Even if you're not away on a blissful summer vacation, take a moment now to tap into that energy. Can you stop for just a few breaths and imagine the joy of playing on a sandy beach, swimming in a cool pool, or hiking in Yosemite? Close your eyes, and breathe into it. That's how you can have a little vacation every day, no matter what is going on in your life! Enjoy the rest of your summer, and I look forward to seeing you soon. Blessings,
Connie
MEDITATION & INSPIRATION! a new drop-in group for spiritual awakening, EVERY THURSDAY,
10:45-11:45AM in Palo Alto! Immerse yourself in a weekly experience of returning to your center. With a spiritual message from the ancient wisdom traditions of the world, breathwork practices, chanting, sharing, and 15-20 minute semi-guided meditation, you'll leave feeling renewed and inspired.
BY HEARTFELT DONATION. At SUBUD Spiritual Center http://www.subudpaloalto.org
INTRODUCTION TO SANSKRIT Coming in October at Mind-Body Zone in Fremont!
Stay tuned for details.
One of the most powerful tools I've used in my spiritual growth is writing. Heather has been my coach and inspiration for some of my recent work, and she has some great tips here for getting started with the easiest and most personally transformative writing there is - journaling! Enjoy her savvy and practical tips. ~ Connie
If a man's best friend is a dog, a woman's best friend is her journal. This has become more evident in the past several years since Oprah reinvented journal writing with her popular "Gratitude Journal." As a result, many women, and even men, are journal writing their gratitudes on a regular basis. As someone who has kept a journal throughout my entire life, and through spiritual awareness, I too have shifted the way I write in my journals.
One thing to keep in mind is that journal writing provides us the option of choosing what to write based on two possible thoughts: positive and negative. Because the words we pen are a reflection of our thoughts, desires, and soul, through journaling we transfer our thoughts from our minds to paper. These thoughts often become our realities. Why? Because the result is that the thought that was once in our minds is now etched on paper, and this practice transfers them to our subconscious minds. Therefore, if our journaled thoughts have the tendency toward the positive, then it will follow that our lives will perpetuate in being positive.
As portrayed by Samantha, the protagonist in my fictional law of attraction novel, The Universe Is My Sugar Daddy, changing negative "venting" journal writing to positive "goal setting and dream making" journal writing can literally change attitudes and lives. Many journal writers use their journals to vent—be it about their date last Friday night or their job on Monday morning—it's easy for many people to find things to complain about. We often use journals as a private place to release our experiences. But as Samantha discovers, all of the negative thoughts only continue to create the same situations over and over. When Samantha has this epiphany, she buys a Positive Journal and only writes about positive events in her life. And, as the law of attraction allows, her life begins to unfold in brighter ways.
For many though, opening to a blank page in a journal can be intimidating. But the opportunity invites us to put our dreams and goals to paper. Something about thinking them and also writing them down makes them more "official." Documenting thoughts on paper is the equivalent of releasing them from our unconscious, which allows us to make them more real. Positive journal writing reminds us of what a healthy mental release it is and how important it can be in organizing our thoughts, feelings and plans.
The environment you write in can sometimes make or break your ability to journal. I know a lot of people who love to cozy up in bed and journal just before turning off their light for the night. Others relish in writing over a cup of coffee or tea in the morning as a way to jumpstart their day. If you have a nook by a window or a garden outside, these are lovely places to relax and write. I used to take my journal to a park across the street from where I lived in Virginia...there was a great little bench under a big tree where I'd sit and write. It felt like a mini-vacation!
Journaling Tips
If you're someone who is intimidated by a blank page, consider trying some or all of the following tips by writing:
Three good things that occurred that day (even the littlest things count).
Write about time when you overcame adversity (stick to the positive side of it!).
Write about your favorite part of your personality and how it helps you connect positively with others.
Keep a log of the healthy foods you ate that day, and/or any exercise you did, then add to it the emotions you felt while doing it.
Find an old picture and write about the positive emotions that emerge from looking at it.
Three affirmations, such as: I am loved, I am healthy, I am dedicated, etc.
