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Use This Visualization to Help Hurricane Victims

I believe in the power of a united vision to make a difference in the world. When we shine our collective lights on any portion of our planet, we become greater than the sum of our individual parts and can co-create miracles together. The dismantling of the Berlin Wall was one example of the power of group consciousness to manifest a positive change in the world.

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, many of us hear the call in our hearts and souls to reach out to the survivors who have lost so much. So we send what we can to those who are providing physical and psychological assistance to hurricane victims. We open our communities to receive the displaced and the homeless. We pray for them. And we wonder if there is more we can do to help.

There is something else you can do to make a positive difference: You can join in Spirit with those who are envisioning healing, comfort, and solace for the many who are suffering in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

New developments in quantum physics tell us we are all a part of the same "unified field of consciousness." This means that your thoughts and mine ultimately form one great whole. The implications of this theory are vast. For example, it suggests that as more of us practice holding peaceful thoughts, we can create a critical mass that actually impacts the behavior of the whole.

Over the past twenty years, scientific research has documented the relationship between group meditation in various cities in the U.S. and Canada, and significant reductions in traffic accidents, suicides, violent crime, and even unemployment. These studies have been replicated numerous times, and published in scientific peer-reviewed journals.

When we employ visualization, we form a collective field of consciousness with the unified intention of creating positive transformation. Here is a process for using the power of imagery to assist those whose lives have been affected by this disaster.

As you follow this process, keep in mind that it isn't necessary to see things clearly when you visualize. Some of us feel or sense things more than we picture them in our imagination. However you do it is okay.

A VISUALIZATION TO AID HURRICANE VICTIMS

1. Sitting comfortably with your back straight, close your eyes and begin breathing slowly and deeply.
   
   
2. Imagine there is a beautiful beam of light coming down from the center of the heavens directly into the top of your head. This light is pure, positive energy. It is the light that creates worlds. The light of perfect peace and unconditional love. The light of Source. The light of well-being.
   
   
3. Sense this light filling your body from head to toe. Feel it enlightening and enlivening each cell. Experience it as soothing and relaxing every part of you. Allow it to penetrate to the deepest level of your being. Open to receive its blessings, its loving presence.
   
   
4. Next, experience this light as pouring out of your heart, and going to all of those who have been impacted by Hurricane Katrina--survivors, rescue workers, and the relatives and friends of victims. Imagine the light from your heart spreads soothing, upliftment, healing, and comfort to each one it touches.
   
   
5. Now send your heart-light to the entire U.S. Gulf region, blanketing the land, and all life--including people, plants, and animals.
   
   
6. Next imagine things as you would like them to be for the hurricane survivors. For example, picture them as thriving, living abundant, joyful lives. Let your imagination soar here. Be light-hearted with this process. You needn't know how these things will come about--simply visualize all of the good that you desire for these people, as if it is already a reality. Remind yourself that the better you feel as you envision the changes you desire, the more helpful you are to the hurricane survivors.
   
   
7. Whenever you are ready, come back slowly and gradually, and open your eyes.

Eve Delunas, Ph.D., offers proven strategies to help you rise above your limitations and soar. Read "Breaking the Spell of the Past"–book and guided visualization CD set. Take a free quiz to find out if you are spellbound by your past. Download a free guided meditation to relieve stress and feel more peaceful. Sign up for a free monthly ezine called "Awakening Inner Vision: Resources for Enlightenment."

"The Inspired Heart"

When I was in my early twenties, I remember understanding well the song by Cat Stevens that spoke of ties and possessions: "Well I ain't got nothing, but it don't worry me, I came to this life like a free walking tree; no need to be tied, no need to be–they call me Jzero." Several times in my life I've been through that scenario, having lost everything–but in retrospect, gaining everything. It gives you a new start.

Jerry Wennstrom was born in New York in 1950. "I don't have much of an impressive bio," he admits. All I could do was paint, and because there was nothing else that I could do very well, painting was what I most identified with as a human being. It didn't hold though. I let it all go, became nothing, and found everything."

After destroying all of his art and giving away everything he owned, Jerry began a life of unconditional trust, allowing life to provide what was needed. He lived this way for 15 years, wandering, seeking and listening, and then finally began his art again, from a very different perspective. His book, 'The Inspired Heart - an Artist's Journey of Transformation,' tells of a life driven by a singular requirement: to remain fearlessly attuned to the heart.

"It was a powerful, holy experience that left me shaken and empty, but exhilarated," says Jerry of the destruction of his works. Free to seek and discover a meaning to his life, Jerry found plenty and writes movingly and profoundly about his journey.

I like to read the last page of a book first, then go back and take my time, knowing how things turn out. Jerry just trusted how things would turn out. Anyway, these are excerpts from the last page, as he sums up...

"We are at a rare time in the history of our world. Consciousness is attem[ting to come through the spirit of our lives. It brings with it all that we need to live out its gift. At the same time, our old ways of being on the planet are beginning to fail. Our social forms and structures are radically changing and breaking down. Our mopther, the Earth, is ailing! We are truly in uncharted territory.

