“The work of a mature person is to carry grief in one hand, and gratitude in the other, and to be stretched by them.” ~ Tim McKee

There is something powerful about the space that lies between our two full hands. Between our grief and our gratitude lies our hearts—and this is where we do our hardest work. This space of tension has the power to transform you, if you can let it. ~ Stephanie Moors

This week’s intention is FORGIVENESS. Forgiveness is full of heart opening, honesty, humility and vulnerability. I have found that those who forgive freely are those who have been forgiven much. Experiencing true forgiveness, whether deserved or not, opens the heart to hope and freedom.

“Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of courage.” ~ Brene’ Brown

Do you struggle with anger? Well really, who doesn’t? What’s interesting is anger is a secondary emotion, just the tip of the iceberg of all our original sources of unresolved pain: hurt, humiliation, betrayal, abandonment, abuse, and rejection.

Identify who has made you angry or resentful.
Identify what was taken from you.
Decide now to forgive that person.

When do you think you’ll be ready?
The longer you carry the anger, the greater the risks,
and you may lose sight of the original source.

Who can you forgive today?
It may be even forgiving yourself.

Be honest with yourself…what are you feeling deep down inside? Under the anger. Under the rage. Under the numb “I don’t care, it doesn’t matter.” Are you really feeling scared? Hurt? Abandoned? Go more deeply into yourself and your emotions than you have ever gone before. Be more honest with yourself than you have ever been before. The way to the heart is tender, soft, gentle, and honest. The way to the heart is to be vulnerable. You don’t have to be so brave. You don’t have to be so strong. You don’t always have to walk away with your head held high saying, “I can handle this, I’ve been through worse before.” Become angry if you must. Feel your rage if it’s there. Go numb once in a while, if you must. Then take a chance, and go a little deeper. Go way down deep inside. See what’s there. Take a look. Risk being vulnerable. ~ Melody Beattie

Forgiveness Meditation ❤️

Reflect for a moment on that quality we call forgiveness. Bring into your mind, actually into your heart, the image of someone for whom you have some resentment.
Take a moment to feel that person right there at the center of your chest in the heart center. And in your heart say to that person: “I forgive you for anything you may have done in the past, either intentionally or unintentionally, through your thoughts, words, or actions that caused me pain. I forgive you.”
Slowly allow that person to settle into your heart.
Don’t judge yourself for how difficult it is.
No force, just opening slowly to them at your own pace. Say to them: “I forgive you. I forgive you for the pain you caused me in the past, intentionally or unintentionally by your thoughts, your deeds, your words. I forgive you.”
Gently, gently open to them. If it hurts, let it hurt. Gradually open to that person. That resentment, that incredible anger, even if it burns, ever so gently though. Forgiveness.
“I forgive you.”
Let your heart open to them.
It is so painful to hold someone out of your heart.
“I forgive you.”
Let your heart open just a bit more to them. Just a moment of opening, of forgiveness, letting go of resentment.
Allow them to be forgiven.

Now, opening more to forgiveness, bring into your heart the image of someone from whom you wish to ask forgiveness.
Speak to them in your heart. “I ask your forgiveness for anything I may have done in the past that caused you pain, either by my thoughts or my actions or my words. Even for those things I didn’t intend to cause you pain, I ask your forgiveness.”
“For all those words that were said out of forgetfulness or fear. Out of my closed-ness, out of my confusion. I ask your forgiveness.”
Don’t allow any resentment to hold yourself closed, to block your reception of that forgiveness. Let your heart soften to it. Allow yourself to be forgiven.
Let yourself be freed.
Let that unworthiness come up, that anger at yourself-let it all fall away. Let it all go.
Open to the possibility of forgiveness.
“I ask your forgiveness for whatever I may have done in the past that caused you pain. By the way I acted or spoke or thought, I ask your forgiveness.”
It is so painful to hold yourself out of your own heart.
Bring yourself into your heart. Say “I forgive you,” to yourself. Don’t reject yourself.
Using your own first name, in your heart say, “I forgive you.” Open to that. Let it be. Make room in your heart for yourself.
“I forgive you.”
All those resentments, let them fall away.
Open to the self-forgiveness. Let yourself have some space.
Let go of that bitterness, that hardness, that judgement of your self.
Say, “I forgive you.” to you.
Let some glimmering of loving-kindness be directed toward yourself. Allow your heart to open to you. Let that light, that care for yourself, grow.
Self-forgiveness.
Watch how thoughts of unworthiness and fears of being self-indulgent try to block the possibility of once and for all letting go of that hardening.
See the freedom in self-forgiveness. How can you hold on to that pain even a moment longer?
Feel that place of love and enter into it.
Allow yourself the compassion and care of self-forgiveness. Let yourself float gently in the open heart of understanding, of forgiveness, and peace.
Feel how hard it is for us to love ourselves. Feel the pain in the hearts of all those caught in confusion. Forgive them. Forgive yourself. Let go gently of the pain that hides the immensity of your love.
Let yourself love and be loved.

