Yutori

The Japanese have a word for the beautiful concept of  spaciousness...Yutori. 

Writer and story coach Sally Fox describes it as: 
living with enough time and enough space to allow the world to fill you, often in simple ways.

Seems easy enough to do, doesn’t it?  But so often we find ourselves rushing to an event or appointment arriving exactly on time or, perhaps, even a few minutes late and, thereby, leaping directly into the scheduled activity, missing the beautiful ambiance of the moment.   And, yet, it is in this wondrous and mystical ambiance that the world speaks to us and fills our souls with the energy of every element that is a part of each scene we enter.

We live truly enchanting lives.  Each new setting we find ourselves in holds vibrational  character and potential personal impact.  Each setting is just waiting to interact with us having been assembled by the Divine Universe to address the issues we care about and are concerned with.

But we must trust our hearts to be the connectors, inviting them to listen, see and feel the moment.  Every living thing has an animating spirit.  Every animating spirit exists to support our journey.  All we need do is invite and engage the support we seek.  We are surrounded by thousands of opportunities, by animating spirits excited for us, joining together to help us evolve.  Everyone and everything is BREATHING this joyful ministry.

Messages are waiting to be delivered to inspire and motivate us. The scent of a beautiful flower may evoke a tender feeling in our hearts.  The sight of a child’s playfulness can remind us of the purity and power of authenticity.  The coldness of the steel we touch may evoke the memory of a news report of immigrant children sleeping on cement floors.  Any or all of these moments may stir our hearts to take action in the direction we wish to grow.

But to SEE all of this, to not pass it by we must invite each moment of our day to speak to our hearts and we must create the spaciousness for this to happen.  We must pause in our valiant efforts of DOING to choose BEING instead.  Being present.  Walking into a moment and breathing it into our hearts.  Feeling ease.  Seeing the love and support awaiting us.  Inviting the spirit and beauty of all things to engage with us in our SPACIOUS lives. 

YUTORI



                                                      Marie Helena


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Starry Night Sky and Girl Art - Watercolor Pri

Footprints

Remember wherever you go or whomever you have contact with… you leave your footprint.

                        Dan Pokora

On a balmy and beautiful day at the beach one of the most fascinating evidences of energy we encounter is the intriguing pattern of footprints left in the sand as individuals pass by on their way to the next destination.  Where are they going?we might wonder and, equally interesting, Where have they been?

We don’t have the details of their stories to tell us  their plans or what they have experienced but we do have the evidence that they were there.

We all leave “footprints” when we are in motion or even standing in place.   They may not be clearly visible as in the sand but they are profoundly sensed and felt by the hearts of all who pass by.

As I muse about this energetic messaging, I wonder what kind of “footprints” we might be leaving to register in the hearts of those we encounter? 

When we are feeling light and relaxed, we undoubtedly scatter golden flecks of happiness which, by their nature, fly free with sweet abandon celebrating whatever energies cross their paths.   It is truly delightful to release these beautiful vibrations in every direction when we are in a happy place.  

But suppose we are burdened by an upsetting encounter, by the surprise appearance of one of our old negative patterns we have yet to release, or by the pressure we feel of trying to meet someone else’s expectations.  What would these footprints  feel like to someone who encounters them?

I believe there is a way for us to keep our footprints in the beautiful space we aspire to and it involves holding a sacred trust with ourselves.  Even though we may still be experiencing or processing an uncomfortable or irritating situation, if we live our lives with authenticity… honoring ourselves…we will feel confident in our ability to be and to express our true selves. And there is a beautiful peace in knowing that we do not have to carry the burden of hiding our feelings and that we will find the opportunity to express them in the best way we know how. 

In this way, we live  in the radiant space of holding the intention to honor ourselves and, therefore, our footprints…indeed, everything that we emanate…will reflect that place of self-trust.

Knowing that when we are ready, we will speak our truth with a gentle and confident authenticity which produces a beautiful energetic vibration.  A vibration that everyone who encounters us will want to tap into.

This is how the “footprints” we leave help lead others into their own authentic journeys.

We are all traversing this life together, leaving pathways for each other as we come into a knowing of Who We Really Are:   Authentic souls honoring the whisperings of our individual hearts.

Footprints.

                                         Marie Helena

image:

Footprints in the Sand ideas

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The BLOSSOMING of Our Lives

You are all as much extraordinary phenomena of nature as say trees, clouds, the patterns in running water, the shape of fire, the form of the galaxy.                           

