Amazingly, the healing progression over time can end up in 'Loving What Is'. It really can. And the process is not because we are a mighty forgiveness machines, or because we power-through it, it is by allowing the spiritual gift of forgiveness.

I would enjoy sharing so many more blessings about forgiveness, for ourselves, for others; but that is enough for now.  I hope you and your world are continually blessed by letting-in waterfalls of forgiveness. And I trust some of the things I said above can assist you to move along in your process of allowing forgiveness: for yourself and for others.  I pray you are that much more open to savor a Happy Holiday Season and an Awesome New Year!

If you would like to enjoy a meditation together with others on this theme, utilizing the waterfall of forgiveness, and several other distinctions and spiritual practices that I have found really work in our letting-go process;  I am grateful to be leading a session on Monday, November 25, 2013, 7:00 PM to 9:15 PM in Lower Queen Anne. To register: http://www.meetup.com/Psychic-Awakenings-Seattle/events/148344262/

Blessings on your unique path, Wendy


Wendy R Wolf is Assistant Director at Psychic Awakenings, Professional Healer, Reader and Spiritual Teacher since 2005.

Friday, October 25, 2013

Believe It or Not, You're Already Psychic!

People hold some very strange stereotypes about psychics: that they know what everyone is thinking, that they can predict the future, that they can move objects without touching them and that they can cast spells over people.  Well, to be able to do all of these things would be a very tall order indeed!

Being psychic is far more subtle than that.  Being psychic is just being sensitive to and aware of the subtle energies that surround us.  Your physical body is a very sensitive receiver, or in other words, you can physically feel other people's emotional energy.  The most obvious example is when someone is directing their anger onto you.  It might feel like sharp, little jabs all around you, or it might feel like a hard punch to the stomach.  In any case, it feels very uncomfortable.  Depending on your nature, you will want to fight, take flight, or freeze.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is being able to feel someone directing love energy towards you.  There might be a warmth to it, and a feeling of being connected or "on the same wavelength."  If you are not interested in receiving that person's love, this energy will make you feel annoyed or smothered.

In both of these examples, the other person's anger or love energy entered your own private space, which you physically felt and reacted to.  Much of what we feel everyday is other people's energy in our personal space.  It is very common to exchange energy with the people around you.  But at the end of the day, it is best to clear your head and your space of everyone else's opinions, demands and expectations.  This is important so that you can know who you are, what you think, and how you feel.  It is empowering to feel clarity about yourself and your situations.

By developing your sensitivities (i.e., your psychic abilities), you can learn how to tell which energy and thoughts are your own, and which energies and thoughts have been directed at you from someone else.  You can become aware of those energies as soon as they enter your personal domain.  If you are interested, you can take it another step further and learn how to perceive or "read" other people's energy even before they invade your space with it.  Think of it as "people watching" and being able to get validated for your observations. 

Developing your psychic abilities involves much personal growth.  You have to let go of your preconceived ideas about people and situations. Your judgments hinder your ability to read clearly. Whether you consider yourself a "psychic" or not, being consciously aware of energy, protecting your personal  space and having a strong sense of self are valuable skills to have. 

- Madeline Hartman

Friday, March 1, 2013

Creating Change

You can't make yourself change.  And you won't change during the times you are feeling comfortable.  The best you can do is create space for change to happen (by releasing old energy).  And then wait for the [expletive] to hit the fan. That's when you'll change, dear friend. I guarantee it.  If you don't, you'll just have to do it all over again.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Magic, Miracle and the Art of Manifestation


There is nothing magical about being able to deliberately manifest a happy, productive, meaningful life.  Like learning any new skill, manifestation techniques require practice.  This "practice" consists of becoming aware of and working with energy.  What energy am I talking about? The energy of your thoughts, emotions, beliefs, attitudes and decisions.    The energy from all of these things work together to form the foundation of how you experience your physical life. 


Manifestation is not about getting rich, finding Mr. or Mrs. Right, and living happily-ever-after. It is the process of waking up to how you can consciously create your life. It starts with learning how to recognize your own energy from other people's energy in your personal space.  The second step is learning how to release this foreign energy out of your space.  The third step is developing your own clarity of what you really value, what you really feel, and who you are really.  This is a process of growing self-awareness which results in feeling more authentic, genuine, and self-confident.  You'll slap your forehead and say "Where have I been all my life?" 

It takes years of practice in order to master conscious manifestation.  It's when you've reached a mastery level that other people perceive and label you as magical because they don't see the work that you have put into it.  Just like an Olympic ice-skating performance seems effortless, magical and miraculous; with a lot of practice, so can your life.