Adapted from A Forgiveness Meditation ©1991 Stephen Levine

There is freedom in forgiveness. 

I forgive you, and I forgive myself, and I am free. ❤️

I decided a few months ago to ditch the Post-it® notes and reduce the reminders. For decades, I thrived on structuring my days and completing tasks deemed important. My practice of yoga kept encouraging me to let go of control, to let life flow naturally — just like with the breath. So, I gave up the lists. I began to really see and sense what mattered most in the moment. I became more present and alive. Situations seemed to unfold better, and I actually accomplished some extra projects along the way! Yes, I also completely spaced an important appointment — that ended up rescheduled for the perfect time! 😊 I am learning to trust Divine nudges and timing, and to focus my energy.

“There is a time to be open, almost unfocused, as we take in what the world, the universe, is showing us. There is a time to get out of our heads and quietly take the journey our hearts lead us into — following with the openness and wonder of a child. But there also comes a time to aim our attention and focus our energy on what we want to accomplish. Instead of floundering with scattered thoughts and possibilities, we choose one, then act on it. We stay in step with the natural rhythm, but we’re pulling our scattered attention together and focusing it as part of that rhythm. To do that, we may have to work through or push away inner distractions. Moving through our inner obstacles enables us to accomplish our goal — whether that’s a task, a particular piece of work, or learning a new hobby. Is there something you want to do? Is your heart urging you to learn something, accomplish something, go somewhere, do something? Make it a goal. Focus your energy.” ~ Melody Beattie

What is the fire in your heart that has become dim, because you’ve been consumed with day to day life? Let go of the minors, and focus on the majors. Intend to make a difference in this moment. As we say in yoga, the energy flows where the attention goes! ✨

“When we focus our energy towards constructing a passionate, meaningful life, we are tossing a pebble into the world, creating a beautiful ripple effect of inspiration. When one person follows a dream, tries something new or takes a daring leap, everyone nearby feels that energy; and before too long they are making their own daring leaps and inspiring yet another circle.” ~ Christine Mason Miller

“You must learn poise, soul-balance and poise, in a vacilating, changing world. Claim My power. Use it ceaselessly. You cannot ask too much. As long as you get back to Me and replenish after each task, no work can be too much. My Joy I give you. Live in it. Bathe your Spirit in it. Reflect it.” ~ God Calling: Relax, January 15

May you go with the natural flow, yet focus your energy. Pursue your heart’s passion. Make a difference in this world. You are strong & capable of ANYTHING! ❤️

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Mandala is a Sanskrit word meaning circle or spirit. The mandala appears in all aspects of life: the celestial circles we call earth, sun, and moon, as well as conceptual circles of friends, family, and community. “Each person’s life is like a mandala, a vast limitless circle. We stand in the center of our own circle, and everything we see, hear and think forms the mandala of our life. Everything that shows up in your mandala is a vehicle for your awakening. From this point of view, awakening is right at your fingertips continually. But it’s up to you whether your life is a mandala of neurosis or a mandala of sanity.” ~Pema Chodran

Our intention for this week is to invite more interconnectedness, compassion and wholeness into our lives. Yoga Sutra lll.24 (maitryadisu balani) teaches the cultivation of friendliness creates inner strength. Experiencing healthy compassion and lovingkindness toward ourselves and others strengthens our interconnectedness and sense of well-being. I love this passage from The Message, “So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.” (Colossians 3:12-14, MSG)

“We typically think of our emotional range as something that is fixed and unchanging, a reflection of the personality we’re born with. But research is revealing the possibility that we may be able to cultivate and increase our ability to feel the emotional state of compassion. Researchers have found that feeling connected to others is as learnable as any other skill.” ~ Kelly McGonigal

💮 Where and with whom in your life can you experience more interconnectedness and wholeness, lovingkindness and compassion?

💮 Personal transformation occurs in circles, not rows. Who’s in your inner circle, supporting you, yet challenging you to grow?

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Awakening Compassion Guided Meditation

Gently close your eyes. Roll the shoulders up, back and down. Take 3 deep breaths. Place your hands in a comfortable position. Settle in.