Alan Watts
                                                   


We have all become so very adept at noticing what is "wrong" with ourselves...that we're not quite good enough...that we fret and worry...we make mistakes, poor choices ...have lapses in judgment.  And this is because we have all been, as Alan Watts puts it, "bamboozled" into attempting to live up to others' values and expectations instead of finding our own path to paradise.


But, you know how soulfully we revere aflower...

which breaks the earth when it is ready in sleepy nods, 
stretches to the sky under the watchful eye of the sun and beautiful breezes,
blossoms open in perfect resonance with nature's invitation,
generously releases its delicate scent upon the surrounding spectators...


Watts says we are every bit as extraordinaryas that gorgeous phenomenon of floral magnificence...doing its thing...BEing a flower... 

as WE authentically act from deep within our own hearts.



We do not judge the flower for its flower"ness" nor criticize its moves.  There is no floral bashing.  Nothing for the flower to be chastised for.

A flower is what it is...a flower.  And a flower does what flowers do.

And Watts is saying that WE ARE what we are...physical specimens, human beings...and WE DO what human beings do.  We sing, we play, we strive, we stumble, we rejoice, we grieve and it is...all of it...our Journey. 

Our wonderful, magnificent Journey!



Whatever we are doing…it’s part of what’s going on and Watts says it’s Time to Wake Up to this and adapt the Japanese concept of Judo which means The Gentle Way.  

Watts advises...Do not condemn, criticize, judge yourself…but rather accept that this is part of the flow.  Accept this. In Watts' words...Go along with it.  Go along with it.


And, while we are doing what humans do, while we are BEing extraordinary phenomena of nature, I feel we need to celebrate ourselves...all of us...all of ourmoves...every one...

for in those moves we are growing, shedding,embracing, becoming, remembering...doing what we do...as do the flowers, the trees, the clouds, water, fire, the galaxy.


The moves we make are not missteps though we may perceive them to be. 

They are the unfolding...and, in some cases....the unraveling...they are 
The BLOSSOMING of Our Lives...and they are, every step in every direction, magnificent opportunities for our evolution.



WE are a manifestation of the Journey to beauty and joy and truth...

and every move we make in the direction of that glorious goal is what we are innately designed to do...grow...learn...and...Love.

                           Marie Helena 




image from sketchbookchallenge.blogspot.com

Of Magic Wands and Messages

Every one of us has A MAGIC WAND. I imagine it as an air-light, golden baton with a dragonfly at the tip and beautiful fairy waiting for instructions.

Our magical wand performs whatever we request.  

Just as the orchestra conductor directs his musicians, we influence the flow of the sacred and precious gift of our ENERGY. 

We can direct our energy vibrations into a slump downwards if we think negative thoughts…if we worry, complain, feel anxious.

Plunk…there it goes. “Now who made that happen?” we ask.



We can also take the wand and swing it UPWARDS into higher vibrations…by noticingwhat is beautiful all around us and feeling gratitudefor our gifts…by expressing love and compassion to the earth and its inhabitants…by noticing the baby toad crossing our path as we walk…by hugging trees and smiling at the sky.


Oh, yes, WE are the ultimate maestros…with our baton poised to move into action at any second.

The question is: what MESSAGE (music) are we giving to our energetic flow?



Here are some beautiful ways to use this fascinating inheritance.


If we are feeling an ache in our body, we can send that spot a surge of this powerful force.  

We can also direct this gift to others. If we envision ourselves as a clear crystal, we can reflect our beautiful light and energy outward...to help with someone’s healing.

We can also send our energy into the world to use wherever it is needed.


With this EXQUISITE GIFT in our possession, it is so important to be aware of HOW we are using its magic.


Don’t forget to don your magician’s cape today and make a conscious choice about the messages you are broadcasting to yourself and the world!

                             Marie Helena

animated image courtesy of WEBWEAVER'S FREE CLIP ART

Hot Pink Gloves and the Boomeranging Bands

Last Monday I sat waiting in my podiatrist’s office for his nurse to take an impression of my feet for a new set of inserts for my shoes.  I have cuboid bones that randomly like to “relocate”, launching parties of misalignment, inviting my knees and sacrum to go rogue and join in the fun.  Needless to say, my visits to the podiatrist (though wonderfully philosophical) are serious and necessary.  So, on this day, I was expecting a rather scientific procedure coming my way when in walked the doc’s nurse waving hot pink rubber gloves in the air which matched none of her attire and, therefore, seemed incongruous and rather hilarious.