Three things you're grateful for, such as: I am grateful for my home, I am grateful for the friends in my life, etc.—the proverbial "count your blessings."
Create an inspirational place to write -- light candles, fluff the pillows, pour a cup of tea.
Three future goals, this might look like:
Within five years, I'd like to be/do/have _______________.
Each one of the entries can be short notes and sentences. You can even repeat the same thoughts one day to the next—the idea is that you will feel grounded and thankful after writing them down. And again, go back and reflect on your entries. In order to truly reflect and benefit from journaling, the more you can elaborate on your thoughts, the better. But everyone is different and shouldn't feel pressured to write more than what's comfortable for them. Some people start out with just a few lines and eventually build up to full paragraphs within time. Going back and seeing where you started to where you are in a month or two can be rewarding in itself.
When considering the art of journaling, consider what is put to paper as having the potential of being created...and when it is, you'll have your journal entries to reflect on and relish in later.
Heather Hummel is an award winning author of Gracefully: Looking and Being Your Best at Any Age (McGraw-Hill, 2008), The Universe Is My Sugar Daddy (PathBinder, 2009), and Through Hazel Eyes (PathBinder, 2008). Visit her website at www.HeatherHummel.net
Spiritual
Quotes
If you go with the conviction that no matter how much good you do to the world, no one will say anything good about you, you will never be disappointed. ~ Mata Amritanandamayi
The power of open systems is not a property one can own, but a process one opens to. ~ Joanna Macy
If therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be filled with light. ~ Jesus, Matthew 6:22
THE DIFFERENCE
One Person Can Make A World Of Difference. 6,000 People Can Make A Different World.
One ordinary, everyday woman with an incredible vision for humanity... daring the seemingly impossible.
6,000 difference makers across the world sharing the vision and touching the lives of 6 Billion.
An extraordinary film destined to open humanity's heart.
A global community uniting to co-create a different world.
How does one person make a difference in other people's lives, in the world? THE DIFFERENCE is a remarkable film intending to bring this to light. Connie is one of the collaborators on an endeavor poised to inspire millions around the globe. What to learn more about this unprecedented project? Go to THE DIFFERENCE website: http://thedifference.tv/
MEDITATION & INSPIRATION - EVERY THURSDAY 10:45-11:45AM in PALO ALTO! January began a special group to support your spiritual growth.! Join me for weekly renewal through meditation, breathwork, chanting, an inspirational message, and community sharing. Location: SUBUD spiritual center, 330 Melville Ave (near the corner of Waverly), PALO ALTO, just off Embarcadero. By Heartfelt Donation.
Schedule for June and July:
July 1st - NO GROUP
July 8th - NO GROUP July 15th - group meets
July 22nd - group meets
July 29th - group meets
August - all groups scheduled to meet
September - new time coming up!
9:30-10:30am after Labor Day
TUESDAY CLASS SCHEDULE FOR JUNE AND JULY:
Due to family matters and vacation time, I will have some subs in the upcoming weeks. Here's the current schedule for the next two months: July 6th - Heidi subs
July 13th - Connie
July 20th - Connie
July 27th - Connie
There's so many DOWNLOADABLE YOGA CLASSES on Yogi Chocolate, I can't list them all here! Not just yoga classes, either - I have lectures on Sanskrit and Yoga Philosophy, too! Check them out here: http://www.yogichocolate.com/teachers-bio.php?u=1149
FREE MEDITATION CLASS on my website...
Check out the 30-minute meditation class ("Meditation Class #1") from Awakening Self! You don't have to download it - just click, play, and listen on my CD page HERE.
WOULD YOU LIKE CDS OF MY CLASSES, INSTEAD OF DOWNLOADS? Email me and let me know... I may have them available for the Chakra series soon! Connie@AwakeningSelf.com
DON'T
MISS AN ISSUE OF AWAKENING SELF! Make
sure that connie@AwakeningSelf.com is on your allowed list entry on
your spam filter!