Imagine the horizon spanning through your chest with a radiant sun rising in your innermost center—your heart. As though being melted by the solar warmth, release tension in your shoulders and across your throat. Soften your forehead and rest your attention inward on the light deep within. Take 3 smooth, even breaths. As you inhale, invite the glow from your heart to expand toward the inner surface of the body. With each exhale, let the light recede. Take another 3 peaceful breaths.

Attuning deeply to your heart center, offer compassion to yourself, honoring your journey wholeheartedly, dissolving all self-judgment, shame and guilt naturally.

As you embrace yourself compassionately, you enhance your ability to offer lovingkindness to those you care for deeply, embracing both their positive and challenging qualities.

Bring into your heart the image of someone you care for deeply, releasing any expectation of how they should be, creating a space of openness in which their transformation, and yours, can occur more easily. Take a full, deep breath.

As you offer compassion to yourself and to those you care for deeply, you gradually develop the ability to offer compassion to those with whom you experience separation or difficulty.

Bring into your heart the image of someone you find challenging, perceiving their authentic being rather than focusing on their actions and beliefs. Take a full, deep breath.

As you hold this person within your heart of compassion, clearly see that all of their actions are based on a need for love, support and security, even if those needs are expressed inappropriately.

By seeing this person compassionately, your feelings of judgment, anger and resentment are released more easily, allowing you to see this person and yourself more objectively, while creating safe and appropriate boundaries. Take a deep, cleansing breath.

Now, open your heart of compassion to all beings, honoring each person’s journey, recognizing that all of us are moving, within the limits our our understanding, toward a vision of love, peace, freedom and joy.

Affirm your growing compassion, repeating the following intention 3 times, aloud or silently: With a heart of compassion, I clearly see that we all share a journey toward love, peace, freedom and joy.

Take a full, deep breath. When you are ready, open your eyes, returning slowly and gently, sensing your heart of compassion guiding your journey.

~ Adapted from Mudras for Healing and Transformation by Joseph and Lilian Le Page

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💮 Continue to radiate love and compassion, expanding your life mandala. 💮

Always Into Love by Danna Faulds

On this voyage of
the soul, may we be
bridge builders,
our common ground
visible beneath the
surface differences.

May we braid the
threads of reconciliation
into a chain of possibility
that joins, heals, and
includes what once
seemed separate.

May our shared prayer
be answered: to grow
so open that there is
no “them” or “us,”
only the One, moving
always into love.

“Take time to develop a vision. As above, so below. First it happens in spirit. Then it manifests in the physical. Not the other way around. First we see a vision. Our soul tells us through the words and eyes of our heart. Then the steps become clear and we see the order in which they should be taken. We waste so much time and effort when we try to accomplish something before we have envisioned it. Learn to let the vision come first. Take time to shape it in spirit before you try to shape it in physical form. If you can’t see something clearly, the vision may not be complete. Take the time you need to think about it, to let it come into focus, to let the vision take shape in your mind. Operating from vision will guide us onto our highest path. It will also make our life and work much easier.” ~ Melody Beattie, Journey to the Heart

Take time to develop a vision for all you want to do. Let your vision guide you. When it manifests itself first in spirit, the physical form will follow.

“Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others.” ~ Jonathan Swift

The Open Door  
A door opens. Maybe I’ve been standing here shuffling my weight from foot to foot for decades, or maybe I only knocked once. In truth, it doesn’t matter. A door opens and I walk through without a backward glance. This is it, then, one moment of truth in a lifetime of truth; a choice made, a path taken, the gravitational pull of Spirit too compelling to ignore any longer. I am received by something far too vast to see. It has roots in antiquity but speaks clearly in the present tense. “Be,” the vastness says. “Be without adverbs, descriptors, or qualities. Be so alive that awareness bares itself uncloaked and unadorned. Then go forth to give what alone you can give, awake to love and suffering, unburdened by the weight of expectations. Go forth to see and be seen, blossoming, always blossoming into your magnificence.” ~ Danna Faulds

Wait. Wonders are unfolding. Cultivate silence. God speaks in silences. A silence, a soft wind, each can be a message to convey My meaning to the heart, though by no voice, or even word. Each word or thought of yours can be like a pearl that you drop into the secret place of another heart, and in some hour of need, lo! the recipient finds the treasure and realizes for the first time its value. Individual efforts avail nothing. It is only the work of the Universal Spirit—My Spirit—that counts.” ~God Calling: The Secret Pearl

Recharging Mudra Flow

We give so much of ourselves everyday and in every way. Remember to take time to meditate, to listen, receiving Divine love, peace, wisdom and strength. Continue to develop your vision and be a radiant offering and blessing to others!