"Perhaps the Holy Fool in us trusts that this, too, is God. The light could not exist except in relation to the dark. When we hold this Fool's vision, we can begin to see that where we stand now is holy ground, perfectly in place under our feet, ready for our next step in a meaningful direction. This unknown, mysterious universe will show us the way that it needs to go!"

And, "A time may come when you are asked to let go of everything you think you are and all that you think you possess. If you can give yourself to this process, what will emerge will be a truer self in a truer world. All that is most important to you, all that seemed to be impossible or gone forever, will be sanctified and returned to you. This is the wisdom of the Holy Fool!"

What comes before is an inspiring read.

A video of Jerry's life and work, "In the Hands of Alchemy," is available from Parabola. Jerry is available for film showings, speaking engagements, and workshops with his wife - singer and adult education teacher, Marilyn Strong. His web site is JerryWennstrom.com.

The Pickle Jar

Taking the coins to the bank was always a big production. Stacked neatly in a small cardboard box, the coins were placed between Dad and me on the seat of his old truck. Each and every time, as we drove to the bank, Dad would look at me hopefully. "Those coins are going to keep you out of the textile mill, son. You're going to do better than me. This old mill town's not going to hold you back." Also, each and every time, as he slid the box of rolled coins across the counter at the bank toward the cashier, he would grin proudly, "These are for my son's college fund. He'll never work at the mill all his life like me."

We would always celebrate each deposit by stopping for an ice cream cone. I always got chocolate. Dad always got vanilla. When the clerk at the ice cream parlor handed Dad his change, he would show me the few coins nestled in his palm. "When we get home, we'll start filling the jar again." He always let me drop the first coins into the empty jar.

As they rattled around with a brief, happy jingle, we grinned at each other. "You'll get to college on pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters," he said. "But you'll get there. I'll see to that."

The years passed, and I finished college and took a job in another town. Once, while visiting my parents, I used the phone in their bedroom, and noticed that the pickle jar was gone. It had served its purpose and had been removed. A lump rose in my throat as I stared at the spot beside the dresser where the jar had always stood. My dad was a man of few words, and never lectured me on the values of determination, perseverance, and faith.

The pickle jar had taught me all these virtues far more eloquently than the most flowery of words could have done. When I married, I told my wife Susan about the significant part the lowly pickle jar had played in my life as a boy. In my mind, it defined, more than anything else, how much my dad had loved me. No matter how rough things got at home, Dad continued to doggedly drop his coins into the jar. Even the summer when Dad got laid off from the mill, and Mama had to serve dried beans several times a week, not a single dime was taken from the jar. To the contrary, as Dad looked across the table at me, pouring catsup over my beans to make them more palatable, he became more determined than ever to make a way out for me. "When you finish college, Son," he told me, his eyes glistening, "You'll never have to eat beans again - unless you want to."

The first Christmas after our daughter Jessica was born, we spent the holiday with my parents. After dinner, Mom and Dad sat next to each other on the sofa, taking turns cuddling their first grandchild. Jessica began to whimper softly, and Susan took her from Dad's arms. "She probably needs to be changed," she said, carrying the baby into my parents' bedroom to diaper her. When Susan came back into the living room, there was a strange mist in her eyes. She handed Jessica back to Dad before taking my hand and leading me into the bedroom. "Look," she said softly, her eyes directing me to a spot on the floor beside the dresser. To my amazement, there, as if it had never been removed, stood the old pickle jar, the bottom already covered with coins. I walked over to the pickle jar, dug down into my pocket, and pulled out a fistful of coins. With a gamut of emotions choking me, I dropped the coins into the jar. I looked up and saw that Dad, carrying Jessica, had slipped quietly into the room. Our eyes locked, and I knew he was feeling the same emotions I felt. Neither one of us could speak.

This truly touched my heart. I know it has yours as well. Sometimes we are so busy adding up our troubles that we forget to count our blessings.

Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person's life, for better or for worse. God puts us all in each other's lives to impact one another in some way. Look for God in others.

"The best and most beautiful things cannot be seen or touched - they must be felt with the heart" --Helen Keller

- Happy moments, praise God.
- Difficult moments, seek God.
- Quiet moments, worship God.
- Painful moments, trust God.
- Every moment, thank God.

[Contributed by Claude Lebel]

Choose What You Want In Life!

"You don't have to buy from anyone. You don't have to work at any particular job. You don't have to participate in any given relationship. You can choose." -- Harry Browne

Choice. It's all about freedom--the freedom to pick one thing over another. Are you choosing what you want from life? "Oh no," comes the reply. "I can't because... I haven't got enough education... I need to look after my family... I don't have enough money... I don't have the time." What's your excuse?

