Qualities of Being Blog Posts - Making the Most of Our Capabilities

Exciting news! The Wind Is My Mother is now an audiobook

The Wind Is My Mother, which I co-authored with my teacher Bear Heart is now an audiobook.

Read by Native American actor Larry Winters, the audiobook carries the same meaning and depth as the physical book.

The Wind Is My Mother; The Life and Teachings of a Native American Shaman was first published in 1996 and translated into 12 languages. Still in print after 22 years, it is considered an “evergreen” in the publishing industry: a book that goes on selling for years because of its timeless message.

.Here’s what I wrote in the Epilogue added in 2012:

Earth Day: Time to Mend the Sacred Hoop

“Everything is part of the Sacred Hoop and everything is related. Our existence is so intertwined that our survival depends upon maintaining a balanced relationship with everything within the Sacred Hoop.” Bear Heart

Earth Day is the perfect day to focus on the Sacred Hoop of All Creation and how to establish a relationship with the natural world around us.

In indigenous cultures, the circle is sacred — when we sit in a circle there is a spirit of oneness and everyone is equal.

The elders teach that the universe is in harmony as long as the Sacred Hoop, the circle of life, is intact.

What if everything is a call to prayer?

“What if everything is a call to prayer?

These were the words my good friend and spiritual mentor, Rev. Marchiene Rienstra, posted on Facebook recently. Here is her full post:

“I grew up in Pakistan and India, where five times every day, the call to prayer would ring out from a nearby minaret. I have often wished that we had that kind of reminder to turn our hearts and minds to God in this country.

“But recently I was struck with this thought, one I hope you ponder with me:“WHAT IF EVERYTHING IS A CALL TO PRAYER?

Feeling stuck? Let the great Marcus Aurelius motivate you!

Marcus Aurelius, best known by his portrayal in Russell Crowe’s epic film, Gladiator, was actually a real-life Roman Emperor. In the film, we only saw Marcus as a dying old man who served mostly as a plot device to initiate Russell Crowe’s journey from beloved Roman legionnaire general to a slave gladiator. But in history, Marcus was one of the most acclaimed Roman rulers. And a philosopher as well.

What can we learn from the legend of Atlantis?

What can we learn from the legend of Atlantis? What is Atlantis?

Around 360 B.C., the Greek philosopher Plato wrote of a highly spiritual, moral society and a technologically advanced utopian civilization that existed 9000 years before.

But the citizens became greedy, petty and “morally bankrupt.” As a result, the gods “became angry because the people had lost their way” so the gods sent a “terrible night of fire and earthquakes” that caused Atlantis to sink into the sea.

There is no evidence to back up the legend of Atlantis, yet the story refuses to die!

Whatever the truth, Atlantis is both a warning and a hope as we enter an age of reawakened spirituality.

Ancestral trauma: Whose grief is it, anyway?

It’s happened to many of us: betrayal by a friend or lover in whom we put our total trust, leaving us grief-stricken. But whose grief is it, anyway?

Because it may not all be ours.

It happened to me about 20 years ago: my best friend decided she didn’t want to be friends any more.

Nothing particularly happened between us. She just reconnected with an old high school friend and decided she’d rather be best friends with her than me.

I got dropped like a sack of rocks, leaving me heartbroken.

New Moon, New Beginning

When I was a young school girl, I always thought of the start of the school year in September as a new beginning.

And of course there’s the New Year, on January 1, which is also a new beginning.

But since then I’ve learned what indigenous people have always known: every month can be a new beginning on the new moon.

Why we should stop before starting

In today’s hurry-up world, people often start the day in a rush so as to get everything done. But I’d like you to consider why we should stop before starting anything.

Clearing, balancing, reviewing will actually give you a better start to the day, or any activity, than rushing into it.

Here are some examples of stopping before starting:

Teachings from Bear Heart

Here’s the replay of my February 2, 2018 interview on Living the Present Moment. We discussed Teachings from Bear Heart.

Winter Solstice: the time to increase our light

This year the Winter Solstice is Thursday, December 21, 11:28 am Eastern Standard Time.

It’s the shortest day of the year because there are fewer daylight hours than any other day.

But the good news is that from this point, daylight will get longer day by day.

The Ancients, and still many indigenous people today, mark this day with bonfires to honor the return of the light. It’s also a way of inviting the return of the light.

The Law of Attraction at work.

There is a lot of suffering and confusion in the world right now, so this is a really good time for us to pull ourselves up and let our own light shine, too.It’s the shortest day of the year because there are fewer daylight hours than any other day.

But the good news is that from this point, daylight will get longer day by day.

The Ancients, and still many indigenous people today, mark this day with bonfires to honor the return of the light. It’s also a way of inviting the return of the light.