Mudra = seal; an action taken to lock in an intention.
1. Inhale in Anjali (offering) mudra at heart center. 2. Exhale as you cup hands into Kapota (Dove, gesture of peace) mudra. 3. Inhale as you bring fingertips inward to create the budding of a flower. 4. Exhale into Pushpanjali (offering of flowers) mudra; representing your offering or service to others. 5. Inhale lifting hands into Padma (lotus, openness & growth), receiving & recharging in Divine love. 6. Exhale drawing all from above into heart center, Anjali mudra. ♡

You are opening up more and more. You are becoming clearer each day. Embrace the changes taking place. They are good. They will last. They will take you and your life to someplace new, someplace you can’t fully imagine now because it’s so different from where you have been…Things that used to bother you, hold you down, hold you back, will roll easily off you. Problems that used to plague and pester you, making you feel weighted down, will be lifted easily. You will know and trust that the answers you need will come to you. Your powers will increase. You will find yourself doing, knowing, and feeling things that you thought only certain others could do. You will find yourself gliding through life in a way that brings you joy, and touches and heals others. You will laugh a lot. And yes, you will cry a lot, too, because an open heart feels all it needs to feel. But you will not think twice about your emotions. You will feel them with the purity of a child and the wisdom of a sage. You will see, touch, taste, and feel life’s magic in a way you never imagined. You will love, and you will be loved. And you will learn that it is all the same. You are open now, more open than you’ve ever been. Trust the process and trust your heart. The journey is not in vain. Its purpose is to lead you to love. ❤️ ~ Melody Beattie

Reflection: What parts of this reading resonated with you in this moment? This week’s intention revolves around OPENNESS: being open to new experiences, possibilities, adventures, being willing to let go of doubt and fear, and with bold faith and trust, saying “yes!” to your heart & soul’s deepest longings.

Oftentimes, to allow something new in–to create space–we need to let something go. What do you need to let go of? Exhale fully and let it go. Release your grip. Feel the freedom. Let go in order to move forward.  Inhale deeply and embrace the openness, the limitless opportunities.

Maybe you can relate to these powerful song lyrics by Danny Gokey.

Tell Your Heart to Beat Again

You’re shattered
Like you’ve never been before
The life you knew
In a thousand pieces on the floor
And words fall short in times like these
When this world drives you to your knees
You think you’re never gonna get back
To the you that used to be

Tell your heart to beat again
Close your eyes and breathe it in
Let the shadows fall away
Step into the light of grace
Yesterday’s a closing door
You don’t live there anymore
Say goodbye to where you’ve been
And tell your heart to beat again

Beginning
Just let that word wash over you
It’s alright now
Love’s healing hands have pulled you through
So get back up, take step one
Leave the darkness, feel the sun
Cause your story’s far from over
And your journey’s just begun

Now, absorb the words of this heartfelt poem by David Whyte.

Sometimes

Sometimes
if you move carefully
through the forest,
breathing
like the ones
in the old stories,
who could cross
a shimmering bed of leaves
without a sound,
you come
to a place
whose only task
is to trouble you
with tiny
but frightening requests,
conceived out of nowhere
but in this place
beginning to lead everywhere.
Requests to stop what
you are doing right now,
and
to stop what you
are becoming
while you do it,
questions
that can make
or unmake
a life,
questions
that have patiently
waited for you,
questions
that have no right
to go away.

Turn inward and listen. What are your tiny, but frightening requests, conceived out of nowhere, but in this place beginning to lead everywhere?

You are open now, more open than you’ve ever been.
Trust the process and trust your heart.
The journey is not in vain.
Its purpose is to lead you to love.

Returning to the intention: Being open to new experiences, possibilities, adventures, being willing to let go of doubt and fear, and with bold faith and trust, saying “yes!” to your heart & soul’s deepest longings.

Forget all the reasons it won’t work, 
and believe the ONE reason that it will. ❤️

Headlong Into Love by Danna Faulds

I slip into the swift river of grace
the moment I stop trying to control
my fate. The current takes my
breath away, leaving me amazed
at the release. Use me up, I say.
Smooth my rough edges
until I offer no resistance to the flow.

Within the enclosure of my open heart,
may awareness wake and take aim
at my last attempts to grasp the known.
I pray to give myself over to a strength
that isn’t mine, to be carried by the
energy of change and evolution.

I pray to tumble headlong into love
and not reach out even once
to try and break the fall. ❤️

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“Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” ~ Isaiah 43:19 NKJV

 

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✨ Yoga Nidra For New Beginnings ✨ Say YES to Divinely inspired desires. ❤️