It wasn’t long before I could see how perfectly they suited her persona because she immediately launched into a vaudeville routine as she began the work of preparing me for the impression.  As she delightfully performed for her audience of one, she made a point of warning me that the black elastic bands she was about to use to secure my plaster booties have been known on occasion to boomerang off the walls.  As if to highlight their adventurous nature, the black cords sported a blue bauble on them and I was struck by how prettily they accented the hot pink gloves even while I could hardly keep from laughing as every comment she made seemed to outdo the humor of the previous retort. 

Now, mind you, I was supposed to be sitting still and relaxing during this procedure and this was no easy task since the doc’s nurse was so funny and entertaining.  After she finished her work on my feet, she ceremoniously took an elegant Shakespearean bow at the doorway and invited the doc back into the room, announcing him as the next act with an excellent vaudeville-worthy introduction.

OMG, I thought...what great fun this was!  The energy...the delight...the unexpectedness of it all.  I found myself wishing I could program my entire day in this exhilarating vibration and then wondered...why not?  Of course I could do this.  The routine performance of our daily tasks usually feels like punching a notch on our to-do belt.  You know...that heavy belt that grows more cumbersome as the day progresses.

Where are our hot pink rubber gloves?  Our boomeranging black elastic bands? Our Shakespearean bows?  The FLOURISH of ourimagination?

Tomorrow I awake with a new Shakespearean mantra:

The game’s afoot.  Let us have pomp and circumstance!



                                                   Marie Helena

image from moziru.com

Mary Oliver’s Question

“

What are you going to do with your one wild and precious life?

          Mary Oliver

                          

Yes.  Your one wild and precious life Mary Oliver describes is being lived through a pandemic.  You are being challenged with discouraging and disruptive issues.  Physical, intellectual, emotional trauma.  But it is YOUR “one wild and precious life”.  And it counts.

What are you going to do with it?

You are going to start with facing the reality of what is.  You are going to use your considerable emotional intelligence to see FOR YOURSELF what there is to know.  Not blindly follow the interpretations of others nor the exaggerations and hyperbole of their theories.  

You are going to ask YOUR heart how it wants to respond and see what brings you calm and peace.  What action you can take to make a difference in this devastating experiment your soul has volunteered to be a part of.  

You are going to recognize the profound significance of your participation.  The depth and intensity of this moment.  And the glorious opportunity you have to support, encourage and influence others.  To work with your global family to collectively move planet earth into a new dimension.

Yes.  It is a wild and simultaneously precious time.  There is work to be done.  And you are here to do it.

                                                  Marie Helena

Image from i.pining.com

The Road Less Traveled*

The Medal...The Prize…The Goal...

The Achievement!!!

The supreme “reward” of reaching our goals exists today as an intense cultural value.  And getting to those goals faster and more efficiently than ever before is considered the capstone of achievement.  The world worships and adulates evidence of this mastery.

But what have we really mastered?

We have learned to be so singularly focused on the prize that we are not aware of the beautiful, engaging experiences we are passing through.  Instead, each moment  recasts itself as a steppingstone to the end goal...something to be managed, dealt with, overcome.  

And we spend great effort and time conditioning ourselves for our performance so that we can endure even while sustaining physical, mental and emotional stress.

This is not a story of beauty and gentleness, of calm and connection.  It is a story of effort rather than enjoyment, stress instead of stillness.

There is, undoubtedly, great value in developing our physical prowess, in the accompanying mental agility

and in the determination and  tenacity that makes these accomplishments possible.

But we must not be so completely consumed by the “trophies” of achievement which we feel define us as winners in the eyes of the world.  We must make room for us to also unwind and soften our ambitions to succeed.

Let’s define ourselves just as profoundly as fully awakened to the world’s  breathtaking beauty, to the exquisite joy of hearing its heartbeat as it manifests in the whimsical daisy, the rush of its rivers, the tawny cat curled sleepily on the porch.  And, most especially, to each other as we share the longings of our souls.

As we continue to climb the  metaphoric hills of our lives,

Let us embrace and ENJOY the bountiful and exquisite gifts of the journey.  

The frantic drive to accomplish our goals is man’s interpretation of achieving success in the world.  Relaxing into its natural elegance and  grace is the Divine Universe’s prescription for finding our JOY.

                       😎🌷🦋🐰🌻🐿🌿🪁

                                               Marie Helena

What a beautiful day.  Summer!!! What a gift.   Feel the warmth of the sun as it permeates your  body and feeds the soul. A good time to relax, meditate and listen. 

                                            Dan Pokora

The Road Less Travelled*

Title credited from a book of the same name by M. Scott Peck

floral image: 

Watercolor paintings

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