Share Awakening Self with a
friend! Forward this newsletter to them,
and they can subscribe at any time by clicking this
link: SUBSCRIBE
HERE
The Seasons
of Yoga:
Bring on the Water! (cooling practices)
After the ignition of the hottest season of the year in June, most of us now try to put that fire out a bit. Temperatures rise, and this causes real problems when our bodies become overheated.
Nature has provided us with some good remedies for cooling body and mind. Many water-laden fruits and vegetables are available now to help quench the body's thirst. Many of us love the taste and experience of cold watermelon on a hot summer's day. Sweet melons are known to be some of the most cooling foods one can eat. Just remember to eat them alone - melons digest so quickly that they cause indigestion when mixed with other foods that are slower to break down, and can cause toxins to be created in the colon.
It's no secret that we should be drinking plenty of water itself to keep our inner coolant flowing. We know that if our cars run out of water or coolant, we some big damage results from overheating. Make sure you're taking care of your own internal combustion system and balancing it with plenty of filtered or bottled water.
In India, one of the most refreshing drinks I experienced was fresh coconut water, right from the coconut. It's hard to find the same quality of coconut here in the US, but if you do and can crack open one without spilling the milk, it can go a long way to soothing an overheated body. So can fresh lime-ade. Lime is known to be more cooling than lemon: add some fresh lime juice to water, put in cane sugar to taste, and you have another great cooling option.
For vegetables, sweet and water-laden choices like winter and summer squash, zucchini, sweet potato, and pumpkin are cooling according to Ayurveda. Veggies can be lightly sauteed in olive oil or steamed for easier digestion. But at this time of year, digestive fire is so high that you can also enjoy many salads and fresh, raw veggie snacks, such as carrots, cucumber, and celery to keep you cool. Essentially, even if we are of other body-mind types, when we're overheated in the summer, following a Pitta-calming diet as recommended in Ayurveda is helpful for most of us.
Some people experience accumulated heat from the day during the evening, often before bed, and can feel feet, hands, and even the face or other parts of the body hot and swollen. Cool foot baths, washing down the face and body with a cold, wet wash cloth, and wearing a wet t-shirt to bed in extreme heat help lower temperatures and improve sleep on those hot summer nights.
Some cooling choices for yoga practice? Think expansion and openness. Compression tends to heat things up (think about pressure cookers!), so postures that gently and passively open the body help cool it down. You can set up a supported Bridge Pose to help release excess heat from the mid-torso region, where it tends to accumulate in the body. Fold a couple blankets so they are long and slightly narrow (but wide enough to cover the width of your back) and lie over them. Slide your shoulders softly onto the floor, until the chest and stomach are receiving a gentle backbend opening. Keep your knees bent to release the low back and keep it neutral. You can find a decent photo of this pose (here, with the hips elevated on a block) at this website (scroll down to Supported Bridge): http://www.athleta.net/chi/2009/06/17/training-
for-a-century-ride-part-2/
Wide-leg forward bends help release heat from the body and calm the mind. This includes seated and standing variations of wide-leg forward bends, such as Prasarita Padottanasana (standing) and Upavistha Konasana(seated angle). In general, avoid overheating through your practice!
At the end of your day, you may find it helpful to release the blood and stress that can build up heat in the feet by taking the legs up the wall, into Viparita Karani. This can be done by sitting with one hip against the wall, then turning onto your back as you swing the legs up against the wall. Scoot away from the wall to whatever degree it's necessary to allow the legs to straighten easily. Then, enjoy the release of pressure in the feet and the reversal of circulation, which can rejuvenate, cool, and calm body and mind. Remember that heat tends to expend our energies, so any restorative poses are generally good at replacing those lost resources from the blazing day.
As you go off to sleep, you may wish to imagine a cool shower of water, a trickle or a refreshing waterfall,flowing down over you from head to toe, washing out not only the heat but anything you want to let go of, leaving you refreshed and relieved. Let it wash away thoughts, emotions, and worries, allowing inner and outer coolness to prevail. Thank the water element for giving you this wonderful reprieve as we continue our journey through summertime.