The truth is that we have choice in every single moment of our lives. For those who are destitute, the choices in life are fewer. But the rest of us often think we don't have freedom when we simply haven't claimed our power to choose differently. How do you typically make decisions? Do you do so based on:

• "shoulds" - doing what you believe you should do.
• pleasing others - doing what others want or expect you to do.
• fear - choosing the safe route for fear of doing something different.
• habit and reaction - you don't even think about what you're doing–you've always done it this way?

• desire - choosing something you want
• need - responding to deeper desires
• authenticity - you know who you are and what you stand for
• creative expression - you strive to be more.

1. Be clear about what you want. Have a sense of purpose. With a target to aim for, you'll know what will serve you best.
   
   
2. Stop and ask yourself questions: "Why am I doing this? What do I want to achieve?" Write down your answers. Be more conscious of how you are spending your precious time, because this is your life passing by. This will help you say, "Wait! I don't want to do this anymore!"
   
   
3. Never allow yourself to play the victim. Victims have given away their power. You alone are responsible for your life. When you fully accept this, you will claim your inner power to make better choices. Change often comes from nothing more than a shift in perspective.
   
   
4. Be open to possibilities for yourself. Select one area of your life where you are unsatisfied, and choose something new, something more for yourself. Do different things and do things differently. Risk more.

Patrice Steen and her partner John Robson have developed over 40 in-depth personal development workbooks, email programs and worksheets to cover all of your personal growth needs. Higher Awareness is a membership site: you get everything they offer for a ridiculously low membership fee of only $19/month. Highly recommended by all of us at Trans4mind.

Do Not Fear Being Alone

One reason why so many people in this world continue to stay in unhealthy relationships is because they are afraid of being alone. They would rather be with someone that mistreated them or caused them discomfort than to be by themselves. So instead of perhaps waiting for the right person to come along, they grab hold of the person that is available right now. They might overlook some defect of character to simply fulfill their need for company. This can create a monotonous life pattern for the individual involved.

We are given periods of being alone for a reason. It is part of a healing process for some and for others it is a part of waking up to look at truth and reality. When someone avoids this period they never complete the process and therefore carry with them unnecessary baggage or resentments with them into the next relationship they are presented with.

A lot of times we discover that being alone can really just be a state of mind. Being alone can actually have benefits to us especially after a period of difficulty. It allows the time that we need to reflect on what just occurred in our lives. We can kind of stand back and look at ourselves from an outsider’s perspective. We can look at our roles in relationships. Maybe we performed in a manner that was not beneficial to us. Maybe we took on more responsibility than what was necessary.

Taking these moments to reflect can allow us to re-evaluate our wants and needs in a partner and most important in ourselves. We can look beyond our circumstances and gain a fresh perspective on where we would like to be in our future. We can think about what and who we would want to become. We can look at where we want to go. We can re-evaluate what priorities are the most important to us and look at what priorities have changed.

We can take the time to develop our character and regain any strength that may have been challenged along the way. Know that our periods of being alone never do go to waste. They merely prepare us for whatever greatness lies beyond our own conceptions and they prepare us for moments worth the wait.

Artist and inspirational author Meilena Hauslendale's work and articles are displayed internationally. She is the founder of Silence Speaks International Artist Association and the Editor of Intrigue Magazine. Published books include, 'Making Your Purpose Your Business' and 'Recognizing Unhealthy Relationships.'

The Vibrant Moment

Are you alert? Clear? Focused?

Those of you who missed Marcia Yudkin's "6 Principles of Clear Business Thinking" teleseminar have a chance to see - for free - what clear, creative thinking looks like, as it happens. I asked Marcia if I could share her 6 principles with you and she said yes. In fact, you can read the exact process with which she came up with her 6 principles. It all happened in one single, email message written to me.

She starts the message knowing nothing, and ends up... knowing everything. Her creative mental process is absolutely beautiful. Your mental process can become useful, helpful and beautiful. Your authentic mind needs more attention and more love so that you can manifest what is in your heart and soul.

The reason that I love to teach you The Process, rather than just give you The Answers, is to help you use more of your natural talents and innate skills. If you learn The Process, which means the "How," then you can do anything you want to do all by yourself.

Of course you learn from experts, that is the best way to learn anything. However, never lose sight that the goal is to become your own expert. You can get your own precious, personal, beautiful answers.

I learned marketing from Marcia, the expert. Then I took off and did my own thing. You can do your own thing. If you learn the process then you can get your own answers.

The most important thing I want you to know right now is that a creative, clear mind can solve any real life problem. Let this fact comfort you. I had a great time sharing information and points of view with Marcia's mind and I know this type of information can help you learn how to use more of your mind for self actualization instead of for self destruction.

Use these 6 principles with your job, with your relationships, with your soul's desires. You can be effective and get the results that you want. Her six principles are listed just as she came up with them... in process... so enjoy studying her creative mental process. This is how you want to use your own mind.

Go here to get Marcia's 6 Principles of Clear Business Thinking.

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