The Law of Attraction at work.

There is a lot of suffering and confusion in the world right now, so this is a really good time for us to pull ourselves up and let our own light shine, too.

The Christmas Book Flood. Why not here?

There’s a lovely tradition in Iceland that I would love to see embraced here in the U.S. In Iceland, the best Christmas gift is considered a book. It’s traditional to exchange books on Christmas Eve and spend the night reading them!

Iceland publishes more books per capita than any other country in the world, and most sales take place between September and December, in preparation for Christmas gift-giving.

The name of this Icelandic tradition is Jolabokaflod, meaning “The Christmas Book Flood.”

I can’t think of a better gift! I love books, and read voraciously. In fact, I can’t fall asleep at night without doing some reading first.

So here are some books you might consider giving as gifts, if Black Friday and Cyber Monday didn’t already tap you out:

Things that get better with age

A friend recently emailed me this article about things that get better with age. It’s uncredited, and when I researched where it might have come from, I found it all over the internet!

I never found an author credit, and I certainly don’t take credit for it. But these simple wisdoms can certainly lift our spirits at a time when we need all the inspiration we can get.

I hope you enjoy it!

When thoughts and prayers may not be enough

We live in a time of upheaval, confusion and great cruelty. It’s a time when sending “thoughts and prayers” is criticized as not enough. And it well may not be.

I write an inspirational blog but these days it’s been hard for me to write uplifting posts about the law of attraction, manifestation and maintaining a positive attitude when the news is filled with more and more tragedy on a daily basis.

Speaking for myself, I often feel angry and helpless. And I struggle to maintain a positive outlook. You may feel the same.

Is there a light at the end of this tunnel?

How to be someone who can attract what you want

This is a guest post by Rebecca Temsen on how to attract what you want in life:

Whether you have read “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne or you have heard friends speak about the Law of Attraction, you may be wondering how you can really attract what you want in life.

Could something as simple as “believing in something” or “knowing it will happen” make our lives better?

It may seem like a tall-tale, but the law of attraction may actually work.

Here are some practical and easy-to-understand ways in which the law of attraction works:

Why the Solar Eclipse is just what we need right now

There have been a lot of articles recently about the upcoming solar eclipse.

For the scientific perspective, here’s a good article from NASA

But I’d like to share a spiritual perspective, which is what many of us are looking for.

Why this? Why now? What does it mean?

To bring the sacred into everyday life, start with a sacred kitchen

To find the heart of any home, the place where joy is born, where people feel nurtured and healed, nourished and comforted, look no further than the sacred kitchen.

Not being much of a cook, I never had much appreciation for kitchens. Living alone, I usually only have to cook for myself and always keep it simple.

When I attended Native American gatherings where women were typically involved in food preparation, I always demurred and preferred physical outdoor labor such as chopping wood and carrying water.

But that all changed after a profound experience I had while attending a Sun Dance ceremony in the southwestern U.S. some years ago.

My new Video course: Meditations on the Natural World

I’m really excited to tell you that my new meditation course, Meditations on the Natural World, is now available.

Meditation can help anyone struggling with:

Stress and anxiety

Health issues

Productivity

Sleep

Pain

And much more

Having taught meditation for years, I’ve learned that most people who have struggled with meditation just need to:

A Healing Meditation from Molly

This four minute healing meditation is a great example of the fact that meditations do not have to be long to be effective in bringing peace of mind. It is followed by a 20 minute talk I gave at Unity Church of Grand Rapids entitled “Is the Invisible World the Real World?”

Falling off a horse and ho’oponopono

How does falling off a horse relate to ho’oponopono? My riding instructor explained it to me.

“Horses don’t throw you, you fall off.”

Those were the words of my riding instructor every time I landed on the ground uttering the oft-repeated phrase, “the horse threw me.”

What she meant was that if I went off the horse, it was because I wasn’t paying attention to signals the horse was giving, or wasn’t seated well. Because if one is paying attention, and is well-seated, you will stay on no matter what the horse does.

I find this an apt analogy for how to go through life well.

An exciting new book about Maya shamanism!

My teaching partner, John Kralovec, has just released his book about his 35 years experience with Maya and Native American shamanism: Pathways to the Divine; One Man’s Journey Through the Shamanic Realm of the Ancient Maya. If Maya shamanism is of interest to you, I highly recommend it.

Here is the book description from Amazon:

Over the course of his thirty-five-year spiritual journey, Otto John Kralovec III has studied and participated in ceremonies with shamans and indigenous spiritual leaders throughout North America, Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras.

Now, he vividly captures his inspiring personal shamanic odyssey toward his encounter with the Divine, supplemented by the latest anthropological findings on the ancient Maya, to guide us on a path back to the Source.

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